very delightful falls, not exceptionally large or high, but very
delightful in character, and full of contradictions and peculiarities.
Steamboating on the Columbia River, in its navigable sections, is
exceedingly pleasant and instructive. The river is the largest in
America which empties into the Pacific Ocean. For more than 140 miles it
is navigable by steamers of the largest kind, while other vessels can
get up very much higher, and nearer the picturesque source. On some
sections of it, glaciers of great magnitude can be seen, and there are
also many points concerning which legend and tradition have been very
busy. According to one of these traditions, the Indians who formerly
lived on the banks of the river were as brave as the ancient Spartans
and Greeks, though if this is approximately correct, the law and
argument of descent must be entirely erroneous, for the Indians of this
section to-day rank among the meanest and most objectionable of the
entire country.

An artistic illustration is given of the "whaleback" steamer, used
principally on our Northern lakes. The whaleback varies from a somewhat
clumsy looking craft, resembling in appearance very much the back of a
whale, to the much more attractive and navigable craft shown in the
illustration. These whalebacks have a very important part to play in
internal navigation. It seems able to withstand, readily, bad weather
and rough water. Unlike most vessels which are safe under these
conditions, it requires very little water to be safely navigated, and it
can carry heavy loads in six or eight feet of water.

The revival of the steamboat trade on our great rivers, and the
recovering from the railroads of at least a portion of the trade stolen
away, is a pet hobby among river men generally, and especially among
those whose parents taught them from the cradle up the true importance