Arizona weekly citizen., 1882-09-17
BOTAyIZING IN ARIZONA.
A Natural Fern Conservatory.


 Prof. J. G. LemmOn, writing from Tan
 ner's canyon m Lhe Huachucas, to the 2 Rural Press unde- date of August 2jth,
 say s: \ week ago, while clamberIng up
 high, rocky and very narrow raTlne, c
 turn ID its course suddenly reveal q just before me d half-open volume of
 natures great library. It stood on end
 and was slightly inclined backward against a high mountain. Its sides
 were of syenIte, limestone, aranite and
 quartz ID superpOsed layers, capped
 with slate.
 ! I have since conducted an officer ! from the Post, experienced m measure ments, to the place and obtained hls | judgment as to distances We estimate | the hlght of the walls Co be over l5OU
 feet and the extent Oi spread aud depth | each over LOO fec. Vertical furrOws traverse each page Of the book, also hcr-
 rizOntal ones.
 And the contents of the volume are | on a par with its maguitcence. Plants | of the most robust from and brightest ! flowers cling tO every ledge and peep out of every crevIce. No sooner had approached the bottom of the pages than deserted, for a marginal vlgnette a beautiful shield fern Tot seen before
 west of Iexas. Across the right hand
 page, near the bottom, proceeded line of white flower shrubs, a new species of leaphania. Similarly along the left new draba. A hunired feet higher the pages had for illustrations a large and rare aspidIum on the left, and a new species of fgymnoloElIa on the 1ght.
 Pulling myself mp by the and of trail ing shrubs. I found, in the next narrow rift, two more su' auge ferns. At about a thousand feet elevation three more ferns appeared. The ascent was now almost vertical, but excitement steadied hand and foot. Grasping the depend ing bushes where possible, and after making a place for my fingers in the rock clefts with my pick, struggled on and up, dripping with preparation, but greatly elated by the ferns and flowers discovered. At about fifty feet from the top the slate CapstOne !utted out several feet and forbade escape over the top, but It als, displayed another strange fern. Sliding down wit great peril, and several hurts, 10 d ledge about tVO-thlris the night of the gorge, by good char ce l detected a side entrance from the west, q narrow tor tuous way often blocked with debris or guarded by a thorny bush, but still a passage along the face Of the nearly yer- tical wall for 1000 feet to a place of ! safety.
 Next day Mrs. L. was conducted to l this wonderful conservatory, and ad- ! mitted by the side entrance. At every ! inward turn of the winding way her ex- clamatIOns of delight were uttered. but l at the outward curves the sheer preci- ! pice of 900 1t. below and JOO feet above . with a narrow way only one or two feet . wide. often caused momeutary hesitation. . But the ClorIes of the inner vestIbule of . ferns can always be seen from these . outer curves, appearing nearer and ! nearer, and the sight ls too enchanting | fOi bOtsmSts to resist.
 PremOnitIous of a sudden storm, such | as are often experienced in the noun taius of Arizona iu August, BOW were heard, and the lOug rolls of thunder reverberated down the cayern's length . m quick succession and increasing loud ness; but a sweet voiced little bird | hopped along just few feet ahead and | seemed siren to lure us on. Suffice 1t is to say the inner recesses of the con servatory were visited, more of theIr treasures secured, and then quick re- treat was made before a torrent dashed l down that gorge, carrying large trees and boulders. and making a volume Of sound that could be heard for miles.
 This must be the richest natural con- servatory of ferns in America, for in it we have collected 26 different species, many of which are new to Arizona, and narbaua sorra of them to tha science Specimens of all the doubtful ones have been sent on to professor Eston, of Yale College, for determination.