Telegram-herald., 1890-04-28
WONDERS OF THE NORTH.
INTERESTING THINGS FOUND ~
ERlTl5t1 COLUMBIA

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Deep GSrEss.
There are 3 few very curious things
about brirlsh COlumtia rivers. livery
BODY knows EhsE they Gov Ia ne Srong
direction while they are Young foF IL
stance, the Peace aEd Lard persist Ia
gong % the Arctic ocean, IA defiance Of
TIE Rocky mountains and the kws Of
nature, while the Columbia. Fraser and
kSOtenay only consent q travel sszsard
after going IN the opposite direction some
hundreds Of miles. But they zlso have
very peculiar ways of making Ice, quite
opposite 70 that laid down in the text
books Ia the SkeenA hAve observed
the Ice II autumn 70 form On the river
bed among the powders in gloSuies, Ike
mass Of asb spawn, this often growing
until the reef actually reaches the sur
face. bat more often IL breaks away in
large pieces and floats OF down stream,
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many miles.
There are many natural bridges on our
rivers also. In the Kicking Horse. three
miles below Field station. there is rock
bridge In a slate formation which is in
clined so as 70 present sharp edges-very
unpleasant 70 walk upon. Every obserV-
ant passenger on the Canadian Pacific
railroad has noticed the snow bridge on
the Illecillewaet, but there are records
Of ice bridges also. / think have heard
Of one on the Homsthco river, but Of the
Stlckeen marvellous story is told. There
is a great glacier descending out of the
high snowheld 10 the north, and this in
ancient times flowed right across the
valley, meeting lesser ice stream from
the heights opposite. The Stickeen flowed
under the ice in tunnel, and at very
low water the passage was too small for
II, although the water must have been
banked up into a lake at the spring
freshet.
SHATTERED TRADITION.
Now, the Sloane Indians Of the upper
valley used to regard this tunnel in the
Ice as leading TO the sweet by and
by" They were therefore very anx-
ious TO avoid the place. But once the
tribe was encamped not far above the
glacier, and there was very old man
and his wife with them who were too
mean to die because Of the expese Of Civ
ing funeral feast. They were very rich
and OF no use, and had large appetites,
and their relatives at last consented TO
part with them. They were therefore
set adrift in leaky canoe and consigned
TO the current, and all the people, con-
scious OF self sacrifice, stood on the bank
and watched the canoe vanish into the
tunnel, and felt good. Now, the old
people were very frightened and squealed
good deal, but when the blue shadows
of the ice closed over them they thought
they were dead Indians, and behaved
accordingly. Presently the old lady
thought it was getting light, and became
curious and looked about her. Then she
kicked the old man and asked if he
didn't wish they were at the funeral feast.
He looked up and found the cenoe out in
the open again. the glacier behind them,
and the world pretty much as usual.
They got ashore, cut paddles and poles,
and prepared to go home again. The old
man began to be hungry for the grease
boxes; the old lady set her heart on
grease and berries. and they both deter
mined to get home for the banquet, since
they had assisted at the funeral. Well,
by dint of making the old lady work,
while he steered and gave good advice,
they succeeded in making their way up
through the tunnel and home. and were
in ample time for the feast. In fact they
lived happily every afterward. But how
shall we condole with the relatives, whose
sweetest and most pious traditions had
been shattered about the sweet by
and by?