, 1889-08-15
SPOKANE FALLS REVIEW. THURSDAY AUGUST Is,
AN OVERLAND DRIVE.
From Wilbur 70 Waterville by
Way OF Numerous Thriv-
ing Towns.
Beautiful Farms, Delightful Lakes
and Streams and Pros
porous People.

o'clock p. NJ. July 18th, your CORE.
spondent, in company with fellow
traveller, started out for u few days
jaunt in the ''wcst countrie." At 8
o'clock we pulled up at Davisine, or
Elmyra, as it is now called, and calling
out Mr.. Davis, the genial proprietor Of
the store at that place, we Informed him
that we were perishing for drink o
water He answered us In the words of
the sailors 'yarn," "you are in Davis
inc; dip it up" However, he finally
took pity on our parched throats and
brought us a cool drink from the well,
after which we took our bearings for
Parncll and watched our good Samar.
tan standing, dipper in hand, watching
us continue our way westward. After
vending our way over beautiful
prairies covered with grass and past
fields of grain some of which were
already ripening while others were still
green making contrast most pleasant
TO look upon. The country between
Elmyra and Parnell Is a low rolling
prairie and is known as
PARADISE VALLEY.
During the last year or two this section
has been very rapidly filling up with
thrifty and energetic population who
have already erected substantial resi-
dcnces and brought hundreds of acres
Into cultivation. Water is readily OBJ.
tanned at depth of twenty to fifty feet
and although the settlers have suffered
somewhat this year from the ravages of
the squirrels, Paradise valley promises
to be In very short time IL populous
and prosperous community. Arriving
at Parnell we sought out our friend, Mr..
Jno. Hartline, one of the trustees OF the
town (this Is a government townsitc)
and one OF the solid men of the vicinity,
who heartily bidding us welcome went
to work in wholesouled hospitable way
to make us comfortable for the night.
Mr., Hartline is u bachelor, but the
way he gets around in the kitchen
is something wonderful; and the sup
per he shortly placed before your two
hungry wayfarers was most appetizing
and refreshing to the elmer man." and
might justly have made the ladies envi-
Gus of Johns culinary skill. After We
had supped he showed us his farm, which
IS certainly beauty, lie has it all
fenced with good wire fence and other
wise improved so that we may safely say
that Mr.. Hartline will soon be one of the
leading farmers of the Big Bend.
PARNELL
is located ina pretty little valley, well
watered and surrounded by fertile
farming country for miles around. II is
| on the line of IA survey made by the Cen
tral Washington Railroad Company last
summer, and is about twenty-five miles
west from Wilbur. Messrs. Brewer 4
Reeves are the proprictors of the only
general merchandise store in the place at
present, and we found them pleasant
and agreeable gentlemen, who, we think,
know good thing when they see 1t. We
Lave no doubt that another year
will see Parnell prosperous little
city, combining, rs IL docs, ali the ad-
vantagcs of being surrounded by good
farming country, having an abundance
OF pure water and being on the surveyed
line OF two railroads. Being govern
ment townsite any one can obtain lot
by building upon 1t.
Starting at clock the next morning
we passed farms and new-looking
ranches for several miles, when we came
TO smooth, level country called the
gravel bed. Ii IL on level with the
surrounding country, east and south,
and is little else than gravelly fiat, ex-
tending westward about seven miles.
The roads across the flat are smooth and
hard as a pavement, the gravel and soil
having become firmly packed down by
constant travel.
Next comes the
GRAND couLEE,
which has been so often described, that
Will only. mention il briefly as being n
most wonderful work of nature. Many
claim that 1t has been at some remote
time in the past the bed OF the
Columbia river, but its peculiar
formation would indicate rather,
that it has been created by
volcanic action. Its sides, in the deepest
places, for n distance of thirty miles
north nom Mclntce's. crossing, are OF
solid rock mot basaltic but a porous,
laya.lik roCk) rising p,srpcndicularly to
"A heighth of 600 to 700 feet.
The road across the coulee is
built at place where the bottom or
bed of the chasam rises almost to a level
with the side walls, and is very rough.
South OF the road the bed of the coulce
seems to drop OIL sheer prccipice, a
distance of several hundred feet, and as
north.
Passing out of the Grand coulee we
came to a fertile belt of country, appar-
emily but recently settled. There has
been a townsite laid oil here called
Chester, but the proprietors have un-
luckily plated their town before they
tried to get water and afterwards failing
to get the same on digging a we'll the
townsite is not ut present occupied.
MOSES coUIEE
is twcnty-one miles west of Grand
coulee, and is another such chasm
but not quite so deep. The two run
nearly parallel with each other. In
Moses CouIee, where tl1e road crosses IL,
there is beautiful lalte of clear water
about mile long. where myriads of
ducks desport themselves in aqua pura.
The festive mosquito and the dimin-
utive buffalo gnat make 10 very interest
ing, however, for the wo,ild-be hunter.
West of the Moses Coulee there is a
strip of country which, to use an old
fashioned saw, would not raise white
beans" 1t is sandy and rocky and COW
cred with very large boulders, very
small hillooks and very great deal OF
sage brush.
fen miles west of Moses Coulee We
came to
DUTCH HEHRY's PLACE,
the first habitation we had seen since
leaving the last coulee. Here we stopped
and refreshed our throats with draught
of clear, cold water. The pump was
surrounded by half dozen ranchers
who get their supply of water by haul
ing it in tanks from Henry's s
well. Now l do not wish 1t to
be- understood that because small
section in country is dry, that water is
hard to obtain throughout the entire re-
gion. Such is not the case. Very fire.
q small portion of country, while every
farm around it may be blessed with a
Going twelve miles west from Dutch