The Coolidge examiner. [volume] (Coolidge, Ariz.) 1930-current, 1938-04-14
Magnificent Rivers. Toll Trees,
Lively Round-Ups and Indiun Tribes

Oregon trail runs through the Una
tilla Indian reservation. The tribes
represented by the Umatillas are
plains Indians, born with a heritage
Of the chase in which farming has
no background Many lease their
lands to white farmers, retaining
only enough space for their houses.
This frees them for restless summer
wandering, during which they pick
huckleberries, dig roots, pack APP
pies, or fish along the Columbia.
The strange mystic legends of In
dian Oregon are passing with the old
er Indians, for they have little sig
nifcance to the educated, younger
generation.
Lava Soil Is Fertile.
Just before the ascending highway
loses itself in the Blue Mountain
pines, on Emigrant hill, every trav-
eler stops to view the vast check
erboard of wheat farms extending
200 miles to the Cascade mountains.
The yellow squares are wheat
stubble. the black ones summer fall
low. Since wheat is grown in
eastern Oregon with less than Is
inches of rain, sufficient winter
moisture must be stored in the soil
by planting it to grain one year and
following it to idleness the next.
The deep. disintegrated lava soil.
carpeted by immense showers of
volcanic ashes, has shown amazing
productivity under irrigation. Even
in the apparently lifeless desert,
plants burst into perfect life at the
touch of water.
The Malheur and Owyhee rivers,
tributaries of the Snake river, which
in turn flows into the Columbia. are
furnishing the water for the Vale and
Owyhee projects, which will put
$50, 900 acres of land under irri-
cation in their basins. Already wa
ter has converted parts of these
sage lands into productive farming
districts, in which Vale, Nyssa, and
Ontario are vigorous communities
The brave tracks of the Old Ore
gon trail, obliterated almost en-
tirely on the sage plains, can still be
seen crossing the Blue mountains
among resinous pines. Descend
ing into the Grande Ronde valley,
you pass through La Grande and
then steer through the alfalfa, hay
and grain ranches of the Wallowa
valley.
People of the Conformity.
These are cow-country folk, little
reticent toward strangers, but hos
pitable and friendly when once ac-
quainted. They barter produce
among themselves, stocking their
cellars for the winter A gas-station
operator at Lostine remarked that
it is a novelty not to be offered
sack of potatoes for gas and oil.
At Enterprise and Joseph, the
granite walls of the Wallowa noun
tains rise abruptly from the valley
floor. This change of altitude is es.
sential for livestock country, as it
gives pasturage for stock through
out the year. In the winter the stock
mark time on maintenance rations
in sheltered canyons; during June
the cattle Craze up the lower slopes,
while the sheep are driven higher in
the alpine pastures as summer ad-
vances.
In the late afternoon the suns
slanting rays CLINT on the stone shaft
marking the grave of Old Chief
Joseph, buried with his tribal an
cestors in the Land of Winding
Waters" overlooking Wallowa lake.
On his deathbed Old Chief Joseph
had called his two sons to him and
requested them to hold forever the
beautiful Wallowa for his people.
But settlers came. To avoid con-
fiict, the government decided to
move the Nez Perces to a reserva.
ton in Idaho. misunderstanding fol
lowed, resulting in conflict. After
defeating two companies of the
United States army, Young Chief
Joseph began one of the most spec
tacular military retreats in history.
Handicapped by women, children,
livestock, and all possessions, he
led his people through the worst
mountain wilderness of three states
for more than 1000 miles, fording
torrential streams, giving battle,
eluding, outwitting, outgeneraling
the three armies in pursuit.
Within so miles of the Canadian
boundary and freedom in Montana.
Chief Joseph was prevailed upon by
promises to surrender. But his PEG.
pie never returned to their Lane
of Winding Waters" and Young
Chief Joseph died an exile.