feign Nhieteeft. "
Thrilling Story of the Applegate Train,
First Big Immigration to Oregon Country
East Oregonian Round-TTp Souvenir Edition Pendleton, Oregon, Thursday, September 21, 1922.
(Continued from page IT.)
the iiliility of private individuals.
i Fort lloise. A party, consisting off From Salmon Fulls the route lay
Whitman ami his nephew, l.ovejoy, i across an expanse of sago plains to
lint they miscalculated distance and ' 1 ' ! three miles of Whitm.m's station
obstacles, and found, whin the Kocky .forward. U-avlnR written notices by j Indians steal Homv.
Mountains were pa -sed, that with!1"1- "a 01 " course to ue i.uveu A( rjrand nond, Whitman was met
by a courier from l-upwai with in-
migratiou
encamped within
foot-sore cattle and wornout horses. b.v wagons, which came alter at
they had still the 1110a trying part 1:1 rilU' of 13 11,11 ta il 'l! notwith
of the journey before them; am! I st;u,llin' the toughness of the arto
thereupon doubts began to assail ! Imslil inul depth of the sand. At
them of t lie wisdom of attempting
'Pert I'.oise they were kindly 1'eceiv-
to curry out their original plans of l,y '-'.vette, but could not tarry,
making a roud to the 1'aeific, with!us " w;,s ul'''udy Septeniber 211.
the risk of being caught in the1 ''"oiding the Snake Kiver, where i!
storms of autumn anions the moun-i ,,ils " "een necessary to have a
tains, and having to abandon their ! ,t'ITV' 1,y ''aising the wagon-beds a
property there 'few inches on blocks, they reached
Yet upon mature deliberation, with
the spirit that impelled them to set
out as founders 01' empire, they per-
sevpr, rl in tlu.ii- ,I..t. ...i.,.
reach the Columbia. River 'with ,,ii1!"rnt niver '"v- "5
ti.io ....,,,.1,. i -1 , ... I st ream whose bed was used for
to this conclusion thev w.-re in in. I . . ..
enced by the advice of Whitman
and the encouragement of William
Fowler, one of the emigrants who
Wd been in Oregon before. Fowler
was a western man, and understood
muen uctter than hitman what ox-
the west side in safety. Following
1 down the river, encountering no seri
ous obstructions for three days, on
; September 24 they reached the
miles in
: length, through which ran a small
road for the greater part of tin
iv.v;-, there being no time to clear
i away from the banks the masses of
: fallen and l.urnt ti'ees floni which
: the river way named.
I l ike (.land Komi.
teams could do. i The tirst grading reuuired on any
Whitman Chosen (iuiile. j1,alt r llle ,'0,,u' l'lom ,he ,nain
A pilot was necessary, :md Kern-; ll;l,u' to Uw Columbia was at the
eau. a guide of th, u,,,iunu i!.,,. crossing or .ne rurge at tne neal or
company, offered his services, which
were however declined in favor of
Whitman, who deemed himself com
petent, with the help of his Cayuses,
as act a; guide. A route was murkecl
out with the assistance of Uemeair.
on which distances, camping-places,
and other useful information were
carefully noted; and having repaired
their wagons, and purchased such
liurnt Itivei: and this, too, was the
first occasion on which it had been
necessary to double teams. From
this point the tolls of travel increas
ed, the country being rough anil
hilly. Nevertheless by October 1 the
main hotly of the immigration had
arrived at Grand Uonde Valley,
which appeared so beautiful, set in
its environing pine-dud hills, with
; its rich pasturage and abundant
Fiu imics as were neressnrv. a rer a;
week or 111 days' rest they resumed watercourses, that a portion of the
their march. ' immigrants were deterred from set-
There was regular organization'11"15' tlu'''e 'lly ,JV t,u' impossibility
after leaving Fort Hall. A few of!o oi:it'linln supplies for the colony
the least encumbered took the lead. I durins tlle 'omll,R' winter,
on horseback. The California com-1 n 11,0 morning of October 2 two
puny, having abandoned their wa-; mches of snow whitened the moun
irons, were now mounted, with a truin ital" me" aml W!"'n(!u tlle travellers
of pack-animals, and were among not to wlHtl! Precious time. On the
the foremost, their pilot, William J. next eveninpr the first ridge had been
Martin, conducting the Or egon emi-! cros-SP(,; ani1 oyonil this was still
grutlou also, as far as the turn in tho nmin chain of the lilue Moun
the Poad toward California, in tire tains covered with heavy timber
vicinity of the American lulls 0f;whicn H waK imperative to remove.
Snake River. Hluc Mountain Itoad.
From this point Whitman assu.11-1 As tnt' sappers and miners ot a
ed the duties of guide, conducting I military legion precede the army, a
tho ' immigrants down Snake Itiver j fo,'co of the mnyt active and ener
to the Salmon Falls where the river luetic of the emigrant legion fell up
was crossed in safetv by all except 1 on tnpse barriers to progress, and
Miles Eyres, a Scotchman who was j althoujrli their axes were dulled by
riding a mule, and who missed the a summer's use, and their hands
shallow water of the ford smd ,., were sadly blistered, 40 men in five
telligoneo of the alarming illness of
.Mr. and Mrs. Spalding, and relin
quishing his office of guide to Stie
cas, a Cayuse chief in whom he re
posed confidence, left the party and
struck across the country to the sta
tion. Sticcas faithfully performed
his duty, bringing the white men, to
whom, as we know his people were
anything but friendly, safely to the
vicinity of the mission.
For this service many were un
grateful, for two reasons: it took-;
them 4 5 miles out of their course;
and exposed them to the annoying
peculations of the 'natives, who not
only Intruded into their camps by
day, but stole (heir horses at nighf
in order to obtain a reward for re
turning them a practice which was
repeated every 24 hours.
The great ambition of the natives
along the Columbia, as elsewhere.
was to secure tlle clothing worn by
white men. Lewis and Clarke men
tion seeing odd garments, evidently
obtained from trading vessels on the
coast, iu the possession of these na
tives as early as J 805. and which
must have been purchased from tin- (
Indians on the lower Columbia.
After the Oregon immigration began
they were to be seen arrayed in cast
off wearing ajiparel of every descrip
tion, presenting a mntled and fan
tastic appearance. They gladly sold
whatever they had for shirts,
dresses or hats; but as stealing and
selling back a horse to its owner was
a more productive plan, it was great
ly altected by the Cayuses.
A Shirt for a Home,
Kaiser in his narrative complains
of these practices, nnd says that at
the mission he called a council of
chiefs, and told them that he had
paid his last shirt for having his
horses returned by the thieves, and
that hereafter when he found one
of them about his camp after dark
he would shoot him. This warning
was not without its effect, llurnett
also speaks of paying a shirt for
sexorai successive mornings to get
back the same animal; and Waldo,
m his cynical style, remarks that
the immigrants had no trouble with
the natives until they encountered tho
mission Indians.
When Whitman arrived at T.ap-
drowncd.
Think Ta:i'er I, oiks. dreaded Blue Mountains, the wagons
r. M. MeCarver" who was in theia,ul herds following as the road was
lead with a small company, as thev j opened, hoys and women driving the
approached the falls was startled byteanls whoso owners were clearing
the way.
On October 5, ami while the emi
gration was in the mountains, a se
vere snow storm was experienced,
which made the beautiful valley of
the Umatilla thrice beautiful by con
trast when the travellers arrived on
days cleared a wagon road over the wai Hf. found Mr. and Mrs. Spalding
what he mistook for a red flag.
Thinking there might be hostile In
dians in the vicinity, he formed his
men for battle, and marching up to
the red - signal, discovered it to be
a large salmon split open and hoist
ed on a pole to notify travellers
that there were fish for sale. Thus the evening of the following day at
tho danger and difficulties of this the western base. Hero they found
portion of the journey disappeared j a Cuyuse village and obtained fresh
on approach. J vegetables. On October 10 the im-
Drug Stores for Well People
Formerly drug stores, as a rule, were fre
quented only by those in ill health, but times
have changed. The modern drug store of to
day supplies the thousand and one needfuls
that prevent diseases, and lend to ones, clean
liness, comfort and charm.
We sell and fill prescriptions with the best
drugs obtainable. Our store is modern, in that
we supply you with modern needs at moderate
prices.
Kodaks and Supplies for Your Outing
Whether you can afford the cheapest or the
higher priced Kodak with the Range finder, we
can sell you an Eastman Kodak.
Fresh Films
Don't risk failure
with old films. We
sell so many and re
new stock so often
that you get here
only the most ad
vanced datings.
Developing and
Printing
We will ' return
your film next day at
noon if received be
fore 1 o'clock the day
before.
Books for Your Entertainment
We carry a very large assortment of the best
popular fiction at the popular price.
Ivound-Up Souvenirs
Pennants from the Round-Up town.
Leis with bucking horse, to wear around neck
Silk Scarfs, with- bucking horse.
I
The Book of the Round-Up
Let 'er Buck
A true story of the passing of the old
West, with the history of the Pendleton
Round-Up and FIFTY selected photographs.
Thompson's Ding Store
PENDLETON OREGON
ivnt 7iaftcJia 7$m?&s &endfefoni
MEMBER FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM.
Offers an unexcelled banking service to individuals, cor
porations and banks; transacts a general banking busi
ness and maintains special departments with facilities
of the highest character. ,
Acts as administrator of estates, or as executor or trus
tee under wills.
PENDLETON
OREGON
the Columbia with their wagons and ' finally agreed with McKinley to leave and descend the Columbia in boats.
stock. Propositions were mado to their cattlo with him and take orders Whitman accompanied them to bring
some members of the company to ' on the Hudson's Hay company for home his wile who was still ut me
remain at Waiilatpu, which were re
jected on account of the thieving
habits of the natives, anil tho diffi
culty of taking care of their cattle
on so wide a range as the Walla
Walla Valley, besides the general de
sire to reach their destination that
year.
Hut at I'ort Walla Walla, a por-
,' the same number and description of
California cattle In the Willamette
Valley. Among those making this
arrangement was Jesse -Applegnle,
who with Waldo owned more stock
than any two men In the emigra
tion. Waldo proceeded with the. main
body to The Dalles by land, while
tion of them being still in doubt ! llurnett, !eagle, McClane, the Ap
from the representations made to I ple.-fates, and others,' 71 in all, de-
them of the difficulties in the Way, elded to take the ad-viee of Whitman
Mr.
Man!
m Your attention is called to a line of Shoes we carry.
convalescing-, and hastened to his
own station to meet the immigrants
and furnish them with supplies,
which had to bo brought from Lap
wai and Colville, his grain and miU
having been destroyed the previous
winter. For this service he was cen
sured by some and applauded by
others. That it was a wise and
philanthropic action to give the im
migrants an opportunity to purchase
fresh provisions, the sequel proved;
besides, it was personally known to
Whitman that some of them had ex
hausted their supplies before reaching-
the Columbia.
Charge High Triros.
Hut whether they were or were not
in need, they found the prices at
Waiilatpu exorbitant when compared
with those of Missouri, and accused
Whitman of selfish motives in con
ducting the immigration past his sta
tion, making them SO additional
miles of travel, which, with their
worn-out teams and the lateness of
tho season, became a matter of seri
ous importance. Kaiser was among
those who felt themselves injured by
being piloted out of their way, and
by having to pay a dollar- a bushel
lor wheat. Ho obstinate were some,
ays llurnett, that they refused to
purchase until the wheat was afl
gone, in consequence of which he
had to divide iris supply with them
before t lie end of the journey.
There were other causes of dis
satisfaction ami subsequent reproach.
Neither Whitman, nor McKinley at
Fort Walla Walla, knew anything of
the country back from the Columbia
Kiver, or whether there could be
found crossings- for the wagons at
the John Hay and lies Chutes rivers;
and both advised tire immigrants to
leave their wagons and cattle in the
Walla Walla Valley to be brought
down in the spring, and to make
themselves boats in which to des
cend tho Columbia.
One of the arguments used in fa
vor of tills plan was that no grass
would be likely to bo found on the
route, as the natives were accustom
ed at this season of the year to
burn It off a statement which suf
ficiently proved tile doctor's ignor
ance of the country, and which was
construed to his advantage by
those who travelled through it.
Motivr All; Questioned.
From a journal of Uurnett's pub
lished in a Missouri paper a year or
two after the emigration, there seems
to have been some ground for sus
picions of interested motives in advis
ing the immigrants to leave their cat
tle. "The residents of the mission
iigreefl," says the journal, "in advis
ing us to leave our cuttle ami wa
gons at the station. McKinley ol
Walla Walla also advised us to leave
Ihe animals, either to exchange for
California cattle, or to pay one dol
lar K-r head for their keeping
Wlu.t surprised us mo.-t. after 1 1n- I 3
representation that had been made. f
wa- a fine pa.sturage we met all '
along the way, and spccially at The I 3
Hallcs, wht-rc we had b-en ld to I
believe the cattle could not subsist ! i
at all during the winter." i r
Applegate (files some further In
formation, where he tells us that at
the missi-m th.-y received one fat
; bullock of Spanish stoc k for two
, poor emigrant oxen. Those who did
not distinguish the difference be
tween Spanish and American cattle
consented willingly to pay thl: price
for fat Iw-ef. Without any expense
to the nn.-ionati-s they had in th
spring two fat American work oxen
;or iteir one bullock. Th natives
lid Ix-tter. who gave a fat buliock
for a lean better, for breeding pur
poses. lt 4n Ih Ia4d.
gaioo, me emigntuoa moved tow-ard-uauHiarratHutiitiiiirihiiihttiiiiariiiutiurui'iiitiitutaaiiuiuiumiij.atjiiti.Mi.itwi. i".r " '
from the violence of tho Cayuses,
Stccrcnian's Face Pales,
llurnett had a Hudson's Hay boat
and an Indian pilot. Heaglo, who
was with him, was steersman. He
was a good boatman, and familiur
with tho rapids of the Ohio nt Louis
ville; . but tlioso compared to the
rapids of tho Columbia were insl(f
nlflcant, and llurnett rolutos that
llcagle's cheeks' often paled, .though
ho obeyed the Intrepid Indian pilot
Implicitly,' This party arrived' ii
safety ot Tho Dalles. .?
Tho Applegato company being: it
less manageable eauoea oonstriH'teft
by themselves, and less skilfully
handled, were not so fortunate, 0110
of their boats overturned In tho rap
ids, by wlifch accident a son of Josw
so Applegato was drowned, a son of
Charles Applegate crippled for life.
whllo Kllsha, a son of I.indscy Ap
plegate, and William! Duke narrow-
! I
(t'oirtiniM-d on page' 0.)
"v.-1
Endicott-J ohnson Co.
These shoes are best in the long run.
If you've ever worn these shoes, you
are already familiar with the great
amount of travel, service and comfort
thev render.
If you haven't this is a splendid op
portunity to acquaint your feet with
them. There is as much difference in
the way these and ordinary shoes feel
as is between 1st class and steerage
traveling.
Just see how little it costs to travel
1st class. .
. Endicott-Johnson Co. Shoes are of
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workmanship is of the best; and you
get real shoe service, either for dress
up wear or work shoes.
II
i
I
Let us sell you a pair next time.
QUALITY"
SERVICE.
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