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DEVIL’S CANYON

Old Pre-glacial Legend of the Devil’s Canyon,
(By A.D.W.)

v

ILLIONS of years ago a certain Geological
Hel Devil on a tour of inspection through what

is now known as the Cariboo District,
noticed the great area of rich gold-bearing schists
and foresaw what would happen when erosion and
glacial action had deposited this gold in the creek
beds. He knew that Frank Barnard, Steve Tingley,
Bill Livingstone and others would try to connect
up with a few honest “‘sheckels” by carrying their
(several) Majesty’s mail to Barkerville. Calling
up his Chief Road Engineer (who was the father
of all Road Engineers) they together surveyed a
road up to what is now ‘“Devil’s Canyon’’; here,
all passage was blocked by a solid wall of rock.
Sending down for his“Imp” road gang, they shat-
tered the rock wall and through it excavated a
rough passage.

But when the work was only partially completed
they were all recalled to hell, on account of the
“Wets’? making one more determined effort to
repeal the old “Dry” law, and the Geological Devil
remarked to his road engineer as they were leaving,
“It’s a cinch that some wise gink in future years
when he passes over this road will reflect: For
Satan still will find some work for idle hands to
do.” And the Devil and the Wise Gink were both
right, for so long as passengers and freight is
moved over the old Cariboo Stage Road, thére will
be plenty of ‘‘work for idle hands to do” in the
Devil’s Canyon.

THIRTY-TWO