The Wichita daily eagle., 1891-09-11
KINGS RIVER CANYON.
4 Region That Is Said to Rival the II
semitic in Natural Beauty.

semitic in Natural Beauty.
"Except in the matter of waterfalls, Yo-
semitic isn't init when compared with the
great Kings river canyon" said Artist G.
D. Robinson.
"John P. Irish said that the beauty Of
the Yosemite valley was its oneness" re-
sumed Mr. Robinson. 81 cannot under
stand what he means by that. If he means
the oneness of the Yosemite ring he is just
about right, but if he means that the Yo-
semitic valley stands alone by itself he is
away in the background. He does not
know anything at all about the Yosemite,
and don't think he ever saw the valley
until he was appointed one of its commits
sioners.
"John Muir can offer indisputable evil
dence that the Yosemite valley repeats
itself time and again all through the
Sierras, with the exception of the Hetchy-
Hetchy valley. You can see the Hetchy-
Hetchy valley inside of the Yosemite, and
there is nothing to jar upon the scene Of
harmony. But some of the peaks in the
great Kings river canyon are equally as
high. You can set the Yosemite and
Hetchy Hetchy valleys together in the
Kings river canyon, and there will be plen-
lengthwise.
fThe canyon increases in Importance and
magnitude as you go up the valley, but the
broadest spaces are found near its mouth.
The narrowest part, where the glaciers
have worked most actively, is at its upper
end, and there its walls are the loftiest.
81. M. Hutchings, the pioneer, was the
original explorer of Kings river canyon, as
he was of the Yosemite valley. All the
trails and other improvements in the Yo-
semitic valley were designed by him."
Mr. Robinson was loud in his praise of
the scenic beauty of the King river canyon.
He exhibited several oil sketches in proof
of his statement, and these sketches are re-
markable for the emerald meadows, the
lofty peaks and the deep blue skies they
portray. In fact, this deep blueness, verg-
ing on indigo, seems to be an exaggeration
but Mr.. Robinson declares that his sky
tint is as true to nature as his art could
make it.
One of these sketches portrays Mount
Hutchings, a bold peak rising between
1000 and 5000 feet above the floor Of the
valley, through which flows the picturesque
stream known as the south fork of the
Kings river. The only waterfall of any
great magnitude is the Roaring river falls
1t appears to be not more than twenty-five
feet wide and fifty feet high, but by meas
urernents made by surveyors it is fifty feet
wide by 100 feet high.
Its appearance is deceptive because of the
lofty cliffs that close in on it on the sides
and in the rear. The water falls over a
precipice, making beautiful fan of foam,
andspreading out in turbulent, eddying
mass into Roaring river. The wall back
of it stands 1900 feet above the level of the
river, and on the left hand side rises peak
on whose top the snow falls while it rains
on the river below.
The Muir dome, about half way up the
valley, is an imposing mountain, and very
much resembles the north dome of the
Yosemite. 1t stands nearly 5000 feet above
the level of the valley. 1t is really an ele-
waited ridge, the front face Of which bears
a very strong resemblance to FL Captain
in the Y Yosemite valley.
Another sketch in oil portrays a somber,
towering wall of blue granite, roughly fur
rowed by the storms of centuries.
Mr.. Muir has named it the Seven Gables.
on account of its remarkable resemblance
to the gables Of an immense building. At
the foot of this mountain is beautiful
emerald meadow whose sides are studded
with giant sequoias.
The highest summit crossed bv Messrs.
Robinson and Muir stands $500 feet above
sea level. 1t has been named the Great
Summit.
In the canyon are Eve great groves Of
sequoias, one Of the trees named General
Grant measuring thirty7nine feet in diam
eter at the base. The trunk has been
burned from a circular form into that Of
an ellipse, and its original diameter must
have been more than forty feet. The val
ley is from IS to 100 miles east Of Fresno
city, and is uninhabited save by a few
dwellers in cabins.-San Francisco Exam
iper.