, 1865-09-13

sa:S.t.1 a.S ~ 49, r|.nE 1yr e lii their blankets
ncsias ne nAy-staee m :. " slept soundly till
Ing with no canopy. ut the heavens aiSoye
him Is at all danee .ous or Unpleasant herr,
indeed II y ,.a,s sF at luxury, for there is no
dew, ye1y nstle danger Of catching cold, and
WIN piSpty O. hay Or pine houchs for a bed,
ano nls e'ap 1.et oTer him, the weary wanderer
ean L, slesp gonndly IN the open air. and be re-
O'clock the balance Of our party arrived Erom
Hntchs, and as 1t was the Sabbath, we re-
haahed quietly in our quarters for the day.
TO TIE TO sEMITE.
On Monday morning, after IN early break
last, tue word Has given "to horse," sud we
we're soon climbing up the sides Of the noun
ta1ns. The valley at Clnrk's Is tour thousa and
feet above the 1eYel Of the sea, md our trail
winds higher aud stM higher t!n, we reach au
elevation Of more. than eight thousand feet
One class Of trees after smother disappears
TIL we find ot,rselFps among the tail frs,
whose tastes for the pure, bracing air Of the
mountains forbid them: to grow below seren
thousand feet As their boHghs wave IN the
bright sunbcatns, their soft pale green
leaves reflect d snyery sheen whose
tempt to describe. Whenever the direction
Of the trail permits US to look ont upon the
mountains noE far below us, or to get
glimpse Of the great valley Of Calnornfa, tho
scene Is exciting, glorious, sublime. Near
and upon the top Of the mountains We ind
has more than once saved tho locks ard
herds Of the State from destruction, for when
the drought visits the lower valleys is II did
last summer, the ronches there are deserted,
and the stock Is driven to these mead1ws,
where they rcyel tn tic fall rains set il. By
thn side Of one Of these meadows we rested
and refreshed ourselves and our Wca.
E1ffn4 f.m4 = &n
be frequently done when travelling
In these high attitudes. After travelling forr
an hour or tTo al IN elevation Of eight thou
sand feet, the trail begins to descend, and In
some two or three miles We stand upon the
brink Of the deepest and tho most wonderful
valley upon the iace Of the earth. Compose
your thoughts md calm your nerves, and,
carefully bestowed partly behind some friendly
rock, look down into thr nwtul chasm below.
There Is the MERGED river winding gracefully
from side to side IN the green meadow or
among the pines, looking no bigger than the
that perpendicular wall Of granite little up
the wiley on the north side Of It. Do moi
pronounce upon its height till you hare swept
Its entire face from top to bottom, and noticed
how large an angle sou are forced to make.
It rises ytry nearly tour thousand feet abovc
the valley, OF In other words II is tlrcc-quar-
tiers Of q mile high. And now VIC have
the dimensions otthe Yo Semitic Itayesagcs
about mile wide from wall to wall and cras
10 crag, md these range from three to sfI
thousand feet high. Tie south dome, at the
head Of the yalfey, reaches the latter eleya-
tion. 1t e about eight miles 1ong, and the
river that lows through it IS, according to
measurement Of some learned pundit, four
Thousand aad sixty feet above the level Of the
sea- 1t seems as though the Almighty him.
self lind here torn the Sierra Seyn1a NOUN
tain asundcr 10 make gorge from four to six
thousand fcct deep, in order that the Mesced
river might pass through with its clear liquid
treasures, gathered from the SUBMITS Of the
higher ranges that bound tho horizon far
away TO the eastward. Directly In sight, be-
yoad the valley, are the Cathedral Peaks, In
the range ncxt cast, the highest of which
shoots up to an elevation Of thirteen thou
saud leet.
But with Prof: Fred Law Olmstcad, TO whose
commanding abilities New York L largely in-
debted for her magnificent Central rafk, and
whom We found encelupcd ut Clask's With lis
family, md who has since been great addi-
t|on to our party as our guide, let us deccnd
d few hundred feet to Inspiration Point. We
avoid whenever We cat mentioning tho names
they are purely ahoinfnahlc- It seems Ike
dissertation to speak Of the most sublime
scenes and objects In nnti,re, rs il they were
n,atters OF common notoriety. From the
point On which we now stand and which
seems to have been thrown out several lund-
red feet 1nto the valley, both walls Of It can
le the more r.adily seen. Towering above
these wallis, themselves from three to four
thousand feet high, and on perpendicular
line with them, arc cruns and peaks risilE
from one to three thousand feet, which to
gethcr form a picture Of lie widest and most
wonderful sublimity. Pouring from clilf on
the same side Of the valley On which ne stand
n n ct A0fJt
which. tn its perpendicular tall Of eight h11ntl-
red feet, tie wind often brushes aside, leaving
ouly the dirk rocks In the background, and
hence tts come what appropriate really poetfca1
name, the Bridal Veil. The VIII OF rock over
which 1t ruslcs Is nine hundred and forty feet
above the valley. On reaching the plain be-
low VIC found Il mich larger tlan we expect
cd, and III May and Jrue when the melting
sCoHs swell 1t Into large stream this fall Is
an object OF universal admiration to all who
visit Tie valley. It was voted "a thing Of
But the shadows upon Tic wiling sranite
walls opposite to us are growing lonsee end
darker and hence wafn US to tho more un-
poetic tesR Of threading our steep and dan
gerous way into the valley. For four miles,
IN zis.zag course wcEo down the trali which
here seems unable to bring LIS 10 the bottom.
IN round numbers, VIC must 60 down thou
sand feet to the mile. The tedium Of tue Nay
is lcssencd by watching how VIC, gradually
sink below the point from which few min
mcnts, Or IN hour before, we had thrown
them strike on their fellows at the base or the
c1la. The valley Is at length reached, and
then VIC hayc fine ride alGn, tho banks of
the Merced River, si1 miles to tho hospitable
home Of Nr. J. II. Hutchins, to whom the
country l. indebted for tho:s early descrip-
TO civilized man. Capt. Bolsn, who, with
company ofso!diers chased the hostile Indians
INTO this, as they supposed secure retreat, in
1851, WIS The fitest white ,nan who ever SAW
the 70 semitc; but 1t was not till It's Won
ders were described by Mr.. Hutchins. ten
possessed the greatest naturn1 curiosity on
the face Of the easth. Mr.. Husclins has
cared for our party so well that We can
assure tourists Tint unless they arc cblonic
cFatstere, they will, while here, be well pleas
ed with their fare. Supper over md our
LET rs steal aWay and alone ios hall an hour
and have view Of the 10 Semitic By
MOONLIGHT.
Let no Intruder, not creu our most intelli-
gent and our dearest friend, disturb the cur
rent Of our musing. Though out OF ear shot
OF our merry companions, with the bright full
moon looking down calmly into the deep
sharp whining bark Of the wolf Ia heard high
mp ii The cIae ahoye ne; willie the chirnin;g
crIckcts, piping their midnight songs, aud tie
solemn, cease1css roar Of the 10 Serni;e,.a
small stream that leaps from rock directly
opposite, half mile high, with the night
breeze softly breathing among the tall pines,
together cliant most impressive hymn Of
prise to Him whose hand built these awful
walls Of granite, and when they and. Nil his
works were finished, pronounced them "all
very good"
But this letter is already long enough, aud
more particular description oi several either
objects Of great interest must be reserved for
my next. o.
J0Is Davfk Nc1v Quarters Carroll Hall.
tFortrcss Monroe cores. Philadelphia Enqatrer.l
JET. Is to live ID cascmate no longer, but
Is to have a light and airy room, twenty feet
on the promenade ground Of the Tort. This