The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-05-12
RIP VAN Wrinkles LAND.
A Glimpse of Sleepy Hollow and the
haaterskill Glove in the CatskillS.
ErOnl the Nelr York Preaa

From the Nelo York Press.
There is probably no part OF the Ameri-
can continent more replete with romance
than that part of the State of New York in
which lie the Catskill Mountains, the coun-
ties of UlSter, Delaware and Greene. His
torical "reminiscences abound along the en-
tire length of the Hudson river, but no.
where IN the whole stretch of this valley
does romance run riot so much as among
the Handicapped SUBMITS of the Catskills,
especially i'll the Kaaterskill Glove, where
Rip Van Wrinkle is supposed TO have taken
his long nap of twenty years-that land
known as the "Ontoras,n or the "Blissful
Regions" of the simple-minded redskins,
who believed that the Great Spirit dwelt
upon the hoary head of old Round Top
and watched over the destinies of his red
children.
Here is the Sleepy Hollow of romance,
and even to this day the Old Dutch farmers
Of the neighborhood show what they claim
to be the very stone upon which RIP Van
Wrinkle" rested his head while taking his
prolonged nap, and a small house, from
which an ancient-looklng Dutch burgher
dispenses root beer and cakes, and in which
arc preserved "Katrinasn chair and tho
flagon from which rip is said to have
taken the sleeping draught, covers the
legendary spot.
In traversing this section of the Catskills
one feels that he is almost communing with
the spirit of the unlucky Rip, and in his
Imagination he can hear the shrill voice of
Dame Van Wrinkle as she screams,
'Heerutje das Hundje" to poor Schneider
as she soundly whacks him with her broom
stick and bids him begOne and join his
shiftleSs master, and anon the plying voice
of Rip as he talks TO Schneider and says:
Poor Schneider, thy mistress does lead
both thee aud me dogs life, indeed" and,
further, you can see and realize the almost
human reason with which poor Schneider
looks up into his sympathiZing masters
face and hear the pitiful whine he gives ut
terance to in response to his masters sym
pathy. .ss
There have been many controversies over
the question as to whether or not the Kaat
erskill Glove was the place where Rip Van
Wrinkle slumbered away twenty years of
his life, but one look at the precipitous
cliis, the shady dells and messy banks, the
dashing rivulets and bounding waterfalls,
and, above all, the feeling Of calm and per
feet repose that pervades the entire chasm
makes one exclaim: "lf this is not the spot
it should have BEEN" The following de-
scription from the sketch Book" however,
describes the Glove to perfection:
On fine autumnal day Rip had unconsciousy
scrambled TO one OF the highest parts of the
huatSkllI Mountains. lie was after his taVOrlte
sport OF squirrel shooting, and the still Sotudes
had echoed and re-echoed with reports of his
gun. Painting and fatigued, he threw himself,
late in the afternoon, ON green knoll covered
with mountain heritage that crowned the brow
of precipice From an opening between the
trees be could overlook all the lower country for
many mile Of rich woodland. He saw at a
distance the lordy Hudson, far, far below him,
moving on its silent but majestic course, with
the reflection of purple cloud or the sail of a
tagging bark here and there sleeping on its
CLASSY bosom, and at last losing itself in the
blue highlands
on the other side he looked down into n deep
mountain glen, wild, lonely and shagged, the
bottom filed with fragments from the impend-
ing cliffs, and scarcely lighted by the reflected
rays of the setting sun. For some time Rip lay
musing on the scene. Evening was gradually
advancing; the mountains began to throw their
long blue shadows over the valleys: he saw it
would be dark long before he could reach the
village, and he heaved a heavy sigh when he
thought of encountering the terrors of Dame
Van Wrinkle.
This mountain glen is undoubtedly the
Glove of the Kaaterskill, although many
question the fact and say that the scene of
Rips exploits with tie ghostly retainers of
the Master Hendriclx hudson lies further up
the valley in the neighbornOod of South
Mountain, but true believers say that the
Kaaterskill Glove is undoubtedly the place
and cite rs authority that portion of Mr..
lrving's narrative which relates to Rips
search, after waking from his nap, for his
late companions, of whose schnapps he had
imbibed too much, aud who he thought had
stolen his dog and gun and left him the
rusty old firelock WHICH he found beside
him when he awoke, in exchange
He determined to revisit the scene of last
evenings gambols, and, if he met any of
the party, to demand his dog and gun. As
he rose to walk he found himself stiff in the
joints and wanting his usual activity.
"TheSe mountain beds do not agree with
me" said Rip, land if this frolic should Law
me up with fit of rheumatism shall have
a blessed time with Dame Van Winkle.n
With some difficulty he got down into
the glen. He found the gully up which he
and his companion had assembled the pre-
ceiling evening, but, to his astOnishment, a
mountain stream was now foaming down
it,, leaping from rock to rock and filling the
glen with babbling murmurs. He, how
ever made shift to scramble up its sides,
working his toilsome way through thickets
of birch, sasSafraS and witch hazel, and
sometimes tripped up or entangled by the
wild grapevines that twisted their coils and
tendrils from tree to tree, and spread kind
of network i'll his path.
At length he reached to where the ravine
had opened through the cliffs to the amphi-
theater; but no traces of such opening re-
manned. The rocks presented high inn
penetrabe wall, over which the torrent
came tumbling in sheet of feathery foam,
that fell into n broad, deep basin, black
from the shadows of the surrounding
forest. Here, then, poor Rip was brought
to n stand.
While this matter of the exact location of
RIPS nap remains an open question for
argument, which, from the nature of Mr.
Irving's narrative, it will for all time, the
tourists who visit this spot NAV Give free
range to their imaginings as to whether or no
Kaaterskll Glove is the right spot by sim
ply listening to the muttering and grun.-
bling of the thunder during II storm in this
locality. Then they will hear tho booming
roll of the bowling balls the rattle of the
spear and the loud crash of the ten strike:
as tits said that old "Hendrick Hudson and
his merry men from of the "Half Noon
still pay regular periodical visits to their
mountain ten-pin alley to indulge in their
favorite game of bowls
A Horse Prisoner Hanged.
BOWLING GREEN, KY, May IA mob