The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1908-08-26
SPLAWN IN SADDLE.
North Yakima Candidate for Cover.
nor Had Exciting Career
as Pioneer.

Of all the candidates for governor
on any of the tickets before the pep
pie of Washington undoubtedly A. ].
Splawn of Yakima, Democrat, has
had the most picturesque and the
most truly western career, says the
Seattle Times, for he crossed the
! plains when child of seven, more
than half a century ago. took part in
the early pioneer episodes of central
Washington and northern Oregon,
and spent So years in the saddle as
a stockman. He has been president
/, of the Washington state fair board,
a state senator from Yakima, and
now is president of the Washington
State Livestock association, presi-
dent of the Tieton Water Users as
sociation, and president of the Yaki-
ma Valley Transportation company,
corporation formed by men of the
Yakima valley for building and ope-
rating an electric railway system
I iCillhS vi JHC piOHttl luClueHtS u
his life. Mr.. Splawn recently said
| Following our arriva, in Oregon
from Missouri in 1852, went to
klickitat county, Washington, in
Washington, in 1860. at the age OF
Is years. In 1861 l moved to the
Yakima valley with my oldest
brother and F. NJ. Thorp, who with
their families were the first settlers.
That same year I helped drive band
of beef cattle from Yakima to the
Fraser River, B. c., distance of 500
miles, through an Indian country in
habited by the then powerful tribes
of Yakimas, Kowohchins, Wenat-
chees, Chelans, Methows, Okanogans
and the Shuswops, meeting but one
white man before reaching Fort
kamloops, then occupied by the Hud-
son Bay company. The trials and
dangers of that trip ! will never for
get.
'sIn 1863 I was running a pack
train of horses from The Dalles, Ore,
to Canyon City, mining camp on
the John Day River, in what is now
known as Grant county, Oregon.
While on this trail we ran into that
greatest of Indian freebooters, old
Pa-ni-na, of the Snake or Shoshone
tribe. He was the scourge of eastern
Oregon and there were many pack
trains of horses stolen and many lives
lost through this relentless old war;
rior
I'VE stood him and his warriors
off for three days and made our way
to our destination. Later in the
same year, while taking supplies to
Boise basin, we had another battle
with this sleepless old redskin at
olds Ferry, on the Snake river, near
the present town of Huntington, Ore.
Again in 1864 we took another train
OF pack horses loaded with bacon
from The Dalles, Ore, to the Caribou
mines, B. c.
I'm 1865 we drove a band of cat
tie from the Yakima valley to Boise
Basin and on this trip went through
the Palouse country. At that time
there was not settler or home
between the Snake river and Spo-
kane. In 1866 we drove some cattle
from Yakima over the Mullen road,
through the Occur d'Alene noun
tains, to Deer Lodge, Mont. and in
1S67-6S to the Caribou mines, B. c.,
and in 1869 to Fort Kamloops.
I'm 1870 we drove our cattle over
the Cascade mountains. through Sno-
qualmie Pass to Seattle. This was
the beginning OF market for our
cattle on Puget Sound. which has
continued ever since. and is now our
only market for stock. For eight
years | continued to drive my stock
over this trail.
II have spent 35 years OF my life
in the saddle 10 months out OF ~,
without sleeping in a house. Dur