The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-04-04
A Storm Among the Clouds OH
Marshall Pass.
A ROUTE VERY RICH IN SCENERY
In Castle Valley and at Moab-A Kind Act
not ForgOtten-A Pleasant
Surprise.

distance from civilization is not great. In
fact, before a storm the engine whistles
and the rolling of the trains can be dis
tinctly heard in this valley. 1t is said, but
do not know on what authority, that the
change of gauge on the Rio Grande West
ern will bring the track within eight or ten
miles of us.
1t was the last of March; snow had fallen
around Denver to the depth Of six inches,
icicles were hanging to the caves, and a
cold wind swept past the Union depot as
our train pulled out for Salt Lake that
Tuesday morning We were borne along
by bleak hillsides and snowy plains, over
the piney uplands of the divide, that are
so lovely in the summer, through the iron
gateways Of the Royal gorge, and up, up
among the clouds of the mountain sum
mits. 1t was a wild night ON Marshall
pass. Those mighty pinnacleS, whose
masses of blue and gray, outspread before
the travellers vision, are among the won
ders of the world, had clothed themselves
in clouds too thick for any starlight to
pierce, and the cars rocked as the bitter
chill penetrated even within them. The
faces of the trainmen were anxious as they
passed through at intervals. I thought of
the engineers wife who had left my side
at Salida, pale and drawn with the fear
that is ever before the families of railroad
men, and of her sudden exclamation in an
swer to my question, ''DOn't, don't ask me
what suffer on nights like this!''
LIFE OF RISK.
How lightly, some day, when there is a
wreck, the general public will congratulate
itself that mo one was hurt, except few
railroad men," and go on its way needless
of the rough brotherhood that stands be
tween the raging elements on such awful
heights. There is nothing so grand. moth
ing so terrible, nothing so thrilling in
poetry or art as the reality Of that little Rio
Grande train making its way over the Con
tinental divide in bad weather. 1t is the
triumph of man over nature, the conquest
of matter exhibited in its sublimest form.
What barrier can stand against men with
whom such feats are the mere business of
their daily lives!
At Gunnison the snow was beating hard
against the windows. The swinging Ian
terms of the men formed in clusters as they
spoke Of the Black canon that lay before
them. This was at 10 o'ClOck-We had only
been delayed one hour by the violence of
the storm.
We soon left Gunnison behind-pretty
little city, most charming of the summer
homes upon the range-and dashed down
through that cailOn of magnificent scenes, |
now a chaos of darkness and danger.
There was silence in the car as night wore
on only broken by the calls, 'MontrOse,'
Delta" or "Grand Junction" l began |
to fear l might miss connections with the |
Moab hack, and have the alternative of
rOosting around the prairie at the dreary |
station Of Thompsons.
But morning broke clear and fine over
the peaks of Utah. The white desolatiOn |
of alllali flats changed to the weary lines of |
Roam cliffs. The California passenge. !
awOke, and began to talk about orange |
groves, and l, mindful of the resources of |
the station, explored my lunch basket |
which a Denver friend had supplied with a |
bottle Of cold coffee.
N a COACH.
The hack was waiting for me at Thomp- |
sons and | learned, as we drove off. that |
Grand river had risen, and could only be !
crossed by boat, as the ferry was being re
paired On the upper part OF the road the
air was chill. but as we neared Moab, the |
evening Of the second day from Denver,
trees were in leaf, flowers blooming and
pink clouds of blossoms over the peach trees
III Little Grand valley. The river was a
broad stream, running full between its
banks There was no boat in sight. The
mail carrier Unhitched his horses, turned
them out and shouted. There was an an
swering shout, and presently the boat APP
DedfGQ. ana III IL the lg uLSS Vi Il AlOEulOu
girl and her half-breed lover. BY this time
| was shaking from head to foot-the Grand
river has a very bad name, and it Looked its
worst that evening.
However, we crossed safely, and, at
Moab found that r. had not come to meet
me- In fact the letter telling him to do
so was in the mail sack that came i'll with
me, so rapid were the mails of that date.
| waited a day or two, still no one came.
The mail carriers wife, a daughter Of old :
John d. Lee, who possessed some resembl-
ance to her lamented parent, came in and
ragged at her husband for IOt bringing in
-four INSTEAD of fetchin' things for other
folks looking hard at my trunk as she
spoke Then the Gentiles told me about
the Mormons, and the Mormons told me !
about the Gentiles, till the air grew thick
with horror. An old lady who had great
belief in cards told my fortune and said
r. had b en- sick. | could stand it no
onger. so I went to a Mormon lady and told
ler l wanted a horse and a guide to go
nome Their horses were all down with
iistemper, but her brother went to a Gen
lie cattleman and persuaded him to put off
his journey to the Henry mountains for a
lew days.
REMEMBERED KINDNESS.
He was an old acquaintance of R. s, and
z. had doctored him one winter, so in re
nembrance of that, he brought me little
white pony to ride. Another cattleman,
Who changed his route to Castle valley to
)blige us, was of the party, and offered me
he privilege of putting what | pleased on
lis pack animal. So | filled a seamless sack
md it was duly packed. We climbed upon
he mesa between Moab and Castle valley,
making quite a cavalcade, four horses and
,hree riders. On the mesa there are nu-
nervous pinon trees, but it is mostly sand ,
md rock. The winter winds blow over it !
With such violence that some of the trees
ire buried to their tops in sand, while the
.oots of others are blown completely bare. +
are the large springs of "Nigger {
Bill canon" a gorge through which the
rail winds like stone staircase. Here l
ound the Indian pinks in bloom as l {
walked over the most dangerous places. '
When we reached the edge Of the mesa we !
.ould look into Castle valley and up the
Grand for miles, the country, thousand :
eet below, showing like a map. The !
lorses Jagged, and drew back, and objected ,
O the descent in vain; we got off and I
tarted them down. The trail is said to 7
ave been made at some prehistoric date, q
nd there is one angle where only few ,
inches of loose soil stand between you and :
he bottom of the valley. :
Down. down we go until parched breath Z
ess and weary, we hear the welcome ripple y
f the great springs at the foot of Castle
alley. 'If | had wife wanted to get T
id of. said the Kentuckian, bringing up !
at-ful of water. ''rd put her on a horse at
he top of that hill and let her go" ''Well," y
aid |. .'if that was the intention IN this ]
ase, you see it didn't work" /