OCR Text |
Show Z2·ir of seven miles up the l\1.ultnomah connects that riV('I' with the inlet. The isla1td thu~ fo1·me.d i!; about twcnly miles long, anti varies in brcmlth from five to ten miles: the land is higu aotl ext1·emcly fertile, and on most lli\rts is supplied with n. bcaYy gt·owtb of cottonwood, ash, the large-leafed ash, and sweet. willow, the black alder, common to the coast, havin~ now disappmucd. Uut the chief wealth ol' thi~ island consists of the numet•ou~ vouds in the intct·ior, abounding with tl.te common a.t'l'Owhcad (sagitta.r·ia sagiUifolia) to the root ot' which is attached a bulb gt·owiug beneath it iu tho mud. 'l'his bulb, to which the Indians give the name of wappatoo, i!; the g•·cat article ol' food, a.ml almost the sta1Jlc aa·th·lc of c.wmmea·cc on the Columbia. It is nevet· out of season; so that at all times of the ycal', tho vallt>y is ft·cquentcd by the neighi)Oua·iug Indians who come to gather it. It is collcotetl chiefly by the women, who cmt>loy foa· the pm·vose canoes from ten to foua·tccu feet in length, about two feet wide, and nine inches c.lecp, ami taper·ing from the middle, where they arc about twenty incheSt wide. '!'hey arc suflicicnt to contain a sint;le pet·son and scve~·al bu~hcl~ ol' roots, ycl so ' very light that a woman can cal'l'y them with case; she takes OUC or tbCISC cauoes into a lJOlld where the wa.tCl' is as hibh a.s the breast, ancl by means of hcJ' toe!i, separates from the a·oot this bullJ, which on being fa·ccd l'rom the mud a·jsel! immediately to the surface of the watca·, and i:; thrown into the ca.uoe. In this maum·t· these lKa.tit·nt females remain iu the wntet· fo1· scvrJ·al hout·s even in the elt~pth of wintca·. This plant is found tlu·ough the whole ex.tcut or tho vallt..·y iR \Yhi<·IJ Wl' now arc, IJut docs not g1·ow on the Columbia farther · eas1 wa. d. 'J'his valley is houmlcd westward by tlte mounhti! ou!l countJ'Y IJol'dcr·ing the coast, f1·om which itcxtenels eastw;ud thiJ·l.' mile~ in a tlil'eCt line. till it is closed b~ the J'H.ll~c of mouut.dn:, c•·ossiug tho t:olumbia above tho gt'l'«tt l'alls. Jts l'~ngth ft·om &Wl'l h to south we arc unable to detl'rminc, hut we bdh;ve th.tt the va..llt·y uaust extend to a great dist.an.t.t': H iii in fact tiw onjy dt.•sirahlo ~ituation for tr Up tile ~lissou~ qc ttlerncnt on the weC)tPt·n side of tltt~ Rocky mountains. aml he in~; nalm·ally fertilt~ . wot~ltl, if pt·opel'ly cultivated. affur(l s uhHi~t cn ce fot• forty or tif'ty 1hon'iaml souls. ' l'h <' hi~hland s at'e~rncrnlly of a dark ridtloam, not much iu.',u t·ctl b.v " t onr~ ' ~mel though waviu~, hy no means too !\tt~c p rm· <'Ultivat ion, nud a f'l\W miles ft·om l hr. r·ivet· they witlm1 at l•'ast on the north siclc, into rich ext ~~n!iiV(~ pt•nit·ics. 'rhe tim he•· on 1 hcrrt ]-; ahurulant, anel c•onsis1s almost ... x,:Jusivdy of t he Rev•wal spec ies of Iii· a.ll·t~:uly tles<wi lu·cl. and !;Onw ut' which gr·ow to u. gr·rat Ju•ighf. 'Vc nwasnrt·d a f~lleu t t·ee of that spceies-, and found that incluclin~ the sUnnp of ahout six i\'d, it was tln·cc hllnlla·ee) and ·~igldern reel inl<·ng1h, tl•oup;h it!-i c1iamc· tel' was only tha·ee l'cd. The dogwood is also a.humlant on the upland s: it diOc rs fa·om that of nw lJuitc•l States itt having a n~u~·h smooU1ct· h~u·k, and in ()cing much lat·ge1·f the trunk attamrng a diametet· of ncad y two feet. 'l~hCJ'C is some white ccdat• ol' a large siz(·, hut no pi no of :my kind. In the l)Ottom ~antis ar·c the cottonwood ash, l aq~c leafed a ·h, and !HVt'ct wallow. lutcrspt·r·scd with these al'c llu' pashequa.w; ~hanataquc, atul tompomul rel·n, of whil'h the natives usc tho s·oo.ls, the reel Howeriug cUJ·rcnt a.bountls on the uplaml, wJulc along the t•ivcr bottoms gl'ow luxurianny the watcrcr ·css, stt·awbel'l'y, c•inqut·l'uil, uat•t·o w,lm•k, santfntsh, and the fl.o wcl'it.l fol ''ll("· l ' ' vl1H' •, I a J•s · no t ycl; J· ll bl oom. r I , hr1·1~ J• s abo a spc- <ncs ol the bcat·'s-daw now IJl()oming, but tlat• lat'P.'C luafccl Haol·n lms tli sapp<·arcc1, u.oJ' clo we sec ·~\IIY longrt· tl~c hucldt• - lHw.r ·y ' Hac s· lJ-•\ JJ llll, 1101 . c, lll)' 0 f j 1I C Otht.'l' eVl'' I'~I'N' I1 shr·ufr wlu:h hcaa· hcl'l'ies, except the spt.•cics, t h' leaf of which J.aas a IH'Ickly ma.q.;in. b Among the auimals, we ob Cl'' 'e the mm·tin, smalJ ~re s e , t c small S{,ed\lce) woodpc<·kcr, with a. wlait(· bacJ;., the blue .. C!l'CSL(·' d c•o t• v us, a• a .vl'll !:!, ca·ows, ca"·les, vrdtnrcs, and hnwks '1'1 ) 0 . , •c me low !Jug, long-l<'gged spidt.:t·, as wdl as the huttt·l'fly Rnd blowingfly. and tick, have uh1('afly 1mule thcit· ap{war .. anct~, but uou • of oall thes~ m·c di !Stin::;H·c;lwd fl'om animal; ' •H:. '!·. |