The Kolb Diaries: Chapter 8
The 1923 Colorado River Survey
At 9:20 P.M. on l4 July, Leigh Lint, a boatman for the upcoming United States Geological Survey trip through the Grand Canyon, arrived in Flagstaff on the Santa Fe train and registered at the Weatherford Hotel two blocks from the station. Here he found H.E. Blake, another boatman, L.R. Freeman, writer and lecturer who also would serve as a boatman, and F.B. Dodge, rodman. Frank Ward, the cook, came the next day in a downpour of rain.[1]
On Monday, l6 July, Emery loaded the old Buick with the cameras and personal belongings he needed for the trip and at 9 A.M. he, Blanche, Edith and a young woman named Catherine Phal departed from Grand Canyon. The women would travel to Lee's Ferry and remain there until l August when the survey party departed. Ellsworth made Emery a proposition similar to the one in 1921, only this time Emery was to serve as boatman and Ellsworth would go along as a freelance photographer. The salary Emery received would be placed in a fund for updating the 1911 film. Emery declined, and after some persuasion he left the studio in his brother's care.
The hard rain of the day before left the road to Williams muddy in spots; ignoring this Emery sped along the cinder road at forty miles an hour. His party arrived in Flagstaff and pulled up in front of the Weatherford Hotel at one o'clock. E. C. La Rue, a hydrologist for the USGS, and R. C. Moore, a geologist, arrived a few hours later.[2] Claude H. Birdseye had reached Flagstaff on 10 July and stayed with his cousin, Roger Birdseye. This accounted for everyone involved in the survey except R. W. Burchard, a government topographic engineer; the birth of a new baby boy detained him.[3]
While the women shopped the men ventured to the freight depot across Front Street to inspect the new boat shipped from California. Birdseye met with the crew later and discussed the schedule for departure for Lee's Ferry and other pertinent matters. Emery inquired if the colonel had purchased the film for his camera as he stated he would in his letter of ll June. Birdseye said "No".[4] Before leaving Flagstaff Emery asked a second time regarding this matter and received the same answer with no reason given for his failure to obtain it. He did not broach the subject again until the party arrived at Lee's Ferry. [5]
To reach Lee's Ferry the expedition would use the legendary Highway 66 or Front Street, as Flagstaff called it, a wide paved street lined on the south side by the two mainline tracks of the Santa Fe Railroad with its one-story sandstone depot. The north side existed much as it had since the turn of the century; the buildings covered with various materials from sheetmetal to wood siding, retaining the appearance of the old western settlements described in books and seen in movies. East beyond the center of town the highway narrowed to a two-lane paved road that followed the Santa Fe tracks for a few miles then it became a gravel road, at the time under construction. A short distance from town a county road running north junctioned with Route 66, climbed between the San Francisco Mountains and Sunset Crater before continuing on to Tuba City and Lee's Ferry.
The crew sorted the supplies ready to load by late afternoon 17 July. The first truck left early that evening with surveying equipment, provisions and the personal baggage of the ten members of the expedition. Blake, Dodge and Lint tied the new boat securely onto the bed of a Model T pickup where it hung a good six feet beyond the bed of the vehicle as it pulled out of Flagstaff at 7:25 P.M. They camped the first night nine miles outside Flagstaff. [6]
The following morning the two trucks continued north through the pinyon and juniper trees that gradually diminished in size until the landscape changed to heavily grassed cattle country. For two hours they traveled on a continuous downhill grade toward the Little Colorado River where they made a brief stop at Cameron's Trading Post on the south side of the river. Beyond the iron suspension bridge the surrounding area became more desert-like with little grass growing in the dark red soil, and what few trees existed grew close to the dry washes. A series of low bluish-gray shale hills stretched for several miles on either side of the highway.
A Ford truck with three men and two women who came along out of curiosity joined the entourage. North of the Little Colorado the road veered slightly to the east, followed the Moencopi Wash, turned north again and passed through the Hopi Indian village of Moenave. On the west side of Hamblin Wash along the Echo Cliffs the road deteriorated rapidly and the trucks bounced along leaving a trail of red dust hanging in the air. At intervals back among the steep cliffs patches of green willows indicating a spring appeared, with Navajo hogans constructed of red mud blending with the surrounding area. Without the curling wisp of smoke ascending from a hole in the center of the roofs they would have gone undetected. On occasions they passed Navajo boys on horses herding flocks of sheep and goats.
The group stopped again at The Gap. Here the touring car with Birdseye, Ward, and Moore caught up. Emery had been following close behind in the Buick, but on the rough road he lost the water bag fastened to the front of the radiator and turned back to look for it.[7] The party continued on to Cedar Ridge Trading Post and made camp for the night. Here the scenery changed to a series of low rolling hills on the west with small cedar trees on the hillsides, giving the name to the area. Emery arrived about six in the evening with Blanche, Edith and Catherine. The caravan now consisted of three trucks and two touring cars. Twenty-three people spent the evening around a campfire singing songs that Emery recorded in his journal as "some stale singing."[8]
At 6:30 the following morning they continued northward with the Echo Cliffs towering above them on the east side of the road and Cornfield Valley, soon becoming Tanner's Wash on the west. The road deteriorated to such a state that they found it necessary to stop every few miles and fill in washed-out places before continuing. The brakes on the Buick became hot, and on some downhill grades Emery had trouble getting them to hold. He felt it would not cause a problem as all vehicles proceeded at a slow pace and he continued on. Despite the obstacles, the travelers arrived at the Colorado River shortly after noon. [9] To reach Lee's Ferry they followed a narrow single lane road blasted out of rocks half-way up the side of Echo Cliffs, called `the Dugway', that at some places wound along 300 feet above the river. La Rue and Emery took moving pictures to show the hazards of getting to the Colorado River.[10] Navigating the steep and narrow course with the trucks, one carrying an 18-foot boat created some excitement to the otherwise uninteresting trip. For safety they unloaded part of the equipment from the trucks at the top of the Dugway before they started the precipitous descent to the river. By evening all vehicles and supplies had reached their destination.
To avoid interference with the expedition's work Emery set up the tent for his family on the south side of the river some distance from the main camp. Immediately the men began examining the Edison boats and found them in much worse condition than anyone thought. The unrelenting Arizona sun had caused considerable deterioration; the wood had cracked and split, and the bottoms rotted. Birdseye felt it better to order new ones[11] for the safety of the men, but Emery figured he could repair them thereby saving considerable time and money. After they discussed the problem Birdseye ultimately made the decision to renew the old ones. Work began by tearing the strips from the bottoms and caulking. Emery related: "I reinforce the stern with copper, we take it outside for painting." [12]
Throughout the day the temperature remained at 106 degrees. At sundown there was no relief and the entire crew headed to the river for a swim to cool off before dark. Emery wrote in his journal for Thursday, l9 July: ". . . During the night our tent blows down I get little sleep. Heat and fixing up the camp are responsible. . . ."
Emery approached Birdseye a third time regarding the film for his camera. On this occasion Birdseye replied abruptly, stating that he could get film from La Rue and Moore. Both men were hesitant to part with any of their supply, and said that if they ran out before reaching Bright Angel Emery would have to return whatever film he had left.[13]
While the work of repairing the three boats continued the engineers proceeded with the survey. Birdseye and La Rue started at the point established in 1922 during the Glen Canyon survey. Burchard, Moore and Dodge began the topographic work on the south side of the river and then moved across the Colorado and continued up the Paria Canyon. Freeman remained in camp with the other boatmen, presumably to help in repairs, but mostly handing out unwelcome advice.[14] The information that Birdseye paid Freeman higher wages than the others became known a few days after the arrival at the Ferry, and the effects began to show in the men's attitude toward him. As Emery had anticipated, Freeman did not show a willingness to work. This also added to the ill feelings.
With the repairs on the Static complete Edith christened it with its new name, Marble using a bottle of vinegar to do the honors, then she rode the deck as the men pushed the boat into the water.[15] To complete the festivities La Rue and Freeman filmed a drama of a boatman swamped in the river with the hero rowing out from shore to make a gallant rescue. When they completed the play Freeman and La Rue returned to camp and talking loud enough for Emery to overhear, they agreed that the incompetent government processors would make copies and distribute to the media whatever film they made on the trip and it would hit the silver screen long before they completed the expedition. Emery felt they intended these remarks for his ears, and remembering La Rue's statement about his taking pictures on the trip, he related in his journal:
. . . neither Freeman or La Rue seem disconcerted over the films being stolen and shown on the screen without La Rue permission, gives me cause of suspicion that something is wrong. With the facilities in Washington which the Government have for finishing motion film it is certainly a ridiculous situation that the Govt. cannot retain its own property without being stolen. With the promise from Mr. Birdseye that these films will not be used commercially it would appear that an attempt is on to get them on the market regardless of Mr. B's ruling and place the blame on the finishers. . . .[16]
With an old canvas boat repaired and launched with its new name Mojave Emery felt all the boats to be "seaworthy" and, with the exception of a few minor tasks he attended to himself, ready to start.
Emery entered in his diary on 3l July:
We spend the morning gathering things together for packing. The boys are constantly complaining about Freeman not working. About ten we make a movie of leaving. Dodge gets a snoot full. All canned goods and all except duffle and bedding are packed.
Emery again overheard conversation about the processors stealing the films and showing them but by this time he felt certain La Rue and Freeman plotted trouble. Though disturbed, he still thought Birdseye would not tolerate such tactics.
The engineers completed the necessary survey work and Birdseye set the departure time for 9:15 A.M, l August and assigned the boats, giving H. E. Blake the Glen, L. R. Freeman the Grand, and Leigh Lint the Boulder. Emery took the Marble as the pilot boat. Since he would be first to traverse any rapids and make the decision whether or not they should be run, lined or portaged, he ordered his boat loaded lighter than the others. As the Mojave could not withstand the rough water the surveyors would use it in quiet areas to get from one place to another.
Blanche, Edith and Catherine, and the other visitors at Lee's Ferry stood on shore as the ten men shoved off to survey Grand Canyon for the first time. The boatmen could still see them waving their hats as the last boat rounded the bend in the river and pulled over the light riffle where the Paria River joined with the main stream.
The first day took the party seven and a half miles below Lee's Ferry where they set up their first camp at the head of Badger Creek Rapid. By late afternoon clouds covered the sky and a heavy rainstorm accompanied by a high wind greeted the travelers. Water from the small creeks on the rim above dropped over the edge falling as much as 500 feet into the river below making waterfalls of red muddy water.[17]
Rumor had it that it would be foolish to take a radio into the canyon because no station could be picked up from its depths. Regardless Birdseye included one in the supplies hauled from Flagstaff and at camp that night they proved the prophecy wrong. They stretched the antenna on the rocks and a shout went up as station KHJ in Los Angeles came in plainly. The familiar sound made their journey seem less distant from civilization as stations in Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Colorado Springs reached the bottom of the gorge at various times throughout the trip.[18]
The survey measured the fall of Badger Creek Rapid at thirteen feet in one hundred yards, and to the party at the beginning of the trip it, "looked wild enough, but later experiences with rough water farther downstream made them seem in memory altogether tame." While running through Badger, Emery hit a rock and punched a hole in the bottom of his boat without realizing the damage until he pulled out of the rapid and discovered water had run in, wetting the map paper and flour stored in supposedly waterproof containers.[19]
Distances traveled seemed short as the survey men worked their way along the bank. At the second nights camp they again tuned the radio in and heard that President Harding had died of ptomaine poisoning at 7:30 that evening. Those in the bowels of the earth where it had been assumed impossible to receive a radio signal probably had the news before many throughout the country.[20]
At Soap Creek Rapid Emery ordered the first portage of the trip. Ellsworth had run the whirling water in 1911 and both boats upset in the process. Emery believed it could be run now but decided not to take a chance this early in the journey. By lining a short way then portaging over the first drop the boats could be run to the foot of the rapid without difficulty. They carried the canvas boat to the bottom of the falls to use for rescue if the need arose. Blake ran the Glen first and made it through successfully. Freeman followed, but he did not adhere to Emery's instructions and nearly hit the large rock in the center of the river. In Col. Birdseye's words, "This is an exceedingly bad stretch of water and has never been run safely by any party. We portaged the boats past the crest of the rapids, carrying and skidding them for about l00 yards over the rocks to an eddy below . . . it was man-killing work. . . ."[21]
Moore stated he wanted to run a rapid for the thrill of it and on the morning of 4 August he got his chance as the walls of the canyon came to the waters edge leaving no shore on which to walk. Each man wore life jackets of cork with kapok collars and lay face down on the boats, clinging to the lifelines stretched around the deck. The waves seemed mountainous as they plunged through stern first. Before the survey ended, running rapids would become "old hat" and as Birdseye stated, "we vied with one another to make the plunge with a lighted pipe or cigarette and keep it lit to the end."[22]
The excitement of running rapids never deterred the scientific members from the main purpose of the expedition. All along the route the engineers set up their instruments and made measurements and calculations that they recorded on the charts. Both Emery and La Rue took photographs while the others carried out the work.
Poor littleMojave met her fate at Spring Cave Rapid, the thirteenth encountered during the trip. House-sized boulders covered the banks of the river making portage difficult. They possibly could have run the canvas boat through the five foot fall in the river but high waves made the idea discouraging. Three of the crew tried to line her, Burchard held the rope while Dodge and Emery guided the fragile craft around the rocks. By the time Burchard reacted to the command to turn loose of the rope the Mojave filled with water and flattened out. The fast current held the boat so tightly it became impossible to move without tearing her to pieces. The men saved only an oarlock, the rest they left for the river to have its will. The crew missed the little boat both for its convenience and the extra security. [23]
On 10 August they pitched camp at a bend in the river where red limestone walls gave shade in the afternoon. The party remained here the following day as a memorial to the president and named the rapid "President Harding Rapid" in his honor.
A few miles farther downstream the party encounterd Boulder Rapids. In going through the expedition got the first real excitement of the journey. The rough water threw Blake from his boat, he flew through the air, turned a complete somersault and landed in the river with a great splash. He sunk out of sight for a few moments, but reappeared and caught the Glen, which miraculously had not overturned; climbed in and paddled on through as unconcerned as though he had made a clean run. [24]
During the days that followed, the boatmen ran Nankoweap and Kwagunt rapids and reached the entrance to Grand Canyon at the mouth of the Little Colorado River. The engineers continued to work their way along the banks of the Colorado River; each time they chanced upon a possible dam site they spent extra time making cross-sectional drawings of the canyon.
From an entry in Emery's journal it is apparent trouble was brewing between La Rue and Freeman. "La Rue is scorching Freeman today on account of laziness. Tells the cook when he reached the Little Colo. he would tell F. how useless and lazy he was. calls him a G. D. flunkey and sites himself as a technical man."
By l4 August the party progressed to Tanner Canyon and the river changed its character. The current and boils worsened and the rapid below had big waves and the river appeared muddier than usual. The rains came again during the afternoon, and after the storm two beautiful rainbows arched across the canyon. That short shower was all for the night and for the first time in several days they slept dry.
The tremendous waves and the rocks on the banks of the river made the rapid at Tanner more ferocious than Emery remembered it. Higher water made it easier to run than in 1911, but its swiftness made landing difficult. Another hazard had developed that the Kolbs did not have on the earlier trip: the huge cottonwood logs and branches the high water had washed into the stream, some the size of the boats so that a collision with them would cause problems.[25]
The voyage continued with the river rising continuously. Emery's diary states: "We get in some terrific suck holes, while the next moment there are boils which shoot the boats by instead of holding." The vessels turned and tossed, dipped into the water and flew into the air like balls. Despite the adversity, all went through without mishap.
The entry in Lint's diary for 15 August made an interesting observation and confirmed Emery's notes of a few days earlier:
. . . Camped at the head of rapid No. 25 on the south side of the river. There seems to be bad blood up between La Rue and Freeman for the former told the cook that he had recommended Freeman and that he now wished that he hadn't done so. He said that Freeman wasn't anything except a flunkey and was the laziest man that he had ever seen. He also said that he was going to jump Freeman about it when we got to the Little Colorado River but as yet we haven't seen a scrap and we are several miles past the Little Colorado River.
Freeman told Emery that La Rue was yellow, called him several names not fit to write here and also said that La Rue termed himself a technical man and wasn't supposed to do any work.
So there you are - gentlemen of the jury.
It seemed evident the cordial relationship Birdseye hoped for among all members of the party would not be realized. Ten men living together in close proximity while going through the treacherous waters of the Colorado River made it easy for nerves to become frayed and cause friction.
The work in the Canyon progressed more rapidly than anticipated and the exploratory party arrived at the foot of Hance Trail a week earlier than expected and no supplies awaited them. Rather than delay the expedition, Emery, Lint and Blake left the river early in the afternoon with the mail and film and began the climb toward Grandview point on the rim. It grew dark before they reached the site of the G.V. Copper Mine on Horseshoe Mesa. In the blackness of the night they could not locate the old mining shacks where they hoped to spend the night, so they slowly dragged themselves up the trail. The day's work had exhausted Lint and he would have lain down anywhere but Emery and Blake urged him on. Before reaching the top Emery too was ready to quit, and stated he "went to sleep twice while resting." The tired and hungry men arrived at Grandview at midnight. A tumult of barking dogs greeted them and aroused the caretaker of the property, Dick Gilliland from a sound sleep. Gilliland gave the unexpected visitors a bite to eat, put them to bed, then the following day drove them to Grand Canyon Village. [26]
While waiting for supplies to arrive from Flagstaff, Lint and Blake attended Ellsworth's lecture in the auditorium and later Edith took them for a drive along the Canyon rim. Blanche prepared a big dinner and they spent the balance of the evening singing with Edith playing the piano.
Early 18 August a caravan of pack animals and people departed from Grand Canyon Village toward Grandview and down the Hance Trail to the Colorado River. Edith and Mrs. Gilliland traveled with the group as they wished to watch the fellows run Hance Rapid. The pack train arrived at the rapid at 5:25 P.M. Emery and Lint crossed the river to study the situation. After noting the flow of the current they selected two channels on the south side that appeared open enough to run safely. Emery launched one boat with Lint on the stern deck as ballast. He surged forward and by fast rowing managed to miss a dangerous whirl that caused a big hole where the water poured in as through a funnel. Emery used Freeman's nine-foot oars and somehow got tangled up and found himself unable to land at the sandy beach where the packer stacked the supplies.[27]
As Edith watched her father and Lint, she decided she too could run a rapid. It looked so easy. When she asked, her father replied with a flat "No" but after considerable nagging on her part he finally consented and placed the life jacket on her, on the assumption she would back out before actually starting the trip. Edith ensconced herself securely on the stern deck of the Boulder and Lint shoved off. A greatly exaggerated interview published in the Coconino Sun written by Louise Scher Swinnerton, told the story of the daring sixteen-year old young lady, the first female to run a rapid in Grand Canyon:
. . ."Lee talked as we went. He said: 'I wonder if my old cigarette will go out on this trip.' Before I could answer a big muddy wave more than twelve feet high broke over us. My body was swept half out of the boat and the little barque swept crazily about. I was scared stiff.
"I was better prepared for the second wave, which was far higher than the first. It almost upset the boat and brought us to the edge of a suck-hole more than twenty feet deep. I could look down into this hole: there seemed to be a big black wave which started at the bottom and came up. It was what they call a back-wave. This wave, Leigh said must have been over fifteen feet high. It looked much more to me. . .
"When we came out of the second wave Leigh looked very white and told me rather roughly to move over and balance the boat. I noticed that his cigarette was out.
"The entire course of our journey took us about half a mile and it lasted just fifteen minutes to make the trip.
"The boat at the finish was filled with water and had to be bailed out--we swam ashore and Leigh towed the boat. . . ."[28]
With the boats at the foot of the rapid the entire crew relaxed. Emery entered in his journal ". . . snooze and write. As I look up I see the leaping waves of mud at the beginning of the rapid but the boats are at its end."[29] Below Hance Rapid the river compressed into a narrow gorge named the Upper Granite where the walls of the canyon, nearly vertical, rose from the water's edge, making it difficult for the surveyors to find a footing for themselves or their instruments. In spite of this they carried out the survey without a break by clinging perilously and hanging onto small projections above the fast-moving water while making the necessary measurements.
An entry in Lint's journal on 2l August read:
. . . Something must have happened for Freeman has done a little work in the last three days. Pulled the "Boulder" out on the beach this morning and put some screws through the bottom of it into the bulkhead as it had drawn loose and was leaking from the cockpit through into the holds.
The party arrived at the foot of Bright Angel Trail on 24 August and climbed out for a few days of living like royalty at El Tovar Hotel. What a luxury to sleep in a bed with clean white sheets and to have meals served by Harvey Girls! Quite a contrast to sleeping on the ground and eating camp food. While at home Emery purchased film for his camera with his money so there would be no conflict between him and any member of the party if the question of film arose again.
The Fox News photographer waited for them when they returned to the river on 27 August. Emery assumed the cameraman had received the government letter with the stipulations that the film would be used as a newsreel and then disposed of so there would be no competition to the Kolb Brothers Studio with commercialized distribution and that he would receive a print of all film shot by the news photographers on this occasion. When Kolb inquired of the Fox representative about the regulations regarding the matter he found the photographer knew nothing about it.[30] Either Birdseye had unintentionally failed to send the letter as he said or had willfully neglected to do so. Emery confronted Birdseye with Leigh Lint as a witness and Birdseye said he would inform the park superintendent that no film would be released from the park until the Fox photographer received and acknowledged the letter.
Herman Stabler of the Land Classification Branch of the survey joined the party at Bright Angel, bringing the members of the expedition to eleven. Stabler came to the foot of Bright Angel Trail with Birdseye and the pack mules in the afternoon of the twenty-seventh. All were ready to resume the survey on the morning of 28 August.
The ugly head of trouble again arose among the men before departure from Bright Angel. According to the letter written by Emery to the Congressional investigating Committee 18 June 1925:
When provisions reached us at the river by pack train and were stored in our boats I was surprised to have the Colonel direct me to look over Freeman's boat, stating that he was carrying too much of a load in his boat. As the Colonel left the management of the boats entirely up to me I knew the statement did not orriginate through his own observation. When I inspected the boat I found it to be carrying no more if as much as the other three including my own pilot boat the Marble, which was intended to be lighter that the others for scout duty. At this time I was informed by Freeman, that it was not he that was complaining about the load in his boat, but his passenger La Rue who had gone to the Colonel making the complaint. Later on, La Rue personally took it upon himself to cast insinuations concerning Freeman's load and Freeman as a witness, I explained that since he had gone over my head and complained to the Colonel that I had inspected the boat carefully and found the bulk of the material to be personal dunnage, cameras and film, most of a light nature, as compared with canned goods and heavy bulk provisions carried in the other boats, the three of which were rotten, water-logged and carrying equal, if not more weight than Freeman's boat. I pointed out that their boat was the only new and safe boat of the lot, with improvements which the old ones did not have, and that the other boatmen, myself included, would gladly trade boats with the loads in them as they stood, but Freeman would not trade. I also pointed out that Lint and Blake were required to land at definite places to keep in sight of the rod and instrument, where their boat, at bad rapids always following last, could drift along not having to land at any particular point as a rule. Then too; the oarsman of this boat was the largest man of the party. I frankly told La Rue with these facts in view that he should be ashamed of himself. La Rue followed me away from the crowd to talk to me. He stated that he knew he was as contemptable as the next fellow, but wanted me to know that he was just spokesman for Freeman and Dr. Moore even though he did go over my head with complaints to Colonel Birdseye. To me it appeared like a conspiracy among them to place me in disfavor with the Colonel who, instead of sending La Rue out when he started trouble, and also instead of seeing that the men of this boat did their part when all were needed as stated before the trip started, gave ear to La Rue's criticisms concerning my management and usually did not see that they kept up their part, throwing unnecessary burdens on a few.
This and the incident with the Fox News photographer along with the failure of Birdseye to keep his promise regarding film for his camera, all added up. Emery made up his mind to take a stand when the party reached the Hermit Trail.
At Hermit Rapid the Fox News photographer again waited at the bottom of the Canyon along with a crowd of curious spectators who gathered to watch the running of the rapid. The influx of people upset Frank Ward, the cook and without further provocation he quit, saying he would leave at Bass Trail. Unable to reason with him, Birdseye sent for a new cook to meet the party when they arrived there. Emery also told the colonel of his decision and stated he would run the boats through the rapid in the morning but would then leave the expedition, giving as his reason his inability to live up to Birdseye's demand of getting along peacefully with the men. He wanted to make the run so Birdseye would not think he was leaving because of the motion pictures. Birdseye listened quietly but Emery could see anger rising in his face. Lint entered in his journal an account of the incident:
August 29.
. . . Emery quit tonight on account of the way that La Rue and Freeman have been knifing him in the back. They are underhanded about it and those of us that know how things are don't blame him a bit. It would be far better to keep a good man and let the three drones (as they are) go out. Dodge is to take Emery's boat the 'Marble.' (Later) Mrs. Kolb and Edith came down and they were all broken up over Emery's quitting so they used a little persuasion with effect and Emery decided to stay with us.
At Hermit Creek Emery again raised the question of other photographers making pictures and wondered if they understood about the titles and credits plus supplying him with prints of their work in accordance with Birdseye's letter. Birdseye told him that while the group stayed at El Tovar the Harvey Company requested Col. Crosby, the Park Superintendent for permission to take pictures of running Hermit Rapid, and he had refused. Yet the next morning the photographer was on hand. Emery asked Crosby about it and received the answer "I do not understand such a statement, as Colonel Birdseye told me last night the more pictures they make the better."[31] Crosby asked if he would like to hold up running the rapid until he had an opportunity to talk to Birdseye; as everything was ready to go Emery relented saying he would appreciate his reaching an understanding and informing Ellsworth. When Emery asked his brother about it after the trip he learned that Birdseye had told Crosby no such agreement existed.[32]
Six miles below Kanab Creek the party arrived at a bad rapid Emery felt could be run but to be safe he ordered the cargos to be portaged. They would run it with empty boats. The river had two large rocks in the channel near the foot of the falls and below each of these the water whirled in a huge hole. Emery started down with the first boat and ran into trouble. Lint recorded in his journal on 12 September:
Emery started in the center and tried to cut across to the north side but he didn't quite make it and went over the edge of the boulder and upset. Luckily the boat was carried out of the hole and on down stream. As the boat went over Emery grabbed an oar but that pulled lose and he kept his hand on the hatch cover until a wave knocked him back into the cockpit. He was under the boat and under water for about 100 yards, (the rest of the crew were on shore but helpless to do any good) before he could get out and crawl out on top of the upturned boat. . . . Dodge swam out and grabbed his painter. I pulled into Dodge and he tied the painter onto the stern life line of my boat and then climbed aboard. . . and I went to see if Emery was injured. He had gotten a lot of water in his lungs and strangled but he was soon over that. We righted his boat and bailed it out and then lined them both about 100 yards upstream. . . . The only damage done was the loss of one oar and a pail of lard which was smeared all over inside the rear hold. . . .
Heavy rain and high winds plagued the expedition nearly the entire trip. The bad weather caused considerable flooding on the plateau above and the downpours of rain filled the washes and creeks that in turn brought a rise to the Colorado River. On 18 September the men pulled the boats up on a sandbar in a cove below Lava Falls and made camp. The roar of the rapids above had long since ceased to disturb the eleven men and they prepared for a restful night. Conditions on the river can change rapidly. At half past six the water began to rise; by eight o'clock the boats pounded against one another, making it necessary to move them higher on the beach. Within an hour they had to raise them again and later they again banged against each other with no room in the alcove to move them further. As head boatman Emery had the responsibility to make a decision to save the four boats. He recalled that in his 1911 trip he and his brother had camped around the bend a short distance downriver at a place with a wider shoreline. With the aid of a flashlight and a lantern he and Lint pushed off and cautiously worked their way downstream. They located the landing and pulled the boat up on the sandy beach six feet above the water and then made their way back to camp on foot, climbing over the rocks. The water had risen another two feet in the hour it had taken to move one boat. With only room for one boat at the camp the other two had to be moved to the new site quickly. Before leaving they employed a block and tackle and pulled the boat that was to remain up on the rock wall where they hoped it would be out of the rising flood. Freeman and Blake joined Emery and Lint in moving the other boats downstream. Emery, Lint and Blake remained at the new landing and spent a sleepless night moving one boat and then the other out of the river as it continued to rise higher as the hours passed. Freeman climbed back to join the rest of the party.
At eleven that night the waves again lapped at the boat winched up on the rocks at the first campsite. With the water beating against the rocks and the pitch black of night the engineers at camp accomplished the task of pulling it higher. By eight o'clock in the morning the water had risen sixteen feet and it continued to rise all day until it crested at twenty-one feet at six that evening.
The news media published stories with headlines fearing the Colorado River expedition lost in the flood, and the families of the party spent some tense and worried moments. W.W. Bass, an old time resident of the Grand Canyon, stated in an interview with the Los Angeles Express :
Hazards confronting the members of the Grand Canyon exploration party in their navigation of the flooded Colorado river are so great that the "chances are against them" in the opinion of W.W. Bass, 75-year-old veteran of the canyon country, who rode the first boat to shoot the rapids of the turbulent stream. . .
He said the situation of the surveyors, if they were caught in the flooded, narrow gorges, ". . . was very precarious. . . ."
It was made plain today, following Mr. Bass' statement, that even among men who have braved the treacherous Colorado rapids there is a wide divergence of opinion as to the surveyor's plight. Ellsworth Kolb, veteran boatman who navigated the length of the river, said last night there was "no reason for concern for the party's safety."
As the world listened to the radio for news, Blanche and Edith, at the head of the Bright Angel Trail worried, though they had the utmost confidence in the safety of the men. Ellsworth fretted although he felt certain his brother knew the river well enough to have avoided any possible disaster. The USGS first reported the possible loss of the explorers on 21 August when a boat came floating down the river upside down 200 miles below where the surveyors presumably camped. The National Park Service sent a party of scouts from Peach Springs to search but found no trace of them. The government sent a search plane from Marsh Field to fly over the gorge in hope some trace could be found. Emery saw the plane and waved his arms vigorously to attract the attention of the pilot, but the little man was but an infinitesimal speck in the vastness of the canyon and his signal went unseen. Indians to the west of Grand Canyon told of seeing two empty boats going down the river and they believed these belonged to the expedition.[33]
It took two days for the water to recede so the survey could continue and then the party started out with the river seven feet higher than before the flood. They had no contact with the outside world until they arrived at Diamond Creek where they would again meet a supply party.
Emery wrote Blanche a letter dated 2 October 1923:
I was afraid there would be some scare about the flood, but didn't think it would go to the extent it appears to have gone. We had rather an exciting night however. Had lined the boats through Lava Falls to the beginning of quiet water. I had gone to bed when Lee wakened me to decide what should be done with the boats. Freeman was holding his and all four were lashing one another and also the sharp rocks. There was room for one boat only with the rise coming, so recalling that on our last trip we pulled in a little cove at the end of the warm springs before entering the next rapid, and though it was just a shimmering light on the water reflected by moonlight from the opposite wall, Lee and I pulled down and made the cove O.K. then returned and guided Blake and Freeman. Freeman returned as his bed was at the head of rapid, by way of a jungle of thistles. They took care of my boat while Blake, Lee and I watched the remaining three. We were busy all night. No sooner would we go the rounds pulling up the boats on the steep rocky shore, when it was necessary to begin all over again. The next day we pulled my boat up the cliff with block & tackle, and camp was moved to the lower boats. The following day Blake and I climbed out on the south when an airplane passed over us about noon. We waved, but they did not see us. Had they been a half mile to the north they would have gone over our boats. . . .
The Los Angeles Herald published an article on the front page:
Phoenix, Ariz. Oct. 3- After 10 days spent in the swirling flood waters down in the lower gorges of the Grand canyon, the members of the United States geological survey party were expected here to arrive at Peach Springs today and tell the story of their miraculous escape from death.
The party, which was nearly a week overdue and was believed by many to have been lost in the flood which swept the Colorado river last week arrived at Diamond Trail yesterday. Members of the searching party sent to rescue them said that all were well.
The world could breathe a sigh of relief that no tragedy had occurred. The boat found upside down was an abandoned USGS boat that belonged to the segment of the survey that previously worked up the river from Needles, California. They never accounted for the boats the Indians reported seeing .
On 13 October the surveyors finished their work just below Rapid Number 63 of the Grand Canyon when they joined with the survey the USGS made in 1920. The Birdseye expedition had carried a level line 251 miles from Lee's Ferry through one of the most rugged canyon in the world and connected with the line surveyed through Black Canyon in 1920 with less than a five foot difference.
The crew pulled the boats from the Colorado River at Needles, California, on 19 October and hauled them to the railroad station, shipped the Edison boats to the Southern California Edison Company in Los Angeles and the USGS boat to Washington, D. C. The survey of the Colorado River from its junction with the Green River in Utah to Needles, California, ended an era. Until now Grand Canyon and its mighty river had been the domain of a few hardy explorers and adventurers, but now the river would become a playground with rafting tours for the traveling public. Within a few short years the construction of Hoover Dam at the head of Black Canyon would harness the force and power of the mighty stream and smooth out the rapids in the lower part of Grand Canyon to create a huge recreational area and produce electric power for the southwestern states.
When Emery had finished his work he attended a movie house running the Fox News using the pictures taken at Bright Angel Trail and Hermit Rapid. As he expected, they made no mention in the titles and gave no credit to Kolb Brothers, nor did he ever receive a copy of the film. It appeared that Birdseye either by choice or by circumstances beyond his control had difficulty living up to his agreements.
In accordance with the letter of 11 June Emery sent Birdseye copies of the still pictures and the negatives of the motion picture film he had shot with his camera along with a list of titles. Birdseye acknowledged them with a voucher made out to the processing studio.[34] Emery Kolb had kept his end of the bargain. He made plans for a lecture tour in the East and hoped to use part of the official USGS film to supplement his own. He waited for the pictures taken by La Rue, the official photographer of the trip, and departed in late March without them. He stopped first in Washington to visit Birdseye to discuss the matter of the photographs with him face to face rather than through the mails. After a congenial visit, Emery inquired about the problem and was "dumbfounded" when the colonel calmly admitted he had broken his promises and hoped Emery would not feel too bitter toward him. When he mentioned the Fox News and the Harvey deal at Hermit Rapid, Birdseye said when Emery resigned as boatman it had angered him and he figured the agreements with the Kolb Studio to be no longer valid. Birdseye mentioned that he had fully intended to have the Department of Interior cancel the Kolb concession agreement had he carried out the threat to leave the expedition at Hermit Rapid. Emery felt Birdseye mentioned this to intimidate him to ease off on his complaints.
Birdseye had received copies of the still photographs from the various cameras used by different members of the party and pasted them into albums. He gave Emery permission to look through and select the pictures he wanted and prints would be made for him. But this would not give him the film he needed for his tour. Colonel Birdseye placed the blame on La Rue for the failure to supply the official pictures. La Rue had made two sets, one for Birdseye and one for himself, then locked the negatives in a safe and attempted to hold them as his personal property.
Emery learned that members of the USGS were going over the country lecturing to clubs and societies. Birdseye received $250 for a lecture to the National Geographic Society.[35] Freeman and La Rue were giving lectures charging a good fee for the public to see and hear the story of the fantastic trip through the Grand Canyon. But according to the letter of ll June the pictures were not to be used in this manner without giving Kolb Brothers proper credit. The only credit Emery received was as boatman, and this flashed on the screen so fast it was impossible to read. In newspaper articles and interviews listing the personnel on the expedition they showed Emery only as boatman and as far as the public knew he was no more than a general flunky.[36] On the other hand they listed Freeman, fourth boatman with no authority for command of the expedition as author, lecturer, explorer and big game hunter. As a result of the competition from the other members of the survey, Emery was unable to make more than a few appearances with his lecture, and since the choice spots had already been taken, his talks were at inferior locations which afforded him little return financially.
A year after the momentous river trip Emery received a copy of the La Rue motion picture film made from a print rather than from the original negative and of such poor quality he could not use any part of it. By this time the American public no longer had an interest in the trip and further lectures would be a losing proposition. After a prolonged wait Birdseye sent a set of fifty-five prints from La Rue's camera, most of which were duplicate shots of subjects Emery had made.
On 18 June 1925 Emery sent a seventeen-page letter to Ralph Cameron who chaired a congressional investigation of the Departments of Agriculture and Interior in his struggle to keep the mining claims he held in the Canyon, hoping the paper would be read at the investigation. Cameron advised against using the statement at the hearings, saying that it would accomplish nothing and probably do more harm than good if it alienated officials who could seek vengeance. He stated in his letter, "I do not want you to sacrifice yourself for the purpose of strengthening the record of this committee."[37] Taking Cameron's advice, Emery filed his letter away. In the years to come he retained the utmost respect for Col. Birdseye and forgave him, figuring the colonel made promises beyond his ability to uphold. However, he never forgave La Rue or Freeman for the part they played in destroying his ego.
[C]hapter 8
1 Leigh Lint's journal entry 14 July 1923.
[2] Emery Kolb's journal entry 16 July 1923.
[3] Ibid.
[4] The letter of 11 June 1923 Part 1 read: "Still photographs. Any member who wishes may take one or more ordinary cameras. Mr. La Rue will carry two cameras and the Geological Survey will rely largely on him for still pictures of the trip. Titles on such pictures as show you or the boats will refer to you as head boatman and guide, if not satisfactory, any other reasonable designation you may suggest. Each member will be given free of charge copies of any pictures taken. The Geological Survey will furnish film for any privately owned camera, but it is understood that the Geological Survey shall receive for its official use at least one copy of each picture taken."
[5] Letter to a Congressional Investigating committee 18 June 1925.
[6] Leigh Lint's journal entry 16-17 July 1923.
[7] Emery Kolb's journal entry 18 July 1923.
[8] Ibid.
[9] Emery Kolb's journal entry 19 July 1923.
[10] Ibid.
[11] Letter to a Congressional Investigating Committee 18 June 1925.
[12] Emery Kolb's journal entry 19 July 1923.
[13] Letter to a Congressional Investigating Committee 18 June 1925.
[14] Emery Kolb's journal entry 20 July 1923.
[15] Emery Kolb's journal entry 25 July 1923. Emery X'ed out the entry and made no further notation.
[16] Emery Kolb's journal entry 24 July 1923.
[17] Leigh Lint's journal entry 1 August 1923.
[18] Department of Interior's Memorandum for the Press page 1.
[19] Leigh Lint's journal entry 2 August 1923.
[20] Department of Interior's Memorandum for the Press page 2.
[21] Department of Interior's Memorandum for the Press page 2. Also Emery Kolb's and Leigh Lint's journal entries 3 August 1923.
[22] Department of Interior's Memorandum for the Press page 2.
[23] Department of Interior's Memorandum for the Press page 3. Also Emery Kolb's and Leigh Lint's journal entries 7 August 1923 and Claude Birdseye's article in the Oberlin Alumni Magazine Vol. XX No. 4, page 11, January 1924.
[24] Department of Interior's Memorandum for the Press page 3, also Emery Kolb's and Leigh Lint's journal entries for 11 August 1923.
[25] Emery Kolb's journal entry 15 August 1923.
[26] Emery Kolb's journal entry 16 August 1923.
[27] Emery Kolb's journal entry 19 August 1923.
[28] The Coconono Sun 9 September 1923
[29] Emery Kolb's journal entry 20 August 1923.
[30] Birdseye's letter to Emery Kolb, 11 June, 1923 Part 2d read: "Fox News: Soon after publication by the Secretary of the Interior of the preliminary plans for our trip Mr. Garvin, a representative of Fox News, called on the Secretary and was referred to me. He proposed to send one of their best men from Los Angeles and catch us at one or more trail crossings in the National Park. Mr. Mather assured Mr. Gavin that a permit to do this would be given. They would only use a few feet of film on the 'News' and it would be shown in theaters and similar places over the country, and would be excellent advertisement of our Geological Survey activities as well as excellent advertisement for you personally for I shall see that the titles are so arranged as to give you all possible credit for your connection with the party...I find that it is out of my hands and that arrangements have been made to have Fox News' representatives meet us at Hance or Bright Angel Trail. The Fox News will give the Geological Survey copies of all pictures of our party, and I know that I can secure a copy for you and will do so if you desire. I, of course, must insist on the same cooperation from you in helping the Fox News to get good pictures of our party as I have mentioned with respect to the Blanchard pictures."
[31] According to Leigh Lint's journal entry 30 August, there were three movie cameras and a lot of Kodaks on the job
[32] Letter to a Congressional Investigating Committee 18 June 1925.
[33] The Los Angeles Times 26 September 1923.
[34] Letter from Birdseye 27 November 1923.
[35] Letter from Gilbert Grosvenor 8 November 1923 informed Emery the National Geographic Society could not take advantage of his offer to lecture as they had already agreed to have Col. Birdseye deliver a program on the same subject.
[36] Lewis R. Freeman refers to Kolb as a boatman and gives him no credit in his May 1924 article in the National Geographic. Vol XLV No.5.
[37] Letter from Ralph Cameron 17 July 1925.