282 Flora of “the Olympics. [ZOE 
mass of snow, followed by severe storms and avalanches in the 
spring, had protrasted trees in every direction, piling the giant 
cedars and firs sometimes four or five deep. It was probably due 
to the unusual depth of snow and quantities of “wind-falls’’ that 
game had been so scarce during the whole trip so far, for its ab- 
sence puzzled the ‘‘ oldest inhabitant.”’ If it had not been for the 
fallen timber, the way would have been comparatively easy, for a 
deeply cut elk-trail led along the river, which would have been as 
plain as a cattle-path had the successions of fallen trees, dislodged 
stones, land slides and at times deep snow allowed any trail to be 
followed for more than a hundred yards. Soon we abandoned all 
thought of trail and took boldly to the timber, keeping the stream 
always in sound if not in sight, and skirting, while ascending, the 
steep slope to the north of the creek. After several miles of wind- 
falls, snow-banks, vine - maple, huckleberry brush and alpine alder 
we came suddenly upon one of those dykes often found on mount- 
ain sides, and there my delight was great in finding a pea whose 
whole aspect was new to me, even to its generic characters. From 
one slightly formed pod, I judged it might be a Desmodium, but 
have discovered since that it is the eastern Hedysarum boreale. On 
taking again to the forest, as my eyes were fixed upon the ground 
noting the various mosses and lichens, my attention was suddenly 
arrested by a little cone about the size of a very large pea or small 
cherry. I glanced up and there over my head were the pretty, 
pendant branches and white trunk of the Sitka or yellow cedar 
( Chamecyparis Nutkensis). This valuable tree, valuable alike 
from its strong scent, light yellow wood, close grain—so close that 
the mere blow of a sharp axe leaves a surface as highly polished as 
if it had been planed and oiled—is here found in great abundance, 
and at times reaches a diameter of eight or nine feet. The most of 
these large trees, however, are more or less wrecks, the heavy 
snows, land slides, old age, or what not, having laid no gentle hands 
upon them, but leaving them gnarled and dead at the top or 
broken off half way up. Ona slope facing the south, reached on 
a succeeding day, we found the wood much more perfect and the 
trees smaller, but very numerous. In fact, nearly one-half of the 
timber was of this species. The remaining timber was composed — 
mainly of white pine and ‘lovely fir,’ the trees of both kinds being 
very large and fine. The company which first invents some way _ 
