The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1882-04-02
Save the National Park from Ruin.

Der, mineral deposits natural curlosltleS, or
wonders within said park, and their reten-
ton in their natural condition." also to
provide against the wanton destruction of
the fish and game within said park, and
against their capture or destruction for the
purpose OF merchandise or profit"
The intent Of this act Is good. The pro-
vision for it's execution is childshly defective.
The Yellowstone National Park might as
well have been handed over to Cape Cod
Dorcas Society as to the Department Of the
Interior. That has no machinery to enforce
it's will or give effect to law. Soldiers alone
constitute this machinery. The only force
the Secretary of the Interior has is a written
piece of paper issued from United States
District Court commanding a deputy mar
shall to do something to somebody. And the
secretary may have to send four hundred
miles north for the paper to be brought back
four hundred miles south; and before it can
be served, ten miles square Of the lovely for
ests of the peoples pleasure ground may be
burned to ashes by band of miscreants.
The power to protect and to summarily re-
move, given by the act to the authorized GUS
todian of the park, is absolutely null and
void through disability to act and the
people piedSlIc SlOuuu 10 NltuouJ any
protection whatever, and invites ruin from
the many-raced barbarians Of America.
There is bill before Congress to make the
Yellowstone Park military reservation
under the care and government of the engi-
neer corps OF the army, with at least one COM
pany OF infantry and one company of cavalry
attached to the command as police force.
All Americans who love the beautiful and
wonderful in nature, and take any pride in
the supremacy Of the attractions OF the yell
lowstone Geyscr Basin over any and every
thing of the kind in the world, had bet
ter use their influence with their repre-
sentatives in Congress to have this bill made
q law, and made excessively stringent. Very
summary law will be required TO save this
matchlessly wonderful property, and it will
be required speedily, for the Northern Pacific
Railroad Company will run passenger trains
early this summer beyond the trail to the
park, and within sixty miles of it, and thou
sands of tourists will soon go to the geySers
where hundreds heretofore went. II the new
corners shall be in numbers proportionally
as brutal and destructive rs were their pre-
decessors, the park, as the ward OF the Inte-
rior Department, is done for. Moreover, there
are influences strongly at work in the civil
SUPPLEMENTARY Of the property which
| threaten to hand it over wholly to personal
speculation and all the disgusting sequences
OF such perversion OF the intent OF Congress
to create for the nation the most attractive
| pleasure ground on the face OF the earth.
Gen. SHERIDAN made an official expedition
through the park in September last. In the
published report of his trip, mention Is made
| 1, Of xNf1n c,Nf
wanton destructiveness personally witnessed
by them. They saw what was done by one
party in one place on one day on an area
nearly fifty miles square There were hun
dreds Of visitors to the park last season, and
probably the majority OF them belonged to
| the class of persons who In Gen. SHERIDAN
presence and that of his staff and guard,
| gave, without shame or seeming conscious
ness of wrong, supreme evidence that they
were selfish savagcs and uncivilized crimi-
nails. The General records the doings of u
party of these wretchcs thus:
"Fros this camp We had the pleasure OF witnessing
during our s6T tho action OF nearly all the grand gey
ser. Of this wonderful place so fully described by BAR
Low, HAYDEN, and others. The phenomens witnessed
were fully up and exceeded our expectations Our
only regret is the Indifference shown by the Government
probably from want of appreciation Of the wouders of
this interesting country Tie area of IL. pats !. 1900
square miles the altitude is high the SURFACE is covered
open grassy parks surrounded BY dense pine ,ores
"sA. ITS sen're ,e ieIOwston' canon aa o''
forest, on . for mile, At Ave- or r sr,r.rt ni.
The crsters of many 81 the gsysers where the water was
spOued up high as 200 feet in column were partly
wedged up by roodszed trees pushed in with the butt
80 oua u ,n.a ITu,u Nv, pa,,
n,..h.t, and hammers, were there muiatinc the
ers.s OF the yeysors in the most wAnOn and Pr0yOk.
ing manner" ..-.
1io,. no, Gproo,v oide-de.conn 70
c1rpIn,w IN his iourna, orcomnanvinp his