Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1868-05-23
MISCELLANEOUS.
Yosemite valley, California.

Yosemite valley, California.
The most marvellous scenery of California
indeed of the whole worlds found in
Yosemite Valley, Mariposa county. In win
ter, snow is often found twenty feet deep,
but summer reveals meadows of richest
grass and brightest flowers among deep
forests of slender pines and silver. tipped
frs. Sometimes these trees are 200 feet
high, their trunks gorgeous with yellow
moss Yosemite Valley is gorge or chasm
in the mountains, 8 miles long, with an
average width of three-quarters of a mile.
Its floor is q level valley, shaded with spread
ing trees, rich in meadows of tall grass and
brilliant flowers, and bright with the shi
ming waters of Mercer River. On either
side rise immense walls and turrets of bare
granite from 1000 to 5000 feet high-walls
so upright and perfect that an expert crags-
man can climb out of the valley at only
three or four points. This enormous issure,
which has no parallel in the world, is the
result of some ancient convulsion, which
cleft asunder the everlasting hills and rent
the globe itself. From the rock OF precipice
of Inspiration Point, a stone or pebble
thrown into this chasm has fallen half a
mile before striking any obstruction. Clan
cling across this profound chasm El Captain
is seen rising up an unbroken, seamless wall
of granite, two.thirds of mile high and
more than perpendicular, its top protruding
$50 feet over the base. At the upper end
of the valley stands the South Dome, q rock
one mile high, riven asunder from top to
bottom. A look in another direction reveals
the Bridal Veil Fall, the least of all the five
wonderful cascades in the valley. yet with
its snowy stream leaping unbroken more
than 900 feet, quite melted in mist before
reaching the bottom. The rock mountains
are the great feature-indeed, they are
Yosemite itself. Nine granite mountains
range in height from three to six thousand
feet, the most striking examples on the globe
of the masonry of nature. Beside them .he
great Pyramid would be the merest pebble.
The most impressive is El Captain or Tu-
| tochah.nu-Lah, Spanish and Indian names,
both signifying THE Leader" but applied
in the sense of the Supreme Being. 1t is a
solid, seamless, stupendous wall on which
no shrub or grass finds footing, and no te-
nacious vine can fasten its tendrills. Tow
ering upright for $500 feet, it is grandeur,
massiveness, indestruc:ibility. The tallest
is the South Dome, whose summit is more
than mile above the level of the valley.
1t is cleft asunder from top to bottom, and
one-half has disappeared. Gigantic cedars
upon its tops, seem from the valley to be
mere twigs, barely visible to the naked eye.
The waterfalls, though less striking than
the rocks, have given more fame to the val
ley. They are five in number each quite
unlike the rest. The Bridal VEIL spanned
by a rainbow, hangs like delicate Aim of
lace for 900 feet. Before reaching the end
of its long descent, rll no longer, it IS
transformed into spray-the Niobe of cas-
cades, dissolved in tears. The Venal rushes
eagerly over gloomy, brown rocks, and then
leaps headiong for 800 feet, roaring like a
miniature Niagara, encircled by rainbows of
dazzling brightness. At the base, in The
afternoon sun, is seen the rare phenomenon
of the round rainbow, the entire circle as
perfect as finger ring. At Nevada Falls
the river tumbles seven hundred feet in
swaying mistiness. 1t is fifty named, for
the water is white as snowdrift. Near the
bottom it strikes an inclined plane, or apron
of the rock, spreading into sheet of float
ing silver tissue, 1870 feet wide, then break
ing into delicate snowy net work, with my
riads of shining beads and sparkling threads
an exquisite silken fringe on the great
white curtain. The South Fork Fall shoots
over the precipice for 730 feet in descent
unbroken until just before it reaches the
basin below. But the Yosemite itself is the
monarch of cascades. With only single
break it leaps 2,634 feet 1t is far the lof.
tiest in the world. Think of a cascade-for
it is less than twenty feet wide at the sum-
mit-of more than half mile 1t is six
teen times higher than Niagara. In spring
it has great volume; but during summer it
is one vast incredible height. The floor Of
the beautiful valley is threaded by the shi-
ming river, and carpeteC with rich grass, and
mysterious myriads of wild flowers, incln-
ding primroses of yellow and crimson, and
the Itherial Spear Of exquisite purple. 1t is
fringed with spreading oaks, and dotted
with slender, symmetrical pines, which
sometimes rise nearly 500 feet, dwarfing
men ana buildings beneath their branches
| the merest pigmies. On the whole, the
Yosemite Valley is incomparably the most
wonderful feature of our continent. Euro
pean travellers agree that transatlantic
scenery has nothing at all approaching it.
Unless the unexplored Himalayes hide some
| rival, there is no spot the wide world over
of such varied beauty and measureless gran
| deur.