TOPOGRAPHICAL REPORT ON WESTERN DIVISION. 
217 
To the left the country is hilly and sandy, not so much broken, and has but little loose lava on the 
surface. The descent from the high table-land to the Peluse is over successive plateaux, and 
gradual, the final descent being very abrupt and long. Leaving the Saptin, the trail passes 
over the range between this idver and the Touchet, bearing to the west of south; thence in same 
direction for nineteen miles to the old Presbyterian mission, on the Wallah-Wallah river, twenty 
miles above its mouth. There is one main range between the Saptin and Touchet, made up of 
high, rolling, earthy hills, on underlying basalt. These hills are much rutted and gullied by the 
action of water, and very soft and rounded in outline. They are covered with fine bunch-grass, 
and are destitute of timber. The ascent and descent are gradual, the trail passing up and down 
the ravines between the slopes of the hills. The Touchet has a fine grazing valley at this point, 
and some small portions of it are good for farming. This valley is from one to two miles wfide; 
a fine growth of cotton-wood, and some wild-cherry and maple, grow along the margins ot 
the river. The Touchet is thirty feet wide and two feet deep; ford good. A high bluff’ range 
commences on the left bank half a mile below the ford, and the northern side of the valley is 
bounded by a high range of soft hills, the continuation of the spur crossed over. There is much 
the same character of country between the Touchet and the mission on the Wallah-Wallah, the 
hills having a greater tendency to single isolated hills, than to continuous ranges. The Wallah- 
Wallah has a fine valley at the mission several miles wide. The valley is intersected and cut 
up by a net-work of streams, ail of which unite some miles above, and the main stream comes 
from the mountain range on the east. A second large branch (probably the main stream) comes 
in at the mission from the south, from the same mountain range. This range follows the Wallah- 
Wallah river down to its mouth, and unites wilh the Basaltic river range on the Columbia. It 
becomes basaltic near the latter river. A dry bed, with cotton-wood along its banks, runs along 
the left of the trail as you come from the Touchet, and crosses it five miles from the mission ; 
thence running off’ to the right, it comes into the Wallah-Wallah river six and a half miles 
below the mission. From the mission to its mouth, there is a fine valley along the Wallah- 
Wallah, some portions of which are arable and capable of cultivation. This valley is limited 
by a range of hills on the north, which close into the river at the mouth of the dry bed. Fine 
growth of cotton-wood flourishes on the banks of the Wallah-Wallah at this portion of the stream. 
All the country from the mission back to the Saptin is covered with a luxuriant growth of bunch- 
grass : and the valleys of the Touchet and Wallah-Wallah (at the mission) present more favor¬ 
able advantages for grazing ranches, in the way of grass, timber, water, nearness to settlements, 
and mildness of climate, than almost any other portions of the Territory. The Wallah-Wallah 
makes a bend to the south at the point where the dry bed comes in, and the trail runs over the 
hills, keeping the river on the left. The trail comes down to the river again six and a half miles 
above its mouth, and then follows down the narrow strip of valley along this part of the river, 
and frequently crosses, to avoid spurs coming in from the right and left. The hills get higher to 
the north, a low range of sand-hills skirting the river on this side, and becoming very rocky 
and basaltic near where the trail comes down to the river. The trail crosses the Touchet, 
three-quarters of a mile above its mouth, while making the bend over the hills away from the 
Wallah-Wallah. All the country in the vicinity of Wallah-Wallah, and back along the river to 
where the dry bed comes in, is very sterile, sand}’, and barren, and the sand is light and drifting. 
Nothing but wild sage grows upon it. There are only a few clumps of willow bushes along the 
river throughout this distance. From information received from Hudson’s Bay people at the fort, 
this same sandy character of country is found up the left bank of the Columbia to the Saptin. 
The Wallah-Wallah river is about fifty feet wide, two feet deep, bottom fine and gravelly. 
Leaving Fort Wallah-Wallah, the trail follows down the left southern bank of the Columbia, 
crossing the Umatilla, the Hokespam, Nahhah or John Day’s, and the Wanwawwie or Des Chutes 
rivers, near their junctions. The Columbia along this section is rapid, and sometimes rough, 
and it is filled with numerous sand islands and basaltic rocks. It is about five hundred or six 
28 / 
