St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1873-05-09
California. No. 1S.


| pleasure. one can leave san Francisco
Ill the morning and reach CaliStoga at
| =. III. ~ stages leave t"r the Geyscrs
only i'll the morning. tins gives an OPP
poItunitN To look about this town III
the attcrnoon, and also visit the Petli-
fled Forest
The lidc to CaliStoga is through the
Napa Valley. which is to appearance
the New England of California. Here
more than i'll amy other part of the
state that have seen, the land is cut
mp into small farms. and the buildings
are all comfortable, and many of them
costly and elegant. This is so different
from many parts of the state which is
| yet in large ranches, with shanties for
houses. that i'll passing through the
Napa Valley one sees ut once that here
the people come IL stay and make
homes of comfort while i'll most parts
of the state the way the people live
leaves the impression that they could
get up and get" on short notice. to
Use an expressive California phrase.
Though this valley does not compare
i'll extent with several Other rich val
lcNS of the state. il i equal to the best
and superior to most in its Resources
The soil is excellent. MI kinds OF grain.
and nearly all kinds of fruits and Ncgr-
tables dn we'll here. 1t is Il large grape
and wine section. and is equally good
tor wheat and corn. Unlike much of
the state. Il dry >ca>nn il not disastrous
/" its crops. The valley is oInamrntcd
with the low branching oak. and the
foot hills ON each side have Il thicker
growth Of timber. This not only adds
tu its attiactiNtnes> hui makes fuel and
fencing cheaper than in most sections
of the state.
tAII>ToGA.
This place is the terminus of the rail
road and near the head Of the valley
which is here narrowed down to "a mile
OF two i'll width. 1t i called the Sara-
tnga of the Pacific If it is 81. it is ON
a small scale. sulphur is the great
element i'll the waters. Directly III
front of the hotel j. Il spring from which
one can pump water nearly boiling hot.
| 1t il called the 'Chickem Soup Spring"
is some have discovered taste in the
water. when saltcd and pcppelrd. simi-
lnr tn, b.tt I..,t !,
ing and swimming houses. skating rink
etc. The hotel 10 situated OF one side
of II laIge >qlIaIe of neatly laid-Out
! grounds. and on the other sides are the
cottages. There are twenty Of these
neat little une-story buildings, contain
! ing from three To- six bedrooms and Il
of the guests. and a family ni party can
br a. secluded here rs in their own
home. Calistoga il Il beautiful and in
teIesting spot. and 1t pays we'll to pat
III half day here on the wal /" the
Gey>cr Springs.
PETRIFIED FOREST.
over the mountains range on the west
side of the valley. brings one 10 the
| Pctriticd Forest, s"-c:lllcd. This is
found on the ridge dividing the Napa
aud the Santa Rosa Valleys at an alti-
tudc of about 1000 feet. and some eight
or ten miles from Mount It. Helena
which rises 4..5OO feet high on the nppo-
site side of the Napa valley. The pctri-
| fled trees are all ploStrate. and most OF
them are partially or wholly covered
by the earth. much of which is here
also pctIiticd. Some enc hundred diff
frrent trees have been found which are
now largely or wholly solid >t"uc.
Some of these are giants of the forest
the tw" largest "" SAW measuring eight
or nine feet i'll diameter.
Scientific men account for these pc
tlifirations differently. Some argue
that III former age Mount st. Helena
which is volcanic i'll shape crupted,
aud oVcrthrcn and cngulphcd this for
e>r. and that the gases. or some sub
stance thloWn out. pctriiicd the wood.
a ridge of lava just east of the main
body of trees, helps this theory. Most
if not all of these prostrltc trunks are
broken tr;rnsvrrsely every few feet
showing, ;is some think, that they were
all atioat once. and that as the sub
Stance i'll which they were immersed
cooled and settled, they broke asuuder
However these petritications may he
accounted for. they are matters of much
interest to the scientific mind, and more
or less So to every one.
\ STAGE RIDE 70 TIE GEYsER SPRINGS.
Punctually at 30 IL. m. Clark Foss
the noted stage driver of the Pacit,
cousi. whirlcd his SiN-im-hand up before
the door of the hotel. and the "AlI
aboard" soon brought ont the company
whose faces were Gcyser- ward. The
fist dozen miles of the route is through
fine valleys and over slight hills. This
distance is made i'll quick time. Sud
denly we approach the mountain, and
in the words of the driver. we "come
down to Il dead march" The ascent i.
5000 feet to the summit. then descent
of 200 feet brings one to the Geysers.
This ride over the mountain give.
grand views, and there is enough o
danger in it to make it interesting
The road over the mountain winds il