The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1889-10-12

tIba NhAS tH'lhhk ~ TNktebtt oh
fall. aud much of IL heavily tinihs,rSs1,
while eastern Oregon has much 81 the
physical character of Montana AMI Idaho.
sterile plain which the ordinary maps
would lead one to expect, int AN cxcsssi-
inRly rugged. broker" and p'cs"rs"s'"e r-
The higher ridges of the Blue noun.
s %HSi. "r rin ssss and f FUR" =" O srS": t !, Z i
true. usually speak at these FORESTS r.tne'r
contemptnonsly., comparing them with the
a matter of fact. they are magnificent.
The great trees, often four ar five feet in
diamctcr. stand well apart. no inat en.h
symmetrical growth. There IN little ar mo
undcrbrssl and ~ soft carpet OF short
bunch grass gives the scene rather the APP
pcarance Of IA wcll-kcpt park than of "a
virgin forest.
This great woodland track is for the
MOST part still the prnlert. of the national
taken OF il. We were told by wclI-in-
bl,ishingly carried on, and that many saw
mills are supplied entirely In this way.
Annsn,r - n,r.' n s Sym. "a nv. .cs..n-
ted as the normal state of affairs ia sum-
ncr that tlisrs. shall br great forest fires;
Oregon tl, air was free from smoke.
sometimes almost AS dense as ~ London
fog: AT others nh"r,. Hike tm.. sol. haxcI i
due Ia wandering bands of Indians. who
i'm summer lcavs. their reservations and
Ro llto tUe uiottbttSttttS w w p'N Wv
herticrs and frcighterS are by no means
blaIuelcss in the matter. Under such con-
ditions the forests cannot he expected to
last very long. and when they have been
destroyed the farmers i'm the valley. who
depend upon the streams for irrigation.
will discover that AN irrepstrablc injury
has been done. Hut the tale of wanton
forest destruction Is an old one and APP
plies tn most of the country.
While. we arr. railing thus at the govern
ment we may as well glance at another
department of its work-thc postal scr
vice. which il about as unsatisfactory as
IL well can be.
In eastern Oregon theirs. are compare
lively few railways and the stage IL still
The routes arr, let for "a period Of four
years tn the lowest bidder. and by him fire.
qurntly subict. until. i'm some eases, the
receives only a third OF the amount
paid by the department. The. post
careless and s~lovcnly fashion by iucomps,-
tent men, as is abnndantly illustrated Try
our own experience. The postotilcc tai
hours 10y stage from Baker City, and yet
letters often took two or three weeks to
get no mail al all for a month. and then
receive ~ great mass of letters that had
been lying neglected. One
little wayside office. and received them in
u piece of u newspaper addrrssed tai him
self which had been just fisieh ont OF the
The blame for this scandalo,is state of
affairs lies primarily with coUgrs'ss, for
the postmastcrs are paid such very small
salaries that the position is regarded mere
ly as IA nuisance. which somebody must
assume IL one asks "a rcsidsnt why they
do not protest against such wrs.tclicd SEP
vice the reply always is:
"tbh, we arc used tai H.. and IL we did
kick the postmaster would tell us to get
some one else to lake the place; lr wasn't
anxious Ia keep it,"
One cx-postinaster explained that his
duty had been to receive and change the.
mail from two daily stages. one OF which
arrived al midnight and the other at "a. m.
and for this really arlIo,is work his pay
had been about $50 IA year. Uuhcr such a
system II satisfactory mail service can
hardly bc expected:
the Cascades the country il a great. vol
canic plateau. made up of lava sheets
ancient volcanic onthnrsts upon |. stnp.n-
dols scale. in comparison with which
such vents as Etna and V.'snvius are the
lava the streams aided by the atmosphere.
have cut deep valleys. some of them broad
The result; is a strangely wild and Tict,r.
esuuc region. which is very difficult tn dc
scrits'. as il il unlike anything else.
ure-ladcn Pacific winds. and this country
il very dry. but the soil il excellent, and
s whIrs. n arr,Tf frri, ! b n 2 "f na wt,.; tmT VIZ ft;,s
quality. Great areas that arr. now arid
sage brush deserts will one day In. turned
wells. and the mild climate will insure
SUCCESS. Al present tho great industry II
wool raising. which seems tai bc profitable.
though il is very provocative of profanity,
as well as - envy. hatred. malice and ali
observation-disclosures" on tn: part of the trav-
clcr. The enormous bands of sheer
utterly destroy the grass of the country
over which they range. till il looks as il a
plagus. of loctists had visited il. To under
stand what "a country that has been
"shccpssl ont" ,aS the very eNprcs~iv.
local phrase has H. looks like. one niist
see il. During u large part of the summer
We were compelled tai put our horses in
fenced PASTURES. which added very mater
tally to the expense. Of the trip.
The scientific attraction i'm the John
bay region il the. vast i~sseniblagc of fossil
animals which il entombssi i'm the rock,
there. The entire district was i'm "a forrnei
geological age the he'd of "a great frssl
water lake, into which the streams brough
MASSES Of sand and mud and volcanoes
showered cindcrs and ashes. Animals
which were swept into the lakes i'm times
of flood became covered with silt. and n
the latter was i'm the course of ages con
solidated into rock the bones of the vic
Tins were gradually pctrificd and thus i'm
definitely preserved. Now the rock l
slowly d~isintegrated 10y the action of tn
rain. snow and frost and the bones OK
posed tn view or even washed entirely out
For the most part, however, the specimen
must he cut ont with pick. amner am
chiscl- IA very laborious PROCESS. as TN