Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-10-02


Russia has been badly disturbed during the
war with Japan. Work In the mines has
been suspended, the supply has been lin
tied and the price has gone up to enormous
figures. DR.. Walcott. director of the geo.
logical survey: DIR. Day and other miner
alogists are satisfied that the black sands
found all along the Pacific coast viii fur
nfsh all the platinum that the world re-
quires If they are properly worked; and in
order to stimulate the new industry cir
cular was issued by the geological survey
last spring. and sent to thousands of miners
throughout the west, inviting them to fur
nish samples of black sand for government
analyses. which. 1t was announced. would
take place in public at the Lewis and Clark
exposition A complete plant of machinery
was set up and placed IN charge of DR..
Richards. dean of the mining school OF the
Boston Institute of Technology, and it has
been working every day since the opening
of the exposition.
Samples of black sand have been received
from 52s different localities in fifteen states
and territories the largest number, more
than leo samples. coming from Idaho.
Platinum has been found In more than half
of them. and wherever Ii has appeared In
sufficient quantity an expert chemist was
sent to the place 1t came from to make
thorough investigation. Carloads of black
sand have been brought from several local
tiles. and have been worked up on the
grounds by DR.. Richards in order to teach
the visiting miners how to do 1t themselves.
The consequence has been gratifying.
general interest has been excited through
out the mining regions of the west in the
development of black sand deposits,
Origin of the Word s.Oregon."
Another result of the exposition has been
to stimulate historical investigation and
controversy, and Just now public attention
is being attracted to the early explorations
and settlement of Oregon and other parts
of the northwest. The first citizens of
Portland were A. L.. Lovejoy and F. w.
Pettigrove, who located and built a log
cabin ON the original town site of $40 acres
In the winter of 1915. Lovejoy native
of Massachusetts. wanted to call the en-
bryo town Boston. Pettigrove. a native of
Maine. wanted to call it Portland: and. as
they could not agree, they Tipped coin.
Pettigrove won and Portland was adopted
as the name of the settlement.
The origin of the word Oregon is
cleuded In mystery. 1t was first used by
Capt. Jonathan Carver in book called
Three Years Travels Through the Int
rior Parts of North America, for More
Than Five Thousand Miles, in the Years
17eG-1T6S." which was published in Lon
don In 1878. 1t does not appear from the
book that Carver came any farther west
than Minnesota. where, he says. the In
dams told him of a great river called Ore
gon. or the River of the West, which rose
near the sources of the Mississippi and
flowed westward through the mountains to
the Pacific ocean. This is the only refer
ence to the river in the book. Carver was
Connecticut Yankee. who served as SOL
der through the French and Indian war
and afterward, on his own hook explored
northern Michigan Wisconsin and Mime
sofa. He returned to his home, wrote his
book and endeavored to persuade the colo
NAL authorities in New York and New En-
gland to pay the cost of it's publication, or
at least reimburse him for his expenses.
Having failed on this side he went to Lon
don to appeal to the government there
He managed to get his book printed. but
obtained nothing more. and died destitute
in London in 1880
The great river Oregon was afterward
called the Columbia in 1892 by Captain
Gray Of Boston, who sailed considerable
distance inland in the ship Columbia and
gave the river that name. He never heard
of the word Oregon. Careful investiga-
ton has failed to find that word in any of
the Indian languages, or any Indian who
ever heard of it before Carver's book was
printed. 1t is a question whether he in
vented 1t or whether he misunderstood the
pronunciation of some other name men,
toned to him by the Indians of Mime
sofa.
The name Oregon does not appear in
print again until William Cullen Bryant
published his poem. "Thanatopsis, in 1917.
He evidently had read Carvers book
and his sensitive ear was pleased with the
poetic rhythm of the word Oregon Theo-
in his book Canoe and Saddle in a
similar manner. So far as any one can
ascertain 1t was never written spoken
before the charming narrative of his west
ern experiences appeared in 1852.
Trading Post Established.
In 1920 a Boston school teacher named
Hall Jackson Kelley became infatuated
with Oregon. and although he never visit
ed this country. he described it as a para
disc and predicted for it a wonderful flu
ture. He wrote pamphlets, newspaper arti-
cles, made speeches. delivered lectures and
addressed memorials to Congress advocat-
ing colonization of Oregon, and he sue
ceeded in exciting much inquiry and inter-
est. Among others whose curiosity and am
bition were awakened by the writings and
speeches Of Kelley Nathaniel ]. Wyeth
of Cambridge, Mass, who dispatched a ves-
sci loaded with merchandise around the
Horn and started overland in 1882 to meet
her at the mouth of the Columbia river She
never arrived and was probably lost at sea
with all on board. Wyeth waited a year
or two and then went back to Boston,
fitted out another vessel, called the May
Dacre. which arrived safely at the mouth
OF the Willamette. where he set up trad
ing post, and collected furs and packed
salmon. During his first journey he was
accompanied by John Ball, who taught
the first school in Oregon, beginning in No
vember, 1882. Among Balls pupils was
Ronald A. Mcdonald who went to Japan
in 1S4S, succeeded In obtaining the good
will of the officials and the people, and es-
tablshed the first English school In that
empire. Commodore Perry found him there
IN 1858 and used him as an Interpreter
John Ball returned to the east and after
ward founded the city of Grand Rapids
Mich.