Page:History of Oregon Literature.djvu/375

 Edwin Mark-

ham's poetry, two selections about Oregon in prose, both from California the Wonderful, published in 1915: Oregon City and Oregon Apples Realizing the worth and beauty of the Willamette Val- ley, McLoughlin took possession of the Willamette Falls and the domain round about, built his home on the river shore and this became the seed of Oregon City. To this beautiful place my own parents drifted in 1847, after a long struggle with the wilderness. Here I was born, and here I spent my first years, picking up pebbles on the shore, watching the white waterfalls, gaz- ing on the high mysterious bluffs that look down upon the young city. And I well remember going again and again with a group to gather baskets of hazelnuts in the flaming Autumn woods. And even more vivid is my memory of the delectable apples I ate in an orchard in a high mountain valley. I picked them up from the cool grass of the ground, the dew still upon them. Were there ever such apples any- where else in the world? The tang and smack of them had the keen flavor of the apples of Hesperides. Portland from Council Crest If you happen to be wandering in the wonderful William- ette Valley in June, do not fail to see the Rose Festival in Portland. For months the roses hold their glory in her soft warm air. Nor must you fail to climb her Council Crest, a sort of an Acropolis; because from this lofty elevation you can see the city of Portland below you, spread out, trim and trig, like a corner in New England. There are the quiet Co- lonial houses, there are the clean busy streets, all engirdled by groves of fir and cedar, all brightened by rose gardens that are roses all the year. This is the celebrated Council Crest, the high place where the Indian chieftains used to gather for their councils. All around us are the fir-clad hills; yet, looking afar, yo