Durango semi-weekly herald., 1901-03-21
AcrMry IN THE YELLOWSTONE
StorySH How the Baby Gusher in the
NArk Came Into Existence.

HELENA. Mont, March 2O.-Tb,
nnussa@k seyser activity in Yellowstone
park tAs given rise to much specula.
tion aMong old residents who know
the hAapry OF the park for more than
half 9Eentury. Within two weeks
"buhE geyser has been born" full
grownsnnd another, the Excelsior.
| wnichhs been inactive twelve years.
has aeh}n broken forth with all its
formers5orce and grandeur
The baby geyser came into the
world Nth terrific explosion. Jas
King, &spark attendant, who is in
charge ~ the geyser section during
the winter, reports the birth of the
new geyser in Fountain geyser ba.
sin. about forty miles south of the
Mammceh hot springs. King saws
that eayly on the morning of Feb. is
he was assawakened by a terrific explo.
sion similar to the detonation caused
by the 4plosion of a large amount
Of powder underground. The noise
resembled the booming of distant can.
non and 3he ground rocked and quiy.
cred for Pome time very violently
Dishes tAttled ON the shelves. pic.
lures hanging on the walls were lar.
red dow1sand the clock stopped. The
shock stAEtled King, his idea at first
being thai Il was a severe earthquake
accompanied by tremendous vol.
canlc eruption in the vicinity.
1t was farly In the morning, and
on going rom the hotel where he was
stopping hk discovered that the Foun.
tain geyses basin had given birth to
geyser nd one that will no doubt
prove permanent and wonderful at.
traction. The new wonder is located
about 200 feet Immediately south of
the famous Fountain geyser, and at
the time of Kings discovery and for
a long time thereafter 1t sent forth a |
solid colut1n of hot water fully 500 /
feet into tie air, the water gushing
from hole about five feet in diane, |
ter with 990pd, angry roar,
King say the thermometer regis
tered 10 dgrees below zero and for
an hour aB4 thirty minutes the mon
srer cBlumz Of hot water shot heav,
10 then subsidized and since
then has }n playing at regular in
Gbut two hours.
The Exceisior, the largest and most
terrific ss4ssr J. in the world, broke
supposed TO be only an immense boil.
ing spring about 200 feet by 800 feet
in size. and 1t was known as cliff cal,
dron. In that year It disclosed It's
true character as a geyser, but it was
not until 1881 and 1882 that it played |
with much regularity. After another
long period Of quiescence it again shot |
forth in terrific eruption in 1883 and |
continued unabated in 1883 and part |
of 1889, ny this time It's crater had |
been enlarged to $50 by 400 feet |
caused by the violence Of its explO- |
si0ns. Now after twelve years of
inactivity 1t has again demonstrated
its power. 1t again began its dis
play on February 81 and the mass OF
water thrown out swelled the Fire
hole river, into which it flows, out of
its banks and the extreme heat of the
water killed all the fish within a dis.
tance Of two miles of the geyssr,
The Firehole river, where 1t runs
past Excelsior, is fifty or sixty feet
wide and about two feet deep. The
banks are from five to ten or fifteen
feet high. so that 1t requires an enOr
nous quantity af water to raise the
river to the boiling flood which it now
liz.
When the Excelsior was at work In
1888 its eruptiOns came at intervals
averaging from one to two hours and
the masses OF water shot upward to
200 or $50 feet. The indications are
that the geysers are far from dying
out. On the contrary they are In
creasing In power. The tourists to
the park In 1901 will witnoss unusual
displays In this line.