New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-09-03

| an early start next UlOIulbS tuO
| before noon and the down-hill scramble back 10
| camp is easy. Next day is partly consumed
| by the ride back to the hotel over the trall MI
Sisson saws he intends TO construct bride path all
| the way to the summit by the time the railrOad
! reaches his place and build a stout cabin on the
| TON where people can take refuge in snOw-storms
| and pass a night If need be- Eastern mountains
are mere pig,nes compared to these giants OF the
Pacific coast If two Mount Washingtons could
! be piled the other, and the summit then
| crowned by the highest peak OF the Catsknls, the
! altitude of Shasta would barely be attained.
| When the railroad now building northward to
Oregon has made this monarch of the Slcrras easily
accessible journey to its summit or Mt least to lts
base will be the best experience of California
! travel.
| spoke of the dangers of staging in no joking
way. They are by no means TO be laughed at. oh
the top of the Siskyoa Mountains saw lady VINO
went over precipice in a stage and was nursing
broken arm and multitude of bruises. Al SisSohS
were three victims of later accident hne young
fellows from San Francisco who started on trout
polling and Notwithstanding excursion ana WITCH
in sight of Shasta were badly battered ana CLIP
pied by an overturn. The wonder is not that acci-
dents occur, but that they are not more frequent
, | found the narrow road, with IFS sharp curves
clinging in many places to PERCEPTIONS mountain
walls not exactly reaSsuring with light buggy
| and steady team. The stage driver navigating
| a heavy coach with a ton Of mail aboard ana SIX
horses ahead needs more courage. presence of mind
| and ouickness of action than go to the making OF
n good captain of an steamer. To round the
short turns successfully he must have his team per-
fectly in hand control the coach with one foot on
the brake, and mako leaders and wheelers do Just
the right thing at the right moment
Here is an anccdoIe of staging on the Ola fiacer-
newspaper editor: The only outside passenger on
the night was riding sleeply beside thc urVer
when a lurch in the coach aroused bun, aud to ms
horror he found the driver was missing; ne pig
head light and the side lights showed that the
road down grade with rocky wall on one
side and precipice the other The team was
going M fast trot. The passenger reached down
TO see if he could find the re MS. but soon realzed
that his search hopeless for the relns had gone
overheard with the driver what was 10 ne zone
The inside passengers were all asleep. In lew
minutes the cOach~wthout guidance would be sure
to go over the Preclpce Before ne coi IL , cn,o
from the ground, call out: Jam your foot ike
HI on the brake and holler Whoa" The pas
senger obeved, the team slowed down the people
inside woke up and thrust out their heads. Then
the voice heard again saying: You 1eHeiS glt
out and take them leaders 10y the head, and III see
if kin crawl out of this" It was the driver, who
had clung to the Ielns when he fell ana, rOlnne
himself into a ball, had been dragged along inc
road between the front and hind wheels. holding
on in spite of bruises because he knew that 1t was
death to his passengers If lie let CO.
ALONG THE SACRAMENTO.
NV southwark journey from Sisson's led for two
DAYS through pine forest following most OF the
way the course of the Sacramento River, noun
tain torrent carrying OIL tue melting SHOWS from
Mount Shasta and running through a narrow gorge
between low mountains. fair road penetrates
this wild, rude country, climbing to noun
tain top, now diving down to the bottom of the
gorge and now skirting dizzy precipice high up
on the canon walls. The toll on foTty-siX miles of
this road is s. for two horses and buggy. In all
Northern California the bridge ferry and road tolls
amount to heavy tax on travel and trailc. a
ferry over stream narrow that You can toss
stone from bank to bank charges one dollar for a
carriage and two for a heavy freight wagon; at
every bridge there is a stand-and-dellVcr demand
and the ordinary road toll is ten or fifteen cents
mile.
Every two or three miles along the road down the
Upper Sacramento comes upon few acres OF
cleared land on "a beach in a creek bottom. with
a house and an orchard, and usually big barn
with sign " IIav and Oats lot sale" About every
third house has pitful little grocery attached to
in the region save those settled along the highway,
| it seems marvellous that many of the settlers
should keep store. The explanation Is that the
people are all trying to live Off the teamsters who
haul goods up TO lIekl, TO the southern oregon
valleys, and 10 the towns and Government post IN
the Klamath Lake region. These teansters RANK
next to the stdge-drlyers as heroes OF the road
Stout, jolly fellows they are. too; tough. self |
reliant skilful and brave IN emergencies and help
full Of each other. 1t is 10 boys play to maui ten
tons of freight over two or three hundred mics Of
mountain and desert wilderness. Zach fTeiehter |
has a biz wagon and a smaller one called the trail |
wagon, fastened behind. His team consists OF SIX
horses but rs they cannot hau both wagons up |
steep hills he drops his tran wagon at the loot OF
heavy grade, and goes back iOl 1t with the horses |
when lie has got the big wagon mp. day
Journey is from ten to fifteen miles, according 10 |
the character of the road. 1t IS in swlI glng his two
wagons around sharp curves and passing other |
teams in places that the tcalnster shows ms
skill and nerve. and when his wagons get stuck IL
the miIe he becomes ventable Samson for strength
and pluck.
,,;rIt ~ nv ,,vprlan nj ride was NJ
a very pretty TanCh-a big white nOust looking out |
a green lawn and flower garden &c the steep
mountain walls across the narrow river. i he |
Chinese cook provided exactly the same food for
supper and breakfast, and PROBABLY did 80 year
after year. He smiled exactly the Same sniIe too,
no matter what was SAID to HIM. No dOubt ms an
cestOrs developed that stereOtyped smile hundred
centuries ago There was nice little Parlor IN the
house, and piano which two young ladies nam
mered vigorously the whole evening.
NORTH CALIFORNIA RANCHES
The next day the road left the Sacramento and
crossed a ridge to McClouds Rivera swift blue
trout stream, and at night came down upon n low
shelf with Just room enough for house and group
of barns and granaries. The ranch owned by
colored man. a polite and dignided quadroon who
no doubt has of the best blood OF Virginia in
his veins. He had small library of standard
books, and could broil chicken to perfection
Once he had white partner. The two erected the
buildings and established the ranch and stage
station The result of the partnership that
after lew years the white man cleared out, leaving
the cOored in undlsputed possession Of his wife
and his home, OF the survival OF the httest.
The eighth and last days ride led under the
shadow of lofty rocky walls To the junction OF the
McCloud and Pitt rivers then across the Pitt by
One-dOllar ferry, then over "a mountain and ont at
last into open country, hot brown dusty cOun-
try il was dotted with live-Oak trees and creased
by old mining gulches. few wheat farms were
passed. AT noon | crossed the Sacramento, now "A
wide, deep sluggish stream, and drove into the
ugly little railroad terminus town OF Reddlng
baking III a temperature OF lOG) in the shade.