New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-07-28
lSpecIsi Correspondence Ct me Republican.
CATskILL CORRESPONDENT
MOUNTAIN ROUsR

1
into mountain air and among mountain
| scenery. there cOmes an exhilarRtion, men-
tai as we'll as physical, which makes the
mere fact OF breathing pleasure and the
exercise Of vision delicious excitement.
| Such a. least Was oIr experience few days
! since, as we found ourselves, by means OF a
stage coach, slowly ascending from the vii
| lage Of Ca.skill toward the elevated ter
race upon whicn this house Is situated.
Here We were at length among the Carskili
| mountains, u the fairy lard CT America, .
| the region Of spectres and COLLINS, OF tie
fableG Indian squaw vino Tr!ed the weather.
and from her lofty seat on the highest peak
| 0: the range, opened the doors OF the SKY
| 70 le. GU. the sun every morning aLC closed
| ITEM a. night or bis retiring footsteps.
| This is the home Of clouds ard winds the
bir.n place OF storms and rempests, the
picturesque region among whose peaks and
crags, terraces snG valleys, foaming catar
acts, srbsiGing icto ripping streams. the
| artist Thomas Cole found inspiration for his
Course CT Empire and Voyage Of Life
awoke, the renowned Rip Van Winkle,
whose character and adventures have been
iMmortaiiZeG by one OF Americas greatest
| writers and familaIize6 to two continents
by ole Of her greatest actors. Fame thus
associated ls az: to keep itself alive. and
thus there is probably not one passenger up
this mountain road land there are scores Of
them every day during the summer season.
but remembers Rip and wishes to see the
site OF HE famous nap. This Of course ie
readily pointed out. In fact there is 8
house Of entertainment bearing his name
erec-ed on the very spot where, painting
and fstigued," he threw himself down to
rest on that memorable evening.
The whole road from the village to this
elevated spot, distance of twelve miles.
affords succession of grand and beautiful
views, vlstAs olening low on the night
hand, now on the LETT. now directly ahead,
eacn Of which wonid pe q study for a
painter. They aye al, however, eolipseG
by tia: commanded by the plateau upon
winch the Mountain House is perched.
Three thousand feet above the level OF tie
sea, il oveylooks an area OF 10000 square
miles, including portions Of Massachusetts,
Vernon: and Connecticut. The view is
bounded on all sides by morntains-the
AdiIondacks. the Green mountains, the
Berkshire hills and tne Hudson highlands
forming a continuously diversified line,
their colc- sottened by distance 20 vapOr-
Gus blue, while far OF III the dim haze to-
| ward the north may be discerned with a
g.ass, the city OF Albany, and coward the
south PougLkeepsie, the distance between
| them being sixty miles. Directly in front,
| at the distance Of eight milee, flows the
! majestic Hudson, uwindled il proportions
| but undiminished IN beauty, and upon its
| sparkling bosom may be seen st all hours
| Of the day the snowy wigs Of many a sal
| ing craft, and at the proper time the Albany
| mail boats. The whole vsl!ey from The
| north TO the south, and from Ills poir. Of
| view 70 the distant mountains is nagnih-
cent landscape composed OF farms and
| woodlands, towns and villages, the who.e
appearing from this height to be on level
| although known 20 be diversified into hill
and vale. This ieveling of inequalities al
| viewed from height is susceptible of a
moral pplication-obvious, out not toe
much so to be pointed out-namely: May
not the diversities in human character as
regards good and evil. which appear so
! glaring to Us in their midst. appear TO &
higher order of beings, or to the Eternal
Father. almost insignificant
| To return to outside nature. ] feel as
look from my window upon the magnifceI
! view spread out beneath my eyee how
feeble language is to portray such scene
how, in fact, it can not be described. art
it's effect upon the beholder can only he in
| Gicated by exclamations. These are pro
trsely indulged in by newcomers, and it il
a point of interest in visitors of longer
! standing to place themselves where they
| can watch the effect on fresh arrivals 0:
the view from the plateau. As the house
is reached from the north side, the view is
not obtained till they have passed through
the central hall to the south side, which over
looks the valley. My Cod how grand"
exclaimed an old gentleman, yesterda J
evening as he stepped out on the rocky
| platform overlooking the scene, and the ex
clamation struck the listeners, not as irrey
erent. but as prayerful.
| Among the charms Of the place are
! the constant changes of hue passing
over the face of the landscape. The soft
! feecy violet or r0se-tinted mists which at
| early dawn and at sunset give to it in the
| distance the appearance of the rolling
| waves of the sea; the shadows of clouds
| chasing each other over its surface; and
! above all, the glories of the sunrise. Be
| sides all these charms of the sublime, the
| other Of no mean mportance-namely, the
| climate. The temperature is at all times
/ from 100 to 207 lower up here on the noun.
tain tops than it !s IN the valley or in New
York city; and even when at it's highest
| such is the purity Of the air that the
/ warmth is not depressing as in lower r.,
| gons.
The Mountain House is q spacious edifce
situated, as above men toned, upon tn,
brow of mountain, and conn anding from
it's eastern side the magnificent prospec
alluded to. 1t is reached by stages from
the village of Catskill, run by the proprie
tor Of the house, Mr.. c. A. Beach. And
very interesting character is Mr. Beach,
veteran host, active and enterprising, VIII,
has conducted this house for more thar
thirty years. In advancing his own inter
ests he has promoted at the same time thos
| of Ill