Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1881-01-19


was O. variety actress. She was going
over the mountains to get an engage
ment at Leadville. The other passenger
in the same seat was an Englishman of
some 40 years of age, q civil engineer,
who had been sent out by some European
capitalists to look up the new carbonate
regions of the Elk mountain district
Finally, there was the driver, who is
always, as you all know, as important a.
character as is the captain on the ocean
steamer. He was only about % years
of age; and presented no very salient
points In his features. He was very
blonde in his hair, and was smoothly
shaved, except as to moustache, which
was bleached to milky Wilderness. He
| were one of those gray sombreros, with
an immense rim and round top, which
are so much affected by the Texas cow
boy and the stage driver; and he had let
his hair grow till it had reached his
shoulders. He seemed to me to be very
young for the business of pulling the
ribbons over four horses upon route
which is regarded as one of the most
dangerous in the Rockies. found that
the present journey was only his second
trip; and that before coming to this line
he had been driving in the San Luis val
ley. This was not in his favor, for the
reason that the valley is plain, and
affords one no training for mountain
driving such as that which was now given
him He seemed steady sort of chap,
quite unlike the old stagers, and on this
account the passen gers did not take to
him. - We tried now and then to estab-
/ lish social relations with him, but we
succeeded in getting only surly respon-
ses. He seemed to wish to be let alone;
and finally he got his wish, for all of us
ceased to pay him any attention. One
thing about him pleased me, and that
was that, when he was asked to take
| some whisky by one of the passengers,
he CURLY refused it. ..a ...f. trL
ALI the early morning of the second
day weshad climbed toward the summit
of the pass. 1t was long, slow and
difficult character, and in places Of the
most dangerous kind, it is not worth de-
scribing in detail for the reason that
what soon after occurred obliterated it
from remembrance. We had no reason
for being dissatisfied with the driver.
AT the bad places he had seemed to be
cool, and had taken us over without any
difficulty. - -
It was still early in the morning when
we reached the summit and began the
descent on the further side. It was bad
from the word ''go." The pass was
scarcely pass in any true sense of the
term. 1t was simply a sort of hollow
which cut across the ridge, and which
was rugged shallow gulch of the mean
est kind. 1t was about the same as If
we were crossing the very top of the gil
gantic range for we were in fact at an
elevation of many thousands of feet
above the level of the sea.
The shadows of night had not yet left
the mountain. Above us on our left,
rose vast rugged peak, enveloped in
snow, and which stood out In the clear
atmosphere above, clean cut, massive,
and glittering with Respondent opal
essence. Below us the mountains were
submerged in a cloud-formed ocean. 1t
extended to the further horizon, present
ing surface as level as a floor, and
which seemed of solidity that was i'm
penetrable.
AS we entered it, it gave way before
us, receding a little on every side, until
it seemed as if we were descending an
enormous well. Through the walls of
this clould-shaft we could see distorted
| objects; pines assumed fantastic shapes,
the fragments of fallen rocks became
hideous animals ready to spring on us
from out the void. The composition of
the ocean was something wonderful. It
was of two colors of hues-a heecy
white and blne. The two were not in
termingled except in masses; stratum
of the one by itself, and then this was
overland by the other. They were like
fasci@ of blue and white, first one in one
color, and then one in the other; each
exhibiting suburb striation.. ~.
AS we descended, the character of the
road began to change. At first, as [
have said, the trail was along simple
depression across the ridge. This de-
preston, after a little, deepened rapidly,
and became tortuous, impossible ra-
vine. For a time the road followed the
hollow, but as the latter dropped away
it was impossible to follow it. At this
point the track began to hug the side of
the mountain on the left, and. the route
then began to be one which was any
thing but pleasant one. -
1
commenced to descend the ravine on our
right had so deepened that its bottom
was lost in the clouds below. We were
descending along a narrow trail which
had been blasted out on the side of the
mountain, and which was but just wide
enough for the wheels of the coach.
And now, III moment, the cloud masses
rolled up and away, as if they had been
something In the nature of great cur
tain. In second, as it were, there was
transformation more wonderful than
any which has come from the incanta-
tons of an omnipotent sorcery.
We were between two vast masses, or
what seemed like two parallel mountain
ranges, separated by fathomless and
narrow rift. Far down in the narrow
abyss which separated the parallel
ranges we were moving. I glanced up
It was like looking out from deep slit
in the earth. On both sides. to the