, 1866-01-19
c,,.:., d,A,.as v,. Pen S'0FelIle Route.


The advocates of the Pen doreiile route to
the Balckfoot country lay much stress np0n the
objectionable features of the Ceur 'Alene road
viz: the Ceuur Alene and ST. Regis BOrgia
Valleys, extending from the Mission to the Bitter
Root Ferry-a distance of some sixty miles.
Grave surprise has been expressed OF late that
the builder of the Fort Benton road should nave
Carried the line by the Ceur d'Alene Pass IN
stead of the Pen d'Oreille Lake. As pettiuent
to- this question, we copy the following from
MuIlan's Military Road Report, submitted to
Congress, February i 9Th, 1858: Q
uFrom my own knowledge Of the country,
and the additional data brought in by Mr. oohon' y
ssv' tbat We had ID content ourselves with the
cheapest location that the. peculiar features OF
the valleys Of the Ceur d'Alene and st. Regis
Borpia warranted, Both of these valleys were
deIsetY tim6ered, with here and there prairie
affordiua scanty grass. Both OF these valleys
at Uofnts vefsed towards canyons, and their
rivers were serpentine in their course, leaving
alternate fats and spurs along their banks
hence; the character of the streams necessitated
freudent crossings or long and difficult sde-cuts
| TO avoid them. The latter was work OF great
magnitude, and incompatible with the means at
our disposal hence the former was our only al
! Tentative. Our work, consequently, from the
| leth of August to the 4th of December, 1859,
consisted in cutting through this densely tim
| bered section Of one hundred miles, building
small bridges whefH required, and grading in
thousands of places; made necessary by the
| physical nature of the country. We Likewise
graded an ascent of one and three-fourths miles
! to the summit Of the CGur d'Alene MOUNTAINS.
| This work was heavy, and in SO Brief a report
as is herewith given, justice cannot be done to
the industry and fortitude of the men while
mastering this wilderness section. The stand
| ing timber was dense, and the fallen timber thai
had accumulated for ages formed an intricate
Jungle well calculated TO impress one with the
character of iTpfaeticabilitS. Suffice it to say
that we mastered the many difficulties with
which its construction was fraught, and reached
our winter camp in the St. Regis Borgia Valley
on the 4th OF December.
| The question of snow had been with me an all
important one, and with the view of arming my
self with facts as to its fall and depth, had
| snow-gauges prepared along the route, eithel
by cutting off the tops Of trees or planting post
graduated to a scale of feet and inches sc
that when the mail-men passed, (which they
did every month"; they might accurately
note its depth. | have had this done du
ring two winters, and am enabled to state
definitely the depth of snow attained duriHG
any month at every point of the route. These
show that in the upper CGpr d'Alene and ST
Regis Borgia Valleys it fell to the depth Of from
two and half to three feet in the higher por
tious to from three to five feet, and on the sum
nit of the mountains to from seven to nine feet
This is an objection to this route of so vita
! importance, when compared with that ria Clark
| Fork that, as I before stated, had | known il
| 1854 what DID not-i6arn until 1859, | should
! by all means, have recommended the latter, a
least as far regards that portion of the roaC
/ Ilfing between Antoine Plants and Hell's Gate
| During the winter of 50 Spokane Garry brough
| the mail by the wayof Clark Fork, and though
| be lost one horse en- route. yet he made the triE
mostly sn horseback: As soon as this fact wa
| brought to my notice, set an inquiry on foo
aud found this fact to hold that no Indians hat
ever been known to cross the mountains in win
ter ria the. CGur d'Alene route, while it wal
| quite an usual thing for them to do so via thu
| Fen d'OreIlle.'