Salem, a small town on the east side of the Willamet, about forty-five miles above Oregon city, is the site of the missionary, Mr. Lee, of the Methodist order, now no more. At this place, is a classical school of considerable merit, the only one of importance in Oregon territory.
Rickreyall and Luckamute, on the west side of Willamet, contribute to its waters, but little above Salem.
Still farther up, and not more than eight or ten miles above Salem or the Institute as some call it, on the east side of the Willamet, is the Santyam, a stream of considerable importance, the principal branch of which flows from Mount Jefferson, one of the glacial peaks of the Cascade range. The course of this river from Mount Jefferson to its union with the Willamet, is not more than about forty miles.
Other tributaries of some importance still farther up, flow into the Willamet, on both sides of it, till arriving at the high country of their sources, where they ramify in all directions.
Leaving the subject of the Willamet river, I pass on to a description of the forests and animals of Oregon.
CHAPTER VIII.
Forests and Animals of Oregon.
Between the South pass and the Blue mountains, across the Eastern division of Oregon, no forests encostume the earth, to emit their fragrant odors to cheer and exhilarate the weary and thirsty traveler, except on the Bear River mountains, a few isolated peaks scatterd over that barren region. Along the streams occasionally, however, are seen an inferior growth of timber and shrubbery of various kinds. The Blue mountains afford some dense clusters of timber of yellow pine, spruce-hemlock, and some fir. They do not, however, soar to the amazing hight of some of the trees of the Cascade mountains and the Western division. The Middle division is still more destitute of timber than the Eastern.
From the eastern side of the Cascade mountains westward to the Pacific ocean, the country is mostly coverd with timber. Many of the forests are so thickly set with under-brush, that they are with difficulty penetrated. Here, the fir is the most prevalent. Hemlock, cedar, soft or white maple as it is sometimes calld, oak and many other kinds of timber, are found in this division.