January.
72
THE WEST SHORE,
Island from the main land; and not be
tog aware that an English trader,
named Dixon, had in the previous year
discovered and named the passage and
the island formed by it, had called the
latter Washington's Island, a name
which it continued to bear in conjunc
tion with its English name until within
the last thirty years.
After the meeting of the vessels and
the exchange of captain-, the Columbia
proceeded to Canton, where she arrived
on the 6th of December, 1789. Capt.
Gray there exchanged his cargo of furs
for one of tea, and sailed again for Bos-1
ton, by the Cape of Good Hope, arriv- i
Ing home in August, 1 790, " having
carried the American Hag for the first
time around the world."
Meanwhile, Capt. Kendrick, his im
agination excited by Gray's account of
bis explorations, proceeded through
the Strait of Tuca, determined to find
its outlet or its connection with somcj
inland sea. In this search he sailed
entirely through the passage back of
Vancouveri Island, and beheld with j
wonder the numerous chan
nels and islands that make
an archipelago of that por
tion of the Northwest coast
His discoveries were after
wards made use of by Meares
to establish the "probable
existence of the Northwest
passage." "The Walking
'," he says, "entered the
Straltl of Juan de Fuca,
kimoUdgtt which sht rtaittii
from ij, and penetrating up
them entered Into an exten
sive sen, where she steered
to the northwest and east
ward, and had communica
tion with the various tribes
who Inhabit the shores of the
numerous islands that are
situated at the 1 ack of Noot
ka Sound, and speak, with
some little variation, the lan
guage of the Nl otkan peo
ple. The track of the vessel
is marked on t he in a p
( Meares1 chart ), and is of
great moment, as it is now
completely ascertained that
Nooika Sound and the pails
adjacent are Mauds, and
comprehended w ithln the
M1.1i northei n archipelago'
In other places e a 1 e s
speaks of the tshihm
having " vailed through a
sea extending upwards of
eight decrees of latitude"
ail of which was written in
support of a theory t'ut ths
whole of Northwest America was a
collection of islands,
)ii his u Obsen etlonV being at
tacked with ridicule by Dixon, before
mentioned, M-. Meares made the fol
lowing explanation: " Mr. Neille, a
gentleman of the most reputable char
acter, who came home in the Chts.'tr
a ship in the service of the Bait
India Company, made that communi
cation to me which I have made to the
public. M r. Kendrick, Who com
manded the II ashingfrn arrived at
China with a very valuable cargo of
furs, previous to the departure of the
Vhattrfitul; and Mr. Neville, who was
continually with him during that inter
val and received the particulars of the
track from him, was so obliging as to
state it to me."
As appears by this extract, Captain
Kendrick took a valuable cargo of furs
to China. Alter disposing of them, he
employed himself for some time gath
ciing up a cargo of -.uhl.d-wo.ul among
the islands of the Pacific and was at
latt accidentally killed at Kuikakooa
May, in Owyhee, by a ball fired I
him. Hut for the publicity w hich Mr.
Meares, in support of his own theories,
gave to his discoveries, they might
never have been known.
In the next chapter we will meet
once more with Capt. Gray.
FKO.M MINNESOTA.
The following interesting letter is
worth reading by all, but especially by
such discontents who are enjoying but
hardly appreciating the magnificent
climate and endless natural resources
of the Pacific Northwest:
ChESTBRPIBLD, Fillmore Co.,Miun., )
January 7, 187S. f
Mtt. Luu ok: I have recently made
the acquaintance of your paper in the
office of the Dtmocrat published at this
place. From boyhood, Oregon has al
ways been invested with an uncommon
degree of Interest for me, which ma
turcr years has not diminished. I have
been pleased with your descriptions of
its climate, soil and productions, the
pictures of its varied scenery and its
public and private building.
And w hile perusing the columns of
the West Shore, it has occurred to
me that your Oregon readers might be
sunshine and fiercest storm. Our pleas
ant weather, of which we have a goodly
share during the summer months, is
unsurpassed by that of any portion of
the United States, and the' same may
be said of the fury of our winter storms.
Literal miles ot grain fields, grass and
flowers greet the view during the
growing season, and blinding, driving
snow in winter sometimes shut out of
sight all objects however near, and
buries the bewildered and frozen trav
eler in the same wintry winding-sheet
that covers alike prairie and forest.
The variations of temperature here are
extreme, though by no means of daily
occurrence; the mercury sometimes
rising as high as 10S degrees in the
warm season, while 40 degrees below
.to, and even more, are amongst the
possibilities of our winter weather
giving us the wide range of 14S de
grees tor the year.
In addition to the small grains pe
culiar to our northern temperate re
gions, coin matures excellently and
; most of the garden vegetables grow to
great perfection; but we have pretty
hard winter for five months in the year.
I have seen the mercury dow n as low
as 24 degrees below zero in the month
j of November; and eighty consecutive
'days "have been recorded when the
year in the future. Since then winter
has returned and 17 degrees below zero
reached without much apparent effort,
with a good prospect of still colder
weather. There is yet ample time for
us to get winter to our hearts' content
before the season for it is over, and
while the hills and valleys of Oregon
arc becoming green with the newly,
grown grass and grain, we may look
out through our frosted panes on the
drifting snow, and wait, as patiently as
we may, for the wanner sunshine and
the tardy spring. Retlaw.
The earliest patent for sewing ma
chines was granted in England, in
1775, to C. F. Weisenthal. The first
complete and practical machine for
general purposes w as patented in 1S46,
by Elias Howe, Jr., of Cambridge,
Mass.
Historical Adventures on the
PACIFIC Coast. The opening chap
ters of these interesting papers started
in the July number of Thh West
Shore. We will send a complete set
up to January for 50 cents to any one
wdio will subscribe for 1S7S.
THE MIDDLE M.OCK HOUSE CotrMBtA Rtvea.
interested in a few lines from your more
easterly sUter of our gieat confedera
tion of States. Some of your people
, have had a long personal acquaintance
with Minnesota; must of them know
; her only as a new State in 11 distant
! part of our country, w hich has recently
become prominent among the great
, wheat-supplying districts of the nation.
j Hut our state differs widely from Ore
gon in its natural features and climatic
peculiarities. The greater part of its
area is either level or a moderately
1 rolling prairie, broken occasionally into
abrupt hind's, with broad valleys be
tween, and, in the vicinity of some of
I the Streams, into craggy and perpen
dicular precipices. It has none of the
mountains or magnificent trees of the
I west shore. There are a few respect
able forests of deciduous trees, but Jew
; of pine any other of the conifer
family.
! Hut a beautiful land is Mftincsnta in
lur summer dress, dreary and forbid
ding when the breath of the Krost
, King has sealed her lakes and riven
land wrapped her broad prairies in a
shroud of gloom. Nowhcrt is there a
greater contrast in the change of the
season ; now here does vegetation spring
into life more rapidly under the w armth
of summer, nor fall more suddenly jc-
I fore the autumn cold. It is a land of
mistake from an KnglMi vessel saluting ' torrid beat and polar cold, of fairest
water did not drip from the eaves of
the buildings, so intense and steady was
the cold. Though free to say that such
extremes of temperature very materially
lessen the comfort of living in a variety
of ways, the condition of our population
does not argue that our climate as a
whole is prejudicial to health. Our
elevated position and inland situation
gives us a dry, pure atmosphere thought
By eminent medical men to be highly
beneficial to persons with pulmonarv
disease-. But a knowledge of the se
verity of our winters does not appear
to prevent a steady influx of population
from all parts of the country
Winter began this season in good
earnest early in November. On the
morning of "the 6th (election day) the
thermometer stood at 6 degrees below
aero. We had a dash of sleighing, and
the hoys had a week or two of skating;
but the mild weather that has prevailed
throughout the country came along,
ami snow and ice disappeared. For a
month we had open helds, and plow
ing and out-door work went on daily,
not interrupted by rains; and we have
witnessed the unusual sight of wild
(lowers blooming in December, in the
open air of Minnesota. A few farmers
finished their plowing New Year's
day a circumstance unknown in the
previous history of our State, and one
which may not to repeated for manv a
MIDDLE BLOCK HOUSE,
The engraving shown
on this page is of a his
torical spot located be
tween the Lower and
Upper Cascades on the
Columbia river, and is
known as the Middle
Block House,bulltln 1855
by Capt. U'allcn of the
U, S. A., for the protec
tectum of settlers then
living in the vicinity.
Ml . Seymour, now of
this city, then kept a
store there in the cabin
shown to the left a little
b.'low the Block House,
and Mr. Qrlswold resided
in the house shown to the
left of the Block House
and in a direct line with
it. It was here that, in
1S56, Mr. Griswold was
shot by Indians whilst
fleeing from his house to
the block fort which was
then in command of Capt.
McPheely. Slowly but
surely the resistless waves
of time are wiping all
these landmarks away.
Both Mr. Griswold's
house and Mr. Seymour's
store have long since dis
apeared and the old fort
serves only as an abiding
place for bats and owls.
Anothkr candidate for public favor,
and a good-looking one at that, reaches
us from Salem, named The Salem
Weekly Record. It is newsy, and, like
its editor, E. O. Norton, sharp and
sparkling. In politics it favors the
Greenback party. Trice per year, $2.
The Salem Mercury has been pur
chased by Messrs. Moss & Cornell, and
as both are practical printers, and Moss
a first-class newspaper drummer, we
shall expect to see the Mercury roll up
a large subscription list. Success to
you, gentlemen !
The average weight of a baby at
birth is 6 pounds; bovs being heavier
than girls. At the age of 12 the weight
of both sexes is alike; at full devel
opment, both male and female jwcigh
exactly twenty times as much as at
birth.
The heart is six inches in length and
four in diameter, beats 70 times per
minute and forces out 2j-j ounces of
blood at each beat, or 201,344 tons and
125 pounds in a lifetime of 70 years.
Is it any wonder, then, that the human
machinery eventually wears out'