32 BOTANY OF THE ROUTE. 



prairies, where sometimes a spirasa (S. DOUGLASSII) entirely covers the surface, and closely 

 resembles the eastern &quot;hardback.&quot; 



One shrub, allied to the cherry, but, unlike any eastern kind, (NUTTALLIA CERASIFOEMIS,) grows 

 in damp places, and most abundantly under spruce trees on the brackish marshes. 



To call these varied and magnificent forests by the general name of &quot;pine,&quot; as is often 

 carelessly done by travellers, neither conveys a correct idea of them to strangers nor does 

 justice to their importance. &quot;Spruce&quot; would be better, but is the term applied in the Territory 

 to the forest of black spruce west of the Coast range, while &quot;fir&quot; is the general term for those 

 between this and the Cascades. Pines are truly characteristic of the forest on the eastern 

 side of this range. 



I need not here particularize the animals of these forests, since nearly all the quadrupeds 

 collected west of the range belong to the forest exclusively. Of these, the most peculiar to 

 them are the red lynx, (L. FASCIATUS,) bushy-tailed rat, (NEOTOMA OCCIDENTALIS,) and several 

 little shrews and mice; while the panther, black bear, raccoon, skunk, fisher, marten, mink, 

 weasel, Oregon tree squirrel, ground squirrel, and flying squirrel, nearly resemble eastern 

 species; and being all climbing arboreal animals, except the skunk, are almost entirely limited 

 to the forest. 



The elk and deer may be considered inhabitants of the prairies, as they obtain most of their 

 food there; and the little rabbit of the Territory is never found in the dense forests. Few 

 birds inhabit their gloomy recesses, and especially in summer their silence is rarely broken, 

 except by the harsh voice of the jay, the screaming of the hawk, or the barking of the squirrel, 

 which, though not loud, is audible for miles. Occasionally the blue grouse or the pheasant 

 startle the traveller with their loud whirring flight, or an owl silently glides past him, astonished 

 at so unusual a visitor; but it is rare for the traveller to see any of the larger animals, unless 

 provided with good dogs. The Indians, from fear of the panthers and of &quot;skookums&quot; or 

 spirits, fear to go through the dense woods, except in large parties, and they are, therefore, 

 generally a pathless and solitary wilderness. Such we found them when ascending the western 

 slopes of the Cascade range, and the same character prevails throughout the still denser forests 

 of the Coast range. The occurrence of many animals was a sure indication of an approach to 

 prairies or openings. 



CLIMATE OF THE WESTERN REGION. 



I have already alluded to the influence of climate on the distribution of trees east of the Cas 

 cade mountains, and also to the same cause as affecting the growth of species on the opposite 

 sides of the Coast range. As a means of comparison, I here quote the records kept at Van 

 couver, by which it appears that in 1852 the total fall of rain amounted to 52.45 inches; in 

 1853, 42.04 inches; the mean of which is 46.49 inches; while at the Dalles it was but 14.70 

 inches. It also appears that rain fell during every month of 1853, and that more fell at Puget 

 Sound than at Vancouver. 



West of the Coast range it is well known that more rain falls than east of it. The &quot;Hyetal 

 charts,&quot; accompanying the Surgeon General s Meteorological Register, illustrate the difference 

 in a very striking manner. These show the difference at Astoria to be 5 inches more in spring, 

 10 in autumn, and 10 in winter, giving about 60 inches for the year; while at Vancouver it is 



