﻿CHARACTERISTICS 
  OF 
  THE 
  MOUNTAIN 
  AREA. 
  289 
  

  

  riant 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  doubt 
  about 
  the 
  ease, 
  but 
  over 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  interior 
  

   of 
  this 
  area 
  the 
  sage, 
  though 
  of 
  enormous 
  size, 
  is 
  not, 
  probably, 
  suffi- 
  

   ciently 
  abundant 
  to 
  sustain 
  combustion 
  without 
  constant 
  attendance. 
  

  

  The 
  Snake 
  River, 
  on 
  emerging 
  from 
  its 
  long 
  canon, 
  comes 
  out 
  on 
  the 
  

   eastern 
  border 
  of 
  the 
  Snake 
  River 
  Plains. 
  Its 
  course 
  changes 
  from 
  

   west 
  to 
  south, 
  and 
  it 
  flows 
  thus 
  across 
  this 
  basalt 
  plaiu, 
  keeping 
  near 
  its 
  

   eastern 
  margin. 
  Near 
  the 
  southeastern 
  corner 
  of 
  the 
  plain 
  the 
  river 
  

   turns 
  west, 
  and 
  on 
  that 
  course 
  skirts 
  the 
  southern 
  border 
  of 
  this 
  desert 
  

   waste. 
  

  

  Shortly 
  after 
  leaving 
  the 
  mountains, 
  the 
  Snake 
  receives 
  a 
  large 
  branch 
  

   from 
  the 
  north, 
  known 
  as 
  Henry's 
  Fork. 
  This 
  stream 
  flows 
  south 
  along 
  

   the 
  eastern 
  margin 
  of 
  the 
  lava-field. 
  Through 
  most 
  of 
  its 
  course 
  its 
  

   valley 
  is 
  heavily 
  timbered. 
  At 
  its 
  head, 
  however, 
  which 
  is 
  in 
  a 
  small 
  

   lake 
  in 
  a 
  loop 
  of 
  the 
  main 
  watershed 
  is 
  a 
  small 
  valley 
  containing 
  a 
  few 
  

   square 
  miles 
  of 
  burnable 
  land. 
  

  

  On 
  Cascade 
  Creek, 
  a 
  large 
  left-hand 
  branch 
  of 
  Henry's 
  Fork, 
  is 
  a 
  

   small 
  valley, 
  containing 
  20 
  to 
  30 
  square 
  miles. 
  It 
  is 
  open, 
  very 
  marshy, 
  

   and 
  grassy. 
  Farther 
  south, 
  extending 
  from 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  Teton 
  Range 
  

   westward 
  nearly 
  to 
  Henry's 
  Fork, 
  is 
  a 
  fine 
  large 
  valley, 
  watered. 
  by 
  

   Pierre's 
  River, 
  and 
  known 
  as 
  Pierre's 
  Hole 
  or 
  the 
  Teton 
  Basin. 
  This 
  

   valley 
  has 
  an 
  area 
  of 
  open 
  country 
  of 
  about 
  150 
  square 
  miles, 
  well 
  

   grassed, 
  but, 
  of 
  course, 
  containing 
  a 
  due 
  proportion 
  of 
  sage. 
  Quite 
  a 
  

   large 
  area 
  in 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  the 
  valley 
  is 
  swampy. 
  

  

  With 
  these 
  exceptions, 
  the 
  country 
  lying 
  between 
  Henry's 
  Fork 
  on 
  

   the 
  west 
  and 
  the 
  Madison 
  and 
  the 
  Snake 
  Rivers 
  on 
  the 
  east 
  is 
  very 
  

   heavily 
  timbered, 
  with 
  few 
  openings 
  of 
  any 
  magnitude 
  whatever. 
  In 
  

   its 
  northern 
  part, 
  it 
  consists 
  of 
  a 
  high 
  basaltic 
  plateau, 
  cut 
  by 
  numerous 
  

   canons, 
  while 
  towards 
  the 
  south 
  the 
  lofty 
  and 
  rugged 
  range 
  of 
  theTe- 
  

   tons 
  separates 
  the 
  drainage 
  system. 
  

  

  Below 
  Henry's 
  Fork 
  the 
  Snake 
  receives 
  no 
  tributaries 
  from 
  the 
  north 
  

   for 
  hundreds 
  of 
  miles 
  — 
  indeed, 
  until 
  it 
  has 
  passed 
  the 
  Snake 
  River 
  Plains. 
  

   Then 
  it 
  is 
  joined 
  by 
  the 
  Malade, 
  the 
  Bois6, 
  and 
  Payette, 
  which 
  head 
  in 
  

   the 
  Salmon 
  River 
  Mountains. 
  Of 
  this 
  group 
  of 
  mountains 
  little 
  is 
  known, 
  

   as 
  it 
  has 
  never 
  been 
  traversed 
  by 
  explorers, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  but 
  recently 
  that 
  

   mining 
  discoveries 
  have 
  drawn 
  settlement 
  in 
  that 
  direction. 
  These 
  

   mountains 
  seem 
  to 
  consist 
  of 
  a 
  succession 
  of 
  ranges, 
  trending 
  parallel 
  

   to 
  the 
  Rocky 
  Mountains, 
  i. 
  e., 
  a 
  few 
  degrees 
  west 
  of 
  north. 
  The 
  gen- 
  

   eral 
  fact 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  well 
  clothed 
  with 
  timber, 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  forests 
  de- 
  

   scend 
  well 
  down 
  into 
  the 
  valleys 
  between 
  the 
  ranges, 
  and 
  into 
  the 
  broken 
  

   country 
  west 
  of 
  them 
  is 
  well 
  known. 
  Of 
  the 
  details 
  of 
  the 
  distribution 
  

   of 
  forests 
  and 
  grass 
  land 
  it 
  is 
  at 
  present 
  unsafe 
  to 
  speak. 
  

  

  {The 
  southern 
  section 
  of 
  the 
  Rocky 
  Mountain 
  region 
  is 
  comprised 
  in 
  

   Southern 
  Wyoming, 
  Colorado, 
  and 
  New 
  Mexico. 
  It 
  is 
  characterized 
  by 
  

   the 
  greatest 
  elevation 
  of 
  the 
  continental 
  plateau, 
  which 
  jjjses 
  as 
  we 
  pass 
  

   southward 
  from 
  Southern 
  Wyoming 
  into 
  Colorado, 
  and 
  near 
  the 
  center 
  

   of 
  the 
  latter 
  State 
  attains 
  a 
  mean 
  elevation 
  of 
  about 
  10,000 
  feet, 
  and 
  

   19 
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