River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1896-08-06

about him. On either side of him is
what appears 70 be bottomless abyss.
| the one dug cut by the Nisqually gla,
cier, the other by the CowlitZ glacier.
Above him is pitch darkness.
Itlus situated one can not but feel
that he has been transported from
earth to some lonely spot where lie
may realize his own nothingnesS and
the mighty power of the Creator. He
feels that earth has vanished from
beneath his feet, and that the clear
blue sky has disappeared from over
his head. There he is, as il were.
suspended between the imDenetrable
darkness above and the boundleSS deep
gray ocean beneath, to think, to Won
der, and To admire.
After having made the ascent of
Mt. Rainier along ridge within
sight of one of its large glaciers. and
perchance having crawled over an
apparently fath0mless creyasse and
heard the rum bling of the avalanches
and breaking ice, the curious mind is
not satisfied to leave this wonderful
region without examining and study
ing glacier.
There is probably no place in the
United States, Alaska excepted. where
such large glaciers and glacial action
can be so prOfitably studied. No less
than ten large glaciers and several
smaller ones originate on the sides
of Mt. Rainier. The Nisqually glacier
is more favorably situated for study
than the other glaciers. 1t feeds the
NiSqually river. a turbid rocky stream
which flows through the valley plOwed
out by the Nisqually glacier ages ago.
al
the side of the mountain until at
present its lower limit is probably
5000 feet above the sea-leyel and no
more than eight or ten miles from the
immense snow field on the top and
side of the mountain which feeds Il.
All along the glacier from one end to
the other are immense creYasSes from
one to ten feet wide and from fifty TO
two or three hundred teet deep. These
creVasseS all curve forward near the
centre on account of the onward flow
Of the mass of ice and snow. the great
est velocity being at or near the CEN
tire Of the glacier. The glacier is still
at work cutting down the sides of the
mountain and pillow ing out the valley.
Immense rocks weighing anywhere
from a few hundred pounds to hun
dreds of tons. and fine sand and peb-
bleS, are constantly tum bling down
upon the glacier from the mountain
sides TO be carried along slowly TO the
end where they are deposited as a ter
minal moraine. In places where the
path of the glacier is wide and not
confined between the sides of noun
tainS, the rocks, sand, and debris may
glide off at the sides aud form lateral
mOraines; or perchance an immense
longitudinal assure in the ice will be
made, or two small glaciers may come
together and the materials on their
surfaces, may fall into this assure, or
space between the glaciers and thus
form medal moraine.
From the snOut of the glacier a
stream of water issues, and two deep
dark cavities conceal from the eye of
man the origin of this raging noun
tain torrent. Notwithstanding the
downward flow of the ice and snow at
the rate of two or three rods annu-
ally, the lower limit of the glacier
remains nearly stationary. This is
due TO the fact that the melting of
the ice just about equals the annual
snowfall on the mountain.
After seeing glacier and studying
its action, one can not doubt the gla-
presence of the numerous bOulders
and lakes, and the drift found so ex-
tensively over the northern part of
the United States.
Such are some of the experiences
and objects for study and reflection,
that any one will have who makes the
ascent of Mt. Rainier 1t is far distant
from this section of the country, and
the ascent is not made without much
labor and some danger, but the pleas
ure and knowledge gained from pass
ing through those majestic primeval
forests, the opportunities for study
ing the mountain flora and glacial
action, and last but not least, the
wonderful experience of standing
$4,000 feet above the sea-level and
breathing the rarefied mountain air
as it comes from the snow covered
peaks and the valleys, fully cOmpcn-
safe one for making the ascent.
III. l.. WILSON.