The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1893-02-16
DIRTY DEVIL REGION OF UTAH.
Whore Vegetation Grows Luxuriantiy and
Echoes Multiply Thousandfold.

Whore Vegetation Grows Luxuriantiy and
Echoes Multiply Thousandfold.
It is safe to say that few people have
heard of the Dirty Devil region. An
arch@ologist who had been exploring
out-of-the-way corners in Utah in the
interests of the worlds fair wandered
up into the country with that shocking
name and writing about 1t he says that,
If more generally known, tourists would
seldom fail to include it in their itin-
erary. In fact, according to the New
York Evening Post, he puts the matter
more strongly, saying that the country
contains sights surprising those of the
Yosemite The principal settlement
by courtesy known as the country seat
lis Loa, situated in the Rabbit River
valley. "The Buckhorn mountains are
divided at this point" he says, "by the
narrow valley down which the Dirty
river flows. AS we leave Rabbit valley
the route goes down along the river into
narrow valley for twenty miles.
Lower and lower descends the road,
warmer and warmer grows the climate,
higher and higher rise the mighty walls
of sandstone, until we find ourselves
shut out from the busy world and travel
ing down into what seems a labyrinth,
deep gorges, narrow canyons and little
sunny valleys that seem to enjey eternal
summer. These valleys are usually but
hundred feet wide and rarely extend
along the river more than quarter of
mile, but the soil is rich and the vege-
tation grows luxuriantly in this semi
tropical climate"
The writer says he had never seen be-
fore such awful walls of rock and such
| vistas of beauty as he found in this part
of Utah. Talk of Yellowstone park,
talk of Yosemite, talk of the Grand can
yon of the Colorado" he declares, "this
| region is more in majesty than all of
them. There are leading out of the
Grand Wash, stream tributary to the
Dirty Devil, narrow canyons whose
passageways are but ten to thirty feet,
but whose sides run up perpendicularly
| two thousand feet, and two of these
narrow canyons lead into mighty am
phitheaters framed out of the sand
stone. These vast amphitheaters are
made larger and larger through the
years as the storms wash down their
| sides and carry the sand thus washed
away down through the narrow gorge
into the Dirty Devil, and thence down
to the Colorado and into the sea-" He
found spanning one of the canyons
natural bridge seventy feet wide and
twelve hundred feet above the bed of
torrent. Echoes in the recesses were
multiplied thousand times, the bark
of dog seeming to be taken up by a
multitude of ours. He came across q
family settled upon tract of twelve
acres on the banks of the Dirty Devil,
that lay between walls two thousand
feet high. The climate in that seques-
tered spot was mild as June, although
late in tho fall of the year, and the note
Of the whippoorwill was often heard at
| night by the writer. Turning to the
practical side Of things, he discovered
abundant evidences Of coal, sulphur and
gypsum. 1t was Fremont who gave to
this marvellous nook It's name, in dis
gust because he was obliged to cross the
tortuous stream no less than one hun
dred and thirteen times on one of his
expeditions.