44
THE WEST SHORE.
thirty miles in diameter, belted on nil sides by the Blue
Mountain was subsequently the site of a huge volcano.
Tim Blue Mountains were then a system of islands,
gmwin up from the water into a rnnge of mountains.
The upheavals, whether secular (by the century) or
.u.r..i-Hmiil. Wether with the volcanic disturbances,
wised deep canyons and a most rugged surface. But
all this unevenness was converted into a level plain by
)f the lava during the time of eruptions,
mid this has Iteen converted into the smiling valley we
we to-day.
In all probability this ancient volcano was the highest
jteak oi the JJlun Mountains, and tncretore tne nrst w
rear its head nlxve the vast expanse of waters. What a
field for tho play of the imagination! Let us imagine a
million of years condensed into the space of an hour. We
aro hovering in mid-air above tho heaving ocean. We see
a dark serk slowly rising amid the white-capped waves.
Higher and still higher it rises. The sea gulls gather
aliout it anil their screams echo along the rolling billows.
Millions of acres of land. roiiL'h and broken, surround the
base of this majestic jienk. Shell fish of every species
are clinging to tho .rugged nx-ks which form the outer
wall of defence against the aggressive waves. Here the
wa fowl lay their eggs and hatch their voung. The sea
and walrus climb up the rugged cliffs to bask in the
glorious sunlight " But hark! a deep sound strikes like
a rising knell I I he whole island seems convulsed
The walrus and seal glido into their natural element
The birdB shriek and cleave tho Bir with frantic wing.
The rocks we rent in twain, and, with the roar of ten
thousand cannon, the molten lava burst forth frnm tlio
summit of this lofty joak, iours down its sides, rolling
r.. ....... ii . . .... ' b
. .. w. uT um uneven surtace, licking up the waters in
the urn. f the reft rooks with the tongue of n vampire
and the hiss of a dragon. As the water seeks its level 80
doe. the liquid fire, and we witness the formation of a
V "m" "UMreu miles m circumference. Time
n.llso, ad the lofty peak molts away until level with
the plain, which is miard.vl n :.i i... , .,
, " '"'"7 l'rang irom chaos.
J"?.!? !f Nature has
tlu. fl U . i lmr" ie summits,
y Sti : ? rlm:h in th
tbn gr vo S i 1 i I 8ftmHme8-
. . ...... mm roum, ,
amUmc o Xr York ami C , n Pot8d
Kh e J I, "a(la,Vere Wmh
formed at Pv,ry ebb- 7, t,lIe aml "
When the mountain systems had been perfected,
encircling the waters between the Rocky Mountains and
Cascade Eange, forming a great inland sea, the tide no
longer ebbed and flowed there "twice in twenty-four
hours." Eat when tho alarm of tlio eicsiu w bounded :
when the thick clouds were mustered for the black tenx!
pest, and the winds burst forth in their mad fury, then
the waves dashed up the steep sides of the sand cliffs and
each left its ripple 'marks as it receded. In the process
of time the sand was changed to stone, the wave lino- !
still remainedmementoes of a past epoch.
As the upheaval of the bed of the imprisoned waters
continued, their surface gradually rose until far ahnva ti, i
i v mo i
level of the ocean, unable to escape the mountain chain 1
that formed an impenetrable barrier to their eOTeaa
there was a diminution from evaporation, it was more f
than compensated by the rainfall during the rainy '
season. Then as now, the sea breeze carried east,,,! t
WV f
the ocean-formed clouds, when the moisture was con- j
densed by the cold and the rainfall was general. Streams j
and rivers were formed, all flowing into the imoriaonBil
waters, which were thus constantly increasing. Leaving '
this great basin to nil up, we now turn our eyes toward '
the setting sun. I
See! the Coast Range is beginning to emerse Th ,
elevating force is greater at the south than the north, for '
at this day the mountains decrease in height as they ap- j
proach the Columbia River. Passing the northern j
boundary of Washington Territory, the Coast Ranee
dwindles into a system of islands which can be traced to
ii . . . . i
Alaska. After the Coast Range Mountains had emerged
as far north as Puget Sound, the Cascades. Dreviouslvthe i
eastern shore of the Pacific, were cut off from communion
with the ocean, and the Coast Range became the eastern
boundary. Then another great inland sea of imprisoned
waters was formed, bounded on the east bv the Cascades
and on the west bv the Coast Ranffa. All of Willflmetta
Valley was then calmly reposing beneath the waters. '
we return to the great sea lying between the Rocky
Mountains and Cascades. Dnrinff the lame of aces.
. . o x O
since we last gazed upon it, the imprisoned waters have
lencnea tne summit of the Cascades. A storm arises. !
Great waves are rolling across its snrfann. See! what a
monster billow approaches! It would overwhelm a whole
fleet! Now it breaks With tlin trTfa rt a million tnnfl
. vu HU W VW VJ. 1 MAUu "
against the rocky barrier interposed between two lofty
Vn1.n T 1 .... . - j
Foams JJOOKI A rftrt nf tho mmmtn n mtral nut. nf 1W
X" " 1UUUUVCUU AO 1UU1CU vv vm -
place and borne irresistihlv forward TlofnrA it. vnwns an !
awful precipice; but, as if-exhausted by the gigantic J
oiruggie, tne waters retire and the loosened mass of rock j
is once more at rest Again and aeain the waters roll ,
forward, like the phalanx of ii third wave, i
towering like a giant, dashes upon the shattered mass, !
bearing it grandlv on. thn
of feet below. The brnnb y,aa mBAa ond now the !
, .-w rvJVAi UIUUV
imprisoned waters rush madly on reeling, falling, foam-ing-carrying
everything before them, wearing
passage through the soUd rock, as they cut a channel I $ v
the grand old Columbia. W. H. Chaney.