The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1849-02-08

river. He employed enterprsng man don Jaque
Clamorgan) TO undertake the dscoverya great reward
in land being offered to Clanorgan, and gratuity o.
three thousand dollars promised to the first who
should see the Pacific ocean. Ii miscaned, although al
hundred men sat out upon the expedition.
lie British, owning large possessions IN North Amerl-
ca, having IN VAN endeavored TO find north west passage
TO Asia, turned their eyes inland in the hope that they
would be able To discover the CONT
nent and Mr. Alexander Mckenzie who was afterwards
knghed for The energy and aithfulness with which he
conducted an enterprise for that purpose, the
fu undertaken He taversed the continent that por-
ton OF 1t belonging to Great Britain lying in high lati-
ude reached the sea- but pointed to the Columbia river
as the only desirable route the other side of the
alns and that was the OF all the long efforts made
by The British government first TO make the Columbia
boundary between us, open to the navigation OF each,
and afterwards to obtain lis free navigation. An inland
commercial route across the continent what she
wanted.
When acquired Louisiana, Mr. jefferson revived
this idea OF establishing inland communication be-
tween the Two SIDES of the continent, and for that pur
pose the well known expedition of Lewis and Clarke
was sent on, by him Practical utility in the business OF
ile as well as science, was his object To find route
to answer the purposes of commercial communication,
well enlaging the boundaries OF geographical sci
ence, the object and the instructions declared
That expedition successful in finding communca
ton Mr. Jefferson did not remain in power 10 carry
the practical design and no President since his day has
taken II up.
About thirty years ago myself began to turn my at
tenon to this subject and conceived plan Tor the
Mississippi river, and down the Columbia | follow
cd the idea OF Mr. Jefferson La Sale, and others, and
endeavoed TO revive attention to their plans The steam
car was then unknown and California not ours but
believed that static nigh be brought into the
valley OF the Mississippi that line, and wrote essays to
support that idea The scope OF these essays was to
show that Asiac commerce had been The pursuit of all
nations, flom the time of the PhPncans down to
the present daya space of three thousand years that du
ring all this time this had been shifting Its chan
neand that wealth and power followed it, and disappear
last and America It's seat and then expressed
the confident belief that this route would certainly be
esabshed-immedatey, with the aid OF the American
government, and eventually, even without that aid, by
the progress of events and the force OF circumstances.
Occupied with that idea sought to Impress upon others
Looking TO practical issue sought information OF the
country and the mountains, from all that could give
rom the adventurous hunters and traders OF the great
West knowledge was the first object The mature OF
the country--whelher inhabtabe or not-between the
Mississippi and the Paclhcthe passes IN the mountains
the great points of inquiry; and the results
'ost satisfactory; nhab'table country and practicable
1912 that the information took the definite form which
would become the basis of legislation. In the year 1912
Mr.. Fremont solicited and obtained leave to extend his
explorations to the South Pass OF the Rocky mountains
Not for the purpose of discovering that pass tor was
discovered precisely forty ago by the hunters, but
for the purpose of fixing its locality and character AT
that time ii not known whether that pass was within
territory, in Mexican territory. Mr. Fremont,
therefore, wished to extend his explorations to that pass
for the purpose of ascerainng It's locality and character
with a view TO a road Oregon, and the increase OF
geographical knowledge. He was then employed on
typographical duty having just returned from two years
great labor on The Upper Mississippi assistant to the
distinguished astronomer, Mr. Nicolet, who. by his
great eXerons during the five years that he was engaged
there brought posratlon e,hich ended IN his death
Mr. Fremont solicited and obtained from Col Albert the
privilege of going the South Pass and he made his eX
amnaiions there in way to satisfy every inquiry HIS
description of it was satisfactory to all minds and the
reading OF that description now will show the ease with
which the mountain can be passed at that place:
South Pass.
"Aug T. 1912 We left encampnent with the
rising sun As we rose the bed creek the snow
line Of the mountain stretched grandy u.s. the white
peaks serins ia the They had been hidden in the
On he While it amed ON us We crossed ridge, and
again struck the Sweet Water-here a beautiful, swift
stream with open valley, mbered with beech and
cottonwood it now began lose itself in the many small
forks which make its head and we continued up the
main until noon, when we left it few
miles, make halt small creek among
the hills from which the stream issues by small open-
ing Within wasa beautiful grassy spot, covered with an
open grove OF large besch ees, among which found
several plants that had previously The after
noon was cloudy with squalls OF rain but the weather Boz
came tne at sunset when we again encamped on the
Sweet Water, within few miles of the SourH Pass. The
country over which we have passed oday consists prbci
pay OF the compact mica slate which crops out on all the
ridges making the upands rocky and saty In the
cscrments which border the creeks 1t is seen aterna-
ng with Light eolored granite at an incnaon OF Al deg
About SIX miles from the encampmen Brought us 70 the
summit The ascent had been SO gradual that, with all
the intimate knowledge possessed by Carson, who had
made his country his home for seventeen years we were
had reached the eliminating point From the impressions
MIND at this time (and subsequently on our feturn)
should compare the elevation which we surmounted at
the Pass avenue of the Capitol Hill
Washington. The width OF the Pass, or rather the
width Of the depression in the mountains which makes this
gap its chain. about twenty miles, and In that width
many crossing places. Latitude, (where crossed AZ
deg "a min 30 sec longitude, l09 deg. rs min. Eieva
ton above the T. 400 feet Distance from the mouth oil
the kanzas by the travelling route, 9oS miles
distance from mouth OF the Great Piatte oo2 miles,
The whole distance over which Mr.. Fremont passed is
laid down upon his typographical map of the road and
profile map of the travelling route illustrates this de-
scrp,on and shows that the elevation to be surmouned
is distributed long distance that the ascent is in
reality felt in no part
Having returned from that expedition, Mr. Fremont
prompted engage in larger one He sought and
obtained permission to go from the South Pass to the
tide region of the Columbia river, for the purpose
of surveying the country and asceTtainag the practical
bly OF opening communication to what was then our
principal point of possession the Pacific coast He
and in maps, both in profile and geographically. lhe
whole route has been laid down by him in both ways,
and were printed by order OF the Senate. 10 save
less inquiries, will add that these maps not on hand
for dlsiribuon-only a few copies for use.
Returning from that expedition he went to California,
seeking route by which to return home unwilling
to lose any time by going ground over which he
had ever travelled before Believing IN the practcaby
of route further south than the South Pass he under
took to explore route which threw him upon Cal
orna and for the first time made known to the country,
with any accuracy the great features OF the Pacific slope
of our continent. pass by all his great discoveries in
California during that romantic expedition to come to
the immediate object OF my inqulry-new passes in the
Rocky mountans-and show less than three of them
all south of the South Passhe traversed and described
by hun. | say raversed and described; Tor they were
known bcfore-known to the children OF the mountains
panions in all his expeditions Approaching the Rocky
mountains from the west he returned from that