The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1867-12-27
THE ARABIAN Nranrs' EsrrnrArsaEsrs.


THE ARABIAN NIanTs' EkTEnTAISNENfs.
A special correspondent Of the New York
Tribune has been exploring Alaska, or
Alaska as no calls Il, in company with q
Russian guide. lie writes very inte-
resting letter upou. the subject of our new
purchase, II contains, he thinks, between
Ave and six hundred thousand square
miles. being about nine times as large as
the State Of Virginia. It les between
the 13oth and lSsth degrees Of west longi-
tude, and within the shores Of the Frozen
ocean on The north and tue Pacific on the
south--half way round he world if his
longitude is counted from Washington city
las we suppose of course ii is mott. When q
jockey purchases horse from your neigh
Dor, and dresses it up and shows it off, you
at once open your eyes to the extraordinary
merits of the animal, and wonder that you
should have been so stupid as not to prize
it at half its value while in your neigh
boris possession. So in the case Of Alaska.
While Russia owned it, it was a cold,
barren, and desolate region, unfit for
human habitation. Now, when it has
como into the hands of Uncle Sam, who
has converted Louisiana, Florida, Texas,
California, and Oregon, into lands flowing
with milk and honey, and made the world
forget that they were ever thought to be
as unpromising as Alaska was while under
Russian rule, it has developed traits which
were heretofore entirely hidden and un-
known. I'D ss
"There are rivers as large as the Sacra.
mento, and islands of greater area than
the State of Rhode Island, which have nc
| name or locality on our school-roon; maps
"Aliaska, from its eastern boundary
| near the head Of Portland channel,
stretches westward in an air line 1000
! miles. In the extent Of boundaries it Is
an empire of itself-having 1850 miles OF
| sea coast, and nearly four times the size
Of California"
Very good so far. But then we are told
that Alaska enjoys only ninety fair days in
a year, though, when the sun does shine,
"the scenery is most enchanting. Water
"falls abound-some gliding like silver
| "ribbon over the smooth-worn ledge, and
"others dashing their silvery spray from
"cliff to cliff. Nine miles from Sitka is
"retired bay, land-locked by mountains,
"where cascade Of surprising beauty
"gleams far away up the summit amid the
"dark spruces."
This, however, is not all. There are
other and greater attractions. 1t is land
Of romantic traditions and wonderful sto-
ries. Whoever has read the arabian
Nig7.ts' Entertainments THAT is, everybody
| will recognize in the following paragraphs
the description of a familiar region. The
correspondent says:
awe The and his Russian guide) had
turned to leave the bay when the sun,
after full weeks observation, broke the
clouds and revealed far to the north two
snowy SUBMITS which / had not before
seen.
"sWhat mountains are those I in
CURED.
"They have many Names" said the Rus
sian; &C. don't know which is the true one.
They are further off than you think for.
They are mighty in size, and cause much
cold. 1 like to look at them, but l don't
care to 90 near them. There is not an
other such range in the world. They have
their secrets-strange stories are told of
= of, hat hnu n
deep caverns, for they are broad range,
and you may wander days and days among
them and not come to any end. Some
early explorers lost themselves among
those hills, and have never been heard of.
Wonderful things are told Of them. 1t is
said that in some places there are deep
pools and lakes, in which dwell monsters
serpents as long as fir tree, which, were
they in the open sea, would commit mighty
damage. One thing the Indians tell us
for certain, that yonder, far away to the
north, in the heart of those hills, there is a
wonderful valley, so narrow that only at
midday is the face Of the sun to be seen.
That valley lay undiscovered and IN
known for thousands of years; no person
ever dreamed of its existence; but at last,
a. long time ago, two Indian hunters en-
tered it by chance, and then, what do you
think they found9 They found small
tribe of unknown people, speaking an I'M
known tongue, who had lived there since
the creation of the world, and without
knowing that other beings existed. Did
YOU never hear Of these mountains ?"
aNo." "Well, you Americans are dar-
ing people, but you will rue the day you
attempted to explore 'yonder enchanted
mountain"