Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1868-07-24

But JOys Is wise and equal In his sway,
HoWe'er it seemsto clash with human rea-
His fiery dogs will soon have had their day,
And men shall have a season!
Across the Sierra Navada-Ths
First Railway Passenger Train
from Sacramento over the Noun
tains.
The Alta California gives the fol-
lowing description of the passage of
the first railroad passenger train over
the Sierra Nevada:
Desiring 60 be among the first TO
cross the Sierra Nevada by through
train, the writer left San Francisco at
4 p. m. on Wednesday, June II, by the
steamer Yo Semitic, in company with
several friends, bound for Silver Land.
It was long past midnight when the
heavily laden steamer reached SaeFa-
mento and tied up at the landing.
THE train moves out of the town
of Sacramento, across the Slough,
past the unfinished round house and
immense machine shops of the Cen
trail Pacific Railroad Company-in
which an army of workmen will be
employed at no distant day-up the
valley, along the northern outskirts of
the rambling town, and then by a long
bridge across the American River.
As we emerge from the trees and
shrubbery along the American, into
the open plain which stretches away to
the eastward towards the foothills,
the mighty Sierra Nevada looms up,
like gigantic cloud bank, against the
Eastern horizon. The mountains, for
a long way upward from their base,
are envelOped in a dim, blue haze,
which contrasts beautifully with the
snoWfelds on their SUBMITS, flashing
against the blue sky and lighted up by
the glory of the summer morning sun.
One distant peak sparkles like an ice
berg, with all the hues Of the opal I;
another is tinged with delicate pink
like the inner surface of a sea-shell;
and the third is of a pure brilliant
white, like frosted silver. The coun-
try at one point is open and treeless
like western prairie, and at another
dotted with Wide-spreading trees, like
the oak openings of Michigan; but
the soil is poor, and a few herds of
horses, and now and then the resi-
deuce of some small ranchman or the
herder, are the only signs of life we see
for miles and miles. The country is
Door, uncultivated, and for most part
unfenced and uninhabited.
'At the junction, eighteen miles
from Sacramento, branch road lead
ing towards Marysville takes away a
portion of our passengers, and four
miles further we come to Rocklyn,
where are the immense granite quar-
ries from which an unlimited supply
of building material for Sacramento
and San Francisco is obtained. with
simply the trouble of quarrying.
Now We enter the foothills and as
we commence to ascend more rapidly
the great mountains before US seem to
sink down till we lose sight of them
altogether, and we do not see the snow
fields again for long time The sun is
shining down,upOn US from an uneloUd-
ed sky, and the heat is such as TO
drive US to the shady side of the carp.
Luscious strawberries, ripe pears,
cherries and summer fruits are brought
through the cars for sale-everything
around speaks of summer.
UP THE MOUNTAINS.
'The engine blows and Wheezes with
short sharp aspirations, and the feel
ing of weight as we lean b ,ck on the
seat tells US we are ascending steep
aud increasing grade. Newcastle Au-
burma pretty little village and some
what active place-Clipper Gap and
New England Mills all more or less
important mining and trading posts,
are passed, and at $50 a. m. we have
ascended two thousand four hundred
forty eight feet and reached COlfax
/ fifty four miles from Sacramento,
/ where stage roads from Grass Valley,
Nevada and other rich mining towns,
| branch off The town Is built of slight
materials, and does not look as if ma lie
for all time. Here we should meel
and pass-the down train from the
Summit, but the suOW slides beyond
the great Summit Tunnel have delayed
the train between that point and Reno
away down on the Truckee, beyond
the Sierra, and after waiting a few
minutes just long enough to partake Of
a capital cup of coffee and nice spring
chicken on toast at the depot, w
move on.
tSoon after leaving Colfax the carr
pass on a high embankment around
! Cape Horn, and nervous passenger
! begin to look around auxiously, peer
ing with evident trepidation down in
to the depths below. Around the
edge of a canon the train Whlrl
| steadily along, a branch of the Amer
can River lying like a yellow ribbOI
hundreds of feet LelOw. Eight mile
from Colfax we pass the mining caml
of Secret Town, and look back iu.,
the valley from an elevation of 2,9S'
feet-something greater than thai O
Mount Tamaulipas. Up, up and on
wards, ever climbing steadily Skywards
Through the opening in the mountain
we begin to see other mountains be
yond, whose peaks are covered wit
snow, and the hot air Of the Va ley
reaches Us no longer, the breezes no,
being tempered by the sBOwfeld
above. The atmosphere is gloriousl
exhilarating, and our spirits rise >
our corporal substance ascendS heaven
wards.
"At sixty seven miles from Sacra
: menio we look down upon the wGll mig
+ exhausted placers and the town Q
Dutch Flat; Fat enough the town ap
pears at this time. Two miles furthe
we reach Alta, at an elevation Of 3, ,62'
feet above the sea, almost the heigh
; of the summit of Mount Diablo. Her
we expected to, but did not, meet th
the descending train, which had bee
: delayed BY an accident on the othe
side of the summit, by which the car
between Reno and Coburn's or True
kee, had been thrown of and smash
ed up, making it impossible for th
passengers to reach the summit b
stage IN time to connect with the reg
ular train on the western sid
, OF Che mountain. Here the ROOT
OF the houses begin to pitch sharpl
Z Tar the atrrla of The Alnina cnttnnaa-