, 1869-07-07
TIE CANON OF THE COLORADO,

4A1 kANu@ VI ALE GQLOAAuU.
The news, whether true OF false, from
Major Po~ell and his party, WHO,
for moro than two years, have been
engaged in preliminary arrangements
to explore the great canon Of the
Colombo, and who hoped during the pressnt
summer to accomplish it, will ndd new IN
serest to this important subject. Many
may suppose TINT the results 10 be obtained
will not warrant the labor and expense,
not to speak OF the dangers to
lie incurred In exploring the hid
den mysteries Of this wonderful rennn.
But geographical problans ci far less in
terest and importance have cost the world
fat greater expenditure Of effort 70 solve
them, and mankind viii always both Rp-
Plaud and reward those who increase the
Sum Of human knowledge. To add to that
knowledge is :he controlling motive that
impclled Mnjor Powell to risk everything
i'll ofacr to unvel the mysteries tint sur
round ono Of the great rivers Of the CONT
nent in its course to the seq. Even il
it has cost him his life, this will
not deter other daring explorers
from solving The problem with which the
uame Of Powell il now most houorabiy nnd,
perhaps, sadly associa.ed. The following
is the hum Of aboat all We know Of the
Colorado 2iver and its une1plored canon:
It gathers its waterH on the western slope
Of the Rocky Mountains, on the north, from
Il point opposite the Yellowstone, down
through ut least nine degrees Of latitude TO
q point opposite the head waters Of the Bed
River, and drains IN equal space along the
eastern rim u the Great Salt Lake basln.
The mountains which surround. tho vast
valley ~hich it drains arc the Rocky on
The east, the Wind River on tho north, and
th, Hasatch and Cintah On the west; and,
as they all rise far up into the regions Of
perpetual snow, they furnish the water for
one Of the 1atgeat rivera of the continent.
AL its principal tributaries, with the el-
ceptiou OF the Gla, the Lit
tie Colorado and the San Juan,
arc gathered into its terrible current before
it daAhes into what tho frontiersmen call
the Black Canon OF the Colorado. Tho
rirer has tremendous fall to the Gulf Of
California At Green River Station, whe1o
The Union Poetic Rnilway crosses the prin-
| cipal tributary Of tho Colorado, bearing at
least aS much water ns Rock River at Ster-
| ling, the elevation abcvo the ocean is
nbout G,ooo feet. In the three or four
hundred miles between this place
md the entrance Of the
canon the fall is probably not more thar @
| Thousand feet. Tho river runs with steady
current, and the only considerable fall We
Eyer beard Of is that in which Major Powell
and his party mny hase lost their
| Ives At the head Of the canon.
the river. according to ali accounts,
rushea down m awful cataract, worsc
than That below the bridge at NiAga-
n Falls, and through which old trappess
who have been there 1ouudly assert nc
boat OF vessel could pass without certain
destruction. From thus point the
canon is sasiansly estimated nj
from three to i've hundred mil@
long. md, our estiuato as to tho desccu'
Of the river between the crossing Of III,
railway and the head Of Ii. gorge 10 cor
rect, il must fall some Ave thou
aand feet, OF uhout mile, in ita pa.sng'
through the canon. Much Of the WI,
through the canon il is known 10 run viii
very .lugeiAh current, and heues thcr
must be many fearful falls before the rive
reaches the foot Of il near c4llvillv.
Fror- au the accounts of those Who hav'
seen The canon at various points, and from
the reports Of the onls two persons who, j
is now claimed, ever went through it, i
scens to be huge crack in the Garth
J crust, hbout mile wide, with perlcnalcn
lar walls, from two to fire or six thousaDs
: feet ahorc the river, nande by some terribl
: convulsion Of nature. The whole eount1
along the canon is volcanic md utterly des
= ti,utc Of vegetation Lateral caaons
} branching cut at right 1ngles, na
requiring several days journey I
: 70 round them, render it impos
t tible for PARTIES to follow down I'll
: hanks Of the river. could water be obtaine
/, fru,n its terrible current, rushing betsee
= it's walls nearly mile below The explore,
T Hence, the pl4n Of Major Fowall, as d.
Q tailed to us when here in May last, was /
! wait At the head Of the canon till the srrin
q foods had passed down, when he hoped I
: find narrow plateau along the roargin {
! the river from which the waters Ind n
! ceded, and along which he could let dow
: his boats over any rapids that might t
4 found in his way. That there are sue
l. plaseaus 1long the Colunhia and oth'
s. rivers is we'll known; but the question I
4 whether they exist along the shore of Il
d rlrer in the canon OF the Colorado IS still j
t doubt.
g TIL recently it WIS supposed that onl
4 one 11an-a Ar. Nhite, nnw living ne.
fs Callville, on tho Lower Colorado-hhd ey,
y gone through this canon- His thrillit
na1rntlva is well known. We find in Il
% last number Of the Wextern Monthly VII
4 seems to be a weQ-antheniicated account
= | Ind of Ii YEAH Of hra 5Fhn ,xoe1