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coming in after that pious resolution was Skookum Charlie, an Indian Chief from the Grande Ronde reservation. After selling Charlie a gun, he thought of the hat, got it down from its high shelf, and offered it as a present to the Indian. Charlie did not take readily to the gift, thinking it was too much of a Boston man's hat. But Beck was not to be defeated in his benevolent enter- prise, and showed the chief how he could stick Eagle's feathers all around thicker than hat pins in a ladies hat of this day, and that it would be "big medi- cine" at Grande Ronde. The feather idea caught him, and he took the hat. and carried it back to the Indian village in the Grande Ronde in triumph. Prior to this Charlie had secured in Portland another treasure in the shape of a fine carriage. Making known his wants in the carriage line to a friend at Northrup's hardware store, and the fact that he had cash to purchase with, some wag, possi- bly, Ed. Northrup himself, directed the Indian Chief to Ewry and Garnold's undertaking shop, with a hint to them that they might sell the Indian a hearse. It was a capital idea. They had a hearse they did not need; in fact there was scarcely any use for a hearse those days, and they would sell it cheap ; a fine car- riage, glass side panels, fine seat in front, cloth curtains, tassels, etc., and the price not more than a dozen bear skins. And the Indian took and hauled it home, proud as a veritable lord of all the reservation. And then came Barnum with his circus. The circus is the event of a lifetime with an Indian; and Skookum Charlie must take the whole family in the new carriage to Portland to see the sights. The tall hat was brought out and decked all round with colored eagle's quills ; and they all started for Portland — the chief and wife number one on the driver's seat of the hearse carriage with a half dozen little Indians stowed away inside, gaz- ing out at the wonders of the world through the glass pannels. Arriving at Portland, they camped alongside of the circus in King's cow pasture, where the big apartment houses are now at King and Washington streets. The circus men were not slow to catch on to a good idea — they would have Sookum Charley drive in the grand parade down town with the show wagons. At first the chief demurred, as too much display, but with liberal gifts of candies to the little Indians, a circus rider ladies tinsel dress to the squaw, and free tickets to the whole family, the manager captured the piece d'resistence of the whole show — • and Charley got a prominent position in the parade with his ponies and hearse, the chief and wife on the driver's seat, the little brown faces flattening their noses against the glass panels, while the big boy stood up with his body protruding through a hole cut in the top of the hearse where he swung his candy cane to the cheering multitude on the sidewalks. It was a great day — and a great show — - and Portland got the worth of its money.
FIRST ASCENT OF MT. HOOD.
In those early days the whole country was wild, fresh, new and healthy. There were deer, elk, bear, grouse, pheasants, on every hill side and trout in every stream. The pioneers had the cream of Oregon. They were great eaters, and hunters and fighters. They took to the mountains every summer. The first attempt to scale the heights of Mt. Hood was made by Thos. J. Dryer, editor of the Oregonian on August 19th, 1854; and other efforts to get to the top of the mountain in 1857 and 1858; but none of these succeeded. But in the last days of July, 1859, Mr. Dryer and others, renewed the attempt and got safely up to the top of the mountain and down again without loss or injury to any one. We take from the Oregonian of August 5th, 1859, some account of the first successful ascent of Mt. Hood by white men.
(From the Weekly Oregonian, Saturday morning, July 16, 1859, T. J. Dryer, Editor.) ,
Personal: The editor will leave on Monday morning next for the mountains and will probably be absent two or three weeks. In the meantime, Mr. Henry Pittock, always to be found at the Oregonian office, is fully authorized
