The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1884-11-12

steam tugs, and carried to the factory wharf.
where they are deposited in a tank having a
capacity of fifty tons From this tank Car
runs mp an incline to another bin, where the
fish are again unloaded. From here they
are shoveled at necessary times into the pres
room, where they are repeatedly crushed and
heated until the oil is abstracted, and only
the dry and mangled residue is left. To
separate the oil from the water il contains
there is a series of tanks into which the
liquid runs until the two liquids are proper
ly divided.
For a long time the:crushed and oilless
herring was allowed to go TO waste. Left to
itself the ill-smelling mass quickly becomes
a pile of living worms. At last it was de-
termined to utilize this rich accumulation,
and about a year ago the company began to
make phosphates or fertilizers from it. At
present the factory is not in the best order,
but it produces some !, 100 sacks of guano q
month, and the experiment is considered a
success, fertilizer of great richness being
produced at a comparatively slight cost.
OF all the scenic attractions of this coun-
try, naturally so prolific in natural wonders,
Glacier Bay must be acknowledged the
grandest, most beautiful and most interest
ing.
Imagine the view, those of you who have
never seen q glacier or an iceberg or noun
tain of dazzling Wilderness. At our left and
On Jul Ai6nt 1dn bWO nl6u lduSCo vi lOICSt-
covered hills. wit here and there whitened
peak lifting its head above the greenness.
Around Us lay the unruffied waters of the
bay, stretching away toward the south past
a group OF tree-grown islands to where q
line of pale blue SUBMITS rose into view
No canoes were visible, no sails appeared in
sight ne towns or villages or camps relieved
the wilderness of the neighboring shores
A wilderness lay all about us, with waters
bathing the feet of mountains and
snow banks resting on rocky heights
while away off in the distance, and so far
removed that only their general outlines
could be seen, and every ugly scar was hid,
doomed the triple SUBMITS of the Fsirweath-
er range, shooting clear and white 16 600
feet above the hills gathered about their
base, and forming the northern boundary of
the bay. Other ranges have greater alti-
tude than this of Fairweather, but few rise
from so near the sea, and have so little to
rob them of their height. Looking at this
group, the mountains seem to have shot up
from the ground, and they stand like cakes
of ice frosted with fresh-fallen snow. They
were 100 miles away when we first
caught sight of them, yet seemed not
half that distance off, for the air was crisu
and clear, and the range itself is tall and
massive,
1t was nearly sunset whed we began to
near the Muir glacier, and the day was
reached at last, and our now dWarfed ships
anchored near the frowning precipice. The
shades of evening had gathered about the
islands passed during the afternoon, and
half hid from sight the lower ranges and
trackless forests fars away. But the Fair
weather peaks were visible still, and
glowed with a ghostly light in their
isolated heights like heaps of phosphorus
hung above the trees. Around US floated
icy fragments, grinding against one another
or floating solitary and majestic down their
watery way. The air was sharp and cold,
and gloom, familiar on November days al
home, when the sky is overcast and fiecks oil
snow begin to fall and daylight fades away.
Now death.like silence reigned and again
q loud, harsh moan was heard as the
glacier cracked, or a long-continued
roar broke the stiffness as q mask of snow
and ice, tottering moment, fell headlong
into the space below. The scene was grand
past all conception wild and awful, hushing
all with admiration. No other wonder oil
nature equals this glacier of untold age as ii
comes silently, yet irresistibly, down from
its birth place to the sea, crying as it moves,
the embodiment of strength, the destroyer
of all life. All the glaciers of Switzerland
might be combined, and together they would
not equal this of Glacier Bay. Setit crawl
ing over that Republic across the seas, aud it
would crush the country beneath its W eight
From ice foes and clear weather we have
come to Sltka, among green trees and rain
and fog. Lying at anchor all night at the
entrance to Gross Sound, our course the fol
lowing morning led past the Takou glacier
measuring sixteen miles across its mouth
and later into open sea, where the Pacific
stretched its solitary waters on the one side
and the western slopes of Alasks
rose beside Us on the other. Alasks
facing the ocean is much like Alaska
facing the inner channels. There are
the same high mountains, covered with
never-ending forests. long ranges, white
with snow, reaching above the trees, aud the
laDd-locked iJords. The highest peak neal
the coast is Mount st. Elias, rising 19,00C
feet above the water level, but next in alti
tude 10 it is Fairweather, which fortunately
appeared to Us once more as we sailed to
ward Sitka. Seen from the ocean, it is more
beautiful than when viewed from any other
direction, for it stands near the sea, and
looms up with unobstructed vision upon
the trackless waters.