, 1860-02-24
WASHINGTON TERRITORY,
Geographical and Stqh,,;,o,
(coNnNuEp FROM LAST wEEKN
BY THE GATHEREN.

CONTINUED FROM LAST wEEK.)
As Capt Gray was the first to discovo.
and enter the mouth Of the Columbia river
from the Pacific, so were Capts. Lewis and
Clarke, Of the American army-in their ev'
pedition during the years lSO4J5I6 Lv
order OF their government, the first whit
men who discovered its head.waters anS
whose rapid current bore them to its innO
tion with the stormy tides of the Western
Ocean.
In January, 1903, Mr.. Jefferson. then
President Of the United States, recommend
ed to Congress the adoption of measurs,
for the exploration Of the country lying be.
tween the Mississippi river and The Pacific
Ocean.
Capts. Lewis and Clark were commi,.
stoned to execute the proposed undertaking
Their instructions were to explore tSs
river Missouri and its principal branches ID
their source and then to seek and traco
to its termination in the Pacific, soma
stream, either the Columbia, the Oregon
the Colorado, or any other whchomicbt
offer the most direct and practicable water
communication across the continent for the.
purposes of commerce"
On the l4th Of May, 1904, Capts. Lewis
and Clark, in pursuance Of these instruc.
tions, launched their bark on the waters Of
the Missouri. The course Of that river
was then scarcely known,-its shores WerS
occupied by numerous tribes Of hostile In
dians, and many difficulties from other
sources embarrassed their progress. To.
wards the end of October, they had arrived
at point some 1900 miles from the mouth
Of the river, where they remained until
April, 1905. In the summer succeeding,
they arrived at its head-waters ii the
Rocky Mountains. After a rather tedious
march over the dividing ridge, new and
inviting scene Of adventure opened before
them. We can hardly conceiyeof anything
equal to the delight they must have exps-
rienced as they descended from the summit
Of the mountains to plain Of country
wholly unknown to the world which they
had left behind them, and whose luxuriant
wildness was now for the first time gazsd
upon by the eye Of civilized man. OA the
7th Of October, they fell in with stream
upon which they embarked in their canoes
to disturb for the first time the serenity
which had for untold ages reigned over lis
quiet waters. Floating down its current,
they were borne into q noble river, stretch
ing and widening in its course, and swelling
with the waters Of many beautiful tributa.
ries, till it bore them onward into the
broad bosom Of the Pacific Ocean The
stream on which they first embarked was
discovered to be branch of the Columbia
river, which they named Lewis river. AZ
ter few days they reached its confluence
with another great branch which they
called Clarke's river. These two united to
form the Columbia, through which, on the
18th day of November, 1905, they arrived
at Cape Disappointment, the northern side
of its entrance into the Pacific, and about
1000 miles from the place Of their depar.
ture. Very soon after arriving, they
formed an encampment near the mouth Of
the river which they called Fort Catsop,
where they spent the succeeding winter.
On the 18th March, 1906, they COM
menced their return. They nscended the
Columbia in their canoes till they reached
its falls, (now called the Cascades), l25
miles from its mouth, whence they prosecu
ted their journey together by land, till they
reached the Rocky Mountains. Here they
divided into two parties, Que striking a.
reclly eastward for the Missouri while the
other took more sOutherly direction TO-
wards the Yellow Stone, through which Il
reached the Missouri. The two parties
joined each other again near where these
two streams unite, and arrived at ST. Louis
on the 23d Of September following. The
narrative Of these two skilful and scientific
adyenturers furnishes the first accurate
knowledge we have Of the Territory Of
Oregon.
(ro BE CONTINUED