Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-08-28
UP THE COLUMBIA.
A WEBFooT wAYFARER's TRIP TO
WALLA WALLA-
a Terrestrial Inferno-The John Day and
Umatilla Rapids Town of Aims
worth-Railroad Progress.
wAILA wALLA (w. tt, August 18th.


traversing the magnificent gorge through
which the Columbia river pierces the 81
erras to reach the sea, and leaving the
foam crests and whirlpeols OF the Da!les
behind we were benighted at tie wonder
stricken desolatioBs Of Cello. The steamer
Harvest Queen was a very pleasant refuge
from the bowling winds and whirling sands
and delightful exchange Tor the bleak
and barbarously romantic shores, and there
we slept unbroken until sometime before
day, when the sound Of truudliug trucks
was exchanged for the clang of the engine
bell and rapid stroke of the stern wheel.
Locking out. it seemed as If the steamer
was afoat among the shadows The river
was as black as INK. and the gray hills and
sunburned basaltic cliffs on either side
were ike irregular walls that henmed us
in with threatening and indistinguishable
blackness. But have been through that
portion of the river IN the light Of day and
know shat it is well worth seeing and Sc
cures admiration. There is not thing Of
beauty, viewed from any point OF efemi-
GRANDLY BEAUTIFUL
From the robust standpoint from which
man cornpels and conquers nature. The
shores are varied at Cello by the junction
of the Deschutes, which is walled in by
its separate canyon, and up Always is the
railroad bridge that spans the torrent
Soon we come to He'll Gate veritable
terrestrial inferno where the waters divide,
and the river seems to be lost as it whirls
among rocks that bar the way, and past
islands that are more inh0spitabie than the
crags whose stratas of changing basalt
form the shores. 1t is a pretty place,
speaking from an esthetic stand point, and
one feels decidedly better, and with a
memory worth preserving as 90 joy for
ever" when the passage of He'll Gate is
safely made, even though Elysium is not
yet within view. There are spots all
along here as well worth picturng and
painting as the diabolic wonders that pos
sess the overland road at Weber and Echo
canyons. I have forgotten, what is worth
notice, but not easily observed on the up
river trip as grand feature of the view
from The Dalles, that standing at the head
and looking westward, Dalles city was
plainly visible, though Swallowed by the
upheavals that rise beyond, above which
rises the stately crest OF Mount Hood,
SPANNING THE WESTERN SKY,
Where yesterday it looked at us from the
East. and dazzling the feecy summer
clouds With its wilderness. This really al
fords one of the finest views of the great
mountain, but I am told that Bradford, the
artist, has lately climbed to spot styled
The Meadows, from whence Dalles City
gets its water supply, mountain bench
only seven miles distant from it's base, and
has secured the best sketch ever made of
it. John Day rapids are q point of inter
est, and before reaching these we pass a
right-ooking village, called Columbus, on
the Washington shore, the entrepot for
the KIickitat valley thai lies over the hills
to the north. There is a narrow strip of
sand and soil under the bluff that is made
the most of, and the Oldest inhabitant must
have planted an orchard, for his home was
hidden by trees, and they appeared loaded
with fruit an oasis IN the desert. In the
hundred and ten miles from Cello to Wal
lula we may have noticed dozen ranches
along the river, and the boat frequently
whstled at uninhahited places and put off
goods on sandy shores, whose desolation
was Eunbroken even by the presence of
grazing herds Al one place hundreds of
bags of wool Were waiting shipment with
out hsbitable sign within view. On the
Oregon side, nearly hundred miles up,
was the
TOWN OF UMATILLA,
Staring at vacancy with its handful of
lonesome-looking houses. For over hum
bred miles this was all the evidence of
civilization, except that on the Oregon side
there were parties of railroad men, with
many camps and working squads in active
operation otherwise than this there was
one unbroken scene OF desolation.
Above John Days river the shores of
the Columbia gradually lose interest, for
the dreariness becomes monotonous, and
the shores lose the abruptness that made
their desolation attractive. At last the
hills that are at times close by and very
much scanned and furrowed in their brown
bare steepness, recede from the shore, are
replaced by lesser ones, and they at last
disappear and the sandy shore is low and
uninviting, only now and then graced by
ungraceful willows, and the prospect is
The railroad workers consisted of 1000
white men and L. 500 Chinese, and their
line OF work was close to the rivers edge.
The oft-recurring camps, the lazy squads
with shovels raising cloud of dust, the
carts and scrapers busily engaged, were
the constantly recurring
FEATURE OF INTEREST,
intensified by the frequent sound-at
times near and then far of-as the dis
charges of giant powder were heard, like
the echoes of cannonade, making road
way through the rocky points. We see
few horses and cattle, but scarce any
sheep. The hills In sight are many of
them pastured we know, and we also know
that back from the river are stock ranches
and farming districts, and that near the
distant mountains the once wilderness Is
thickly peopled, rich with harvests, and
has blossomed like the rose. But along
the great river the scene is dreary and mo-
notonous. Occasionally we find Chinese
camps, known by their mating walls, and
we see them navigating the river in an un-
couth way IN uncouth boats that they use
to move camp or to go from camp to camp
in, for along the sandy shores there are
said TO be about forty squads OF Chinese
engaged in washing the river sands for
gold, and making wages at least, or they
would not work. Since my passage the
graders have been replaced by the track
layers, working from each end and soon
they will be done, and the scene will re.
vert to desolation, except when some pass
ing steamboat or clamorous train sweeps
by to give it
a MONETARY AWAKENING.
At low water the Umatilla rapids are
the limit of successful navigation, for it
seems as if Dame Nature had emptied her
lap-full OF huge rocks upon the river, and
scarce left the navigator chance to squeeze
through. We passed at high water where