The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1894-05-19
LOFTY MOUNT LOGAN.
It 1a the Highest Known Peak In
North America.

At~Aa-ko6s A2QesC known poak 10
North America
Mountain tho Palm Over Orizabe and
0t. Elias, Heretofore Thought to
be Higher Than It.
For nearly quarter of a century it
was assumed that splendid mountain
lying near the sea, where the one hun
dred and forty first meridian cuts the
southern coast of Alaska, was the
highest on the continent of North
America. The first civilized man to
see this was Vitus Bering, after whom
the great sea recently involved in in
ternational controversy was named.
Bering first saw it on July 90, 1741,
and as ST. Elias was the patron saint
of that day the mountain received his
name. Its summit is thirty or forty
miles from the sea and at its foot is the
famous Malispina glacier, the greatest
of its s.species in all the world.
Mount st. Elias stands nearly upon
the 141st meridian of longitude west of
Greenwich, which meridian forms the
boundary between the great British
sessions. In the execution of a survey
for the determination of this boundary
line it became desirable, therefore, to
determine the location of this meridian
at its southern extremity, and this in
cluded an accurate determination of
the geographical position of the sum-
NIT Of Mount st. Elias. Accordingly
the United States coast and geodetic
survey in 1892 sent a party, under the
direction of J. E. McGrath to the foot
of the mountain. for this work. An ex-
tensive series of observations was car
ried out, including numerous measure
ments of the angular elevation of the
mountain as observed from various
points. The distance of the summit
from these points of observation was
determined with an accuracy far eX-
ceeding any previous work and the al
titude Of the summit was determined
with a precision that leaves nothing to
be desired. The mean of results OBJ
tanned from five or six Independent
stations was 1900 feet, and no single
result differs from this by more than
ten feet. A variation in height in diff
ferent seasons fully as great as this
might occur through the varying depth
of the snow which rests perpetually
upon the greater part of the mountain.
The announcement of this definite
value for the height of Mount ST. Elias
made it necessary to revise conclusions
which had long been accepted as to its
position among the great mountains of
North America. 1t happened that just
at that time-1S91' new deter
mination of the altitude of famous
mountain in Mexico was undertaken
by DR.. j. r. Scovell, and was So sue
cessfully carried out that the height of
this mountain, Orizaba, became known
with a degree of accuracy exceeding
any previous determination. DR.. SEQ
vell's measurement gave for the height
of gOrizaba 1880 feet, thus putting it
nearly 500 feet above Mount ST. Elias.
Only for q brief year or two, how
ever. was Orizaba destined thus to out.
rank its fellows of the far north, for
in one of the companions of st. -ilias
a mountain has been discovered which,
in altitude, so far exceeds. either Of the
two recent disputants as to leave little
probability that the glory of the first
place will ever again go to the south.
The story is briefly this, says the
Chicago News: While Mr.. McGrath's
party was at Yakutat bay and else
where in the neighborhood of Mount
ST. Elias, in addition to taking hori-
zontal and verdical angles on that
peak, all other prominent peaks in
that vicinity were observed upon, thus
material for the calcula-
tion of their. heights and distances.
Among these was group of three
SUBMITS. possibly belonging to the
same mountain, which had been seen
by most explorers in that quarter, and
the great height of which had especi-
ally attracted the attention of Russell.
Concerning it he said: ''The clouds
parting toward the northeast revealed
several giant peaks not before seen,
some of which seem to rival in height
st. Elias itself. One stranger, rising
in three white domes far above the
clouds, was especially magnificent"
In honor of the founder of the geo.
logical survey of Canada Russell
named this Mount Logan. For some
months Mr.. McGraths has been en-
gagged in the reduction of all observa-
tions made by his party in the st.
Elias region. On computing the dis
tance and height of Mount Logan his
was great to find that the
altitude of the mountains was 1880
feet. At first he was inclined to at
tribute the result to erroneous cOmpu- !
sation, but q careful revision disprOved |
his theory. Fortunately there were
TWO entirely independent stations
from which this mountain had been |
observed, the distances and vertical
,ngles being quite different. The re-
,ulting heights from these two widely
separated stations differ by less than
,wenty feet, being 19,497 feet and 49,
IA feet respectively. An observation
vas also made on another Of the three
,eaks somewhat lower than the first,
irving for its height 1925 feet 1t
hus appears. that there can be little
loubt that Mount Logan is 1900 feet
higher than Mount St. Elias. The fact
hat it is about twelve miles nearer the
,oints from which they are usually OBJ
erved. has enabled the latter to main
ain Superiority, which was only ap-
,arent for so many years. Mount
logan is about 1,20O feet higher than
>rizaba. and. whatever discoveries