The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1888-05-03
AMERICAN GLACIERS.
A Sublime Feature in the Noun
tain Landscape Of the North.

n OuulllllV rOotuAO ~ siio AhoNh-
tain Landscape of the North.
Americas Icy Giant, the "Great
Glacier of the Selkirks.
The United States is just degree or
so too far south to be able to support
glaciers of any account, although some
OF its mountain ranges are lofty. Upon
the Cascade Range Of Oregon and
Washington territory many glaciers Of
good size exist, and few remnants are
found in the Sierra Nevada and that
northern branch of the Rockies called
the Wind River range.
From the Canadian boundary north
ward, however, the whole of tho intri.
cate mountain system covering British
Columbia is studded with glaciers,
which are encountered at less and
less elevation as you 60 north
ward, until, in tho gorge Of the skeena
river and the fords of the Alaskan
coast, they descend into the very sea.
Tho whole breadth of these mountains
is now traversed by tho Canadian Pa
cific railway, and from the car windo
dozens of glaciers are plainly visible.
They begin with the ascent OF tho east
ern slope Of the Rocky mountains, and
only disappear when tho coast range
has been left behind, and the Pacific is
almost in sight, 500 miles west OF the
first experience. In tho Rockies the
ice is restricted to the bare summit re-
gion, and nowhere (at least near the
railway descends below timber line. In
the Selkirk and Gold ranges, at the
sources of the Columbia river, west OF
the Rockies, however, the ice reaches
far down into the dense forests of gi-
gantic cedar and fir, which cover the
valleys and lower part of the peaks.
The most extensive of all these gla-
ciers occupies very lofty plateau at the
summit of the magnificent selkirk
mountains, just west of the railway pass,
and sends down huge arms into several
radiating ravincs This plateau, which
is scores of miles in extent, and en-
circled by peaks that rise far into the
realms OF perpetual winter, is wholly
covered by snow field, underlaid with
solid ice of great depth, and the 'Great
Glacier of the Selkirks," together with
several others visible from the cars, are
| only overfows of this wide mer de
n i'm
of cliffs, and forming ou.lets for the
constantly augmented congelation.
Within mile of the foot of the Great
Glacier stands tho railway station called
| Glacier. This is little more than a
hotel, which has been built by the rail-
way company for the accommodation
of tourists, and is most excellently main
tanned. 1t stands halfway up an enor-
nous ravinc, which below sinks into
pit some miles in diameter, whence the
Ilicilliwast River affords the railway
passage out Of the mountains westward
and which is surrounded by snowy and
grandly outlined peaks. Down thi:
ravine comes an impetuous river whose
water, like that of nearly all the othel
streams in these mountains, is white a
milk, declaring its glacial birth; ane
up the banks of this most romantic
stream, through forest of trees, SOM
of which are more than $50 feet il
height, good path leads to tho foot o
the glacier.
Deerly ensconced below in the greer
forest, aud ovorshadowed above by gi
gantic walls and pinuacles, dark, snow
streaked rock, the glacier forms sub
lime feature in the mountain landscap
from many distant points of view; bu
when one comes suddenly cut of tn
woods at point in tho path only so
yards from the ice, tho scene tina
bursts upon his vision is most impres
sive. Between two prodigious mount
aims, whose splintered battlements ar
unrelieved by anything less stern tha
patches of snow, lies slope Of leo te
miles in length and third Of that /
width. 1t is broadest at the top, wher
it rests in jagged outline against tn
sky some 1000 feet above your stand
point, then diminishcs somewhat towar
its rounded, convex forefoot, so that it
, whole shape is that of saddle flap. A
| the top the ice has broken into a pei
, feet chaos as it fell over the stee
rim of the plateau; but lower down
where the slope is easier, its SUI
face shows almost un broken and billow
outlines, conforming to the trough oil II
, bed. The general color is grayish
t white, the delicate gradntions oil whlc
! mark the undulating variations OF tn
surface; but the broken masses at tn
. crest, the numerous crevasses or crack
which deeply seam its surface
: all directions (but most often crosswist
! and the profound riffs and breakagt
T where the ico steadily breaks down ,
g the foot, are vivid blue, or in som
$ lights clear grass green. But thes
!, colors and gradatIons of tint vary wit
I every alienation of sunlight and clou
3 shadow. At each side OF tho glaci,
1 are great ridges of broken rocks an
: powders (moraines), thst upon the le
being particularly prominent. In froI
Of it is wide area of powders an
gravel, through which trickle numb
). of rivulcta, speedily uniting into Il
G river, which half mile down receive
} powerful tributary from anoth'