The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1877-07-01
WHERE WE ARE. -,
cheyenne's legation and Surroundings
With a Few Words on Grass
and Stock Raising.
LOCATION AND SCENERY.

hereab0uts has every characteristic of
the plains except levelness. 1t is not
more than forty miles to the foot hills
of the Rocky mountains, and the ascent
is rapid. The action of water during
the long centuries that have passed
| since these plains were laid down has
been the most powerful near the noun
tains, and the result is a broken sue
cession Of bluffs, ravines, buttes and
hollows, carved out of the friable rock
and worn into the gravelly soil. No
trees lift their heads on the plains
which stretch away in all directions
from the city, far as the eye can
reach, ave to the west and southwest,
where. from adjacent bluffs are seen
the snowy peaks Of the distant noun
tains from the cleaning snowline away
up toward the Medicine Bow down to
Pixies broad white head, 1S0miles south
of us. At this season the most promi-
nent heights are very plain a hundred
miles away. Longs Peak shows all
Aibo 6iSNiiNAS P4pDOL IlOlio CNClI hG2C
mantled in snow, and in clear moments
one q catch sight of the silvery erests
of snow-covered mountains behind
him, away N the outer side of Estes
Park. Coming portlIward from Dem
yer on the railroad the grandest exhib-
ition is afforded of this, the main or
snow range OF the Rocky mountains.
Rising abruptly from the plains, stand
ing in orderly array north and south,
the peaks crowd together and tower up
among the storm clouds that drift past
them, until, as you watch, it is the
mountain peaks which seem to be mov-
ing, cutting the clouds asunder and
dashing the flurries Of snow from their
fronts as ships before n gale part the
white spray Of the waves. This gran
deur Of the tremendous contest of the
elements among the serried ridges Is
better to be witnessed in this season of
thunder storms, when winter disputes
every step Of summers advance, than
at any other time. The mountains are
still piled high with snow, on the black
crests OF the cliffs streaking their white
cones. And while you are watching the
pure CLEANS of the snow, or the rosy
play Of sunlight upon it, an indigo
cloud, dense and square-fronted with
rain, will march up from the valley at
one side, cutting of all the rest of the
| 1nn10nana md q Siroi1af thplnnr will
sweep up on the left hand, hiding the
other mountains behind its black veil,
and together they will assault the
mountain whose white and lofty head
will stand out between them firm and
clear against the angry sky. But as
the storms strike the mountains flank
and climb his sides and close about his
base, sounding the long-roll in theil
thunder and hurting the bolts of theil
lightning, the dense blue-black Of the
rain is changed to the misty white OF
snow, the darkness gradually vanishes,
the ammunition of the lightning is
exhausted and the mountain emerges
from the battle winter than ever with
feecy trophies of victory, while tri
umphant banners OF crimson and golt
are hung upon the clouds so blackl,
defiant Il moment ago.
GRASS AND sToCK-RAIsIN6.
Except the topmost o~utcroppings OF
the submits of the ridges the whole
region is clothed with the scant grow
ing buffalo grass, green now will
spring growth, but oon to turn ser
under the summers heat and becom,
cured sinto natural hay. To the ey,
accustomed to the dense turf of til,
prairies-for 'prairies'' and ''plains'
L two very different things-or o
eastern pastures, this short, thin grass
sprouting in little tufts between whicl
the sod plainly appears, seems to affort
q very poor feeding ground for animals
but enormous herds Of cattle are raisec
here for eastern markets every year
and thousands Of horses and mules re
cuperate from their summers work il
the mountains, and grow fat aloni
with the cattle during the cold an,
SHOWS of the winter upon this ame scan
buffalo grass alone. Southwark iron
this point along the streams flowing ou'
from the mountains and draining into
the North Platte or the Cache-la-Poudr
rivers or losing themselves in the loos
soil, are to be found ranches and cattl
grazing. Thence eastward between thu
North and South Platte, for hundred
of miles the plains are ranged over b
the cattle Of various owners, who's
herdsmen live in huts or comfortabl
houses here and there along the line @
the Union Pacific railroad. The bee
I. of this region is considered in Chicag
as coming next in quality to the ''far
cy'' brands Of corn-fed cattle raised IL
the Mississippi Valley, and as far supe
rior to the long-horned Southern breeds
l whose Srnn1aS nonst ba Uaunt and toi1u'