The morning call., 1894-02-04
ARTIFICIAL WATERFALLS.
Description of Several Constructed
in Southern Europe.
DetrOit Free Press.


In the town OF Nice on the Mediterranean
coast there is a very fine artificial waterfall
something over twenty feet in height. 1t is eX-
ceed!ngly beautiful, although there is not much
water coming over 1t, and ii hangs above the
town like silver bell. 1t tumbles over rock
In the public park. IL nice and Nice were pro-
nOunced the same l would endeavor 10 make
pun about that waterfall
The waterfalls OF Tiv0li, near Rome, are
practically artificial, for although there ex-
lsted waterfall that was natural before the
tunnels were made through the rocks, yet
three or four OF the present falls that form the
attraction 10 mat pretty little Italian town are
ar lhclal. have no data to their height,
but Ii seemed TO me, looking at them from
across the valley, that they are at least 800 feet
from top TO bottom.
Tie prettiest artificial waterfall that | ever
saw Is In the Engauine. The surroundings are
so natural aud so beautiful that no one would
ever suspect that II is artificial were ii not for
Inc huge stone dykes at the foot of the Aims,
down winch 1t tumbles built toward the lake
INTO which II emptieS. l. is situated bout one
| hours walk west from ST. MOriGz. No
guldebooN L have ever seen makes any
mention Whatever OF il, and | do not know
whether the cataract has Il name nor. II
iumbles down from glacier on the Surlei
Alp and emptes into the eyaplana Lake, oppO-
site the pretty little village of the same name,
| which stands al the bottom of the Julier Pass.
estimate the height OF this ar ificial cataract
| TO be 1000 feet. bul it does not tumble down in
| one straight fall, but forms caScad after
i
10 the top of 1t, but the way rough, there
being no path, aud by the Time L had got half
way up realized that instead OF being 1000
| 1eet high II was nearer that number OF miles, so
L gave up the climb in despair.
suppose ii ought 10 be called the Surlel
Falls or the Surlej Cascades, for the Alp down
which II comes bears that name and the ruined
village at the lower end of The lake is called
Surlej. which means ''above the lake" An
event IN The year 1884 led TO the information of
TINS artificial waterfall, tragic event such as
: switzerland.
The rIvueJ at that time ran through SurIel.
One night the water stopped, being damned
up by a landslide high up the mountains.
When the avalanche came down the village
was swept away. On the principle of locking
the door when the horse is stolen, the In
habltants then detected the course of the
stream, and thus formed the artificial water
fall. Although most of the village was car
Iied away. some remnants still there.
The stout walls OF the church are stand
Ing, rOotless, dOOrleSs and windowless. The re-
mains OF the freScOeS still TO be seen on the
plas er inside. The place is just as the food
left it, the ground all around it being wider
ness OF stones, large and small, as If some great
paving contractor had intended TO madadamiZe
the whole place ana had lett the material seat
tered around.
a few inhabitants live in the village and
one house Is built on a huge b0Wlder that has
come down from the mountains If another
flood should happen along II, ~ least, Will be
safe. Even in the dTyest weather there Is
good volume of water coming over the Surlej
waterfall, and in spring it must be cataract
we'll worth seeing.