Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-08-08
ACROSS THE CONTINENT.

AFTER reaching the Pacific Coast the
route of the expedition of which was one
was to terminate on the very top of the Cas-
cade Mountains. This range comes down
from British Columbia. and is the dividing
Washington. This took our party
out of a beaten track. past year
old hamlets, through dense, heavfly-tim-
bered, moss-festooned forests, beside blue
green, swift-runnipg. snow-fed, ice-cold
rivers, over rutty, rooty, rocky roads, along
Indian trails, up and down narrow, danger
Gus, tortuous pathways, worn by mecca
sined feet into the side of precipices-up and
on to the pure, deep, coarse snow, and the
blue-caverned, bear-tracked, awe-inspiring
glacier. Part OF the journey was by rail, q
few miles by hand car through lumber
camps and elearings, a long stretch by char
tered stage coach, across deep rivers
on primitive ferries. the remainder
right up to wall of rock over
which ropes dangled- on the backs of
sure-footed little broncos, or "coyuses." as
they are called there. The diversified
picturesqueness of such journey-most of
it through virgin, unsurveyed, uninhabited
timber land-left impressions that will last
longer than fastcolored scene on finest can
vass.
THIS perilous but enchanting journey
was booked to end at q deposit of precious
mineral. 1t was in fact an expedition of
exploration. At its head was Mr.. John B.
Parish, of Denver. the well-known mining
engineer and expert, who had been engaged
to pass upon the proposition. The others of
the parry were ex-Sherif McCandless and
MI. j. P. Brown, of Pittsburg: William Hams
worth, Jr., late of Pittsburg. now of Seat
tie; gentlemen representing q New York
mining syndicate; the experts assistant,
packers and myself. At Marble Mount-a
log saloon and supply store on one
side of the swift river, ferry
leading to pioneers home and a
sleeping shack for dozen people-our
mounts and pack horses were to be taken
for the mountains. just as the stars came
out over the huge trees this resting spot
was sighted. Here the Cascade river tum-
bles into the Skagit, rising and falling with
the strength of the sun on the snow that
gives 1t birth up in the granite
walled. ice-crowned hills Here the
real work of the journey commenced.
Here we turned our backs on
scraps of civilization, and with the dawn
began to penetrate the solitude. Only the
chirp of the wild birds. the swash OF the
waters. the signing of the winds through
flung warning from the leader who knew
the pitfalls and the dangers of the
trail, the exclamations of wonder at the
majesty of the trees, the thickness and the
richness of the parti-cOlored moses that
carpeted the deep, rich soil and clothed
huge standing and PROSTATE trunks with a
fern-covered, velvety blanket-only these
made discord in this cool and shady road
way. No idle jest no senseless song, no
thoughtless banter then and there. Naught
but contemplation of woodworking ma
ture at its very best.
THUS on we pushed. First over a we'll
defined trail that led through levelstretch
of forest, then up gradual land lifts that led
to rocky promontories, then down to little
valleys in whose soggy soil the ponies sank
knee deep, then across a bouldered ford
whose soap-suddy blue waters made q
Niagara-like noise, then into mountain
climbing in real earnest. At numerous
places the trail was mere foothold on the
heayy-timbered, loose-rocked sides of the
foot hills. Roots of giant trees made treach-
erous hoof-holds for the four-footed climb
ers. A misstep meant a fall of hundreds OF
feet over rocks and against timbers-broken
bones, doubtless death. At one side of the
precipitous, tortuous, tiresome way the
plucked from the saddle; on the other an
abyss up from whose hollows came the song
of the swift stream. Over across and seem
ingly high as the very sky black bare craigs
shot far above the timber, snow-covered and
sublime.
AT midday shack-like commodious struc-
ture was reached. Here a red-nosed, jolly,
year-carrying man acted as cook, house
beans, spuds and bacon that had been in
creased in price through freight rates levied
by the pack train proprietor. Here, too,
were the first real signs showing that
the trail led to a mineralized region-speci-
mems, speoulations, surmises. A relished
meal by man and beast and in the saddle for
the night station-a log cabin and a tented
supply store just at the foot of the mineral
lied mountain. A portion of this end of the
journey was through veritable forests of
ferns in the sombre green valleys traversed
by the zig-zag, up and down trail. Here the
beautifully formed and fragile maiden-hair
grew at the feet of others of
its family whose bearded leaves shut
out all view of the rider ahead
and switched the faces of those who rode
erect through the green labyrinth. Higher
and bolder grew the granite mountains,
noisier the tumbling waters. deeper the soli-
tude heavier the SHOWS lost in the rain
laden clouds, more dangerous the footway.
IT was ride carefully and walk IN bad
spots slowly to the emu that afternoon. You
who sit IN saddle for q spin over broad
streets and park roadways. you who gallop
and cavort on town-bred steed in reckless
tashion-you, well, perhaps you would
have walked all the way. But without
mishap worth mentioning, tired of
limb, wet with the raindrops showered
from the low branches of the thick
standing trees and tall, broad-leaved, pro-
fuse ferns and variegated vegetation, We
reached our night station just as the camp
fire had been lighted by trio of prospec-
tors who were there ahead of us. On the
ground beside the cabin were the hoof and
hide of a slaughtered something. We
scented a relief from beans and bacon.
allow are you, boys? My names Whisk-
ers. There's my dog. He's Whiskers, too"
And the canine wagged his tail in prompt
Over the fire sizzled q
smoke-bIacked tin pail. The contents bub-
bled with such vigor as to almost force the lid
off I eyed il suspiciOuslv- scentin lik0un