The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-10-18
NlAGARA,S FASCINATION.
An Indescribable Attraction Wen Nigh
Irresistiblc to the Spectator.

"a
Irresistiblc to the Spectator.
Not every visitor to Niagara falls has for
his benefit a full moon every night ana n
brilliant sun by day. They tell me that the
grand time to see Niagara is at midwinter,
when huge tons of ice go laundering over
the cataract and the lower falls are one
mass OF sparkling icicles. Blu one cannot
see everything, and Niagara in summer
time Is quite good enough for ME. Arriv-
ing in the middle OF the night, with the
moon at the full, 1t was impossible sven
then to resist the fascination OF Niagara's
deep diapason sound Of welcome.
We wandered out, the night rs light ms
day, under acres of white blossoms, to see
the uppe torrent before 1t falls over the
precipice. This was to be all. The rest
was to be left to the imagination. iou
cannot conceive the effect of that midnight
ramble-the eternal h II OF the cataract
emphasizing the delicious silence OF the
night. Standing as l did Oh the edge of the
green garden on the American side, looking
over to the deep and somber belt of pines
on the opposite island watching and e,er-
nally watching these angry waters dashed
into foam and hurrying to their downfall
below, it did not seem to me ut first that
this comparativelynarrow course could end
In a triumph of magniticence.
But there was no vestige or shadow OF
disappointment in the morning. How
should there bep The apple blossoms were
waxen, the grass of emerald green, the sky
was blue, the sun was in the heavens. AT
last it was all right with the world. So l
took the picture gradually, piece by piece,
like a miser. l lifted the curtain gradually
and peeped at the wonderful scene point by
point and bit by bit. The plan was to walk
by the side of the torrent and to pause at
every resting ~place-tlrst, the very edge
where the water breaks from its narrow
bed into :mmeasurable distance and be-
comes a mighty cataract; next, a little
lower down, where can be seen pc effect OF
the great fall, the majesty Of which seems
Incompatible; then a little further down,
where you find that the first falls are mere
child's play compared to the misty majesty
of the Horseshoe falls. The proportions Of
this indescribablc picture are so equal ard
admirable that at first. as at st. Peters in
Rome, you are apt to be q little dlsap-
pointed. You cannot be convinced OF the
magniiicence Of st. Peters unless you go
to the top of the highest dome. You can
not be completely persuaded OF the aston
ishing majesty of Niagara unless you de-
scend to the very bottom.
ia ttitSi pa i'S hSN W. NA'~ NfS-
once. Formerly you had to stand on a slip
perry rock in IL macintosh and 60 literally
under the falls. Nowadays a plucky little
steamboat plunges into the very heart Of
the torrent and takes you SO near the fall
ing mass of glittering and rainbow tinted
water that you gasp for breath. This eX-
petition should be missed by no one. You
cannot see the falls or understand them
without it.
You will ask me, what is the effect Of
Niagara falls on the spectator? To me they
have an indescribablo attraction and fas-
cination. While resting there l could not
get away from them. The roar in the dis
lance seemed a call which l was bound to
answer. All day long l was strolling about
Goat island or standing on the bridge, or
over on the Canadian side sitting and look
ing at the rainbow and the waves of the
opposite fall. Try as l would, l could not
tear myself away from the attractive cata-
ract. The most hideously fascinating cor
ner of all is the exact break where the rush
ing water falls sheer down the precipice.
- One-half step here and death would greet
you in less than a second. This in a corner
that ought to be barred from the sight. II
it il necessary to heighten the barriers OF
Clifton suspension bridge, it should be
doubly right to hide these fascinating cor.
ners of Niagara. where the roar soothes and
the rushing water allurcs. Blu for allthat,
hither suicides etcrnally come. Niagara has
been the nepenthe of many a weary soul.
If I were to visit the place a hundred times,
l should still be found all day long walking
round and round the falls and rapids. and
watching the everlasting rush from peace
of lake to turbulence of whirlpool. Nj
agara is to my mind one of the most fasci-
mating spots on earth.-London Telegraph.