THE 
WATER CRAFT OF THE BACK-WOODS. 
Srartine amid the volcanic precipices, eternal snows, 
and arid deserts of the Rocky Mountains; the Snake 
River winds its sinuous way towards the Pacific ; at one 
time, rushing headlong through the deep gorges of the 
mountains, and at another, spreading itself out in still 
lakes, as it sluggishly advances through ever-vary- - 
ing scenes of picturesque grandeur and of voluptuous 
softness. 
In all this variety, the picture only changes from the 
beautiful to the sublime; while the eye of the civilized 
intruder, as it speculates on the future, can see on the 
Snake River, the city, the village, and the castle, in situ- 
ations more interesting and more romantic than they 
have ever yet presented themselves to the world. 
The solitary trapper and the wild Indian are now 
the sole inhabitants of its beautiful shores; the wigwams 
of the aborigine, the temporary lodge of the hunter and 
ae. 
