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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (May 25, 1958)
o o D-s 5)OS Monument Has Ice Caves, Other Interest Points BY JIM FISHER A region of rugged lava flows and historical interest lies 30 miles south of Klam ath Falls, just over the Oregon-California border. Known as the Lava Beds National monument, this area contains some of the most re cently formed volcanic forma tions. It was also the scene of the Modoc Indian War of 1872-73, perhaps the most costly war the United States has ever fought in terms of number of the enemy killed or captured. - Traveling south from Klam ath Falls, it is possible to en ter Lava Beds National monu ment from Merrill or Tule lake. The Tulelake entrance leads past Petroglyph Point, a rock cliff rising from the surrounding flat country. On the cliff are found petroglyphs or carvings made by an un known tribe of Indians. Even at the time when white men first came to this area, the carvings were mentioned in legends. Seen of War A short ways on is the ma jor scene of the Modoc Indian War, Captain Jack's strong hold. This natural formation of trenches, caves, and rock forts was the site of the Modoc Indians' last stand against the United States Army. The Modocs had fled from the Klamath Indian Reserva tion because of their hatred for their bitter foes, the KU maths. With their knowl edge of the land, the Indians had entrenched themselves in the Lava Beds, taking their women and children with them. Within the stronghold, sen tries watched the movements of the soldiers and continually shot at them without showing themselves. Th Indians could travel on three sides of the stronghold by following the lava trenches. The fourth side was protected by a broad open field that offered soldiers no protection for an attack. Private caves for the Modoc chief. Captain Jack, and his sub-chiefs were also avail able. A grassy opening sur rounded by a rock wall with only a narrow entrance pro vided the Modocs with a cor ral for their stolen cattle. From a special viewpoint at the front of the stronghold, Captain Jack could watch the fighting and make his plans. Two Major Battles In two major battles, 53 Indian braves were victorious over nearly 1,000 soldiers. The soldiers were helpless in the open country against the mur derous fire of the Indians. Rocks were piled up by the soldiers for a little protection and can still be seen sur rounding the stronghold. Finally, at a peace confer ence on April 11, 1873, the Modocs met with General E. R. S. Canby and his party of peace commissioners to dis cuss ending the war. The Mo docs opened fire on the com missioners, killing Canby and the Rev. Eleazer Thomas. Outraged by this action, the soldiers were finally able to close off the Indians' water supply after a series of fierce battles. Losing their source of water, the Indians slipped away from their natural fort. The soldiers followed and in another battle, they suffered their third defeat with two thirds of the Army command being killed or wounded and four of the five leading offi cers meeting death. Soldiers Victorious Still chasing the Indians de spite their defeats, the sol diers were finally victorious at Dry lake on May 10. 1873. The small army of braves was. captured and Captain Jack was hung at Fort Klam ath soon afterwrds with three other leaders. Practically all of the bat tleground area is unchanged. The stronghold still looks as it did when occupied by the Indians and remnants of the battles are still being found. A short distance from Captain Jack's stronghold stands Can by's Cross, erected by the Army at the scene of the gen eral's slaying. The sites of the Army headquarters and its graveyard are also marked for interested persons. Just as the Modoc Indian War is the main topic of in terest for the north part of the Lava Beds National mon ument, caves are the main sights to see in the south half of the area. These caves number far more than the 200 caves that have been discovered. Many of the caves have ice forma tions in them, a sharp con trast to the hot, dry temper atures found on the surface ' ; 5. ,. - ill 3 A 3r 'mt.m.. ... r .' stum?.. iycees to Distribute locally liict Throughout U, d Pros INDIAN MARKINGS Ancient Indian markings are found on the steep walls of Petroglyph point located within the Lava Beds National monument. These carv- ings are believed to have ben made by Indians of a higher civilization than those the white men found when they fir,st came to the area. a f mi "i .iiMi.,r.i f ''Jf tot it - '.'' v - . 2 TRENCHES The natural trenches of Captain Jack's stronghold enable the small band of 53 Indians to fight off more than a 1,000 soldiers during the six-month Modoc Indian War in 1872-73. The stronghold remains today just as it was when the Indians occupied it. . MlHtfa Wi'ilWUTf i nffeiiiTcorfUfliyn ju'rfi njultrrffiyJb aTfhlHgWWWr'-Wll"--W-(tnr Yif tr-"f --i" J X- ill vi MONUMENT Canby's cross in a monument to the general who conducted the peace meeting with the Indians and was killed during the meeting. Soldiers of General E. R. S. Canby erected the cross at the site of the slaying. during the summer months. Good trails and stairways have been constructed in the more popular caves., Indian Well Cave Indian Well cave is located near the monument headquar trs and campground of the same name. Other popular caves include Catacombs cave, Valentine cave, and Sentinel cave. Ice formations are found in Merrill ice cave, Skull cave and many others. Many of the caves were formed when lava flows first cooled and hardened on the outside and the center contin ued to flow. Some of the tubes then collapsed to form the deep trenches seen in the area. The portions that did not collapse became the caves in many instances. Other geological formations to be seen in the Lava Beds are the cinder cones and the chimneys. The cones were formed just as volcanoes were formed. The chimneys were formed by gas-inflated lava that spouted from the earth in fountains. The chimneys now remain as deep holes often three feet in diameter and ex tending one hundred feet into the earth. To the sportsmen of east ern Oregon, the Lava Beds is thought of as the wintering grounds for the 1 large num ber of mule deer that migrate each year from the higher country in Oregon to the mon ument area. These deer can be seen from the highways during the winter months as they gather in large herds. Lava Beds Bighorn The Lava Beds bighorn was an animal formerly found in the monument area, but they could not compete with do mestic animal grazing dur ing the early 1900s and were exterminated. The trails of the bighorn can still be seen on many of the cinder cone buttes. For traveling in the area, the tourist should be pre pared to make the trip with out obtaining meals, gas and lodgings within the national monument. Nearby Tulelake is the closest source of sup plies. Water is available at the Indian Wells campground, but an extra canteen or water bag is desirable to have dur ing the hot summer months, Good gravel roads lead from the highways to the monu ment and asphalt roads exist within the monument itself, on the west side of the area. A trip to the Lava Beds can prove both exciting and educational. The ice caves ex ploring combined with the In dian lore and geological in formation on the area ex plained at the headquarters museum will offer a good va riety of vocationing. By BOB VROMAN Mail Tribune Staff Writer Ever since the idea was conceived of putting tooth picks in a folder like book matches to carry an advertis ing message and the Pik Pak company, located south of Medford, was formed, direc tors of the firm have looked forward to the day when their product would have nation wide distribution. Now, almost out of the blue, their hopes are due, and a lot quicker than any of them thought possible. During the coming year, through the efforts of Junior Chamber of Commerce organ izations all over the country, some 20 million Pik Paks will be distributed nationally to publicize the 1959 Oregon The business climate in Al geria is improving. Deposits in banks reached SI 12 million at the end of 1957, against S40 million in December, 1958. Jrlf ' W 0 111 DEMONSTRATES MACHINE Pik Pak corporation's presi dent, M. L. (Doc) Wright, above, demonstrates how the band of "peeled" madrone wood is fed into the clipper machine to be cut into uniform lengths before being sawed into tooth picks. The clipper, like other machines in the plant, were especially designed by Wright. The factory is now able to turn out up to 90,000 Pik Paks a day. Many local firms are now using Pik Paks as a novel advertising idea. The com pany is now experimenting with the idea of flavoring the picks with spearmint, clove and wintergreen. t Centennial exposition and Trade Fail in Portland. Recreational Facilities The Pik Paks will boost Oregon's recreational facili ties and help draw people to the state during the coming tourist season as well as to the centennial exposition next year. On the outside cover will be the official Oregon centennial seal, the use of which was recently sanc tioned by the centennial board, and on the inside will be advertising for particular areas in Oregon. According to M. L. (Doc) Wright, president of Pik Pak, such widespread distribution of the product would not be possible without the help of an organization like the Jun ior Chamber of Commerce, which has worked with him on the idea from the begin ning. The plan took shape in Med ford when Jennings Pierce, a member of the Centennial promotion committee, present ed the Centennial Pik Pak idea to the promotion com mittee in Portland. A meet ing was held with Don Carlon, ArJ Van Leuuuewen and Hal Gardiner of the Medford Jay cees, who, together with Wright and Pierce, planned the "merchandising" of Cen tennial Pik Pak. Commission Endorsement Working together, the group soon had endorsement from the centennial commis sion, the executive committee of the Oregon Jaycees, the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce, the Ashland Chamber of Commerce as well as the Medford and Ash land Jaycees. Other Junior chambers of commerce in the state were contacted and they agreed to help sell Pik Paks to Oregon merchants. The final step was to arrange for distribution by Jaycees throughout the United States. The Pik Paks will be put out in hotels, motels, restau- rants, service clubs and tour ist information centers, and the novelty of the packets is bound to draw the attention of millions of people, Wright said. Besides helping to bring tourist dollars to Oregon, the large order will be of particu lar benefit to the Rogue val ley by giving one , of its in dustries a "shot in the arm." The widespread distribution of the centennial Pik Pak may bring in future orders that will aid substantially in the growth of the company, Wright said. Native Oregon Wood The toothpicks themselves are made of the native Ore gon wood, madrone, which is fine-grained, and "works" per fectly in the special machines designed for the job. After extensive experimenting, it was found that the trees grow ing at high altitudes and on the northern slopes made the best picks. According to Wright, if an order for 20 million Pik Paks had come in six months ago it would have been impossible for the plant to turn them out, for since 1954, when the plant was first set up, work has been going on constantly to perfect high-speed machin ery that would mass-produce the units. It was only recently that all the "bugs" were removed from the last piece of machin ery and the little factory was ready to roll on a full-production basis. The plant can turn out up to 90,000 Pik Paks per day the way they are set up now, Wright said. Directors Help All of the directors of the company, which is incorporat ed, have helped in some way to develop the machinery and set up the production line. Wright himself designed and supervised the construction on the machines, some of which were built locally, after several so-called professional engineers failed to produce the kind that would do the job. More than 13 months and $50,000 of company time and money was spent in Ohio re cently while a manufacturer attempted to build a toothpick cutting machine that would turn out a perfect toothpick the venture was a dead loss, for the thing wouldn't work. Wright then came home and built one himself for $1,800. The company also spent $10,000 to have a stapler built by a Philadelphia com pany and it wouldn't work. Wright, using a similar prin ciple, turned around and de signed one in a matter of weeks that did work. He also designed and helped build a "clipper" which cuts the thin 12 Sunday, May 25, 1958 MAIL TRIBUNE, Medford, Ore., Nine Rescued from Burning Freighter Tokyo (IPi Nine crewmen were rescued early Saturday from a burning Japanese freighter, but fate of 28 others aboard the ship was unknown. The Japanese maritime safety agency said three of its patrol boats and a U.S. Navy LST were battling high seas in an attempt to rescue the other men. The ship, the 2.200-ton Hosho.Maru, caught fire late Friday about 60 miles west of southwest of Taushima Island in the Korea Straits. wood strips into uniform seg ments, a barking machine, conveyor chutes, drying racks and other units necessary for fast production. - . Other members of the firm also pitched in under "Doc's" leadership and after almost three years of constant me chanical "headaches," their problems were licked except for getting the orders. Now even that problem has been solved, at least for a year, and already things are beginning to hum at the Pik Pak plant. The first of the centennial Pik Paks will be in production early in June. mvwrm mm machine PIK PAK FOLDERS The Oregon Centennial, which will be held in Portland in 1959, will get a boost from the esti mated 20 million Pik Pak folders, like the ones shown above, that will be distributed throughout the United ' States dur ing ihe coming year. Use of the official Oregon Centennial seal on the Pik Paks was recently approved by the cen tennial commission. Production will begin in June. Sales Rentals Folding WHEEL CHAIRS Opsn Sundays and Holidays 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. HUDSON'S PHARMACY 613 E. Main Ph. SP 3-5345 1 Block East Hawthorne Park I want to thank the Voters of Jackson County for the support you gave me in the Primary Election. I pledge a vigorous campaign this Fall, and a sound, businesslike, cooperative admin istration when' elected. SCOTT HAMILTON Democratic Nominee for County Judge of Jackson County Pd. Pol. Ad. ' All The being TO'OTHPICK SAW demonstrated" above by Pik Pak Employee Lisle Tames is the device that saws the laminated madrone stock into sections of containing five toothpicks, which will be stapled into the folder after a curing period. The machine was designed by Wright him self after engineers in the east gave up the job. Directors of the company include M. L. Wright, president: A. E. Eitemiller, vice president; Edward Branchfield, secretary treasurer, and Guy E.. Clark and Forest Cahill. St fT LA 1: I INSPECT SAMPLES Above, Art Van Leeuwein, president of the Medford Junior Chamber of Commerce (right) and Don Carlon, chairman of the Centennial Pik Pak committee of the Jaycees, inspect a sample batch of Centennial Pik Paks as they come off the assembly machine at the factory south of Medford. About 20 million of the toothpick folders, which will advertise the 1959 Oregon Centennial, will be distributed by Jaycee organizations throughout the nation during the coming year. Operator of the machine, left, is Pik Pak Employee Lisle Tame. the EM Water yo want-when you wan worn ( n IS it 5 Mil. I! ' w n Automatic Gas Water Heater $(01(0150 . LESS Trade-in for your old heater njruy S2S00 You Pay Only . . u u Easy Terms If Desired ONLY AUTOMATIC WATER-HEATERS GIVE YOU HOT WATER 3 TIMES FASTER SERVING YOU - AND THE COMMUNITY, TOO! CALIFORNIA-PACIFIC UTILITIES COMPANY Phone SP 2-5284 Medford, Oregon
