PARKINSON 
 
 WONDERLAND 
 
 F851 
 .P24 
 
 1894 
 
Our Party Taking it Cool at Muir Glacier. 
 
WONDERLAND; 
 
 OR, 
 
 TWELVE WEEKS 
 IN AND OUT OF THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 BRIEF ACCOUNT OF 
 
 A TRIP ACROSS THE CONTINENT— SHORT RUN INTO MEXICO— RIDE 
 TO THE YOSEMITE VALLEY— STEAMER VOYAGE TO ALASKA, 
 THE LAND OF GLACIERS-VlSIT TO THE GREAT SHO- 
 SHONE FALLS AND A STAGE RIDE THROUGH 
 THE YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK. 
 
 EDWARD S. PARKINSON. 
 
 TRENTON, N. J : 
 
 MacCrELLISH & QUIGLEY. BooK AND JOB PRINTERS 
 1894 
 
 -K. 
 
Copyrighted. 
 All rights reserved. 
 
 ^' 
 
MY FI^IEKDS AND FE LiLOW-PASSE RIG EI^S 
 
 g. F{. F{. Golden Ga^ib ©oui^ rjUMBEi^ Foui?, 
 
 THIS B00!< IS I^BSPEGTPULLY DEDIGAIIED. 
 
 EDWAI^D S. Sai^^inson. 
 
r^OW I ^AMB TO ^I^ITB A BOOK,. 
 
 /T^VER since leaving the West, the writer has from 
 ^^ time to time acted as correspondent for one of 
 the weekly papers of his native town, and in sev- 
 eral instances has been employed on the staff of one 
 of the daily papers of the city of his adoption. He 
 should, therefore, be pardoned for intensified literary 
 ambitions when confronted by allurements of travel 
 so tempting as those presented to him on a leisurely 
 trip of nineteen thousand miles through picturesque 
 America. 
 
 The somewhat protracted journey and saunterings, 
 which commenced at New Jersey's capital and ex- 
 tended to the Golden Gate and thence to Alaska, of 
 which this book is briefly descriptive, occurred in 
 the spring and summer of 1892, and occupied a pe- 
 riod of three memorable months. Hence the author 
 is constrained to the use of " Twelve Weeks In and 
 Out of the United States " as a fitting title to a nar- 
 rative whose details will possess the merit of truth- 
 fulness if, unhappily, they shall fail in interest. 
 
 In addition and incidental to the trip from ocean 
 to ocean, our party crossed the line into Mexico, 
 traversed the Pacific coast States from San Diego to 
 Tacoma, from which point we embarked, via British 
 Columbia, for Alaska. 
 
6 HOW I CAME TO WRITE A BOOK. 
 
 On the return trip we visited the great Sho- 
 shone Falls, Yellowstone Park (appropriately named 
 "Wonderland"), and numerous other points of in- 
 terest, which are herein described. 
 
 While taking frequent notes on the steamer during 
 the Alaska trip the writer was persistently solicited 
 by his fellow-passengers to preserve the record, 
 whether it be printed in book, newspaper or pamphlet 
 form, and forward the same to them as a reminder 
 of scenes and incidents witnessed but once in a life- 
 time. This, therefore, is a further incentive to my 
 more or less willing pen. 
 
 The illustrations herein were made from photo- 
 graphs taken by Tabor, of San Francisco ; M. M. 
 Hazeltine, of Baker City, Oregon ; and from Kodak 
 views taken by Miss Serrill, of Philadelphia — to 
 each of whom the writer hereby expresses appreci- 
 ation. The Pennsylvania Railroad Company and 
 Union Pacific Railroad Company also kindly loaned 
 some cuts, which add much to the completeness of 
 the book. 
 
 If the following pages shall prove of interest to 
 such proportion of the large army of American 
 tourists as shall read them, or be in any degree 
 helpful to them in making a similar journey, the 
 author's efforts will have been amply rewarded, and 
 his justification for having "written a book" will 
 be complete. 
 
 Trenton, N. J., E- ^- ^• 
 
 July, 15, 1893. 
 
Index. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 Westward Bound, 9 
 
 Chapter II. 
 California 46 
 
 Chapter III. 
 Yosemite Valley, 103 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 California Resorts, 140 
 
 Chapter V. 
 Alaska 164 
 
 Chapter VI. 
 Portland and Shoshone, 208 
 
 Chapter VII. 
 Wonderland, 223 
 
 Chapter VIII. 
 Homeward Bound 256 
 
iLLtUSTI^ATIONS. 
 
 Our Party Taking it Cool at Muir Glacier, Frontispiece. 
 
 Interior of Dining Car, 13 
 
 The Seven Falls, 24 
 
 Gateway, Garden of the Gods 28 
 
 Interior of Observation Car 31 
 
 Pavilion at Garfield Beach, Great Salt lyake, . . 44 
 
 Bell Tower, San Gabriel Mission 87 
 
 The Three Brothers 121 
 
 Hotel Del Monte, Monterey, California .... 158 
 
 Wreck of the "San Pedro," 171 
 
 Totem Poles, Fort Wrangle, 178 
 
 Halibut Hook, 182 
 
 Taking on Ice, Taku Bay, 184 
 
 Baronoff Castle, Sitka 188 
 
 Main Street and Greek Church, Sitka 190 
 
 Ice Floe, Glacier Bay, 196 
 
 Landing at Muir Glacier, 198 
 
 Muir Glacier, 200 
 
 Multnomah Falls 210 
 
 Fish Wheel, 212 
 
 Shoshone Falls, 218 
 
 Arangee Ranch, 230 
 
 Fording the Snake River, 232 
 
 Minerva Terrace 250 
 
^ONDBI^LAND 
 
 SWELYE ^EEI(S IN AND OU^T OP 
 
 THE United Stajpes. 
 
 • • • • 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 IOestwai^d BoawD. 
 
 y^HE blustering weather of a New Jersey 
 ^^ March was upon us. Streets and pav^ements 
 were swept on alternate days by gusts of rain 
 and clouds of dust. Trees, lawns and all out- 
 doors still wore a look of wintry dilapidation, 
 and even pedestrians cut awkward figures at- 
 tempting to round corners, cross streets or enter 
 doorways in the face of the searching winds 
 which whistled in doleful tones around the cor- 
 ners of houses and down chimney-flues, bringing 
 to vivid realization the discomfort attending the 
 traditional "lingering of Spring in the lap of 
 Winter." 
 
 While enjoying the comforts of our home and 
 watching an occasional pedestrian struggling 
 
lO WONDERLAND. 
 
 against the driving wind, our thoughts turned 
 to pictures of the "Sunny South," where a few 
 years since we had, on a visit to Florida, ex- 
 changed the ill-tempered March weather of New 
 Jersey for the balmy atmosphere of that land of 
 oranges and palm-trees. 
 
 Conversation became animated as little by little 
 the ladies of the household pointed out the com- 
 forts and delights of that more congenial clime 
 and dwelt on the absence of intrusive chills and 
 dust and the exhilaration of *a change from the 
 cyclonic winds now roaring in the chimney to 
 the placidity of a zephyr in the land of alligators. 
 
 Such comparisons proved too convincing as 
 from day to day they were adverted to, and soon 
 it was decided to arrange for a journey. 
 
 "If we were only in California," remarked the 
 most enthusiastic of our group, "all this disa- 
 greeable weather would be avoided, and we 
 could there choose between the comforts of easy- 
 chairs on a hotel piazza in mellow sunshine, and 
 the more active contact with Nature in orange 
 groves and on grassy lawns, where breezes fan 
 but do not ruffle, and where the balmy atmos- 
 phere imparts a feeling of comfort and health- 
 fulness quite the reverse of that which we now 
 experience. ' ' 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. II 
 
 As all agreed that there was nothing apparent 
 to prevent the real consummation of a hope so 
 ardently expressed, it required but a short time 
 to outline the journey and perfect the plans for 
 a three months' tour. 
 
 It was a beautiful morning when we boarded 
 the "Golden Gate" special, at Trenton, and 
 began our trans-continental trip. The train was 
 composed entirely of Pullman cars, five in num- 
 ber. The first was occupied as a baggage-car, 
 barber shop, bath room and smoker ; the second 
 as a dining-car ; the third and fourth, sleepers ; 
 and the fifth a combination parlor, library and 
 observation car. All were of the latest pattern 
 and lighted throughout with electricity. The 
 parlor was furnished with rattan furniture, and 
 on one side was an upright piano of the best 
 make. In short, we were traveling in a modern/ 
 hotel on wheels. "^ 
 
 Our party, according to the directory issued 
 by the railroad company, consisted of twenty- 
 eight persons, most of whom resided in or near 
 Philadelphia. When the train arrived at the 
 City of Brotherly I,ove the greater part of the 
 company came on board, and we then began our 
 journey toward the great West. The suburban 
 towns, with their neat stations, were passed in 
 
12 WONDERLAND. 
 
 rapid succession. All through the Chester Val- 
 ley, the garden spot of Pennsylvania, the thrifty 
 farmers viere busy tilling the ground preparatory 
 to planting their tobacco crop, for which this 
 region is famous. Short stops were made at 
 Lancaster and Harrisburg. 
 
 At Altoona an extra engine was attached to 
 the train to help us over the mountains. The 
 wonderful Horseshoe Curve was passed in a driz- 
 zling rain, but that did not deter many from 
 taking seats in the observation- car, where they 
 could obtain an unobstructed view of it. 
 
 Twelve miles west of Altoona the train entered 
 the tunnel which penetrates the Alleghany moun- 
 tains and marks the highest elevation of the 
 Pennsylvania Railroad system. Emerging from 
 the tunnel the train passed Galitzeu, a town 
 named after Count Oalitzen, a Russian Noble- 
 man who renounced the pomp and glory of the 
 Russian court and became a Roman Catholic 
 priest. He settled in this section long before the 
 railroad was constructed, and built up around 
 him a settlement which at one time did not hav^e 
 a Protestant within its borders. His remains 
 now rest in a vault in the grounds of the convent 
 at Loretta, a small village near Cresson. Here 
 the extra engine was dispensed with and the 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 
 
 13 
 
 train commenced the descent of the western 
 slope of the Alleghany mountains. In a few 
 moments we whirled past Cresson, a summer 
 
 Interior of Dining Car. 
 
 resort under the control of the Pennsylvania 
 Railroad Company. The Mountain House and 
 cottages were in full view of the train, and the 
 
14 WONDERLAND. 
 
 well-kept lawns indicated a very attractive place. 
 In a short time the train passed ill-fated Johns- 
 town, where but recently hundreds of lives and 
 millions of dollars in property were lost by the 
 bursting of the dam which confined the waters of 
 the South Fork, then owned and used as a ren- 
 dezvous by the South Fork Fishing Club. 
 
 The sun had disappeared in the west when we 
 entered the coke region. The lurid flames which 
 shot up from the numerous ovens made a sight 
 readily transformed by a liv^ely imagination into 
 close relationship to the infernal regions. Fur- 
 ther on we entered the domain of natural gas and 
 saw for the first time the startling beauty of the 
 burning fluid shooting upward from its mysteri- 
 ous abode in nature's retorts. As we approached 
 Pittsburg the lights from the furnaces of the 
 Edgar Thompson and Carnagie Iron and Steel 
 Works illumined the heavens for miles around. 
 Night was full upon us when the train entered 
 this city, where only a short stop was made. 
 Here our party was augmented by the arrival of 
 four ladies, who, as soon as they had arranged 
 their packages in their state-rooms, joined the 
 others in the parlor-car. 
 
 The evening was passed in getting acquainted, 
 and before retiring we were as much at ease as 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 1 5 
 
 though we had known each other for years 
 instead of a few hours. With the exception of 
 three persons, who were traveling for their 
 health, the entire party was on pleasure bent. 
 
 Pleasantly passed the hours until, by way of 
 diversion, a rather pretty but over-confident 
 young lady from Boston betook herself to the 
 piano and showered solos of such distressful 
 melody upon all present that, in self-defence, our 
 party could do nothing so appropriate as to 
 retire for the night. The day had brought us 
 many delights, and we had withstood the 
 fatigue of climbing the Alleghany mountains, 
 and even absoibed much natural gas eyi route, 
 but not until the Boston singer appeared at the 
 piano had we realized a fitting sense of weari- 
 ness. 
 
 On awaking in the morning we were in the 
 northern part of Indiana, and by ten o'clock 
 we arrived at Chicago, one hour and a half 
 ahead of schedule time. 
 
 At the station a number of carriages were 
 waiting to take us sight-seeing through the 
 resident portion of the city and the different 
 parks. Being still early in the season, very 
 few of the lawns in front of the residences had 
 been stripped of their winter garb. As we 
 
l6 WONDERLAND. 
 
 were near Jackson Park, the driver was told to 
 take us to the Exposition grounds. After 
 paying the admittance fee of twenty-five cents, 
 we drove into the grounds, where a large army 
 of workmen and artisans were busy constructing 
 the different buildings for the World's Fair. 
 The women's building was the only one yet 
 completed. Luncheon was served at the Audi- 
 torium Hotel, the dining-room of which is on 
 the ninth floor, and from our table an excellent 
 view of Lake Michigan could be had. Most 
 of the afternoon was spent in visiting the large 
 business houses, and at the jewelrj' stores almost 
 every one of the party bought souvenir spoons 
 of the Windy City. 
 
 Reaching the station sometime before the 
 departure of our train, two eager tourists 
 engaged a carriage to take them through the 
 tunnels under the Chicago river. Entering the 
 shaky rig, they were quickly off and soon 
 arrived at the opening which leads under the 
 river. Waiting for a moment until a car had 
 passed, the driver urged his horse to a gallop. 
 Before reaching the middle of the tunnel another 
 car was heard approaching in the rear, clanging 
 its bell at a furious rate. The driver applied 
 the whip to his already galloping old steed, 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 1 7 
 
 which looked ready to drop at every jump, and 
 the top of the incline was reached just ahead of 
 the car. One of the occupants, a lady, was con 
 siderably frightened, but had the courage to say 
 not a word until safely off the car tracks, when 
 she vowed that she would not soon again be 
 guilty of another such " wild-goose chase " At 
 five o'clock all were again on board the train, 
 bound westward 
 
 It was early in the morning when we crossed 
 the Missouri river and entered Nebraska. After 
 a short stop in Omaha, to change engines, the 
 train continued on its flight toward the Pacific. 
 Soon we were out on the broad and undulating 
 prairies. For miles we could see the smoke 
 arising from the burning straw stacks which the 
 farmers were destroying preparatory to plowing 
 for the spring planting. As the train sped 
 farther and farther west, an occasional ' ' sod 
 house" would appear, and before the sun went 
 down few farm-houses were seen that were not 
 built of sod. The towns and cities, however, 
 showed a far more progressive spirit than many 
 Eastern towns of five or six times the number of 
 inhabitants. Every town of over 2,500 inhabi- 
 tants was lighted with electricity, and many of 
 them had electric railways. 
 
l8 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Our trip across this wonderful State was made 
 more pleasant because of the recent rains which 
 had thoroughly soaked the ground and settled 
 the dust. In the evening a progressive-euchre 
 party was organized, and it was late before the 
 players retired. 
 
 On awaking in the morning we were in the 
 yards near the Union depot, in Denver. After 
 breakfast carriages were called and a tour of 
 inspection of this model Western city was made. 
 The magnificent homes in the resident portion 
 were particularly striking. It seemed as if a 
 diflferent architect had planned each house, and 
 that all had put forth an especial efifort to make 
 a comfortable home, with a pleasing perspective. 
 
 Denver is one of the most progressive cities in 
 the West. Great fortunes have been (and are 
 still being) made in real estate. I had the 
 pleasure of meeting General Lessig, who settled 
 in Denver when there were only 3,000 inhabi- 
 tants, and who went there with a very small 
 capital. He invested in real estate and is now 
 several times a millionaire. One piece of prop- 
 erty in particular was bought by him at a cost of 
 $1,500, and was sold recently for $135,000. The 
 present owners hold it at $250,000. 
 
 The streets are well shaded except in the 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. I9 
 
 business portion of the city. Along each side- 
 walk runs an irrigating ditch ; into this the 
 water is turned every day in order to supply 
 moisture to the trees, without which they would 
 die, as the air is very dry and rain seldom falls. 
 
 The business houses, although not so high as 
 those in Chicago, are fully as handsome, and 
 rent for fabulous sums. 
 
 At the conclusion of our ride we were taken 
 to the Windsor Hotel, where luncheon was * 
 prepared for the entire company. As the after- 
 noon was left to our own disposal, many of 
 the photograph-galleries and curio-stores were 
 visited. As usual, almost every one had a col- 
 lection of souvenir spoons to show to the com- 
 pany on returning to the car. 
 
 While walking through one of the streets I 
 had the fortune to meet an old schoolmate, who 
 had "gone west" to grow up with the country. 
 It was one of those pleasing episodes which 
 sometimes startle a traveler when far from home 
 and least expecting it. He was particularly 
 enthusiastic over the growth of Denver, pre- 
 dicted for it a glorious future, and gave con- 
 vincing reasons for his unbounded faith. 
 
 Bidding farewell to the "Queen City of the 
 Plains," as Denver is popularly known in the 
 
20 WONDERLAND. 
 
 West, our train started for Colorado Springs, 
 celebrated as a haven for people of weak lungs 
 and delicate constitutions. Many of Denver's 
 citizens make it their summer resort, and 
 thus also escape the hot winds from the 
 plains. It was soon noticed that two of our 
 fellow-passengers were not in their accustomed 
 places, and upon inquiry it was ascertained that 
 one of the young ladies had been taken sud- 
 denly ill, and was unable to leave the hotel. 
 Her mother had remained with her, but they 
 fully expected to proceed on their journey in a 
 few days, and, if possible, meet us at Salt Lake 
 City. 
 
 The road winds through the foot-hills, gradu- 
 ally ascending until an altitude of 7,238 feet 
 above tide water is reached. The scenery is 
 enchanting. On many of the hills are forma- 
 tions known as Spanish castles, and looking 
 from the platform of the observation-car one 
 could readily imagine that he was traveling in 
 Spain and actually gazing upon her ancient 
 ruins. Standing out by itself, thus making it 
 more prominent, is a mountain surmounted by a 
 rock of very large dimensions, known as Castle 
 Rock. It is a wonderful curiosity, and looks as 
 if it had been chiseled by the hand of man 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 21 
 
 instead of the quiet but powerful work of air 
 and moisture. 
 
 All along we could see the irrigating-ditches 
 which carry water from the mountains and dis- 
 tribute it to the different ranches and towns in 
 the valley. The land lying below these ditches 
 is cultivated and makes large returns, while that 
 above is used for grazing purposes. The Yucca, 
 or soap-weed, grows in great quantities above 
 these ditches. It resembles the century-plant 
 very much, though the leaves are somewhat 
 smaller. The root of this plant was once the 
 only soap used by the Indians and Mexicans, 
 who pulverized it and used it in the same man- 
 ner as people of this day use the numerous pow- 
 dered soap compounds. 
 
 Palmer Lake was the highest point reached. 
 It is an artificial body of water formed by dam- 
 ming a mountain stream. In the centre of it is 
 a fountain throwing a jet of water fully twenty - 
 five feet into the air. The train stopped for a 
 few moments at the station, and while the engi- 
 neer was overlooking his engine two irrepressible 
 tramps came up to the cars begging — thus 
 demonstrating that his species is universal and 
 beyond the possibility of reform or suppression, 
 even in the highest altitudes of the Rocky moun- 
 tains. 
 
22 WONDERLAND. 
 
 The down-trip of the train was rendered very 
 pleasant by General Lessig, who entertained the 
 whole party with reminiscences of his life in the 
 West. He has been in Colorado since 1867, and 
 has seen the State grow from an insignificant 
 Territory to one of the richest and most progres- 
 sive States in the Union. 
 
 It was late in the evening when we reached 
 Colorado Springs, and after a hearty supper at 
 the Antlers, most of us retired. A number 
 attended a ball given in honor of the company. 
 
 Sunday was a day of rest, excepting a walk 
 to the South Canon of the Cheyenne. On the 
 way we passed a stand where broncos were for 
 hire, and as one of our party, who had already 
 gained a reputation for seeing a little more and 
 going a little farther than anybody else, was 
 desirous of taking "a ride," a bargain was 
 struck and he was soon astride one of the 
 animals. This particular bronco had formerly 
 been used as a packer on the Pike's Peak trail, 
 and had acquired a very slow gait, which no 
 amount of coaxing or pounding could get him to 
 abandon. Another peculiarity of this Rocky 
 mountain pet was that he would never cross a 
 ditch first, so every stream our equestrian friend 
 came to he had to dismount and lead the bronco 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 23 
 
 across, then remount and be off on a very slow 
 walk. On returning, our rider got off to lead 
 him over the stream, when, to his surprise, he 
 started on a trot for the tie-post, where he meekly 
 stood with a lazy expression in his eyes which 
 indicated that he would breathe his life out 
 sweetly there rather than carry a tenderfoot 
 another yard. That bronco is probably stand- 
 ing there yet. 
 
 In the afternoon we walked up the canon to 
 the Seven Falls, On all sides the cliffs were 
 almost perpendicular to heights of 1,000 and 
 1,500 feet, and at some points we seemed cut 
 off from communication with the outer world. 
 Every movement forward brought another sur- 
 prise, and when the view of the Seven Falls 
 burst upon us we stood in utter astonishment for 
 several minutes. We then ascended the stairs 
 that run alongside the falls. It was a tiresome 
 climb of two hundred and sixty steps, but every 
 step was repaid. At the top of the falls a trail 
 leads to the grave of Helen Hunt Jackson, 
 author of ' ' Ramona. ' ' Her body no longer 
 rests in this romantic spot, but the different 
 stones left there by admirers of her works still 
 remain, although every visitor now takes a small 
 stone away as a memento. 
 
The Seven Falls. 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 25 
 
 Monday morning, a carriage having been 
 engaged, we were off bright and early to visit 
 the famous springs of Manitou and the Garden 
 of the Gods. 
 
 Manitou is about five miles from Colorado 
 Springs, and is connected with the latter by an 
 electric railway. The wagon road between the 
 two resorts is in very good condition, making 
 the drive a pleasant one. About midway be- 
 tween the two cities lies Colorado City, the first 
 capital of the Silver State. It is now a pro- 
 gressive little village and shows some signs of 
 substantial growth. Rounding a turn in the 
 road, Manitou comes into view. It is nestled in 
 the valley overshadowed by Pike's Peak. As 
 we approached the town we drove past several 
 villas, with their groves of graceful trees and 
 maze of shrubbery. It appears to be composed 
 of hotels, boarding-houses and small shops, 
 where are exposed for sale agates of various 
 kinds, curiosities and Indian work, for which 
 exorbitant prices are obtained. 
 
 The springs are six in number, of which the 
 Soda and the Ute Iron are the largest and most 
 popular. At each of these a dipper-boy is kept 
 busy handing out the water. Of course he gets 
 no pay for his work, but he is not unwilling to 
 3 
 
26 WONDERLAND. 
 
 accept a nickel from every drinker. The owners 
 of these two springs have large pavilions where 
 curiosities and Colorado jewelry are sold at the 
 usual high prices. 
 
 After driving through the principal street and 
 going to the Pike's Peak railroad station to see 
 the peculiar engine used for carrying passengers 
 to the summit of the mountain, our driver took 
 us over to Ute Pass, up past a beautiful little 
 waterfall, known as Rainbow Falls, to the en- 
 trance of the Manitou caverns. Here all alighted 
 from the carriage, and, after paying a dollar 
 each, a lamp was handed us and we were told to 
 "follow the guide." Passing into a medium- 
 sized chamber we were all asked to stop and 
 deliver our tickets, after which the guide took 
 us through the few remaining rooms. In one of 
 the chambers is seen what is called the "Grand 
 Organ," but it seemed very inharmonious when 
 one of the guides tried to play a familiar tune on 
 it. In the end of one room is a curious collection 
 of bones, said to have been found in the cavern. 
 All of the formations in the cave are small and 
 insignificant when compared with those of lyUray 
 and the Grottoes of the Shenandoah. 
 
 Retracing our way we pass through Manitou 
 and start for one of the greatest wonders of the 
 West, the "Garden of the Gods." 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 27 
 
 Entering the Garden we are first attracted to 
 a number of formations known as the Toad 
 Stools, some of which are fully fifteen feet in 
 height. Balanced Rock is then passed. It is 
 an immense boulder poised on a slender base, 
 and looks as if it would fall at the least touch. 
 We are now kept busy listening to the names of 
 the different formations. All animals are shown 
 us, and the imagination readily sees the resem- 
 blance. The Quakers, I,iberty, Ben Butler and 
 various other formations are passed. All are 
 formed by the combined action of wind, rain, 
 sunbeam and frost, the all-powerful tools of 
 Nature. 
 
 As we pass through the Gateway and see the 
 wonderful formation, appearing as if it were 
 hewn through the solid rock, we involuntarily 
 exclaim, "How wonderful are Thy works, O 
 Lord ! " It has the appearance of two lofty 
 slabs of red sandstone set opposite each other, 
 about seventy-five feet apart, and rising to a 
 height of about three hundred feet from the road- 
 bed. A little back from the gate, in the Garden, 
 stand the Cathedral Spires. They are of the 
 same kind of sandstone — a brilliant red. It is 
 impossible to describe the wonderful works Na- 
 ture has displayed in this marvelous ' ' Garden 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 29 
 
 of the Gods." The diflferent formations can be 
 photographed, but the colorings can never be 
 transferred to canvas. 
 
 Passing out of the Garden our drive takes us 
 to Glen Eyrie, the home of General Palmer. It 
 is a garden on a smaller scale, although some of 
 the formations are even more remarkable than 
 those in the Garden of the Gods. One rock, 
 known as "Major Domo," rises to a height of 
 three hundred feet, and because of a curious 
 formation on top looks as if it would fall without 
 warning. 
 
 Leaving the Glen we are taken to the Antlers, 
 where a lunch is in readiness. 
 
 Before repairing to our hotel on wheels we 
 bade goodbye to three of our company. Two 
 of them had only intended coming this far, while 
 the other, one of the Pittsburg contingent, had 
 expected to go to the Pacific Slope. It was 
 upon the recommendation of a physician that 
 she had concluded to return to the East. 
 
 Evening found our company again in the cars, 
 glad to get back to the comforts of our home on 
 wheels. 
 
 It was quite early in the morning when the 
 jolting of the cars brought the realization that 
 our train had pulled out of the station at Colo- 
 
30 WONDERLAND 
 
 rado Springs, and that we were again moving 
 toward the Pacific Slope. 
 
 We arrived at Pueblo about seven o'clock, and 
 while engines were being changed and various 
 other matters attended to a number of us got off 
 the train and walked through a portion of the 
 town. Pueblo is distinctively a railroad centre, 
 being the division headquarters of the Denver 
 and Rio Grande systems It is also a manufac- 
 turing town. A number of smelters have been 
 erected here, and one of the trainmen informed 
 us that fully three fourths of the ore that passed 
 over the Denver and Rio Grande railroad stopped 
 at Pueblo. The Union depot is one of the finest 
 in the West. The railroads that bring the ore 
 from the mines are narrow-gauge, and when a 
 broad gauge road is met an extra rail is put 
 between the two rails, making two tracks on 
 three rails. It seemed very novel at first to see 
 a standard-gauge engine pulling narrow-gauge 
 cars, but this soon wore off. After leaving 
 Pueblo we passed through a section of country 
 where numerous oil-wells had been sunk, and 
 it suggested sights in western Pennsylvania on 
 our first day out. 
 
 After passing through the oil country we par- 
 took of our morning meal, which the crisp air, 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 
 
 31 
 
 Interior of Observation-Car. 
 
 combined with the walk at Pueblo, stimulated 
 to a full measure of enjoyment. Breakfast over, 
 all hands hurried to the observation-car in order 
 
32 WONDERLAND. 
 
 to get advantageous seats for viewing the grand 
 canon of the Arkansas. As we approached the 
 canon the brakeman showed us where three men 
 had "held up " a train but a short time before. 
 It seemed a favorable spot for such enterprise, 
 and a feeling of self preservation ripened a desire 
 to pass on into less " favorable " territory. 
 
 Entering the cafion the railroad skirts along 
 the banks of the Arkansas river, hugging the 
 base of the almost perpendicular walls of granite 
 which rise over one thousand feet above the 
 river-bed. The narrowest part of the canon is 
 known as the "Royal Gorge," and when the 
 railroad was first projected it was deemed almost 
 impossible to build it through a canon where 
 there appeared to be scarcely room for the river 
 alone, and where the granite mountains pre- 
 sented their almost impenetrable sides as a 
 barrier to the engineers who surveyed the line. 
 Leadville, then the centre of all eyes, and the 
 greatest carbonate mining camp in the world, 
 must be reached, and the most direct way was 
 through this canon. To build the road-bed 
 through the gorge required much engineering. 
 The river, dashing at a furious rate, occupied 
 all the available space, and the granite walls, 
 refusing to yield their firm grip, caused the 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 33 
 
 engineers to build a suspension -bridge over the 
 rushing torrent. The bridge does not cross 
 the river, but is built parallel with it, and is 
 supported by girders and braces which rest on 
 both sides of the stream. Our train was stopped 
 on the bridge, and many of us stepped out upon 
 the girders and almost broke our necks looking 
 up to determine how high the smoothly-polished 
 granite walls extended above us. Several of the 
 party had Kodaks and secured some very fine 
 pictures of the surrounding heights. For miles 
 the train rushed along between these high walls 
 of stone and along the banks of the turbulent 
 Arkansas river, which seemed to resent the 
 intrusion of the railroad upon its boundaries by 
 dashing with great fury against the carefully - 
 built masonry of the road-bed. The engineer 
 blew the whistle of the engine several times, the 
 echo of which startlingly reverberated through 
 the canon. 
 
 At Salida we changed to a narrow-gauge road 
 which runs through the Sangre De Cristo range 
 and over the Marshall Pass. The road winds 
 in and around the mountains, making some 
 wonderfully short curves. Many of them put 
 the Horseshoe Curve on the Pennsylvania rail- 
 road far into the shade. At one place, when 
 
34 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Standing on the rear platform of the car, we 
 could see, down in the valley beneath, the track 
 we had trav^eled over, and far above us was 
 another over which we were soon to ride. We 
 were courteously treated by the traveling en- 
 gineer of the road, Mr. Barnes, who came to 
 this country some fifteen years ago. As a proof 
 of the healthfulness of the region through which 
 we were passing he informed us that when he 
 left the East he could bearly tip the beam at 130, 
 but that now his weight was 200 and he was 
 still actively "growing up with the country." 
 He took especial pains to point out places of 
 interest along the road. At several stations only 
 a few deserted buildings were seen, the former 
 inhabitants having moved away. Shirley is a 
 striking example of this desolation, having but 
 one house now standing (a half - demolished 
 building once occupied as a saloon), though at 
 one time it was a lively frontier town of about 
 200 inhabitants. It was at the end of the rail- 
 road, and all supplies for the mines were carried 
 from here on burros over to the camps. It flour- 
 ished in wild western fashion for about six 
 months, when the railroad was extended to a 
 point beyond ; then everybody packed up bed 
 and baggage and moved on to the end of the 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 35 
 
 road. On a little hill just above the station 
 stands a lone pine tree, and under it are neg- 
 lected mounds which cover the remains of seven 
 men who died with their boots on. They were 
 "hold-ups," horse-thieves and gamblers. The 
 residents of the town concluded one night to rid 
 the community of them, so they were taken into 
 custody, and after a trial were hung and buried 
 underneath the spreading branches of the lone 
 pine tree. 
 
 As the train approached the top of the moun- 
 tain large patches of snow were passed and 
 several snow-sheds covered the track. At the 
 summit the train stopped under a long snow- 
 shed to enable the engineer to test the air-brakes 
 before commencing the descent. While waiting, 
 some of us climbed to the top of an observatory 
 to view the surrounding mountains. The wind 
 was blowing a fearful gale, almost taking away 
 one's breath, so we did not stay long, but hur- 
 ried back to the warm cars. On the descent, 
 Mr. Barnes pointed out Ouray and Chevenaugh 
 peaks, the two highest of the range. They were 
 named for two of the principal chiefs of the Ute 
 Indians, both of whom were friendly to the 
 white settlers. These peaks were covered with 
 
36 WONDERLAND. 
 
 snow and towered high above the surrounding 
 mountains. 
 
 After dinner at Sargents, the meal-station, we 
 turned our faces toward Salida. While crossing 
 the highest point of the mountains several of the 
 young ladies came near fainting on account of 
 the high altitude and rarity of the air. As it 
 was, all of the smelling salts bottles were brought 
 into requisition. Arriving at Salida at supper- 
 time we were happily surprised to see the lady 
 who was to return to the East standing on the 
 platform waiting to receive us. She had con- 
 cluded to risk the trip and had come down from 
 Colorado Springs to rejoin the party. 
 
 The evening was spent in playing games of 
 various kinds, until a despatch was received 
 from Denver saying that the young lady whom 
 we had left there was not expected to live, and 
 urging her two sisters to return at once. This 
 information threw a gloom over the party, and 
 the departing sisters, who had been among the 
 most spirited of our company, were greatly 
 missed. 
 
 We remained in Salida until two o'clock in 
 the morning, in order to pass through the Eagle 
 river and Grand river canons by daylight. At 
 five o'clock the train pulled into the station at 
 
WESTWARD BOUICD. 37 
 
 Leadville, the greatest carbonate camp in the 
 world. Only a few of the party were up to see 
 the sun rise over the peaks and enjoy a walk in 
 the crisp air. The thermometer stood at fourteen 
 degrees above zero on the station platform. 
 
 Leaving Leadville the train began to ascend 
 the Tennessee Pass, the highest point reached 
 by the railroad. Here we were 10,418 feet above 
 tide-water. The ground was covered with snow, 
 and the only signs of life were the huts of the 
 tie-choppers and charcoal-burners. This is the 
 great continental "divide." The waters falling 
 on this range flow into both oceans. 
 
 The Mount of the Holy Cross, so named from 
 two gulches that cross each other and in which 
 the snow never melts (thus forming a snow-white 
 cross), was passed, but being entirely covered 
 with snow the form of the cross could not be 
 seen. 
 
 After descending the pass and speeding by 
 several towns the train entered Eagle river 
 caiion. The walls are over two thousand feet 
 above the railroad, yet on the cliffs and crags 
 are to be seen the shaft-houses and miners' 
 cabins, where the miners work and live, delving 
 for the precious gold and silver abundantly found 
 there. This canon contains one of the richest 
 
38 WONDERLAND. 
 
 gold mines in Colorado. The rocks are of 
 various colors, and, relieved by the sombre pine, 
 form paintings which pen cannot depict nor 
 artist duplicate. 
 
 The canon of the Grand river was next en- 
 tered. It differs from the other canons, and 
 presents columns, castles, turrets, towers and 
 statues with all imaginable colorings, every 
 point or curve in the road presenting a new and 
 apparently more wonderful formation. 
 
 Our next stop was at Glenwood Springs. It 
 is a beautiful place, and is a health and pleasure 
 resort. The hot sulphur springs are the prin- 
 cipal attraction. A company controls them and 
 have erected a very handsome bath house. It 
 is built of red sandstone and finished in hard 
 wood. An immense pool for plunge-bathing has 
 been constructed in the open air. One end of 
 the pool, where the water comes directly from 
 the springs, is steaming hot, while the other end 
 is much cooler, the difference in temperature 
 being caused by the introduction of cold water. 
 Where the springs issue from the ground the 
 steam arises in such quantities that houses have 
 been constructed over them and the steam 
 utilized for vapor baths. As the train stopped 
 for more than two hours, all the gentlemen of 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 39 
 
 our party hired suits and went into the pool. 
 That the novel bath was greatly enjoyed goes 
 without saying. Within twenty-four hours we 
 had passed through snow and had bathed in hot- 
 water pools formed by Nature in the open air. 
 
 Leaving Glenwood our train wended its way 
 between mountains and through valleys until 
 night put an end to views from the car windows. 
 
 On awaking in the morning the train was 
 skirting along the banks of the river Jordan, 
 which flows from Utah Lake into Great Salt 
 Lake. Before breakfast was finished our train 
 rolled into the station at Salt Lake City, the 
 great Mormon capital. Awaiting us when we 
 alighted from the train was our cousin, Mr. 
 Harvey J. Jones. Having been a resident of 
 the city for some time, we were enabled by his 
 guidance to visit many places which no doubt 
 would have been missed had it not been for him. 
 
 Leaving the train we took up our quarters at 
 the Knutsford, the largest hotel owned by the 
 Gentiles in the city. As soon as we were com- 
 fortably settled a large tally-ho coach rolled up 
 to the door and we soon occupied seats on top 
 of it. Our driver was a Mormon, who took 
 great pride in showing the handsome buildings 
 owned by the people of his own religious faith. 
 
40 WONDERLAND. 
 
 He was the son of Heber C. Kimball, one of the 
 early leaders of the Church, who, during his 
 lifetime, was next in authority to Brigham 
 Young, and who, had the latter died first, would 
 have succeeded to the presidency of the Mormon 
 Church. The first place visited was Temple 
 Square, where the different buildings connected 
 with the Mormon services are located. The 
 square is enclosed by a stone wall about twelve 
 feet high. Within the enclosure the grounds 
 surrounding the buildings are tastefully laid out 
 with flowers. The principal buildings are the 
 Temple, the Tabernacle and the Assembly Hall. 
 The latter was the first building erected. Its 
 ceiling is frescoed with paintings showing the 
 different temples in which the Mormons worship 
 or have worshiped, including the one at Nauvoo, 
 Illinois. There are also paintings representing 
 different scenes which led to the finding of the 
 Golden Tablets. The Tabernacle is an immense 
 building, and within it are held the great con- 
 ferences of the disciples of the lyatter-Day Saints, 
 as the Mormons call themselves. The roof is 
 like a hemisphere, and is called "The Turtle 
 Back ' ' by the unregenerate Gentiles. Its acous- 
 tic properties are perfect, being so constructed 
 that a whisper uttered at the president's desk 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 4I 
 
 can be heard at the farthest end of the building. 
 The Temple is now completed. President Smith, 
 at the laying of the corner-stone, prophesied that 
 it would be forty years in building, and the 
 faithful were determined that the prophecy 
 should be fulfilled. The forty years expired on 
 the sixth of April, 1893, at which time the great 
 Temple was dedicated with imposing ceremonies. 
 Admission to the stairs leading to the towers was 
 secured by tickets, and most of us climbed to the 
 highest point. There are three towers on the 
 front of the building, the central one being sur- 
 mounted by a figure of heroic size representing 
 Maroni, one of the founders of the Church, with 
 an immense trumpet to be blown on the Resur- 
 rection Morn, when he will call all the members 
 of the Church of the Latter-Day Saints of Jesus 
 Christ to everlasting bliss. 
 
 The view obtained from our elevated posi- 
 tion was one of exceeding beauty. In the dis- 
 tance was seen the Wasatch range of mountains, 
 whose crests are covered with perpetual snows 
 All over the valley were farms and truck gardens 
 under the finest state of cultivation In the dis- 
 tance could be seen Great Salt Lake, the won- 
 derful inland sea of North America The river 
 Jordan, as it flowed from Utah Lake to Great 
 4 
 
42 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Salt Lake, could be distinctly traced. At our 
 feet was the tithing-yard and the home of Brig- 
 ham Young. 
 
 Descending from our lofty position, we once 
 more took our places on the coach and. were 
 driven past the former residences of Brigham 
 Young and notably that of his once favorite wife 
 Amelia. The latter building is now known as 
 the Gardo House, and is occupied by the Keely 
 Institute for the reformation of drunkards. We 
 were shown the graves of Brigham Young and 
 those of his wives who, with him, have "joined 
 the innumerable caravan." When the Gentiles 
 secured control of the municipal government 
 they compelled the children of the president to 
 remove all bodies excepting those of Brigham 
 Young and his wives from their private burial- 
 ground to a cemetery outside of the city limits. 
 The exception was in deference to the distin- 
 guished founder of the city. 
 
 Salt Lake City is a beautiful place. The 
 streets are wide, and on each side are handsome 
 rows of trees. Clear streams of water, supplied 
 by irrigating canals, flow on each side of the 
 street to supply moisture to the trees. Many of 
 the residences are very handsome, but in the old 
 part of the city most of the houses are built of 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 43 
 
 adobe or sun-dried brick. The largest business- 
 house is the "Co-op," the shortest way of say- 
 ing "Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institu- 
 tion." It is the principal trading-house in the 
 territory, and is under the supervision of the 
 Church. Its branches are to be seen in every 
 Mormon settlement. 
 
 Fort Douglas, where are stationed the United 
 States troops, 'is on one of the hills overlooking 
 the city, and is a great pleasure resort. The 
 music by the military band and the evening 
 drills by the soldiers attract many of the citizens 
 every evening. 
 
 Garfield Beach is the great bathing resort, and 
 is reached by the Union Pacific railroad. The ' 
 pavilions are attractive, and bath-houses and 
 suits may be hired at moderate price by all who 
 wish to take a dip in the briny lake. We spent 
 a very pleasant afternoon in watching the bath- 
 ers disport themselves in the water. 
 
 The evening was passed in visiting stores and 
 buying trinkets and silver spoons to take away 
 with us to recall the pleasant time passed within 
 the borders of the great Mormon city, where 
 even a Jew is called a Gentile. 
 
 After a good night's rest we were again on the 
 train. Passing along the shores of the lake. 
 
WESTWARD BOUND. 45 
 
 great flocks of sea-gulls and ducks were seen. 
 At Ogden the train stopped for a short time and 
 the party surrounded two men having badges for 
 delegates to a cattlemen's convention and begged 
 all the badges from them. Leaving Ogden we 
 were soon out on the Great American Desert. 
 The barren plains reflected the rays of the sun 
 and caused us to lower the curtains of the cars 
 to relieve our eyes. Stations were frequently 
 passed where only two buildings were visible 
 One would be occupied by the section-boss and 
 the station-agent, the latter performing the duties 
 of operator, station agent and postmaster ; the 
 other would probably be occupied by Chinese 
 laborers employed on the railroad. 
 
 Sage-brush and grease-weed comprise the only 
 vegetation that thrives on this desert, although 
 at one station we alighted and picked some very 
 pretty and fragrant flowers. 
 
 It was a wearisome day and we were glad 
 when night came, so that we could retire and 
 rest our eyes and prepare for more pleasant 
 scenery on the morrow. 
 
46 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Chapter H. 
 
 ©ALIPOI^NIA. 
 
 y^HE day was fast drawing to a close, and the 
 ^-^^ glare from the bare mountains and white 
 sands of the desert was rapidly passing away 
 when our party gathered in the observation car 
 to discuss events, compare plans and make ar- 
 rangements for continuing the trip after reaching 
 San Francisco. The evening was pleasantly 
 spent in listening to songs and the music of the 
 piano and mandolin furnished by the employes 
 of the railroad. It was quite late when the last 
 " good-nights" were spoken and all had retired. 
 On awaking in the morning we were some- 
 what surprised to see the ground covered with 
 snow and the mountains dressed in stately pine 
 forests. Stopping at Truckee a number of us 
 got off to indulge in "snow-ball" and walk 
 around. At one end of the station some prac- 
 tical joker had improvised a cage from a stray 
 box and painted on it this inscription : "A Large 
 Red Bat Caught in the Red Canon." On look- 
 ing between the bars a red brick-bat was seen. 
 The "sell" caused considerable merriment, both 
 
CALIFORNIA. 47 
 
 among the loungers at the station and the mem- 
 bers of our party. 
 
 After breakfast each member of the party was 
 presented with a carefully-prepared itinerary of 
 the resorts in California. It was the joint work 
 of Mr. Purdy, the tourist agent, and Mrs. Ben- 
 der, the chaperon, representing the Pennsylvania 
 Railroad Company. They had been several days 
 in preparing it, and we found it a source of great 
 convenience when visiting the different resorts of 
 the Golden State. 
 
 Leaving Truckee the train soon entered' a long 
 line of snow-sheds. For forty miles we traveled 
 under this overground tunnel. The longest con- 
 tinual shed was thirty-five miles Through open 
 ings in the sides of the shed, where an occasional 
 board had dropped ofi^, glimpses of Donner L,ake 
 were to be had. This lake was named after Cap- 
 tain Donner, who led a party of emigrants across 
 the plains and mountains during the early excite- 
 ment of the gold fever, which raged in the latter 
 part of the forties. The Donner expedition was 
 among the first to cross the plains, and the hard- 
 ships and dangers experienced have passed into 
 history. Thirty-four of these pioneers died of 
 starvation on the banks of this lake. 
 
48 WONDRRLAND. 
 
 Emerging from the sheds we commenced the 
 descent around the mountains. About the mid- 
 dle of the forenoon we rounded Cape Horn, a 
 bold promontory, where the train seemed ready- 
 to topple over into the canon, twenty-five hun- 
 dred feet below. 
 
 When the road was being constructed, work- 
 men were let down by ropes from the cliflfs above 
 and suspended in midair until they could drill 
 and blast away rock suflficient to obtain a foot- 
 hold. A drizzling rain was falling when we 
 passed this wonderful point, and the view of the 
 valley was very much obscured. 
 
 Before noon we were in the valley, amid flow- 
 ers of every variety. The yellow California 
 poppy was seen everywhere. At one of the sta- 
 tions a number of little boys had armloads of 
 flowers for sale. Two immense bouquets were 
 purchased for twenty cents. They were espe- 
 <:ially fine, and in the East would have cost from 
 <552.oo to $3.50 each. 
 
 It was noon when our train pulled into the 
 station at Sacramento, where a short stop was 
 made to receive orders Most of the party were 
 at lunch, and consequently were unable to leave 
 and see much of the town. The afternoon was 
 spent in rolling through magnificent farms and 
 
CALIFORNIA. 49 
 
 ranches and breathing an atmosphere fragrant 
 with blooming flowers and alfalfa. Numerous 
 groves of live-oak trees were passed, under 
 which herds of cattle had gathered to enjoy the 
 cool shade of the overspreading boughs. 
 
 Arriving at Oakland, where we took the ferry 
 for San Francisco, we left our comfortable cars 
 and departed from the care of the obliging Penn- 
 sylvania tourist agent and chaperons To say 
 that we regretted the parting would feebly ex- 
 press it. It was like leaving home to become 
 strangers in a strange land. 
 
 Before the boat had fairly left the slip the sub- 
 ject of a trip to "Chinatown" was broached, and 
 by the time San Francisco was reached the details 
 of the trip had been decided upon. As soon as 
 we were comfortably settled in our different hotels 
 and dinner attended to, the gentlemen began to 
 gather in the rotunda of the Palace Hotel, which 
 was known as the rendezvous of the party while 
 in the city. Mr. Purdy, the Pennsylvania tourist 
 agent, had secured a guide, and at nine o'clock 
 we left the hotel and started for a six-hour walk 
 in a quarter that is entirely given up to the Chi- 
 nese, known familiarly as "Chinatown." Our 
 party numbered fourteen, counting the guide, 
 and a jolly party it was. 
 
50 WONDERI^AND. 
 
 lycaving the Palace Hotel we passed up Market 
 street, then into Kearney and California streets, 
 and finally into Dupont street. The last-named 
 street is in what is termed the French quarter, 
 where degraded women sat in open windows to 
 attract willing, susceptible and unsuspecting 
 visitors to their apartments. Above the doors 
 each inmate had her name painted in large 
 letters. For two or three blocks on each side 
 of the street the houses are given over to these 
 women. As we hurried through this quarter an 
 elderly German of our party remarked, " Dis ish 
 von hell of a town," to which we all agreed. 
 
 Chinatown, as you enter it, presents a semi- 
 respectable appearance. Large stores, filled with 
 Chinese goods, attract the eyes and the pocket- 
 book. Some small trinkets were bought, but as 
 we were out sight-seeing and not shopping we 
 hurried on. Passing a cheap restaurant we 
 looked within, but that was all. The odor of 
 the place did not encourage further investigation. 
 At one of the stores some cakes were ofi"ered for 
 sale. The guide told us they were made from 
 sprouted beans, a basket of which was standing 
 on the sidewalk. Eggs imported from China, 
 done up in black mud, were on the counters. 
 Beetles as large as one's thumb were sold by the 
 
CALIFORNIA. 51 
 
 dozen. Dried horned toads were recommended 
 as a cure for rheumatism, a couple of which were 
 handed us by way of a bid for business. 
 
 Chinese children, with their little pigtails 
 hanging down their backs, were running through 
 every street, making the air resound with their 
 merry shouts. Men were hurrying to and fro, 
 some bound for the gambling-dens which appear 
 on every side and seem well patronized, and 
 others on various errands, giving the whole place 
 a lively appearance. Very few women were 
 seen, as most of those brought to this country 
 are employed in questionable and immoral diver- 
 sions, and their owners keep a strict watch over 
 them for fear some one will entice them into new 
 fields of degradation. Chinese women are in 
 high demand here since the Exclusion act was 
 passed. 
 
 Going into a court of one of the large lodging- 
 houses, several bags and baskets were noticed 
 hanging to the wall. They were receptacles for 
 waste paper. If a piece of paper should drop in 
 the court the first Chinaman passing would pick 
 it up and put it into one of the receptacles. The 
 bags are emptied every day by the different 
 societies, each of which has its own collector. 
 
52 WONDERLAND. 
 
 The paper is then taken to one of the Joss- 
 houses, where it is burned 
 
 Peering into one of the lodging-rooms, from 
 which came a nauseous odor, a strange sight 
 greeted us. Rows of narrow bunks, hardly- 
 wide enough for one man to lie in comfortably, 
 reached from floor to ceiling. As many as forty 
 Chinamen occupied one room. The only ven- 
 tilation when the door was closed was secured 
 through four auger-holes, two inches in diameter, 
 bored in the top of the door. At one place the 
 guide pointed out what resembled a pigeon-roost 
 nailed to the side of one of the buildings. It 
 was the home of four Chinamen. The dimen- 
 sions of the box were about as follows : height, 
 four feet ; breadth, eighteen inches ; length, 
 about ten feet. It was reached by a ladder, 
 and the last one up pulled the ladder in with 
 him. 
 
 . The Joss-house was next visited, and it was 
 . inspected with much curiosity by our company. 
 A peculiarity of the Joss houses is that they 
 always face the east. One of the several that we 
 visited was located on the east side of the street, 
 facing west (originally used for business or other 
 purpose). To enter it we passed under an arch- 
 way to what was formerly the rear of the building. 
 
CALIFORNIA. 53 
 
 Here we saw a decidedly ornamental front, with a 
 balcony extending the entire width of the build- 
 ing. At each end of the balcony sat an immense 
 dragon, open-mouthed, and holding between its 
 jaws a large ball. According to the belief of the 
 Chinese the ball prevents the closing of the 
 dragon's mouth and thus prevents the devil from 
 bothering any of the members of the fraternity 
 who contribute to the support of this particular 
 Joss-house. 
 
 Entering, we climbed the stairs, noticing on the 
 wall strips of paper covered with Chinese charac- 
 ters. They represented the amounts given by 
 devotees for the support of the house. Going 
 into the room the guide picked up some candles 
 and incense-sticks, and explained the mode of 
 worship and the offices of the different gods. 
 The carvings in the temple were wonderful spec- 
 imens of workmanship. Before leaving we were 
 solicited to buy some incense -sticks to "bling 
 gooda luck." Considerable time could have 
 been spent examining the bronzes, armors and 
 different paraphernalia of the house. 
 
 The theatre was the greatest treat. We went 
 in through the actors' entrance, wound around 
 upstairs and down, under pavements, through 
 cellars and into all sorts of places, including the 
 
54 WONDERLAND. 
 
 kitchen and sleeping-apartments of the employes, 
 and finally landed in the dressing-room, where 
 several of the actors were making their "toilet," 
 and from there to the stage. The orchestra was 
 on the back of the stage, in full view of 
 the audience, and comprised several screeching 
 stringed instruments, some tom-toms and a pair 
 of immense cymbals that were continually clang- 
 ing. Such music would drive a nervous person 
 wild. The make up of the principal actor was 
 indescribable. His head-rigging consisted of an 
 immense crown of feathers and paper, with two 
 feathers fully five feet long which he would grab 
 occasionally and strut about the stage, much to 
 our amusement. The audience was not an 
 enthusiastic one, as the Chinese never applaud ; 
 but woe to the actor who makes the least break 
 in his part — he will be hissed off the stage. The 
 men and women occupy different sections, the 
 former having the first floor and the latter the 
 gallery. 
 
 The Chinese never finish a play in one evening. 
 It will sometimes run for six months before the 
 entire play has been produced. The one we 
 attended had been on the boards for three weeks, 
 and three weeks longer would be required before 
 the final act would be played. 
 
CALIFORNIA. 55 
 
 Leaving the theatre we next visited an opium- 
 joint. As the establishment was in the base-\ 
 ment, we descended a rickety flight of steps 
 leading to it. The fumes of the opium, as they 
 were wafted up through the opening, were any- 
 thing but pleasant, but as we were out sight see- 
 ing we did not mind a little thing like that, and 
 kept right on. The guide led the way, and 
 making a misstep shot headlong into the middle 
 of the room, much to the surprise of the keeper 
 of the joint, who was not accustomed to see his 
 patrons enter in such an undignified and hasty 
 manner. As we entered, the villainous-looking 
 proprietor, who sat in a small box-like compart- 
 ment weighing out the drug, gave us a very 
 severe scowl, but that did not deter us. The 
 establishment was very poorly patronized on this 
 occasion, as only two unfortunates were upon the 
 hard shelves "hitting the pipe." The furnish- 
 ing of the place was most primitive. On each 
 side of the room was a shelf about seven or eight 
 feet wide, upon which the patrons roasted their 
 opium and inhaled the fumes of the noxious 
 drug. It was upon this platform that the two 
 men lay. When asked how they liked to smoke, 
 the reply was, 'Maka feela gooda." As we were 
 leaving, other customers came down the steps, 
 
56 WONDERLAND. 
 
 bought their supply of opium and started for the 
 hard shelves, where they would soon be under 
 the influence of the drug. 
 
 This was but one of the numerous opium- 
 joints to be found in underground Chinatown, 
 where the lazy and dissolute smokers and eaters 
 of the drug spend their time and wabte their 
 energy. A Chinese scholar thus sums up the 
 bad effects of opium, which, he says, is taken at 
 first to raise the animal spirits and prevent lassi- 
 tude : "It exhausts the animal spirits, impedes 
 the regular performance of business, wastes the 
 flesh and blood, dissipates every kind of prop- 
 erty, renders the person ill-favored, promotes 
 obscenity, violates the laws, attacks the vitals, 
 and destroys life. In comparison with arsenic, I 
 pronounce it tenfold the greater poison ; one 
 swallows arsenic because he has lost his reputa- 
 tion, and is so involved that he cannot extricate 
 himself. Thus driven to desperation, he takes 
 the dose and is destroyed at once ; but those who 
 smoke the drug are injured in many ways It 
 may be compared to raising the wick of a lamp, 
 which, while it increases the blaze, hastens the 
 exhaustion of the oil and the extinction of the 
 light. Hence, the youth who smoke will shorten 
 their own days and cut off all hopes of posterity, 
 
r 
 
 CALIFORNIA. 57 
 
 leaving their parents and wives without any one 
 on whom to depend. From the robust who 
 smoke the flesh is gradually consumed and worn 
 away, and the skin hangs like a bag. Their 
 faces become cadaverous and black, and their 
 bones naked as billets of wood. The habitual 
 smokers doze for days over their pipes, without 
 appetite ; when the desire for opium comes on, 
 they cannot resist its impulse. Mucus flows 
 from their nostrils and tears from their eyes ; 
 their very bodies are rotten and putrid " 
 
 On our way to the restaurant, which was the 
 next place visited, we stopped for a few moments 
 •in front of a Chinese barber-shop. Instead of 
 the usual striped pole seen in front of our own 
 shops, the sign displayed was very much like an 
 old-fashioned umbrella-rack, made of four up- 
 rights, about three feet in height, and joined 
 together. The victim was .seated in a chair, in 
 an upright position, and held a small tin plate, 
 upon which the hair that was scraped off his 
 head was placed. No lather was used, only 
 water. Each customer, as he took his place in 
 the chair, was presented with a pipe which 
 would hold a very small portion of tobacco, suf- 
 ficient for about two strong whiffs, when it 
 would have to be replenished. A peculiar thing 
 5 
 
58 WONDERLAND. 
 
 noticed was that the hairs within the ear were 
 carefully cut out, the razor used for this purpose 
 being very small and delicate. 
 
 Entering the building occupied by the res- 
 taurant, we found there were three grades of 
 prices. On the first floor the cheapest fare was 
 served, and the absence of furniture was notice- 
 able. On the second the prices advanced and 
 some attempt at furnishing was made, but on the 
 third floor the prices were the highest and the 
 furnishings were elaborate. We sat on stools of 
 solid ebony, inlaid with mother of-pearl, and 
 gazed upon tapestries worked with gold thread. 
 Bronzes of fine workmanship were seen in differ- 
 ent parts of the room. We all ordered tea at 
 twenty five cents per cup Before our order was 
 served a great quantity of sweetmeats were 
 brought out and placed upon the table. Corn- 
 cakes, almonds, preserved watermelon, plums, 
 and a variety of Chinese dainties finished the 
 feast. They were equal to any of the high- 
 priced delicacies of our Eastern confectioners, 
 and were given free with a cup of tea. The tea 
 was served in small bouillon-cups, and poured 
 from them into the cups for drinking. A pot of 
 hot water was placed upon the table for use in 
 case any one wanted to weaken his beverage. 
 
CALIFORNIA. 59 
 
 This was the last place visited on the China- 
 town trip, and as the hours had commenced to 
 lengthen we sought our hotels, where we spent 
 some time in the bath before retiring. 
 
 Our stay in San Francisco was necessarily- 
 short, as we had determined to visit the southern- 
 most points of the trip before hot weather should 
 come on and render traveling uncomfortable. 
 
 After bidding good-bye to those who had con- 
 cluded to remain somewhat longer in San Fran- 
 cisco, nineteen of our party met in the ferry-house 
 one morning to continue the trip. We were soon 
 on the ferry-boat and out in the bay. All along 
 the bay-front were immense wharves, alongside 
 of which were vessels of all nations receiving and 
 unloading freight. In due time we arrived at 
 the Oakland wharf, where we disembarked, got 
 into our sleeping-cars, and commenced our jour- 
 ney southward. 
 
 We were soon out of Oakland, but for a time 
 were kept busy fighting flies which had taken 
 possession of our car, and had determined on a 
 personal inspection of every one who entered. 
 After a successful skirmish, however, the enemy 
 was routed, and we settled back in our cushioned 
 seats to enjoy the scenery of the San Joaquin 
 
6o WONDERLAND. 
 
 Valley, which is known as the finest wheat 
 district in the world. On either side of the road 
 were wheat-fields and vineyards (or groves) of 
 oranges, lemons, olives, apricots and figs. Wild 
 flowers grow in abundance and are surpassingly 
 beautiful. Neat towns, with pretty Spanish 
 names, are passed frequently. In front of houses 
 were hedges of calla-lilies and geraniums. It 
 was no uncommon thing to see geraniums reach- 
 ing to the second story of the houses. The 
 blossoms were of all colors — red, pink, white and 
 variegated. Roses of all hues would climb as 
 high as the houses. Occasionally we would 
 see a tree covered with roses, the bush having 
 spread over the entire tree. Each succeeding 
 view appeared more beautiful than the last, and 
 it was a relief to our eyes when the curtain of 
 night was let down and shut out the delightful 
 panorama upon which we had looked all day. 
 
 On awaking in the morning we ascertained 
 that we had passed through the Mojave desert 
 and would soon be in I,os Angeles, where we 
 were to change cars and proceed farther south. 
 
 Pulling out of lyos Angeles we were rapidly 
 approaching our goal. The lands we passed 
 through were not so well kept as those farther 
 
CAIvIFORNIA. 6l 
 
 north, excepting where the ranches and groves 
 were irrigated. 
 
 Frequently we would pass over long trestles, 
 built across sandy wastes, which we ascertained 
 were the beds of rivers. In the winter and 
 spring they are occupied by raging torrents, but 
 now the snow had melted oflf the mountains and 
 there remained nothing of the river but its sandy 
 bed. 
 
 The farther south we go the more frequently 
 appear the adobe houses. At Capistrano the 
 train passed near the ruins of one of the old 
 Spanish missions. It is in a fair state of preser- 
 vation, services being still held in the chapel. 
 It was built by the Franciscan Fathers, and was 
 the finest church and mission constructed by 
 that order in California. Its composition is adobe 
 bricks and it is covered with red tile. The 
 combined action of rain and an occasional earth- 
 quake has thrown down some of the walls, but 
 the chapel still stands. An olive-orchard planted 
 by the Monks can be seen from the car window. 
 The trees are over one hundred years old and 
 still bear bountifully. The Fathers have left, 
 and the fields and orchards that once belonged 
 to the mission are owned by other people. 
 
62 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Passing Capistrano the train soon came in 
 sight of the ocean and then ran along the beach 
 for several miles. The waves washed almost up 
 to the road-bed, and the fresh sea-breeze from 
 the ocean gave additional pleasure to the trip, 
 as the day had been very warm and the cars like 
 ovens. 
 
 The train soon passed through Old Town, as 
 the original sight of San Diego is now known, 
 and pulled into the handsome station at San 
 Diego proper. Here we left the cars and took 
 the 'bus for Coronado. It was but a short ride 
 to the ferry that crosses San Diego Bay, the 
 finest harbor south of San Francisco. It is 
 entirely land-locked, and vessels of the heaviest 
 draught can anchor within it. Landing at Cor- 
 onado we drove through a beautiful avenue, 
 lined on either side with broad-leaved palms and 
 stately eucalyptus trees, giving a most beautiful 
 effect. As we approached the hotel the well- 
 kept lawns and flower-beds attracted our atten- 
 tion. Especially interesting was a bed containing 
 a great variety of cacti. There were probably 
 forty varieties, from the symmetrical globe like 
 plant to the gnarled and twisted member of the 
 family which tried to send out branches in every 
 direction. 
 
CALIFORNIA. 63 
 
 The hotel is an immense building — not high, 
 but covering a great deal of ground. It is built 
 around an open court, where flowers of many 
 varieties are growing. Tropical trees are abun- 
 dant. Several fountains are continually playing, 
 throwing their beautiful sprays into the warm 
 sunlight and giving a cool and pleasant tempera- 
 ture to the atmosphere. Several pairs of the 
 plumed California quail are kept within the 
 court, and may be seen at all times darting here 
 and there through the flowers and shrubbery. 
 An enclosed veranda faces the ocean, where, 
 during stormy weather, guests ma}^ sit and 
 watch the raging ocean which belies its name. 
 The views from the veranda are beautiful. Out 
 in the ocean are the Coronado islands. Dead 
 Man's Island, so named from its resemblance to 
 a man laid in his grave-clothes, is pointed out 
 to every visitor. 
 
 Point lyomo, the entrance to San Diego Bay, 
 where the government has erected the highest 
 light-house in the world, is plainly seen. In 
 the evening we greatly enjoyed watching the 
 alternate flashes of the red and white light. 
 
 The hotel is under the management of Mr. 
 E. S. Babcock, a former resident of my native 
 town, located in that portion of Illinois known 
 
64 WONDERLAND. 
 
 as "Egypt." While living there he was a clerk 
 in one of the principal business houses of the 
 town, and was a general favorite among all 
 classes with whom he came in contact. 
 
 Coronado Beach was our headquarters while 
 we made excursions into the surrounding coun- 
 try. Our trips usually occupied about a day, 
 so that we would only be away from the hotel 
 during the mid-day meal, and that, in lunch 
 form, the obliging proprietor always had in 
 readiness for us when we left the hotel. 
 
 On the morning of the anniversary of the 
 defeat and dethroning of Maximilian, a party 
 of us made an excursion to Tia Juana, a Mexican 
 town just acro.ss the border, expecting to see 
 some of the national games played by the Mexi- 
 cans. It was a delightful ride along the narrow 
 strip of land which divided the ocean from the 
 bay, and the cool winds, as they were wafted 
 from either side, recompensed for the glare of 
 the white sands of the beach. At National City 
 we changed to a narrow-gauge road, and we 
 were soon speeding toward our destination. The 
 railroad passes through groves of lemon, orange 
 and olive trees. On either side are many beau- 
 tiful residences, embowered in forests of flowers. 
 The air was laden with the perfume of the 
 
CALIFORNIA. 65 
 
 blossoms of the orange and lemon trees, and 
 the fragrance of the flowers could not be equaled. 
 California is the home of flowers, and they grow 
 in profusion wherever the ground is irrigated. 
 At almost every station great quantities of 
 oranges and lemons were taken on the train to 
 be carried to the markets of San Diego, from 
 whence they were to be shipped either to San 
 Francisco or to the Eastern markets. At one 
 of the stations, standing quite near the railroad, 
 was a large building known as the watch-factory. 
 The projectors of this enterprise made only a few 
 watches and then closed down. The conductor 
 informed us that the time-pieces cost on an 
 average about $2,500 each, when the cost of 
 the business venture was fully estimated The 
 building, like many others in this part of Lower 
 California, was decorated with the usual sign, 
 "For Sale." 
 
 After a ride of about two hours the train came 
 to a stop alongside of a weather-beaten building, 
 and the conductor called, "All out for Tia 
 Juana." We alighted and followed the crowd 
 across a brook which went by the name of the 
 Tia Juana river. The passage was made on a 
 foot-bridge, which consisted of a single plank, 
 and several of the party came near toppling over 
 
66 WONDERLAND. 
 
 into the water. Not twenty feet from the bridge 
 were several youngsters clad only in Nature's 
 garb, enjoying a mid-day bath. lyike the aver- 
 age ' ' Young America ' ' these typical little Mex- 
 icans seemed not the least abashed, but viewed 
 our procession with an air of characteristic inno- 
 cence and curiosity. Thus one gets a touch 
 of Nature everywhere — provokingly obtrusive 
 though it sometimes is, A little distance from 
 the end of the bridge stood a couple of hacks to 
 convey us to the village and return upon the 
 payment of fiftv cents each. One of the drivers, 
 an obliging negro, shouted at the top of his 
 voice that no one in the town could speak a 
 word of English, and that he would act as inter- 
 preter gratis to all of his passengers. This was 
 a business proposition of which we took advan- 
 tage. It was a short trip over a dusty road to 
 the village. On reaching it we were somewhat 
 surprised to see many of the party who had 
 walked from the station ready to return. There 
 are not over a dozen buildings in the place, the 
 principal one being occupied as the custom- 
 house and post office. It is rectangular, and 
 built around an open court in which also were 
 the stables The building is only one story in 
 
CALIFORNIA. 67 
 
 height, built of adobe, roofed with red tiles, and, 
 like the others, was whitewashed. 
 
 It being a national holiday the post-ofl5ce was 
 closed, and many of the party were disappointed 
 at not being able to send letters home from 
 Mexico. I^ike all the residents of southern 
 climes the post-master would not work on a 
 holiday for anybody, and, although we offered 
 him double price for postage stamps and cards, 
 he would not open the office and sell them to us. 
 In the room occupied by the collector of customs 
 was one of the officers busily engaged in stamp- 
 ing the national emblem of Mexico on cards and 
 handkerchiefs that the tourists had with them. 
 The only places to visit were the stores, and the 
 proprietors did a flourishing business in crude 
 pottery and rag figures made by the Indians. 
 As the time for departure drew near our loqua- 
 cious guide made his appearance from one of the 
 buildings where "meschal," the national bever- 
 age of the Mexicans, was sold. That he had in 
 the interim been sampling the seductive fluid 
 was evident. He had a number of bright Mexi- 
 can dollars in his hands which he solicited us to 
 purchase at the rate of one dollar and a half 
 each. He did not appear at all abashed when 
 we told him that we could buy them by the 
 
68 WONDERLAND. 
 
 bushel in New York at the rate of sixty-five 
 cents on the dollar. 
 /- On our return to the station we met several 
 persons selling the great Mexican dish, " fri- 
 joles." It was done up in corn-husks, and had 
 the appearance of hashed meat with a plentiful 
 supply of thick catsup. A look was sufl&cient — 
 a taste would have been fatal, we thought. As 
 we crossed the bridge the U. S. custom oificer 
 was there ready to seize any cigars or ' ' meschal ' ' 
 that the tourists had purchased in the village. 
 
 Before returning to San Diego we visited the 
 great Sweetwater dam. It is a solid wall of 
 masonry, ninety feet in height, and extends 
 from one mountain to the other, across a narrow 
 valley. It confines the winter flow of the Sweet- 
 water river, and forms a reservoir of over seven 
 hundred acres, holding enough water to supply 
 a city of 50,000 inhabitants. It is from this 
 reservoir that the water is supplied for the irri- 
 gating of the fruit ranches in the neighborhood 
 of San Diego. 
 
 Passing through National City we had a good 
 chance to see the evil eflfects of a " boom town." 
 All along the road between this city and San 
 Diego were houses in every stage of non-comple- 
 tion, which had been abandoned and left to the 
 
CALIFORNIA. 69 
 
 mercy of the elements. Rows of business houses, 
 completed with the exception of the roof, were 
 frequently seen. A few years ago, when southern 
 California was booming, there were over twenty 
 thousand people on the ground of National City. 
 Now there are not over two thousand, and most 
 of them would like to get away. 
 
 Arriving at the hotel we found the corridors 
 filled with a party of Raymond tourists, number- 
 ing over three hundred. Among them we met 
 some very pleasant people, and the acquaintance 
 was kept up with many of them until our stay in 
 the West was completed. It was our good for- 
 tune here to meet a relative of our family who 
 was spending the winter at San Diego, and we 
 arranged for a trip the next day up the San Diego j 
 valley to the old mission. 
 
 The morning dawned bright and clear, as all 
 mornings are in this balmy climate of southern 
 California. After a hearty breakfast we boarded 
 the cars which run from the hotel to the ferry, 
 and were soon across the bay and at the wharf at 
 San Diego, where our cousin, Mr. Lathan W. 
 Jones, was waiting with a span of spirited horses 
 to take us over to Oldtown and up the beautiful 
 San Diego valley to the old mission, after which 
 the valley was named. 
 
70 WONDERI^AND. 
 
 San Diego is beautifully situated on the side of 
 a gently sloping hill which faces the San Diego 
 bay, the finest deep-water harbor south of San 
 Francisco. Our course led us through the busi- 
 ness portion of the new town, or what is now 
 called San Diego. The old settlement is some 
 four miles back from the city of to day. The 
 streets were macadamized or laid with sheet as- 
 phaltum. Cable and horse cars were going in 
 every direction, but business seemed dead. The 
 town was trying to recuperate from the effects of • 
 a "busted boom." In 1887, when the "boom" 
 was at its height, over 60,000 people were on the 
 grounds, and land brought fabulous prices. The 
 country for miles in every direction was staked 
 out for building lots, which were readily pur- 
 chased by the excited arrivals from the Eastern 
 States. To-day there are not over 15,000 people 
 who might be called residents of the place. 
 When the collapse came everything seemed to 
 fall to pieces. A magnificent building, once the 
 quarters of a bank, is now used for the storage of 
 baled hay. The vice-president of the concern 
 had just finished a handsome brown-stone resi- 
 dence, built with funds of the bank, when the 
 crash came. He is now in Italy, where extra- 
 dition papers cannot be served on him to bring 
 
CAIvIFORNIA. 71 
 
 him back to this country. Public buildings and 
 school-houses were built on a grand scale, and 
 bonds floated in the East for the payment of 
 them. How these bonds will be met when they 
 come due is a problem that must be solved some- 
 time in the future. 
 
 The road led us around the brow of the hill 
 and along the grade of an abandoned motor rail- 
 road which had been built during the " boom," 
 and connected the city with a small hamlet on 
 False bay. The road never paid running ex- 
 penses, and the rails were taken out and sold for 
 old iron. We passed a number of very preten- 
 tious dwellings v/hich had never been occupied 
 and were rapidly going to decay. In several 
 instances the roofs had fallen in and the walls 
 were considerably out of plumb. 
 
 Reaching Oldtown, which was the place se- 
 lected by Father Junipero Serra in 1769 for the 
 first Roman Catholic mission in what is now Cal- 
 ifornia, we were attracted by the old adobe build- 
 ing which was once the fort, or presidio. It, like 
 most houses built in warm climates, is rectangu- 
 lar in form and opens on a court within. The 
 cells once occupied by the padres are rapidly 
 going to decay, and are now used as stables. 
 Some of the walls are about two feet in thick- 
 
72 WONDERLAND. 
 
 ness. One or two of the rooms not as yet appro- 
 priated for stabling purposes were covered with a 
 cheap wall-paper, evidently bought from some 
 of the trading vessels that used to coast along 
 these shores. After a good deal of hammering 
 and pulling, an old thumb latch from one of the 
 doors was secured to carry away as a memento of 
 the place. The building is only one story in 
 height and covered with red tiling. In front ot 
 the entrance is a row of pepper trees, affording a 
 delightful shade, and under which the old mis- 
 sionaries no doubt spent many pleasant hours. 
 It was in this building that Helen Hunt Jack- 
 son's " Ramona " is said to have been married. 
 
 Not far from the presidio is the little Catholic 
 chapel, in which are quite a number of antique 
 paintings and statuary. In the rear, hard by, 
 are two old bells taken from the ruins of the old 
 mission. They are hanging on a rough scaffold, 
 which corresponds with the surroundings very 
 well. They were brought from Spain over a 
 century ago, and have Latin inscriptions on 
 them. Their tone is sweet and low, and must 
 have pealed forth merrily when the marriage of 
 "Ramona" was celebrated. Adjoining the 
 chapel is the old burial-ground, surrounded by 
 an adobe wall about four feet in height, which 
 
CALIFORNIA. 73- 
 
 is covered with a roof made of red tile. There 
 was a deserted look about the place, and many of 
 the graves were overgrown with weeds. 
 
 Near the presidio is the old Kanaka Hotel, 
 which was the principal hostelry when San 
 Diego was the centre of the hide trade for this 
 part of the country. With the acquisition of 
 California by the United States, the discovery of 
 gold and the increased population, men drawn 
 hither in search of wealth who thought that the 
 Mexicans and Spaniards had no rights which 
 Americans were bound to respect, and looked 
 upon the herds of cattle belonging to the mis- 
 sions as theirs by right of conquest, killed many 
 of the cattle and appropriated them to their own 
 use. The mission never recovered from this in 
 road upon its resources, and from that time com- 
 menced to decline. The old tannery is still 
 there, but its business has sadly depreciated. 
 
 Not far from the neglected presidio are the 
 ruins of the first mission. Very little remains 
 of them, even of the foundation. The site is 
 guarded by two large date palm trees protected 
 by a neat whitewashed picket fence. These trees 
 were said to have been planted soon after the 
 mission was established, and are, consequently, 
 over one hundred years old. An old Mexican 
 6 
 
74 WONDERI.AND. 
 
 was working in the field near by and was asked 
 the course we should take to find the mission. 
 After giving us the information we desired, he 
 cautioned us to be particular as to where we 
 crossed the river, as there was a likelihood of 
 being caught in the quicksands which abound in 
 the rivers of this country. 
 
 The balmy air and the perfume from the many 
 flowers which grew in profusion on all sides 
 made the ride a most delightful one. The beau- 
 tiful saffron and the brilliant red blossoms of the 
 cactus were seen on all sides. Orange, fig and 
 apricot orchards were growing wherever the own- 
 ers could secure water for irrigation. 
 
 Noticing a gentleman approaching from the 
 direction of our course, and thinking that he was 
 a resident of the vicinity, from the fact that he 
 was carrying his coat on his arm and was pro- 
 ceeding along in a leisurely manner, we drew the 
 reins on our horses and stopped to inquire the 
 way. To our surprise we found him to be one of 
 our party who had started to walk to the mis- 
 sion, but was unable to cross the river and had 
 turned back. We invited him to a seat in our 
 carriage. 
 
 Some distance ahead of us was a carriage 
 going in the same direction as ourselves, so we 
 
CALIFORNIA. 75 
 
 gave rein to our horses and were soon up to 
 them. Remembering the caution of the Mexi- 
 can we let them lead the way, so that in case of 
 accident we would profit by their misfortune. 
 We had not gone very far when their driver 
 pulled to one side and got out and made some 
 motions as though repairing a break in the har- 
 ness, and let us pass. We were only a few rods 
 ahead of them when he jumped into the carriage 
 and drove after us. The ruse was successful. 
 He wanted us to lead and find the quicksands so 
 that he could profit by our example. 
 
 We forded the river without accident, pro- 
 ceeded up the road, and turning into a lane drove 
 up to the old mission. This was the second site 
 chosen by Father Junipero Serra, on account of 
 an uprising of the Indians, who destroyed the 
 first building at Oldtown. It is built on the 
 crown of a hill overlooking the valley of the San 
 Diego river. This commanding site was chosen 
 to guard against future surprises from the Indi- 
 ans, who were liable to rise up without warning 
 and take the good missionaries and torture them 
 in the most approved style of the Inquisition, 
 even going so far as to crucify a couple of them. 
 At one time there was a high wall surrounding 
 the entire mission, but the ravages of time and 
 
76 WONDERLAND. 
 
 weather have played havoc with it, and now 
 only a small portion of it is standing. The 
 chapel was used until quite recently, but late 
 earthquakes have thrown down most of the 
 walls. It has been the custom for some time 
 for the sojourners at San Diego and Coronado 
 to come out on excursions and use the chapel 
 for a dancing-pavilion. 
 
 Recently some sisters of the Roman Catholic 
 Church, through the co-operation of Miss Drexel, 
 secured sufficient money to construct a frame 
 building and established a school for Indian 
 children, to teach them some of the arts of civili- 
 zation and instill in their minds the elements of 
 the Roman Catholic faith. We were shown 
 through the entire building, from the kitchen to 
 the dormitories, and noticed the particular pains 
 taken to keep things neat and clean. It was 
 recess, and most of the children were out in the 
 yard playing. There were a number of half- 
 breeds among them, and one or two in particular 
 had unmistakable traces of African blood in their 
 veins. The pure-blooded Indians had straight, 
 raven-black hair, while those mixed with Cau- 
 casian blood had hair wavy and of a lighter 
 shade. Those with African blood coursing in 
 
CAI.IFORNIA. 77 
 
 their veins were easily distinguished by the 
 unmistakable sign— kinky hair. 
 
 At the base of the hill and along the river is 
 a large olive orchard planted by the missionaries, 
 and although over one hundred years old it still 
 yields abundantly. The presses used by the 
 padres for making the oil are there yet, but are 
 idle, as there is an olive-oil factory in San Diego, 
 where all the latest machinery is used, and the 
 expense and labor required does not permit of 
 the old methods. 
 
 We spent over an hour wandering around the 
 place, and were loth to leave, as the associations 
 were of peculiar interest and kept us putting off 
 the moment of departure as long as possible. 
 
 Returning, our course led us down the valley 
 and up a steep road to University Heights, where 
 a pavilion had been erected and the grounds 
 surrounding it laid out in flowers. In the basin 
 of a fountain some of us saw for the first time 
 the pink and purple water-lily. They are much 
 larger than the white lily, and fully five inches 
 in diameter. While waiting in the restaurant 
 connected with the place several of our friends 
 came in and a pleasant time was spent on the 
 piazzas which overlooked the valley on one side 
 and the city of San Diego on the other. This 
 
78 WONDERLAND. 
 
 part of the city was laid out for the principal 
 resident portion, and many pretentious dwellings 
 were erected. Some are vacant, and almost every 
 one is for sale. 
 
 When returning to the carriage we killed an 
 immense tarantula which was seen moving along 
 on the ground between the wheels of the carriage 
 and over which the ladies had stepped on enter- 
 ing the conveyance. They afterwards declared 
 that it caused a shudder every time they 
 thought of how close they had been to the 
 uncanny thing. 
 
 As we were driving back, our attention was 
 directed to a gentleman who had come here with 
 the expectation of building a fine residence and 
 making it his permanent home. He bought 
 several lots, deposited the balance of his cash 
 (some $30,000) in the bank, and started to build. 
 He first completed his stable, and was getting 
 ready to start the dwelling when the crash came, 
 and the bank in which his money was deposited 
 went with the rest. Instead of completing his 
 residence he finished up a few rooms in his stable 
 and made that his home. 
 
 In time San Diego will recover from its set- 
 back, but it will be a long time. It will no 
 doubt continue to be a resort for people in search 
 
CALIFORNIA. 79 
 
 of an equable climate, for no pleasanter nor more 
 healthful place can be found in the country. 
 The air seems to impart everything that the 
 system requires For people having weak lungs 
 a climate better adapted to their requirements 
 cannot be found. ,^ 
 
 It was with many regrets that we repacked 
 our valises and trunks preparatory to departure 
 from our home-like quarters at the Coronado 
 Hotel. The beautiful gardens that surround it 
 on all sides will long be remembered, as well 
 as the wonderful collection of cacti in the "Ar- 
 izona " garden. Pleasant walks along the beach 
 and on the hotel piazzas, where we drank in the 
 health-giving ozone, will be looked back to with 
 a great deal of pleasure. The evening hours 
 passed in our rocking-chairs watching the alter- 
 nate flashes of the red and white light of Point 
 lyomo light-house, some eight miles to the north, 
 at the entrance of San Diego Bay, will often be 
 recalled when the mind is at rest from the cares 
 of business, and the incidents of ' ' Our Trip to 
 California" are brought to memory. 
 
 At last the day came when we were to bid 
 good-bye to some of our friends and commence 
 to retrace our steps. Of the nineteen of our 
 party who left San Francisco and came to San 
 
So WONfDERLA.ND. 
 
 Diego, only thirteen met in the waiting-room of 
 the neat railroad station of the latter place. Our 
 baggage having been looked after, we were soon 
 on the train with our faces to the north. Out of 
 San Diego and past Oldtown the train carried us 
 through a country rich in romance and story, but 
 prosy enough as one looked out of the car win- 
 dows. Many small stations with pretty Spanish 
 names were passed. At each stop our attention 
 was drawn to the profusion of flowers that were 
 blooming in the yards along the railroad and at 
 the grounds surrounding the stations. 
 
 At Orange we changed cars to make a circuit- 
 ous trip through the district almost entirely de- 
 voted to orange culture. Irrigating canals were 
 seen in all directions, and the train passed 
 through numerous orange groves. The golden 
 fruit hanging in clusters, with a background of 
 dark green, made a beautiful picture. At almost 
 €very station were large packing-houses where 
 the fruit was brought in, sorted, packed and 
 shipped to the markets. 
 
 Riverside is the centre of the orange market, 
 and is a city whose limits cover about twenty- 
 five thousand acres. The town proper has about 
 three thousand inhabitants. Most of the shade 
 trees are either orange or lemon. The principal 
 
CALIFORNIA, 8l 
 
 Street is Magnolia avenue. It is the finest drive- 
 way in southern California. For more than eight 
 miles both sides are shaded with eucalyptus, 
 palm or magnolia trees, while the ranches on 
 either side are devoted to lemon, orange, fig or 
 grape culture. Our stay in Riverside was neces- 
 sarily short, as we wished to reach Los Angeles 
 early in the evening. Between the two cities are 
 many thriving towns, as the buildings plainly 
 show, The country is fertile, and only needs 
 the water that is supplied by the irrigating 
 ditches to make the greatest returns. The 
 southern slope of all the mountains is devoted 
 to raising grapes, from which the wine and 
 raisins of California are produced. 
 
 It was after dusk when we arrived at L,os 
 Angeles, "The City of the Angels." Making 
 Hotel Westminster our headquarters, we began 
 planning our excursions to the surrounding re- 
 sorts and places of interest. 
 
 Los Angeles, or to give it its full Spanish title. 
 La Puebla de la Reina de les Angeles, literally 
 the town of the Queen of the Angels, was set- 
 tled in 1 78 1. It is situated on the western slope 
 of the coast range of southern California, and 
 protected as it is from the chilling blasts of the 
 Rocky Mountains, has a climate that invites one 
 
8r WOKDERLAND. 
 
 to tarry long within its bounds. The old adobe 
 huts have disappeared before the brick and stone 
 residences of modern times. The only thing to 
 remind one of the ancient Spanish ownership is 
 the old mission. It is located in that portion of 
 the town which was formerly the central part, 
 and faces an open plaza or park. The building 
 is still in use and is in a fair state of preservation. 
 The grounds surrounding it are enclosed by a 
 high wall built of adobe. It is in the midst of a 
 busy city, and stands as a memento of Spanish 
 occupation. 
 
 The climate of the city being semi-tropical, 
 most of the tropical plants are to be seen within 
 the lawns which surround the palatial residences, 
 and even in the front yards of the less imposing 
 dwellings. If it was a fit place for the Queen of 
 the Angels in 1781, it is certainly no less inviting 
 now. It is a resort for people afflicted with lung 
 troubles, and many, after staying here for several 
 years, are to all appearances cured. 
 
 The city is well supplied with hotels and 
 boarding-houses, and one can live remarkably 
 cheap. If a person of limited means should go 
 there it would be best to secure a room in a pri- 
 vate family and procure meals at one of the 
 many restaurants which can be found in the 
 
CALIFORNIA. 83 
 
 city. Most of the hotels are kept on the Euro- 
 pean plan, but our company uniformly chose the 
 American plan when practicable. Hotel West- 
 minster is the leading hotel of the latter class, 
 and the proprietor, Mr. Johnson, is especially ac- 
 commodating to all of his guests. It is centrally 
 located, being not more than one square from 
 any of the street-car lines which traverse the city 
 in every direction. The writer has no hesitancy 
 in recommending this hotel to any one who may 
 peruse these pages. 
 
 The day following our arrival was Sunday, 
 and was passed as a day of rest. We attended 
 church in the morning, and the afternoon was 
 consumed in writing letters to distant friends. 
 In the evening, while out walking, we met some 
 friends who had moved from the East and were 
 living in the city. They had come to California 
 for their health and were so well pleased with 
 the climate that they had concluded to remain 
 at Los Angeles and make it their permanent 
 home. 
 
 Monday morning was spent in driving and 
 visiting the several parks that belong to the city. 
 The avenues are nearly all paved with sheet 
 asphaltum, and are kept neat and clean. In the 
 lawns and door-yards of the residences flowers 
 
84 WONDERLAND. 
 
 of every description bloom in luxuriance. In 
 several instances there were no fences on the 
 street-line, a hedge of calla-lilies answering the 
 purpose. Geraniums and other hardy plants 
 were frequently made to answer the purpose of 
 hedges. Eucalyptus and pepper are the principal 
 shade-trees. Some of the private grounds are 
 veritable fairy bowers, and seem to invite one 
 to remain within their bounds. Man)^ of the 
 owners have signs inviting strangers to walk in 
 and enjoy what they can of the place. In order 
 to get an early start in the afternoon, we 
 returned to the hotel in time to get a lunch. 
 A carriage having been secured, we started for 
 an afternoon drive to Pasadena and through the 
 San Gabriel Valley. 
 
 Pasadena, although ten miles from I^os An- 
 geles, is connected with it by an avenue about 
 one hundred feet wide, and lined with groves of 
 orange and lemon trees Many handsome villas, 
 with their well-kept lawns, are to be seen on 
 either side of the drive. Passing an orange 
 grove, our driver jumped over the fence and 
 brought an armload of the golden fruit to us. 
 The owners never object to any one helping 
 themselves, as there are frequently more oranges 
 than can be gathered. As we entered Pasadena 
 
CALIFORNIA. 85 
 
 the orange groves gave way to magnificent 
 lawns in which are growing almost every known 
 tropical and semi-tropical plant. The central 
 portion of the town is well equipped with hand- 
 some business houses, banks and an opera house. 
 Passing through the city and out along avenues 
 shaded with the stately eucalyptus trees, we 
 climbed the hill to the Raymond Hotel, where 
 the Raymond and Whitcomb tourists make their 
 headquarters while in this section of California. 
 It is situated on the top of a hill overlooking 
 the entire San Gabriel Valley, and is approached 
 by a winding road, both sides of which are lined 
 with roses and flowers of every description. The 
 season having ended, the hotel was closed when 
 we arrived there, and after enjoying for a time 
 the balmy air and beautiful view we drove on. 
 
 San Gabriel is a small settlement clustered 
 around one of the old missions with which 
 southern California was plentifully supplied. 
 The village is distinctly Mexican in appearance 
 and characteristics, and each person whom we 
 asked for information shook his head and gave 
 us to understand that he could not speak the 
 English language. Driving up to the entrance 
 of the mission the driver tried the door, but it 
 was locked. He then went to the priest's resi- 
 
86 WONDERI.AND. 
 
 dence, which adjoins the mission, and presently 
 the doors were swung open and there stood a 
 little, dried-up Spanish woman, who handed us 
 a small paper written in English, stating that 
 no one was to be admitted for less than twenty - 
 five cents. Whenever we would ask for informa- 
 tion concerning the mission and the founding of 
 it she would shake her head and mutter 
 something in Spanish which we could not 
 understand. After looking at the old pictures 
 and statuary we took our places in the carriage, 
 when an old cripple came up and presented a 
 paper stating that he had a figure of the Virgin 
 and some sacred relics in his house, and inviting 
 us to come and see them. Dropping a piece 
 of silver in his hand he took off his hat, and, 
 making a very profound bow, repeated, " Mucha 
 gracio, seiior," to which we replied "Adio," 
 and drove off. 
 
 The entire village is constructed of adobe, and 
 presents a very picturesque scene. The mission 
 building is in a good state of preservation, and 
 services are held within its sacred walls. The 
 streets are narrow, and most of the houses are 
 built on the line of the street. The ruins of the 
 old presidio will soon be gone, as the ground 
 upon which they stand is too valuable to remain 
 
CALIFORNIA. 
 
 87 
 
 unproductive. The belfry adjoining the mission 
 has a chime of four bells, and they peal out on 
 the evening air the curfew which calls the faith- 
 
 IJeU Tower, San Gal)riel Mission. 
 
 ful to offer up their evening prayers for the dying 
 day. The bells are hung in separate niches, and 
 the rope is attached to the clapper of each bell. 
 
88 WONDERLAND. 
 
 The mission was founded in 1804, and had al- 
 most fallen into decay when a few years since it 
 was restored by putting in new arches to support 
 a new roof. The pepper trees, which appear to 
 have been the favorite shade with the padres, are 
 found at the entrance of the building. 
 
 On our return to I,os Angeles we visited the 
 San Gabriel Winery and walked through the cel- 
 lars in which are stored hundreds of thousands 
 of gallons of wine. One cask alone holds fifty 
 thousand gallons. We were all invited to taste 
 the products of the grape, and all partook ex- 
 cepting the temperance contingent of the party. 
 This valley, named after the patron saint of the 
 mission, San Gabriel, is the best adapted to the 
 wine grape culture of any in California, and the 
 vineyards cover an immense area. 
 
 Returning to the hotel, we were somewhat sur- 
 prised to meet a large party of the Raymond 
 excursionists whom we had left in San Diego. 
 They were on their way to the Yosemite Valley, 
 and were stopping for the night in Los Angeles. 
 
 The following morning was devoted to shop- 
 ping by the ladies of the party, while the gentle- 
 men arranged their finances by getting drafts 
 cashed and drawing upon their letters of credit. 
 
CALIFORNIA. 89 
 
 It was a pleasant afternoon when our party, 
 now reduced to eleven, took their seats in the 
 car and were once more seeking new provinces to 
 explore. We were soon rolling out of Los An- 
 geles over a country which but a few years since 
 was used for sheep herding, and in some places 
 was a sandy waste, but which is now blooming 
 with flowers and fragrant with orange blossoms. 
 
 We followed the main line of the railroad until 
 a small station named Saugus was reached, 
 where we branched off and entered the fertile 
 valley of Santa Clara of the South. The rail- 
 road follows the river most of the way, excepting 
 where the road makes a short cut across the 
 valley and the river makes a long detour. On 
 either side are the mountains, which rear them- 
 selves high into the clouds and form natural bar- 
 riers to the cold winds from the Rockies, and 
 also protect the valley from the storms from the 
 Pacific ocean. The clouds lay like banks of 
 snow against the mountains and seemed to 
 temper the air and make it cool and balmy. 
 
 It was our fortune to meet a gentleman on 
 the train who was acquainted with every point 
 of interest along the road. To him we were 
 very much indebted for the pleasant afternoon 
 passed while riding along this beautiful valley. 
 7 
 
90 WONDERI.AND. 
 
 He called our attention to many points of inter- 
 est, which would have been passed unnoticed had 
 it not been for him. Before we reached Camu- 
 los he pointed out the house described by Mrs. 
 Helen Hunt Jackson as the home of " Ramona." 
 The house is surrounded by a large orange 
 grove, adjacent to which is a large olive orch- 
 ard. The Santa Clara river flows through the 
 ranch, and on its banks are clumps of willows 
 and groves of wide spreading sycamores. It is 
 no wonder that the scene of "Ramona" is laid 
 in this beautiful valley, as it combines every ele- 
 ment that could be desired for a book of the 
 character of Mrs. Jackson's works. 
 
 Leaving the scenes of "Ramona," we soon 
 entei a country which reminds one of the oil 
 regions of Pennsylvania, but upon a much 
 smaller scale. The principal oil-wells are some 
 distance from the railroad, although most of the 
 large tanks are located along the road, the oil 
 being piped from the wells a few miles out in 
 the mountains. 
 
 The whole valley of Santa Clara is rich and 
 fertile, and will produce anything that grows 
 in the way of fruits, grain and vegetables. We 
 passed through one ranch where over two thou- 
 sand acres were devoted to the raising of beans. 
 
CAUPORNIA. 91 
 
 It would be a paradise to New Knglanders who 
 wish to escape the wintry blasts from the bleak 
 shores of their native clime, as here they could 
 revel in their favorite dish — baked beans. At 
 several stations were large warehouses in which 
 beans were stored like wheat in our own country. 
 
 At San Buenaventura, or, as the brakeman 
 called it, "Ventura," the road leaves the valley 
 and runs along the beach, and the green waters 
 of the Pacific ocean roll up to the rock ballast 
 of the road-bed. The pleasant ocean breeze was 
 wafted through the cars, and, tempered by the 
 balmy air from the valley, made us wish that 
 we could stop and take up our abode in this 
 part of California, where, according to reports, 
 no one ever dies. When they wish to be trans- 
 lated they move to some Eastern State and 
 there lie down and die. 
 
 It was about six o'clock when we reached 
 the station at Santa Barbara. A short ride in 
 the omnibus took us to the Arlington Hotel, 
 where we were shown our rooms, and after 
 changing our dusty linen for some fresh and 
 clean we were ready for the dinner which was 
 prepared for us. After partaking of the evening 
 meal those of us who felt like it went out for 
 a walk through the resident portion of the place. 
 
92 WONDERIvAND. 
 
 Like all cities of southern California, tropical 
 plants of every description were growing in the 
 lawns and front yards of every dwelling. In 
 the lawn surrounding the hotel was a large rose- 
 bush reaching to the top of the four-story annex 
 of the hotel. There must have been a wagon- 
 load of roses on it. It covered a tree which grew 
 near the piazza, and gave it the appearance of 
 an immense mound of roses. 
 
 In the morning, after visiting most of the 
 novelty stores, including those kept by the Chi- 
 nese, we took a street-car and rode to the old 
 mission at the foot-hills of the Santa Ynez Moun- 
 tains, some two or three miles back from the 
 present city of Santa Barbara. After riding as 
 far as the cars went, we had to walk about a 
 mile before reaching the object of our visit. 
 
 The mission of Santa Barbara is without doubt 
 the best preserved of the many missions estab- 
 lished along the coast of California, reaching 
 from San Francisco on the north to the Mexican 
 boundary on the south. The date of the found- 
 ing of the mission is December 4th, 1786, 
 although Father Junipero Serra had established 
 a sort of military post on the same site some two 
 years previous. It was on the day of the cele- 
 bration of the feast of Santa Barbara that the 
 
CALIFORNIA. 93 
 
 mission was founded and the cross raised. Like 
 all the missions established in this part of the 
 country, it received grants from Spain of all the 
 best land in the vicinity, and by trading with 
 the vessels that cruised along this coast in after 
 years became very wealthy. Its greatest pros- 
 perity was reached in 1812, when the government 
 of Spain, becoming impoverished by its excesses, 
 commenced making demands upon the wealthy 
 missions of this coast, and Santa Barbara was 
 not missed. It then commenced to decline. The 
 withdrawal of the protection of the military by 
 the Mexican government hastened the downfall 
 of this particular mission. 
 
 At the entrance to the plaza in front of the 
 mission is the old fountain erected by the Fran- 
 ciscan Fathers during the palmy days of their 
 existence. The front of the building once occu- 
 pied by the Fathers is ornamented with a row 
 of columns surmounted by arches which extend 
 the whole length of the building. Back of the 
 pillars is an open corridor with flag flooring. 
 We mounted the steps and were soon within 
 the cool shade, and seating ourselves upon the 
 wooden benches that were placed along the wall 
 we looked far out on the mild Pacific ocean, and 
 then at the town of Santa Barbara at our feet. 
 
94 WONDERLAND. 
 
 We walked through the corridor to the entrance 
 of the church, and, pushing open the ponderous 
 oaken doors, entered. After walking up and 
 down the aisles and looking at pictures, all of 
 which were painted by Indians, we returned to 
 the corridor. Going to one of the doors we 
 pulled the bell, which was answered by an old 
 monk dressed in hassock and cowl, who invited 
 us into the reception-room, where we were 
 requested to register our names. The monk 
 refuted with some emphasis the implication that 
 he was a Mexican. He said that there were 
 none of them in the building. We were unable 
 to go through the compartments and look into 
 the cells, as the rest of the monks were at their 
 devotions and could not be disturbed. After 
 trying to get some information as to the sur- 
 roundings and history of the place we returned 
 to the city. We had intended going to see the 
 mammoth grape-vine, but on account of a mis- 
 understanding as to the time ot starting, the visit 
 was deferred. 
 
 The return to Los Angeles was without inci- 
 dent, excepting that we stopped for luncheon at 
 one of the restaurants and bought some sand- 
 wiches which we were unable to eat. But this 
 was not owing to poor appetites, as each member 
 
CALIFORNIA. 95 
 
 of our party can testify to. At Saugus our com- 
 pany was further decreased by three, who left the 
 train and proceeded to San Francisco, while we 
 returned to Los Angeles. 
 
 It was quite late in the evening when we ar- 
 rived at lyOS Angeles, and upon reaching the 
 hotel were somewhat surprised to meet three of 
 our party whom we had left in San Francisco in 
 the early part of the month. They had visited a 
 number of the points of interest in and around 
 the latter city, and were now commencing on the 
 resorts in the southern part of the State. As 
 they were to return East by one of the southern 
 routes, it was necessary that they should visit 
 the points of interest in the upper part of the 
 State before coming south. Having several days 
 to remain in the vicinity of Los Angeles we in- 
 vited them to join our party, which they did. 
 The evening was pleasantly spent in relating 
 experiences which had happened since we had 
 separated. Nearly every one had from one to 
 three stories to relate, and the consequence was 
 that it was very late before we retired. 
 
 Having decided to visit Redondo Beach the 
 next morning, all were ready at an early hour to 
 take the first train leaving Los Angeles for the 
 beach. We were all at the station some time 
 
96 WONDERLAND. 
 
 before the train was ready to start, and the gate- 
 man very kindly allowed us to get into the cars 
 in order that we might escape the jam that al- 
 ways occurs at the gates. 
 
 The country through which we passed was a 
 succession of orange groves and orchards, and 
 occasionally a long strip of uncultivated country. 
 At many of the stations were the packing-houses 
 for oranges, and wherever we stopped the oranges 
 were free and we helped ourselves most industri- 
 ously. 
 
 Arriving at Redondo Beach we proceeded at 
 once to the hotel, the principal building in the 
 place. It is built upon the bluff and overlooks 
 the entire bay. It is a new house, and is fur- 
 nished completely with all the modern con- 
 veniences. While we were waiting for our lunch 
 the manager showed us through the building and 
 took us into the ball-room, which was very pret- 
 tily decorated with flags and tropical plants. 
 The furniture of all the bed-rooms was new, and 
 had Redondo consisted of anything but a few 
 houses and the hotel we should have been 
 tempted to remain there a few days to breathe in 
 the health-giving air which came uncontami- 
 nated from the ocean. In front of the hotel, and 
 reaching to the plaza at the foot of the blufif, 
 
CALIFORNIA. 97 
 
 were numerous beds of flowers of every variety, 
 blooming in luxuriance. Back of the hotel was 
 the menagerie, at this time containing only a 
 playful bear. As there was some time to spare 
 before luncheon was served, it was employed in 
 walking along the beach and visiting the bath- 
 ing grounds. The bath-houses have been erected 
 so that they will not obstruct the view from the 
 piazzas, which extend along the entire front of 
 the hotel. The bay is a beautiful sheet of water, 
 though at this time there was considerable sea- 
 weed floating on its surface. The temperature of 
 the water being quite low, none of us were 
 tempted to take a "plunge." 
 
 After lunch, and before train-time, we amused 
 ourselves hunting up souvenirs and watching the 
 youngsters fishing on the pier adjoining the rail- 
 road station. One of the employes connected 
 with the pier had captured a small seal and 
 placed it in a tank on the pier. A windmill had 
 been erected and was kept going constantly, 
 pumping water from the bay into the tank. 
 The seal had become quite tame and would 
 come to the surface when called. He went by 
 the name of "Jack," and was quite playful. 
 The boys would bring him fish occasionally. 
 
98 WONDERI.AND. 
 
 which he would devour with the greatest satis- 
 faction. 
 
 Returning to Los Angeles, which we reached 
 early in the afternoon, we ascertained that we 
 could easily make the trip to Santa Monica 
 before supper-time. We did not have to wait 
 very long before the train started, and we were 
 once more passing through orange groves, orch- 
 ards and vineyards, and past pretty stations 
 which seemed almost embowered in flowers. It 
 was early in the evening when the train pulled 
 into the station at Santa Monica, and it was 
 only a short drive to the hotel, built upon a 
 blufi" overlooking the beautiful bay of Santa 
 Monica. Our rooms were on the bay side, and 
 the constant splash and moan of the waves dis- 
 turbed us somewhat, but before midnight we 
 had become used to it and enjoyed a pleasant 
 sleep. Like all hotels in this part of the country 
 the grounds surrounding it were tastefully laid 
 ofif in lawns and flower-beds, and at each meal 
 a fresh bouquet was placed on our table. 
 
 At breakfast it was decided to visit the ostrich 
 farm, some two or three miles from the hotel. 
 The most direct communication being by horse- 
 car, we all boarded one that passed the door. 
 The ride was a pleasant one, the open cars 
 
CAI.IFORNIA. 99 
 
 enabling us to drink in the balmy air, tempered 
 as it was with a slight breeze from the bay. 
 Every breath seemed to give a new lease on life, 
 and the ride was over before we could fully 
 realize it. 
 
 Arriving at the farm, which is enclosed with 
 a high board-fence, the keeper met us at the 
 gate and admitted us to the enclosure. Of course 
 our attention was first given to the ostriches, of 
 which there must have been at least three dozen 
 inside the pens. They are ungainly birds, but 
 very curious to observe and study. At our 
 request the keeper gave them something to eat, 
 which consisted of cabbage or cauliflower cut 
 into small pieces. They would gather into their 
 mouths a mass about as large as a man's fist 
 and then swallow it. This big lump would 
 move slowly down the long neck of the ostrich 
 until it would disappear in the body. They 
 were especially fond of bright things, and several 
 of our party came near losing watch-charms and 
 ear-rings, which the big birds would snap at. 
 There is a store connected with the farm, where 
 feathers, fans and eggs can be bought. Some of 
 the party invested quite heavily in feathers and 
 fans. In addition to the ostriches there is quite 
 a menagerie connected with the place. There 
 
lOO WONDERIyAND. 
 
 are a number of monkeys, badgers, bears, par- 
 rots, and one wildcat. The keeper informed us 
 that there was at one time a great many more 
 ostriches on the farm, but they had been scat- 
 tered around at a number of resorts where they 
 were placed on exhibition, as that paid a great 
 deal better than the feathers alone. All eggs are 
 hatched in an incubator at one of the ranches 
 in the interior of the State, where the young 
 birds are kept until they are able to withstand 
 the damp winds that sometimes come from the 
 ocean. After remaining some time — probably 
 two hours — within the enclosure, we again 
 boarded a street car and returned to the hotel. 
 Having plenty of time to spare before lunch, 
 we went shopping and returned with our arms 
 and hands full of souvenirs and curiosities. 
 There being six ladies in the party, one can 
 readily imagine how long it took to purchase 
 these packages. On our return to the hotel we 
 walked along the ocean-drive, a beautiful avenue 
 which runs along the bluff overlooking the bay. 
 On the side adjoining the cliflf are magnificent 
 groves of eucalyptus and other tropical trees, 
 while scattered here and there are small pavilions 
 and also a large stand where the band from the 
 Soldiers' Home plays on certain evenings. On 
 
CALIFORNIA. lOI 
 
 the Opposite side of the avenue are the residences 
 of the wealthy inhabitants of the town. 
 
 Noticing a great number of old men in vet- 
 erans' clothes, we ascertained that the California 
 Soldiers' Home was located about three miles 
 from the city, and we concluded to visit it during 
 the afternoon. 
 
 After dinner we secured a carriage and started 
 for the Santa Monica canon. It was a pleasant 
 drive through avenues of eucalyptus trees and 
 past fields ripe with waving grain waiting for the 
 reapers to harvest. Going out past the Soldiers' 
 Home and up a road which led through an im- 
 mense wheat-field we soon reached one of the 
 entrances to the canon. Driving down the steep 
 road into the valley we were soon in a romantic 
 glen, with almost impenetrable thickets of flow- 
 ers on either side of the narrow road. A little 
 further up was an opening and the small cabin of 
 a sheep-herder. There was no one at home, as 
 the occupant had driven his flock further up the 
 canon, and it was too early to return for the 
 night. We drove several miles further up the 
 canon, but found that we would not be able to 
 reach the finest part of it and return in time to 
 catch the last train for Los Angeles, so we 
 turned about and started back. As we passed 
 
I02 WONDERLAND. 
 
 along we gathered several large bouquets and 
 carried them to the station to take away with us. 
 Upon going to the hotel and settling our bills we 
 were presented by the proprietor's wife with a 
 large bouquet which she had plucked from an 
 immense rose-bush that grew at the edge of the 
 piazza. 
 
 We very much desired to remain longer at this 
 resort, but our time was getting short, and we 
 felt impelled to make our way to San Francisco 
 in order to secure passage with some friends who 
 had determined upon taking the trip to Alaska 
 before returning to the East. By the time the 
 train was made up we were in our places facing 
 towards Los Angeles. 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY. 1 03 
 
 Chapter HI. 
 
 yOSEMIfPE UALLEY. 
 
 Tt was Friday afternoon when we returned to 
 L,os Angeles for the last time. After a confer- 
 ence with the remaining members of our party it 
 was decided to remain in the city until Monday 
 afternoon, when we would start for the Yosemite 
 Valley. Our party had now dwindled to eight, 
 and it seemed probable that we should keep to- 
 gether, Saturday was spent in revisiting the 
 pleasure-grounds and parks of the city and pur- 
 chasing souvenirs. While engaged in the latter 
 occupation we were most agreeably surprised to 
 meet one of the chaperons of the Pennsylvania 
 railroad who had made the trip overland with us. 
 She was to remain in southern California much 
 longer than we could, and in all likelihood would 
 spend the entire summer on the Pacific coast 
 Sunday was passed as a day of rest, and we en- 
 joyed every minute of it. In the evening some 
 friends came in and made us the last calls and 
 gave us messages to carry to their friends in the 
 Kast. 
 
 Monday was a busy day. The morning was 
 
I04 WONDERLAND. 
 
 devoted to repacking our trunks and securing 
 tickets for sleeping car berths and seats in the 
 stages going into the Yosemite Valley. They 
 had all been ordered Friday evening, but it was 
 uncertain that we could secure Pullman accom- 
 modations on account of the great number of 
 delegates going to a Democratic State convention 
 to be held at Fresno, a station some distance up 
 the road. 
 
 Having bade good-bye to those of our party 
 who were to go further south, and a number of 
 friends who had called upon us, we were ready 
 to start. At two o'clock in the afternoon v/e 
 were all seated in the Pullman car waiting for 
 the train to pull out of the station. The train 
 was a very heavy one, there being twelve cars 
 attached to the engine Six of them were sleep- 
 ing-cars and the balance were either day-coaches 
 or heavily loaded baggage-cars. We moved 
 slowly out of the station, but were soon out- 
 side the city limits and going at a fair rate of 
 speed lyooking out of the car windows we 
 bade farewell to Los Angeles, the "City of the 
 Angels," and wondered if it would be our pleas- 
 ure once more to visit its blooming gardens and 
 pleasant drives, and to mingle with scenes and 
 associations that had become very dear to us. 
 
YOSEMITE VAI^LEY. 105 
 
 We next entered the San Fernando Valley 
 and passed through orange groves and olive 
 orchards almost innumerable. Soon we noticed 
 the train beginning to slacken its speed, and it 
 was evident that we were ascending a grade. 
 We climbed the San Fernando Mountains until 
 we reached the tunnel, where as we entered we 
 took the last look at the fertile fields and groves 
 of the San Fernando Valley, The train, having 
 passed the highest point, now began the descent, 
 and our speed was perceptibly increased. At 
 Saugus the cars, filled with passengers for 
 Santa Barbara, were switched off and another 
 Pullman sleeper loaded with Raymond excur- 
 sionists was taken on. We followed the course 
 of the Santa Clara river for quite a distance, 
 until we entered the Soledad Pass. 
 
 Emerging from the Soledad Pass we entered 
 the Mojave Desert. Having heard so much 
 about the giant cactus or Yucca palm, which 
 grows to a great height in this desert, the pros- 
 pect on entering was more pleasing than when 
 we crossed the desert from Ogden to the Hum- 
 boldt Sinks in Nevada. These cacti grow to 
 the size of trees, and with their club-like limbs, 
 devoid of leaves, remind one of an immense 
 forest recently swept with fire. An English 
 
I05 WONDERLAND. 
 
 company started a plant to manufacture paper 
 from the fibre of this palm. The experiment 
 had not been a success financially, and the plant 
 was abandoned. Another interesting feature 
 was the buttes which rise from the desert on 
 all sides. They are isolated hills, varying from 
 two hundred to five hundred feet in height. 
 Their sides are cut and grooved as if torrents 
 of water had rushed down them. Unbidding 
 as it seemed to us, there were yet several small 
 villages and towns scattered along the line of 
 the road. What they were there for, or what 
 could induce any one to settle in this country, 
 is hard to determine. The water which they use 
 must be brought in pipes or ditches from the 
 mountains, miles distant. Some of the homes 
 looked cheerful and inviting, but it will probably 
 never be known why men settle in a country 
 where it never rains and where the storms are 
 sand-clouds. We passed Mojave and commenced 
 the ascent of another range of mountains. As it 
 was night, we were unable to see the loop of the 
 Tehachapi Pass, where the road in making the 
 descent of the mountains runs under its own 
 tracks. 
 
 Most of the passengers in our car were dele- 
 gates to the convention, and no sooner had the 
 
YOSEMITE VAIvIvEY. I07 
 
 train left Los Angeles than they settled down for 
 a good time. The porter brought in tables, and 
 soon several games of poker were progressing 
 finely. The stakes were not high, as they played 
 what they told me was ' ' a quarter limit. ' ' They 
 had a plentiful supply of wine and beer in the 
 smoking-room, and the porter was kept busy car- 
 rying cold beer and wine from the ice-chest to 
 the players. Notwithstanding the lively absorp- 
 tion of liquors, none of the men became intoxi- 
 cated. 
 
 In addition to the delegates there were two 
 ladies going to Marysville, a city some distance 
 north of San Francisco, on the road to Portland, 
 One of them was the mother of two very inter- 
 esting little children, who accompanied her. The 
 children, a boy and a girl, took a great fancy to 
 the writer, and persisted in destroying several 
 beautiful bouquets in order that they might 
 decorate him to their fancy. They wove wreaths 
 for his hair, decorated his face with flowers, and 
 in other ways amused themselves at his expense. 
 They were especially bright children, and it was 
 a pleasure to have them around. At first the 
 mother was fearful that their actions might seem 
 rude, but soon both she and her sister offered 
 some suggestions as to the manner of placing 
 
I08 WONDERI.AND, 
 
 the flowers in order to bring out the best eflfect. 
 It was one of the most enjoyable afternoons 
 spent while on the trip, and v/hen the little tots 
 retired for the night they expressed a reluctant 
 good-bye and gave their willing subject a cordial 
 invitation to stop off at their home and pay them 
 a visit. We retired early, as we were expecting 
 to be called at three o'clock in order to change 
 cars at Berenda and proceed to the Yosemite 
 Valley. 
 
 We were all soundly sleeping when, at mid- 
 night, the train came to a sudden standstill and 
 almost threw us out of our berths. The dele- 
 gates, however, slept soundly through it, as none 
 of their heads were sticking out from the cur- 
 tains of the berths wanting to know what had 
 happened. When the porter came through the 
 car we ascertained that the engine had broken 
 down and it was a matter of conjecture as to 
 when we would start. We were jerked about for 
 a considerable time, but the engine was unable 
 to pull the train, and a brakeman was sent back 
 nine miles to the first station to telegraph for an- 
 other engine. We tried to sleep, but the engine 
 kept up a continual puffing and snorting until 
 finally it was decided to send our disabled engine 
 ahead with the baggage-cars and leave the pas- 
 
YOSKMITE VALLEY. IO9 
 
 sengers to be brought along by the extra, which 
 would arrive some time later. We then dozed off 
 and slept until the gray streaks of dawn had 
 made their appearance above the mountains. 
 
 Going out on the platform, it was ascertained 
 that we were in one of those valleys of southern 
 California where not a tree of any sort can be 
 seen except around the homes of the farmers 
 who have brought them from some nursery and 
 kept them alive by irrigation. Not far from the 
 railroad was a large irrigating ditch which sup- 
 plied the adjacent ranches. The water was 
 brought from some reservoir up in the moun- 
 tains, where the melting snow was stored and 
 then distributed by the canals to the ranches 
 along its course. 
 
 It was not long before the delegates began to 
 appear, and the time that elapsed before the arri- 
 val of the extra engine was pleasantly spent in 
 cracking jokes — several facetious individuals re- 
 marking that the presence of so many Democrats 
 was enough to "hoodoo" anything. When the 
 engine arrived we were eight hours behind time. 
 It was not long before we were flying up the 
 valley, and going at a rate of speed that showed 
 that the engineer was trying to make up for the 
 delay. 
 
I lO WONDERIvAND. 
 
 For the want of something more interesting 
 we employed our time in watching for ground- 
 squirrels and owls. They live together under- 
 ground, and at almost every mound which sur- 
 rounds the openings to their habitations one or 
 two of these little open-faced birds were to be 
 seen. They had the appearance of being asleep, 
 and did not notice the train as we rushed by. 
 The squirrels were frequently seen sitting upon 
 their haunches on the tops of the little mounds, 
 but upon the approach of the train they would 
 disappear in an >instant. They did not venture 
 far from cover while in search of their morning 
 meals on account of the numerous hawks which 
 were hovering around ready to swoop down upon 
 the little creatures and devour them. 
 
 It was about noon when we arrived at Ber- 
 enda, where we changed cars and took a branch 
 road up to Raymond, where we were to take the 
 stages for a steady ride of a day and a half before 
 we would reach the head of the Yosemite Valley. 
 
 At Raymond we halted only long enough to 
 eat a fairly good dinner, when eight stages drove 
 up to the door and we took our places in the 
 seats assigned us before leaving L,os Angeles. 
 Our stage was the last to drive up and was of 
 the old Concord pattern. Instead of springs 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY. HI 
 
 there were strips of leather bound together, 
 reaching from the trunk-boot to the driver's box, 
 which gave the body of the coach a rocking 
 motion when the first shock of striking an 
 obstruction was over. The writer, acting upon 
 the suggestion of a friend, had secured a seat 
 in the box with the driver, and we started oflf 
 with high expectations. Our coach was in 
 charge of Ed. Crawford, a veteran stage-driver, 
 and it was a pleasure to see him handle the 
 "ribbons" and guide the leaders around the 
 sharp turns in the road. He was a little 
 reserved at first, but upon being drawn out 
 became quite talkative, and his fund of anecdotes 
 made the ride very pleasant, The whip handle 
 used by him was silver-mounted, and had been 
 presented him by one of his admiring friends. 
 
 He called our attention to a number of trees 
 which had the appearance of having been used 
 for targets, as the bark was punctured with holes 
 about the size of a bullet. He told us that the 
 woodpeckers had drilled holes in the bark and 
 filled them with acorns for winter's use. A pair 
 of these birds v/ould take possession of a tree, 
 and after they had laid in their winter's supply 
 of acorns would sit in the branches and guard 
 
112 WONDERLAND. 
 
 them with the greatest of care and fight viciously 
 to defend their possessions. ■ " 
 
 The first part of the ride was something new, 
 and we did not mind the jerks and jars to which 
 we were subjected, always hoping, however, 
 that the one just passed would be the last. The 
 road winds around the hills and mountains, and 
 frequently the gentlemen and many of the ladies 
 would get out to gather flowers and take a short 
 cut up the hill and reach a turn in the road long 
 before the stages would come up. It gave them 
 a chance to rest themselves from the sitting 
 position and also relieved the horses of consid- 
 erable weight to drag up the hills. On all sides 
 in the open patches were flowers in great pro- 
 fusion, representing all colors of the rainbow, 
 but the most beautiful of all was the Mariposa 
 lily. It is a delicate flower, and the three leaves 
 strongly resemble the butterfly, from whence it 
 derives its name — " Mariposa " being the Span- 
 ish for butterfly. 
 
 When we started from Raymond the roads 
 were in fair condition, but after a couple of 
 hours we struck the mountain roads, which were 
 very rough, and on account of the recent rains 
 were full of chuck holes. Our driver exercised 
 as much care as possible, but those inside of the 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY. II3 
 
 coach received such a shaking up as they wish 
 never to experience again. 
 
 In the middle of the afternoon we met a large 
 party of Raymond excursionists. They were 
 returning from the valley and were very enthu- 
 siastic over the scenery. 
 
 At every relay of horses the occupants of each 
 stage would get down from their places and 
 spread the blankets and robes on the ground 
 and thus rest themselves for a few moments. 
 There was a scarcity of cold water, and at 
 several places refreshment stands were in opera- 
 tion. The signs displayed invariably told of 
 "Ice-cold limonade," &c., but when one came 
 to purchase, the drinks were warm and the price 
 was " two bits," or twenty five cents each. 
 
 Each relay had its name, but the one most 
 remarkable was "Grub Gulch." It was an 
 abandoned mining camp, and at this time there 
 were only a few shanties and a large building 
 which served as hotel, store, saloon and post- 
 office. The hills and valleys were covered with 
 holes dug by prospectors in search of gold. 
 There was an abandoned quartz- mill near the 
 shaft of a mine also abandoned. The small 
 amount of gold secured did not pay for the labor, 
 and these holes and the old mill are all that now 
 
114 WONDERLAND. 
 
 show that gold was once sought for in this 
 region. 
 
 It was supper-time when we arrived at Grant's 
 — the dinner-station. There was a well cooked 
 meal awaiting us, which we ate with as much 
 haste as was conducive to good digestion in 
 order that we might get as far on the road as 
 possible before nightfall, as we had six full 
 hours to ride before reaching Wawona, the 
 supper-station, where we would remain over 
 night. 
 
 By the time we were ready to start we had 
 become very well acquainted with many of the 
 party, which added much to the enjoyment of 
 the trip. The roads were getting rougher, and 
 it was almost impossible to keep one's seat. 
 When we had a steep road we were glad to get 
 out and walk until the summit was reached, in 
 order to rest and take in some of the magnificent 
 views that were to be seen at every turn. 
 
 We had not proceeded very far when the 
 shades of night began to close around us, and 
 the reflectors at the head of the stages were all 
 lighted. They were of little use, however, as 
 they had not been cleaned for so long that the 
 intelligent horses on the lead could get along as 
 well without them. It was after nine o'clock. 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY II5 
 
 when everything was quiet and some of us were 
 trying to do a little dozing between jolts, that 
 we were roused from our lethargy by a series 
 of ear-splitting yells which resounded over the 
 mountains and valleys. These were answered by 
 others of similar character far up the mountain. 
 We all wanted to know what it meant, and 
 imagined all sorts of horrible things about 
 stage-robbers and wild Indians. Crawford merely 
 laughed and told us that the driver of the lead- 
 ing stage was calling to the men at the relay to 
 have the horses ready when we arrived. 
 
 While we were waiting for the change to be 
 made, our stage being the last to arrive and 
 consequently the last to be attended to, we 
 employed the time in examining one of the 
 large trees which grew near the stable. It was 
 at least ten feet in diameter, and there was not 
 a branch to mar its symmetry for over one 
 hundred feet from the ground We were all 
 glad to hear Crawford call "All aboard," and 
 soon were occupying our places. Cracking his 
 whip, the four horses started off at a lively rate, 
 and soon we were lost in the gloom of the forest. 
 The stage-drivers kept up a constant calling to 
 each other in order not to get too far separated, 
 
Il6 WONDERLAND. 
 
 SO that iu case of accident aid would be near 
 at hand. 
 
 The roads seemed to get worse, and at every 
 opportunity we would get out and walk. Climb- 
 ing those hills was tiresome, but it was much 
 more pleasant to walk than to ride. 
 
 It was half-past one o'clock in the morning 
 when our stage drove up to Major Washburn's 
 hotel at Wawona, and we got out and registered 
 our names. It was fully half an hour before 
 we were shown to our rooms. Three hours of 
 disturbed rest followed, when we were called in 
 order to get an early start and reach the head 
 of the Yosemite Valley by noon. 
 
 When our party assembled we found one who 
 was unable to continue the trip. The shaking- 
 up she had received and the tiresome night-ride 
 had so exhausted her already delicate constitu- 
 tion that it would have been dangerous to have 
 taken her further into the valley. Major Wash- 
 burn's family very kindly oflfered to take the 
 best care of her and try to have her in a condi- 
 tion to go out of the valley upon our return. 
 We bade her good-bye and started off. Before 
 proceeding many miles we all wished ourselves 
 back at Wawona, and even out of the valley. 
 The road became nothing but a series of chuck- 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY 1 1? 
 
 holes, and the continued jolting we received 
 kept all busy trying to keep on the seats. Our 
 driver, between jolts, gave us a history of the 
 discovery of the Yosemite. In the spring of 
 185 1, Captain Boling, with a company of sol- 
 diers, while in pursuit of a band of marauding 
 Indians who had retreated into these mountain 
 fastnesses (considering it inaccessible to the 
 whites), was the first white man to behold its 
 sublimity and grandeur. The company had 
 many narrow escapes from the savages, but 
 finally, after subduing them, returned to civili- 
 zation. It was the unanimous opinion of our 
 party, after the rough ride of the past two days, 
 that it was a pity the whole company had not 
 been shot and scalped before they could have 
 returned and reported their discovery to a 
 gullible public. We changed our minds, how- 
 ever, before we left the valley. 
 
 The scenery was grand. At every turn of the 
 road a new and wonderful view greeted our 
 vision. Rounding some points the views that 
 would burst upon us were beyond the power of 
 description. In the foreground would be the tall 
 and stately sugar-pine trees, from one to three 
 feet in diameter, whose symmetrical trunks 
 would tower from one hundred to one hundred 
 
118 WONDERLAND. 
 
 and fifty feet above us before a single shoot or 
 branch would appear ; then down into the valley 
 and on the other side were the tall peaks, 
 with their rugged sides, and in some cases their 
 summits covered with snow. The air was so 
 clear and the distance so deceiving that the 
 driver asked us how far we supposed those moun- 
 tains were from us ; the most of us guessed three 
 or four miles, but he only laughed and said, 
 " Well, I would not want to walk it for less than 
 eight miles " 
 
 The roads in some places were in a fearful con- 
 dition, and at one turn we all had to get out and 
 walk up the mountain a short distance to relieve 
 the horses, so that they could pull through a 
 stretch of sticky clay, which had about the same 
 tenacity as the blue and black mud of southern 
 Illinois. Why roads should be allowed to remain 
 in that condition in a country where stones are 
 so plentiful as here cannot be understood, unless 
 it is that the proprietors of the turnpike do not 
 want to spend any money upon it, knowing that 
 if people wish to come into the valley this is the 
 shortest way. 
 
 Our first view of the Yosemite Valley proper 
 was obtained when we rounded Inspiration 
 Point. Here the stages all stopped and gave 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY, IIQ 
 
 US an opportunity to get out and have a good 
 look up and down the valley. The fifteen min- 
 utes which we stood there, feasting our wonder- 
 ing eyes upon the valley, and the peaks and 
 domes that surround it, were too short, and it 
 was with some reluctance that we returned to the 
 stages and drove on. El Capitan, standing out 
 like an immense fortress, was the first to greet 
 our wondering eyes. It stands there with almost 
 perpendicular sides, 3,300 feet above the level of 
 the valley. It is granite, and does not have that 
 dirty, rusty appearance of the other mountains 
 over which we had just passed. Turning a little 
 to the right we beheld a beautiful waterfall, which 
 many of us took to be the Yosemite, but the 
 driver soon corrected our mistake by telling us 
 that it was the Bridal Veil Falls, and that we 
 would not see the Yosemite Falls until we 
 reached the floor of the valley and had pro- 
 ceeded quite a distance toward the head of it. 
 The horses having been given a breathing 
 spell, we were called to our seats in the 
 stage, when the driver cracked his whip and off 
 the four horses started on a gallop. The road 
 from Inspiration Point to the floor of the valley 
 is zigzag, and frequently the stages that had 
 started ahead of us were seen on the ledge below, 
 
I20 WONDERLAND. 
 
 apparently going in the opposite direction from 
 that which our horses' heads indicated. In some 
 places only a foot or two of rock intervened be- 
 tween us and certain destruction. Had the 
 driver been less steady in guiding his leaders 
 we should have been thrown over the precipice 
 into the valley thousands of feet below. The 
 least miscalculation would have been quite an 
 item to the life insurance companies that had 
 risks on several members of our party. As it 
 was, a few of them became somewhat nervous as 
 the four horses would gallop around some of the 
 sharp turns in the road without the least diminu- 
 tion of speed. They would all unconsciously 
 hug the side of the stage farthest from the edge 
 of the precipice and give a sigh of relief when 
 the straight road was reached. 
 
 Arriving at the level of the valley the road led 
 us quite near the Bridal Veil Falls, and the 
 driver drew rein to give us a chance to watch 
 the water as it came plunging over the precipice 
 some six hundred feet above. The mist arose in 
 great clouds and was wafted first in one direction 
 and then in another by the wind that continually 
 blows at the foot of the falls. On the opposite 
 side of the valley is another falls with the 
 name of the Maiden's Tears. She is said to be 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY. 121 
 
 weeping on account of not being able to get the 
 bridal veil. 
 
 The Three Brothers. 
 
 Near the Bridal Veil Falls are a series ot peaks 
 sometimes called the Three Graces, but more 
 9 
 
122 WONDERLAND. 
 
 frequently the Three Sisters (companions of the 
 Three Brothers, which stand on the opposite 
 side of the valley). Near the former are the 
 Cathedral Rocks, which stand out prominently 
 against the sky, and as we passed on the Cathe- 
 dral Spires came into view. They are two 
 majestic columns which rise in close proximity 
 to each other, several hundred feet above the 
 mountain upon which they stand, and the name 
 given them is not at all inappropriate. One of 
 the spires has a large piece broken off, giving 
 it an odd appearance. The piece detached was 
 thrown down several years ago during a severe 
 earthquake which visited southern California. 
 
 At last the mighty roar of the Yosemite fell 
 upon our ears, and looking across the valley we 
 beheld the object of our trip. As we drove on 
 the roar became like the roar of distant thunder, 
 approaching nearer and nearer as we advanced. 
 
 Driving up to the Stoneman House and going 
 to register our names we encountered a hotel 
 clerk who was so sublimely impudent as to merit 
 passing notice here. So arrogant was he that 
 our party would have left and taken quarters 
 elsewhere had it been possible to do so. This 
 self-important individual was the son of the 
 proprietor of the hotel, Mr. Cook (who, by the 
 
YOSEMITB VALLHY. 1 23 
 
 way, was very unlike the young man), and was 
 manager of the stage line when not engaged in 
 making himself generally obnoxious in his 
 capacity as clerk. We had occasion to severely 
 speak our minds to him on more than one occa- 
 sion before leaving, and it was only after threat- 
 ening him that we were able to secure seats in 
 the stage leaving the day we desired. He 
 assigned us the worst places, and tried to put 
 us to as much inconvenience as possible by 
 attempting to separate our party. It was evi- 
 dent that he was provoked because we would 
 not stay and help eat the spoiled meats and 
 poorly-cooked vegetables that were served to his 
 guests. 
 
 After we had reluctantly partaken of a meal 
 of putrid meats and chicken broth, with some 
 poorly-cooked beans, two of us started to walk 
 to the Yosemite Falls. It was a pleasant stroll 
 of a couple of miles. We followed the wagon - 
 trail for some distance and than cut across the 
 meadow-land and followed up the Yosemite 
 creek, which is fed by the waters from the falls 
 and empties into the Merced river. The force 
 of the water striking the rocks at the foot of the 
 lower falls drove clouds of mist and spray from 
 the canon as if forced out by a hurricane. It 
 
124 WONDERLAND. 
 
 was like facing a driving rain-storm to get where 
 we could secure a good view of the falls, and 
 we had to give it up. Our clothes were soaking 
 wet, and we retired somewhat discomfited at not 
 being able to accomplish our desire. The roar 
 of the falling waters is something awful, and 
 can be heard in almost every portion of the 
 valley. The falls are on the northern wall of 
 the valley, and are seen from the verandas of 
 both hotels. They are said to be the grandest 
 and most sublime waterfalls in the world. The 
 distance from where the waters take their first 
 plunge until they reach the Merced river is about 
 2,550 feet. There are, however, three distinct 
 falls — the upper, middle and lower The dis- 
 tance from the brink of the upper falls to the 
 middle is an unbroken plunge of about 1,500 
 feet. It is said that there is no other waterfall 
 yet discovered carrying so great a volume of 
 water from such a height. The middle por- 
 tion is a series of cascades with a descent of 625 
 feet, and the lower fall is another direct plunge 
 of 400 feet. As we were in the valley early in 
 the season, the volume of water coming over the 
 precipice was enormous. As the snow gradually 
 melts and is cariied off the amount of water be- 
 comes appreciably less, and during the latter part 
 
YOSEMITE VAI.I.EY. 1 25 
 
 of the season it is said that one can approach 
 quite near the falls and with safety pass under 
 the upper fall. 
 
 In returning to the hotel we walked along the 
 banks of the beautiful Merced river. The water 
 was as clear as crystal, and occasionally a trout 
 was seen darting here and there among the rocks, 
 or basking in the sunshine. We passed several 
 Indian huts and noticed a number of peculiar- 
 looking objects about the size of flour barrels, 
 made of boughs and stuck upon poles about ten 
 feet above the ground. We afterwards ascer- 
 tained that they were a kind of a "cache" in 
 which the Indians kept their winter supply of 
 acorns. Arriving at the hotel, some of our party 
 who had not been informed of our whereabouts 
 were worried for fear that we had climbed one of 
 the trails that lead up the different mountains 
 and were unable to retrace our steps. 
 
 Sitting on the verandas we could see most of 
 prominent peaks in the valley. The hotel stands 
 almost at the base of the mountain upon which 
 Glacier Point is located. There is a hotel there, 
 and in the .evening the proprietor entertained the 
 guests of the Stoneman House by a primitive 
 display of fireworks, which consisted of throwing 
 burning brands over the cliff into the valley. 
 
126 WONDSRI^AND. 
 
 Back of the hotel stands Half Dome, whose 
 summit appears to have been chiseled by some 
 mighty power to resemble a dome, one-half of 
 which, having been dislodged by a violent con- 
 vulsion of Nature, lies a mass of ruins at the foot 
 of the mountain, leaving a perfect half dome 
 clearl}^ outlined, on this occasion, against a beau- 
 tiful blue sky. The melting snows of centuries 
 have polished its summit so that the dome glis- 
 tens like silver when the first rays of the morning 
 sun make their appearance in the east. Cloud's 
 Rest is another mountain whose summit pene- 
 trates the clouds. It is one of the points to visit, 
 and to reach it requires some effort and consider- 
 able climbing. Directly opposite Glacier Point 
 are the Royal Arches and the Royal Arch Falls. 
 In front of the hotel are all the peaks and points 
 passed while entering the valley. 
 
 It being early in the season and the snow still 
 deep on the mountains, numerous waterfalls 
 were to be seen on all sides. Many of them 
 have not been named from the fact that they dry 
 up long before the season closes, and in fact 
 some of them disappear in a few weeks after 
 the season opens. 
 
 After a refreshing sleep we were ready in the 
 morning to put in a whole day exploring the 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY. 1 27 
 
 valley. The first thing on our programme was 
 to visit Mirror Lake and see the suu rise. Some 
 of the party took stages, but two of us concluded 
 to walk, as we did not have to be there until 
 nine o'clock, as the sun did not appear above 
 the tops of the mountains until that time. On 
 the way we met a gentleman who very kindly 
 offered to show us the route, and, thinking that 
 he was well acquainted with the way, we fol- 
 lowed him. After walking about half an hour 
 we came upon a party of campers consisting of 
 two young married couples who were out for a 
 two weeks' stay in the woods and were prepared 
 for roughing it. The ladies were dressed in suits 
 made of bed ticking, with short skirts and heavy 
 shoes. We chatted with them for a few moments 
 and found that we were on the wrong trail and 
 had farther to go to reach the lake than before 
 leaving the hotel. Consequently we were unable 
 to reach the lake before the rest of our party had 
 left, and not until after the sun had risen. We 
 lingered along its banks, and gazing upon it saw 
 every cloud in the sky, every mountain, crag 
 and peak, and every tree and bush near its edge 
 faithfully reflected in the crystal water at our 
 feet. The birds and insects that flitted across 
 were distinctly seen upon its mirror-like surface. 
 
128 WONDERI.AND. 
 
 Returning to the hotel we spent the time 
 before dinner buying views and resting on the 
 verandas. Going into the dining-room we ascer- 
 tained that the chicken broth of the previous 
 dinner had not all been disposed of, so what was 
 left was diluted with water and served as chicken 
 soup. The chickens came on at the next meal. 
 
 Soon after, a carriage that had been ordered 
 the evening before drove up. We took our seats 
 and started on "The Grand Tour" of the valley. 
 The road led us along the banks of the Merced 
 river, and we- were entertained by the driver, 
 who had an unlimited supply of interesting 
 legends to relate. Every prominent crag and 
 point had its story. As we passed grand old 
 El Capitan, with its polished sides glistening 
 in the afternoon sun, he pointed out in a cleft 
 over half-way up its side a tree said to be over 
 one hundred and twenty-five feet in height, 
 although, from our point of view, it looked like 
 a small shrub. He also pointed out a discolora- 
 tion in the rock having a strong resemblance to 
 a man's head, from which the rock takes its 
 name, "El Capitan," the captain. Following 
 the course of the river we soon came to the only 
 private grounds within the valley. It is a claim 
 taken by a prospector before the park was set 
 
YOSKMITE VALINE Y. 1 29 
 
 aside by the United States Government as a 
 national pleasure-ground. There is a deserted 
 shanty, upon the door of which many tourists 
 have inscribed their names. The place used to 
 be a favorite drive for tourists who wished to get 
 a good meal of trout, and no doubt it was very 
 popular, judging from the fare we received at 
 the hotel. The road now runs along the banks 
 of the river, and in several places the rocks had 
 to be blasted in order to clear an opening for the 
 driveway. In the river are numerous large 
 boulders which have rolled down the mountain 
 sides, and choking the stream have formed a 
 series of rapids which are very beautiful and add 
 much to the romantic surroundings. The road 
 now became very narrow, and we were congratu- 
 lating ourselves that there were no carriages 
 coming in the opposite direction, as there would 
 be difficulty in passing, when we were startled 
 by the driver shouting " Look out there ! Hold 
 up ! " and looking ahead we saw a small buggy 
 approaching. In it were a couple of young 
 folks returning from the lower end of the valley. 
 In trying to make room for our team to pass 
 they came very near being thrown over the bank 
 into the rushing waters of the rapids. As it was 
 
I30 WONDERLAND. 
 
 they were only saved by the presence-of-mind 
 of the young lady. 
 
 At the lower end of the valley are the Cas- 
 cades, a series of falls not so high as those we 
 had just passed, but considerably more broken 
 We spent some time trying to get near them, 
 but on account of the clouds of mist that were 
 being driven from the caiion by the wind, we 
 were compelled to give it up, and started on 
 the return to the hotel. Retracing our steps 
 we crossed the river, and, following the road, 
 came to a spring of water which the driver 
 wished all to taste, as it was so clear and cold. 
 Near this spot, the driver said, the bones of two 
 white men were found soon after the discovery 
 of the valley. They were supposed to have 
 been prospectors who had wandered into the 
 valley and been killed by the Indians, as an 
 arrow point was found imbedded in the skull 
 of one of them. It was about four o'clock when 
 we drove up to the Bridal Veil Falls, where we 
 witnessed a most wonderful rainbow. The posi- 
 tion of the sun in the west shining upon the 
 clouds of spray and mist formed a sight singu- 
 larly beautiful. We were allowed some time to 
 gaze upon this wonderful scene, and all left it 
 with reluctance. 
 
YOSEMITE VAIvLEY. 13I 
 
 As we drove toward the hotel the driver 
 called our attention to a beautiful ribbon like 
 waterfall which appeared to dissolve itself into 
 mist before reaching the base of the cliff. He 
 told us that it was named the " Widow's Tears," 
 from the fact that it "dried up in six weeks." 
 A little farther on we passed a couple of men 
 returning from a ride up one of the trails, and 
 the figures cut by them were most comical. 
 They were both astride burros, and being above 
 the average height they were compelled to sit 
 in an uncomfortable position to keep their feet 
 from dragging along the ground. They were 
 accompanied by an ancient specimen of humanity 
 who, from his antiquated dress and flowing 
 white beard, would be easily mistaken for "Rip 
 Van Winkle." As we drove up, the little ani- 
 mals seemed sleepy enough, but we had not 
 proceeded far before we heard a scampering 
 behind us, and, looking back, saw our two 
 friends coming up the road at a furious rate. 
 They dashed past us, hauling and pulling on 
 the reins, but to no eflfect — the donkeys had 
 heard the call for supper and were bound for 
 the stable, and nothing could stop them. 
 
 Reaching the hotel we were somewhat tired, 
 but fully repaid for the trouble we had taken to 
 
132 WO^DERLAND. 
 
 get into the valley. The charming sights of the 
 day had surpassed all expectation. The evening 
 was spent upon the piazzas, where we sat look- 
 ing across the valley at the majestic Yosemite 
 Falls. We retired early in order that we might 
 be fully rested for the rough riding of the next 
 two days. The roar of the Yosemite lulled us to 
 sleep, from which we were aroused in the morn- 
 ing by a knock upon our doors and the an- 
 anouncement that it was time to arise if we 
 wished to take the stage for Wawona. 
 
 At seven o'clock we were seated in the stage 
 ready to start. As we drove down past Barnard's 
 we observed a little church nestled among the 
 trees, showing that the spiritual welfare of tour- 
 ists was not overlooked. Soon a turn in the road 
 shut the Yosemite Falls from our view, but the 
 roar followed us until we commenced the ascent 
 of the zigzag road leading up the wall of the 
 valley to Inspiration Point. We passed the 
 Widow's Tears, then the Bridal Veil, and look- 
 ing across the valley took a last glance at the 
 Maiden's Tears. Grand El Capitan, standing 
 out like a buttress to guard the valley, was ever 
 before us until we turned our backs upon him at 
 Inspiration Point, where we drove into the woods 
 and lost sight of the valley, its peaks, domes and 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY. 1 33 
 
 waterfalls. Arriving at Inspiration Point, we 
 were allowed to take a farewell view of the 
 valley while the horses were given a breathing 
 spell The time passed rapidly, when the driver, 
 cracking his whip, started the horses off on a 
 gallop after the stages which had preceded us. 
 
 Since entering the valley the roads bad not im- 
 proved, and we were bounced from one side of 
 the stage to the other in a frightful and most 
 ridiculous manner. A lady occupying the back 
 seat with her husband was thrown with great 
 force against the seat in front, and came near 
 fainting. As we drove along the road past deep 
 snow-drifts, several of the party got out and 
 secured snow-plants. They are in form some- 
 what like an asparagus-plant, though much 
 larger, the stalk being as thick as a man's 
 wrist, and the color is of the deepest red. 
 They are found along the edges of the snow- 
 drifts, pushing their heads up through the 
 ground as soon as the frost fairly gets out of it. 
 
 An important fact seldom stated in cold type is 
 that women, when they visit this valley and wish 
 to thoroughly explore the' wonders of the Yosem- 
 ite, must use the donkeys to carry them over the 
 rough mountain trails, and must ride astride. 
 Sometimes, when ascending the side of a moun- 
 
134 WONDERLAND. 
 
 tain, the trail is so steep that a woman, if 
 perched sideways, would surely come to grief; 
 and on a trail where an accident means a prob- 
 able fall of a thousand feet or more, the reason 
 for thus riding is apparent. Women must either 
 forego the wonders of the Yosemite or discard 
 the side-saddle while in the valley. 
 
 It was dinner-time when we drove up to Major 
 Washburn's hotel at Wawona, where we had left 
 one of our party a few days before while we 
 made the trip to the valley. She had been under 
 the care of Major Washburn's family, who had 
 made her stay a most pleasant one, and she was 
 ready to start with us in the morning for Ray- 
 mond, where we were once more to enter the 
 cars. 
 
 After a first-class meal, which we all appreci- 
 ated, the stages drove up and we started for an 
 afternoon's ride to the Mariposa Grove of big 
 trees. The distance covered during the after- 
 noon was about eighteen miles. 
 
 The road wound around the mountains, gradu- 
 ally ascending until we reached an altitude of 
 over 5,000 feet. The trees first seen were in 
 what is known as the lower grove, but they were 
 not so large as those farther up the mountain. 
 Reaching the "Grizzly Giant," the driver stop- 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY. 1 35 
 
 ped his horses and many of us got out and 
 walked around this monarch of the forest. A 
 number of Raymond excursionists had Kodaks, 
 and quite a number of snap shots were taken of 
 the tree. The ' ' Giant ' ' is over thirty feet in 
 diameter and more than ninety feet in circum- 
 ference The first branches are over one hun- 
 dred feet from the ground and measure six feet 
 in diameter. A drive of a mile brought us to the 
 upper grove, where over 350 trees are standing. 
 Many of them have a brass, marble or iron plate 
 fastened in the bark, upon which is inscribed the 
 name given to each particular tree. The road, 
 in making the circuit of the grove, passes 
 through a living tree. When we passed through 
 it the driver halted for a moment to show us how 
 large the "tunnel" was. Two horses and the 
 entire stage were covered by the arch. We then 
 drove to the centre of the grove, where the 
 keeper has his lodge. He adds considerable to 
 his salary by selling to tourists pieces of bark cut 
 into fancy shapes. Near his cabin is the ' ' Fallen 
 Giant," one of the trees which has fallen. In 
 course of time it will no doubt be carried away 
 by tourists who cut pieces from it. 
 
 On the return to the hotel we passed a couple 
 of drunken Indians. They were trying to mount 
 
136 WONDERLAND. 
 
 a small pony, but, being under the influence of 
 liquor, they cut a very sorry figure. They fell 
 off quite a number of times, and had it not been 
 for that kind Providence which sometimes 
 strangely attends fools, drunken men and chil- 
 dren, they would have broken their necks. As 
 domestic horses are very restive when in the 
 presence of Indians, it was with great difficulty 
 that we passed them. Two men had to get out 
 and take the leaders by the bits and guide them 
 past the drunken red men. The stages following 
 us had a more exciting time. The Indians, hav- 
 ing mounted the pony, came down the mountain 
 like a whirlwind, leaping stones and fallen trees 
 and yelling like demons. The stage-horses 
 reared and plunged, and it required the utmost 
 skill of the drivers to prevent a serious acci- 
 dent. 
 
 The best supper we had eaten since leaving 
 Grant's Springs, as we entered the valley, was 
 awaiting us upon our arrival at the hotel. Major 
 Washburn and his family understand the art of 
 keeping a hotel, and many of the travelers com- 
 ing from the valley remain several days at his 
 comfortable hostelry. 
 
 At seven o'clock in the morning the stages 
 drove up to the hotel, and passengers for 
 
YOSEMITE VALLEY. 137 
 
 Raymond soon filled them. It was our fortune 
 again to be passengers in the stage with Ed. 
 Crawford, the accommodating driver who had 
 brought us from Raymond when we entered the 
 valley, and who had explained so much of interest 
 to us. Our stage was next to the last that left 
 Wawona, but as we stopped at the relays our 
 team was gradually moved up front, and at 
 Grub Gulch we took the lead, which we kept. 
 Crawford, by a series of manoeuvres, had secured 
 the United States mail, and that gave us pref- 
 erence as to right of way. 
 
 After leaving Grub Gulch we noticed in the 
 valley below us a large trough winding along 
 the base of the mountain. It was filled with 
 running water. Crawford explained that it was 
 used by the saw-mill operators up in the moun- 
 tains for running their lumber down to the 
 railroad. The water in the trough was supplied 
 from mountain brooks, and the lumber placed 
 in the trough at the mill would float down to 
 the end of the trough, where it would be placed 
 on the cars or stacked up to dry. The " canal," 
 as he termed it, was about fifty miles long, and 
 as lumber was cheap it was constructed at a 
 comparatively small cost, and was the cheapest 
 and most convenient method of transportation. 
 10 
 
138 WONDERLAND. 
 
 The roads which, when we entered the valley, 
 were mud, had now become dust. The horses, 
 as they moved along, left clouds of it in their 
 wake, which we breathed to our great discom- 
 fort. Occasionally a gust of wind would drive 
 the clouds from us, and during the breathing 
 spell we would look back to see how far the 
 coming stages were behind us. Their position 
 was easily discerned from the clouds of dust 
 that followed them. 
 
 When we came within sight of Raymond and 
 the steam cars, the passengers gave a shout 
 which made the mountains ring. We were at 
 last within sight of the end of our jolting and 
 hard riding. The occupants of each stage gave 
 vent to their feelings in the same manner. We 
 congratulated ourselves, our driver and every- 
 body else that all had returned from the valley 
 alive and were able to continue the journey. 
 
 Bidding good-bye to Crawford, we went into 
 the hotel and ate a fairly good supper, and then 
 proceeded to the sleeping-cars which had been 
 engaged before leaving the valley. When we 
 entered our sleeper the thermometer registered 
 ninety-two, and we made up our minds that 
 sleep was out of the question. We were very 
 agreeably disappointed in this matter, for when 
 
YOSEMITE VAI,I,EY. 139 
 
 the train started, a draft was made through the 
 cars which soon cooled them off, and we sank 
 into peaceful slumbers. 
 
 It was noon, Sunday, when we crossed the 
 beautiful San Francisco Bay on our return to the 
 city. We were soon back in our old quarters at 
 the Palace Hotel. Going into the corridor we 
 were most agreeably surprised at meeting seven- 
 teen of our party who had made the trip across 
 the continent. 
 
 In the evening an impromptu reception was 
 held in the parlors of the hotel, where all of the 
 party met and passed several hours most agree- 
 ably. Some had made arrangements to continue 
 their trip to Alaska, and were anxious that the 
 rest of us should accompany them and keep the 
 party intact as long as possible. As none of the 
 ladies of the party had visited Chinatown by 
 night it was determined to make another trip to 
 that locality Monday evening. Colonel Thomp- 
 son was deputized to make the arrangements, 
 and at a late hour we adjourned to our sleeping- 
 apartments to meet in the parlors Monday even- 
 ing at seven o'clock, where a guide was to be in 
 waiting. 
 
140 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 
 ©ALIPOI^NIA I^ESOI^fPS. 
 
 iOkN the eighth day of October, 1776, while 
 ^-^ the inhabitants of the eastern shore of what 
 is now the United States were engaged in a war- 
 fare to throw oflf the oppressive yoke of a foreign 
 country and establish a nation of their own, a 
 number of Spanish monks, having pushed their 
 way up along the coast of what is now the 
 Golden State of the Union, established one of 
 their missions on the ground upon which the 
 magnificent city of San Francisco now stands. 
 
 Under the fostering care of this mission a 
 village bearing the name of Yerba Buena was 
 established. This was in 1835, almost sixty 
 years after the monks first visited the place. 
 The village received this somewhat singular 
 name from the fact that a medicinal herb called 
 ' ' yerba buena ' ' grew in great abundance on the 
 site. It is Spanish, and means "good herb." 
 
 The old mission building is still standing, and 
 is used as a place of worship. The building is 
 of adobe, and the walls are three feet thick. 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS I4I 
 
 The floor is of earth, and the roof is covered 
 with heavy tiling. Clustered around the mission 
 are the old adobe buildings once occupied by the 
 monks, who sought, by their pretended sacri- 
 fices, to improve the spiritual condition of the 
 Indians, and also to live upon the fat of the 
 land. These buildings are all in a dilapidated 
 condition. The old mission burying-ground 
 adjoins the building. Most of the inscriptions 
 on the tombs are in Spanish, and were not 
 decipherable by us. 
 
 The name of San Francisco was given to the 
 place in 1847, and from that time forward the 
 town commenced to grow. It was the principal 
 city in the State as soon as gold was discovered, 
 and from here all expeditions were made into the 
 diggings. During the "fifties" it was a ren- 
 dezvous for all the cut-throats and gamblers who 
 could get here. This class of citizens became 
 so bold in their operations that in 1856 the fam- 
 ous Vigilance Committee was organized, and 
 some of the most notorious of them were exe- 
 cuted and a number banished. This method 
 of treatment terrorized the tough element, and 
 the town became tranquil and one of the most 
 orderly in the country. 
 
142 WONDERLAND. 
 
 The city in its earlier days was a great sufferer 
 from fires, there having been six great confla- 
 grations during the two years beginning Decem- 
 ber 24th, 1849, and ending June 22d, 1851. The 
 amount of property destroyed in that time was 
 over $26,500,000. 
 
 Thoroughly refreshed by a full night's rest, 
 we gladly welcomed Monday morning. Our 
 rooms were located on the third floor of the 
 Palace Hotel and faced the inner court. Con- 
 sequently we were not disturbed by the continu- 
 ous clanging of the gongs of the street cars 
 that traverse all sections of the city, and pass 
 the hotel on their way to the wharf two or three 
 squares below. Breakfast over, we took a street 
 car and were soon on our way to Golden Gate 
 Park, the principal pleasure-ground of the city. 
 The car landed us at the main entrance, and 
 soon a carriage was engaged for a drive through 
 the park and out to the Cliff House. The time 
 spent in the park was most enjoyable, and the 
 display of flowers was remarkable. There 
 seemed to be an endless variety, and before we 
 left the grounds we were almost bewildered by 
 them. In the Horticultural building was seen 
 one of the few specimens of the Victoria Regia 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. 143 
 
 lily in the United States. The driveway led us 
 past the immense music-stand where, every 
 Sunday afternoon, concerts are given by the 
 finest band in the city. Near by is a monument 
 erected to the memory of President Garfield. 
 
 Passing out of the park we were soon traveling 
 over a macadamized road, cut through the sand 
 dunes, on our way to the famous Cliff House. 
 Reaching the ocean the road followed the con- 
 tour of the beach for some distance and then 
 wound around the cliff until we reached our 
 destination. Along the beach were groups of 
 children wading and splashing in the water and 
 evidently enjoying themselves to the greatest 
 extent. Our driver drew up rein at the door 
 of the Cliff House and we all dismounted and 
 went inside. Being near the noon hour, we ate 
 luncheon and then went out upon the pavilion 
 to view the seals and seal-rocks. The rocks 
 upon which the seals bask are about a quarter 
 of a mile from shore, and opera-glasses were 
 procured at the refreshment stand to assist in 
 the novel view. Long before we reached the 
 CliflF House the dismal bellowing of the seals 
 could be heard. Hundreds of the animals were 
 seen sunning themselves upon the rocks or 
 swimming around them. Upon one of the 
 
144 WONDERLAND. 
 
 smaller rocks two large seals were fighting 
 apparent!}' for the master}^ of it and the favor 
 of the female seals near them. The contest 
 did not last long before one of them was driven 
 into the water. The victor then gave a series 
 of bellows, as if to challenge any one of his 
 rivals to a combat. His notes were answered 
 by an immense seal named "Ben Butler" that 
 was sunning himself on the top of the highest 
 rock. As he rushed down the rock at a furious 
 rate, many of the seals in their haste to get out 
 of his way flopped over into the ocean. He 
 bellowed continuously, and, reaching the water, 
 plunged in and started direct for his rival. As 
 he approached the rock the other was ready for 
 him and he was kept in the water for some 
 time, but finally getting a hold with his flippers 
 he clambered up on the rock. The battle did 
 not last long before "Ben" had driven his rival 
 into the water, and was once more looked upon 
 by the females as the undisputed champion. 
 
 We lingered some time watching the antics 
 of the seals and then started on the return trip 
 to the city. We drove to Sutro's Park, which 
 overlooks the Cliff House, and walked through 
 it. Near the house were chained a couple of 
 bears and a monkey. The mischievous monkey 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. I45 
 
 was continually worrying the bears by trying 
 to steal some of the food which the latter were 
 eating. It would get up as close as it dared 
 and then chatter at a furious rate. If any move 
 was made by the bears the monkey would be 
 up one of the near-by trees in an instant. We 
 watched the antics of this mischievous creature 
 for some time, and then strolled through the 
 labyrinth of flowers back to the gate where our 
 carriage was awaiting us. Returning to the 
 city we drove past the presidio, or the fort, 
 which commands the Golden Gate or entrance 
 to San Francisco Bay. 
 
 It was dinner time when we arrived at the 
 hotel. By chance we met the entire party in the 
 corridors, and as we walked to the dining-room 
 we organized a trip to Chinatown for the benefit 
 of the ladies, who were left behind on the former 
 trip. While waiting in the parlor after supper 
 for the different members to assemble, Mr. George 
 W. Childs, of the Public Ledger, Philadelphia, 
 came in, and as some of the party were ac- 
 quainted with Mr. Childs, we were each in turn 
 presented to him. He was very agreeable, of 
 course, and showed us a couple of handsome 
 screens which had been presented to him by 
 
146 WONDERLAND. 
 
 some young lady at one of the towns where his 
 party had stopped. 
 
 Everything being in readiness, we selected 
 Colonel Thompson as leader and oif we started. 
 Our guide was very loquacious, and answered 
 innumerable questions put to him by the lady 
 members of the party. In going to our destina- 
 tion we avoided Dupont street and entered by 
 way of Portsmouth Square. This square, during 
 the gold fever, fronted on the bay, but now there 
 are several blocks of large buildings between it 
 and the wharves. We visited many of the stores 
 and clambered through underground passages, 
 going in one building and out another We 
 visited the theatre, but as there was no perform- 
 ance going on the ladies were somewhat disap- 
 pointed. We visited the restaurant connected 
 with the theatre, but had to hurry through be- 
 cause one of the young ladies became faint when 
 she saw the manner in which the food was being 
 prepared. Going into the theatre, we prevailed 
 upon one of the parties in charge to show us 
 some of the costumes worn by the actors. They 
 were gorgeous, being worked with gold lace and 
 bullion. The weight of some of them would 
 soon tire a person out if worn for any length 
 of time. Passing up and down some of the 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. 1 47 
 
 Streets we would frequently hear the discordant 
 screeching of one of the favorite musical instru- 
 ments of the Chinese, accompanied by the din of 
 clanging cymbals. Every now and then we 
 would hear the explosion of firecrackers in some 
 of the houses. We entered one of the many res- 
 taurants, and, going upstairs, saw a Chinese ban- 
 quet in progress. The guests were few and were 
 outnumbered by the musicians. They were sit- 
 ting around on ebony stools inlaid with mother- 
 of-pearl. The men and the women were evi- 
 dently filled with wine, as some of the former 
 were quite lively and others were lying with 
 their heads in the laps oi the women We were 
 not allowed in the room, but saw all we wished 
 to see from the balcony, which was built along 
 the outside of the building. 
 
 Returning to the street, we next visited one of 
 the Joss-houses and bought more of the incense- 
 sticks to "bling gooda luck." From here we 
 went to the largest and most expensive restau- 
 rant within the confines of Chinatown. Mount- 
 ing two flights of steps we entered a room, the 
 furniture of which was either solid mahogany or 
 ebony inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The drap- 
 eries and other furnishings of the rooms were on 
 the same expensive scale. We all gathered 
 
148 WONDERLAND. 
 
 around one of the handsome tables and sipped 
 our tea and ate Chinese sweetmeats until we 
 started for the hotel, where we arrived thor- 
 oughly tired out. 
 
 Having rested well during the night, we deter- 
 mined in the morning to visit San Rafael, one of 
 the suburban towns, where many of San Fran- 
 cisco's wealthy citizens built their homes in order 
 to be out of the din and noise of a bustling city. 
 It is on the western shore of San Pablo Bay, fif- 
 teen miles from the great metropolis It takes its 
 name from one of the old missions formerly 
 located there The mission has been destroyed, 
 and in its place are pleasant homes. To realize 
 that the place is healthy, one only has to see the 
 numerous ruddy-faced children of all ages that 
 abound in every door-yard. 
 
 Our vacation was getting shorter and shorter 
 every day, and in order to visit all of the places 
 we contemplated it was necessary that our stay 
 in San Francisco should be shortened and that 
 we proceed upon our trip to Menlo Park, San 
 Jose, Santa Cruz and Monterey. Leaving the 
 city by one of the early trains, we passed 
 through a section of the suburbs given over to 
 Chinese residents for truck-farms. The plots 
 were not very large, but each one had its wind- 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. 149 
 
 mill for pumping water for irrigation. There 
 were hundreds of them, reminding one of pic- 
 tures of Holland. The country through which 
 we passed was very fertile, and the fields of grow- 
 ing grain were beautiful to look upon. 
 
 The train halted at a neat little station and the 
 conductor called, "All out for Menlo Park." 
 Near this place is the Leland Stanford, Jr., Uni- 
 versity. It is the gift of Senator Stanford, and 
 stands as a monument to the memory of his only 
 son, Leland Stanford, Jr., who died in 1884. It 
 is endowed to the extent of twenty millions of 
 dollars. The buildings are erected on the Palo 
 Alto Farm, which consists of over seven thou- 
 sand acres. It is the home of Senator Stanford, 
 and here are also located his famous breeding- 
 stables. Hiring a carriage we were taken out to 
 the University. It is of Moorish design and 
 encloses an immense quadrangle. The buildings 
 are mostly one story in height and covered with 
 red tiling. The dormitories are several stories in 
 height and are located on either side of the Uni- 
 versity. Within the quadrangle a continuous 
 colonnade connects all the buildings. The art 
 museum and the library buildings are located in 
 front of the main building, a little to the right. 
 
150 WONDERLAND. 
 
 From the University grounds we were taken to 
 the stables, and had the pleasure of seeing the 
 famous trotter, Palo Alto, exercised. There were 
 quite a number of horses in the stables, and we 
 spent some time watching the diflferent trainers 
 take them out and give them their daily exercise 
 around the track. 
 
 Returning to the station, we were soon upon 
 our way to San Jose. This latter place is the 
 county seat of Santa Clara county, and is called 
 the ' ' Garden City of the World. ' ' We arrived 
 here early in the afternoon and went direct to 
 Hotel Vendome. As is the case with all sight- 
 seers, before we were fully settled in our rooms 
 we had ordered a carriage for a drive through 
 the town and over to Santa Clara, a small village 
 that has grown up under the fostering care of 
 one of the old missions that was established in 
 1777. Connecting the two cities is a magnificent 
 driveway known as the Alameda. The willows 
 and pepper trees which line it on both sides were 
 planted by the Indian converts, under the super- 
 vision of the Jesuit Fathers, who lived in the 
 mission. The distance between the two places 
 being only three miles, Santa Clara was soon 
 reached. The old mission church is still stand- 
 ing, and is used as a place of worship. Like all 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. 151 
 
 the buildings erected by the Spaniards, it is of 
 adobe, and is showing the ravages of time. In 
 front of the church is an old cross, erected by the 
 Indian converts soon after the mission was 
 founded. It is now encased in a wooden frame, 
 excepting the front, which is glass, so that the 
 cross may be seen by all who pass by. Within 
 the enclosure surrounding the mission is the 
 Santa Clara College, under the discipline of the 
 Roman Catholic Church. It is one of the best 
 colleges under the control of that church in the 
 State. On our return to San Jose we passed the 
 grounds of the University of the Pacific, one of 
 the strongest colleges on the Pacific coast. It is 
 under the jurisdiction of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal Church, and ranks high as an educational 
 institution. 
 
 The country tributary to San Jose is very fer- 
 tile, and fruit-growing is the principal industry. 
 Prunes, raisins and other dried and canned fruits 
 are shipped in large quantities from this place. 
 I,ick Observatory is located on the summit of 
 Mount Hamilton, twenty-six miles away. Stages 
 leave the hotel every morning, and occupy the 
 entire day going to and returning from the 
 observatory. At eight o'clock in the morning 
 the stage drove up to the door and our party. 
 
152 WONDERLAND. 
 
 now decreased to five, took seats in it and 
 started. For some distance both sides of the 
 road was shaded with rows of eucalyptus trees, 
 and the perfume from their blossoms filled the 
 air. Reaching the foot hills we commenced the 
 ascent of the mountains, which consumed the 
 entire forenoon. As we gradually rose from the 
 plain the valley lay spread out below us. The 
 orchards and vineyards, clad in their garments of 
 green, made a most beautiful picture. Before 
 reaching the dinner station we changed horses 
 twice, and were enabled to make good time. 
 The road, unlike the one entering the Yosemite 
 Valley, was almost as level as a floor, and we 
 were not subjected to such a shaking-up as we 
 received when we entered and departed from the 
 latter place. The road cost the county of Santa 
 Clara almost $100,000. Arriving at the dinner- 
 station we were within two miles of the observa- 
 tory, in a direct line, but as we had to follow the 
 road we were still seven miles from our destina- 
 tion. This road was constructed upon methods 
 suggested by the donor of the great observatory, 
 Mr. James Lick. It is seven miles long, one 
 mile for each day of the week ; there are three 
 hundred and sixty five turns, one for every day 
 in the year ; and at one point twelve divisions of 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. I53 
 
 the road are to be seen, one to represent each 
 month in the year. 
 
 On arriving at the observatory everybody was 
 requested to register in a book kept for that pur- 
 pose, after which, in company with the janitor, 
 we made a circuit of the buildings and were 
 taken to the room in which the large telescope is 
 kept. Under the foundation upon which the 
 large instrument is erected lie the remains of Mr. 
 L,ick The janitor gave us a short history of the 
 institution and everybody connected with it. He 
 had learned his piece by heart, and repeated it to 
 every stage-load of people who came to see the 
 place, and will probably continue to tell the same 
 stor3^ in the same words, as long as he holds his 
 position. 
 
 When we had made a tour of all the rooms we 
 were escorted by one of the professors to the 
 cupola in which the small telescope is kept, and 
 pointing it at one of the stars he permitted us to 
 look through the instrument 
 
 The return trip was very pleasant. While 
 passing a hill upon which a great number of 
 ground-squirrels were seen, the driver espied a 
 coyote on the lookout for a squirrel with which 
 to make an evening meal. As the party had no 
 firearms with them he was permitted to stand 
 II 
 
154 WONDERLAND. 
 
 there unmolested. It was early in the evening 
 when we reached the hotel, and ^some of us 
 walked down the Alameda towards Santa Clara 
 before supper. 
 
 Bidding farewell to lovely San Jose, we took 
 the train for Los Gatos. It was but a short run 
 of nine miles, and we were soon at our destina- 
 tion. The town has about two thousand inhabi- 
 tants and is nestled in the Santa Cruz mountains, 
 overlooking the beautiful and fertile valley of 
 Santa Clara of the North. Like San Jose it is 
 the centre of a fruit growing section, and upon 
 the hills and mountain sides are to be seen the 
 well-kept vineyards and orchards. The first 
 cherries of the season were just coming in v/hen 
 we reached the little town. 
 
 Some of our party went direct to the ranch 
 of a friend, while the remainder put up at the 
 hotel. We had scarcely become settled in our 
 apartments when a carriage drove up to the 
 door and in it were two young ladies and their 
 father, who had come to take us carriage-riding 
 around the country and over the hills. The 
 whole afternoon was spent in the carriage, and 
 as the road wound around the mountains some 
 most enchanting views of the valley were had. 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. I55 
 
 Returning to the hotel we were invited to 
 spend the evening at the ranch of our friend. 
 It is within the corporate limits of the town, 
 and upon it are bearing orchards of apricots, 
 cherries, English walnuts, and a vineyard. We 
 feasted upon cherries, and during our stay in 
 the town visited his cherry-orchard many times. 
 Our visit to lyos Gatos will long be pleasantly 
 remembered. 
 
 It was Decoration Day when we left for Santa 
 Cruz and Monterey. When we arrived at the 
 station our friends were already there, and in 
 their arms were several large bags of excellent 
 cherries. A charming auburn - haired young 
 lady presented the writer with a bagful, remark- 
 ing that she had picked them herself especially 
 for him. This, of course, was pleasing, adding 
 extra flavor to the fruit, and may the memory 
 of the auburn-haired young lady and the cherries 
 never be obliterated. 
 
 Before the train pulled into the station the 
 Grand Army men and the different societies of 
 the town were forming in the square in front of 
 the station for the parade. One club, known as 
 the "Jags," had a membership of about thirty- 
 five, and each one carried a Japanese parasol. 
 They were patients at the Keely Institute located 
 
156 WONDERLAND. 
 
 in IvOS Gatos. On account of this institute the 
 pretty town is often referred to as "Jag Town." 
 
 The ride over the Santa Cruz mountains was 
 most enjoyable. The railroad passes quite near 
 the Santa Cruz grove of big trees, and we could 
 see them from the car windows. At Santa Cruz 
 we drove out to the cliflfs, where the action of the 
 waves has cut the bluflf into all sorts of fantastic 
 forms. We also drove along the beach where the 
 bath-houses are located and saw the crowds of 
 bathers plunging in the surf. 
 
 Wishing to spend all the time practicable at 
 the Hotel Del Monte, at Monterey, we took the 
 earliest train leaving Santa Cruz for the latter 
 place. It was but a short ride through a beauti- 
 ful country to the station of Del Monte, located 
 within the park surrounding the hotel. The 
 road leading to the hotel is as level as a floor, 
 and winds in and out among the gnarled live- 
 oaks and pines of great size and incalculable age. 
 When we registered and were being shown to 
 our rooms, we unexpectedly met in the corridors 
 six members of our original "Golden Gate" 
 party. They had been here for several days, 
 and were awaiting advice from San Francisco as 
 to whether they could secure accommodations on 
 the steamer "'Queen," which was to sail from 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. I57 
 
 Tacoma, Washington, on the sixth day of June, 
 for Alaska. It was a pleasant reunion, and dur- 
 ing our stay in Del Monte we were together most 
 of the time 
 
 Surrounding the hotel is a park of one hundred 
 and twenty-six acres, all under the care of a head 
 gardener and numerous assistants. Flowers of 
 almost every variety bloom in profusion. In 
 some places the underbrush has not been cleared 
 out, and the forest in its natural state forms a 
 pleasing contrast to the well-kept lawns and 
 flower-beds to be seen upon every side. The 
 "Arizona Garden" is composed of many varie- 
 ties of cacti, which thrive in the balmy air of 
 lovely Monterey. 
 
 To visit Del Monte and not take the "Eigh- 
 teen-Mile Drive" would be to miss one of the 
 most pleasing features of the place. It was 
 early in the afternoon when the stage, drawn by 
 four handsome bays, was driven up to the hotel, 
 and our party took seats within. It seemed a 
 short drive through avenues lined on either side 
 with pines and cedars until we left the confines 
 of the park and approached the quaint old town 
 of Monterey. In 1602 one of the early Spanish 
 navigators, Don Sebastian Vizcaino, entered 
 Monterey Bay, and landing with a couple of 
 
158 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. I59 
 
 priests and a company of soldiers took possession 
 of the country in the name of the Spanish king. 
 According to the custom of the Spaniards of that 
 day, a cross was erected and an altar built under 
 one of the trees, and mass was celebrated. Ti:e 
 commander of the expedition did not remain 
 very long, but taking his priests and soldiers 
 aboard his ships returned to Mexico. For one 
 hundred and sixty-eight years it retained its 
 primitive silence, when, in 1770, Father Junipero 
 Serra, the leader of a band of Franciscan mis- 
 sionaries, landed at Monterey and established the 
 Mission de San Carlos de Monterey. The friars 
 immediately set about converting the Indians to 
 Christianity and then making slaves of the new- 
 ly-fledged Christians, whom they set to work 
 tilling the soil and tending the herds of cattle 
 and droves of swine. In the latter part of 1771, 
 by order of the Marquis de Croix, the mission 
 was removed to Carmelo valley, about five miles 
 south of Monterey. Within the walls of the lat- 
 ter mission lie the remains of Father Junipero 
 Serra and three of his most intimate followers. 
 The presidio was left at Monterey, and within its 
 enclosure is the present antiquated Roman Cath- 
 olic church. Following the zigzag street, we 
 came to the old fort, built upon one of the hills 
 
l6o WONDERLAND. 
 
 overlooking the bay. The ramparts are easily- 
 traced, and some of the old guns, formidable in 
 their time, looked down upon us. On an emi- 
 nence near the fort stands a statue of Father 
 Junipero Serra, erected by Mrs Senator Stanford 
 in commemoration of the work done by the old 
 friar. 
 
 The history of Monterey and Monterey county 
 is most interesting reading, and tells of the rise 
 and decline of the quaint old town. The old 
 missions come in for a great deal of mention, and 
 their downfall is sad to read. In 1813 they had 
 reached the zenith of their power and wealth, 
 and from that time commenced to decline. The 
 Spanish government despoiled them of much of 
 their riches, and after the independence of Mex- 
 ico was secured that nation confiscated what was 
 left, and the old missions became deserted. Of 
 late years, however, the old buildings have been 
 restored and are now occupied as places of wor- 
 ship. In spite of the many vicissitudes of the 
 missions, Monterey flourished until 1847, when 
 it was the principal town in the State and the 
 seat of government. With the rise of San Fran- 
 cisco and the removal of the seat of government 
 to San Jose its decline was rapid, and it has 
 never been able to regain its former supremacy. 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. l6l 
 
 A short distance from Monterey is Pacific 
 Grove, the great Methodist camp-ground of the 
 Pacific States. It is to the Pacific Slope what 
 Ocean Grove and Cottage City are to the Eastern 
 States. Passing through the main avenue of the 
 place we noticed many beautiful cottages and a 
 large hotel. The auditorium is not so large as 
 the one at Ocean Grove, but it is yet strikingly 
 large. From Pacific Grove the road leaves the 
 beach and turns inland, and passing through 
 Point Pinos Rancho we came to the Pacific ocean 
 at Moss Beach. In among the rocks a number of 
 Chinese have put up some rude shanties to protect 
 them from the elements. They make their 
 living by catching fish and selling shells to 
 the tourists who pass along the road. Several 
 of them were squatting alongside their little 
 heaps of shells and star-fish, eager to sell us 
 specimens at much lower prices than we could 
 purchase at the curio-stores of the town. I^ike 
 San Francisco, Monterey has its seal-rocks. 
 They are on the eighteen -mile drive, near 
 Cypress Point. There were hundreds of seals 
 basking in the sunshine or swimming around 
 the rocks, some of them quite near the shore. 
 There is a heavy penalty against shooting at 
 them. After leaving: the seal-rocks we came 
 
l62 WONDERLAND. 
 
 to the wonderful grove of Monterey cypress. 
 The trees are gnarled and twisted into various 
 shapes, and their flat tops give them the form 
 of an immense umbrella. This is the only place 
 where they are known to exist. Dante, in 
 writing his "Inferno," must have dreamed of 
 the Monterey cypress. Some of them are able 
 to derive sustenance from the bare rocks over 
 which the roots sprawl and grasp with fierce 
 tenacity. We were taken out on Cypress Point, 
 where the driver, stopping his horses to allow 
 us to take in the view, calmly remarked that 
 five bays could be seen from this point. After 
 a fruitless efibrt to see more than one, he pointed 
 to his team of four bays, which made up the five. 
 Driving on we passed several Chinese with piles 
 of shells in front of them and numbers of bright 
 pebbles from Pebble Beach. At Pescadero Beach 
 we turned into the forests of pine and oak. The 
 road wound in and out of shady ravines, and, 
 gradually ascending, reached the crest of a ridge 
 which terminates in Cypress Point. Looking 
 back, a view of surpassing beauty greeted our 
 vision. Carmelo bay, with its waters of dark 
 blue, tranquil and smooth, reminds one of the 
 fairy scenes of childhood. 
 
CALIFORNIA RESORTS. 163 
 
 The road now leads us back through Monterey, 
 and we are soon at the hotel ready for dinner. 
 While we were gone a telegram was received 
 by our friends, stating that accommodations 
 had been secured for them in the steamer 
 "Queen," and that they must answer at once 
 whether or not they would accept. It did not 
 take them long to decide, and the accommo- 
 dations were secured. 
 
 Our stay at Del Monte was necessarily brief, 
 as we had to make our preparations and be in 
 Tacoma by June 5th and claim our state-rooms. 
 
 During the afternoon we visited the Maze 
 and tried to thread its treacherous paths, and 
 in the evening we visited the club house and 
 walked through the grounds. 
 
 -r-^nf^fT^r^ 
 
[64 
 
 WONDERLAND, 
 
 Chapter V. 
 
 COME across the conti- 
 nent and return with- 
 out visiting Alaska is 
 a great mistake. The 
 voyage is in a large 
 ocean steamer, unac- 
 companied by the usual 
 sea-sickness that goes 
 with a trip across the 
 Atlantic or Pacific 
 oceans. After you have 
 made up your mind to 
 go, make your arrangements if possible to go 
 by the steamer "Queen," and you will never 
 regret it. We had almost given up the idea 
 that we could secure berths on the steamer that 
 was to leave Tacoma June 6th, and were pre- 
 paring to commence our homeward trip, when 
 a telegram was received stating that state-rooms 
 had been secured, and to come and claim them 
 immediately. There was a hurried repacking of 
 
 Totem-Pole, Fort Wrangle. 
 
ALASKA. 165 
 
 trunks, accompanied with the usual excitement 
 preparatory to taking a new trip. Heavy wraps 
 were brought up from the bottom of the trunks 
 and put in convenient places and everything got- 
 ten ready for a trip to the Land of Glaciers. 
 
 We left Monterey early in the afternoon, reach- 
 ing San Francisco before night. The following 
 morning was devoted to securing our steamer 
 tickets and making a few necessary purchases. 
 The afternoon was over half spent when our 
 party, now increased to nine by the arrival of 
 the four Pittsburg ladies, met in the ferry-house 
 at the foot of Market street and were soon on 
 board the ferry-boat bound for Oakland, where 
 we were to take the cars. It was a beautiful 
 sight as we beheld the vessels of every nation 
 lying at anchor either in the bay or along the 
 wharves of the great western metropolis. The 
 sun was just sinking behind the hills of San 
 Francisco when we entered the ferry-house at 
 Oakland, and the reflection of its rays on the 
 window-panes gave one the impression that an 
 immense conflagration was raging on every hill- 
 top. Before leaving Oakland several beautiful 
 bouquets of fragrant flowers were presented to 
 the lady members of the party. 
 
1 66 WONDERLAND. 
 
 The distance from San Francisco to Portland 
 over the Southern Pacific Railroad is 772 miles, 
 and the time occupied in traveling between the 
 two cities was two nights and one day. 
 
 The scenery along the railroad is wonderfully 
 grand. For several hours on the day after leav- 
 ing San Francisco we traveled under the shadow 
 of snow-capped Mount Shasta. At the Shasta 
 Soda Springs the train stopped for a few moments 
 to allow the passengers to get out and drink the 
 refreshing waters. In the afternoon, while look- 
 ing out of the car windows, we noticed that our 
 train passed over the tracks of what we thought 
 was some other railroad, but upon asking the 
 brakeman where the road led to he said that in 
 a few minutes we would be riding on those 
 tracks, as the road, in climbing the mountain, 
 made a complete loop and run under itself. 
 
 The next morning we arrived in Portland, 
 where our Pittsburg friends left the train to 
 spend the day in that city, and were to meet us 
 in Tacoma in the evening. All forenoon we 
 traveled through magnificent forests of stately 
 trees. At noon we were in Tacoma, quartered 
 at the hotel of the same name. Its location is 
 admirable, being on a bluff overlooking Puget 
 Sound, one of the finest harbors in the world. 
 
ALASKA. 167 
 
 At the wharves of Tacoma the vessels of the 
 deepest draft can load and unload their cargoes 
 without fear of being stranded at low water. 
 
 The afternoon was spent in completing ar- 
 rangements for our long voyage. In the even- 
 ing the parties who had stopped over in Portland 
 arrived, and when morning came we met in the 
 parlors of the hotel and decided as to how the 
 intervening time until evening would be em- 
 ployed. 
 
 We rode on all the street-car lines in the city, 
 and when returning to the hotel narrowly es- 
 caped being run over by a runaway horse. We 
 were all pleased with Tacoma, and were favor- 
 ably impressed with the many fine buildings 
 which adorn the city in every section. The 
 streets, instead of being paved, are planked, 
 lumber being much cheaper than stone. It also 
 has the advantage of causing less noise when the 
 heavy wagons roll over it. 
 
 On the evening of June 5th we took possession 
 of our state-rooms on the steamer "Queen," 
 Captain James Carroll, commanding, and were 
 ready for the long voyage to Muir Glacier, Sitka, 
 and the usual stopping places en route. 
 
 As soon as we were shown our state rooms and 
 had made ourselves at home with the surround- 
 
l68 WONDERLAND. 
 
 ings, we commenced a tour of inspection of the 
 floating palace that was to be our home for the 
 next twelve days. Our rooms opened into the 
 dining-room, in which were three tables, one 
 reaching the entire length of the room, and two 
 shorter ones placed in the broadest part of the 
 room. The social hall is on the main deck, and 
 is reached by a flight of steps from the dining- 
 room. It is well furnished with parlor furniture, 
 including tables for games and an upright piano. 
 At the stern of the vessel on the main deck is 
 the smoking room, where games of chess and 
 whist were played all day long excepting at meal 
 times. In the bow and stern were convenient 
 places for steamer chairs. The vessel was lighted 
 with electricity, and every convenience was at 
 hand. 
 
 At five o'clock Monday morning the lines were 
 cast oflf, the screw of the propeller began to churn 
 the water, and the trip was actually begun. Our 
 first stop was at Seattle, where a number of pas- 
 sengers came on board, among them being three 
 of our "Golden Gate" party, so that there were 
 twelve of us in the company once more. As the 
 boat was to remain at the wharf for some time, a 
 number went off and bought steamer chairs, 
 which came in very conveniently for lounging 
 
ALASKA. 169 
 
 when tired of promenading the deck. Near the 
 wharf were a number of Indians living in their 
 dug-outs, as their canoes are called. One could 
 see nothing of the stately bearing of the ' ' Noble 
 Redman" so often read about. Their stature 
 was small, to begin with, and their faces had the 
 appearance of wrinkled leather. They were a 
 repulsive-looking set. The expression of one of 
 the squaws as she looked at the writer when he 
 passed will linger with him by day and haunt 
 him by night. 
 
 At last the whistle blew, the passengers came 
 on board and our staunch steamer headed for the 
 north. The shore of Puget's Sound, on each 
 side, is densely wooded with forests of pine, fir 
 and hemlock, beginning at the water's edge and 
 reaching to the snow- line on the high mountains. 
 The landscape forms a most beautiful picture of 
 water, forest and snow-capped mountains. 
 
 Port Townsend was our next stopping-place. 
 Here another consignment of passengers came on 
 board. A wagon-load of mail-bags were dumped 
 on the wharf and quickly carried on board by 
 the deck-hands, and we availed ourselves of the 
 opportunity to post some letters to distant friends. 
 Everything being in readiness, the whistle blew, 
 the gang-plank was pulled in, and the steamer 
 12 
 
I70 WONDERLAND. 
 
 headed for Anacortes, our last landing-place in 
 the State of Washington. Anacortes is a small 
 town, with a number of very substantial build- 
 ings erected by Eastern capital. It was boomed 
 on paper and considerable money was invested, 
 but it cannot amount to much of a place, and the 
 investors will wait a long time before receiving 
 any returns for their money. Only a short stop 
 was made, but many of the passengers went on 
 shore and bought a plentiful supply of fruit and 
 a few souvenirs. Several passengers, owing to a 
 misunderstanding as to the time the steamer was 
 to remain at the wharf, came near getting left. 
 As it was, the gang-plank was hauled in, when 
 some one discovered them walking leisurely 
 down the street and informed the captain, who 
 ordered the plank out again and the tardy ones 
 came on board. 
 
 The approaches of Victoria are beautiful. 
 Long before we entered the harbor we saw 
 the prominent buildings stand out in bold relief 
 against an almost cloudless sky. The Dunsmuir 
 castle is a prominent landmark, and was seen 
 from far down the sound. It requires a steady 
 hand to navigate the intricate passage from the 
 outer to the inner harbor. We passed quite near 
 the wreck of the steamer "San Pedro," which 
 
ALASKA. 171 
 
 lay on the rocks with her bow pointing to the 
 sky and her stern under the water. The sun 
 was just setting when the steamer was made 
 fast to the wharf, and a most glorious sunset it 
 was. The gang-plank being put out, most of 
 the passengers availed themselves of the oppor- 
 tunity to set foot on English soil, and went 
 ashore. Quite a number of hacks and coupes 
 
 Wreck of the "San Pedro." 
 
 were there to take us around the town. Many 
 took street-cars, but our party secured the 
 services of a very intelligent driver, who took 
 us all over the town and pointed out everything 
 of interest to the tourist. There are a number 
 of handsome churches, which fact speaks well 
 for the easy-going inhabitants. The Methodists, 
 being the strongest, have the finest place of 
 worship. The Presbyterians also have a very 
 
172 WONDERLAND 
 
 fine church. We were driven through Beacon 
 Hill Park as the twilight was fading, and 
 watched the reflection of the silver moon danc- 
 ing over the rippling waters of the sound Far 
 away on the American shore (they always speak 
 of the United States as "America," and the 
 people from there as "Americans") were the 
 flickering lights of one of the harbor towns. 
 Our driver said that the lights were twenty 
 miles distant. Leaving Beacon Hill we drove 
 through the grounds of Carey Castle, the resi- 
 dence of the governor, and then back to the 
 " Queen." On our way we plucked an immense 
 bouquet of Scotch Broom for those who remained 
 on board. We retired early in order to be up 
 before the steamer should leave the wharf in 
 the morning and not miss any of the beautiful 
 scenery. 
 
 As this was our last stopping-place before 
 entering the Alaskan boundary, several more 
 passengers came on board and took possession 
 of the few state- rooms that were unoccupied. 
 There were over two hundred first class and 
 quite a number of steerage passengers on board. 
 The former, with but few exceptions, were tour- 
 ists, while the latter were chiefly prospectors and 
 miners going to the gold-fields of Alaska. 
 
ALASKA. 173 
 
 The boat had left her moorings and started 
 on the way to Fort Wrangle long before the 
 most active of us got out on deck in the morn- 
 ing. The scenery is a succession of well-wooded 
 mountains, down whose sides, like long white 
 ribbons, trickled the silver threads of waterfalls 
 fed by the eternal snows which crown their 
 tops Numerous islands dotted the straits and 
 bays through which we passed. All were well 
 wooded, and will supply lumber and timber for 
 the markets for years to come. Frequently on 
 the mountain sides, reaching far toward the 
 snow-line, were seen narrow strips of different 
 shades of green. These, we were told, marked 
 the tracks of avalanches, which, in rushing down 
 the mountains, had carried everything before 
 them, and a new growth had sprung up, account- 
 ing for the difference in color of the foliage. 
 Here in these mountains is the home of the bald 
 eagle, the emblem of our nation. At all times 
 of the day some of these noble birds were seen 
 either soaring over the steamer or perched upon 
 the highest limbs of the tallest trees that grow 
 near the water. An officer of the boat informed 
 me that at some seasons of the year hundreds of 
 them could be seen in a single day. 
 
174 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Bulletins were posted in the social hall and 
 smoking-room at noon of each day, giving the 
 number of miles traveled the preceding twenty- 
 four hours, the straits, bays and sounds through 
 which we were to pass, and the time when the 
 vessel was expected to reach certain points. 
 These were eagerly scanned as soon as posted, 
 and many of the passengers made copies of every 
 bulletin. 
 
 There were quite a number of fine musicians 
 on board, and every evening a number of them 
 would take possession of social hall and give an 
 entertainment, which added much to the pleasure 
 of the trip. Among the party were a couple of 
 sisters who were expert musicians, one perform- 
 ing on the mandolin and the other accompanying 
 her on the piano. They were always in demand, 
 and no entertainment was thought of unless they 
 were in it. The young ladies were Hebrews, ac- 
 companied by their father and mother, and they 
 appreciated every attention that was shown them. 
 
 After leaving Victoria everybody was on the 
 lookout for a whale, and numerous false alarms 
 were sounded by those who, anxious to be the 
 first to see one of these monsters of the deep, let 
 their imaginations get the better of them. To 
 some persons porpoises appeared as whales ; to 
 
ALASKA. 175 
 
 Others floating logs, and so on. A small reef 
 just above water was mistaken for a whale by a 
 young lady, and she never heard the last of it 
 until the boat landed at Victoria on its return. 
 One afternoon, however, a number were sighted 
 and there was a rush for the bow of the boat to 
 see them. There must have been at least two 
 dozen, and they spouted at frequent intervals. 
 We watched them until they disappeared far in 
 the wake of the steamer. 
 
 On the afternoon of the third day from Tacoma 
 we met the steamer "Islander," with a number 
 of excursionists returning from Alaska. The 
 vessels were made fast to each other. Those 
 on the "Islander" were anxious to hear the 
 latest news from the national convention at 
 Minneapolis, and were glad to take what papers 
 we had, even though a week old. After visiting 
 each other for about half an hour the vessels 
 parted company, the "Queen" continuing to 
 the north and the "Islander" to the south. 
 It was a pleasing and novel experience, and was 
 appreciated by all. 
 
 After leaving the northern boundary of Wash- 
 ington we had sailed for almost two days in 
 British waters, but when we commenced crossing 
 Dixon Entrance the captain informed us that 
 
176 WONDERLAND. 
 
 we were sailing within the territory of the 
 United States — Alaska. 
 
 The first settlement noticed was that of Metla- 
 kathla, an Indian town founded by a missionary 
 named Duncan. It is self-supporting and under 
 no particular church, but the founder is of the 
 old Scotch Presbyterian faith. 
 
 One evening while promenading the deck our 
 attention was drawn to notes of music from the 
 violin and banjo. Following the direction of 
 the sounds we came upon a number of the 
 waiters and room-boys engaged in shelling peas. 
 Four young men seated upon a coil of rope were 
 playing lively tunes on the violin, flute, banjo 
 and accordion. A number of passengers, includ- 
 ing several ladies, had been attracted to the same 
 place and were engaged in helping the boys. 
 It was a pleasant diversion and was enjoyed by 
 all who participated in it. 
 
 Our first landing in Alaska was at Fort Wran- 
 gle, an old Russian settlement. During the 
 occupation of the territory by that nation it was 
 a place of considerable importance and a garrison 
 was kept there. Since the United States secured 
 possession the soldiers have been withdrawn and 
 the fort is fast going to decay. The town is a 
 
ALASKA. 177 
 
 miserable looking place, with only one street, 
 along which are numerous Indian shanties. 
 
 Long before the " Queen " had been made fast 
 to the wharf and the gang-plank put ashore, the 
 Indians were seen coming with their baskets and 
 trinkets to sell to the tourists at exorbitant prices. 
 They were dressed or wrapped in their many- col- 
 ored blankets, and looked very picturesque. The 
 baskets were very pretty and the trinkets con- 
 sisted of wooden forks and spoons, with gro- 
 tesque figures of heads, fish and turtles for han- 
 dles. They also had small totem-poles, with 
 such figures carved on them as only an Alaskan 
 Indian could imagine. Fort Wrangle bears the 
 distinction of having the finest totem -poles in 
 the territory bordering on the ocean. They were 
 easily seen, long before the steamer came to the 
 wharf, lifting their grotesque figures in front of 
 the Indian shanties that face the bay. The to- 
 tems are varieties of ancestral crests, marking 
 the different families of which the hou.sehold con- 
 sists. Some of the houses have two poles in 
 front, representing both sides of the family. The 
 heads of the families claim to trace their origin 
 from either the crow, the whale, the wolf, the 
 bear or the eagle. When the families intermarry, 
 the different animals or birds and a number of 
 
178 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Totem-Poles, Foit Wrangle. 
 
ALASKA. 179 
 
 grotesque faces are carved on the immense poles, 
 which are placed in front of the dwellings Some 
 of the graves are marked by curious blocks of 
 wood, representing the whale, the wolf, etc. • 
 
 "And they painted on the grave posts 
 Of the graves yet unforgotten, 
 Each his own ancestral totem, 
 Each the symbol of his household — 
 Figure of the bear and reindeer, 
 Of the turtle, crane and beaver." 
 
 The totem is held in great veneration by the 
 families, and it is an unpardonable sin to sell or 
 part with it. 
 
 While the steamer lay at the wharf an oppor- 
 tunity was given to those who wished to see a 
 representation of the ancient war- dance given by 
 an old Indian. We were all crowded into a large 
 building, the same being black with smoke and 
 reeking with numerous bad odors, which were 
 somewhat purified by the smoking embers of a 
 fire which struggled hard for existence in the 
 centre of the room. After a long wait the Indian 
 appeared, dressed in a robe de nuit and a pair of 
 white muslin drawers, with a curiously marked 
 blanket thrown over his shoulders. A peculiar- 
 looking crown, open at the top and filled with 
 
l8o WONDERLAND. 
 
 the down of the sea-gull, adorned his ugly, 
 painted head. He was preceded by an Indian 
 beating furiously on a tom-tom and giving ear- 
 splitting yells. Coming into the building, he ex- 
 plained the kind of a dance he was about to 
 execute, when, at a given signal, the tom-toms 
 were beaten and a chorus of Indian maidens 
 set up a curious yell, and then the performer 
 commenced to jump around, yelling and beating 
 two sticks which he held in his hands. Throw- 
 ing his head back with a quick jerk he sent the 
 feathers flying from his head-dress all over the 
 audience, who beat a hasty retreat and spent the 
 rest of their time in picking the feathers off their 
 clothes. In relating our experience to one of the 
 citizens of the place he informed us that we had 
 been "raked in," and that this Indian was one 
 of the worst reprobates in the place. He said 
 that the people would rather pay fifty cents each 
 to have some one shoot him than to pay that 
 amount to see him perform. 
 
 Drawn up on the beach in front of the huts 
 were many canoes belonging to the Indians. 
 Some ot them were works of experts and showed 
 evidences of great skill on the part of the makers. 
 They are made from the yellow cedar, which is 
 found in some parts of Alaska, where it attains 
 
a large growth. Those we saw on the beach 
 were covered with boughs or old blankets, to 
 prevent the sun from warping or cracking the 
 sides. The utmost care is taken of them, as the 
 canoe is the Indian's chief means of earning a 
 livelihood. In times when they were engaged in 
 war with neighboring tribes, canoes that carried 
 from thirty to fifty people were in use. The 
 largest one seen upon the beach was probably 
 forty feet in length. An Indian without a canoe 
 is in a pitiable plight. 
 
 The Alaskan women are not unlike their more 
 civilized sisters in one respect — the love of dis- 
 play of jewelry. Many of them were adorned 
 with numerous rings and bracelets, which they 
 would sell to the tourists at good prices. A 
 peculiar adornment was the labrette worn by 
 them in their lower lip. The lip is pierced and a 
 small piece of silver inserted, and as this "orna- 
 ment" is something out of the ordinary style of 
 the more enlightened nations, one of our party 
 bought one from a wrinkled old squaw who was 
 selling garnets. Some of the younger girls had 
 their faces painted black, believing it added to 
 their beauty. 
 
 As we walked along the only street of the 
 village and stopped to purchase some trinkets 
 
1 82 WONDERLAND, 
 
 exhibited for sale, the mixture of unwholesome 
 odors that came from the dwellings was nauseous, 
 and it was a great relief to get back to the 
 steamer and breathe the pure air as it came from 
 the bay uncontaminated by contact with the 
 natives . 
 
 Halibut Hook. 
 
 Among our purchases was a peculiar-looking 
 fish hook, used for catching halibut. It is gro- 
 tesquely carved, like all things used by the 
 Alaskans. 
 
ALASKA. 183 
 
 It was after midnight when the lines were 
 cast off and we were again steaming northward. 
 In the morning we were very much surprised 
 to see that the steamer was not moving and that 
 numerous icebergs were floating quite near. 
 Directly in front of the vessel was an immense 
 wall of ice, surmounted by innumerable glisten- 
 ing pinnacles. It was a beautiful sight. The 
 coloring of the glacier, for such it was, surpassed 
 anything we had ever seen. The pinnacles were 
 a snowy white, while the ice below varied from 
 a delicate green to an ultramarine blue. We 
 were at the Taku glacier, where the supply of 
 ice for the round trip was taken on board. 
 Large cakes of ice were brought up to the ship, 
 a strong wire net thrown around them, and then 
 they were hoisted on board. It was an interest- 
 ing sight to watch the work, and after forty 
 tons had been stored in the hold the vessel was 
 turned about and we proceeded to Douglass 
 Island, our next stopping-place. Here are located 
 the famous Treadwell gold mines, the largest in 
 the world. An opportunity was given the pas- 
 sengers to visit these mines, and most of them 
 embraced it. We first went into the stamp mill, 
 but hastily withdrew on account of the noise, 
 which was almost deafening. A number of 
 
[84 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
ALASKA. 185 
 
 the ladies were presented with some very fine 
 specimens of pyrites, or "fools' gold," which 
 they at first thought were very valuable. Back 
 of the stamp-mill is the mine. It resembles 
 a quarry more than anything else, as the rock is 
 all above ground. From here we passed to the 
 roasting room, where large furnaces heated the 
 pulverized stone and released what gold remained 
 after the washing in the stamp-mill. The mine 
 is a mountain of ore. It was discovered by a 
 man named Treadwell (after whom it was named), 
 who sold it to four men for $500. They expended 
 a sufi5cient amount of money to demonstrate the 
 value of the mine, and sold it to a stock com- 
 pany, each man receiving $750,000 in cash, 
 besides a considerable amount of stock. The 
 mine is now valued at $25,000,000. The ore is 
 what is termed "low-grade," and averages be- 
 tween five and eight dollars from each ton of 
 rock. The cost of reducing the ore varies from 
 one dollar to one dollar and ninety cents per ton, 
 so one can see that it is a bonanza of the largest 
 kind. 
 
 After spending over an hour looking through 
 the works and surroundings, we went back to 
 the steamer. Soon the lines were cast off, and 
 we steamed for Juneau, just across the bay. 
 13 
 
l86 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Juneau is a picturesque little town nestled at 
 the base of a high mountain. It is a place of 
 some importance, but as we approached it did 
 not seem very inviting. It is a fitting- out place 
 for prospectors, who make up their packs here 
 and go over the mountains in search of gold. 
 Here our miners left the boat and began looking 
 around for Indians to carry their packs. One of 
 them had a most striking physique — large, 
 powerful and well-proportioned. In conversa- 
 tion with him it was ascertained that he was 
 going to work his way over the mountains until 
 he got to the Yukon river, then prospect along 
 its banks until he reached the Behring sea, 
 where he would probably get on an American 
 war vessel and come back to civilization. He 
 calculated that he would be gone all summer, 
 and would get back to the States about the 
 middle of November. The passengers bought . 
 numerous baskets and trinkets, for which they 
 paid, as usual, extravagant prices. On board 
 the vessel were many delegates to the Presby- 
 terian Assembly, which met at Portland, Oregon, 
 and a reception was tendered them by the Pres- 
 byterian inhabitants of the town. It was given 
 in the little opera house and was a very pleasant 
 affair. We were all satisfied to leave when the 
 
ALASKA. 187 
 
 time came, as the weather had been verj- thick 
 and rainy. 
 
 As we steamed farther north great nnmbers of 
 cormorants were seen. They belong to the peli- 
 can family, and are notorious because of their 
 gluttonous habits. Their food is principally fish, 
 and they eat such quantities that their wings are 
 unable to lift them out of the water, and conse- 
 quently they are not able to fly. It was very 
 amusing to watch their efforts to get out of the 
 way of the vessel, and to see them floundering 
 over the water. Sometimes they would turn 
 completely over. 
 
 Our next landing-place was Sitka, the capital 
 of the territory, but before touching there we 
 went to Chilkat, the northernmost point reached 
 on our trip. It was early in the morning, and 
 not over a dozen people were on deck when 
 the steamer, passing Chilkat, turned her prow to 
 the south and started for Sitka. Before reach- 
 ing our destination we passed through Peril 
 straits, the most dangerous part of the trip. 
 It seemed to most of the passengers as if nothing 
 could prevent the vessel from being wrecked 
 upon the many rocks, but the stanch craft was 
 skillfully guided past them and gracefully out- 
 rode all danger. 
 
I»» WONDERI^AKD. 
 
 We arrived in Sitka Saturday evening, just 
 after dinner, and the customary array of Indian 
 squaws was seen squatting along the wharf, 
 with their trinkets spread out before them. The 
 usual high prices prevailed, and the tourists soon 
 returned to the boat with armloads of totem- 
 
 Baroiioft" Castle, Sitka. 
 
 sticks, small canoes, baskets, canoe-paddles, and 
 other things too numerous to mention. The 
 first building worthy of attention was the old 
 Baronoff castle. It stands upon a rock near the 
 wharf. It was the residence of the Russian 
 
ALASKA. 189 
 
 governors before Alaska was acquired by the 
 United States. During the residency of the 
 Romanoff governors its halls witnessed many 
 brilliant gatherings when the naval commanders 
 and envoys visited the territory. It is said that 
 the wife of the ruling governor, when the terri- 
 tory was ceded to the United States, shed many 
 bitter tears when the Russian flag was lowered 
 and the Stars and Stripes run up in its place. 
 She was far more patriotic than the officials, and 
 looked upon the selling of the domain as an 
 indication of waning power. The castle is now- 
 unoccupied and fast approaching destruction. 
 From the cupola on the roof a fine view of the 
 town and bay may be had. The village is built 
 at the base of a range of mountains whose crests 
 are continually covered with suow. The street 
 follows the contour of the bay, is perhaps a 
 mile or more in length, and reaches from the 
 "rancherie" to the Indian river. Turning, one 
 looks upon a most beautiful harbor and bay, 
 studded with numerous islands. 
 
 At anchor in the bay were several United 
 States war vessels with the seal-poachers they 
 had captured while illegally catching seals on 
 the islands. 
 
 Directly in front of the wharf, some distance 
 
igo 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
ALASKA. 191 
 
 from the water, is the only Greek church in 
 America. It is built in the form of a cross, 
 surmounted by a steeple that was once painted 
 green, but which is now badly faded. A Mal- 
 tese cross crowns the spire. As services were 
 not being held, an admission fee of fifty cents 
 was charged. The interior was magnificently 
 furnished with paintings by the old masters. 
 In the pictures of the saints and the Madonna 
 only the faces are seen, the balance being cov- 
 ered with gold or silver. The crowns worn by 
 brides and bridegrooms at marriage ceremonies 
 were shown us ; also the bishop's miter. The 
 latter was very old, and, being set with pearls 
 and precious stones, was very valuable. Several 
 entertaining hours could easily have been spent 
 within the sacred walls, but as our time was 
 limited we hurried through. 
 
 The Indians are kept as much as possible in 
 a section of the town called the " rancherie." 
 In visiting it one finds a bottle of smelling-salts 
 very acceptable, as the odors which issue from 
 the cabins are oppressive. It was after eleven 
 o'clock, Saturday evening, when the writer 
 passed through it hunting for Princess Thom, 
 a fat, wrinkled Indian squaw who has amassed 
 a small fortune in trading among her tribe and 
 
192 WONDERLAND. 
 
 with the white people. It was a surprise to 
 realize, on arriving at the boat, that though 
 almost midnight, darkness had not yet settled 
 down, owing to the long twilight, and several 
 on deck were yet engaged in reading at this 
 hour. 
 
 Sunday morning was bright and clear. Before 
 breakfast a party of us started out to revisit the 
 "rancherie" and get some silver spoons, made 
 by the natives. Noticing a great number of 
 mongrel curs in this part of the town, our curi- 
 osity was aroused and we counted as many as a 
 dozen in front of several of the huts. The aver- 
 age to each cabin was about nine. After secur- 
 ing what trinkets we wanted we returned to the 
 steamer, meeting on the way a number of our 
 fellow-passengers bent on the same errand as our 
 own. We strolled through the old cemetery and 
 noticed quite a number of small houses about the 
 size of dog-kennels over many of the graves. 
 Some were provided with windows and others 
 were enclosed on all sides. On the way back we 
 noticed several octagonal buildings, which, dur- 
 ing the Russian occupation, had been used as 
 magazines and block-houses. They have long 
 since been abandoned and are fast going to 
 decay. 
 
ALASKA. 193 
 
 Flying around the warehouses and buildings 
 near the wharf were numerous large ravens, fully 
 twice the size of the crows of our native clime. 
 They gave a much louder ' ' caw ' ' than their 
 more southern brethren and seemed to jeer at us 
 as we passed them. In former times, before the 
 Christianizing of the natives, many of the tribes 
 of Alaska held this bird sacred, some families 
 tracing their origin back to it. 
 
 Some of the tourists spent the day visiting the 
 missions, while others took a walk along the 
 romantic Indian river, which flows immediately 
 in the rear of the town. We chose the latter, 
 and wended our way through the grounds be- 
 longing to the mission, back past the cemetery, 
 through numerous patches of wild flowers, where 
 we found the path leading to the river. It was 
 a romantic walk through forests of pine and over 
 rustic bridges, with the clear waters of the 
 Indian river running at our side. Several hours 
 were spent as we sauntered along, and by the 
 time we arrived at the wharf it was almost time 
 for us to start for Muir Glacier. 
 
 Before the vessel left the wharf a number of 
 us bought copies of the only newspaper pub- 
 lished in the city. It was made up of "patent 
 outsides " of several varieties, giving descrip 
 
194 WONDERI.AND. 
 
 tions of various points of interest in the territory. 
 The "news" was on the inside, and was made 
 up principally of a list of passengers of the 
 steamer. An Indian band from the Presbyterian 
 mission came down to the wharf and played 
 several airs, and Princess Thom, wrapped in one 
 of her finest blankets, came to bid us adieu. 
 
 Mount Edgecombe, whose summit pierces the 
 clouds, is an extinct volcano located on the 
 southern point of Kruzoflf Island, opposite the 
 city of Sitka. Its elevation is 2,955 f^et, and 
 the crater is 2,000 feet across and 400 feet deep. 
 It is the sacred mount of the Alaskan Indians. 
 What Olympus was to the ancient Greeks, Edge- 
 combe is to the uncivilized tribes of Alaska. I 
 will repeat, as near as I can, one of the tradi- 
 tions related to me as a party of us sat on the 
 upper deck of the steamer upon leaving the 
 wharf : 
 
 "In the dim and distant past," according to 
 the Indian legend, "the first Indian pair lived 
 under the shadow of this mountain. For a long 
 time they lived happily together, and many chil- 
 dren were the fruit of their marriage. One day, 
 like a thunder-clap out of a clear sky, a family 
 jar occurred, and the husband and wife quarreled 
 long and loud. The Great Spirit, as a punish- 
 
ALASKA. 195 
 
 ment for their unseemly conduct, changed the 
 man into a wolf and the woman into a raven. 
 The latter then flew to the crater of the mount 
 and disappeared within it, and is now supposed 
 to be resting upon a stump, supporting the world 
 upon her outstretched wings. Whenever there 
 is a storm, accompanied with thunder and light- 
 ning, the natives believe that it is only the rav- 
 ings of the wolf who is trying to dislodge the 
 raven from her resting-place, and should he 
 succeed the world and all upon it will be de- 
 stroyed." 
 
 And now, even with all the influences of 
 Christianity thrown about them, whenever it 
 thunders many of the Indians take stones and 
 pound upon the floors of their houses to encour- 
 age the raven to hold fast to her resting place. 
 
 At twelve o'clock Sunday noon the steamer 
 glided gracefully through the channels between 
 the many islands that dot the harbor in front of 
 Sitka. Passing through Peril straits, we were 
 again moving toward the north. It was a little 
 after ten o'clock when the first iceberg was 
 sighted— a small one, about the size of an ordi- 
 nary one-story frame cottage. It was not long 
 before they commenced to get quite numerous, 
 and before two o'clock in the morning, when we 
 
196 WONDERI^AND. 
 
 retired, they were scraping the paint off the iron 
 hull of our vessel. 
 
 On awaking Monday morning the prospects of 
 a clear day seemed doubtful, but before breakfast 
 
 Ice-Floe, Glacier Bay. 
 
 was over the rays of the sun had pierced the 
 clouds, and everyone was in a happy mood. 
 The " Queen " lay within two miles of the great 
 Muir Glacier, although it looked much nearer. 
 
ALASKA. 197 
 
 There it was, an immense mountain of ice, mov- 
 ing forward at the rate of about forty feet per 
 day. It looked as if the immense waves of an 
 angry ocean had suddenly become frozen and 
 were waiting for the warm rays of the sun to re- 
 store them to life again. At intervals immense 
 pieces would break off and fall into the water, 
 accompanied with a rumbling noise like that of 
 distant thunder. The glacier extends from shore 
 to shore, a distance of four miles, and lifts its 
 pinnacles four hundred feet above the muddy 
 river. It was my fortune to see one of the tallest 
 of these break off and plunge into the river. 
 When it struck, the spray was thrown far above 
 the highest point of the glacier. The roar that 
 accompanied the fall was terrific. 
 
 Those who wished to climb the glacier, after 
 providing themselves with alpenstocks, were 
 rowed ashore. It is not dangerous to climb, 
 providing one exercises ordinary prudence and 
 does not attempt venturesome explorations on his 
 own account. A hard climb of about three 
 miles, which seemed more like ten, over the 
 moraine, brought us to the glacier proper. After 
 climbing several of the ridges we started on our 
 return trip in order to get lunch before coming 
 out in the afternoon. Those three miles seemed 
 
I9S 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
ALASKA. 199 
 
 to lengthen at every step, and we were surely a 
 tired and hungry party when we arrived on 
 board the steamer. On our return we plucked a 
 bouquet of beautiful purple flowers which were 
 blooming not ten feet from the snow and ice that 
 formed the mighty glacier. A good lunch was 
 provided, and after a short rest we determined to 
 walk to the foot of the glacier by way of the 
 beach. The whole afternoon was spent on the 
 sands, where the sun was piping hot, blistering 
 our faces and ears equal to an August day at the 
 seaside in far-away New Jersey. A photogra- 
 pher conveniently happened along, and we in- 
 duced him to photograph our party as we sat 
 perched upon a stranded iceberg. 
 
 All afternoon there was a constant roar, 
 caused by falling pinnacles and the parting of 
 the glacier. Most of the noise came from the 
 interior, as very few pieces fell from the front 
 during the entire day. Pieces breaking off 
 underneath the glacier would be carried some 
 distance by the swift current before coming to 
 the surface, and if very large they would cause 
 immense waves to roll upon the shore. Captain 
 Carroll said that in all his experience of nine 
 years he had not seen so few pieces fall. 
 
 Returning to the steamer we found several 
 
WONDERLAND. 
 
canoes, each one containing two Indians who 
 had for sale the usual stock of trinkets, consist- 
 ing of baskets, small canoes, paddles, bone and 
 ivory images and horn and wooden spoons. 
 They belonged to the Chilkoot tribe of Indians 
 and had come over one hundred miles to sell 
 their trinkets. Even after they had disposed 
 of considerable of their stock and were unable 
 to make any more bargains they were loth to 
 leave, but remained near the steamer until the 
 wheels of the propeller began churning the 
 water, when they gave a series of grunts and 
 paddled off toward home to replenish their stock 
 and be back for the next steamer in about a 
 week. 
 
 At seven o'clock the anchor was hoisted and 
 the noble ' ' Queen ' ' steamed quite near the 
 glacier, where the captain blew the whistle 
 several times, the echo of which reverberated 
 through the pinnacles and valleys of the glacier 
 again and again. Just as we were leaving an 
 immense fall of ice occurred, giving us a parting 
 salute as if trying to make up for its inaction 
 during the day. 
 
 Alaska, being a comparatively new country, 
 abounds in legends. Among the most wonder- 
 ful is the one freely told that under the muddy 
 14 
 
202 WONDERlvAND. 
 
 waters of the Glacier river a submerged city is 
 to be seen. Through its centre runs a river 
 along which are wharves where ships lie at 
 anchor. An ivy-mantled church and the grave- 
 yard adjoining are all said to be seen under 
 favorable conditions. These conditions were not 
 apparent while the steamer ' ' Queen ' ' lay at 
 anchor on June 13th, 1892, two miles from the 
 glacier. A few of the passengers, we afterwards 
 ascertained, looked wistfully over the sides of the 
 steamer to secure a view of the silent city. 
 Mr. Willoughby, after whom Wiloughby's 
 island was named, claims to have seen the city 
 faithfully reflected in the sky above the river, 
 but he evidently saw a mirage, as the river is 
 too muddy to reflect anything six inches below 
 the surface. 
 
 After we had steamed out of Glacier bay, with 
 its floating icebergs, the utmost quiet seemed to 
 prevail. Everybody had retired, tired out with 
 the many absorbing sights of the day, reminding 
 one of the weariness which comes over children 
 on Christmas night, after the excitements of the 
 day have worn them into a condition for seeking 
 their beds. Our party had been in a constant 
 state of excitement previous to seeing the glacier, 
 but now that they had seen it and had climbed 
 
ALASKA. 203 
 
 over it they were willing to take a much-needed 
 rest and make up some of the lost sleep of the 
 nights before. 
 
 The return trip was without incident, save a 
 little episode while crossing Millbank Sound, 
 when a number of passengers, on account of the 
 rolling of the vessel, paid their respects to old 
 Neptune. Here we witnessed for the first time 
 the phenomena of phosphorescent sea. The 
 wake of the vessel had the appearance of coals 
 of fire, and we watched it for more than an hour. 
 
 One evening an entertainment was given by 
 the young ladies and gentlemen of the party. 
 The characters represented were mostly Alaskan, 
 with the usual negro-minstrel attachment. Many 
 of the articles bought by the tourists were 
 brought out and put to some use. The affair 
 was a success in everj' particular, and the audi- 
 ence contributed very liberally to the baskets as 
 they were passed around. The money collected 
 was donated to furnishing the parsonage of the 
 Presbyterian missionary at Juneau. 
 
 One morning the steamer was noticed to 
 slacken speed, and presently a small steamboat 
 put out from the shore and made direct for us. 
 In the bow were several Indians wrapped in 
 their blankets. As the boat came alongside, a 
 
204 WONDERLAND. 
 
 ladder was let down and a missionary (or " sky- 
 pilot," as one of the officers called him) climbed 
 over the side and took his place among the 
 Indians, who showed their love for him in many 
 ways. He was going to one of the missionary 
 stations and was to remain at his work for six 
 months, during which time he did not expect 
 to see the face of a white man. The Indians 
 had brought out some fish and presented them 
 to the captain, and we partook of fresh fish for 
 the next two meals. 
 
 The only stop made on the return trip between 
 Muir Glacier and Victoria was at the coaling- 
 station near Nanaimo, where five hundred tons 
 of coal were taken on board. While the pur- 
 ser was making arrangements for receiving the 
 coal, the captain gave the passengers a pleas- 
 ant surprise. The little steam-launch was hoisted 
 from the hold and placed in the water ; then fol- 
 lowed the boats from the davits, until seven of 
 them were lying alongside the steamer. All 
 who wished were then privileged to take their 
 places in them, and we steamed off for the village 
 of Nanaimo in tow of the steam launch. Two 
 hours were allowed us to visit the places of inter- 
 est. Nearly all went first to the jewelry stores 
 and bought souvenir spoons, after which they 
 looked about the town. 
 
ALASKA.. 205 
 
 Nanaimo is one of the old Hudson Bay Trad- 
 ing Company's outposts, and the old bastion 
 which once protected the white men from the 
 Indians is still standing in one of the streets. 
 The town owes much of its prosperity to the dis- 
 covery of coal near it. The mines are an im- 
 mense source of revenue to the proprietor, and 
 the supply is apparently inexhaustible. They 
 are owned by one Mr. Dunsrauir, whose castle in 
 Victoria has been spoken of in the preceding 
 pages. 
 
 Our return to the ship was as pleasant as the 
 first sail, and we arrived there in time for a boun- 
 tiful supper which had been prepared for us. 
 Train after train of cars loaded with coal were 
 being emptied of their contents into the hold, 
 and there was ample time for those who wished 
 to go on shore and hunt wild flowers. 
 
 The steamer remained at the wharf until the 
 next morning, when it headed for Victoria. 
 Here an hour was allowed to those who wished 
 to revisit the city and make purchases. Quite a 
 number of the passengers came near getting left. 
 They were up town buying trinkets to take 
 home, and the storekeepers informed them that 
 they had plenty of time, as a street car passed 
 the door every ten minutes for the wharf. They 
 
2o6 WONDERLAND. 
 
 waited fully twenty minutes for one to pass, and 
 had started to walk when it overtook them. It 
 poked along and managed to get within an 
 eighth of a mile of the wharf when the whistle 
 sounded that the lines were cast off. It was a 
 long run, but it had to be made, and the writer 
 was just able to jump and catch the anchor- 
 chains, when he climbed to the deck and in- 
 formed the mate that there were several elderly 
 ladies on the way from the street car. The en- 
 gines were then stopped and the gang plank put 
 out for them to come on board It was a narrow 
 escape, and a situation which few would desire 
 in a country so foreign and remote. 
 
 At Seattle many of the passengers left the 
 steamer — some to take the train and others to 
 sojourn for a few weeks in that wonderful West- 
 ern city. It was the breaking-up of our party 
 after the long trip from Philadelphia across the 
 continent, and from Mexico to Alaska, during 
 which time friendships were formed that will 
 live, it is to be hoped, for all time. Had it not 
 been for the stop at Nanaimo we should have 
 arrived at our starting place, Tacoma, one day 
 ahead of schedule time. 
 
 All were well pleased with the trip and with 
 the courtesies extended by Captain Carroll, who 
 
ALASKA. 207 
 
 did everything in his power to make the journey 
 agreeable. No more careful captain sails the 
 seas than he, and we commend his proud vessel, 
 the " Queen," to all who make the journey to 
 that wonderland of the Northwest— Alaska. 
 May his shadow never grow less. 
 
 QV-1^0^^^-.^^ 
 
208 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Chapter VI. 
 
 I^OI^TLAND AND SHOSHONB. 
 
 TT WAS quite late in the evening when our 
 ^ steamer was made fast to the wharf at Tacoma 
 and the passengers began to disembark. The 
 scene presented was a lively one. Some were 
 loaded with baskets filled with trinkets, others 
 were carrying large bundles and bags, while 
 many were followed by the ship's porters, who 
 were also loaded with bundles of every descrip- 
 tion. Each seemed bent on being the first to 
 get off" the wharf. All had something to remind 
 them of the trip to Alaska. Some were hurrying 
 for the train, which stood waiting, and others 
 hustled themselves into omnibuses or cabs and 
 started for the hotel. We were among the latter. 
 Rooms being secured we were soon at home, as 
 this was our second visit to Tacoma. 
 
 Our stay was necessarily short, as we had 
 fully expected to be in Mount Carmel, Illinois, 
 the day we landed, had we not taken the trip 
 to Alaska. Having ordered our mail sent to 
 Portland we left early the next morning for the 
 latter place, arriving there in the evening. Here 
 
PORTLAND AND SHOSHONE. 209 
 
 we found a number of our fellow-passengers of 
 the "Queen," who had come on the night before 
 and were preparing to go to San Francisco and 
 other points in California. 
 
 Portland is a beautiful city, situated on the 
 Willamette river about twelve miles from its 
 junction with the Columbia. It has nearly 
 65,000 inhabitants and is steadily forging ahead. 
 Its business houses and residences compare 
 favorably with any city in the West Having a 
 letter of introduction to Mr. Cicero Lewis, I 
 called on him at his palatial home, which, with 
 the grounds surrounding it, occupies an entire 
 block. While speaking of the wonderful growth 
 of the city he remarked that when he first came 
 to Portland he had killed deer on the ground 
 upon which his house stood, and that only a 
 few years ago it was a field of stumps. The city 
 now extends miles beyond, and electric cars 
 pass his door. The principal hotel in the city 
 is named "The Portland," and is under the 
 management of Mr. Charles E. Leland. one of 
 that family of brothers so famous for their hotels. 
 
 From the hills of Portland can be distinctly 
 seen the snow-capped peaks of Mt. Hood, Mt. 
 St Helens and Mt. Ranier. At the wharves are 
 to be seen ships of all nations discharging and 
 receiving their cargoes. 
 
Multnomah Falls. 
 
PORTLAND AND SHOSHONE. 211 
 
 Leaving Portland by the morning train, in 
 order to obtain a view of the Columbia river, we 
 entered upon what seemed to us the beginning of 
 our homeward journey. The conductor, who 
 was especially pleasant, exerted himself to show 
 us points of interest which otherwise, in all like- 
 lihood, would have been passed unnoticed. At 
 Multnomah Falls the train stopped several min- 
 utes to enable passengers to get out and view 
 this beautiful fall. The cliff from which the falls 
 leap is so high that the water becomes only a 
 heavy cloud of mist before reaching the foot of 
 the precipice. Several other interesting falls 
 were passed, but, being much interested in the 
 large fish-wheels, we had not opportunity to in- 
 vestigate them. The first wheel seen was on a 
 boat, and appeared to be about twenty feet in 
 diameter. It was continually revolving, being 
 kept in motion by the force of the water. The 
 largest wheels are to be seen at the Cascades, 
 where they are supported by piers. They are 
 kept continually going during the season in 
 which the salmon run. The wheels are covered, 
 except at the openings, with wire netting, and 
 resemble large scoops. In revolving, they catch 
 the fish that come within their reach and tumble 
 them into a trough in the centre of the wheel, 
 
PORTLAND AND SHOSHOME. 213 
 
 from which they fall out into the boat or a box 
 and are taken to the canneries. The season was 
 not fairly commenced when we passed, and the 
 catches were consequently small. 
 
 As we were approaching the "Dalles," a tall 
 shaft standing on an island was noticed. The 
 island seemed bare of all vegetation, and would 
 have passed unnoticed had it not been for the 
 shaft. A passenger explained that it was a mon- 
 ument marking the grave of Victor Trevet, an 
 eccentric old pioneer, who died some years ago. 
 He was a great friend of the Indians and wished 
 to be buried among them. The name of the 
 island is Memaloose Isle, the interpretation of 
 which means the "Isle of the Dead," and has 
 been for many years the burial-place of the Chi- 
 nook Indians. 
 
 Many are the legends associated with the 
 points of interest along this beautiful river, and 
 were it not for the space required in writing them 
 we would gladly repeat some as they were told 
 to us. 
 
 After leaving the ' ' Dalles " a passenger pointed 
 out an Indian village where the Indians have 
 come, from time immemorial, and settled during 
 the fishing season, speared their winter's supply 
 of fish, and then returned to their hunting- 
 
214 WONDERLAND. 
 
 grounds in the mountains. Soon afterward the 
 railroad leaves the river and enters a country of 
 lava, rock and sand. The eyes soon become 
 weary of looking out of the car windows, and to 
 rest them the curtains are drawn and we try the 
 experiment of short naps for a change. 
 
 It was Hearing noon of the second day out 
 from Portland when we arrived at Shoshone, a 
 small town of less than a thousand inhabitants, 
 located in the lava-beds of southern Idaho. It 
 owes its existence to the fact that here is the 
 junction of a branch of the Union Pacific rail- 
 road leading up to the mining camps of the 
 Wood river, and that it is the nearest point to 
 the Great Shoshone Falls of the Snake river. 
 Most of the houses are built of dark lava-blocks, 
 which gives the town an ancient but substantial 
 appearance. Along the main street and around 
 the homes of the wealthier members of the com- 
 munity are cotton wood shade- trees. Irrigating 
 ditches supply moisture for their roots, and they 
 flourish. There are two hotels for the accommo- 
 dation of tourists en route for the falls. Having 
 made our arrangements for a stage to convey us 
 to the falls, considerable delay was experi- 
 enced on account of a drunken blacksmith 
 who was engaged to shoe two of the horses. 
 
PORTLAND AND SHOSHONE. 215 
 
 and it was three o'clock when we got into 
 t'-.e old rattle-trap stage and started for a 
 ride of twenty five miles across the lava-beds. 
 Our driver, who was one of the proprie- 
 tors of the stage line, had only been married a 
 week, and his wife, a very handsome young lady, 
 occupied the box, sitting between her husband 
 and the writer. When everything was ready, 
 and good-byes had been exchanged, the driver 
 cracked his whip and off the four horses started 
 at a gallop. We were soon out of sight of the 
 village, and were in the lava-beds. On either 
 side, as far as the eye could reach, was nothing 
 but sage-brush and cactus-plants. Near the road 
 great quantities of yellow and white flowers gave 
 relief to the eye, and occasionally the brilliant 
 red or the rich amber-colored flowers of the cac- 
 tus were to be seen. There was a gentle breeze 
 stirring, which made the ride very pleasant, and 
 also carried away the dust. As we drove along, 
 the young lady and bride entered into the gen- 
 eral conversation, and proved herself a very 
 interesting adjunct to our party during this novel 
 ride. 
 
 After we had driven about three hours we 
 inquired where the falls were, and if they could 
 be seen, as the landscape still presented nothing 
 
2l6 WONDERLAND. 
 
 but sage-brush, lava, flowers and parched grass. 
 We were told to wait a while and we would see 
 them before we expected. As we proceeded we 
 entered what appeared to be a natural gate, and 
 commenced a descent of over one thousand feet 
 to the bottom of Snake river canon, in which are 
 the falls. In making one of the sharp turns in 
 the road the first view of the falls was had. 
 Here we had to get out and walk down, as the 
 road is so steep that it is dangerous to ride. At 
 the ferry, only two-hundred yards above the falls, 
 the river is said to be over two hundred feet 
 deep, and the rushing of the muddy water made 
 the more timid ones of the party wish that the 
 hotel could be reached without crossing it. Our 
 driver assured them that there was no danger, as 
 there were two heavy wire cables reaching from 
 shore to shore, one under the water, to which 
 was attached the windlass for propelling the 
 boat, and a safety cable above the water, over 
 which a trolley worked as the boat moved. We 
 were soon over, and driving up to the cosy hotel 
 found ourselves the only guests, and were ac- 
 corded the freedom of the house. 
 
 The hotel is built quite near the falls, and 
 from the porch a fine view of the second Niagara 
 is to be had. The wind, blowing in the 
 
PORTLAND AND SHOSHONE. 217 
 
 direction of the hotel, carried spray in such 
 quantities that it appeared as if a heavy rain 
 were falling. The force of the falling water 
 jarred the hotel continually, and it was some 
 time before we could accustom ourselves to it. 
 Above the falls are several islands. On one of 
 them an eagle has built her nest, and there, 
 amid the ceaseless roar of the falling water, has 
 reared her young for years. She is safe from 
 the depredations of man, as no human being 
 has ever been able to reach the rock. 
 
 The width of the falls proper is 950 feet, and 
 of the Bridal Veil 125 feet. The first rush of 
 the water is a fall of over eighty feet, but the 
 final plunge is over a precipice 210 feet into a 
 seething and boiling stream. In the morning 
 when the sun rose over the surrounding cliffs 
 and penetrated the clouds of mist that rose from 
 the boiling caldron below the falls, beautiful 
 rainbows were formed in quick succession as 
 the clouds of spray were blown hither and yon 
 by the winds. 
 
 It is not known when the Shoshone Falls 
 were discovered, as no mention of them is made 
 by the emigrants who must have passed quite 
 near them on their way to the Pacific during the 
 stirring times of the gold excitement in 1849. 
 15 
 
2l8 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
PORTLAND AND SHOSHONE. 219 
 
 But, like all other places, it has its legends. It is 
 said that in the sands of Bell's Island, just at 
 the brink of the falls, gold is to be found ; and 
 where gold is, men will go. From our driver we 
 learned that a miner named Tom Bell had a 
 claim upon the island which now bears his name. 
 It was his custom to remain on the island until 
 his provisions got low, when he would come to 
 the mainland to replenish his stock. One day 
 when returning to the mainland one of his oars 
 snapped while he was in the rapids, and the 
 sequel was that poor Tom went over the falls and 
 his body was never recovered. Several China- 
 men, it is reported, have shared the fate of Bell, 
 but as a Chinaman's life is not considered worth 
 counting in this country, there is no clear record 
 as to how many Celestials have taken the leap. 
 
 The best view of the falls is obtained at Obser- 
 vation Point, directly in front of the hotel. A 
 narrow path leads out to it. Pushing one's way 
 through the juniper bushes, one feels the damp 
 spray falling upon him like rain. A wire cable 
 stretched along the edge of the cliff forms a 
 guard for tho.se who wish to get the view from 
 this point. The rushing of the waters causes a 
 strong current of air, and one must hold to the 
 cable lest he be blown into the waters at the foot 
 
220 WONDERLAND. 
 
 of the falls. The view from this point is grand. 
 The waters above the falls, broken by the 
 rapids, are churned to a milky whiteness, and 
 dash against the rocky islands as if to hurl 
 them from their foundations. Defeated in 
 their work, they rush forward, apparently mad- 
 dened by their unsuccessful attempt, and with a 
 terrible roar plunge over the precipice into the 
 boiling caldron 210 feet below. The waters be 
 low the falls, still fretful but crowned with masses 
 of white foam, press onward through the canon 
 until, disappearing around one of the curves in 
 the river, they are lost sight of and the black 
 walls of the canon arrest one's view. 
 
 Below the falls are the Natural Bridge and 
 Diana's Bath-Room. The latter is a large grotto, 
 in the centre of which is a natural basin into 
 which drop the waters from the roof of the cave. 
 There are several other caves, and in one the 
 rushing of the waters suggests the passage of 
 a large steamer, and one can hear the repeated 
 strokes of the paddle wheels as they strike the 
 water. To reach the bottom of the falls and 
 return is no small job, as it is one continual 
 climb excepting when at the water's edge. 
 
 Three miles up the canon are the Twin Falls. 
 An island in mid-stream divides the river into 
 
PORTLAND AND SHOSHONE. 221 
 
 two channels, each about seventy feet in width, 
 through which the waters rush. At the lower 
 end of the island the river takes a plunge of 
 one hundred and eighty feet into a circular basin, 
 resembling a boiling and seething caldron, from 
 which rise dense clouds of spray. 
 
 While waiting for Mr. Walgamot to bring his 
 ferry-boat so that we could re-cross the river, 
 one of the party who had heard that sage bush 
 tea was a sure preventive of baldheadedness 
 employed considerable time in gathering an 
 immense handful of it to apply to his already 
 shining pate. I have met him several times 
 since my return from the West, and his cranium 
 has lost none of its polish, nor has the skating- 
 rink on the top of his head diminished in size. 
 
 Walking up the roadway leading to the mesa 
 we had an opportunity to notice the column-like 
 prisms which the lava, in cooling, had formed. 
 It was quite a climb, and we were thankful that 
 we had left our wraps in the stage upon leaving 
 the ferry-boat. Before reaching the top of the 
 canon we took a last look at Shoshone Falls 
 and left them in their lonely grandeur. 
 
 Taking our seats in the stage we returned at 
 a lively rate to Shoshone. A gentle breeze 
 was stirring, and upon the advice of Mr. Per- 
 
222 WONDERLAND. 
 
 rine we put our wraps about us. Before 
 reaching the town we were glad that we had 
 followed his suggestion. 
 
 It was noon when we arrived in Shoshone, 
 and the time between that and the departure of 
 the train was spent in looking over the town. 
 While in one of the stores several Indians came 
 in and wanted to trade some gloves made from 
 buckskin. They were Shoshones and were well 
 formed, as straight as arrows, and, wrapped in 
 their blankets, made a novel and interesting 
 appearance. When the train pulled into the 
 station, we were on the platform ready to start 
 for new scenes. 
 
WONDERI.AND. 223 
 
 Chapter VII. 
 
 ^ONDBI^LAMD. 
 
 T -KAviNG Shoshone our faces were once more 
 turned to the east. The scenery along the 
 way was nothing to boast of, especially after 
 leaving the Columbia river, and we soon became 
 tired looking out of the car windows and turned 
 our attention to reading such papers as we could 
 purchase from the newsboy on the train. Occa- 
 sionally we would pass a neat farm or ranch 
 which would seem a veritable oasis in the desert. 
 The water used for irrigating these ranches is 
 sometimes brought for miles in ditches or pipes, 
 and wherever used the desert blossoms like the 
 rose. 
 
 Frequently we would see, in the distance, 
 buttes or hills that arose abruptly from the 
 desert. Some seemed about two hundred feet 
 high, but many of them were evidently much 
 higher. They were bare of vegetation, except- 
 ing now and then a clump of grease-weed, and 
 had a forbidding appearance. The country 
 being bare of trees, we had an uninterrupted 
 view for miles on either side. One afternoon, 
 
224 WONDBRI.AND. 
 
 while on one of the plateaus, we noticed far 
 down in the valley what appeared to be a town 
 of some importance. Between us and the town 
 was a railroad train, moving at what seemed to 
 us about at right angles to the course we were 
 taking. Watching it for some time we discov- 
 ered that it would soon pass us, as it was a train 
 bound in the opposite direction upon the same 
 railroad. 
 
 At the American Falls of the Snake river the 
 train halted for a few moments upon the bridge, 
 the piers of which were built in the midst of the 
 rushing torrent. From here on to Pocatella 
 was the same scenery — sand and lava. 
 
 It was near five o'clock when we arrived at 
 Pocatella, where we changed cars and took the 
 Utah Northern branch of the Union Pacific rail- 
 road. While waiting for our train we noticed 
 quite a number of Indians, wrapped in their 
 blankets, walking around the station. They were 
 tall, well formed, and as straight as arrows. One 
 in particular attracted much attention. His face 
 was painted in several colors, giving him a gro- 
 tesque appearance. In his hair were at least half 
 a dozen eagle feathers, and around his body 
 was wrapped a many-colored blanket. His leg- 
 gins were ornamented with several rows of 
 
WONDERLAND. 225 
 
 brightly-polished steel keys, which, as he moved, 
 would strike together, making a tinkling sound. 
 These Indians were strikingly different from 
 those we saw in Alaska. When we pulled out 
 of the station several of them got on the plat- 
 forms of the cats and rode as far as they wished 
 and then dropped off. The Indians never pay 
 any car-fare, but usually ride on freight trains or 
 on the platforms of the passenger cars. They 
 are not allowed inside unless in extremely cold 
 weather. 
 
 Just outside of the limits of Pocatella is an 
 Indian reservation, which accounted for the 
 number of red men seen in and around the sta- 
 tion. Some of the Indians live in log houses 
 built for them by the government, but most of 
 them prefer the wigwams, many of which were 
 scattered along the road for some distance. 
 
 At Idaho Falls we again crossed the Snake 
 river. These falls are not so precipitous as the 
 American Falls, and resemble only a series of 
 rapids. Here quite a number of the passengers 
 got off, as it was near sheep shearing time, and 
 the owners of the large ranches had been down 
 the road engaging men for clipping the sheep. 
 
 It was after dark when the train pulled into 
 the station at Beaver Canon, where we were to 
 
226 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Stop over night and take the stages in the morn- 
 ing for the Yellowstone National Park, or " Won- 
 derland," as it is most appropriately christened 
 by men who have traveled the world over. As 
 it was late we were unable to procure a warm 
 supper, as the proprietor of the only hotel in the 
 place had not been advised of our coming, and 
 we feasted upon bread and cheese sandwiches. 
 In the morning a steaming hot breakfast awaited 
 us. It was not brought on in courses, but every- 
 thing was well cooked and neatly served. The 
 proprietor was a Dane and did many favors for 
 us, including the taking care of our trunks, 
 which we were unable to take with us into the 
 park. He had been quite a traveler, and during 
 his life had prospected for gold. 
 
 Before the stage drove up to the door we were 
 advised to procure some mosquito-netting for 
 veils, as the mosquitoes were likely to bother 
 us in some localities. Just as we were about 
 starting we were joined by a young man who 
 had come down from Butte, and was going into 
 the Park. He was a Yankee, and afforded us 
 considerable amusement. He pretended to be 
 quite a marksman, but his pretentions came to 
 naught. We had scarcely passed over the brow 
 of the first hill after leaving the canon when we 
 
WONDKRI.AND. 227 
 
 were startled by the firing of a pistol in the 
 front of the coach. It was our Yankee fellow- 
 traveler shooting at a woodchuck, which escaped 
 unharmed. 
 
 The country through which we were passing 
 was like an immense flower-garden. For miles 
 on either side, as far as the eye could reach, 
 flowers were in profusion. The prevailing colors 
 were white, yellow, blue, and occasionally a 
 pink or red flower was noticed. So interwoven 
 were they that the whole country had the 
 appearance of an immense carpet spread out 
 over the hills and valley. 
 
 Here our mosquito-netting came into use. 
 The pestiferous things rose in clouds from every 
 ford or marshy place we crossed. They made 
 life almost a burden. We fought them with 
 our hands and bathed our necks and wrists in 
 menthol to keep them away, but to no purpose. 
 They were after us and were going to stay with 
 us. In the dining-room at the dinner-station 
 on the Camas Meadows the window panes were 
 black with them and we were compelled to eat 
 with our veils on, but that did not prevent them 
 from getting into our mouths. For two long 
 hours we were at their mercy— hard, unrelenting, 
 unmerciful mercy. They bit us until our necks. 
 
228 WONDERLAND. 
 
 faces and hands had the appearance of being 
 stung by a swarm of bees. Outside of the cabin 
 they were even worse, and appeared in clouds 
 whenever the grass was stirred. We had to 
 keep moving, for the instant we stopped they 
 would light upon our clothes so thick that we 
 could not tell the color of the cloth. After one 
 blow upon the shoulder of our Yankee friend, 
 thirty-four dead mosquitoes were found sticking 
 to his coat. We were all thankful when the 
 driver told us to take our places in the stage 
 for our departure. 
 
 Numerous curlews, with their long curled bills, 
 were to be seen upon all sides, and our Yankee 
 friend was busily employed trying to bag one. 
 At first we were somewhat afraid he might, but 
 we soon ceased to be alarmed for their safety and 
 became more worried for the life of the driver, 
 who was the nearest to our amateur marksman. 
 During the whole day he only bagged one little 
 bird, and that was not hit, but killed by concus- 
 sion. 
 
 Houses were few and far between, as lands 
 were taken principally by large companies and 
 devoted to stock-raising. At one ranch, near the 
 scene of a bloody battle between General How- 
 ard and the Indians, were a number of elk which 
 
WONDERI,AND. 229 
 
 had been captured during the past winter, after a 
 severe snow-storm. They were in a corral, and 
 appeared quite tame. There were about twenty 
 of them, and the driver drew up rein that we 
 might have a better view of the handsome crea- 
 tures. 
 
 Aran gee Ranch, or Snake river crossing, was 
 our stopping-place for the night. It is a collec- 
 tion of log cabins, none of which are over one 
 story in height. It is the headquarters of several 
 ranches owned by a company of New York capi- 
 talists engaged in stock-raising. Most of the 
 cabins are occupied by the hands employed by 
 this colony. Only one building is set apart for 
 the accommodation of tourists. The situation of 
 the cabins is beautiful. In the background are 
 the heavy forests of pine, while in front is the 
 swift running Snake river, beyond which lie the 
 prairie, the foothills and the snow-capped moun- 
 tains. 
 
 The sun was just dipping behind the moun- 
 tains when we forded the river and drove up to 
 the cabins. It was a most beautiful sight to look 
 upon the snow-capped peaks, above which were 
 the variously tinted clouds through which shot 
 the brilliant rays of the setting sun. It was a 
 picture to be seen only in these Western skies. 
 
230 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
WONDERLAND. 23 1 
 
 and one that could never be transferred to canvas. 
 
 The mosquitoes were plentiful, but were not so 
 numerous as they had been during the day. On 
 being assigned our rooms we took the precau- 
 tion to kill every one that could be found, there- 
 by no doubt saving ourselves much aj05iction 
 during the night. 
 
 Leaving Arangee Ranch early in the morning, 
 we commenced a day of many surprises. At 
 several places quite a number of deer, elk and 
 antelope were seen. 
 
 About the middle of the forenoon we forded 
 the Snake river for the last time until we should 
 return from "Wonderland." The water of this 
 river is said to be the coldest in the world, as it 
 comes from the melting snows v/hich crown the 
 peaks forming the southern boundary of the 
 Yellowstone National Park. In order to avoid 
 several dangerous holes we made quite a detour, 
 first going up stream and then down, finally 
 emerging from the river almost opposite the place 
 of entrance. 
 
 Most of the time we rode in sight of the 
 Tetons, at whose base the wandering Snake river 
 has its source. As we were crossing the "con- 
 tinental divide ' ' in the Tyghee Pass and enter- 
 ing Montana, the axle of the stage became hot 
 
232 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
WONDERLAND. 233 
 
 and we spent almost an hour trying to cool it off 
 with snow, which we procured from a ten- foot 
 drift along the roadside. It was nearly noon 
 when the accident occurred, and as some of the 
 party had brought luncheon with them we en- 
 joyed a picnic in a grove over ten thousand feet 
 above sea-level. 
 
 It was about three o'clock when the stage 
 pulled up at a very pretentious two story log 
 house, and the driver informed us that this was 
 where we would stop over night. No one com- 
 ing to the door, we walked in and took posses- 
 sion. The reception room was large and airy ; in 
 fact, it took up one half of the house and reached 
 from the first floor to the roof. In one end of 
 it were quite a number of bear skins, and hang- 
 ing on the walls were skins of the otter, mink 
 and various other animals. The bed-rooms were 
 six in number and opened out -upon the recep- 
 tion-room. Three were on the first floor and 
 three above them, arranged like cells in a prison. 
 Those on the second tier were reached by a flight 
 of steps and along a balcony. The rooms were 
 all newly furnished and neatly kept. 
 
 The proprietor, Mr, Dwelle, was a bachelor, 
 and was the only person around the place. When 
 he saw us coming he started off to catch a mess 
 16 
 
234 WONDERLAND. 
 
 of trout for supper. Our Yankee friend and ray- 
 self, after procuring some fishing-lines, followed 
 him. In crossing a brook the writer made a mis- 
 step and fell into the water, which necessitated 
 his returning to the house to dry his clothes. 
 While sitting in front of the stove he was startled 
 by a crash, and looking out of the window saw 
 the back porch in ruins. The ladies, who had 
 retired to their sleeping apartments for a rest, 
 appeared almost immediately in the wildest state 
 of excitement, anxiously inquiring if a cyclone 
 had struck the house. Their fears being quieted 
 they returned to finish their naps. Upon going 
 into the yard we ascertained that a number 
 of horses in prancing around had run against a 
 rope stretched from one of the out-buildings to 
 one of the supports of the porch, and, pulling 
 the latter from its place, the whole structure came 
 down with a crash. It was not long before our 
 Yankee friend was seen returning. He had met 
 with a similar mishap as the writer, only that he 
 had fallen in much deeper water, and did not have 
 a dry thread on him. He went to a hunter's camp, 
 and having built a large fire, dried his clothing. 
 By damming one of the little brooks Mr. Dwelle 
 was able to have a small ditch run through his yard, 
 which supplied fresh, clear water for the stock. 
 
WONDERLAND. 235 
 
 Near by was the Madison river, which yielded 
 him a bountiful supply of fish, while beyond was 
 the forest, abounding in game of all kinds. The 
 time until supper was spent in strolling around 
 the ranch. In climbing one of the knolls near 
 the house we discovered a grave, and upon a 
 board which answered the purpose of a headstone 
 was a simple inscription giving the man's name 
 and the date of his death. When we returned to 
 the cabin Mr. Dwelle was there with a large 
 string of fish, which he proceeded at once to pre- 
 pare for the table. While waiting for them to 
 cook he told us the story of the lone grave on the 
 hill. It was the last resting-place of a young 
 Methodist minister, who had lost his health in 
 his labors, and had come out to this country in 
 the hope that the pure air would restore him to 
 health. Like many others, he had put it off too 
 long. He lived only three weeks, and during 
 his sickness was taken care of by Mr. Dwelle, 
 who, when he died, buried him on the most 
 prominent knoll of the ranch. The mound is 
 looked after by Mr. Dwelle, who has planted sev- 
 eral bunches of beautiful mountain flowers upon 
 it. Nearly everybody who stops at this place 
 goes up to it and reads the inscription and de- 
 sires Mr. Dwelle to give them the history of the 
 green mound. 
 
236 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Supper being announced, we all responded to 
 the call, and partook of one of the best meals we 
 had eaten since leaving Portland. After doing 
 full justice to it we returned to the reception- 
 room, when several trappers came in and a very- 
 pleasant evening was spent listening to their 
 stories 
 
 Taking an early start the next morning, we 
 crossed the Madison river, which flows through 
 the valley, and entered the forest. Most of the 
 forenoon was spent in driving through miles and 
 miles of dead timber, none of which appeared 
 over ten inches in diameter. It had been de- 
 stroyed by a forest fire which swept over this sec- 
 tion some eight or ten years previously. In some 
 places a new growth of pine and spruce was 
 springing up, and, if another fire does not lay it 
 waste, in a few years there will be quite a heavy 
 growth of timber. 
 
 It was about noon when we crossed the 
 boundary of the Yellowstone National Park 
 and noticed for the first time soldiers of the 
 Federal army doing police duty in preserving 
 timber and keeping out trappers who sometimes 
 get across the boundary in search of game. The 
 road from this point to the top of the mountain 
 is very heavy, as there is a great deal of sand 
 
WONDERLAND. 237 
 
 and no clay with which to build a solid road-bed. 
 The mountains are undoubtedly of volcanic ori- 
 gin, as some of them are formed by a composi- 
 tion which has the appearance of slag. 
 
 Early in the afternoon we crossed the moun- 
 tain and our eyes for the first time beheld '' Won- 
 derland." Vast columns of steam were ascend- 
 ing from the many geysers and boiling springs 
 which abound in the valley. This section of the 
 park was rarely if at all visited by Indians, who 
 regarded it as the abode of the evil spirit. 
 
 Fording Firehole river we did not stop at the 
 lyOwer Basin, but pushed forward to the Upper 
 Basin, where we were to spend the night. On 
 the way we passed the wonderful ' ' Excelsior ' ' 
 geyser, whose crater is over three hundred feet in 
 length and two hundred in breadth. Immense 
 volumes of steam were issuing from it, and 
 "Spikes," our driver, informed us that it had 
 not been in eruption since 1888, and another dis- 
 turbance was not due until 1894. It is said that 
 while in action the quantity of water thrown out 
 is so great that the Firehole river is raised sev- 
 eral inches, and the water is so hot that no 
 animal life can exist in it. This section is known 
 as "Hell's Half Acre," from the great number 
 of boiling springs in the vicinity. 
 
238 WONDERI.AND, 
 
 Prismatic lake is perhaps a couple of hundred 
 yards west from the "Excelsior," and receives 
 its name from the many colors visible on its sur- 
 face. The water in the centre of the lake is deep 
 blue, gradually shading off to green. When the 
 shallower portion of the lake is reached it 
 assumes a yellow color, which deepens to a dis- 
 tinct orange. The formation around the rim of 
 the basin is a brilliant red. The constantly ris- 
 ing volumes of steam are tinged with the colors 
 that are so prominent in the pool, and form one 
 of the most pleasing eifects of the Park. 
 
 Going to the Upper Basin we were fortunate 
 in reaching the "Grotto" geyser while it 
 was in action. The cone of this geyser is the 
 most peculiar of any in the Park. It has various 
 cave like openings in the cone, and hence its 
 name. While watching the jets of water and 
 columns of steam issuing from the crater two 
 ladies came up whom we recognized as having 
 seen on the steamer we had met on our way 
 to Alaska. In going up to the hotel we passed 
 several of our original party which left Philadel- 
 phia on April 20th, and had been with us 
 through all of our travels until we left them at 
 Seattle, on our return from Alaska. We met 
 them several times during our tour of the Park, 
 and compared notes and experiences. 
 
WONDERLAND. 239 
 
 After eating our suppers we started out on a 
 tour of inspection. Old Faithful was the first to 
 secure our attention This wonderful geyser 
 gives an exhibition of its strength every sixty-five 
 minutes with astonishing regularity. Through 
 winter and summer, day and night, year in and 
 year out, it is unerringly ' ' on time. ' ' So regular 
 are its eruptions that the name of "Old Faithful " 
 is certainly no misnomer. Its eruptions begin 
 with a few spasmodic spurts, which throw the 
 water fully fifteen feet into the air. These are 
 followed a few minutes later by a column of 
 boiling water and steam several feet in diameter, 
 which is thrown to a height of one hundred and 
 fifty to two hundred and fifty feet. For several 
 minutes this column remains, when it gradually 
 recedes and lies dormant for sixty-five minutes. 
 Then the phenomena is repeated. 
 
 It was late when we returned to the hotel, 
 having spent several hours in walking over the 
 formation and visiting the most important gey- 
 sers. The Chinaman geyser received its name 
 from the following circumstance : A Chinaman 
 opened a laundry and pitched his tent over one 
 of the boiling springs in order to have hot water 
 convenient. After his first wash was finished 
 he emptied the tub of soapsuds back into the 
 
240 WONDERLAND. 
 
 geyser, and the action of the alkali in the suds 
 started a violent commotion of the water in the 
 spring, followed by an explosion which threw 
 a column of water high into the air, carrying 
 away the tent and so frightening the Chinaman 
 that he disappeared, never to be seen again in 
 that vicinity. Since then, at irregular intervals, 
 the geyser becomes active and throws a column 
 of water about forty feet into the air. 
 
 It is said that this occurrence led to the discov- 
 ery that soap thrown into any of the geysers will 
 produce an eruption almost immediately. The 
 soldiers keep constant watch upon the tourists to 
 prevent anything of the kind, but a few will 
 manage to "soap the geysers," notwithstanding. 
 " Spikes " said that some one had stolen the soap 
 from his room or he would have given us an ex- 
 ample of its action on the water of one of the 
 most important geysers. 
 
 Desiring to make the Grand Canon of the Yel- 
 lowstone by evening, we left the hotel early in 
 the morning. Down past "Hell's Half Acre" 
 and the many boiling springs of the Lower Basin 
 we went, but did not stop, as we were to spend 
 the night there on our return. Fording a branch 
 of the Firehole river, we drove through a forest 
 of pine and spruce. Occasionally a number of 
 
WONDERLAND. 24I 
 
 deer or elk would cross the road and disappear 
 in the gloomy recesses of the forest. The road 
 gradually narrowed and we entered the Gibbon 
 Canon. This rocky defile is about six miles in 
 length, and in some places the cliffs are so close 
 to the Gibbon river, which flows through the 
 canon, that there is scarcely room for the road. 
 The Gibbon Falls is a beautiful cascade, and the 
 rippling water coursing over the gentle incline 
 forms a beautiful picture. On past the falls to 
 the northward are numerous small springs with a 
 strong sulphuric odor, some on one side of the 
 river and some on the other. The only spring of 
 importance is the "Beryl." It is one of the 
 largest in the Park, and is quite near the road- 
 side. The water is constantly boiling, and great 
 quantities of hissing steam escape from it. The 
 overflow from the rim of the spring runs across 
 the roadway, and, although boiling hot, our 
 horses did not hesitate an instant, but walked 
 right through it. 
 
 It was about noon when we got the first sight 
 of the Norris Basin of geysers. It is a barren 
 tract, and resembles an immense area recently 
 swept by a terrific fire. From many places jets 
 of steam are constantly rising, and here and 
 there are to be seen quite a number of geysers, 
 
242 WONDERI.AND. 
 
 the most important of which are the Minute 
 Man, the Monarch, the Emerald, the Black 
 Growler and the Ink Well. The Minute Man 
 has an eruption every minute, and the water is 
 thrown about thirty feet into the air, although 
 some jets are thrown much higher. The Black 
 Growler is located quite near the road, on top of 
 the hill overlooking the entire basin. It takes 
 its name from the peculiar growling noise caused 
 by the great quantities of escaping steam and a 
 black deposit in the vicinity. It is what might 
 be called a steam geyser, as very little water is 
 discharged from its crater. The Ink Well is a 
 peculiar spring, about ten feet in width, and the 
 water, when at its lowest ebb, is about five feet 
 from the rim. The water gradually rises until 
 it gets almost rim-full, when it commences to 
 boil furiously and continues for about two or 
 three minutes. Then it will gradually recede 
 and fall to its lowest level, where it will remain 
 for a few moments, and then commence the exhi- 
 bition anew. The air is heavily charged with 
 sulphur, and at several of the craters of the 
 steam-jets we got some very fine specimens of 
 pure sulphur. This basin is supposed to be of 
 more recent origin than any of the others in the 
 
WONDERLAND. 243 
 
 Park, as there is an absence of cones around the 
 craters of the geysers. 
 
 The hotel having been burned, lunch was 
 served in some tents which had been temporarily 
 erected. The rest of the afternoon was spent in 
 driving through forests of pine and fir. Along 
 each side of the road were immense drifts of 
 snow, and in some places they were fully ten feet 
 deep. 
 
 It was about five o'clock in the afternoon when 
 the stage pulled up at the Grand Canon Hotel, 
 where we were to stop while ' ' doing ' ' the won- 
 ders of this part of the Park. We had seen 
 some of the beauties of the canon as we drove 
 along the road leading up to the hotel, and were 
 anxious to see the rest before supper- time. After 
 changing our dusty clothes for others clean and 
 fresh, we started out for the cliffs overlooking 
 the Yellowstone river. It is probably a quarter of 
 a mile from the hotel to the trail that leads along 
 the top of the canon. As we emerged from a 
 clump of trees the view of the many- colored 
 cliffs and the green river thousands of feet below 
 burst suddenly upon us. The combination of 
 colors exceeded anything we had ever seen. 
 The walls of the canon had all the colors of the 
 rainbow, but the predominating shade was yel- 
 
244 WONDERLAND. 
 
 low. There was the brilliant red and the duller 
 shades of the same color. There was the pure 
 white and the dififerent shades of yellow so 
 blended that it was difficult to tell where one 
 commenced and the other ended. There was 
 the brown and the black, and the green and the 
 purple. In fact, the variety of colors was bewil- 
 dering. It is about two thousand feet from In- 
 spiration Point to the bed of the Yellowstone 
 river. From this point one of the finest views of 
 the Grand Cafion is obtained, as it embraces the 
 I^ower Falls of the Yellowstone and the delight 
 ful exhibition of colors above described Along 
 the river's edge and up the sloping sides of the 
 canon are numerous columns and pinnacles, all 
 painted with that indescribable conglomeration 
 of colors. Many of the loftiest ones have been 
 pre-empted by the eagles for their nests and the 
 rearing of their young, and the strange sight is 
 witnessed by those who walk along the trail 
 at the top of the canon. There are many 
 of these noble birds here, and as they fly 
 up and down the caiion they look, in the 
 distance, like swallows skimming along through 
 the air. Near the trail is a large block of granite 
 known as the "Hague Boulder." It was evi- 
 dently carried here during the glacial period, as 
 none of this kind of stone is found in this neigh- 
 
WONDERLAND 245 
 
 borhood. We were late in returning to the hotel, 
 but felt fully repaid for the five-mile walk we 
 had taken. In the evening a number of us, in 
 company with two soldiers who were stationed at 
 this point in the Park, went to see the Upper 
 Falls. We had to climb down over the rocks 
 until we got on a projecting cliff directly in front 
 of the falls, where the best view of the cataract 
 is obtained, and were just far enough away 
 to escape the mist which is constantly rising 
 in clouds. So delighted were we that we 
 must have remained there nearly an hour 
 before we even thought of leaving. It was 
 too late to go down to the I,ower Falls when 
 we reached the road, but as we had seen 
 them in connection with the view from In- 
 spiration Point, we thought that we had done 
 up this portion of the Park quite thoroughly. 
 On our return to the hotel we crossed the bridge 
 over Cascade creek, a stream which joins the 
 Yellowstone below the Upper Falls. This creek 
 has its source in Mount Washburn, and at this 
 point there are three beautiful little falls, known 
 as the Crystal Cascades. 
 
 Leaving the Grand Canon early in the morn- 
 ing we spent the entire forenoon in driving to 
 the Norris Basin, where we again took luncheon 
 
246 WONDERLAND. 
 
 in the tents. Leaving this point our faces were 
 turned due north, and we were traveling to the 
 most beautiful formations in the Park. The 
 road is about the same as any other road through 
 a forest. On either .side are boiling springs, all 
 of which have their names. Most of them are 
 very clear, and the formations around the rims 
 and on the sides are very beautiful. There are 
 also numerous openings where nothing but steam 
 issues forth. In these localities the odor of sulphur 
 is also very strong. Roaring mountain is covered 
 with these steam vents, and at times the quan- 
 tity of escaping steam is so great that the roaring 
 can be heard for several miles. It is from this 
 peculiarity that the mountain takes its name 
 Beaver lake is a body of clear water and receives 
 its name from a colony of industrious little 
 beavers that have built .several dams across it 
 and have their houses there. About ten miles 
 from Norris Basin the road winds around the 
 foot of the Obsidian Cliffs. This mountain 
 stands by itself and is composed of volcanic 
 glass. When the Indians were unskilled in the 
 use of firearms this was known as neutral 
 ground, and many of the tribes came here for 
 their supply of arrow-heads. The United States 
 engineers, in building this road, soon learned 
 
WONDERLAND. 247 
 
 that blasting was impossible. They therefore 
 built fires on the boulders and then dashed water 
 on them. The sudden cooling of the mass 
 caused them to break into many pieces, and 
 in this manner the engineers constructed the 
 only glass road in the world. Beyond the 
 Obsidian Cliffs the road enters a declivity known 
 as Swan Lake Basin. It is hemmed in on all 
 sides by high mountains. In the winter great 
 numbers of deer and elk make this their feeding- 
 ground. Most of the high peaks have been 
 given names. The highest one is Electric Peak. 
 It was so named because the vast deposit of 
 minerals in it renders the working of the sur- 
 veyor's transit impossible when on the mountain. 
 About the middle of the afternoon we 
 ' ' rounded Cape Horn ' ' and followed a road 
 cut out of solid rock. As we neared the eastern 
 end of it we passed through the " Golden Gate," 
 so named from a pillar twelve or fifteen feet high 
 which was left when the road was constructed 
 and which forms a kind of gate-post. It is cov- 
 ered with a yellow moss, suggesting the name it 
 bears. It was after four o'clock when we drove 
 up to the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, where 
 we were to stay for the night. In a short time 
 guides were engaged and we started for the ter- 
 
248 WONDERLAND. 
 
 races formed by the deposits of carbonate of lime 
 ' from the boiling springs issuing from the side of 
 the mountain. 
 
 There are at least eight or ten well-defined 
 terraces, which resemble immense bowls, ar- 
 ranged in groups, one above the other, at differ- 
 ent places on the side of the mountain. Over 
 the rims and sides of these basins trickles the 
 hot water discharged from the springs, and it 
 keeps ever fresh and sparkling the beautiful 
 colors of the different basins. They are of all 
 colors and are covered with particles which re- 
 semble diamonds. Every terrace has its name 
 and all seem appropriate. 
 
 As one approaches them from the hotel the 
 whole side of the mountain appears covered with 
 beautiful basins of every color, from pure white 
 to deep red and brown. Minerva Terrace was 
 the first one visited. The basins and the forma- 
 tions in them vary in color from delicate cream 
 to deep shades of red. It covers an area of over 
 half an acre. In this spring many of the souve- 
 nirs of the Park are coated. Any hard substance 
 placed where the water can ran over it will in a 
 few days become encrusted with crystal-like parti- 
 cles. Several men earn a livelihood in this way, 
 as they have a monopoly of the business. Jupiter 
 
WONDERLAND. 249 
 
 Terrace, so named from being the largest on the 
 mountain covers an area of about five acres. 
 The spring which overflows this terrace is about 
 one hundred feet in diameter The coloring of 
 the formations resemble those of the Minerva 
 Terrace. Cleopatra's Terrace is the most beau- 
 tiful of all. Its basins are pure white, and the 
 boiling water, as it ripples down over the sides, 
 seems studded with brilliant gems. 
 
 In most of the springs there appears along 
 the edges a white, string-like substance known 
 as "algea." It is a vegetable formation, and 
 when the waters are quiet it spreads over the 
 basins. According to some scientists it forms 
 an important factor in producing the marvelous 
 colorings that here abound. 
 
 Back from the terraces, and farther up the 
 mountains, are several openings or small caves 
 They have the euphonious names of "The 
 Devil's Parlor," "The Devil's Kitchen," &c. 
 They are extinct vents, and are entered with 
 safety by many of the tourists. The Devil's 
 Kitchen is entered by means of a ladder about 
 thirty feet in length. As you descend, the air 
 gets warmer, and the odor of sulphur is easily 
 distinguished. On one side is a natural card- 
 rack, and many persons have left their names 
 17 
 
250 
 
 WONDERLAND. 
 
 
 m 
 
 
 •^ 
 
WONDERLAND. 25 1 
 
 and addresses there. It is not many minutes 
 before the perspiration starts and you have a 
 desire to get out of the hole, and, as there is 
 nothing to prevent, you climb the ladder and 
 soon breathe the cool air. On reaching the top 
 the guide informed us that some years ago a 
 hunter, whose cabin still stands in the gulch 
 near the, hotel, while walking over these terraces 
 saw a pair of antlers protruding above the snow, 
 and upon examining them found that an elk, 
 in roaming over the mountain, had broken 
 through the crust of snow that had formed over 
 the entrance to the kitchen and had hung there 
 until dead. 
 
 The "White Elephant" is a peculiar forma- 
 tion resembling an elephant lying down. It is 
 about ten feet high and probably seventy- five 
 feet long. Of course all of the party had to 
 mount it and walk the entire length. The head 
 is a little lower than the body, and then comes 
 the depression that forms the neck, and then the 
 body. Extending from the head to the haunches 
 along the centre of the formation is a row of 
 sputtering hot springs. Sometimes they are all 
 in action at once and at other times separately. 
 This row of springs forms what is called the 
 backbone of the elephant. 
 
252 WONDERI^AND. 
 
 Following the trail that leads over the moun- 
 tain past many springs which gush from its 
 sides, we noticed that some appeared to be 
 drying up, and that farther up the mountain 
 are new springs. The guide informed us that 
 this is continually happening — that the springs 
 in this part of the mountain are finding outlets 
 farther up the sides, and the lower openings are 
 closing. 
 
 Passing over the Narrow Gauge Terrace, a 
 formation much like the White Elephant, we 
 again viewed the whole number of terraces, and 
 as the setting sun beamed upon them they 
 appeared brighter and if possible more beautiful 
 than when we first beheld their dazzling colors. 
 At the base of the terraces stands an extinct 
 cone known as the Liberty Cap, about fifty feet 
 in height and twenty feet in diameter at the base. 
 It is some distance from the mountain, and from 
 the appearance of the overlapping layers of car- 
 bonate of lime one would think it had no proper 
 connection with the mountain. The Devil's 
 Thumb is another of these cone-like formations, 
 but it is imbedded in the side of the mountain. 
 
 As we approached the hotel the souvenir 
 dealers attracted our attention, and we purchased 
 a number of small articles to take away with 
 
WONDERLAND. 253 
 
 US. The collection of specimens in the Park is 
 beset with difficulties, as the soldiers are ever 
 watchful, and you are politely informed that 
 you must not take anything except what you 
 buy at the stands. 
 
 In the morning we commenced to retrace our 
 steps to Norris Basin, where we again took lunch 
 in the tents, then proceeded through the Gibbon 
 Canon to the I,ower Basin, where we spent our 
 last night in the Park. 
 
 We were fortunate in arriving at the hotel 
 when we did, as the manager informed us that 
 the Fountain geyser would probably be active 
 by the time we had finished our suppers. Nearly 
 every one in the hotel was over at the pool 
 very shortly after they had swallowed their 
 last mouthful. It was some time before the 
 violent action commenced, and while waiting we 
 visited the mammoth Paint Pots near by. These 
 "paint-pots" are large vats of boiling mud 
 which are continually sputtering and throwing 
 particles of mud in every direction. Some of 
 the mud had a pinkish color and the rest shades 
 oflf to pure white. Going back to the Fountain 
 we made the acquaintance of one of the soldiers, 
 who took us over the formation and showed us 
 several beautiful springs which, had we been 
 
254 WONDERLAND. 
 
 alone, we should have missed. One of these 
 was particularly interesting. The water was 
 of an emerald hue, while the sides of the basin 
 were of the purest white. In looking down into 
 the water we could see every formation that 
 would go to make up a fairy-bower. There was 
 a general ripple on the surface which seemed to 
 impart life to all the recesses and the different 
 formations on the sides. The sun was fast 
 setting behind the mountains that bound the 
 western confines of the Park, and the sky was 
 assuming an indescribable variety of tints pecu- 
 liar to the western country. The clouds were 
 all aglow with silver and crimson, and as they 
 moved along every color was faithfully reflected 
 upon the surface of the pool. 
 
 While watching for some indication of the 
 approaching eruption of the Fountain geyser, a 
 few bubbles were noticed coming up from the 
 depths of the pool, and then there w^s a lively 
 scampering to get out of the way of any stray 
 sprays of hot water that might reach the specta- 
 tors. In a few moments the water shot up for 
 a distance of about twenty feet, which was 
 followed by one of those magnificent displays 
 of the workings of Nature which is only to be 
 witnessed in the Yellowstone Park. We stood 
 
WONDKRLAND. 255 
 
 for fully ten minutes watching the water as it 
 was thrown to a height of from twenty to twenty- 
 five feet, although sometimes jets would be 
 forced to twice or three times that height. 
 
 In the morning we bade farewell to our friends 
 with whom we had traveled across the continent 
 and from Mexico to Alaska, and started for 
 Beaver Canon, where we were to take the Union 
 Pacific railroad and proceed upon our homeward 
 journey. Our friends who had entered "Won- 
 derland" by the Northern Pacific route were 
 to return to the Mammoth Hot Springs and from 
 there to Cinnabar, where they would again enter 
 the cars. 
 
 We would advise all who contemplate a visit 
 to the Yellowstone National Park to enter one 
 way and depart the other. It has become quite 
 popular during the past few years to take the 
 Union Pacific railroad to Beaver Caiion, and, 
 taking the stages from that point, enter "Won- 
 derland ' ' at the southwestern corner, and after 
 arriving at the Mammoth Hot Springs on the 
 northern boundary to leave by going to Cinna- 
 bar, which is only nine miles from the Springs. 
 This method prevents "doubling" on the way, 
 and thus opens up a broader scope of territory. 
 
256 WONDERLAND. 
 
 Chapter VIII. 
 
 F^OMEWAi^D Bound. 
 
 /^NirY two days were occupied in the return 
 ^^^ trip from the Lower Basin to Beaver Canon. 
 As we ascended the mountains that form the 
 western boundary of "Wonderland," we looked 
 back ever and anon until the road entered a 
 depression and shut oflF our view of the rising 
 steam from the many geysers and boiling springs 
 of the valley. 
 
 When about half way down the mountain into 
 the Madison valley we met several stages on 
 their way to the park. Here we said good-bye 
 to our driver, "Spikes," as he was to return with 
 those going into the Park, and we were to have 
 one of the younger drivers to conduct us back to 
 the railroad. All morning we followed the 
 meanderings of the Madison river, and at noon 
 crossed it and drove up to Dwelle's cabin, where 
 we were to take our dinner. He seemed pleased 
 to greet us again, and cooked for the party an 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. 257 
 
 especial dinner, which consisted of fresh biscuits, 
 antelope meat and mountain trout. 
 
 The whole afternoon was occupied in driving 
 to Arangee Ranch. On the way over the Madi- 
 son divide, through the Tvghee Pass, we saw 
 the remnants of our picnic held there a week 
 previous. The sun was just sinking below the 
 mountains when we drove up to the cabins of 
 Arangee Ranch, and we were again favored with 
 one of those beautiful sunsets before spoken of. 
 
 The evening was passed in walking along the 
 grassy banks of the familiar Snake river, until 
 darkness drove us into the cabins. It was quite 
 late when I retired, and consequently did not 
 take much notice of the furniture of my room. 
 On awaking in the morning the first thing to 
 attract my attention was a coflSn on one of the 
 shelves on the side of the room. After breakfast 
 we paid an exorbitant price for our accommoda- 
 tions and left. In crossing the Camas Meadows 
 the mosquitoes were not so vicious as on our 
 former visit, and we appreciated the fact very 
 much. Our Yankee friend, it should be re- 
 marked, was continually popping away at birds 
 and woodchucks, and always missing them. As 
 we were ascending the last hill before entering 
 Beaver Caiion I espied a Winchester rifle lying 
 
258 WONDERLAND. 
 
 in the road, and, jumping down from the driver's 
 boot, secured it. It now hangs on a nail in my 
 bedroom, a trophy of my visit to the ' ' Wonder- 
 land " of America. 
 
 It was after ten o'clock when we left Beaver 
 Canon for Salt Lake City, where we arrived 
 about noon the next day. We put up at the 
 Templeton Hotel, which is conducted by one of 
 the sons of Brigham Young. It is located oppo- 
 site the sacred square and the lyion House, once 
 the abode of Brigham Young and his numerous 
 wives. The Lion House is now the ofiEicial 
 residence of the president of the Mormon Church. 
 Two days were spent in the sacred city of the 
 Mormons, and while there we visited many of 
 the points of interest in and around the city, 
 including a trip to Garfield Beach, on the shores 
 of Great Salt Lake. 
 
 Far up the sides of the mountain adjacent to 
 the lake are to be seen the ancient shore lines. 
 They are distinctly marked, and go to show that 
 the whole valley now drained by the lake and 
 its tributaries was once covered with water many 
 hundred feet deep. 
 
 From here our objective point was Mount 
 Carmel, in Illinois. Incidental stops were made 
 at Pueblo, La Junta, Kansas City and St. Louis. 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. 259 
 
 After a rest of a few days in the fertile valley 
 of the Wabash we started for home, and in two 
 days the familiar scenes of Pennsylvania and 
 New Jersey greeted us, and we were HOME. 
 

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