The National tribune., 1900-08-30
FEATURES OF YELLOWSTONE.
The Great Park on the Summit of North
America.

FEATURES OF YELLOWSTONE.
The Great Park on the Summit Of North
America.
Chicago Record.
The principal reason why the Yellow
stone Park country was so long unknown
was the incredulity of the public and tneir
refusal to believe the amazing stories that
were told of the natural wonders it con-
tains. The first white man to witness
| these wonders was a trapper named Colt
er, who accompanied Lewis and Clark in
their celebrated exploration of the North
west in 1905. When they arrived ut Man
dan on their return in 1905 Golfer was dis
charged and went into the employ of the
Northwestern Fur Company. In pursuit
of this occupation he entered the Yellow
stone Valley and followed it to this region,
by the Indians called the summit of the
world, because it is the source of all the
great rivers in the West. The roadway be-
tween Old Faithful and Yellowstone Lake
crosses the grand continental divide twice,
where n little spring upon the summit of
| the continent feeds two rivulets, flowing
in different directions, and forming thus a
continuous water connection between the
Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and covering
| a distance of over 5000 miles.
Besides, the road between Mammoth
Hot Springs and Norris Basin and the
Twin Lakes presents a similar phenome-
non- They were formerly single body of
water until the beavers built dam
| across the middle and divided them almost
| equally. The water of one of these little
lakes flows northward into the Yellow
stone and finds its way through the Mis-
| souri, and the Mississippi Rivers into the
Gulf of Mexico. The other feeds Gibbon
River, which flows westward into the
Snake, the Columbia and the Pacific
Ocean. When they were one lake they
had two outlets as now. The water Of one
of these lakes is q dense dark blue and
sparkles like sapphire. The other, from
whatever point you observe it, is a l:vid
green, like the color of the waves Of the
ocean when they rise between you and the
light.
There is no doubt that Golfer discov-
cred the geysers, the Yellowstone Lake
and others of the most remarkable curiosi-
ties in the park, but when he told about
them upon his return to st. Louis in 1911
people refused to believe him, and, in ridi-
cule, called the region which he claimed
to have visited Golfers He'll" This name
appears upon many of the early maps and
was attached to the Yellowstone Park
country for at least quarter of cen
tury.
the Yellowstone Park, but suffered the
most extraordinary experience of any man
that ever visited this region. The Indians
attacked him and killed his partner. Col
ter was taken prisoner, stripped naked, led
to point three or four hundred yards in
advance of a body of about 500 bucks and
ordered to run for his life He did SO, with
half thousand bowling savages after
him. This happened, fortunately for Col
ter, before an indulgent Government sup
piled its wild wards with shooting impie- |
ments and it seemed to be understood that
bows and arrows must not be used against |
the fugitive. Golfer, being overtaken by !
one feet Indian, turned and killed him. |
Then, rcsuming his fight, he plunged into |
a river and concealed himself under some
logs so effectually that the Indians sup
posed he was drowned.
The next man to bring news of the Yel- |
lowstone Park and it's wonders was Jim |
Bridger, after Kit Carson, the most |
famous scout ever known upon the from |
tier. He was Carson's partner, was with |
Fremont on both Of his expeditions to Cal |
ifornia, discovered the Great Salt Lake |
and the pass through which the overland |
caravans crossed the continental divide. |
Army engineers used to say that Jim Bird |
ger was the best natural topographer ever |
born. Capt. Gunnison, in a report to the |
Government, declared that Pridger could |
draw an accurate map Of the entire Rocky |
Mountain region from memory on the back |
of a buffalo hide with piece Of charcoal. |
The public refused for many years to |
accept Bridgers report Of the Great Salt |
Lake, and the remarkable narratives he |
told Of the wonders Of the Yellowstone |
country were universally characterized as
"Old Jim Bridger's lies" He tried to |
have a description Of the country pub |
lished, but no newspaper Of that day |
would accept it. Col. X. 7. Van Horn, |
for many years editor Of the Kansas City |
Journal, and for several terms a member /
of Congress, prepared a series of articles
with material furnished by Bridger, but it |
was impossible to induce any magazine or
other reputable periodical to accept them.
Although they were unusually accurate de-
scriptiOns of natural phenomena, since
witnessed by every visitor to this park,
they were then regarded as the inventions
of vulgar Munchausen. Bridger described
the country tersely as "a place where hell
bubbles up"
For example, he never could make any
body believe in the existence Of noun
tain of glass which is now known to all
formation Of volcanic glass rising like BIZ
salt in vertical columns several hundred
feet high. A considerable portion of the
soil in that section of the park is silica, a
crystal sand of which glass is usually
made. At this particular spot, in some re-
mote age, the silica was melted by volcanic
heat and running together formed a noun
tain Of glass when it cooled. The Indians
used the material for arrowheads, and
came hundreds of miles to obtain it be-
cause it was better than flint.
Another of Jim Bridger's stories which
the public then refused to accept, told of
catching fish in cold water on one side,
and then, without taking them from the
hook or changing position, throwing them
into hot spring, where they were cooked
in a few moments. This, however, is done
frequently. Anybody can try the expert
ment who desires, and within few yards
Of the lunch station, at what is called The
Thumb, still more extraordinary expert
ence may be enjoyed. 1t is possible to
catch and cook fish in the same water.
AT a point along the shore an immense
boiling spring discharges its overflow di-
rectly into Yellowstone Lake. The specific
gravity of hot water being less than that
Of cold water, the discharge Of hot water
floats in stratum two or three feet thick
upon the cold water of the lake for quite
an area. The lake abounds in salmon
trout and other fish that take the bait
readily. Tourists SIM, their hooks through
the stratum of hot water into the cold
water below, and, when a fish is caught, /
they draw it up into the hot water, where :
It will be cooked ready for eating in a
very few minutes. This is favOrite place
Tor tourists to be photographed. The !
scouts report that last winter an elk was N
cooked alive in one Of the hot springs.