along the line of the railroad from Colville to Little Dalles, of which Kettle Falls, below Marcus five or six miles, is the most promising. Should the government clear the channel of the Columbia of the obstructions at this place, and the Indian reservation be opened up, all of which seems probable in the future, Kettle Falls might become a not unworthy rival of Spokane Falls. Much of this now merely suggested greatness will depend on the route of the Great Northern Railroad.
The Columbia from the mouth of Spokane River flows sharply west, though with many a deviation from a true course, for sixty miles as the crow flies, to the mouth of the Okanogan or Okinakane River, a large tributary from the north which parallels the main river above the bend made at the mouth of the Spokane, and forms the western boundary of a reservation set apart for the Colville Indians after the disturbances of 1877. This tract of country is unsurveycd and little explored, but is understood to be a mountainous region, containing small and fertile valleys. It is doubtless rich in minerals and timber, but at present is held by about seven hundred Indians, who do (if they do nothing else) a good deal to preserve a small portion of the earth's surface in a state of nature.
West of the Okinakane is what is known as the Okanogan country, which is interesting at present chiefly on account of its mines, although the valley of the Methow River is known to be of great fertility, and the whole is a good grazing section. The only part which is surveyed is south of Lake Chelan and the forty-eighth parallel, but farming settlements are being made, and I heard of an orchard of eight hundred apple-trees and various small fruits, including peaches, apricots, and grapes, all in a healthful condition of growth. Ruby City, Silver City, and other mining camps are at present the only towns in this section, which is regarded as exceedingly rich in minerals. Streams are numerous, and, coming from the mountains, serve admirably for mining or irrigating purposes, and their names are those of aboriginal origin, like the Loop-Loop, Chilliwhist, Eptiat, Zurvush, Chewuch, Stomekin, Twursp, Conconully, Wenatchee at the southern boundary, and Similkameen at the northern. This region is not, strictly speaking, tributary to
