Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1870-11-30
FROM THE FAR WEST.

/ them TO extremities. To such a pass
were they brought thatnO one could
[ be made To believe that il was less
( than i've hundred miles TO anywhere.
/ The height Of mountains and the
I depth Of ravines were estimated by
| the million feet and the distance to n
/ conspicuous eornfield would be reck-
Oned by the thousand miles with an
unblushing cOuntenanee-
Another regularity Of Colorado is
/ its fine roads. Their excellence is
due chiefly TO nature; man has done
and oyerd0ne-his part in the erect
( ton Of toil-gates. The quality OF the
/ soil and the extreme dryness of the
climate give them for the greater part
/ OF the wear, the smOOthness and soli-
dity Of turnpikes. For this reason,
. travel even over the mountains is
comparatively easy, and with good
company, and in good weather, of
I course delightful.
Another thing to be remarked of
Colorado, is every body's fiorid ap-
geaTance,
In this climate, without absolute
exception from exposure to the open
air, rubicundity Of cOuntenance is
unavoidable. A like phenomenon in
Ohio would be taken as a sure indiea-
ton of improper appetite and bae-
chanalian habit. The fact that each
one Of our party has begun to assume,
with the universal custom of the
country, this toseate appearance,
proves conelusively that it is some
thing not to be avoided, even by the
Strictest abstemiOusness or severest
abstemi9usness or severest virtue
Even the ladies have begun to mani
fest, in the prevailing complexion, the
stimulating effects Of this mountain
atmosphere.
All Of which leads me to say that
our sojourn at this place, dates from
Tuesday afternoon, the lst inst. On
the morning Of that day We left Cen
tral City by special coach, and hav-
ing climbed by a steep, winding road
TO the summit of q prOdigiOus noun
tain and taken therefrom one hasty
glance back at the piemy village and
around over the vast medly of noun
tain peaks, ravines and ridges, we
launched forth upon a splendid drive
down the defile Of Virginia Canon
This canon is about five miles in
u
sents a great variety Of scenery. I'M
mediately at its foot is the little viii
lage of Idaho, the county seat OF Clear
Creek county, which is destined to be
one of the most attractive and popu-
lar summer resorts on the continent.
Past it flows the limpid current Of
Clear Creek, and around il, on all
sides, stand the great mountains, most
prominent among which are three
contiguous peaks known as Chief,
Squaw and PappOOse.
There are here six hot springs, all
strongly impregnated with soda. The
water is entirely palatable, nOtwith-
standing its temperature, and is said
to possess great medicinal virtues
One OF the springs also carries iron in
solution and encrusts its channel with
the yellow oxide. The water is not
boiling hot but comfortably warm,
and may be found almost anywhere
in the locality a few feet below the
surface. Neat and well arranged bath
houses have been constructed and are
open to the public for consideration.
Several Of our party INDUCED in the
luxury of q soda bath, and unani-
mously pronounce it one Of the most
delightful experiences OF a lifetime
Idaho claims to have the finest hO-
tel IN the territOry,s sand the traveller
WHO IInagTTTts -IIfifiseif beyond c1vilI-
zatiOn out here viii be surprised at
the excellence and elegance of its ap-
pOintments. The cgisiReO the Colo
RADIO hotels is especially admirable, a
fact doubtless owing much to the pc
culiar resources of the country. The
choicest game, comprising buffalo.
elk, antelope, black-tailed deer, wild
turkeys, grouse and last, but not least,
the delicious trout caught in the clear,
cold brooks of the mountains, all
make their rare and savory contribu-
tiOns to the larder. Besides, the wheat
cultivated in this climate impaTts its
OwD peculiar whiteness to the bread,
and the beef fattened by the nutri-
tiOus grass which grows even among
the rocks and above the timber line,
is possessed of a tenderness, juieiness
and delicacy Of flavor which seems to
be sli qCReTis. 1t is a fact frequently
Obser sed and remarked by our party
that cattle Craze even upon the rough
est mountain sides, and that among
the animals which thus subsist, even
looking ones are rare and exceptional. I
From Idaho the road pursues the
valley of Clear Creek all the way TO
The stream affords a
splendid water power for the quartz |
mills, of which there are several along
its course, of large capacity. Some Of
these mills are in active operation; |
others are the results of adventurous |
speculation and are now abandoned. |
The village Of Georgetown is locat- |
ed in a snug little park walled in up |
Dn three sides by towering and majes-
tic mountains. Its northern side is 1
washed by Clear Creek, Immediately 4
beyond which, Republican noun |
tain rises abruptly 800 feet, and then /
with more gradual slope, 200 feet /
higher. From the immediate envi- |
rOns OF the village on the south and 1
west, rise ether mountains equally /
high and precipitOus. Georgetown
itself is s, 500 feet above Denver and |
800 above sea level. The town is
neatly built, its streets are graced with
svergreens and the church and school
house hold a significant place among
is clustering cottages.
The Methodist denomination have
/ good church edifiee here and quite
society under the pastoral
,harge of Rev. ]. H. BeQrdsley, for
nerly of Tusearawas county, Ohio
The town also boasts a bank, OF which
he Hon. John B. Chaffee, delegate
rom the Territory, seems to be the
owner. 1t supports spirit
d weekly paper, The Miner, edited
ly Hon. Stephen Decatur, an enthu-
iiastic Coloradian and veteran pio-
leer Of the country.
But the pride of Georgetown Is its
liver mines and its quartz mills,
washing mills and smelling, desulph-
lrizing, separation and reduction
works. In these works large capital
s invested, one of the mills recently
erected costing eighty thousand dol
ars. This establishment purchases
he ore Of the miners at so much per
on, the price being gauged by the
'ichness of the material, as tested by /
IN assay of specimens. In the pro-
.ess Of assaying small portions OF the
re, suitably prepared, are placed in
minute cups made of bone dust and
ubjected to a white heat which caus-
s the dross to vapOrize, leaving be-
lind il molten bed of pure metal.
In the assay office 1 was shown a
liver brick, ready for shipment,
worth one thousand dollars. An ex
,lanation of the processes by which
he raw ore is reduced to this form
would Of itself form an Interesting J