, 1870-09-20
the KIP. EXCURSION.
The Desert and the A1ountains.
A Pullman Party.
The Ride Across the Plains.

].
To climb, on lands anl feet, up the rough
ridge Of the Mcclellan range Of tho Rocky
Mountains, thirteen thousand five hundred
feet above tho level Of tho sca to look thence
down a sheer descent OF five hundred feet,
upon black thread OF water that has started
thereupon it's crooked way for the Pacific Ocean;
to see On tho left, tho open gla5es Of the
South Park and the Middle Park, stretching
seventy or eighty miles between their noun
famous boundaries, and on the right Grey's
Peak piercing the clouds still another thou
sand feet above the tide; to turn north and
south, cast and west, anu look eyory-
where upon ranges Of mountains, SNOW
capped, cloud-capped, blue in depth Of azure |
unknown at lower altitudcs, 1ango On range
ill they fade away in the far distance, like |
heecy clouds; to look down into deep green /
valleys, neatling at the baso OF those battle
ments OF stone, which rise up hundreds and !
hundreds Of feet, seeming1y as bare and |
smooth and vertical ns it the work Of human |
hands, far above tho hno where trees can |
grow, ard upon white banks Of snow, piled |
up in thur cold shadows, which neither sun !
nor rsin has ever melted since they fell in |
p:1meval time upon those upheaved and over !
a1i. ai, al:l snow. whrling far below through |
mount.in gorges-to stand thus upon that |
treeZy emiuence, the yeritable rid1y back
bone OF a continent, where the blast, that may
bow unchecked from ocean to oceaD, cuts the
face with tie sharpness Of a winters Tiul,
and the th,s, nis comes quick and short from
the painting lungs, and gazing around aud
beneath upon such atupeuiioua and sub
Iime sceue as this for Luudtcd and fifty
miles, relne1ntetlnE that tNo tno1sauu Mi,cs
away. ca one side, rolls tie Atlantic, thou
cane nsiles away. or the other side, tho Pa
be.weep, il the eye could reach go far. il to
feel that, ut last, tho Great West is reached.
Through the rich Erair1es Of Missouri aud
ka1,eas, their round hills crowned with aban-
dant crops OF grim and grass; by waving corn
fields Ct hundreds VI acres in singIe lots
great fields vi yellow stubble, where tie wheat
had Leen gathered sniff and abundant riy-
ers, Lorue1ed with gigantic tree6; uurc-
claimed bottom lauds, with iailcs and milos Of
waving, ellow seas Of wild sun-lowerB, yer.
table fields ct cloth Of god; cities, and
towns, aud Villages with Ill tho frerhaeas of
rswness, the energies a,sd yigor Of young life
in every house and street, springtng up thiek
along tue way and 6U on, across the great,
patetcd-up, arid. desD1ate waste of Western
Kansas md Colorado to the foot Of The 70 Ky
Mountains. st Denver, and up its rugged de-
files, along its brawling streams, to tas top OF
that dividing ridge between tne Atla:.ic and
Pacific slopes, dill the Kansas Pacific Hallway
COMPANY lead it's guests III the recent ce1vbra-
t'on OF the opening OF their road.
There are t6e1ninE soils aud fruitful FIRMS,
and rivers nnd foiesta, md hills and valleys,
and plains and mountains in oiher places be-
eide MlsBourj, aud hanuaa, ana Colorado; but
no~hcte else has q railroad been built uude-
the same difficulties and angcra as that G5D
miles from Kanaas City to I'enver; nowhere
e1se has plain been tr1Ve,sed presenting
problems for solution so interesting and PEI
| cnliar and nowhere else in Ill The worla,
tllhk, is she1c tuch an approach to noun
| tain range TO teantifui and 20 exciting. as
that to the Rocky Mountains On the last sixty
miles to Denver Oh the kaus1s Pacific Rail
| road. One who has been much at sea, and
who, for tho first tiuo, travels day after day
in railroaa train, can hardly fail to fee! as II
he were again ou shipboard. with its confue-
range of sensations and occupations. it's ro,1-
| tine, and its change IRON ordinary haha,s.
| To see tho land again., after the eyeA
have rested to1 weeks or months
upon ~ ths g., horizon 49,, Of 500 aid
IL watcss to Watch IT, Il grow s INTO s sssa @ ssyth
with outlined hills aud rocky shore, or long,
1ow lme O: coast; to iEhale tiie fragrance OF
the woods nlaa the so,l as it nesT sense llaI
been revealed 10 him, is a delight which he
| WHO Las once felt caM never forget. It is
with something OF the same feeling that one
sp1.roaclser tho mountains ever tho L. r.
Railroad. having the sensation of co:niug III
from sea, after rido Of days across the
Plains. Two hours before sunsat, 4 cry went
through the train-1 Change cars for Doa-
We found III trout Of the engine long
platform Tar which had been seut out from
| Denver, fitted with seats and al awning,
leaving MI uroI Istlnctel view TN both sides
Sixty miles away, rising just ahove the long,
straight line Ct the level plain, like the fist
outline Of land approached from soawara,
! rose the mountains low ard sh.doTy nllan
the far horizon. before us was ratGe o!
stvetty-ftSe miles from Pixies Peak on the
left te the sumnlits far beyond Gseys Peal;
IN tic light, ana all beside, bchiad
. MA and around us, lay tho ia,
ard arid deae.t, iatcrnainable and pa,hloss
: seemingly. except tho i-on track, AZ sea thai
mighty hand had stiled and sti1encd into
waTt1ess tand:: As wc approached, the moan
" in Gistirc:ncss, a tho outlines changed ani
the color changed from gray to blne, ami peal
after peak came out, revealing range on ra::gt
OF ever Ehls:iag and gigantic ehapes. HEAVY
clcudB tlOated atova their s1tumite- behinl
| which, at length, the sinking sun hid itself
bul tinsing, nR il sauk, all tier edges with tls
Iii aE.eet gold, AID spreading over all tl'
J sly hehilIl tue mountains a mingled GLOW O
. purple and OF crimson light. Against tili
3llwiug background and beneath these golden
edged and dark-hlue clouds, which no punt or
t hand ceu 4 ever im,ta:e, stood out TIC lu:;
, mnunta ainous range. its outlines tingel az
. | clarified with the brilliant reflected light. m
infinitely beautiful in tho mingled radianc
, and softnesa Of the coming suuset
! And then the eun csu1o ont from behind it
c acrces the plain dispersed The shadows IN
Hooded it With Light; and the polished rails Z
], the straight road before us ran into oue in tn
long perspective OF many miles, and the ewil
D train eeenletl about to slide upon single b.
. Of hurhlshed silver out Of tl.e desert up int
the very bosom Of the D6lectablo Mountain:
!, n and then the nun vent doNa behind ta
:. Promised Land, and tie glory O. crimson az
). uf gold aud Of prrp]e faded away from sh
Il and cloud and ear:h, and the mountain
!. doomed mp dark and sombre iuto the night t
:, We glided into Denver. still fourteen nilt
: nil tue afternoon had seemed but mile or IN
y away.
i Tie Kansn. Pacific Railway ID aoou. +
IS hundred and fifty miles in length, starting
e Kansas City aud trarersirs tho whole width
Kansas, stretching through Colorado al
= terminating at Denver. Thence il. connec
= With the Denver Pacific Road, which runs
/. Cheyenne, making connection With Il
i. Union Pacific at that re9nt,. aud thus opeui!
a. new ROUTE for part Of tho way, across Il
u poses to itse1f is but just begun, ho~aye
C. not finished. From Denver, within two ycnl
they wil. without doubt. extend their Iii
~ " fsly 1cilea to GcsrGet3wu, tSo tAol:saud fe
IL atove, in the mountains. by narrow gau
road, with 40 ascent Of ai7tv feet t. the mi
r; r; very hcalt Of the uost romantic region,
~. ~ portion of the richest mining district in t
&. United States. This may be considered a.
IL Thing sure to he accomplished. But more j
Mt nar.ant still is 1 proposed road from Sherida
+ Or Brookvi!lp, Or soma other po
~; OH the Kansas Pacific Road, to Santo
~ ~ and the Pacific Ceast, and to San Francis
cy tie continent. -Four different routes ha
Ii bccn suryeycd. and the promise Of iof tue
M without going into details hero. is shor
i, route to tho Pacific coast than that By
a., as Euiou Pacific, and tbs Development of VI
-. aud Arizona, rich in agricultural and mine
a. resources, peculiarly attractive to emissa:l
nj | capable OF supporting millions Of populati
r. aud adding enormously to the wealth Of
y. Hhole couutry. Tie various routes have tt
NJ, "r che,pnese, or il tho loc.l trade which may
IL relied upon. but for each snd Ill it is claiu
M Il at the cocsn'nmation Of tho enterprise
eE, certain to effect greater results than b
r. over yet followed tho building Of any OF
',n- ~ read. OF coarse it cannot be done withot
nj. rast expenditure cf means. md whether tla
fhv can be secured OF not depends. in some me-
Iau ure, uron legislation in Congress. Thus
'or- lie Kansas Pacific company Justly cla
III ftr ITSELF exceptional me:l: for tho good II
Vs. Vs., IN vhlcA it has carried out all its agreeue
MI aith the government, although its land 81
:1cluies many hundreds Of Thousands
acres on the plains which, with msny : squ
aeEt, and can never be avai5ab;e for sot
8 10 ment except through the efforts Of co:p'
nor ton interested in making them 80. and Dc
M Maste mined to ueo its energies and It's mean: