The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1898-03-24
ONE COMPOSED OF TWO.
Cascade Mountains Divide the
State of WASHINGTON.

ington is sometimes called the Ever
green State, from the extensive pine
and fir forests, which cover the noun
tains and the sea coast regions, and
possibly for the reason that in the
western part the climate is so moist
and mild that the grass remains green
during the whole year. It has an area
of 10000 square miles, Or counting the
water, about 100000 acres-about
as much as Ohio and Indiana COM
bined. 1t contains great variety of
surface, soil and scenery, and has two
distinct climatic divisions separated
by the Cascade mountains.
The Japan current, with its moist
ure laden air, sweeps over western
Washington precipitating rain gradu-
ally until it reaches the summit of the
Cascades, where the high, cold alti-
tude seems to wiring out of it nearly
all the moisture there is left in the
form of snow with the result that i'm
mediately east of the mountains the
rainfalls lessons perceptibly until
point east of the Columbia river is
reached.
The Cascades are SO rugged and
impossible, that as far as have been
able to learn not single wagon road
crosses them from one side to the 9TH
er. The Northern Pacific and Great
Northern railroad have, it is true, man
aged to get over and through this gi
gantic back bone of nature, but at an
immense cost, and these two roads to-
day are the only means of communi-
cation between the two sections of the
State.
The Northern Pacific has tunnel
about two and a half miles long and
the Great Northern goes oyer on
what is called switch-back but is
boring tunnel. 1t will thus be seen
that there are in the State two great
communities, having diverse interests
with but very little inter -communica-
ton. It is to the division east of the
mountains, known generally as the
farming, fruit and stock-growing Sec
tion that purpose to speak of in this
letter.
Eastern Washington is divided into
several districts, each having distinct
interest peculiar to itself. Leaving
the summit of the mountains coming
east, the traveller soon finds that the
grade has changed and that instead of
a heavy pull up hill his train is on a
down grade. The mountain peaks
gradually become lower and less
steep and the timber thins out and be-
comes smaller, with here and there
quite space level enough to be culti-
vated, with occasionally a settlers
cabin with few acres of cleared land
One can but wonder why people will.
hide away in such places, without
churches, schools or any social adj
vantage whatever. The answer must
be that many of the cabins are occu
pied by single men, who make busi-
ness of prospecting in summer and
hunting in the winter. Some, of course,
have families with them, but all in the
main are those who have always led
this sort of life.
The Great Northern road strikes
the valley of the Wenatchee river soon
after leaving the summit and follows
; it in it's windings until it reaches the
Columbia, distance of 56 miles. The
principal town in that distance is
Leavenworth, division town with
considerable trade. The..next town OF
importance is Wenatchee, near the
confluence of the river OF the same
name with the Columbia, with popu-
lation of about 400. The chief indus
try being fruit growing by irrigation
For quite way back along the We.
natchee large water wheels are no.
ticed along the river bank, having the
general appearance of the old-fash.
ioned overshot wheel, but which are
;, constructed with buckets that take uE
the water as they are made to revolve
by the current and convey it into
tanks for the purpose of irrigation
small engines being sometimes useC
, for the same purpose.
Leaving Wenatchee the road soor
crosses the Columbia, which at this
; point is about 200 feet wide, the only
noticeable features being two or three
high columns of basaltic rock stand
ing high in the river, the broken, rug
ged bluffs and a dry and parchec