Kootenai County Republican. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1899-1903, 1899-05-26
A FEW ODD ISLANDS.
DESCRIBED ~ THE WAYNE COUNTY
tpA.j MAN.
they Float Around In Careless Sort
Of f'nshiow. Wtsh an Occasional
s~~Y F~~aL, 0ae n~fnR tn spin
Areaad Like . Monster Top.

the mouth OF the Mississippi the other
day. said tho srFaeiuHH isiaH fsGss
i;..n--sis;- Pa ..Tas. rssa!.4e! zoe
that my own little old comfy can boast
few islApds Of the sost What county
Wayne. young man. You'll find 1t On
She maps drs north of Pike comfy.
Ynn city ehnps have an iden that all Of
aaEthsrn Pannssisania is Pike county
in expansion. but yen were never NO
much mistaken about anything In your
lives Pike county Ii all very well III
it's wny. hut In Way runs 70 fish liars
and ratfiesnakca Now. Wayne has
mona 81 the latter. Int of the former
~sli, talk aiant Pike county fishingi
Young fellow. Pike county isn't
marker 80 Wayne when il corucs to
downright. honest. clean cut piscatmiai
sport Pike may liz abaut IL better. bat
when you come 10 Gift the facts rom
the fiction before nh investigating com.
mission yonil find that Wayne catches,
the higgoas trout aud the fightingest
tm.~ every time. and dpnf yon forget it
s4i,ut | started TO tell you about this
floating islands In W.. old county.
and Hudson Canal company gouged a
channel in the face VI thu earth from
kopdnnt 20 Houcsdaie and called IL u
canal For reservoirs and feedcra 10 this
canal the level Of ponds and lakea along
the route was raited by means of dams
from ~ to 20 feet Will. tho dnua
wrfc Ia Process 81 building .iie sin,lser
abont lii. ponds was fo!iad mp 10 the
artificial water line, aud in innny eases
really valuable lumber @ss left 10 decay
wh.fe IL fell. These dead trunks termed.
when tho water Fore u .ts newer level,
The hasi- 81 these floating Islands, which
may be fennd IN ~ mnny of the lnies
u Wayne county. lntertw ming branch
% and twigs IT the trees Themselves and
iasge quantities Of undefhrusli served
a. bind tbs logs together In something
like solid mass. thereby fsnning rata
nf iaora or less bnoyauey and sizn, In
tho canfse ~ .ss:ie water weeds II VA.
rious kinds attached themselves 70 the
raft. and eventually became u part Of
II. Gradually light. thin mold nc.
oumnlatcd ON tho island. md IN this
mcla birds planted rcsds and grain,
which, sprunting, growing and finally
dying and rottins. did their part IN tho
making % the wnote. All OF thr lnrger
islands bear from one to score of trees.
many Of which have attained a consid,
mahle growth.
lyon might suppose that to walk
upon or 10 fish from one IL these ialunds
would 10 rontce If some danger. bat.
aside from nn ocenaiannl wetting ~ the
fest no accidents frpm ihia cause hnvo
over occurred. a. far aa have been able
to learn Tho sensation produced by
walking on floating island ia very
similar tn that which yon and have
both experienced when. ~ boys we rau
un thin. young Ice. or thicker old and
rotten leo. You remember how tho leo
used - bend under your weight ~ you
ran across II, sometimes sinking nearly
u foot and then with the next stap ris-
ing 10 meet yon. possibly throwing ynu
ana perhaps giving you q dnekingy
Well s,'a the same way with the float.
ing Islands, but with tho element II
danger eliminated II has the same ias'
cIna.tun
'Stranfe m Vi may seen. very few OF
these floating islands have heeome per
manenily nnt hored 10 the bottom % die
lnlea They ara as nomHdig and az nm
settled nj their. habiti as tho Arab
They lack what we country people call
stick to ttiyenews They ara the can,
ssafies, cusns that ever hanncuea.
Sometimes Il mere breath ef wind will
send ono Of them scaating from ono vnd
os the iake 10 the other aud again ,ou
osnldn't bulge that Same island with
a 100 ton. caiaponnd fteigh, locomotive
and political pull once thoroughly
domesiicated. huwsyee. they make ex
eelltEt weather vance, Tor they i1yasss'
Ills aeek the ise .hcTp OF the lake
~ rerall a peculiar think that hap
penSi seafs ago u tho island Ia White
Oak rcai near Aidensille. some eight
ar nimc miles 10 the north ana wost VI
Hoas=tssle BY the Way, this particular
islapd " The largest ~ The loo 80 large.
Ia fact. that The csH,er rises fully ten
feet above tbs water line The farmer
owning this island proposed erecting u
sttmmaF honse on the elevation. hut
IVES obliged TO give II mp owing to bis
Inability ~ lay proper foundation
wiihoai driving pills, and o. do that
would result Ia mailing tho island 10
ahm tuttA4sa
"Wsll ~ was goin. e. say. this IL.
iand one jsy el0psi with a southwest
TsTlsyt. whieh promptly deserted ~
seon ~ u bad got ,ss consors into the
middle II the lake There " ros,cd In
sulsFy summer sun. With "a nlsans II
rassen In Itself and milking time np-
preaching Presently the edge q !, ~.
NJ lxN~ss from thu northwest struck
she wsndcrcr IN The port qasrtcr aud
thia@s hssan 70 iook little brighter
Unfortunately tyr the island, however.
81 al%1as the sa.uo tnetnsnt ths. the fsrst
sass landed wind ~ equal intensity
casns up from this southeast and It's
sd<s eaugh, Tbs island On the ssatboard
bow, In isss than minute these two
contrary winds had that island spin.
sing armand Ike a top ysu may hs-
nkse this or stos az yoa uk. I ran