The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-01-26

Senator Pomeroy's Proposed National Park
ssThe Wonders Of the West"
Gazing upon the sunsets hign-heaped gold;
les crags OF opal and OF crysollte;
Its deeps on deeps OF glory, that unfold
Still Frightening aoysses.
And blazing preciplces
whence but scanty leap 1t seems to heaven.
-LOtceu.
Mr.. Pomeroy, of Kansas, has introduced
bill in the United States Senate, which, we
hope, under proper restrictions, will become
lava bill setting apart the wonderful valley
and it's strange and magnificent surroundings
at the head of the Yellowstone River, in the
Rocky Mountain Territory of Wyoming, as .
national park, to the extent of forty-four miles
by forty. Mr.. Pomeroy desires to have this
region of unparalleled wonders dedicated to
the nation at once, in order to prevent it fall
ing into the hands of squatters and uuscrupu-
lous land spectators. This is beauti-
full idea and while yet there are
no squatters on the ground Congress
ought to secure the district indicated
to the whole people Of the United States and
their descendants forever. There is no such
grouping anywhere else in the world of the
beautiful, the magnificent, the grand, the sub
lime and wonderful in nature as we have them
in this marvellous Plutonic region of the
Yellowstone; and, as the giant cedars OF
Mariposa and the glorious mountain walls and
domes of Yosemite have been given to the
State of California, so should this Yellow
stone region be given to the people of tho
United States, to prevent its designation by
squatters and spectators, with their s'gin-
mills" sawmills and chemical factories, and
in order to make it national park which
will invite strangers to the contemplation Of
it's indescribable attractions from all parts Of
the world. Even in business point of view
this is the best use to which this district
can be applied for the people and for the ma
tional Treasury.
We might occupy page Of the HERALD
with the descriptions before us of these
recently discovered fascinating wonders of the
Yellowstone, but for general idea Of them
few words will, perhaps be sufficient.
They lie in labyrinth of the Rocky Mountains,
on the eastern side of the main chain, in the
Territory of Wyoming, some two hundred and
fifty miles north Of the Union Pacific Railroad,
and from that road, over that singulariy
rough country, the approaches to these
Yellowstone wonders are equal to summers
campaign. AS Fremont describes the valley
of the Snake River, west of the Rocky Noun
tains, this whole region of the Upper Yellow
stone, it may be truly said, is "a volcanic
region-a land Of fracture and violence and
fire." The deep basaltic chasm through which
the river winds its way, the extinct craters
in the surrounding mountains changed
into lakes, but, more than all,
the thousands of boiling springs and
the enormous geysers of this extraordinary
region, betray the volcanic forces which have
operated here and which are still in active
operation.
Here, with their wild, strange and sublime
surroundings, we have waterfalls which make
even Niagara tame affair, and lake, the
circuit of which is nearly two hundred miles.
more attractive than the lakes of Switzerland.
Here we have river which, in its deep canyon
for thirty miles, is even during the brightest
day mostly in the dark. Here we have tower
ing river walls, painted by the action of the
air and water upon their mineral deposits in
all the colors of the rainbow. Here, on the
mountain sides, we have clusters of hot
springs, discharging their water from ter
race to terrace in numerous pools, the
terraces and the pools, from their min
eral coating, having all the appearances
of alabaster or of marble Of different
colors. Here we have fountains discharging
black and red mud, and fountains of water
white as milk; and here, in the ''Fire Hole
Basin" we have geysers which eclipse those
of Iceland in their numbers and their
strength most astonishing sight-one Of
them discharging column of water twelve
feet in diameter to height of over two hum
dred feet. And clouds of steam rise from this
basin as the smoke from city in flames.
Here we have natural domes, spires, castles,
towers, turrets and Notifications, in number
less fantastic forms, and the widest group
ings of mountain peaks and pinnacles and
ridges, rising from ten to twelve thousand
feet above the sea. In short, here, including
the most beautiful virgin forests of pines, we
have. wilderness of wonderful things with
which nothing can be produced for COM
parison on the face of the globe.
We have heretofore spoken Of all that
great division of the Continent extending
from the great Plains to the Pacific Ocean as
the Asiatic section of the United States.
And so it is; and while in its climate and In
its geographical and geological peculiarities it
resembles Central and Western Asia, the
country east of the Mississippi may be as
aptly called European in its character. For
instance, touching our Asiatic section, on the