Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1925-09-15

, ciples, and by the time he was q
| he was able to accept, with no mis-
givings as to his chances for sue
| cess, an offer of a job as locating en-
gineer for the Chicago, Milwaukee &
st. Paul Railroad in Iowa.
| Skill of the highest order was re-
| quired to obtain the best location
east and west across the state.
He located and built the Duluth,
South Shore & Atlantic, served with
distinction on the engineering force
OF other roads then under construc-
ton, and at last was called on by
james J. Hill, the railroad king, 10
locate the line of the Great Northern
Railroad across the Rocky Mountains
from Great Falls, Mont, to the Pa
cific Coast.
This offered tremendous problem.
Many attempts had been made to
find a pass to the north that would
permit the line to be carried directly
west through the mountains instead
of in great curve to the south. That
all these attempts had failed daunt-
ed Stevens not at all. in the winter
Of 1889. accompanied by single
companion, he started on foot
: through the mountains to look for
the pass.
An accidental meeting with some
Blackfeet Indians lost Stevens his
companion. for the latter succumbed
to the temptation offered by. the In
dams whisky, placing Stevens under
the necessity of finding another as
sistant. There were no white men
in the country. The Blackfeet refus-
ed to go with him, for huge snow
drifts covered the ground, the tenn
perature was far below zero. and, be-
sides, the Indians insisted that there
were evil spirits in the mountains.
| At last. however. Stevens found a
renegade Indian murderer from an
other tribe. who had taken refuge
with the Blackfeet and was willing
to so with him.
Stevens himself made the snow
| shoes on which they were to attempt
to negotiate the drifts, and they
started off with their packs on their
backs.
They had gone but a few miles
when the Indian collapsed from the
cold. Stevens cleared away the
snow. wrapped his companion in his
blankets. built fire to warm him:
then pressed on alone. Miles and
miles he trudged, careless alike of
the deep snow, the enervating cold,
and the fierce winds of the noun
tains. At last he found what he
sought-a place that bore every su-
perficial indication of being an ideal
pass for railroad.
The short winter twilight was upon'
him, death seemed the certain por-
ton of the man who became lost at
night in that desolate spot, yet Stew
ems continued on, determined TO
study the terrain further, to find out
for certain whether the pass he had
found was in fact the one he sought.
And as the last faint rays of dav
melted into the onrushing winter
darkness, he knew that he had reach
ed the Pacific side of the pass: that
he had succeeded where all others
had failed.
Even today, after 35 years. the
hours that followed are vivid in
Stevens memory. He could not re-
turn, for the black darkness made It
impossible for him to discern the
snow tracks that marked his path.
he could not rest, for he had neither
camping outfit nor the materials with
which to build a fire, and to have sat
down unprotected from the bitter
colo would have meant that he would
freeze. BY mighty efforts he manag-
ed TO reach the summit of the pass.
then, through the whole night. he
walked back and forth over a short
section of his path, fearful of ex-
lending his route lest a misstep on
kle. eu all
In the morning he hurried back n
where he had left the Indian, ana
round him with a frozen hand ard
frozen foot.
:, In another hour Stevens told me
ne probably would have been dead
After a good deal of trouble | man
aged TO half carry him to the Indian
camp, loo0 feet below. and | found
mat even down there it had been &c
degrees below zero the night before
BUT was strong in those DAYS. and
could stand a lot of that sort of
lhlng. l stood it better than the
indian. anyway he said with
SMILE" "i
Great work has he since done
building a railroad across the Cas-,
cades, bridging gorges, later mana~-
ing Win the aid of Colonel Gorgas
TO put the Panama canal project on
successful footing. all in all an nm
usually remarkable career.
justice A. NJ. Spear and school
mate OF hlr. Stevens, will preside at
me reception and Governor Brew
ster i expected to speak.
Auditor as Scape-GOatI