The morning call., 1893-09-17

ana MAKING dnOllleT lUTbhu upon lnDcD.
So we attacked the baked beans, sardine
sandwiches, bread and butter and cold tea,
all of which proved delicious fare to
hungry and not faStdiouS people. Sitting
there a sort of reaction stole over US. We
had been so cold that we could hardly feel
life within us and had shivered. and you
could hear our teeth chatter. But there
we were comfortably thawed out, and
after the meal lay down and had little
nap, and think the rest of the party also
went to sleep. The hour passed like a
very short minute.
Upon resuming the climb we had to
cross a glacier short distance There
was quite a deep crevaSse on each side of
the path, which was so narrow as TO be
only a foot aud half wide or so. That
was the only dangerous part of the ascent,
but as we went close file one after the
other the peril was more in imagination
than reality. At all events there was no
need of rope, because 1t was rough ice
and there was no prospect of slipping.
We had a splendid view of the glacier on
the other side-one OF the true glaciers
that moves, with moraine which is with
out water and is called Mud Creek.
in the Rocky Mountains where
there are snow banks there are
streams flowing from them, and these
heights are grass-covered and tinged with
flowers of the most brilliant hues. But on
Shasta there was not a flower at this
height, nothing but lava rock and fields of
ice. The reason is this, that the lava is
porous. and as the snow melts the water
sinks right down into the ground. The
water reapDears at such places as Castle
Crag and DunSmuir. This accounts for
the lack of Arctic fora on the summit. /
did not see single Arctic plant.
"As we neared the summit we were CON-
PEELED TO rest more frequently. II was
harder to breathe at this altitude, we were
nd the ola m harinU MO
The snow was arranged In parallel ridges,
having been cut MP by the wind in plates
close together, so that we walked along
the top. The glare from this footing was
very bad on the eyes. Finally we reached
| the loot of the pile OF rock which forms
the cap, on which 'the monument is built.
This monume Mt is intended to be impress
sive-how impressive 1t is may be con-
ceived from the fact that it is of tin or
sheet iron, and is a mere cylinder like a
| bit of stove pipe with a cap on IT, The
! only mule that ever assembled Shasta car
| ried the monument t0 where 1t stands, and
it performed the additional feat Of getting
down safely.
at was noon when we gained the top
and surveyed the panorama. UnfOr-
tunately it was difficult to see any great
distance on account of smoke from the
| forest fires. The peak we saw most clearly
| was Lassen, and it gave us the impression
of being higher than Shasta, which is
| Il, AL feet. A tin box with a sliding lid
| lies on the summit; il contains the regis
| ter in which persons enter their names
| and such comments a occur TO them under
the exhilaratlOn of mountain ozone and
possibly mountain dew. There were also
the last sheets of an old register without
any cover. The box contained few
| newspapers, several notebooks and a
Bible. We glanced through the new regis
ter. The first 10 ascend this year was Pro-
| fesSor Brown of Stanford University.
| This was quite a feat in the daShing style
Of John Muir. He went up alone and
came down alone. Another visitor had
| toured a good deal in the Alps of SwitZer-
land, and he evidently thought much OF the
/ difficulties of Shasta In contrast with for
eign mountaineering but there was DO
evidence that he had assembled the Matter
| horn. l was the first woman who had
| been mp this year.
More eating, leaving nothing to carry
down, and the last of the tea in the can
teen. combined with just a little whisky.
| We dallied half an hour in supreme en-
! JJyment of the sceIe, ana then paid visit
! 10 the hot springs that saved John MuiT's
! life when about to perish from exposure.
| The water bubbles up from the ground
! and Is very not, and appearances indicate
that the top is the remnant of crater
which still has fire smOldering in it.
The descent of the eliminating rock was
our alpenstOcks. which had been left be-
! low. Also the place below covered with
snow was troublesome. The snow had
become soft and every now and then we
sank into holes and got caught Once L
called for assistance, but eXtricated N.Y.
self before any one reached me. When
we arrived at Thumb Rock We got the
gunny sacks out. and this was the first
time | found nv woman's clothes an in
convenience. l proposed to hold the
gunny sack in sliding down, but the pro-
fessor and the boys declared IL would not
bold. They gave me piece 0f string. and
we made holes in the sack and got inside
it and fastened it around the body. All
the others did the same with their sacks,
and then were ready for gunny glide
down the pTeci pitous ice slopes. And 10 /!
how we all enjoyed the fun.
Not one Of US but had feeling Of fear
about the first effort, but we had no more
than commenced to slide than fear van
lShed. We knew there was no danger at
all, not a particle of danger, and all those
dreadful slUpes that we had climbed so
painfully, why. we just shot down them in
a trice. | was the last in the humping aud
gliding string. The most daring boy led,
and tell you il was just glorious fun, as
we poised ourselves and kept balance with
the alpenstOck, now on one side and then
on the other. We just lay back and went
down by the run, slope after slope. walk
lDR over LD6 INTERVENING ucuCHtSs Oub
boy regretted nightly having missed
very long slope which would have afforded
a splendid uninterrupted glide.
By and by tie snow got so soft and
sluShy that we could not slide at all, and
our progress was awkward from sinking
and getting our feet miserably wet. The
last slide, in fact. gave US wet feet, wet
clothes and we were in wretched plight.
got so stiff in tho limbs that could
scarcely pull one foot after the other. But
at last. tired out, we got back to camp
right glad. 1t was only 3 o'clock. From
2 A. NJ. until noon il was uphill work !;
practically, in an hour and half we had
made the descent. One member of the
party had fire blazing when we arrived.
and our clothes soon dried. Then we had
dinner With sharp appetite, which made
every morsel taste with indeseribable
relish. But / suffered acutely from my
eyes. and the whole party were troubled.
Even those who had glasses were blood
shot in the eyes. 1t was torture to look at
the sun setting in the haZy atmosphere,
and was glad when it went down, being
almost snow blind.
Another party Of climbers had reached
the campiDg-ground during our absence
four or five men and two young girls, who
were very poorly equipped, wearing only