Show A TRIBUTE TO THE PIONEERS OF THE WEST by frank silvey nothing is more distasteful than an exhibition of ingratitude unless it should be that of discovering that one has been double crossed I 1 it is certain that no one would like to be referred to as an ingrate yet upon reflection I 1 sometimes wonder if in this fast age many of us are now drifting perilously near to being dubbed in grates we are the beneficiaries of the works of the pioneers but what are we doing to show our sense of appreciation As you travel around this western country in comfort that the pioneers never dreamed of luxurious if you please and at hitherto unheard of speed instead of showing the proper spirit of appreciation for those whose labors made these pleasures possible we oft times hear slurring remarks that insult the pioneers we who enjoy the fullest benefits of a civilized government who are protected at work and play by laws passed in the interests of public safety whose worldly goods are safer than in any continued on page 4 TRIBUTE TO PIONEERS continued from page 1 other part of the known world seem to have forgotten the paths our fathers trod to make all this possible for over years in the tho united stat statis Z life was a real struggle and m i n the winning of the west this struggle became even harder less than 90 years ago when a man started west from what is is now termed the middle west he faced death at every turn he moved slowly seldom exceeding 12 miles per day and a day consisted sted of 18 hours instead of the modern eight now the trip from st louis to san francisco can be made by plane in one day in solid comfort we have grown careless and take the many bountiful blessings that we inherited as mere com mon place forgetting even to show a proper appreciation for those who made them possible after all maybe this is the reaction of human nature as it has been since time began the man who works fights and struggles always feels that the reward tastes sweeter than the one who tb thumbs his way along lifes road to comfort the poor peruvian points with pride to the ruined walls of his aztec ancestors the englishman likewise still raves at the sight of stonehenge but it is difficult to arouse interest in the westerner to cherish and preserve the historic spots created by his great grandparents due credit must be given to father escalante as one of the earliest explorers of the great west in 1776 father escalante and his follwe followers rs starting from santa fe N AT then a spanish post explored explore d and found a crossing of the great colorado river that is today called the crossing of the fathers also known as the dandy crossing and ia u situated in the extreme southeastern part of utah taking a westerly course they arrived after many hardships on the coast of southern california where they established many so called missions next we find the lewis and clark expedition in 1820 21 up the missouri river to its headwaters thence over the divide to headwaters of the columbia river thence down this river to the pacific ocean they endured untold hardships and at times were half starved but managed to keep on friendly terms with one exception with the indians thus giving to our great united states much information a of our great west f next we find col pike johei johll fremont kit carson old greenwood jim bridger and a number of other noted explorers and trappers doing their part in pioneer exploring of this vast territory next we find the mormons cormons under the leadership of brigham youg in 1847 settling the great salt lake district in utah due credit must be given these mormon pioneers as their hardships were almost as great as those of the lewis and clark expedition next we find that the discovery of gold in great quantities at suttons mill near sacramento california in october 1848 caused the greatest stampede to the coast of california in the history of the ae world and in years calit calia Cali 3 was admitted to the union div wied a population of nevada colorado and other states soon followed after the discovery of gold silver and other precious metals by the man with the burro a pioneer prospector also due credit must be given hayden and his surveying explore ing party who spent 4 years in colorado and southeastern utah about 1864 68 he named many mountain peaks and marked on his map mineral deposits that later the prospectors found to be of great value and made the great mining claims of leadville aspen lake city silverton telluride ouray rico creed cripple creek victor and other mining camps of the state after the man with the burro came the Cove covered reid wagon that gave to our great west its permanent settlement of farmers and stockmen stoc kmen leading to maun facture and all industries this article written by a pioneer of 58 years yeara in western colorado southeastern utah and southern california is a humble effort on his part to pay a tribute to the pioneers of our district and altho nature was more kindly to us in the way of an abundance of game timber water and a wonderful all the year around climate compared to other districts throughout the west we had many hardships unknown today in this generation we have as a rule with a few exceptions good homes autor auto 0 biles good roads schools churches that are doing all 1 can to help build up a better chiv civilization no country has a more colorful past that is worthy of being kept alive in the memories of man than this western part of the united states and I 1 sincerely believe that we owe it to the honor of the pioneers to see that our historical past be not forgotten what our forefathers created let us preserve and protect |