Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1867-01-18


there before ron. unacr you. until y8t sceu,
to be almost IN it, ia the sea, the solemn.
infinite, ever brcathing sea: the hound less,
mysterious, magIriiic. mt Atlantic ,chAllcng-
ing the blue Of heaven, denying % yoss
eye its horizon line, bearing up unnum-
bered sail Of every kind, which from your
altitnle scem only a. swallows, or white
doves pcisca IN quivcrins wing. Beforc
this single glance you seem almost anni'i-
lated. That view If the ocean alone is
worth the trip from Brooklyn.
But tllcn--look around There arc is
hD,ls. lying like uncut cmcralds upon its
bosom, separated from each Other and the
rocky shores lJy narrow shccns OF silver
watcr-upon them, important light houses
well known to every mariner upon this
coast--Mt. Desert Rock thus surmounted
ard twenty miles away--while here and
there clusters vi white houses with gleam-
ing spires show where the wave s"sscd ma
riuers meet to worship God. There is lit
ale fear of ovcrlrawiny this picture. when
ever sc NAL skies present it thus to sensi-
tive spirits. Fancy tires this side of the
truth. No pen nor pencil can depict the
aerial effect of microscopic minutencss
which these scenes present.
Sweep the entire horizon, and as your
eye passes from the ocean, let it rest upon
the illimtable perspective lower mountains
hills and valleys intcrsccted and cmbroid
cred with narrow friths and arms of the
sea and fresh water lakes and rivers dot
ted everywhere with Villages, broadening
into endless cxpanse of forest and farm,
dapplcd with cloud shadow and termina-
ting only in a horizon which here and there
shuts down upon the hill-tops in wreath
Ing ltorm cloud. Sky above ocean and
earth far below surely it is as the vcsti-
bulc of Heaven.
We praise the view from the Catskill Mt
House, and with justice. But that is only
as the felloe ola wheel to the entire pcriph-
cry, only as the portico to the temple. only
As the hummed snatch Of an air to the
whole Oratorio. This is not eXagCeration.
for at the ''Mountain House" your view is
only to the eastward. northeast and SOUTH
east broad and beautiful indeed. but limit
cd. Here we sweep the whole hemisphere.
We accomplish the circle of the horizon
We cover at a glance tens of thousands of
square miles Of sea and land. We have
every possible effect Of hight and shadow '
grandeur and beauty, energy and repose
For what is mightier than the sea, what is
more reStful than the mountains!
But while we are waiting for the sun to
set, let us glance at the ..Tip-rop House"
itself. 1t is plain building, Imprinted,
with sitting-room dining room and kitch-
en- and two state-rooms upon the first floor.
1t has large upper room around which
some twenty berths like those Of a steam
boat, afford lod ying for those who may
wish to pass the night. The mattresses
are filed with husks and the pillows with
hay. Therafters are of unsawed timber.
with the bark neatly pealed off. 1t is kept
by the Messrs. Brewer anti sisters. who
spare no pains to cater to the apostles OF
their visitors. .-.
As the hour approached for sun-setting
it became evident lhat we were to be favor
ed with an unusually splendid spectacle.
Just enough clouds of broken and fleecy
texture were lingering around the suns
bcd-champer to catch and multiply every
hue of the retiring monarch.
Wrapping ourselves in the blankets from
the berths, (for the wind was very cold al
that height we seated ourselyessupon the
rocks at the westward of the house and
watched the cver.chan@ing panorama OF
the sky. Oh said ParrhassuiS,
"Give me the pencil now,
MY hand feels skilfii, and the shadows lift
From my naked spirit, air'ly sni swirl;
Aud could paint the bow
Upon the Bonded heavens, around me play
Colors Of such divinity to-day.
Alas | have no such Inspirations. yo,
can never gain from my lame pencil any
adequate conception of that infinite divers
ity of cloud-forms; castle, turrett. minarct
island; scrolled and pcndulous drapery
foamv, feathery, f:dNy, spear-shaped
sword-formed. efiiorcsccnt. trussed and
trcllised images of vaporous beauty.
At first all was gorgeousness. The colo
of gold lay upon mountain. plain, ant
ocean. The bays to the westward wer'
sheets of silver. The lower hills cast blacl
and unimaginable depths of shadow. TIL
cultivated meadows gave back the lushes
greenncss rs the bars of sunlight lay light
" upon their breasts. and in the distance
that suggestive, almost infinitesimal mi
nuteness of landscape, wherein miles con
tracted to acres and immense distance
were annihilated, swept off to the moltel
hosizon and lost itselfln the dazzling splen
dor. How mild and weired was the storm
that was drcnching the northern hills. Hov
like translucent gems the emerald islanCt
30 the eastward lay, turning slowly as thu
splendors died to. the purple amethyst o
twilight.
How consciously the great Mlanii
throbbed you could fetl it IL Your brain
How it assumed all the hurs of the dyin:
dolphin according to the kaleidoscope o
the overhanging clouds, until the min,
grew weary with the eye, and instinctivel.
turned inward to find within itself the NOR
than antitype of the outward intinity.
Then regal purple fell upon the scene
NJ u ~ 4. Z,