The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1893-12-08
A RAMBLE OVER UNCLE SANS TERRI
TORY,
NUMBER ELEVEN

Os
Washington, only there the boulders are
larger. The top is several acres in ex-
tent, and the view is one of life time:
to the horizon over the bare plain east
ward is 105 miles, to the great peaks of
the Rockies westward, though they are
in plain sight, is $50 miles. Pueblo, 45
miles away to the south and Denver 75
miles to the north, are visible without
the aid of a glass; and the Ute peak,
around which the railroad over Marshall
Pass runs, was easily found in the south
west To the northwest we looked down
into. South Park, and beyond it to the
site of Leadville; the whole of our
railway journey from Salida to Manitou,
l70ymiles, was plainly visible, although
it had taken hours to cover the distance.
It is very satisfying to look from great
height in that crystal air, for one can see
as far as the sky dome will permit; think
of range of 300 miles by just turning
the head, and not cloud any where to
bother us: a great contrast to our exper-
ience on the summit of Mt. Washington,
where heavy clouds hid everything, and
we could not see more than hundred
feet away. just under us Manitou
nestled closely 60 her giant companion,
Pixies Peak, and just beyond lay Colora-
do Springs, looking on the flat plain
5000 feet below, exactly like the birds
eye views made of various cities and
towns; from that great height it looked
like toy village; the streets like narrow
lines. The telegraph station, located on
the top of the peak, is the highest in the
world. The buildings on Pixies Peak
are no more sheltered than those on Mt.
Washington, yet while those on the lat
ter are fastened to the mountain top by
great beams of wood and heavy chains,
nothing'of the kind was used on Pixies
Peak. The hour and half of our So
journ on this glorious place came to an
end all too soon, and the train started on
the return journey. Half way down the
mountain we passed the ponds which
form the water supply of Colorado
Springs, made by putting dams across
the little stream; some distance below
were the Manitou works; both towns
have tremendous head of water, and
the supply ought to be exceedingly pure.
The "Garden of the Gods lies about
two miles from Manitou and is one of
che strangest places imaginable. 1t is on
private property, though open to every
one who chooses to go there, and no fee
is charged; but if ever a section OF coun-
try ought to be made Government pre-
serve like Yellowstone Park, it is the
Garden of the Gods" We drove
through wide tract filled with the most
curious rock formations, looking as II
they had been cut by human hands and
set up there for ornaments; in many
cases on pedestals, they are of all
colors and shapes, and rise up out
of otherwise bare ground. After pass
| ing through a wide tract of these objects,
the road passes close to what looked like
the immense walls of several ruined ca
thedrals. These walls of rock, mostly of
a deep, dark red, rise up hundreds of
feet, smooth polished, and quite thin for
their height; the marvel is how these
came there, the great cliffs and pima
cles apparently rise out of the earth. A
mile further on is beautiful ranch be-
longing to a gentleman who lives on it,
and this place has more of these'e exec d.
ingly queer formations; one side of the
ranch is shut in by what looks like a
high hill: viewed from the END, it is only
a few feet thick, although several hun
dred long, and looks like gigantic stone
wall. The view of Pixies Peak from the
"Garden of the Gods is the one usu-
ally seen in pictures, and is very satisfy
ing; after we had stood on the top of the
peak and seen how it dominated all the
other peaks, we had no sense of disap.
pointment in viewing it from below. On
our way to Denver we stopped to see
Colorado Springs, which is supposed to
be inhabited mostly by invalids, that is,
those who are well while living there,
but would die in few months at the
East: sufferers from pulmonary diseases
The streets are wide, level and quite wei
| hot orAn
of every street; there are many hand
some residences and some fine hotels. The
place boasts of college, and also of the
Printers Home, built by Drexel anC
Childs of Philadelphia: the Home is {
mile out of town to the eastward, bu
very conspicuous on the bare plain
Electric cars give easy access to all part
of the place, and altogether it is rather
pleasant town. The great resort is thu
canon at the foot of Cheyenne mountain
where, on the mountain side,is the grav
of Helen Hunt Jackson: the body wa
recently removed to the town cemetery
as the place became too much of a resor
for tourists to suit her relatives. In tn
, canon are the seven falls, which, whel
water is plenty, are beautiful to see: il
( dry weather they are worse than the fal
( in the Catskills, where the keeper turn
, water on for fee; for there is no waite
to turn on. Tive railways connect Co
| orado Springs with Denver, the Denve
7 and lRio Grande and the Atchison, To
{ peka and Santa Fee, which run parable
all the way and only little distanc
+, apart. The country is open and treeles'
: most of the way the route is through
t narrow valley; tho only place Of an
n beauty icing small artificial lake mad
Q by damming little stream; this is esp
1 cfally beautiful in this land Of dT
Q places. Denver lies on slight grad
4 rising from the small stream dignifie