National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-11-16
ASCENT OF MOUNT SCOTT.
DIFFICULTY IN CLIMBING THE
VENERABLE RART.

THE GREAT PEAK OF THE WICHITA NOUN
TAINs-ITs RAGGED SIDES AND DIZZY
sUNdIT-REPTILE INHABITANTS OF THE
AOUNT-A CAUTION TO SMOKERS.
ICorrsspons enee Of the National Rspubnean.l
FoRT Sill, November Q, 1874.
See the summit Of Mount Scott, and then
make your peace with things in general, pay
your debts, kiss the baby, and shuttle on this
mortal complex eircularity. But perhaps you
don't know where Mount Scott Isl Many OF the
American tourists do not, and those who, by for
tunate circumstances, have reached its ragged
brow, would prefer passing through the throes Of
the average death-bed than repeat the expert
ment. II Is not an unpleasant appearing noun
tain, however, to the casual observer, provided
he has never been intimate with is summit, and
for that matter, its side either. The ponderous
pile Of jagged sand stones, Interpreted with rat
tlemakes and eorpuIent taISntulas above re-
ferred to, sWells up from the broad prairie land
Of the Indian territory and stands on its smooth
surface like q venerable Nart It was probably
e1uded from the interior Of terra hrraa BY one Of
the functional disorders which are continually
disturbing and fretting the inner man Of mother
earth, and standing as II does, two thousand feet
in its stockings above the level OF the sea, It be-
comes the giant peak Of the wichita Mountains,
and something above the ordinary run Of eleva-
lions to behold.
to those who have never trayersed its sides and
sat upon its dizzy heights that at once arOuses
q curiosity which nothing bat sudden death or an
actual ascension can thoroughly satisfy. This
feeling seiEed us with considerable animation as
we gradually approached the towering and con-
fused mas Of malformed boulders, and making
= careful prospectus Of the whole In general, We
selected portion in particular, pieketed our
pony in the bottom land, and with feelings OF ad-
miration for the grand old pile began the ascent.
Dame Nature saeredly keeps
so1rE WONDERFUL SECRETS,
notwithstanding the marvellous fslllbHity Of her
sex in this respect The gentle old female is sole
editor and proprietor Of innumsrable ways that
are past finding ont, and even though the
scientific and phllosophieal sages Of the past and
present have exercised themselves through her.
s1,esn sacrts q 1oI1e 6eT S sun ne
Investigations to naught; and these venerable
and respected dabblers with her mysterious ere
ations are not the only members Of the ambitious
human tribe who are occasionally snubbed and
cireumvented by this majestic mistress OF the
material world. The traveller, the curiosity and
with strange phenomena In their various wan.
derings which at once exposes 70 them the COM
limited scOpe Of human knowledge when con
trasted with the secrets and puisSantd
majesty Of nature and her laws.
This ragged accumulation Of porous rocks tend
ed that way, reader. We were Impressed, and in
more ways than one. The more We Wrestled and
toied with the sharP-edged ereyices and obstinate
crags deeper grew the Impressions and smaller
our admiration for the ugly, ponderous mass. IN
stead Of philosephizing upon the cause and effect
Of this remarkable gIbooslty Of 6qlged eonldeEs,
thought that It was one Of those natural problems
which ne fellow can solve, and we continued to
stumble and fall upwards.
THE ASCENT.
The stones elingIng to the mountain side-held
together by no cement Of soil, bound together by
no perceptible bonds-gaYe way beneath the pres
sure OF our feet, and plunged crushing and roar
ing, into some yaWning abyss beloT. Young ava
lanches Of our own involuntary creation chased
each other down the ragged decllvtties turning
somersaults whenever the occasion reqSired it,
whenever sllicient force interposed. oVerhang-
ing lodges froWned upon us, and seemed to mock
our violent Efforts to scale the PERCEPTIONS Sides
Great dome-hke pouldersi shaped and fashioned
by the storms and changes which ever mark the
course Of Time, were suspended here and there,
huggeS ~ me lSsns aTmS o. sTqSPen s pail
that even the jar Of . fO0tstep would loosen them
from their rocky moorings and hurl them thun-
dering and eaYorttng TO the timbered base which
skirted the mountain, like garland OF evergreen,
below. Thousands Of dwarf black oak trees lay
scattered about on either hand, wrecked and shat
tered By the rolliDg force o. broken bluffs, which
had been Wrested from their lofty stations BY
heree storms or subteuanean troubles and sent on
their mission Of destruction, leaving nothing but
. bruised and barren waste behind.
In certain places the sides Of earthly swelling
were at an angle 80 steep that It became impossi-
Bile to climb or s1ea fan up L, and consequently
eles Just nine persons out ofnine would under the
same circumstances. Those who arc acquainted
cuities, and those who are not, We venture to re-
mark will live Just as long and die quite as happy
If they don't happen TO, and should md II out
and let MS know, We VIII make amende honorable
for the assertion.
RATTLRsNAKEs AND TARANTULAs.
Upwards We tolIed with indefatigab zeal, in
spired with the prospect Of nne view from the
summit The nearer We approached the crown Of
see If we were all there, and the stronger were
we impressed that we were not. Every upturned
crag and angular rock took nibble Of us, and
what the upturned and angulars didn't get the
rattlesnakes and tarantulas wanted.
The rattlesnake is far prettier bird than the
og1 ne me sane s1 n
human flesh 70 light on. He will Try just as hard
to do It, however, which fact makes him a very
interesting object to Wateh>With q club. They
will stand . dresome lot OF watching and but
little club; yet this Is doubtful consolation when
there Is nothing but two and three and ten-tOn
boulders within reach and four snakes to each
boulder. The mountain is full Of them. From q
few hours observation, We have come 70 the con-
clusion that II the snakes and tarantulas and CEN
upedes and scorpions were removed the whole
thing would look as though II had gone away
from home for an indefinite period. We admired
the stupendous pile Of stones thrown together in
= such picturesque confusion. The peculiar f0rma-
ton Of the high-reRching promontOries, their
dome-shaped bluffs, the beautifully rounded and
fashioned DOuldere, separated nom the main body
and clinging Like immense carbuncles 70 the
mountain sides the rocks thrown loosely together,
forming, IN many instances, dark and sullen-look-
ing eaTes-all presented spectacle Of varied and
curious interest.
Oftimes our footsteps would cause these dis
NAL caverns to resound with dull, hollow roar
Of such force and duration that It seemed possible
that the vast interior Of the huge pile might be .
cyelopean cave. But the eyclopean, whatever Il
IS, didn't trouble US much. ItWas to the active
tude Of tarantuls, that We were paying our
closest attention. They attracted It readily. A
rattlesnake six inches in diameter, and eight feet
and half long, discoursing "Hail Columbia"
through the end Of its tail, via Of tWentyone rat
ties, is an object quite competent 70 attract .
bronze statue Of the most Indifferent man that
ever lived, or any who expect the privilege. One
Of this extraordinary size was slaughtered by a
member Of our party after lively combat Of
skin now lies emboWelled with prairie grass at
headquarters, waiting to be expressed East upon
the hrst application Of scientific Institution In
good and respectable standing.
VIEW yRoM THE sUlrEI7.
After seramblIng, tumbIng and talking for i've
thousand consecutive seconds with the rough and
Obstinate surface Of this remarkable hill We
reached its Summit, and CARED with pleasure and
admiration on the scehe Of varied landscape
beauty which presented itself on every hand. In
one sweep Of the horizon large portion OF the
Indian LsrptoIy vas % oe SEEN sr9ae, Fsst
there with bluffs and towering mounds and
granite palisades adorned with pellueed streams,
veins, variegated in many places with the 9utum-
nal hues-all mingling with each other and each
eoursing through rich and fertile loulands to
wards the Red River Of the South. the south
west were the Llanos Eslacados Of Texas, to the
north the Kechi mountains, and to the east the
dome Of the Capitol, with the Goddess of-hold
on sonny us nothing but q COmAnohe brave
coming over the summit OF Shirt-Appendage
mountain. He was coming TO the agency for his
weekly ratiOne. We were disappointed at the
time for the sight was 80 home-llke and pleasant.
But 10 wasn't the dome's fault, and, eonsoled
with this fact, We turned away to ind still
further
coasoLATIoE IN A QUIT BNoKE
on the 1oftiest portion ofthe upIifted rocks. The
wind was blowing lively gale, and We sought
the protection Of an immense boulder, In order to
Ight match AID have the flame stick. We, nor
any ofOur posteFity. shall ever repeat the expert
ment not II eur advice Is followed Ifit Isn't that
posterity will peter out with Q cash and vanish
While the fame was struggling. through the
birthstone and was sputtering and Kissing as
only birthstone fame can, We "kneedN down
and curVing the vertebra 70 It's utmost capacity,
began to draw the iame toward the meerschaum
bowl when piece Of the gale covorted around
the corner Of the sheltering rock and carried the
hame away with Remarkable suddenness- The
second luoiier was produced, scratched hiokered
and knocked endHays BY second gust. The
third and only one lett was drawn forth, accom-
paaied with remarks Of considerable force and to
the point. The quiet, eonsoling, much anticipated
smoke depended solely upon successful manipu-
lation Of this little blaok-headed stick. Both
Knees we're on the ground, the hat was %, acting
mot action aha hack bent the boW banda the