Evening star., 1924-02-21
CHAPTER VIII.


TRAILS END.
Where lately had been gloom and
despair there now reigned joy and
confidence. With the great noun
tains behind them, and this new
pleasant and gentle land all around
them, the spirits of the men rose
buoyantly
strong current of the great Snake
river, laboring but little. if at all
They made long hours every day. and
by the middle of autumn they saw
ahead of them a yet grander food
than tha: of the noble river which
was bearing them.
At last they had found the Co!um-
bia: They had found what Mack.n-
zie never found. what Fraser was not
70 70 lnd-that great river. now To he
TAKEN over with every right of double
discovery by these messengers of the
young republic. How SWellcd their
hearts, when at last they kne,v tn :
Iruth. unescapahle. incontrovcrtible,
II MAS lheirs. They had Won.
me men had grown reckless now
truzatte, Labichc, Drouillard--aIl the
ddEenturerS-Sang as they Travelled
Sa!er and more gay from day to aav
Always the landscape had fascinat-
ihS interest for them in its repeated
changes. They were in a differed,
'>orld, No one had seen the noun
talES which they saw The Rocki..y
the sitter koots-theSe they had
passed: and now they must VET mass
through another range. this time not
~ .hc 5oilSome process Of foot or
horse travel, but on the strong food
oi the river. The Columbia had mad.
IT trah for them through the CAS-
CadcS.
Down the stormy rapids they
plunged eAulting. Mount Hood -
HeI-ns. Rainier. Adams-:tli The ioftv
peaks of the great Cascades. So nam
ed 1T later date. appeared before
them, around them. behind them as
they swung into the last lap of their
Wild Journey and headed down to-
ward the sea. CruZattc Iabich.
Droulliard-aN YOU othcrs-time now.
indeed for YOU to raise the song of
the old NoyaGeurS, None have come
so far as yOu-your paddles are
Wrlhkllng new waters. You are brave
men. every one, and yours is the re-
ward of the brave,
soon, so said The Indians. they
would come to ships-canoes with
trees standing in them, on which ,e-
perS We're hung.
Me" said Cruzatte, Il never in
my whole life was sen sheep. |
Will be glad for see wan now"
But they found no ship anywhere
in the lower Columbia. An the shores
Were silent. deserted: no vessel lay
at anchor. Before them lay the emp
ty river, wide as a sea. and told no
tales Of what had been. They were
alone, in the third year out from
hrme; thousands of leagues they had
Travelled. and must travel back again
Her" they saw many gullS. As to
Columbus these birds had meant land.
to our diScovercrS they meant the
sea. Forty miles below the last viii
lage they saw it-rolling in solemn
white-topped waves beyond the bar
Every paddle ceased at its work
and the boats lay tossing on the in
coming waves. There WAS the end
of the great trail. Honder lay the
Pacific.
Meriwether Lewis turned and look
ed into the eyes of William Clark,
who sat al the bow of the next canoe
Each friend nodded to the other
Neither spoke. The lips of both were
tight.
The big flag, sergt. Gass;' said
Lewis.
been four mess fires at each encamp-
meDt thus far-thoSe of the three
Sergeants and that Of the officers; but
now. as they huddled on the wet
beach on which they diSembark ed the
officers ordered the men to build but
Grouped about this they all stood.
ragged. soaked. gaunt. unkempt. yet
the happiest company of adventurers
that ever followed Il long trail to its
end.
Men" said Meriwether Lewis at
length. we have now arrived at the
end of our journey. In my belief
there has never been party more
loyal to the purpose on which it has
been engaged. Without your strength
and courage we could not have reach
ed the sea 1t is my wish to thank
you for MIR. jefferson, the President
of the United States. who sent us
here. If at any time one of you
has been disposed to doubt, or to re-
sent conditions which necessarily
were imposed. let all that be forgot
ten. We have done our work. Here
we must pass the winter. In the
spring we will make quick time home
ward
They gave him three cheers. and
three for Capt. Clark. York gave ex-
preston to his own emotions by
walking about the beach on his
hands.
And the confounded ships are all
gone back to sea-" grumbled Patrick
Gass. i've been achin' for days to
git here. in the hope of foindin' some
sailor man old loike to thrash-and
here is no one at all, at ALL"
WILL" said Meriwether Lewis after
a time, pulling out the inevitable map
Il wonder where it was that Alexan-
der Mackenzie struck the Pacific
twelve years ago. 1t must have been
far north Of here. We have come
around forty-seven degrees of longi-
tude west from Washington. and
something like nine degrees north
unite with France or Spain on the
south to known exploration by land.
We have driven the wedge home,
Never again can Great Britain on the
north unite with France or Spain on
frontier. If they dispute the title
we purchased from Napoleon they can
never deny our claim by right of dis
covery. This, / say, solidifies our
republic! We have done the work
given to us. to do:''
Yes" grinned William Clark stand
ing on one leg and warming his wet
moccasin sole at the FIRE: land 1 Won
der where that other gentleman, Mr.
Simon Fraser, is just nowr
They could. not know that Fraser
the trader who was their rival in the
great race to the Pacific, was at that
time snoW-bound in the Rockies more
them.
Three years after the time when
this little band of adventurers stood
the RAIN at the mouth of the CO.
iumbia, Fraser, at the mouth of the
liver named after him. heard of white
men who had come to the ocean same
where far to the south. Word had
,assed up the coast, among the ma
i've tribes, of men who had white
'kins, and who had with them d
lack man with curly hair.
That's Lewis and Clark" said
:imon Fraser. "They were at the