The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1891-01-08
MOUNT snAsrA.
Z Dsseriptiea 81 u In Jesaais niitsr's
Meet rtessrssque sayts.

MOUNT SHASTA.
Z Dsseriptiea 81 u .. ssssais niiisr's
Meet rtsssrseass ssy,s.
As lone as God. and hlts - winter
noon, Mount Shasta starts up sudden
and solitary from the heart OF the grrat
black forests Of northern Cali'orniA.
writes Joaquin Miller in my Own
Story"
Yoa would hardly call Mount shastaa
part Of the Sierras; you would say rather
hat ii is the great white tower Of some
ancient and eternal wall. with nearly all
Of the white walls overthrown.
IL las no rivali There Il not even
NOW crowned subject in sight Of its
dominion. A shining pyramid in mail OF
everlasting frosts andice, the sailor some
times, In a day Of singular clearncSs.
catches glimpses Of il from the sea. a
hundred miles away to the west; and ID
may he seen from the dome Of the capi-
col, $40 miles distant The immigrant
coming from the east beholds the snowy.
solitary pillar from afar out on tile arid
sage bush plains. and lifts his hands in
silence as in answer to a sign
Column upon column Of storm
stained tamarack, strong. tossing pines
and warlike looking frs have rallied
her. They stand with their lacks
against this mountain, frowning down
dark browed and confronting the face
Of the Saxon. They defy the advance
of civilization into their ranks. What
IL these dark and splendid columns. 100
miles in depth. should DO the last to 20
down in America! What il it s.soull he
the old guard gathered here, matshaled
around their emperor in plumts and
armor that may die. but not surrender!
Ascend this mountain. stand against
the snow above the upper belt of pines.
and take glance below. Toward the
lsea nothing but the black and unbroken
forest Mountains, it is true, dip and
divide and break the monotony as the
waves break up the sea; yet it is still the
sea, still the unbroken forest. black and
magnificent To the south the landscape
sinks and declines gradually. but still
maintains its columns OF dark plumed
igrenadiers, till the Sacramento Valley Is
reached, nearly hundred miles away.
Silver rivers run here, the sweetest In
the world. They wind and wind among
the rocks and mossy roots, with Cali
fornia lilies, and the yew with scarlet
berries dripping in the water, and trout
idling in the eddies and cool places by
the basketful. On the east the fores'
still keeps up unbroken rank till the
Pitt River Valley Is reached. and ever
there it surrounds the valley and locks i
I'D tight in its black embrace. To the
north, it is true, Shasta Valley makes
lquite dimple In the sable sea, and mol
pillow there and Mexicans drive thci
mules or herd their mustang ponies o;
1.-The open plain. But the valley is linn
lifted, surrounded by the forest, confinc'
and imprisoned
Looking intently down among tn
black aud rolling hills 40 miles away {
the west, and here and there you see
haze of cloud or smoke hung up abov
the trees; or, driven by the wind that
coming from the sea, it may drag an
creep along as il tangled in the tops
These are mining camps Men ar
there, down in these dreadful canyons
out Of the sight of the sun, swallowed VI
buried in the impenetrable gloom OF tn
forest toiling for gold. Each one OF thes
camps is world itself. History, n
nance, tragedy. poetry, in every one
them. They are connected together, an
reach the outer world only by q narro
little pack trail, stretching through I'll
timber, stringing round the mountain
barely wide enough to admit the foo
men and little Mexican mules. with the
apparajos, to pass in single file.
But now the natives of these forest
lived with them for years. You d
not see the smoke Of their wigwan
through the trees They do not smi
the mountain rocks for gold, nor fell Il
, pines. nor roll up the waters and ru
them for the fishermen All this ma
nificent forest is their estate. The gre
spirit made this mountain first OF a
r and gave it to them, they say, and th'
, have possessed it ever since They pr
, serve the forest, keep out the fires, I
a it is the park of their deer.