The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1924-08-14

: gliding across it, headed east Sc
only rock wall at the end of til
bridge as if 1t we're the end of tn
road. Closer approach reveals
wide slot for traffic to leave tn
| bridge and pass along the face of tn
canyon. In this section some of tn
historic things add to the interes
of the trip. The first violence c
the Nez Perez war of 1877 was enacl
ed at Slate creek. Here a committe
from Grangeville met the party at
beautiful farm home in the ca
The committee headed by Editor j
C. Safely and wife, drove thirt
miles over the highest summit Of
the road to greet the party and as
sure them that "supper's ready ant
all the village doors wide apen.
Here the cars punched and wateret
| the engines. Here the Salmon rive
begins it's slant to the northwest tt
Lewiston through an impenetratablt
canyon. A little farther dowI
stream comes the White Bird creek
from the northeast and joins the
Salmon. The highway turns up the
White Bird and by gentle ascent
leaves the stream and goes up O.
eminence overlooking it. The trav-
eler wonders why it did not follow
what looks to be the logical place
for road, and looks along to see
where it turns down again to follow
the water grade. There is ravine
ahead and the road is graded up
high and wide across it. There is
a ridge ahead, one of those long
sloping ridges lying across the road,
and the highway is cut wide and
handsome through it to another ra-
vine. That irvine and the next ridge
and other ravines and other ridges
are crossed in the same way-all
the time ascending higher above the
White Bird, and the driver looks
ahead to see why the road is going
off up here and where does it lead
down to the creek where it can take
it's natural course up the valley to-
wards the summit if there is a sum-
NIT that lets the traffic through in
a northeasterly direction to Grange
vile where supper ready. The
contour of the mountains indicates
that there an easy pass around the
bend perhaps ten miles up stream.
Looking along northward, the ur-
per stratas Of the valley seem to
widen on the west side, the hills
are not so steep but seem to fall
away, leaving a westward curve
into the range. Straight ahead is
a high range planted squarely
across, with deep defile few miles
to the northeast, somewhat to the
right as we are headed. Through
this driver naturally expects the
road to lead and he scans the great
wide slopes and ridges to catch
glimpse Of the highway leading off
that way.
Ahead and little to the left is
a streak of gray on the side of a
rocky ridge somewhat higher up. OF
course that is not the road, it is of
In the wrong direction and there is
no outlet there. But while one
looks he sees car scooting along |
that streak on high gear and 1t looks
like the pilot car. 1t disappears |
around curve. That was queer
place for it to disappear too, for
It was headed back to the left and |
when I turned to the right 1t SEEM
I'd to sink into the slope of the noun
Jain. There were good many |
rocks there and perhaps, fold in
he landscape and the car is in there
somewhere.
AS our own car goes ahead 1t |
seems to go out into something like
| basin. 1t looks down grade ahead,
,ut as we progress out along what
'eems Ike basin, the resistance on
he motor shows that we are climb
ng all the time. Another car with
/ press pennant on the back glides
llong that strip Of road below the
'0cks and 1T also disappears. On
'ur right just below the road is
on which is an inscrip-
ion that reads, Here the Nez
'erce War Began, June II, 1877.
he Battle of White Bird Canyon"
So this is the place that history
ellis about. thought the battle
Ield sloped westward and that the
ocks where White Birds strategists
we're concealed was east of the In
ian camp, and here 1t was north.
aust have read 1t wrong and pic
ured 1t wrong. If Washington Irv-
ng had written 1t, the mental pic
ure would fit the landscape when a
elbow gets to 1t. But there was only
ne Washington Irving.
Another press car finished the
trip of road above and it disap-
cared where the others had. That's
queer fold In the landscape, and
don't wonder that Chief Joseph
ooled the soldiers and wiped out
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