Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-08-24
N WILD AND RUGGED VALLEYS.
A Railroad Journey in Search Of the
Mythical Elkins.


ROAD SUSPENDED ON PERPENDICULAR NOUN
TAIN sDEs-THE RouoH AND PICTURESQUE
BEAUTY OF THE BLAcKwATRR-AN ExPERIEScE
IN TEE TANGLED LAUREL JUNGLE.
correspondencso Of THE EVENING stan.
FoRT PKNDLETox, August u.
It IL day to be remembered--the day Of our
excursion mp the Davis road to mythical FL
kins, where, it IL said. Secretary Blaine will
build a house. The party was small and self
selected Nobody had ever yet Leheld that
particular Elkins-that is, no one 30 favored
had returned to tell of it to waiting world.
It was said the road had reached it-that it
had not. We carried lunch and went stout
hearted
From German to Elkins, by the schedule is
fraction under 81 miles-up and down, across
and over, as picturesque, wild and rugged a
region as adventurous railroads ever attempt.
From here up the valley of the Potomac Is
deep, narrow, winding wooded gorge, to which
its few and small continents come with head
long plunges. the general rise being IS feet to
the mile. We finally execute our departure
from 1t in long loop or OK bow and find our
way up and through an unbroken forest to the
divide, go down till we strike the north
branch of
THE FAMOUS BLACKwATER.
We have passed three or four stations, little
rude beginnings Of numbering, with their saw
mills and wooden tramways which bring down
and ''slit and split the ever-present hemlock
and spruce-not another variety Of the confer
family IL found in all this realm of woods. At
Thomas a track formerly the main stem)
branches for Davis. six miles away. This
Davis is for the protector of the road, while
Thomas stands for brother Tom. We are now
In the developed coal measure and just beyond
Thomas are the Davis coal mines and coke
ovens, already extensive and capable of limit
less expansion. From here our descent is
rapid almost alarming. Our branch executes
series OF leaps and vaults At one place the
now considerable stream takes q jump Of 36
rect. while, as believe, we for several miles
are depressed 130 feet in each. Six miles be-
low Thomas we unite with the larger, the main
Biackwater, coming to US from Davis, falling
at one point clear 60 feet. The Blackwater
Is sPanned by the once widely celebrated natural
bridge OF rock. You will remember that Port
Crayon' made the grandeur and glory Of the
Blackwater known in series of admirably
Illustrated papers in Harpers Magazine some
forty years ago-not only the river but some Of
the few and insulated dwellers along its narrow
canyon-like valley. Its waters, of the color Of
very dark wine are said to be tinted by the roots
and leaves OF the persistent, interminabie and
impossible laurel, growing here in unimagin-
able jungles.
AN IMPOSING GORGE.
The united stream continues to leave us
down it plunges and still lower down, beyond
our ability to reach its level. In one part for
several sections, as l was told by Chief En-
gineer Parsons, who sat by me, that we were on
an artificial ledge quarried into the rock 400
feet above its surface. At our passage down
the sun was i'll position to shine down into por-
tons of the chasm, and occasionally through
the tree tops we caught flashes and CLEANS OF
Its purple foam. The banks rise from 500 to
1,5OO feet high-sOme of the points are g. 500
feet-and are for the most part wooded, save at
places where the floods had washed the precipi-
tous rocks OF timber and the sustaining soil
At several points of the greatest eleva-
ton OF the track over the stream a pei
would fall from a car window into the river.
The general surface evens itself up or down.
We draw near the still rushing river. 1t slows,
meets the Shaffer fork, coming from nearly the
opposite direction, the two form the Cheat
river and hurry westward to the waiting Mo-
nengahela. A half-mile below the Junction we
cross the Shaffer, large and beautiful stream
whose waters are only less violent than their
darker sisters, while the scenery is Of the same
Wild picturesque character, and all the country
Is still wooded and its surface rocky So far
as the Shaffer's valley was available our tracks
followed 1t, and passing another divide we
struck the valley of the Leading, compare
lively sluggish stream, from which the noun
tains recede, forming a low aud distant rim.
meeting IN the horizon.
INVISIBLE ELKIYs
We passed little shabby Unconditional Lead
vile, which some say is to be the Elkins, ran
hundred yards beyond into a narrow canal,
in the bottom of which ties and track had sunk
IN the soIt-hearted earth. We slowed and stop
ped and our brakeman generously called
'Elkins! In some amaze three of us sat
silent. Il know it Is Elkins, cried the reas-
sfnr hou int A.,
Secretary OF States house,
We had the car to ourselves. We had kind
Mrs. DeakIns plentiful lunch to solace for still
Invisible Elkins. We had an hour and twenty
minutes. We had a gentle summer shower.
Our locomotive executed the Y took us in
reverse and up the Leading, down the Shaffer,
up the Biackwater, around the long loop and
down the Potomac. We had leisure OH our re-
turn to note the less striking features OF the
way. occasionally the crypt-lke valleys opened
into small bottoms, usually improved with here
ana there neat log cottage, q cultivated
patch, perhaps two or three prim. tive dwellings
This we observed on the ohaffer, where our
track had occupied much of the way the only
space for road, III return for which the rail-
road company had apparently quarried a mar
row and seemingly beautiful road along the
rising, rocky bank, while up the Black
water as stated, the constructors Of the railroad
had quarrled the two sides Of right-angled
triangle into the living cliff, midway from its
Dase, alonS ana up which We went at q speed
little less than that OF our descent.
WILD AND STERILE.
This country at different points about it has
been occupied since 1776 by the English race,
yet for the entire distance along the Black
water, over the divide, and down to German
a distance of IS miles 1t has the newness and
rawness OF first invasion by civilized man of
q land in the state OF nature. Seemingly ali it
has that he wants Is the tlmber-oak, hemlock
and spruce-that grows on its surface, and the
coal but lightly covered by it. 1t never can
sustain but scanty population. The soil is
light and thin and much OF the surface is over
lain with rock OF all sizes as to preclude culti-
Walton. Cleared patches, some times what the
residents call farms, open out in narrow val
leys or on rugged hill sides, producing fair
grass, good oats, and large breadth of buck
wheat. No signs are found of wheat and but
slender and dubious attempts at corn; scarcely
hill of potatoes aud but slight essays in
garden vegetables. Sheep do well and the
mutton is famous. Along these rushing little
rivers the native laurel reigns-tangles and
stranSies men unfortunate enough to penetrate
Its jungles. Do you remember the fortune of
one OF the best-known young Washingtonans
who was so unfortunate as to become involved
in one of these laureline labyrnths. fl ON
which he was only rescued b. searching friends
on the third day of his missing?
JUNGLE EXPERIENCE.
could never understand it till my brief ex-
perience on the Laurel river of two days ago.