THE NEW NOHTH WEST, THUK3DTAY, DECEMBER 22, 1881. .'- - THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. A ORAPIIIC AMD ENTERTAININO DESCRIPTION OF J THIS OCCIDENTAL EMPIRE. All lMMIOSAWS TOCB rOaOOir AMD WASHIIMiTOft, wrra omtrgzaor jpabqsp Jioyr PROH- SCENERY, SOIL," CLIMATE, PRODUCTIONS, PECTS AND POSSIBILITIES. a vast corirror awaitimo imwuiirr and hkybloi- '- MBlfT HOMKS 0B TUB MILLJON, . Had the early settlers of the North A merles n Continent been guided by the band of destiny round the world end over the Pacific Ocean to the mouth of the greatRIver of tthe West; had they discovered the American Occident Instead of Its Orient; If, Instead of planting their footsteps upon the Inhospitable, shores of bleak New Eng land, or In the malarial swamps of Virginia and .North Carolina, their first dlscoveryhad been the nn Franciscan peninsula, and their second the Co lumbla River, with Its balmy air and venial head lands, Virginia would not yet be the "Mother of Presidents," the Carollnaa would still be compara tively unknown, and the greater part of rigorous 'New England would now be a howling wilderness, while the Pacific Slope would be a vast succession of cultivated parks and evv-bloomlng gardens. But the mysterious Wisdom that moulds the des tinies of nations had decreed thst this natural garden of the globe, this empire of coming centu ries, known as the Paclflc Northwest, that now comprise the Btate of Oregon and the Territories of- Washington, Idaho and Montana, should be held In reserve for the occupancy of the physically- weaker descendants of 4he hardy pioneers of past wooded slopes, even in mid Winter, are bathed In the baliny atmosphere of Hprlng. - YONDER WHITE-ROBED TOWN, Bitting like an angel of peace upon the serrated sides of a blackened clearing, her brow in the clouds and her feet on piles In the water, is Astoria, a city of the future, her wharves lined wltb-Shlpidng-and hee-wlngs-flankcd by great canneries, from which the famous Columbia Hlver salmon go out to the remotest markets of the earth. Across the river, miles away, .are the fa- mous lumber mills or Knappton, from which dense volumes of smoke and steam are continually rising both day and night. .- On and on the steamer vp iui v-i uuivi. iu m iiuiiuivu iiiiilw, uty she reacheaa peninsula, of 'wooded, undulating Jawland,pat which the Willamette River runs, discharging her wealth of living waters in the lap of the great Hlver of the.West. Our steamer turns the (tenlnsula'a poiut and plows her way up the Willamette for a dozen miles to her Portland dock, where she settles herself for a siesta while her numerous attendants unload her stores and her patMengers lose themselves In the growing city. injH,) when the writer first saw THE CITY OK PORTLAND, Til ere was Httlehere except a dense fir forest, with here ami there a clearing yet full of black- f ened wtumpiK Therewrre severat business houses," where trade was brisk, and a number of tempor ary buildings for family dwellings, with a notice able preponderance of boarding houses And gamb ling dens.. :. Initial steps had been taken to estab lish the schools and churches that have since grown into pronnerlty and crmaneoc. There. were no regular sidewalks or public street lampaj and the visitor carried away vivid recollectlous of the abounding mud. Portland has since grown Into a city of over 20.000 Inhabitants. Is the point where all the great .railroads of the present and tneiuture are to meet, and her maritime interests generatlouywho battled fearlessly with thenem"" mmm mv awa a a v w v ma v as v v w as e iu(.v a r the morning, by pre-arrangement, at "the ticket elements of the Kas.tern Blope and rescued civ 111 ratlon from the rude blasts and Icy clutches of hyperborean climates. The senior editor of this Journal proposes, In this ;rj! K ETCH""OfTH K-pACf PtC"ffftTU W EST; To give a concise and accurate description of those parts of thhnglrest country over whlclushe has traveled. by stage, rail and steamer, within the past few years, and especially of those parts thst offer, In her opinion, the best Inducement to lm" ' migrants, whether their calling be agricultural, -pastoral or mechanical..? These limits comprise all the. broad geographical area reaching from the British possessions on the north to the California line on the south, and from the Rocky Mountains on the east to the Pacific Ocean on the west. Within the boundaries of this- vast area are to be "found every variety of , sol I and climate on the - globe,'exeept the extreme torrid. Here also may be found the grandest scenery of the earth and the . most varied. Homes for the million are yet to be made within the great arid gold-bearing region known as the Bnake Hlver basin of Idaho, where aeml-troplcal productions of every variety flourish with astonlshlngjuxnrlance, where rains seldom fall, and where the desert-like lands only need irrl ration to awaken and prolong their marvelous frultfulnes. MonCanaTtoo, wltiriier drverslfled xnnntr. m nii mnm nnrthnrti ltlturl. mHVirrla . perlor facilities for settlement because of her vast resources, which are now being brought Into no tice by the Northern Paclflo Railroad. But It Is of . OREOON AND WASHINGTON ; That this article would more particularly treat Let the reader, who has not crossed the continent (as did the writer, In 1M2,) with long lines of lazy oxen dragging for six weary months their Inter trainable treinsf-whlttopped. wagons over league after league of rocky, perilous and dusty roads, but has been whirled along over the great plains in s few days In a palace car, now step with ' us upon the palatial ocean steamer Oregon, that Ilea at her dock Inside the Gulden (late. The pas sengers are all aboard, and our good ship la loosed from, her moorings and goes bounding through the Paclflo Ocean's deep green billows, past Point Arenas, beyond the Farallonnea, along the billowy, treeless coast of California, and still further north ward, till she reaches the wooded steeps of the Ore- Son shore and finds herself Inside the vernal bor ers of the grest rain-girt slope between the Cae cade Mountains and the sea. Off shore lies the mighty ocean, as if asleep In the horizon's lap, Its regular breathings watched over In tenderness by the patient moon as the night advances. Off to the landward the Coast Mountains rise in tree - crowned beauty, guarded at the breakers' edges by basaltlo rocks that stand as hoary sentinels at their feet. We pass Port Orford. Cape Blanco, the bays of Coos and Yanulna, and gate at last In silent admiration upon Tillamook Rock, with Its '""flashl ng 1 Ight,"atwhos foot the raven! ng breakers roar and surge, -r Yonder Is the Jutting promon .. .tory of ; vf , , TILLAMOOK HEAD, , A great fir-clad apparition of Immortality, bath ing Its hpoded brow In the salt sea spray of the ages. It Is morning now, and our steamer proudly rlrfna the heaving waters of the Jwp, as withauK the Yenrbest troaiityr . . . . . . ..... Arriving at jioseuurg, ine present terminus or the O. A C. H. R, our Immigrant will And a busy town nestled among the undulating foothills that border the Uropqua Hlver Valley, where he may mount the box of a Concord coach belonging to the Oregon and California Ktsge Company, and after proceeding southward for a hundred miles through narrow, well-watered valleya bordered by picturesque forest-covered mountain ranges, he will And himself In the broad aud beautiful- . VALLEY OP ROQUE RIVER, Above the rain belt of the Willamette region, In m. pArAdlse of the comlnir railroad era. but now "Mnmbla Bar, ml great Is our surprise to -niiafa"-n ,lK- -..j rrdnnhe world's irreat . I J i. '.I . M a t rwm I. Mai tr 1 V len, angry roar they dispute the right of way with -the broad Columbia majestic ltiver of thWest who ceaselessly dashes his white-capped head against the shaggy-browed surf thst angrily op- posea nis progress. . x e arw ju uuwue n w climate to suit evervbodv. Tlie ranee Is lnex haustlble. The Winters are dry and cold, but the facilities for making and preserving hay for stock are unrivaled. We would gladly linger, for a longer time among the beautiful and varied scenes of this enchanted land, but our time Is limited, and we return bv the same route to Boweburg. It Is raining now, and our immigrant can see a r . , , WmtttX )REWX Wl NTER '- In all its pristine wetness. He will see men en araired In Dlowlnsr In the rain, turning up the moist earth with perfect confidence in future bar vests; will see vegetables green In the fields and srardens. and children . nlavlmr in the' open air as (though enjoying an April mist. He will wonder s m - - - r - . control the entire commerce of the Pacific N west Herjdhool rare seconiT UTfiotieAn North America, her civilization Is of the-highest order, and her wealth Is enormous. " After our immigrant has learned these facts, let nim stop ror the night at one or the many city ho- orth ive-home sltes- office of the Oregon and California Hall road Com- t any, and will start together for a t Hik through he Willamette Valley, our first destination Hose burg, two hundred miles away. OurHmmltrrant lias heard eo; much -about the ' ' RAINS OP OREOOX v That he is surprised to see the sun ride proudly up a.' ''... a . a a a a i ? a ' i ine nonzon, patuingme noary summit oi Mount Hood In rose-colored billows of glory. Filmy fleeces of grayish fog. are creeping up the forest- clothed sides of the lesser mountains, and gossan mer aneets or ine same ethereal neece-work hang over the lowlands-in patches, between. which the warm sunxnine siummera uuimpeueu upon rank fields of Winter wheat, on which contented flocks are feeding.-Oregon-CityrKaiem, Albany and luugene are passed In turn, and hamlets,, towns ana villages of lesser note are seen at brief inter vals. Farm-houses abound,- and orchards : and meadow; lands stretch aWay Into little valleys. Level prairies are encountered here, billowy hill ocks there, and dark green forests yonder, diversi fied occAsiunaJly by dense groves of undergrowth. The timber in sight Is principally oak and fir, the latter predominating. Our Immigrant is enrap, tured at the eight of the fir trees, so large and tall and stately are they. But a fellow traveled cools his enthusiasm by calling them "mere saplings, and bids him wait for tall tlmbeMlll . lie wes..the TorestiToT the CascadeMountalns or Puget Hound Two hundred reet's no height for a tree in this country1 he remarks, with as little show of boasting as possible. , . Our immigrant Is reliably Informed that good lands, well -watered, with alternate, timber and prairie at convenient Intervals, and capable of producing excellent harvests of fruits, cereals and vegetables, can be had all along the railroad at reasonable distances from stations, the prices ranging from -. " ' . ; ; f2 60 TO $50 00 PER ACRE, .. According to location and Improvements; "that the cllmatlo extremes of the Eastern coast are en tirely wautlng here; that the Bummer nights are. always cool, and the Winters never excessively cold i that he will grow to like the humid atmos phere, and, as bis years advance, will learn to long for rain when lowering weather ceases. He. will learn by gratified experience that the rainy seasons, of which the temporary visitor to the Willamette Valley usually complains to the out- aide world, are not the terror he has. been led to Imagine. And yet, the climate is excessively humid In Winter along the coast, and also In the great valleys . between the Coast .and Cascade mountain ranges. There is, rain enough to make the unmade roads of a new country very muddy and disagreeable, and to keep them so till the Bummer sunshine comes to the rescue. But the same huraidltythat spoils the roads bathes the mountains in perpetual green, ana so rructines the valleys that crops never, fall, and all the abundant and varied products of the soil are of mnPA ininntiw irit atH M enter I la channel than the open sea beyond. Away to our left is .the boldly outlined promontory of Disappoint ment, latterly known as .'.ape Hancock, at its Mimmlt a first-class revolving light, at its feet the north channel, bounded by surf-beaten rocks and guarded byjnammoth mounted ordnance, shielded by earthen parapets. We bave7enleredbythc south channel, and close at hand on our right are the lower lands of Point Adams, crowned ty a Alio uuynuu 1 1 t n iHonrar piraiiici mus plays fantastic tricks with Its hidden wheel, b steam ou through the mighty stream, whe thoroughfares as to be comparatively .unknown and unappreciated, except for its gold fields, which have from time to time produced enormous Jrlelds, and, as the country grows older, are doubt ess destined to prove of greater and more perma nent value than ever. " . . A branch stage line will pick us up at Ashland, another-bmry-inland town of a few-humircd lnrthe: habitants and amatlng prosperity, and from here we jnay cross a spur or the Cast Cascade mountain rj4x"theffree-gTssing -uplandyj scene w 1th 1 wtmanirmnarAi Aonsttlcuous llvhthonw. and Fort Bteven9.miIU4-aws? esisl psye, v ; lary posti ieeblyiuanleunby antiquated guns, iof lAkjuunjylereJsM The msjBtlCTTveT--tashea ear steamers macs-ana i goais anu snepuerus- uavens, oi wnicn me i scino Dot I xorinwesi ooasia mo manr. u n oroaa eoQugn in lose I area for a Btate, and varied enough In scenery and horizon, but not low enough to obscure the setting: uu as ii iignis up me . , , it". . "CTTY OK THE DALLES - " . With a flood of glory. Here Is a rock-wslled town of several thousand Inhabitants, the seat of a bus tling and prosperous Inland trade and the present'1 why the Oregon rain linbt more wmetratlng un headquarters of the O. IL & . and N. IV R.H. in a palatial til lie learnaJby observation that the clouds bang low and the water hasTPot so far to rail as in me vallevsof the Ohio and the Mississippi, or the pla teaus of thej-'astern Btates, where the-vapors ride in an upper stratum of air in an altitude to which the condensing cold of our mountain ranges will -eirtt frkArevil Iiasv vl t svt Ik . 1 smat isaa tiivui, w lbiimw ' -e return to Portland and embark river steamer; our destination EASTERN OREOON AND WASIIJNOTONITERUITORV WedescentPlheVillamette River for a dozen mites to its confluence with the Columbia, and round! ng;tjie-pehlnftula skirted when coming up In the ocean steamer, soon find ourselves at the Vancouver dock on the Washington side, where a brief halt Is made at the foot of a most beautifully situated town, com manding a magnificent view or the river, the ad jacent forests and the distant snow-capped moun tains.. Thus far, and for a long distance yet up the (joiumDia-, jwe encounter but little open farming latttf. The agricultural area is lim- rited. and the uplands all along the river can only be cleared by heavy labor! Lut they surely will be cleared in time, and willlorm the most attract- itossible-urimaglne. Extensive bottom lauds abound in some places, and in others Islands are seen that overflow sometimes in an nual freshets. As weascend the river, these bot toms are displaced by abrupt, terraced and rocky uplands, afiurding scenery that strikes the be--hplderwJl!i swcbq jublime.is itadttowjadet fully magnificent and beautiful. About twenty-five miles above the mouth of the Willamette Hlver Is an opeuing in the Cascade range, where the Columbia emerges from the rocky, road way. made for its passage through the great mountain wall bv. the ceaseless erosion of the-agesrenhanced no-doubt by TOmeterribtecnnr vulslon of nature in the long-dead centuries. Our good steamercan get no farther, for the tortuous and rapid current, broken by numerous rocky ledges into many different channels, successfully disputes her passage, andthe T : , CASCADE lAX'KH ' - Are not yet completed. But there Is a railway portage here several miles in length, and every body1 Is Tiurriedhnto a passeiigor car. and whirled away to the Upper liandlng. We are ahead of time, so we, cross the river lri4 llttle' govermnent packetr-conneoted with the worksjptrt . the Iocks, and stop over for the purpose of clfmblnir the ad jacent- steeps r to get ar blrd-eyevicw-of - the country. . " ? '"" . Away to the south lies the vernal valley or the Willamette, so far distant that Its prairies look like garden, patches, and its slant eversreen for ests, like little orchards. Its numerous water courses are marked by groves of deciduous trees, stark and gray in their winter nudity, and Its letter mountains rise from the flats like billows i n a vast i n land searWe are far above t lie clouds - thU:ioveTj0 aonve tpe logs mat caressingly cover the swamps and bottoms with their fleecy mantles of mist. Away, and away, to the westward rise the undu latingwavesof the Coast Mountains, hiding with their fog-bathed crests the outlines of the heaving ocean. The east-side railroad runs like a well defined thread through; the center of the valley, us wesi-siue orancn uniting wun it at a little town called Junction, forming a visible knot in the middle of the line. Numerous creeks, and rivers of lesser note than the Willamette, ome meandering down from the Cascade Mountains to meet the central river, their borders lined with farms and virgin lands, their streams forming In numerable waterfalls which are yet to be the seat of busy Industries as the population-increases and markets are created lor manufacturers' wares. ON THE NORTH BIDE OK THE COLUMBIA, Below the Willamette, Is Kalama, the present Eastern terminus of the Western Division of the Northern Paclflo Railroad. Tills division of the road, over a hundred miles In length, pursues the serpentine windings of the Cowlitz River through a low and fertile valley for about twenty miles, and then climbs over a rough tract of ragged ever green timber till it reaches a gravelly prairie that extends to the headwaters of Puget Bound. uur walk has been longer than we anticipated, for the mountain steeps are much higher than they appear, and we return to the busy town of Upper Cascades to find that the Dalles steamer has been gone for hours, and there Is noaTterna tire but to wait for another day before continuing our Journey. The Interval Is occupied In a survev ftheliWksrhlchrwhencom uleled. "ari "to afford river vessels of largest size an unimpeded Companies' offices and machine shops for .the 1 . . . t I f t . 1 1 a 1 1 . ruBiem re go n envision, .a nine way beyond the city from which its name Is derived) are The" Dallea of the Columbia, no. -narrow, rock-ribbed and tortuous, that no boat can navigate them, and ' so deep in some places as to be unfathomable. A railway portage Is the accotriodatlng style of tran- sit here encountered, and we are whirled away at a rapid rate through a wild, wind-worn valley to Celllo, sixteen miles distant, where another fine' river steamer is waiting, in which we embark, if " we choose ; or should our Immigrant prefer it, we ,. ' can continue our Journey by rail to Walla Walla in " Washington Territory ; .or, changing. cara a,t- uanuia junction, can proceed to Alnswortu, at the confluence of the Hnake and Columbia rivers, from whence we can proceed by way of the North ern Pacific to Cheney, Bpokan and Pen d' Oreille. , We can also take the steamer at A I us worth and" proceed toLewiston In Idaho Territory, situated at the confluence of the Clearwater and Hnake rivers,'' and from thence can go by stage southeasterly across the great plateau. leading to the Camas" Prairie country, a charming, well-watered and well-timbered region, large enough for a republic within itself, and containing ail the native ele ments for human sustenance or emerrriaeJt turning UTXewlston and crossing the Clearwater. we can goby stftgein a northeasterly direction over the billowy bunch grass hills to Paradise Valley, ' and thence to the North Palouse country. In all of this vast domain there is yet a very great deal of - .. . DESIRABLE LAND ' Which is yet unclaimed by settlers, though abounding in, every natural advantage, and hlth- erto kept In the background because of a lack of transportatloh'facilitles, which the completion of ' the Northern Pacific will siteedily supply. Indeed. -ouiHmmi grant-has-al ready-seenrcnou ghrof "UTF- occupied lands in these wandering, combining channel to the ocean. Continuing our lournev un th rnlnmklA u-a are soon In the midst of the FINEST RIVER SCENERY On the American Continent. We have passed the outer edges of the rain belt now, and thedeuenr Lhills. The railroad hugs the sides of yonder rock. ribbed wall, midway between the water's edge and the sky, so far away from the steamer's channel that it resembles a shining band of steel. . The, men -at work Upon the road-bei look like little children at play, as they climb the rocks likecov uies, ascending and descending rope-like ladders. -planted perpendicularly against the wind-worn teepsThew4Joudahaug-4ow-tver the western sufficient prospects for, undeveloied industries to sustain a population of many millions. He has gone from the timber to the grazing regions, from farming to mineral lands, and has passed from ag riculturar exhibits of marvelous growth to many a water Power of Immense rtoMsible utility. , He has seen the Willamette Valley, where there are two seasons, the wet and the dry, and the uplands -of the great Columbia basin, where the climate Is more like that of .Western .Pennsylvania,- except ' thattTie extremes of heat and cold are not so ereat. ' and in the hottest, weather the nights are always cool. But the baif has not yet been exhibited, and he returns by stage to Walla Walla Valley, through Colfax, Dayton and Waltsburg (thriving Inland towns In the great heaving bunch grass' uplands), and taking the stage for Baker City in Oregon, crosses the Blue Mountains via Pendleton, and the Umatilla Indian Reservation, and halts beyond the mountains . IN C1RAND RONDE VALLEY, ; A veritable garden spot of nature's own creating. "Where-ihebeh6lds a mammoth amphitheater of prairie-rands wtiled hrbyrthe-eternt1illts7CTOi- lug this valley and traveling for another day's Journey over diversified uplands, he reaches Pow der lllver basin, a magnificent plain, covered In ail directions by wild sage and bunch grass, inter spersed at Intervals with farms and gardens of the most prolific order. This valley greatly.resembles that of the Hnake. Hlver basin In Idaho, the plains of Walla Walla, and the valley of Great Salt Ike. The cities of Salt Lake In Utah, Baker In Oregon, and Boise In Idaho are all similarly situated In level - rtiains. with high mountains round about rising n plain view from every point of the compass and walling In the vales like scalloped rim. These mountains are all rich In minerals, and. partly covered with timber, and the soil and climate of each locality is similar to all . the rest,, proving that sometime, In a remote period or the earth's history this whole UpperCountrv was a succession of Inland seas, which, beyond the Inconceivable lapse of time, were drained through some Internal opeuing in the earth, after which their character was still further changed by volcanic action, form ing, as the years rolled on, an ash-like soil of marvelous fertility, watered, by the great rivers that long prior to the glacial period formed the frulf streams of these voiceless oceans whose out et was the present Columbia Bar. THIS VAST AREA. With Its many millions of unclaimed leagues of arable land, Is the Inland empire of the future. It s asyet, only sparnely nettled, buj under the lm- peTus of the new and permanent facilities for trans- Donation mat are now nearly completed, it win ..... niu ""HKjr -leep. nave given Way to countv In U-hirlnr In i.h. m.iA h,k.n And scattering pines that climb the btufTs and plant jdiversifledln woudrous fashion everywhere. The their feet In forbidden places, where they thrive same general characteristics abound as In the like moss and lichens upon their barren footholds, other localities named. The soil and climate are Here and there a friendly open unland Intrude i much -the same, thouirh the country Is eener eu oeiwecn tne pjuns, surprising you with lit TTny-niore nroken, there being no large snowy farm-house and well-tilled fields. Acraln. in It like those of the Walla Walla plain or massive colonnades of basaltlo rock stand in un- I Powder River basiu..: Next let our Immigrant take broken phalanx at the water's edire. their heads a trip by stage across the alluvial lands of Uma- i tl thf peedl4y-epenup"tew-woridat therery doorof" the pioneer.. , Ijel our Immigrant now take the stage at Baker City, and crossing the mountains In a southerly direction, make a day's Journey of sixty miles to t;anyon Ulty, In Urant county. .Here, too, he will nnu mat t ne lace or nature bat been wrought upon In quaint devices bv tire, wind and water. Coral . beds arefound-on the-motintaln tons, and living- oisters are ' dug from-solld-rocks. The whole among the clouds and their bosoms the abode In Hummer of countless swarms of mlorratorvshlnls. Waterfalls pour over the bluffs In many places from heights of many hundreds of feet, to lose themselves In spray among the dense undergrowth u..v '- ' uuniiT. fMlOW. I, 1 HE SCARCITY OF TIMBER Intlirsslf' jVdgKd ard.tKr A ' matter of great . . . . - r- -ml 1 . w . - - - i ... , -.I. .. ,MmM m t t T-a " 'I ?ne witn'WimanirnryjmcarttalT mwu i iuniujwwiwnmw y: wnt -come w oxnLlnduaJjgtwskps Ihe echoes In the gorges, I the railroads now- buHdtng aud lrf routenrptattOTT till and - Wasco counties, where enormous wheat fields flourish on theerewhile arid highlands, pro ducing from thirty to seventy bushels to the acre. Melons, peaches and corn grow here in fabulous quantities, with but little trouble. and the shrill whistle of our steamer Is answered shall gridiron the land; and timber-culture, ths : iuiuiiuui. iiTcrwnuon mat slowest but most satisfactory because most certain lose themselves lnaiaint whisper In the distant I of all agricultural pursuits, shall have dotted the . i. ' 1 , - - ... j ' .. -. r' s- .... f -Z ... ,