San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1889-09-10
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1899.
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENCE
Among the Mountains--A Few Days
in Denver and Trip in
the Rockies.

Ine nOCkleS
Daily LIGHT.
arrived in Denver on August 9th
at 4:30 p. m. Think of my disap-
pointment-I was told by friends be-
fore leaving San Antonio to take my
beaver coat, had travelled through
out the East, Canada and the North lug
ging that over-coat from train to no.
tel, and back to train, in all nearly
lO. 900 miles, with q great fear that
some one would steal it. When L got
to Denver / wished some one had
stolen it. The evening of June Goth
when / left San Antonio, l kept Oh
my ice cream suit, learning that Den
yer had a day off, kept Off my over
coat and 1 ordered 100 lbs. of ice to
cool off that coat. After all Denver
is a nice and most beautiful city.
Denver is the capital of Colorado
and centrally located at the foot of
the Rocky Mountains, on Platte river,
a broad and dry stream, the water be-
ing taken out far above Denver, for ir-
rigation purposes. Through bitches
it is running on either side of every
street in Denver, The city has 1885,
600 population, has some fifteen bank
ing institutions, some sixty fine
church societies, has one church that
cost $3.50, 900, an organ in it that cost
over $50, 900, also Tabor Grand Opera
House, costing $3.50, 900, being the fin
est in the country; has a U. S. custom
and post office building under con-
struction to cost over 100000; the
capitol building, also under construc-
ton, will cost 81 ,500,0C0; has a grand
system of street and cable cars all over
the city. The loveliest broad straight
streets with rows of shade trees on
all sides and watered by the ever
flowing bitches. No place like Den
yer. Mr.. Jno. Lapp, who was in real
estate while in San Antonio, Is now
in real estate in Denver and he
took his fast roadster and gave me
lovely drive through the city. There
is familiar song sung daily in Den
yer; the chorus is "real estate and
mines.n In 1888 there was spent in
Denver over 100000 in improve.
ments. The city has been on a boom,
is now on boom, and will continue to
boom. My friend Capt. Bresingham,
G. U. Y. M. for all roads at Denver,
took me to the Grant smelter intro
ducing me to Supt. Rogers, who spent
some three hours showing me through
the smelter. There are several smelt-
ers in Denver using several hundred
cars of ores and coal daily. Should
you ever visit Denver don't miss
seeing the smelters. This city is high
and healthy, at an elevation of $500
feet and has some 200 artesian wells
of pure water. l expected to see
snow but it was too hazy to see the
snow, as it is little smoky in or
over Denver from so many smelters,
though not at all disagreeable. South
west IS miles is Pixies Peak and 60
miles little north of west is Gray's
Peak. Gray's Peak has an elevation
of IA ,266 feet. For trip to Graymont,
distance of IS miles, on the line, Twill
mention a few towns. Sixteen miles
out is Golden, an old and rich mining
town; So miles finds us at Idaho
Springs, summer resort and noted
for its hot soda baths and lovely
climate and waters, at an elevation
of 1913 feet. At 80 miles we
reached Georgetown, a good sized
town in any body's country; "a miles
we reach Silver Plume, elevation
GIG feet; IS miles, we reached the
end of the track, Graymont, eleva-
ton 9,77l feet. The above town and
railroad are in Clear Creek Canon.
We reached the canon just before
getting to Golden. Clear creek is
lovely stream, rushing head-long
over the rocks at dashing rate.
1t is an up hill business for the en-
gines all the time. The road is so
steep and so crooked and such sharp
curves that we held conversation
from the last car with the engineer as
he would pass US going around the
curves. He got closer and finally
run squarely across the track. Yes,
you will say that he got ditched;
no he did not. but he really ran over
the track on the famous loop between
Georgetown and Silver Plume going
around the loop. We cross over the
road over 100 feet below US, so you
see 1 was right. At Silver Plume
L had guide to take ME in one of
the big silver mines, We were in $500
feet, and under the mountain top
some 100 feet. l gathered some nice
specimens in there, picked some sill
yer ore out myself. Leaving silver
plume at 2,l5 p. m. we drifted down
the canon at rapid speed, as III is all
down grade to Denver. While we
were waiting at a meeting point for
the west bound train the conductor,
who by the way was one Of the boys,
said, "oh, you must try some OF those
delicious mountains cherriesW See
ing some of the pfettiest and most
tempting fruit that grows, went for
them, by the time 1 got my third ber-