St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-07-22
AVALLEY OF DEATH.
No Bird or Beast Can Enter and
Remain Alive.

Remain Alive.
San Francisco Chronicle.
s In Yellowstone park there is a revine
that proves as deadly to animal life as
that Death Valley of Java, where wild
beasts perish by the score" said Henry
W. Mcintyre, of the Palace hotel, last
night. The gentleman was connected
with the party who surveyed
the reservation, under the lead
ership of Arnold Hague, the
park geologist. While following
the streams to trace the extinct hot
springs the explorers reached rav1ne
in which the bones of many animals,
bears, dear, rabbits and squirrels, were
found. The presence of the remains
caused the party much wonder, and a
solution of the strange affair was found
only when a crow that had been seen to
fly from the side of the valley to car
cass that was yet fresh, lit on its prey
and almost Immediately fell to the.
ground.
1.-The death of the Bird" continued
Mr.. Mcintyre, twas caused by case
Gus exhalatiocns, whose presence in the
park had been before unsupported.
The larger game also met its death by
inhaling the deadly gas. The rayine is
in the northeastern part of the park, in
the vicinity of the mining camp of
Cooke Creek, and not far from the line
of the mail route. ALI about this
region gaseous exhalations are Civ
en- off which form Sulphurous
deposits. In the almost extinct hot
spring areas of Soda Butte, Lamar
river and Cache and Miller creeks the
ravine was found. This region is rarely
visited, although this is an admirable
spot for game, which, however, goes
unmolested by man, the laws against
hunting being very severe. The road
to the valley has few attractions, and
the visitors to the Fossil forests and
HlndoO basin seldom make the trip.
I'm the center of meadow, reached
by an old elk trail, is shallow depres-
sion that was once the bed of hot
spring pool. This is now dry and is
and that is the bait that attracts the
elk and other game of the region. The
lick extends for seventy-fve yards
up the ravine, and is thicker
and more palpable towards the
upper end. The creek runs past along
the side of the valley and boils and
bubbles as if it were the outlet of a hot
spring. But the water is cold and the
disturbance in it's surface is caused by
the emissions of gas, mainly earbonic
acid. 1t also contains sulphur, as
particles of that are seen on the
sides of the creek. As we
went up the stream the odor of
sulphur became very strong and caused
irritation of the bronchial passages.
About eighty yards above Cache creek
were the bones of large bear and near
by was smaller grizzly deeomposed,
but with the skin and hair yet fresh.
Only short distance farther on were
the skeletons of many more ami
mails, such as elk and deer and
bits, birds and insects were lying
looked as if it had been the scoop of
drive into which the animals of the park
had been hunted and had there been
left to die of hunger out of mere wan
tOnnesS. There was no wounds appar-
ent Oh the bodies before us. All the
animals had been aSphyXiated by the
deadly gases that hung a few feet from
the surface of tbs gulch in dense pal
pable curtain.
''Tbe first bear we saw was good way
down the gulch, where neck is formed.
70 that point the gas must have been
driven by the wind and the deadly ma
ture may be easily guessed when it Is
remembered that the slightest motion
causes a diffusion of the ether that
would tend to decrease its noXiOuS prop
critics. Here is the explanation of the
assertion that game was
being eXterminatcd by hunters in the
Yellowstone, Notwithstanding the Strin-
gent laws that had been passed for the
protection of animals there. had seen
it noted that ca I'll year bears, deer,
mountain tigers and other wild animals
were disappearing from the reservation
and it was asserted that friends of the
people who had charge of the park were
allowed to hunt there in defiance of the
law. There were probably $50 bodies of
wild animals in the gulch when was
there. But. although there were skele-
tons entire and single bones, it must not
be supposed these were the remains of
all the game that had found death in
the ravine. They had accumulated
only since the last rain storm"