Year: 1868




promise. made you and your Engineer in
Chief when leaving Washington city
last March, l now, ON my return from
Montana, send you a briet account OF
my trip over the Rocky Mountains.
/ left Walla Walla on the 30th of May.
taking the usual route, ria Snake River
and Palouse To- the Spokane River. |
noticed on this trip, more particularly
than ever before, the large proportion of
good land, in patches of from % TO 900
acres. lying between Snake River and
the Spokane. This land was of the best
quality for the growing of wheat, equal,
indeed, TO the average of our Walla
Walla lands, which produce from twen-
~ to forty bushels to the acre. The
country referred TO had springs or indi-
cations that water could be had by dig
ging on almost every quarter section of
land Besides, these vast plains are
covered with an inexhaustible source of
wealth in their rich natural pastures OF
feStbcd scabreiid, the celebrated bunch
grass" which is probably the mos wal
liable grass known in the world.


ROUTE FOR THE RAILROAD.


went Gin Pen d'Oreille Lake and ex-
amined carefully the southern shore
am satisfied that there will be no se-
riOus distractions TO the building of a
road around the south side of the lake
at a convenient elevation above high
water mark From the south arm of
the lake the route will most likely lay
across the Spokane plains and run near
ly parallel with that river to the mouth
of Hangman's Creek. distance of fifty
two miles. in nearly direct line and
over country almost as level as any Hi
nois prairie. From Hangman's Creek
there can be nearly direct line run to
the Columbia so as 10 head the Grand
Coule and strike the river above PRIEST :
Rapids: or. should it cross further south
have been assured by reliable men ot
good Judgment, who have been over the
route with wagons, that there will be no
difficulty in crossing the upper or north
ern part of the Grand Coule. From the
upper end of Pen dOreille Lake the
line would pass in soUth~easterly di-
rection up the valley OF the Clark Fork
of the Columbia for $50 miles to the
mouth of the Jocko. This 1ver will be
easily bridged, having bluff firm banks.
ana in many places natural rock abut~
ments in the river.


VALLEY OF CLARK's FORM or THE CO.
LUMBIA.


This valley averages from two to
| twenty miles in width, and although for





tains a large amount of fine agricultu-
raj land, capable OF producing wheat.
oats, barley, potatoes ami nearly all the
fruits OF the Northern States. IL is ex-
tremely well watered, the entire route
being supplied with the most beautiful
clear, cool streams, which rush down
from the mountain sides across the wall
ley and leap over the bluffs into the riv>
er, atfording an unlimited water power
and the most magnificent embellish-
ments TO truly picturesque and roman
tic scenery. On this $50 miles the work
will be comparatively light. There will
be but little grading, and an abundance
of the finest quality of timber and rock
is to be found upon evary mile of the
road.


THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS.


Up the Jocko valley, and over the Gi>
vide to the head waters of the Big
Blackfoot. the grades will be light, ex
cepting Immediately on the divide be
tween the two streams. From the Big
Blackfoot over the main range of the
Rocky Mountains, the country is more
like rough, rolling prairie, with streams
and passes cutting entirely through the
range, than il is like a mountain
chain dividing the waters OF a continent.
In fact, il very much resembles the
country going east from Council Bluffs
for the first twenty miles on the Chicago
and Northwestern Railroad This is
the most interesting portion @: the
whole route. 1t surprises any one ,iE
seeing il for the first time, to find upon
the very summit of the Rocky Moun-
tains, in latitude AZ and As, where the
popular idea has generally located
barren, inhospitable waste, to find the
haa fn1 lfVpr w Il
with dense growth of grass, and in
terspersed with flowers and shrubs. with
beautiful streams of water and groves
of timber in every direction. l crossed
the Rocky Mountains further north this
time than ever before. | have crossed
the range ten times, and at six different
places, but have never seen any thing so
grand and beautiful before as the view
from this point. 1t is perfectly surpris-
ing and cannot be appreciated nor un-
derstood without being seen. But the
most surprising feature of the country
is the small amount of snow that falls,
and the fact that cattle winter here and
keep fat on the natural pastures. Mr.
I. r. Mccoy wintered 200 head of stock
within few miles of the summit of the
mountains without any feed whatever
excepting what they had by grazing on
the dry grass. He supplied one Or two
stands all winter and spring in Helena
with the finest quality of fat beef, and
in May was obliged to stop killing the
larger ones because they were entirely
too fat. He told me that during the
month of January he crossed the noun
tains several times, and frequently
stopped to let his horse Craze on the dry
grass. He also told me that during the
winter, when the snow was only five or
six inches in depth on the Little Black
foot, that they could hear by telegraph
of 1t being five and six feet deep 400
miles south on the central route, and of
travel being impeded by the storms. In
fnct tharl narar hos hon, -.