Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1881-05-19
w HERE IS THE BETTER PART
of THE UPPER COLUMBIA
BASIN.

tween the Cascade and Bitter Root
mountains, it's climate, soil and pro-
auctions, and probably in no instance
has this basin been ovcrrated. When
Gov. Stevens and party first visited
this section, he conceived limited
idea Of its futare and yet he deemed it
Of sufficient Importance to warrant the
construction of railroad to penetrate
it from the east, and when the first en-
-Sineers of the Northern Pacific came
through OH their surveys, Roberts their
chief claimed that it would become
the great grazing country Of the Union.
But none of them foresaw that it
would become the great grain country
of the United States but the tests
made of the soil by some of the early
settlers soon disclosed it's wonderful
productiveness in wheat, barley and
oats. Blu, the knowledge of this fact
was very limited till as late as 1874 5
and in fact but little attention was
called to it in the east till the Indian
wars OF 77-S, whenit was penetrated by
numerous officers and soldiers from the
east, all o. whom were impressed with
the wonderful fertility of the soil, the
salubrity Of the climate, and the
vast area that invited the agri-
cnlturalists to come here and settle
and many were the letters to private
friends in the east, to the eastern
press, and official notes sent to the war
department, all conveying in the most
authentic manner descriptions of the
advantages of this country. Rev. Geo.
, IL. Atkinson of Portland took up the
subject and gave serious of letters
which hos done vast amount Of good
in partraying the facts and assigning
the natural causes why the lands are
10 fertile and so well adapted to the
growth Of wheat and other grains.
With adj this showing, men of large
capital have been induced to visit sew
cral sectionsof this basin in person to see
if what had been told them were true,
and OH coming here had found that
not the half had been tolJ them, and
they have gone back all inspired with
a rivalry to invest means to open up
this basin by means of railroads 20
carry off the surplus the country can
be made to produce, and immigration
has rapidly come to us and is still COM
ing in large numbers, and now the
.wholc people of the east is excited
about tho wonders of this land, and
are seeking to release themselves from
the ties of home and birth place and
means Of reaching this land of promise
The great cry has been the Palouse
and enigrants painted on the wagons
"Palouse or bust" under the impression
that the Palouse was all there is of the
country. The north and south
Palouse and the streams tributary pen
CITRATE some Of the best lands in the
whole Columbia basin. But not more
so'tAan do the Clearwater and its trib-
utaries including the Potlatch, Hat
wal, Lapwai, Jacks creek, Orc Elmo
creek, Ford's creek, Cottonwood,
Three mile creek, Johns creek. To
these and Alpowa, Pataha, and Tu-
canon, Assotin creek, lower Grand
Ronde river and Joseph creek. All
these streams drain some of the best
lands in the whole Columbia basin,
only small portion of which are yet
occupied by settlers, and into no part
Of which save the Pataha and Tucanon
are any railroads projecting with
prospect of construction within the
ensuing five years. But they have
the navigable waters of the Snake and
limited navigation of the Clearwater
as means of ingress and egress. This
section last described possesses a mil
der climate than the Paleuse, as the
thermometrical record of the two years
last past fully shows. The very heart
of this section is penetrated by navi-
gable waters while the Palouse coun-
try is not, and large part of this
section is better adapted to fruit grow
ing than is any part of the Palouse.
When the Cascade division of the
Northern Pacific is completed this sec
ton will have the choice of an outlet
to the sea either via the mouth of the
Columbia or via rail over the noun