The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1905-06-09
LETTERS
ON THE FAIR
SEGeEEGEeeeeeGeeeeeeeeGee!

writer i'm hand to let you know that
am taking in the exposition proper an
that some time during the season 1 hop
you will do the same stunt. 1t is yer
pleasant run from Pocatello, to Portlan
as you will find. 1t is 731 miles fror
Pocatello and it doesn't matter whic
The train is vestibuled throughout an
supplied with sleepers and diners. 70,
can get pretty fine meal for fifty cents
but you can get more Of it for dollar
The run through the Blue Mountains il
pleasant and the canyon Of the Colum
bia most beautiful. When was a littl
brat put in good deal Of time won
dering what God was doing during al
the years from the time he said, lie
there be light" and the afternoon wher
He gave Adam and Eve that callinf
down in the greenhouse, but since ]
have seen the canyons Of the Grand, the
Arkansas and the Columbia, I can sex
where there has been work enough done
to keep lot of forces busy in working
hours all that time and allow for a lot
Of "scabbing" besides.
They are just completing the work
of making the Columbia navigable to
Idaho, and this week marks the OPEN
ing. You know it was a hundred years
ago this summer that Lewis and Clark
came down the stream on their voyage
OF discovery and exploration. It took
them all summer to cover the distance
that we cover now in a couple of days.
If the Angel of Prophecy had visited
Of II
sweeping down the valley as they do to-
day, in big vehicles, reading, writing,
sleeping or dining at daintily spread
tabls, and all Swimming along over
lava reefs and sand hills at the rate
of forty or fifty miles and hour, darting
across the bend of the river here, and
going through the point Of the noun
tain there, without drowning or bruis-
ing anybody, I think they would have
felt discouraged with their feeble efforts
and what they were doing for the gov
eminent at Washington. Then too, if
they had been told that the centennial
anniversary of their trip would witness
such an exposition as now greets the
visitor here, and that President Roose-
welt would sit in his chair at Washing
ton and by touching a button, set the
machinery of the exposition to work in
Portland, three thousand miles away.
they would have inquired whether this
same president was still an ordinary
c., leaves his work for a moment to un-
furl a carload of flags at the mouth of
the Columbia and to transmit message
across the continent and back
Portland is situated on the Willamette
river, twelve miles above it's junction
with the Columbia and about hundred
miles from the sea. 1t started to build
along the river and now the old part of
town is the part the visitor sees first
when he gets off the train. There is not |
much to be said in it's favor, and some
day it will probably be renovated with
fire. The rest of the city is built on
higher ground, slopng from Portland |
Heights on the south and west Port
land is growing rapidly on account of
the exposition and it's trade with the
Orient. 1t is mixture of the eastern
mating and making up the character of
the place. 1t is Minneapolis for nice
Streets a Denver for nice homes, Los
Angeles for lawns, a Pasadena for roses,
and different from them all in having
the sunset forever nipped by range
Of pine-clad, vine-clad, moss-covered
hills that are always verdant, and
spreading the evening shadows over
some of the most beautiful lawn groves
than an American city has ever pro- {
duced. Denver is notable for it's neat &
buildings, Chicago for it's =
business, Cedar Rapids for it's streets,
aWns and pavements, and Seattle for I
is great harbor. Los Angeles for the C
5ay-colored plants and flowers of Figue- T
'oa street, but no visitor at Portland :.
who does the city, will fail to note that f
t has the greenest lawns, the finest h
nan or had been delegated to exercise
he powers of a God. 1t took Lewis and n
lark two years to carry the flag from s
st. Louis the mouth of the Columbia, ii
md four years to carry intelligence to V
he Pacific coast and back. This week
n American citizen in Washington d. "
'ative pines of greenest green. the o.
greatest variety of other shade and r
ornamental trees and the prettiest roses it
n summer that ever basked in the N
morning sun or dropped in an evening r
shower y,
The exposition grounds are on the h
vest side of the city at the foot of
cortland Heights, and unlike the big NJ
exposition at st. Louis, it is all in al
'uch, and one does not have to travel p
'ver much territory to see it, OF course G
can't tell you much about the expo W
ition itself, that would be going into Il
letails too much and you wouldn't take ca
ime to read it, but what I have been O.
cling you is a sample of things / have s
loticed along the way and ! just mem ST
ion them in passing. / am going to 81
Hit the Trail" tomorrow. 81
Dear Bill and Sue: This is our year. II
went out to the Exposition grounds v
oday and / am glad / went. / didn't IL
intend to write you more than line m
II two about what | saw there, but it 81
aised my spirits so much to spend the p
ay there that i just thought I would f.
mention a few things in passing. L
The grounds are nestled in the edge t.
f the city and it Is easy to get to
hem. Everything is condensed so that c.
GU do not have to run your legs off to L
H@. ,sHH