declining to accept theirconventional nobility at face value. Problems and cautions with the book include rather sparse archival citations, insuf ficientdocumentation inplaces, some excessive psychology, and too many long quotations (nearly a quarter of the text).These decisions and judgments by an author are exactlywhat students ? indeed,everyalert reader?should be taught to recognize. Our hypothetical learners can now turn to a largerquestion: To what degree does history inform thepresent? What pragmatic motives, ifany, stimulate us to study thepast? I suggest thatAlbert Furtwangler may have a timely message for currentAmerican foreignpolicy architects:Pay close attention to theexperience of Lewis and Clark and the first missionaries inOregon. Robert H. Keller WesternWashington University,Bellingham WHEN THE RIVER RAN WILD! INDIAN TRADITIONS ON THEMID-COLUMBIA AND THE WARM SPRINGSRESERVATION byGeorgeW. Aguilar Sr. Forewordby Jarold Ramsey Oregon Historical Society Press, Portland, in association with theUniversity of Washington Press, Seattle, 2005. Photographs, notes, bibliography, index. 272 pages. $22.50 paper. When theRiver Ran Wild! George Aguilar's account of Columbia River Indian life and history, is a richly rewarding read for anyone with a foothold in this dramatic landscape. Aguilar, born in 1930, isan enrolledmember of the Warm SpringsConfederated Tribes,whose tribal"pedigree" is "1/8Cascade, 1/8 Konnaack Tchunks, 1/32 Wasco, 3/16 Klickitat, 1/32 Tenino, and 1/2 Filipino" (p.xiii).His father was born in Manila and immigrated to theU.S. as a young man. Aguilar's mother, Evelyn Polk, tracedher ancestry toKiksht Chinookan communities along theColumbia River from The Dalles to theCowlitz River, as well as to the Sahaptin speakingKlickitat and Tenino peoples. Aguilar's father drowned in the turbulent Columbia River while fishingwith his Indian in-laws, and hismother died soon after,leavingAguilar orphaned before his second birthday. After fighting for and winning custody, Aguilar's maternal grandparents, James Jr.and Hattie Polk, raisedhim at their Wolford Canyon home on the Warm SpringsReservation. Aguilar thus speakswith the authorityof a person who has lived the Indian life from his earliestyears.He also demonstrates a solid command of theaca demic literatureof non-Indian ethnographers, folklorists,and historians and writes clear and oftenmoving English prose. This isa powerful combination. Aguilar is at his best when recounting personal experiences. He isnot sparing inhis denunciation of the racism inwhite society that caused him and his fellow Indians suf fering,but he isno romantic apologist either. In his account of "Life at Celilo, 1920S-1950S" (pp. 122-4), at the great Northwest Indian emporium atCelilo Falls before it was choked by theDalles Dam, he relates: The older generation, who often romanticize Celilo Village, were accustomed to the living conditions there. To the first-time visitor, how ever, it could be a stomach-churner_rotting fish guts were strewn over the rocks.... The flies may have out-populated the residents by about a million to one_ In the fall, Celilo was thegatheringplace for wandering drunks, bums, high-stakes gamblers, gambling sharks, alcohol bootleggers, and sexual predators, and there were brawls and beatings galore. Through itallAguilar maintains a certain wry humor: Iwas a 13yearsold [sic] when thefollowinghap pened. We were returning from the potato-har vestingfieldsofPowell Butte,andwhile stopping atRedmond [Oregon]my twouncles somehow acquired a couple bottles ofwhiskey.On theold Reviews 301 Culver road near Juniper Butte, we were pulled over by threepolice cars and about six police officers. Uncle Henry was thedriverandUncle Alvin, who was holding one ofhis infantchildren, was told to get out of thevehicle.One of thepolice officersjerked thechild fromhis arms and prac ticallythrewhim intoGrandma s lap,while the other officersbegan interrogatingthe brothers as tohow theygot thewhiskey. With one of the police officer's frustration came an upper-cut blow tothestomach,andUncle Alvin crumbled to thehard pavement.This was followedby several brutalwhacks with a nightstickon his back_ The uncles were taken to the cold concrete 10-by 12-footJefferson County jail,where they remained for some time. To get home toWarm Springs, Idrove the1938FordTudor car about 25 miles in second gear. Itwas my first experience driving a vehicle_ Aguilar admits that his first-hand knowl edge of Indian customs and religious beliefs ? such as those of the W?ashat or seven drums? is limited because of the great loss of traditional knowledge suffered...