The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1883-12-12
FROM UTAH TO CANADA
Graphic Description Of Long Rail.
way Ride.
Editor Herald:

A word or TWO from Canada, D
o'clock a. M. on the 18th ult.. landed
me at Morrisburg. twelve miles
south of this place, after a very
pleasant ride over the Denver s.
Rio Glande Railway, els miles to
Pueblo and $50 miles to Kansas
City, 2S5 miles to st. Louis, $40 to
Cincinnati, Ohio. IT'S more via
Cleveland, Buffalo, Suspension
Bridge, and Toronto, Canada, to
Morrisburg.
1 have completed my sixteenth
trip over the great plains of the
Rocky Mountains, and the grandest
of them all is the ride over the
Denver s. Rio Grande railroad. So
much has been said of the magni-
fcent scenery, l will only mention
a few of fine prominent features,
beginning with Castle Gates, 14S
miles out from Salt Lake city. This
gate Is formed by a prominent
castle, SIS feet high, on the east,
perpendicular and close tn the rail-
road 1t is sharp at the front, wild
ening out, and leaving yawning
gulches and other castles of less
prominence. The castle on the
opposite and in close proximity 10
the other is of less Importance, part
! of it having fallen down, but its
surroundings are grand and wild in
| appearance. We have passed a
seven-mile grade, PIG feet to the
mile. In the night we passed over
Green River and the Deseret G and
Junction, Grand River and up Gun
nison River, following up the ser
pentine, silvery stream ffty-one
miles, often under the rocky bluffs
often overhanging our cars. The
road bed is very smooth, and en-
those short turns the swing of the
car feels as though we were going
to be swung just over into the foam
ing rivsr close under us; but we
soon get used to those short curves
and pass through the Black can
yon in daylight, and although this
is marvelously high and rough,
often passing under the high crags.
that ian be reached as with
lightning speed we pass them.
All of this is lost as we pass
over Marshal Pass. Two powerful
engines are snorting, putting and
painting, as though wanting rest
climbing up. Up and up they 60
5000 feet in fourteen miles. The
grade is wonderfully designed, and
it seems without a view of cost
Six miles of snowsheds are spread
over the most snowy portions OF
Marshal Pass. AS we climb around
the gulches. often looking just across
a deep canyon, after passing two or
three miles, nearly in stones throw
we look up on the top of mountain
another serpent>like train is steam
ing down and around, switches off
and at last we are on the summit
10S61 feet above sea level, about as
high as the top of Twin Peaks
Well, we can breathe more freely
until We look down. down, the
canyon; we have twenty-four miles
to let us down to q level of the
fourteen miles climb; pilot is il
cur advance as precautiOn; tn {
scenery is simply fe arfully grand
While in Grand Canyon Of the Ar
kansas the grandest sight of life
time was seen-the Arkansas river
rustling, foamiug and leaping from
rock to rock, and the blue sky peep
ing through perpendicular walls t
the height of over 1900 feet in theil
varied forms and in one pass so ar
row that suspension bridge had t
be hung between the rocks in order
to pass. This Is forty-one miles tt
Pueblo.
The new suspension bridge over
the Niagara river is the next wonder
of the world. 1t is called the Cant
Lever bridge and is just above thu
old suspension bridge, and is %
feet above Niagara river, six fee
higher than the old one. Two stee
towers Of lattice work rest respect
lively on two stone abutments, rlsin,
fifty feet from the firm rock OF
either side of the river at tile water
edge; on these towers rest TIVE
can't levers, each overbalancing OF
the stone side and frml!
fastened to two abutments O
nunQr6QS OF COnS weight
One day before passed, the center
truss bridge of 120 feet spar
of steele lattice work wa:
placed in the center, bein,
attached to each end of the cant
levers forming the entire bridge
which, as the timberS are being re
moved, looks very much like cob
web. 1t is designed to be self.sup
porting, and in a few days is to be ties
ted by sixteen engines crossing. l
is the only bridge of the kind s
nearly constructed. Two others ar
in course of erection. one of then
in Scotland. Six months time i
anticipated in the construction G
this marvellous bridge, while the oil
one cost three years time. Surel.
we live in a fast age. A stroll G
two miles up the river, close alon
the rocky cliffs, which are well pro
tected by iron railing preventin
stock or persons from taking an az
cidental leap of over 200 feet into
watery grave,is of no sm al interes
insomuch that two miles SEQ