Weekly Chemawa American., May 07, 1909, Page 2, Image 2

2 thh: chemav
year, but 9 min. and 43 sec. ahead of
the Portland Y. M. C, A. Chemawa won
the first relay of 5 1-2 miles and with it
the race. Amos Smoker, our fleet-footed
Klamath runner, ran Cooper of the Y.
M. C. A. off his feet. Amos started out
from the steps of the Capitol Building
in Salem at a great clip and for four
miles Cooper, the Y. M. 0. A. runner,
ran virtually in lock step with him.
After running the four miles, Smoker
started a spurt and Cooper stood still in
his tracks, overcome by the terrfiio pace
and the heat of the day. He became
deathly pale and it began to appear that
he would be unable to go on at all, but
encouraged by Mr.Grilley, Physical Direo
tor of the Portland Y. M, C.A., he again
started and finally . finished the relay.
When he turned over the duplicate
message from Governor Benson to Mayor
Lane to Cortizion, the second runner of
the Y. M. C. A., he turned over a forlorn
hope, as John Brown, Chemawa's second
runner, had left 7 1-2 minutes before.
With this exception, the race was fairly
even, our boys holding the lead given
them by Smoker and adding a little over
two minutes to it. What they would
have done had they been pressed' is
another question.
This year's time 5 hrs., 31 min., 52
sec, is 15 minutes, 22 sec, behind the
Vecord made last year, but at that time
the runners had a strong wind to their
back and covered the comst' in 5 hrs.,
16 min. and 30 sec, leading the Portland
runners by 24 min. and 18 sec This
year the runners had to run in the teeth
of a breeze and this coupled, with the
great excessive heat of last Saturday
made their work exceedingly arduous.
At the first lap the entire school greeted
Smoker, as he came in sight accompanied
A AMERICAN
by Chemawa's automobile, and a largw
crowd welcomed Frank Dan and Newell,
the respective runners of the last lap
when they arrived at the Y. M. C. A.
building in Portland. A '"great-throng
started to gather at 1:15 p. m. those
Portlanders who were raot opto nistio of
the capabilities of Portland's runners be
ing largely in evidence At two o'clock
there began to be signs of impatience and
about 2:30 fears were beginning to be
expressed that something had happened
when news was given out that they were
coming. Finally a young Indian appear
ed running easily carrying the message.
It whs Chemawa's Frank Dan and as
one of the Portland papers put it, "A
seventeen-year-old youngster, but one of
the strongest of the Indian Runners"
He handed thn message to Honorable
Harry Lane, the Mayor.
THE MESSAGE.
State of Oregon,
Executive Department,
Salem, May 1, 1909.
Honorable Harry Lane, ,
u Mayor, Portland, Oregon.
Dear Sir:
The State of Oregon sends greeting j
to Portland, the Beautiful, the sure
winner in the race of the cities of the
Northwest.
Very respectfully,
(Signed) Frank W. Benson,
Governor,
11- .1111 IMI-IIII--IIII--IIII--IIII- .1111 IIH. lit l
Nine minutes and forty-three seconds
later Newell of the Y. M. C. A. tottered
in with the duplicate message. Newell
was "all in," but he almost held his
own with one of Chemawa's fastest run
nef. Dan only gaining on him by 43 sec.
From start to finish the interest in the
race was at a high pitch. At every town
through which the runners passed with