Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-08-10
WONDERS 'ss9F THE WEST
Trip to the worlIEamous Grand Canon of
hapItorado.
From q Typical Western Town to the
River 1Kemarkable
Views.
,ec,al Corresnondenceto If The Evening Star.


q
Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star.
GRAND CANQN. Col, July 25. 1895.
Many attempts have been made to tell
of this "glory of the world,' but none have
been successful in conveying any adequate
idea of the Grand Canon Of the Colorado.
The scenic effects are not describable There
is nothing in the world by which one can
measure the impression. or the effects Of
colcring and form. Old Dame Nature has
taken a hand at carving out unique piece
Of work, and all other spectacular shows
are reduced to the level of the common
place.
However, the trip to the canon Is sufa-
GENTLY interesting to warrant description.
| The nearest railroad station is Flagstaff,
on the line Of the Santa Fe railroad In
! northern Arizona. The eastbound and
westbound trains reach Flagstaff in the
evening, and the tourist stays all night in
| the town, which is typically western.
| LAUNDERING and mining both flourish in
that region in addition to stock-raising,
| and the streets of the town are crowded
| with cowpunchers, miners, lumbernen and
| sheepierders, the latter very lawiess and
| tough element The main street has one
| half of its length given over to Gallons
| side by side. sans blinds, shutters or screen.
| plain view; faro keno. poker tables run
! ming in full blast-dealers calling and rat
| ting the chips, and each place crowded
| with men always drinking, but never arriv-
| ing at full-fedged drunkenness. 1t is
| lively and cheerful crowd, by no means of
the low type to be seen in mining and
numbering regions Of the northwest, in
| Minnesota or Wisconsin.
The general effect of costume resembles
| one of Frederick Remington's sketches of
| western cowboy country set In motion; the
high-pointed Mexican Sombrero, loaded
with silver lace and tied under the chin.
| bigh-heeled boots with huge spurs rat
| ting and juggling at every step; the wear
ers looking as If they were walking on tip
| toes and everywhere that inevitable en-
| blem of the great southwest-the cigarette.
Flagstaff is generally referred to affec-
| tionately by the residents and Arizonians
as Flag" and as being "up the HILL" the
hill being the San Francisco mountains,
and up meaning some 1000 feet of altitude.
The air is exhilarating and laden with
the perfume of the pine forests which sur
round the town; the soil Is rich brilliant
| red; the sky the deep velvety blue known
as Arizona turquoise, while the back
ground for this brilliant contrast is the
giea ming, snow-crowned San Francisco
mountains the landmark of hundreds of
| miles of desert. The whole impression of
the place borders upon the sensational, and
| the United States seems a far-away, for
eign land.
To the Canon.
| Mondays. Wednesday and Fridays at Z
! am. These stages, are large three and
four-seated wagons, the old-style Concord
stage proving unsuitable for the country.
The regulation storyobook stage driver ma
terializes in the person of Ike Wheeler,
who can be depended upon to keep things.
meaning four why harses, moving along at
lively gait. Ike never condescends to
speak to the horses. but instead keeps up
a shrill WHISTLE which seems to be much
more effective than the voice or whip of
other drivers. The Journey is divided into
four stages. and horses are changed three
times, sixteen horses being used for the
trip. The first Stage is seventeen miles,
the second eighteen, hhe third twenty, and
the fourth sixteen miles; the whole dis
lance is seventySonei miles. the first, sec
ond and fourth stages are through magnifi
cent pine forests. w,hile the twenty-mile
stage lies through the most uncomprfsfne
desert Of hard lava; the wheels Of the
stage ring as If in contact with pure metal,
and, save for Withholding cow or two
the whole distance is without sign of life
A GREATNESS silence prevails, as ii the sun
had poured heat to the point of suffoca-
tcn.
There is in fact, no sign of human hah,
tation after the first ten miles of the
Journey; not place in all those miles to
stop and get drink of water, except at
the stage stations which are simply rude
corrals and tiny tent for the man who
cares for the horses. Water is hauled
tweNe-sometimes twenty-miles and hay
forty TO seventy miles 20 these stations
Inc morning ride is delightfully."- cool but
by II o'clock the Arizona sun is master of
the snow, and at Cedar, the lunch station.
the thermometer registered 40 degrees-in
the shade at that. Strange to say, how
ever, there Is very little discomfort; the
atmosphere is so dry and light that there
IS no serious effect, even though one were
TO walk distance with head uncovered
to mere food and drink, as there is petri-
fled forest few steps away, which yields
some beautiful specimens of agate.
In Camp.
The camp at the rim of the canon is
reached at o'clock in the evening, and it
| is little village Of tents under the great
sWaying pines rather in a hollow. and no
| sign Of the canon. AS the stage dashas
down hill and comes to stop with grand
flourish the weary tourist climbs out, and
his first word is always, Where is the
canon?"
up that little hill hundred yards" and
in spite of stiffness and thirst the first i'm
pulse is to breathlessly climb the hill for a
look at the canon. and then very often
strange and unexpected things happen 1t
is as If the mind of a man was laid bare in
the first shock. Strong men have burst
into tears. while others have been seized
with a great terror and stood stock still,
afraid to move and frantically shouting for
help, and has to be led away. A great
| silence falls upon all who Withstand the
first feeling Of terror, and when they come
down the hill there is very little said; the
ordinary expressions of wonder do not seem
to tit the case: and later, when those who
have visited the canon are asked to de-
scribe it. one and all stammer over some
suitable words, and finally you have to be
content with the statement, Il can't; go
and see for yourself" Chas. F. Lummis
has an apt and loving pen with which to
write OF the many wonders of that south
western world, but he, too SHES at de-
scribing the Grand Canon of the Colorado,
and only says: ut is the one thing that
beats the liar" and it indeed does that
thing.
Trip to the Bottom of the Canon.
After a half dozen visits to the rim.
restless human ambition comes into play
again, and there lis asdetermination to go
down, to penetmte this very center of the