The Portland daily press., 1891-06-16
a. BIG CATCH OF SALMON.
Citizen Trains Luck Fishing ir
Oregon Years Ago.
Portland oregonian.l

lfOTllduu OlSROuiah'l
George Francis Train, while at the
Portland, told friend. some'of the incl
dents of a visit he paid this state, many
years ago, away back earlyin theaixties,
He said he was the first one to discover
salmon in the Columbia, and caught .264
in a day, and carried them across the
Columbia, walking on the sbacks,of the
salmon which crowded the river; also
that heleaned the Chinook jargon In
fften.minutes.
Lakemost of the "reminiscences of by
gonadaysin Oregon, there is some foun-
dation for these statements, but still
they vary somewhat from,the facts in
thescase. A correct account, therefore,
ofMr. MISUNDERSTANDING salmon
ndtstudying Chinook jargon will be
found interesting.
1t waSsomewhere about 1854 OF 1886
when Mr.. Train firsticame out here, just
after a Fenian scare.in Canada. Itswas
when he took run across the line to
Victoria, and the long roll of the British
drums was heard, and the troops were
called out, sentries doubled and detect
ives kept watch over every move he
made while he was ON British territory.
Mr.. Train had aspirations for the
presidencyin those days, and gentle
man here has a photograph of him, pre-
sented by MIR. Train himself, on the back
of which iswritten an invitation for the
therecipient-to meet the donor in the
White House when he should be elected
president.
MIR. TRAIN TRIES. his HAND.
While here Mr.. Train visited The
Dalles, on the invitation of Captain j.
.Ainsworth, and made his first acquaint-
ance with the Chinook salmon and
Chinook jargon in their native wilds.
Thiswas long before can Of salmon
had been put up on the Columbia, and
when the only salmon fisheries on the
river were those of the Indians at the
Cascades and at The Dalles.
Mr.. Train was to address the citizens
OF The Dalles in the church, and the day
before paid visit to a salmon fishery in
the rapids below Cello. He greatly adj
mired the easy, graceful manner in
which an Indian, standing on frail
platform hung over narrow chute,
plunged his dipnet into the foa,ning cur
rent and lifted the salmon out on the
rocks, and he wished to try his hand.
The Indian endeavored to dissuade
him, telling him that he would ''lillapi
copa chuck"-that is, fall into the river;
but MIR. Train insisted, and the Indian
politely yielded up his net and stand,
and Mr.. Train stepped out ON the plat
form, net in hand.
Never before since the Columbia forced
its way through the Cascades had such
spectacle been presented to the Chi
nook salmon. Mr.. Train wore green
broadcioth swallowtail coat with brass
buttons, a tall silk hat, satin vest and
ruffied shirt. AS he passed his net for a
scoop" he was the observedsf all OBJ
servers. He scooped, and Erge Chi
nook salmon was caught in his net, but
instead of pulling ii out it pulled him in,
and before one could say ''Jack Robin
SON" Mr.. Train was being whirled away
like a cork in the swift current.
he MAKES PREDICTION.
Several Indians, who had evidently ex-
z,eeted this Immediately innne.7in and.
Train ashore. His tall hat was dancing |
like bubble down the current, but q
lot Of young Indians scampered after it |
and soon brought it back.
Mr.. Train was not to be baked by his
mishap, and while he peeled off his coat,
vest, etc., he took lesson in Chinook
and found out what "killapi copa chuck"
meant. Having stripped down to his
ruffied shirt and laid his garments out
in the sun to dry, he again took the net,
and telling his friends to go back to The
Dalles and send up AN engine for him at
6p. m, he stepped out on the platform
and fished all day, piling up 264 fine sal
mon.
When the engine came after him he
wished to take the salmon to town with
him to ornament the nostrum from which
he was to speak that evening, but was
dissuaded from this ON the ground that
IL would not look well in church.
He delivered lecture that evening in
which he comphmented the pioneers on
their bravery and fortitude in immigrat-
ing to this section, and told them that
while they were seeking for gold in the
mountains and hoping to get wealth
from their herds of cattle, which ranged
on ten thousand hills, there was immense
wealth swimming past their doors I'M
noticed.
He then predicted that in few years
the salmon of the Columbia would be
canned and exported to the uttermost
ends of the earth, and would become
nT9E 0f fha