, 1888-05-10
(; THE CGUR D'ALENES.
Interesting Description Of a
Trip by Water From C9ur
d'Alene to Old Mission.

SPOKANE Falls, May 4, Wash. Ter.
special correspondepce.-rhe trip on
the water from C1ur d'Alene City to
Mission is one full of pleasure and po.
etry. For five short hours one traverses
the blue waters of the lake and river;
creeping along through vanishing
SCENERY, through the succession OF
mountain peaks on the lake shore
and the rich meadow lands of the tor
tuous river-the paradise OF the sports
man. The lake and river are part
OF the Cnur d'Alene Indian reserva.
ton, and here and there the traveller
passes parties OF Indians fishing, or
searching after game, which abounds
along the lake and river in great
quantities. For centuries the nomadic
buck has chased the willy deer on
yonder wooded slopes, and for centu.
ries, too, the Hiawatha of the tribes has
here. doubtless whispered the undying
truth of life in the ears of his roman
tic Minnehaha. The Occur d'Alene
Indian reservation is an empire in it..
self 1t contains some six hundred
thousand acres of territory, rich in
mineral, rich in timber, and iich in
agricultural resources. 1t is entirely
monopolized by some five hundred
Indians, under willy chief (Saltese),
who have neither the inclination nor
ability to turn the wonderful resources
of the land they possess to the advan-
tages of man. 1t seems pity the
government cannot gather the scat
tered remnants OF the Indian race to-
gether and place them on common
reservation, and throw open to settle
ment the numerous reservations which
impede civilization promise cuously
throughout the country. At the old
mission where the old Catholic church
stands, the cars are taken again, this
time on the Corbin narrow gauge sys-
tern. The mission is quaint little
structure, standing, sentinel Like, on
the summit of a mound, overlooking
the beautiful meadow of the reserva-
ton. The building itself is of dove
tailed logs, without nails, but exceed.
ingly strong and substantial 1t has
stood the battle of the breezes In its
lonely solitude for fifty years, presided
over by the patriarchal Father Josef. IA
worthy priest, whose life in this noun
tain hermitage preceded the advent Of
white settlement lii the Occur
d'Alenes.
CROOKED LITTLE RAILROAD.
The C9ur d'Alene Railway and Nav
igation coInpany's system is one OF
those rapid outcomes of western devel-
opment TO be found everywhere in the
west. Its first inception was soon af.
ter the discovery of the Bunker Hill
and Sullivan mines, two years since,
when ID. &. Corbin undertook to build
IA tramway to carry the ore from the
mine, u distance of fourteen miles, to
the landing stage at the Mission. The
rapid development of the country
changed the original plan, and, in
stead OF the trlmway, narrow gauge
road was built. Rapidly the enter
prise grew, and the road to-day en-
braces some thirty-five miles, and thS
line of steamboats, on the Cnur d..
Alene river and lake, the total capital
invested in the enterprise being up
ward of half million. The narrow
gauge is an expensive road to operate
1t crosses the south fork some thirty
times in twenty miles of road. and the
extension to the Hunter mine, some
seven miles, will probably exceed that
number. In the Canyon creek branch
the road for seven miles makes an av-
erage grade CT 3 per cent, and car
turned loose at Burke, ii it could be
kept on the track, would make the
whole thirty -four miles of road with
out any more motive power than its
own impetus. The output of the
mines to-day is about 300 tons per
month, worth abou. 800, 900, or at the
rate of nearly $i ,2O0,O 900 per year. A
M. Esler, of Helena, than whom nc
one is bette posted in the resources OF
the Ceur d Alenes. estimates that next
season the output will be 800 tons pei
day, or between 5000 and 5000 tons
per month. Assuming that the Cnui
d'Alene ores will average 20 per cent
in lead, the yield in lead, on the basi.
of a. Nj. Esler's computation, mex
year will be $500 tons per day, or 70,
600 tons per year. Whitney and Cas-
we'll estimate the gross output of the
United States at 100000 tens, ant
that of the world at 444,OOO tons PEE
year. SO that the Ceur d'Alenes mex
year should produce one-half as mucl
as the present output of the Unite1
States, and one-sixth of thu gross out
put of the world.
THE DEVELOPED MINES.
Six miles from the Mission, and a
the junction of the north and sou,l
forks, are the developed mining pro
critics. They lie on bo tn sides of tn
south fork, the main properties bein,
on the south side of the creek. Coin,
up the road on the south side Gov
ernment gulch, Deadwood gulch an