The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1889-05-14
CALIFORNIAN CANAL.
A Ride Among Picturesque Islands ana
Awe-Inspiring Mountains.

Awe-Inspiring Mountains.
At last, as day began TO Wane, we
passed through Loeb Aber and the ,
Corran narrows into Loeb Linnhe. .
And here the mighty spirit of the lakes
and mountains took possession OF US
all and held that boatl0ad OF merry
people silent and spell-bound. 1t was
as if we were being borne onward.
swiftly and noiselessly, into the Utmost
holy of holes. Even the captain and
r the very deckhands stood like men en-
tranced, overwhelmed by the surpass-
ing splendor. Amy thing so grand, SO
weird, so magical, can hardly be i'm
agined, much less described. The rain
of two hours before had left the air
heavy with vapor, through which the
sun now shone gloriously, producing
the most marvellous effects. You
might make this trip a hundred times,
ladies'" said the captain, as he stood
uncovered, land not get the half OF
what you are getting to-day-no, nor
the tenth of it." / quote this lest
some of our dear wandering kinsfolk
who have been down the Caledonian
canal on some dull, gray day. when
the Scotch mists hemmed them In on
all sides, and they could scarcely see
beyond the decks, should cry out:
"How that woman eXaggerates! But
we have all seen transformation scenes
on the stage where the effect of light
and color. of rapidly dissolving views
and of seemingly supernatural revela-
tions filled us with wordless awe. Now
make the stage one vast panorama OF
shining, sparkling water, as still as
sheet of silver. Dot the surface with
islands, dark masses of verdure rising
out of the depths, and often pictures
ouely beautiful with ivy-grown mold
ering towers, broken arches, and here
and there a stately monument Let
the nearer hills, sloping from the
shores, be cultivated and clothed with
living green more than halfway
I'D: make them gentle and
homelike by building stately mansions
on the broad terraces and letting small
gray cottages, like birds nests, perch
on the slightly cliffs; then, stretching
far above these human habitatlons, le
the purple of the wild heather, blend
ing with the soft olives of ferns ant
moses, climb to their very tops. BE
yond them, tier on tier, not in regular
ranges, but jutting out edgewlse an'
crosswise and allwise, let the mlghtle
hills stretch upward and onward, ap
pearing and disappearing; now loom
ing up out of the vapor in cold, blu
splendor, then suddenly vanishing llk
pallid ghosts; changing every me
ment; presenting constantly new Wis
tas, new cloud marvels and new open
ings into far radiant reaches, through
which YOU seem to see Heaven ltseli
Throw over all this light walls OF mist
that soften rather than obscure-pale
gray, dazzling silver, soft rose, trans
lucent amber, purple amethyst-Vall
that float and lift and WAIVER wit
every breath and with every motion
the boat, and you will have some fair
- idea of what our eyes beheld one Al
gust evening as we crossed Loo
Linnhe and passed into Loeb Lever
pausing for a few moments at Ball;
chulish, and then, turning into Llnnf
again, swept on our downward way t.
ward Oban. But you must do sti
more. You must imagine all tn
magnifcence of cloud and mountat
and island so perfectly mirrored in tt
clear, still waters of the lake that eve
the changing splendor of color was d
plicated, and Heaven was below as we
as above us. 1t grew dark and chi
at last. The overpowering glory dl'
and earth was earth once more, b
the effect remained. Young men al
maidens. old men and children, we
content to sit in silence, or to speak
subdued whispers, as we watched l
the first CLEAN of the semi-circular &C
don of lights that guard the DAY
Oban.-AHantic Monthly.