The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-08-04

had it's origin in Indian times, and ran from Natchez, Miss. to Nashville, Tenn, by way of Colbert's shoals in the Ten- nessee river. on the north Alabama line. Within the century of it's greatest use a widely varied assortment of people passed oyer It. Among these were Spanish and French governors, soldiers and highwaymen, ladies in grand car riages and beggars, priests and traders Andrew Jackson passed that way 10 victory in New Orleans; Lorenzo DOW to lecture and preach; Claiborne To assume the governorship or Louisiana and Aaron Burr on business that cast suspicion on him. By the side of the trail in Lewis county, Tennessee, lies buried Meriwether Lewis who, with Clark. followed the Indian maiden Sacaiawea and broke another trail into the far west when the Louisiana pur- chase had been consummated.
 Possibly the greatest western migra- ton in the history of the Aryan race is that which resulted in the settlement or Oregon in the middle of the past century Over the old Oregon Trail, a continuous journey of 2OOO miles, through hostile Indian nations, over hills whose only verdure was sage and cactus, over plains hung with alkali dust, the first emigrants went. In America the pioneer blood beats
 
 traders passed out to St. Louis over the Cumberland road, and heard from Hud- son Bay trappers of the country Tn the far northwest, where there was much arable land, and where man named Astor from New York was already get ting rich trading furs they came east and fired others with the news. Mission aries were the first to go out, responding to a plea for the White Mans Book or Heaven" brought fy four Neg Perce h. dians and soon through the gateways of Independence, Westport, council Bluffs and St. Joseph the tide of emigra- tion swept outward. The path, Of neces- sity, followed the waterways. Up the val leys of the Platte and the Sweetwater, through South Pass where Fremont had aiready gone, along the course of Snake river to the Columbia, the way led. Paw nees, Cheyennes and Sioux barred the way Thirst hunger and cholera assailed them Cactus tore away their shoes and alkaii dust bit their threats and eyes. old men and children wept by the way and the strongest men lost heart. Says one old chronicler "Only the women continued to show firmness" Of such women was the west made. Last fall an old man in an OK wagon retraced the path he had come over half century ago, in order to mark and preserve the Oregon trail.
 Leaving this trail at Council Bluffs, and running southwest for 800 miles, is the olC Santa Fe Trail, opened In 1S22 to connect the new east with a west as oL as Cortez time. Gay cloth and ma ehnery were exchanged for furs and silver This trail too, kept to the wa terways, following the Missouri and Ar kansas to Raton Pass and then turn ing southwest through New Mexico. It was the most level and passable of all the old trails Sometimes 1t had It's dan gers, when White Wolf, Santanta, Kick ing Bird or Big Tree thirsted for the white mans blood Over thls route went Gen. stephen Kearner with hs Army of the West" Sterling Price to Califor- mia and Zebulon Pike into Mexican cap tiv4ey. The women and children of Kan sas are raising money to set markers along the trail.
 Another almost forgotten highway is the Yuma Trail that diagonals across the southwestern part of fhis country from Mexico to Yuma, Arlz., the path of the Padre Kino two centuries ago. It crosses the Tule and Yuma deserts, passes the "salt pan" where the Rio Sonoyta ends, and by las Tenajas Atlas the water pockets in the rocks where, for many generations, Indians praying to the rain gods, have caught thier scant supply of water. There are bones and broken wagons on this route of little water and forage that tell tales of disaster known only to the coyote, the wise one' of the Indians.
 Tomorrow: Country Roads in Amer ica."