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'The Mighty Kootenai'
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April 3, 2013 |
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Jack Flinn |
The following, an excerpt from the poem "At the
Canyon," was written in 1876 by Martin M. Fry,
Bonners Ferry's first permanent white resident,
and sent to his grandson, Charles L. Fry, in a
letter in 1930.
Standing today
in a cozy nook
Where the free, wild waters of the
Kuskanook
Have paused for a moment from its
arduous leap
Down the mountainside from yon lofty
peak.
Whence comest thou? And whither bound?
I've heard thy voice beneath the ground.
I've seen thy form like a bridal veil
As I climbed the steep on the mountain
trail,
Where the morning sun tips the mountain
crest
Where the mountain goat takes his
morning rest
My waters drip from the glacier's side
I'm on my way to the ocean's tide.
Like a timid child with careful tread
I pick my way o'er my sandy bed.
Gaining speed as downward I go,
Gaining volume from the melting snow.
The timid deer oft stand on the brink
While I pause for a moment that he might
drink.
I creep through the ferns with a
rippling smile,
Or dash o'er rocks like a demon wild.
I came from home high up in the sky
But the end of my courtship is now
drawing nigh.
I shall leave this place with joy and
pride,
For tomorrow I shall be Columbia's
bride.
And together we will journey our way to
the West
Where the sun in gold tips the
mountain's crest.
And there forever and ever abide
As we waltz together in the ocean's
tide. |
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