Fig. 75FIG. 75.—MONTEZUMA'S CASTLE, BEAVER CREEK CAÑON, ARIZONA
Near some of the ruined dwellings in this region there are remains of buildings which are supposed to have been watch-towers. We can picture to ourselves the sentinels' alarm given to the workers in the fields at the approach of the savage Apaches, and the hasty flight of the Cliff Dwellers to the castle far up the cañon wall,—the pulling up of the ladders and the retreat to the upper rooms from which they could look down in perfect safety. They must have kept water and food stored in the cave houses. As long as these supplies held out no injury need be feared from the attacking party.
But apparently there came a time when the Cliff Dwellers either abandoned their gardens and fortresses or were killed. It is possible that the climate of the plateau region became more arid and that many of the springs dried up, for there is no water now within long distances of some of the ruins. It is, perhaps, more probable that the attacks of the savages became so frequent that the Cliff Dwellers were driven from their little farms and were no longer able to procure food.
Those who were not killed by enemies or by starvation retreated southward and gathered in a few large villages, or pueblos, where they were still resisting the attacks of their enemies at the time of the coming of the early Spanish explorers.
Fig. 76FIG. 76.—PUEBLO OF TAOS, NEW MEXICO
A careful study of the early inhabitants of America reveals the fact that the Pueblo Indians are the descendants of the race of Cliff Dwellers. Their houses, their pottery, and their religious ceremonies are, so far as can be determined, very similar to those of the Cliff Dwellers. If you travel through northwestern New Mexico and northeastern Arizona, you will find the villages situated upon commanding rocks which are often surrounded by almost inaccessible cliffs. To these elevated villages all the food and water has to be carried from the valleys below. The houses are solidly built of stone, and rise, terrace-fashion, several stories in height, each succeeding story standing a little back of the one below. These houses can be entered only by a ladder from the outside. In time of danger the ladders are drawn up so that the walls cannot be easily scaled. There are a number of groups of the Pueblo Indians, but the Zuni and Moki are perhaps as interesting as any of them.
Fig. 77FIG. 77.—GRINDING GRAIN, LAGUNA, NEW MEXICO
Wonderful indeed are some of the pueblo villages which were still occupied at the time of the coming of the Spanish, more than three centuries and a half ago. As in the pueblos now occupied, there were no separate family houses. The people of an entire pueblo lived in one great building of many rooms. Some of the pueblos were semi-circular, with a vertical wall upon the outside, while upon the inside the successive stories formed a series of huge steps similar to the tiers of seats in an ancient amphitheatre.
Fig. 78FIG. 78.—THE ENCHANTED MESAThe summit was once the site of an Indian pueblo
The summit was once the site of an Indian pueblo
In the pueblo of Pecos were the largest buildings of this kind ever discovered. One had three hundred and seventeen rooms, and another five hundred and eighty-five. Taos is another of the large pueblos, and is especially interesting because it is still inhabited. This great building has from three to six stories with several hundred rooms. In the foreground of the photograph (Fig. 76) appears one of the ovens in which the baking is done. In some of these pueblos the women still grind their corn by hand in stonematates, just as their ancestors did for many hundreds and perhaps thousands of years.
Fig. 79FIG. 79.—POTTERY OF THE ACOMA INDIANS, NEW MEXICO
In northwestern New Mexico there is a remarkable flat-topped rock known as the Enchanted Mesa, which rises with precipitous walls to a height of four hundred feet above the valley in which it stands. It was long believed that human beings had never been upon this rock, although there were traditions to the effect that a village once existed upon its summit. According to the tradition, the breaking away of a great mass of rock left the summit inaccessible ever afterward. The cliffs were scaled recently by the aid of ropes, and evidences were found in the shape of pottery fragments, to show that the Indians had once inhabited the mesa. Two or three miles away, across the valley, is the large village of Acoma, where a great deal of pottery is made for sale.
The pottery of the Pueblo Indians is very attractive, and their religious festivals and peculiar dances draw many visitors. These Indians no longer fear attacks from the savage Apache or Navajo, but they have become so used to their rock fortresses that it is not likely they will soon. leave them. The Navajos now live in peace and raise large herds of sheep and goats; while the more savage Apaches have been gathered upon reservations, never more to go upon the war-path. Most of the Apaches still live in their rude brush habitations.
Fig. 80FIG. 80.—NAVAJO WOMAN WEAVING A BLANKET
While the Pueblo Indians make attractive pottery, the Navajos are noted for their blankets. The wool, which is taken from their herds, is dyed different colors, and woven upon their simple looms into the most beautiful and costly blankets.
We usually think of the native inhabitants of America as leading a wild and rude life, moving from place to place in search of food, and constantly engaged in warfare with one another. The Pueblo Indians alone are different. Possibly if the white man had never come to America these Indians might in time have become highly civilized. But it is more than likely that in their struggle with Nature in this wild and rugged country, where they were constantly subjected to attacks from their more savage neighbors, they would have sunk lower instead of rising, and would finally have disappeared.
The Apaches were dreaded alike by the agricultural Indians and the early Spanish. Issuing from their mountain fastnesses the Apaches would raid the unprotected villages and missions, and then retreat as quickly as they came. For many years after the American occupation prospectors had to be constantly on their guard, and many are the tragedies that have marked this remote corner of our country.
During the blinding glare of summer the deserts of southwestern Arizona and the adjoining portions of California are forbidding in the extreme. Day after day the pitiless sun pours its heat upon the vast stretches of barren mountain and plain, until the rocks are baked brown and it seems as if every particle of life must have left the seared and motionless plants.
Month after month passes without rain. Now and then light clouds float into sight, and occasionally rain can be seen falling from them, but they are so high that the drops all disappear in the dry and thirsty air long before they can reach the ground. Cloud-bursts may take place about the peaks of some of the higher mountains, but they have very little effect upon the life out on the plains.
Animals and plants brought to this region from a moister climate must drink continually to make up for the rapid evaporation of moisture from their bodies; a day without water may result in death. And yet the living things that have homes in the desert can resist the dry air for many months without a renewal of their moisture. There are areas where the average rainfall is less than three inches, and sometimes two years may pass without a drop of rain. It will certainly be worth our while to find out something about these desert plants and the way in which Nature enables them to get along with so little water.
Go where we will, from the moist heat of the tropics or the dry heat of the deserts to the icy north, we find that everywhere the plants and animals are suited to the climate of the particular place in which they live. Therefore we might conclude that they thrive better in those places than they would anywhere else, but that is not always true.
A struggle is going on continually among plants for a footing in the soil and for a share of the sunshine. The weaker plants are generally killed, while those hardy enough to survive have to adapt themselves to new conditions of life, becoming stunted and deformed upon barren slopes; but they have plenty of room there because fewer plants are striving for the same place.
It is not likely that the deserts of the southwest have always been as dry as they are now. As the amount of rainfall slowly lessened through thousands of years, the animals could migrate when it became too dry; but the plants, fixed in one place, had either to give up and die, or change their characters and habits to suit the demands of the changing climate. The fact that these extremely dry deserts are filled with plant life to-day is without doubt due to this ability to change.
In a moist, warm climate plants are luxuriant; they take up a large amount of water through their roots and evaporate it through the leaves. If placed in a desert, such plants would immediately wither and die. To avoid too rapid evaporation the bodies of the desert plants have become smaller, and their leaves have either shrunk greatly or wholly disappeared. Strong-smelling, resinous juices exude from the remaining leaves and stems, and form a surface varnish through which water passes with difficulty.
Some forms of plant life, such as the prickly-pear, are provided with fleshy stems which hold a supply of moisture to be drawn upon during the long dry season. Men and animals are sometimes saved from death by chewing the pulp of the prickly-pear or other cactuses. After a period of exceptional drought, the stems of the prickly-pear lose their bright green color and become shrunken.
Fig. 81FIG. 81.—PRICKLY-PEAR, BALL CACTUS, AND SPANISH BAYONET
The development of the underground part of the plant is frequently out of all proportion to the part above the surface. The manzanita, which grows in the semi-arid climate of southern California, is a low shrub with branches that are rarely large enough for fuel. The roots, however, are large and massive, and are extensively used for firewood.
The desert plants are armed, not only against the dry air, but against the wandering animals which would bite them and suck their juices. The smell of the sagebrush is such that very few animals will touch it. Other plants are protected by thorns. In fact, the drier the region, the more thorny are its plants. A little shrub called the crucifixion thorn has no leaves at all, nothing but long, sharp spines. Besides the straight thorns there are curved and also barbed ones, for every conceivable form is represented among the plants of these dry lands.
As the desert plants are armed against the animals, so the animals are armed against each other. Many of the insects and reptiles are extremely poisonous; the greater the heat of their habitat, the more dangerous are their bites. The horned toad, while not poisonous, is protected by having horny spines upon its head and back. The little rattlesnake known as the "side-winder" is perhaps the most dangerous of all, although the tarantula, centipede, and scorpion are formidable foes. The Gila monster, long believed to be so dangerous, is now considered non-poisonous under ordinary conditions.
Fig. 82FIG. 82.—CRUCIFIXION THORN
The desert tortoise is perhaps the most remarkable of all the animals of the desert. It is rare, and little is known of its habits except that it lives in the most arid valleys of southeastern California, far removed from any water. This tortoise has a diameter across its shell of at least eighteen inches. Its flesh is much prized by the Indians and prospectors. A specimen which had been without water for an indefinite period was dissected, and the discovery was made that upon each side there was a membranous sac, containing clear water, perhaps a pint in all. The desert tortoise, then, carries his store of water with him, and is thus enabled to go many months without a new supply.
Fig. 83FIG. 83.—THE GILA MONSTER
A trip across the deserts of the lower Colorado in spring, before the bracing air of winter has entirely gone, is one never to be forgotten. The poisonous insects and reptiles are not at this time warmed up to full activity, while many peculiar plants are just coming into bloom.
Let us study some of the strange forms growing thickly over the rocky slopes and sandy plains. There are miles of forest, but not such a forest as we are accustomed to see. Tall, fluted columns of the giant cactus (saguaro), with rows of sharp spines, reach upward to a height of from twenty to fifty feet. At one or more nodes, bud-like branches spring from the main trunk and, curving upward, form columns about the parent stem.
Fig. 84FIG. 84.—THE PALO VERDE TREE AND SAGUARO
The giant cactus bears near the top a purple flower and a large, edible fruit. This fruit, which has a red pulp, is a favorite food with the Indians, and also with many insects and birds. It is gathered by means of long forked sticks, for if it should drop to the ground it would be broken. The pulp of the stalk yields a little juice or sap which is used by the Indians when hard pressed for water.
Fig. 85FIG. 85.—A FOREST ON THE PLAINS OF SOUTHERN ARIZONAShowing cholla and saguaro
Showing cholla and saguaro
Scattered among the huge club-shaped columns of the saguaro is the cholla, the next largest of the cactuses. This species, which is tree-like in its branching and in rare cases grows to a height of twelve feet, bears bright red or yellow flowers. One must approach with care, for its jointed stems are so easily broken that at the slightest touch of the hand or clothing, pieces break off and adhere firmly by means of their sharp curved and barbed spines. Another species of the cholla is small, reaching but a foot or two above the ground, but this and other low forms so cover the ground in places that one has to be constantly on guard to keep from running the spines into his feet.
These are not all the plants of this wonderful forest. The ocatilla is a cactus-like form having a group of long slender stems bunched together at the root. In the spring each is tipped with a spike of red flowers, and as the snake-like stalks wave in the breeze they present an appearance scarcely less attractive than the saguaro.
Fig. 86FIG. 86.—OCATILLA
Scattered among the vegetation just mentioned is the palo verde (green tree), so named from the yellowish green of its bark. It is remarkable for the small size of the leaves, which afford scarcely any shade for the traveller upon a hot summer day. (Fig. 84.)
Along the dry water courses we find the mesquite, a tree which does not grow upon the gravelly plains and rocky slopes, for it needs more moisture than most of the desert vegetation. In the spring it puts out delicate green leaves which form a pleasing contrast with the other plants.
Riding through one of these forests in the deepening twilight, one is impressed with a feeling of awe and mystery by the strange, weird shapes outlined against the sky. In the cooler air of evening the animals come from their retreats. The insects and the snakes are then abroad, and if one is on foot the sudden buzz of a rattlesnake is not a pleasant sound to hear.
Fig. 87FIG. 87.—MESQUITE TREE, SANTA CRUZ VALLEY, SOUTHERN ARIZONA
The prickly-pear prefers slopes not quite so dry and hot as those of the forest just described. Its broad, spade-like, jointed stems are very interesting. The red fruit clustered upon their extremities is not disagreeable to the taste, but is covered with a soft, prickly down.
Associated with the prickly-pear is a species of agave, but this does not grow so large in Arizona as it does farther south in Mexico. The plant is familiar to us as the common century plant of our gardens. The long fleshy leaves with spines at the ends are clustered at the surface of the ground, and from their centre, at blooming time, rises a tall flower stalk. The agave requires many years to mature. When the flower stalk has once started it grows rapidly, but after blossoming the plant dies.
The mezcal, or pulque, the national drink of the Mexicans, is made from the sap of the agave. The fibre of the agave, known as sisal hemp, is used in the manufacture of rope, twine, mats, brushes, etc. Other parts of the plant have various uses.
There are many kinds of yucca in the more elevated portions of the desert. They range in size from those only two or three feet high, of which the Spanish bayonet is a type, to the giant yucca of the Mohave Desert, which attains the proportions of a tree and forms thick forests over an area of many miles. The Spanish bayonet, with its long stalk of white, waxy blossoms, presents a very beautiful appearance, as do also the young specimens of the tree yucca.
At rare intervals, once perhaps in many years, there is an unusual amount of rainfall in the spring, and in a few weeks the desert becomes transformed as if by magic. Seeds germinate, the presence of which one would never have suspected in the drier weather. In an incredibly short time the long gravelly or sandy slopes about the bases of the mountains are covered with a veritable carpet of green, yellow, and red. The sand verbena, the evening primrose, baby blue-eyes, and different kinds of lilies grow so thickly in places that every footstep crushes them.
Fig. 90FIG. 90.—YOUNG YUCCAS IN BLOOM
But in a few short days the beauty has disappeared. The seeds mature speedily and drop into the sand. A hot wind withers the stems and leaves and blows them away; drifting sands take the place of the rich carpet. How readily these plants have adapted themselves to the brief period in which life is possible!
Thus it is that this vast region about the lower Colorado, although so dry and hot, and at first sight apparently so unfitted for sustaining life, nevertheless supports its share. Many of the plant forms have assumed strange and monstrous shapes in their efforts to withstand the hard conditions in the struggle for existence, while others simply lie in waiting, sleeping during the long dry year, but ready to spring into life when the favorable showers come, as they sometimes do.
although it is only a little more than fifty years since the discovery of gold was made and the rapid settlement of the West began, what a change has come over this great region! It was at first supposed to be impossible to connect the growing settlements upon the Pacific with the East by anything more than a wagon road, and those who advocated the building of a railroad were ridiculed. Now the journey across the continent is made upon smooth steel tracks in comfortable coaches, for the skill of the engineer has overcome the difficulties of the desert, the mountain wall, and the cañon.
The pioneers who pushed westward from the Mississippi River with their slow ox-teams took all summer to reach the fertile valleys of California and Oregon, and considered themselves fortunate if they arrived at their destination before the coming of the winter storms.
The first overland stage line was established by way of New Mexico and Arizona, terminating at Los Angeles. Twenty-two days were required for this part of the tiresome and dangerous trip. The route was longer and more desert-like than that farther north across Nevada, but the winter storms were avoided.
The stage-coach proved too slow for the needs of the growing settlements upon the Pacific slope. A telegraph line was planned, but it could not be completed for some time, and even then it was probable that the Indians would destroy the poles and wires.
Then came the idea of a relay of fast messengers upon horseback, and the pony express was organized. It is difficult to believe that by this means the journey of two thousand miles between St. Joseph, a point upon the Missouri a little above Kansas City, and Sacramento, California, was once made in about eight days. This is only a little more than twice the time required by the fast trains at present.
For two years the trip was regularly made in about nine days, averaging two hundred and twenty miles a day. It can be readily understood that this wonderful feat required many relays of men and horses scattered along the route. The express rider had no well-graded roads to follow, but only the rough trail of the emigrants. This led across broad deserts and over rugged mountains, and throughout most of the journey exposed the rider to the attacks of Indians.
Let us take a map and trace the route of the express. It followed closely the main overland trail which the gold-seekers had opened. Now towns and cities are scattered along the old trail, and the railroad crosses and recrosses it. But let us try to picture the country as it appeared in its wild state.
Mountains, valleys and plains made up the landscape. Vast herds of buffalo darkened the Great Plains east of the Rocky Mountains, while farther west were numerous bands of antelope. The streams were filled with beaver and other fur-bearing animals. Here and there along the rivers were Indian villages with their curiously shaped tepees. Even the deserts of Nevada were not uninhabited, for the Indians lived there also, gathered in little family groups about the desolate springs.
When we speak of the overland trail we do not mean a narrow path for animals, but the wagon road, rude though it was, which the early emigrants had made. They were determined to cross the continent, no matter what the difficulties and dangers. Wagons could be drawn by the oxen over the plains and deserts with little difficulty, although there were some dangerous rivers to be crossed. Mountains and cañons offered the most serious obstructions. In many places the wagons had to be let down over precipices with ropes, or be taken apart and carried piece by piece around the obstructions.
It was not the mountains alone which made the trip "across the plains" one long to be remembered. It was often difficult to obtain water and fodder for the animals, and at many points savage Indians, bent upon plunder, were in hiding, waiting for a chance to stampede the cattle or kill the emigrants. The way was marked by abandoned wagons, household goods, bones of cattle, and the graves of human beings.
The trail led from the Missouri across the state of Kansas to the Platte River, then followed this long stream to its head at South Pass on the continental divide. From the South Pass the trail led southwest past Fort Bridger, in southwestern Wyoming, through Echo Cañon and over Emigrant pass of the Wasatch Range down to Salt Lake City, which had been founded but a short time before the discovery of gold. West of Salt Lake City the trail skirted the northern shore of the Great Salt Lake, and after passing a low mountain divide in what is now northwestern Utah, reached the head waters of the Humboldt River. Thence the path ran along by this river down to the place where it disappeared in a vast sandy desert known as the sink of the Carson. The Carson River, after the dreary desert was passed, led the emigrants still westward toward a wall of mighty mountains known as the Sierra Nevada. Here Nature seemed to have done her utmost to shut off California, with its fertile valleys and rich gold-fields, from the longing eyes of the emigrants. There are, however, several low places in the range, and through one of these openings, at the head of the Carson River, the travellers gained the western slope of the mountains. Then in good time they reached the mining town of Placerville, and at length Sacramento, the capital of California.
Fig. 91FIG. 91.—CHIMNEY ROCKOn the old overland trail near the Platte River, western Nebraska
On the old overland trail near the Platte River, western Nebraska
In order that the pony express might make the time required over the two thousand miles, five hundred horses and several hundred men were needed. The stations were placed about ten miles apart and were strongly built so that they might withstand the attacks of the Indians. These stations, nearly two hundred in number, all had to be supplied by means of freight teams, which often hauled hay, grain, and food for the messengers for hundreds of miles.
The horses selected for the messengers to ride were the small, sure-footed ponies called mustangs. Through a stretch of ten miles the pony was pushed to its utmost speed, then it was carefully groomed, fed, and rested until the time came to make the return trip.
In selecting the riders three things were of great importance: they must be light in weight, must be possessed of great powers of endurance, and also must be brave and resolute. At each station, as the time approached for the express to arrive, the relay horse was saddled and in waiting. As the rider dashed in he jumped from his horse, and with but a moment's rest, threw the saddle-bags containing the letters upon the fresh horse and was off again, riding like the wind. Upon smooth stretches the horses often made twenty miles an hour, but it was quite impossible to maintain this speed over the rocky and rugged portions of the route. Storms and Indian ambuscades often delayed the riders. Sometimes the messenger kept up a running fight with the Indians for miles.
The riders were frequently killed, but the mail-bags were rarely lost. If a rider did not come in on time, it was known that something serious had happened, and search was immediately made. The riders were not allowed to stop for any purpose whatsoever; neither storms of the greatest severity nor even the presence of hostile Indians near the trail kept them from their duty. One of the few riders who are still living says that he was never afraid except on dark, cloudy nights. At such times he made no attempt to guide his horse, but trusting to the intelligence of the well-trained animal, gave it rein, and at the same time spurred it to its utmost speed. Think of riding at such speed into the dark night, not knowing what is ahead of you! The rider's only safety lay in the carefulness and sagacity of the horse. Such a ride called for more courage than did a conflict with Indians!
Fig. 92FIG. 92.—PALISADES OF THE HUMBOLDT RIVER, NEVADANear the overland trail
Near the overland trail
The pony express carried no passengers. It carried no freight, not even the usual express package. The messenger was intrusted with nothing but two bundles of letters carefully stowed away in a pair of saddle-bags.
The letters were not like our ordinary letters, for the paper used was the thinnest and lightest possible. Hundreds of the letters weighed only a few pounds. It was very important that there should be no great weight, for if the horses were heavily loaded, they could not make the required time. Only those whose business was of great importance could afford to send letters by this express, for the charge was five dollars upon each letter.
In spite of the high charge the pony express is said never to have been profitable, for the expenses were very heavy. It was discontinued in 1860, as by that time a telegraph line had been constructed across the continent.
The story of the exploration and settlement of the Pacific coast, and of the great region lying between the Pacific slope and the Mississippi Valley, offers a most interesting opportunity to study the control which physical features of the earth exert upon the trend of men's activities. The position of the mountains, the courses of the rivers, and the character of the sea-coast have all helped to shape the history of the West. The presence of gold in the rocks of the Sierra Nevada mountains was the chief incentive which led to the breaking down of the barriers placed by Nature between the Pacific and the Mississippi basin.
When an unknown land is accessible by water, the shore line offers the easiest means for the first explorations and settlements. So it came about that nearly all the eastern coast of North America was known before men ventured far into the interior. Then the large rivers, like the St. Lawrence, the Hudson, and the Mississippi, seemed to offer inviting routes into the recesses of the continent, but exploration through the pathless woods and rough mountains was slow.
It was soon discovered that the Hudson was a short river and did not lead across the continent as was at first hoped. Because of the absence of other large rivers upon that portion of the coast which the English occupied, their settlements did not spread westward as rapidly as they otherwise would have done. The country was covered with dense forests, and savage Indians disputed the right to occupy it. In time, however, passes were found leading over the Appalachian Mountains to the Ohio River and through the Mohawk Valley to the region of the Great Lakes.
The advantages for travel offered by the St. Lawrence River and the chain of lakes above it were utilized at an early day. The route of the French missionary explorers and fur traders was from Montreal up the Ottawa River, then by a short portage and a series of small lakes to Lake Huron. From this point the most remote shores of Lakes Superior and Michigan could be easily reached. By the aid of several small bodies of water west of Lake Superior, Lake Winnipeg and Great Slave Lake were finally discovered; but from this point the waterways into the West were small and could be followed no farther, so that it was a long time before the Rocky Mountains were crossed.
By floating down the Illinois River the French arrived at the Mississippi, explored much of its course, and took possession of the country in advance of the English. This fact was directly due to the difficulties which the English explorers experienced in forcing their way over the Appalachian highlands.
The Spanish explored the southern shores of the continent, and crossing the Isthmus, were the first to behold the Pacific. The fact that the Pacific coast of North America was so easily reached at this point gave the Spanish a great advantage, and explains why they gained such a hold upon the lands bordering that ocean. It was a comparatively simple matter for them to fit out ships, and sailing north and south, to take possession wherever they desired. However, when they had gone as far as California, their progress was for a long time almost completely blocked by storms and head winds, for the prevailing direction of the wind is down the coast. The Spanish finally reached Vancouver Island, but never succeeded in making settlements north of San Francisco. Even the interior of California was little known to them, for the mountains and deserts discouraged their progress in that direction.
From an examination of a map we might suppose that the Colorado River would offer as good a means for penetrating the continent as did the Mississippi River, but as a matter of fact it is navigable for a comparatively short distance. The Spanish made one attempt to ascend this river, but finding themselves surrounded on every hand by a most desolate, barren country, they turned back before reaching the Grand Cañon. In the eager search for gold the Spaniards pushed north from Mexico and planted settlements in Arizona and New Mexico, but upon the northwest their progress was stopped by cañons and deserts.
Now we are prepared to understand why it was that the western portion of North America remained for so long a time a mysterious and unknown region. There were no waterways by which it could be explored, while snow-clad mountains and deserts made access to it doubly difficult.
By the beginning of the last century the Americans had overcome the natural obstacles in their westward progress, and their settlements reached as far into the wilderness as the Mississippi River. Hunters and traders were soon pushing far beyond, spreading over the Great Plains and up to the very base of the Rocky, or Stony Mountains, as they were then called. The Missouri River became the great highway into the Northwest, for the adventurers took advantage of the streams wherever possible. Many other rivers were discovered flowing from the western mountains, but with the exception of the Platte and Arkansas they were generally too shallow for navigation even with a light canoe.
Starting in the early spring from the mouth of the Missouri, the hardy trappers sailed and paddled up the river, taking several months to reach the head of navigation at the Great Falls. In the autumn, when the boats were loaded with furs, it was a comparatively easy matter to drop down the river with the current. It would have been almost impossible to transport the loads of goods on pack-horses across the thousand miles of prairie, where the traders would be subject to attack from hostile Indians.
Adventurous men pushed farther and farther west through the passes in the mountains and began trapping upon the waters which flow into the Pacific. It had long been supposed that the Rocky Mountains formed a barrier beyond which our country could not be extended, and that the Pacific slope was made up of mountains and deserts not worth securing.
The explorers showed that the Rocky Mountains were not continuous, but consisted of partly detached ranges, and that while their eastern fronts were indeed almost impassable for long distances, there were places so low that it was difficult to locate the exact spot where the waters parted to seek the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. In southwestern Wyoming the continental divide, known as the Great Divide mesa, though more than a mile above the sea, is but a continuation of the long, gentle slope of the Great Plains.
The Rocky Mountains decrease in height toward the south, near the line between New Mexico and Colorado. Here is situated Raton Pass, an ancient Indian highway from the valley of the Arkansas to the Rio Grande. In the early half of the last century this trail was much used by the caravans of traders and came to be known as the Santa Fé trail.
Fig. 93FIG. 93.—ON THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE IN SOUTHWESTERN WYOMING
In the early days of the American occupation of California, the Santa Fé trail became an important route to the Pacific. From the Mexican town of Santa Fé it led down the valley of the Rio Grande, following the old road to Mexico, and then turned west across the broad plateau of the continental divide, not far from the present course of the Southern Pacific Railroad. Passing Tucson, the road kept near the course of the Gila River to Fort Yuma, and then led over the Colorado Desert to Los Angeles. This path avoided all the high mountains, but much of it lay across deserts, where the heat and scarcity of water made it an impracticable route for the emigrants.
One not acquainted with the physical geography of the West might wonder why the gold-seekers on their way to California did not make use of the Missouri River, which, except for the Great Falls, was navigable for small boats to the very base of the Rocky Mountains. A partial explanation is found in the report of the hardships endured by the Lewis and Clark exploring expedition, and later by the Astor party, which went out to found a fur trading post at the mouth of the Columbia. It had been supposed that after once crossing the continental divide it would be an easy matter to embark upon some stream and float down to the Pacific Ocean. The parties referred to became lost in the defiles of the mountains, and when they finally reached the Snake River it was only to find that rapids and waterfalls continually obstructed navigation. Although there was in most places plenty of water upon this northern route, yet the mountains were impassable for wagons.
Because of these conditions the emigrants started out boldly across the plains, following the general course of the Platte River, and crossing the Rocky Mountain divide at the South Pass in western Wyoming, a place famous in its day. At this point those who were going to Oregon turned northwestward to Fort Hall, a trading post of the Hudson Bay Company. From here they crossed southern Idaho, keeping near the course of the Snake River until they reached the point where it enters the grand cañon; there they left the river, and climbing over the Blue Mountains, entered the fertile valleys about the present city of Walla Walla. From this place the emigrants followed the Columbia River to The Dalles, whence they proceeded either by boat or raft until Fort Vancouver and the mouth of the Willamette were finally gained. Wagons were taken through on this route, and it was not dangerous, although accidents sometimes happened at the Cascades, where locks were built at a later day.
Fig. 94FIG. 94.—THE OLD SANTA FÉ TRAILOver this thousands of freight and emigrant wagons have passed
Over this thousands of freight and emigrant wagons have passed
The emigrants for California, who were the most numerous, turned southwest at South Pass, and after crossing the Wasatch Range through Emigration Cañon, came out upon the plain of Great Salt Lake. Then, traversing desert plains, they reached the Humboldt River, which they followed until it sank into the sands.
Several routes had been opened across the Sierra Nevada mountains into California, but those through the Carson and Donner passes were most used. Several high ranges of mountains lay between the Willamette Valley of Oregon and the Great Valley of California, so that in the early days there was very little travel between these two territories. The overland trip required so long a time, and involved such dangers and hardships, that many preferred the water route, in spite of the fact that its ships were crowded, and the voyagers must cross the fever-infected Isthmus.
It is very interesting to note how widely different the rivers are upon the opposite sides of the Rocky Mountains. Those upon the east, with the exception of the Missouri at the Great Falls, are not marked by waterfalls after leaving the mountains. There are few cañons of importance. The streams generally flow in channels only slightly sunken below the general level of the Great Plains. The streams upon the west, on the contrary, are broken by rapids and waterfalls, and are generally buried in cañons so deep and precipitous that in places a man might die of thirst in sight of water.
No other great migration of people over the surface of the earth ever encountered such difficulties as that which pressed westward after the discovery of gold. It was at first thought that railroads could not be constructed through the mountains and deserts, and until the mineral wealth of the West became known, many men believed that the greater portion of the country was not worth taking.
It would be interesting to consider each of the main lines of railroad which connect the Mississippi Valley with the Pacific, and study the features of the country through which it runs, determining as far as possible the surveyor's reasons for selecting that particular course. Some of the railroads follow for long distances the routes of the emigrants. The emigrants, in their turn, often made use of the ancient Indian trails.
Fig. 95FIG. 95.—THE CARSON PASS, SUMMIT OF SIERRA NEVADA MOUNTAINSOne of the main emigrant routes to the Pacific Coast
One of the main emigrant routes to the Pacific Coast
While Nature seems to have striven to raise impassable barriers to shut off the Pacific slope from the rest of the continent, yet she failed at some points, and through the unguarded passes the wild animals and Indians first found their way. Then came the trappers, prospectors, farmers, and at last the railroad, until the wilderness was over-run.
Because of its temperate climate, abundant rainfall, and rich soil, the Mississippi Valley was rapidly settled after the pioneers had once reached it. The plains rising slowly westward toward the base of the Rocky Mountains were found to be more arid the farther they were explored. Consequently there exists a broad strip of plain which is even to-day sparsely settled. The emigrants went on to the fertile valleys nearer the Pacific, where the rainfall is more abundant. The American settlers did not then understand irrigation, although it was practised by the Mexicans to the south. Because the discovery of precious metals was first made in California, the pioneers crossed the intervening mountains without giving a thought to the mineral riches which might be concealed in their depths. Later, mines were opened in the mountains all through the arid regions. The necessity of providing food for the miners brought about the discovery that the desert lands were very productive wherever the waters of the streams could be brought to them.
Perhaps some of us who have comfortable homes, sleep upon soft beds, wear neat clothes, and can obtain every variety of food that we wish, think with pity of the men who lead a rough and lonely life among the mountains far from all comforts. Let us learn something more about the life and work of the prospectors, for we may find much that is desirable in their experiences.
Not many thousands of years ago our ancestors led what we would now call a wild and savage life. They had no permanent homes, but wandered here and there in search of food, and lived in caves or constructed the rudest kind of shelter from the storms. Perhaps we are right in feeling thankful that we were not born in those primitive times, but are there not really many things to regret about the way in which we have to live at the present day?
The utterly free outdoor life is not open to many. We have little or no opportunity to become acquainted with Nature, the guardian of our ancestors. The woods, the rocks, the mountains, and the dashing streams are almost complete strangers to many of us.
Many men are now obliged to go every day to their work in office or shop, and spend the hours shut in from the fresh air and bright sunshine. At night they sleep in rooms into which they admit little fresh air for fear of taking cold. To-day each man has to learn to do one thing well to the exclusion of nearly everything else, in order to make a living. For this very reason we are in danger of becoming human machines and of losing the use of some of the powers with which Nature has endowed us. Many things about our present mode of life are not natural to us, but through successive generations we have become somewhat adapted to them. The Indians, if taken from a life in the open air and made to live as we do, often sicken and die.
The farmer enjoys much more freedom and more of the sweet fresh air than do the artisans and office workers; but of all the men in civilized countries the trappers and prospectors live most out of doors. To be sure, they have to endure many hardships and dangers, and their beds are not always the softest nor their food the best, but you will seldom find one who is willing to exchange his free life for work in the town or city.
The trappers have nearly disappeared. Their occupation will be gone with the passing of the wild animals which were once so abundant. The prospectors are, however, becoming more numerous year by year throughout the mountains of western America. To them we owe a great debt, for had not their searching eyes brought to light the hidden mineral deposits this portion of our country would be far more thinly populated than it is to-day.
The discovery of gold in California was accidental. A man named Marshall was building a mill for Sutter in the foot-hills of the Sierra Nevada mountains at the time (1848) when California had just come into the possession of the United States. While at work he noticed some shining grains in the sand of the mill-race. A little testing of the grains led him to the conclusion that they were gold.
The news spread rapidly over the world, and since that time a constantly increasing tide of gold-seekers has been pushing out into the unexplored portions of the earth. Comparatively few of these men have become wealthy, but their discoveries have led to the settlement of new regions and to the growth of important industries. In truth, if it were not for the deposits of valuable metals, large areas of the desert and mountainous West would be of small value.