New-York tribune., 1870-09-24
SHOOTING THE RAPIDS.
GRAND corLEE OF THE COLUMBIA PLAINS.

THE SPOKANE RIVER CANOh-hoHNtn
COLUMBIA RIVER CANON IN CANoh'
Frank Wilkeson young engineer IN the SeiEioo
of tho Northern Pacific Railroad. describes, in let
ter TO his wife. the Grand Cou6e Of the Columbia
Plains, and the canoTs Of the Spokane and Coluih-
bia Rivers all Of them objects OF the greatest III
terest, known TO few white men outside the ser'Ico
Of the Hudson Bay Fur Company. The following
extracts will be read with interest:
Starting from the Wenatchee In tne
morning, we'crossed tho Columbia River IN canoe
swi aiming the horses. Leaving
the Wenatchee, one is not pleased Win
the aspect of the Columbia River Valley, and il
prone to condemn the whole country; because rea-
sonng with the Eastern logic, if the valley is not
worth having, what must the level land on the tons
Of tie hills be worth why, of course, nothing
But never more pleasant surprise in store for
man. A more niinyitlng country than that from
Wanatchee TO Rock Island could not he well imag-
incd At Rock Island we turned off from the river.
Taking the trail through the Grand COulee, sight
well worth TIE journey from the East to meets
the vision There as though it were the ancient
channel Of some long-forgotten river, is iissure in
the iron like baSalic rock issure, did | say I
N is more properly valley Of some 5000 feet in
width Tho sides rise about 800 feet, in an almost
nerncudicular line. These walls composed Of
basatio rock and lava being OF n truly wonderful
Here il seems rs though race Of giants, longsnce
dead had begun a wall to be composed OF great
slabs set on end; then they changed their plan and
"bcpderp they think they VIII do some topOgmph-
cal drawings with these huge stones 50 That ,iey
draw great curves in the wall, beginning WIN 4
heavy line, each succeeding one gctilIg I"Htcr
and fainter until YOU can no longer follow them
with the eyejust like the lines OF the sh9ig water
in maps. Here is stratum Oh Dasilt, ana iiilIM " ~
tbougb nature had changed her mind, great beJ Oh
lava will be on the top Of it. These walls are u
never-iainF subject Of interest IN the Hde through
the Grand COulee. -. A.. io,,.
ney by telling how, long ago, when he was Doy,
the Indians were short Of food, ana telf SKIN boeS
were worn out and starvation stared tntl III w - -
They held council, ard it was dec!eu Jhal FllDJ
the deer and other game were 80 uIIu ann III tb
10 shoot they would corral" them IN tIle
Coulee. So they went to the nlouhtall5i tnTy y+ o'
timber while others hauled II to ths selected so'
and then all helped to build a high, strong renee
from wall to wall. Then, taking Their hoIsesi iley
started On the grand and, as II turned out nndl nun
the game is all gone now. ~ inclOslhg lho game
and driving toward each other for DAY or tEO'
they gathered almost all in the country lnlO inc
COnl6e and once in the animals never got ont lie
described the vast herd of frightened game Dontg-
ing over the rocks jumping over each 0ther IN theH
mad endeayOr to escape from their relentless lalh
ishing pursueTs and to reach the valley Oh the 20
lumbia; but as they rushed around a grand sweep
ing curve SO perfect that 1t looks as though
traced with an instrument they came full upon tDe
fence and realized that they were trapped linen
the slaughter commenced and not one OF all the vast
herd escaped. Then the feast began and soon SKIN
shoes were again on the feet OF the braves.
The story seemed to make the indian dry, as ne
mt his long finger on my tin cup, saying, 10 you
want drink of cold waterg" smiled at the hand
some fellow he is handsome, even II ne Is an InHla
he is perfectly made) and told him Yes-but Moses,
we can get no water here" He made no reply Dut,
putting spur to his horses flank, cantered Oil TO =
mass of loose rock that had fallen rom above, anu anu
there he dipped out, from under large oVerhahglng
slab the eoldest water ever drank. Ice-YaOer WIS
not near as cold as that this man produced from
under the glistening rocks III me GIahd oi e
Columbia We rode for eight hOnrs III TINS valley,
rode over land almost as level as i0or-the shoresC
eight hours passed in the saddle IL was Won
der-land Ii was q chapter from the Arabian Nlghts
tale of Alladins wonderful lamp. How wished you
could have seen it, We passed out OF the Coulee by
two abrupt jumps, and were then on the vast Coll-
bia Plains. There far as the eye could Ieach Ws
| an immense rolling prairie covered with bunch
Crass-the wonderful bunch grass" better for stock
than a mixture of blue grass and oats
would be. 1t is grass that grows III
lunches and is cured into hay as 1t stands, IN TINS
dry climate Cattle and horses never taste grain III
this country Bunch grass s Their h+ f40GsPng STc
They tire of it, and never fail 10 come OUT 1l
in the Spring excepting of course the hard winters
that come in this country in great while BY
he-by these plains cut up by coulees and water
is generally found at the bottom OF them. lheTe ls
coul6e that has chain of lakes in it's bed there
is another that is cut full of small deep channels as
though worn by water. One can wander tor hours
in these channels without being able TO get out.
Cattle and horses have died III them, unable to re-
What relief il was to me to find, after being
driven almost wild in the Columbia Valley by gnats
and musketOes sucking my temperate blood,
that there was not gnat musketO heTe-no, not
one TO bite OF bTag over me- l think torgaye all
my enemies when ! lay down on my blanket, and
found it was unnecessary to cover my head with
another And, think of this! not sign of dew, not
a dampness of grass or blanket when woke up
in the morning-a country with such dry AIR that
there is never any dew. When / awoke / the
coming light red in the east, so | woke up the
Indian, told him to get breakfast, and turned over
TO take q cat-nap. It just little One but
enjoyed it hugely; / knew the Indian was cooking
the fattest of sage hens, also fat duck. thought
] could smell the bacon-mee Tat bacon-brolhng'
But did not. ascribe the delusion to the cat-nap.
There was no deluson about the brolled craw- w-ilsh
that my jewel of nature had tshed out of the SPRING
What breakfast | had How much 1 enjoyed
eating it, in the cool pure air just as the sun
came up we jumped into the saddle, and away we
went at sharp canter for the rode
through the finest grazing country IN the world until
eyening-when we struck valley, very narrow
one, but of such quiet bcautyl A small brook ran
without murmur through the center of 1t. We rode
up it, through buncl-grass up to the horses
bellies They lowered their heads every now and
then to nbble some extra dainty bunch was
passed How much they relished that stolen mouth
full For 10 miles we rode in this valley when max
ing sudden turn to the right, we left the trail and
passed over to almost the foot of the small hills
bounding the valley. There was clnmp Of bushes
and small trees, and there was the spring that fed
my brook. Such spring would make Dutchess or
Orange County farmers wife go mad with delight.
Cold cewateT, almost seven feet deep, and flowing
a small brook, which ran for about 10 miles and
was lost i'll the rocks of some COulee. In the whole
valley there may be 200 acres of the best of land.
5000 acres that are black How easy it would be TO
irrigate the whole valley The man who had the
money to buy this valley would OWnyes, OTR-all the
land around him; he would own over $1,000 acres of
land. This water in the valley is the only water
within 10 miles of it on one side, and
il is 40 miles to water the other way.
/ can look forward to the time when some
smart fellow will have milk house oyer that spring,
have thousands of cattle on the land, will irgate
the valley and cut unlimited hay, have grapes and
melons and all small fruit what chance TO make
the best home in the United States, if one only had
few thousand dollars One could have a home there
thatu 1rixr tha nf m
Barons and this vast Northwest is full of such
homes if one will only hunt for them. / look for