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Views of the Forest: Celebrating the
Fourth![]() Mr. Swan describes how at the end of the day's celebration, he and six or eight others crossed over the river and climbed to the top of a hill, where they discovered a hollowed out stump of an old cedar. The stump stood nearly twenty feet high and measured 18 feet in diameter. They filled the stump with dry timber and set it on fire. The bonfire burned all night and into the next day and eventually set fire to the surrounding forest. The resulting forest fire burned for months until the winter rains extinguished it. In the introduction to James G. Swan's book, The Northwest Coast or,
Three Years' Residence in Washington Territory, Norman H. Clark, who is generally
sympathetic to Swan, seems compelled to comment on the rowdy Fourth of July celebration,
which climaxed with the forest's being set aflame. Clark points out the that the
thoughtless destruction of the forest could be seen as an "allegorical comment"
on people of the old West Swan, J. G. The
Northwest coast or, three years' residence in Washington territory. 1857. Reprint,
with an introduction by Norman H. Clark, Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1982. [ Views of the Forest: Home of the Gods / [ Home ] [ Teacher Pages ] [ Modules & Activities ] |
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