A PIONEER OF THE OLD WEST 



A Type of Those Who Helped Cement the Great Northwest 

 Into Our National Body Politic 



The Pilgrim was the outstanding figure on Europe's first 

 frontier of Atlantic America, the Pioneer of the Old West is 

 the outstanding character on Europe's last frontier, the Pacific 

 United States. The Mayflower was the argosy which carried 

 the American Republic, and Capt. Gray's Columbia an ark of 

 covenant which extended its foundations and carried its laws and 

 life into the Orient. 



The old time pioneer, typified the adventurous spirit of our 

 restless race: he typified the urge, the expression of that ever- 

 moving dynamic force we call human progress — the under- 

 standing, control and right use by man of nature and its forces. 



The vast areas of the Pioneer's El Dorado have now been 

 mapped, rivers whose surfaces were scarce alien-disturbed, save 

 by the Indian's paddle or a salmon's leap, now are harnessed to 

 mill and canning factory ; lairs of the wild things have given 

 way to cities, forests to cleared lands, prairies of bunchgrass to 

 teeming counties of grain, the lone square-rigger and clipper 

 ship of Massachusetts Bay and Manhattan Island no longer 

 '"Round the Horn" and have given way to fleets of modern 

 turbine Leviathans. 



We vision the slight figure of the pioneer, now sitting silently on 

 his horse or standing thoughtfully beside his ox cart. His journey 

 is done, but his eyes are turned toward the light still farther 

 West. Whether he came as explorer, missionary, rancher, cow- 

 boy, hunter, trader, teacher, artisan or intellectual, through his 

 far-seeing vision, intrepid faith, undaunted courage and positive 

 character he has handed to us, the Nation, this Territory of the 

 Northwest, so vast, so packed with riches, so girded with high- 

 ways of trade, so filled with chosen peoples that it staggers the 

 imagination. The pioneer of the Old West has left us indeed a 

 vast heritage — but also a vast responsibility. 



The new West is the high school of an advancing democ- 

 racy. It is the geographic position from which we obtain our 

 moral, religious, and psychological viewpoint of Asia. Hawaii 

 is the key to the Pacific ; the Philippine group is the doorway to 

 Asia; China, India, Japan and their Islands of the sea have 

 turned their faces usward, and have set their feet on our shores. 

 We have already entered the gates of the Oldest World — the 

 Orient; our destiny is Pacificward. 



