Martinsburgh gazette. [volume] (Martinsburgh, Va. [W. Va.]) 1810-1825, 1815-04-13
FALLS OF THE MISSOURI.

Falls of the Missouri, Is extracted from
chat highly in eresting and valuable work,
Iovi. and Clarke's Travels book
xvhich ought TO belong to the library Of
very man able 10 purclase it. tN Int
" CAPTAIN Lewis had gone about two
-,;les when MS ears were saiuted with the
.rreeable sound of fail of water, and, as
he ,dvanced, spray which seemed driven
Nv the high southwest wind arose above
+hs plain like column OF smoke, and van
i.bed in an instant Towards TINS point he
directed his steps, and the noise increas-
ing as he approached, soon became too ire
nsndnus to be mistaken for any thing but
the falls of the Missouri Having travelled
ssven miles after first hearing The sound
he reached the falls about twelve o'clock ::
the hills as he approached were difficult Of
access, and two hund ed feet high: down
these ne hurried with i'm patience, and seat
inr himself on some rocks under the centre
Of the falls, enjoyed the sublime spectacle
Of this stupendous object, which since the
creation had been lavishiDg its magnifcehce
rD,n the desert unknown to civilIza
The river immediately at its cascade is
three hundred yards wide, and is pressed
in bya perpendicular cliff on the left, which
rises TO about one hundred feet. and extends
I'D the stream for mile on the rig t. the
bluff is also perpendicular for three nun
drsd yards above the fails For ninety or
hundred yards from che left cliff, the wa
ter falls in one smooth, even sheet, over
precipce of at least eighty feet. The re
manning part of the river precipitates itself
with more rapid current, but being re
ceived as it falls by the irregular and some
what projecting rocks below, forms splen-
did pl aspect of perfectly white foam two
hundred yards in length, and eighty in
perpendicular elevation. This spray is dis
sipated into a thousand shapes, sometimes
fiying up in colums of fifteen or twenty feet,
which are then oppressed by larger masses
of the white foam, on all which the sun i'm
presses the brightest colours OF the rainbow
s. From the falls he directed his course
southwest up the river: after passing one
continued rapid, and three small cascades,
each three or four feet high, he reached,
at the distance of FIVE miles, second fall
The river is about four hundred yards wide,
and for the distance of three hundred.
throws itself over to the depth of nineteen
feet, and SO irregularly, that he gave it the
name of Crooked Falls From the south
srn shore it extends obiiqlely upwards a,
bout one hundred and fifty yards, and then
forms an acute angle downwards nearly to
the commencement Of four small islands
close TO the northern Size From the per
pendicular pitch to these islands, distaHce
Of more than ore hundred yards, the water
glidss down . sloping rock With = velocity
almost aqnal to that of its fall Above this
fall the river bends suddenly TO the north
ward while viewing this place Captain
Lewis heard loud roar above him, and
crossing the point Of hill for few hun
dred yards, he saw one of the most beauti-
full objects in nature: the whole Missouri
is suddenly stopped by one shelving rock,
which, without single niche, and with an
edge as straight and regular as if formed
bv art, stretches itself from one side of the
river to the other, for at least quarter Of
a mile. Over this it oTecipitates itself in
an even uninterrupted sheet to the per
pcndicuiar depth of fifty feet, whence, dash
pidiy down, leaving behind it spray of
the purest foam across the river. The
scene which it presented was indeed re-
gulsrly beautiful, since, without any Of the
wild, irregular sublimity of the lower falls,
1t combined all the regular elegancies
which the fancy of painter would select
TO form a beautiful waterfall. The eye had
scarcely been RECALLED with this charming
prospect, when, at the distance of half
mile, Capt. Lewis observed another Off
similar kind to this he Immediately has
tened, and found a cascade stretching a
cross the whole river for a quarter of
mile with a descent Of fourteen feet,
though the perpendicular pitch was only
elk feet. THIS, too, in any other neighbor-
hood, would have been an object of great
magniicence but after what he had just
seen it became an object of secondary in
1crest: his curiosity being however awaken.
ed. he determined to 60 on, even should
night overtaIle him, to the head of the falls
lie therefore pursued the southwest course
of the river which was one constant sue