The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1882-01-12

from the land of promise, close margined
by the setting sun, and fixing them upon
the battlements of the Eternal City had
journeyed silently beyond its restful
gates, and once again these mystic gates
had stood ajar, admitting her youngest
child to her bosom. Graves were made,
the uncoffined forms were committed to
the loving bosom of our common mother
and the remnant of the broken household
took up the burden of life again and
bore it forward with what bravery they
could summon. All, those graves;
those and hundreds of others, followed
out in the sands of the wide-stretching
desert, to which the precious dust Of loved
ones were consigned, while the survivors
stunned by the appalling woe of
a heartache, too bitter for tears,
were forced to stihe thier grief,
and plod on and on! Upon how
| many memories is ineffably engraven
these little hillocks of sand, distinguish
able only from the fantastic windrows of
| the vast parties by a simple board at head
| and foot. Graves long since leveled by
the winds of heaven. but guarded still
by the eye of the Infinite, Us sacred as
His mercy.
What to do? was now a press
ing question discussed before fitful
camp-fres around which dilapidated
wagons were drawn in mockery of pro-
lection. Leave the wagons with the ex
ception of two in which to stow the bed
ding to be sent down the Columbia to
| Portland-a place unheard of by the
immigrants until the Dalles was reached
and with the few remaining oxen cross
the mountains by way of the Barlow
road"
Small time there was, we well may guess,
For musing OIL debate.
Two of the faithful vehicles were
woman of the partly with orders that
This was done, but, between the river
of the hapless wanderer during those
years, aud the fury with which the
Columbia resented the puny efforts OF
early navigators to control it, only small
portion of the running gears of one of
these wagons was reclaimed by the
owner. Wagons were luxury in pio-
neer times and the loss was a severe one
to the already impoverished immigrants.
Two wagons out of seven, with five
yoke of cattle out of thirty-fve. These
started on drizzling October day to
surmount the final barrier between them
and the long sought goal. The drizzle
sobbed itself into pronounced mist and
that in turn walled in few
hours into a fierce rain storm.
The mountains rose before in stern, for
hidden gloom; starvation was behind;
women and children. eking out their
scanty clothing by wraps improvised
from quilts and blankets, walked
all day long through the drenching
storm to tighten the load for the weak
and burdened oxen, and when darkness;
unheralded by warning twilight
closed down, determination, spurred on
by necessity, had penetrated into the
heart of the mountains and hidden deh-
ance to their frowns. A cherries night in
wet blankets was succeeded b. day of
twilight. The rains had made the hills
so slippery that progress was almost
impossible, and night found the
travellers but few miles from their
last nights camp with nothing to eat.
Salal berries, however, grew abundantly
around the camp, and by the light of
the roaring fire Of pitch pine quantity
was soon gathered. The dough pan was
scraped and bag that had held the
musty -four of which bread had been
made for the last meal was shaken;
the kettle was placed over the fire and
pudding of the berries and refuse from
the -four bag and dough pan was impro-
vised. Delicious it was, though eaten
| without other sauce than that fur
nished by a ravenous appetite.
Morning again, and again night,
and Phillip Fosters was reached.
Phillip Fosters! The Mecca of the
tired immigrant of those days. The
name of the still surviving patriarch is
synonymous in the minds of hundreds,
with that most desired Of all things to
hungry humanity-'Someth to eat !"
Potatoes and cabbage, bread and meat,
and butter, real butter, made more real
istic to the jaded head of the family by
the modest price of one dollar per
pound.
And this reminds me. Children in
those times were secondary objects Of
consideration. To "wait" while their
elders ate was the common lot-a lot
which no child in well-regulated family
thought it worth while to bewail. Po-
likeness and hunger, absolute, clamorous
hunger, are not on terms Of close init
Lacy. Hence, upon the occasion of this
first feast wherein butter had figured for
ak months n feast made all the moro