Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1892-07-06
UP ON PIXIES PEAK
How the Editors Went Up the
Lordly Pile
ON THE WONDERFUL RAILWAY
Which Has No Counterpsrt Here or
His Descriptive Letter.

IN Tue worids - ten nile. itO4u tO'-
RADIO Springs, about the same from
ManItou Glen five Eyrie Ave, Red canon
two, and the Seven Lakes twenty.
Other points of interest, such as the
Grand Caverns, Ute Pass. Half Way
house, Cave of the Winds, Williams
canon, Rainbow falls, Blair Athol,
Bear Greek canon, Cascade canon, and
numerous charming glens, canons aud
mountain passes. are within short
distance and are reached by easy
paths and trails which penetrate these
innumersble gorges or canons. piercing
the mountains IN all directions. and
the eys encounters q panorama OF
scenic changes, revealing at almost
every point OF vision some serious
freak and sport Of nature in an effort
at architecture and sculpture. The
rocks through these hills, peaks and
mountains assume all sorts of shapes
high castles clinging to cliffs, gothic
pulpits surmountng high rocks, towers,
castles and fortresses. Waters, high
winds, dust anu sand were powerful
agencies in giving the rocks these
artistic and fantastic shapes. In no
other country, state or nation can so
great variety OF formations be found
as IN and around Manitou.
Couldn't Spring Ii on Us.
Persons reading and hearing the
name OF Colorado Springs are usually
deceived and disappointed, as were
most OF our party, on their arrival, IN
| not being able TO see the big springs.
But they are not there. The latter
name, Springs" is derived from the
springs at Manitou. There are no
| springsin the former city, nor any spring
| drinking water, except sucn as comes
from Manitou, and which seems to us
| as running up hill, while We were 60
| ing down.
Our visiting party to Colorado and
Manitou Springs saw nature IN he,
| grandest and most inspiring garb: but
all her beauties are not on the surface;
| indeed, the formations ID the ground
caverns rival in wonder and excel in
beauty anything that can be seen above
| ground. Our time being cut short, We
had to Jake advantage Of every
moment, and what one of the eight
hundred could not hear or see, the
| other did. We separated into expedi-
tions and reconoitering parties, some
| going one way and some another, to
compare notes of what We had seen
and heard.
What all This Teaches.
| This was q part of our trip education
and will have to be that of the readers
| of the ten or more thousands of papers
that exchange thoughts upou this SUBJ
| iect. From Ute Pass, q short distance
above Rainbow Falls, fine mountain
carriage road has been constructed
leading to the caverns and up the
mountains. We had the pleasure of
this on part of the "trip. Some Of the
drivers and guides are very courteous
| in explaining these treasure caskets'
and their wonderful formations. To
enumerate the different sights with
| their myriad attractions would require
| more space than THE HERALD has, and
more time than its readers would be
willing to devote.
Every department presents some
new ideas, new beauties to the eye.
Spacious vaults, rooms, winding halls,
| corridors, marvellous formations of
stalactites, stalagmites aud mighty
tights, fossils, pyramids, columns, cor
ais, alabaster crystals, arched bridges
| of stone excite the admiration of all
| who are capable OF admiring natures
beauty. The amphitheaters, the beds
of once underground lakes, stalag-
mites, in the shape Of pond lily leaves
resting on the transparent surface of
the water lines. pieces of statuary, SO
| perfect in form and figure as to convey
the impression that they might have
been carved by human hands; then
the underground cathedral, alabasteE
falls, frescoed ceilings, side walls
adorned with crystal flowers glistenlng
with silver light, make complete some
OF the finest pictures ever wrought by
that perfect, yes, unequaled artist
Nature. In one room there come to
the visitor sounds of music, as though
waited from a celestial band" and
LOOKING to one of the galleries he sees
. guide playing on the grand pipe
organ of musical stalaclites-
| Music Hath Charms.
ia cornetist, employed for tho season
plays in this room for every party, the
| tones OF his cornet, minghng with
those of the orgon, now increasing in
sound and again gradually dying away
| in the distance. Oh, listen and gathel
| inspiration from this life and the grea,
unseen beyond. These pipes run the
gamut, also ring the complete chimes
of bells. So fine does music
sound from this grand hal
that one of the lady journalists re
marked, "There is no place on earth
more charming than this" "and in M
place on earth can music sound as i
does in these underground chambers
Several of our party passed through
"the cave of the WINDS" situated IN
Williams canon. They described it a.
passing through a marvelously wrought
and magnificently castile-like forma
ton. 1t claimed that the entrance j.
more wonderful than that of any cave
on the globe.
Pixies Peak Perpetuitv
The MsnItou and Pixies Peak rail.
way, perpetually written upod the
whlte-capped summit of that peak. il
language unmistakahle, il a challenge
10 the human dvsrfs upon the lower
plans of esrth TO scale the granite
lopes and higher view. Mr..
Pike had the good fortune 10 per
petuste his name by simply saying 40
IL Will stand ss long AZ the peak itself
and as long ss there u anything left oil
earth aud mankind IN general. Tbs
grand ard imposing scenery which sur
rounds Asnttou, the rugged range Of
Titanic mountains. towering toward,
the wet and explained ny Pies Pea !
- the monarch OF the Rockies. IL ].
now nearly = century since Majol
| Zsbulon Pike first peneld the ssGrea'
snow Mountains" and % hIm "a 1ae
the honor Of first describing toe pesk
when nov hears bra name tie sat Al
ia feet, he trfed - rssca ia crown, bat
| hs did not know the narrow mountain