Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1903-11-25
BEAUTIFUL.
GRAND CANYON
OF
It's Sp1endOr, Majesty and Beauty Sympathetical1y Described
The Greatest Of Mattress Marve1s-A Descent
Into It's Awfu1 Depths.

~ al bhN atNNhiPNNu hNoNAibhicho VI
the Grand Canyon no one, l fancy
however gifted, has ever written, nc
matter how wildly or en%thusiastical
ly, even a portion Of what was in his
sould. l know l felt there, as / hae
elsewhere, the futility of an attempted
faithful description.
I have seen the best of all of the
most wonderful scenery OF our own
country, and have also seen the Won.
ders Of the Old World. / have stood
upon the top Of Cheops, Egypt's
grandest pyramid; have looked down
from the dizzy heights of the Jung.
frau and Mt. Blanc, in Switzerland,
and have trodden the snow fields far
above the picturesque fiords that mes
tie among Norway's mountains. I
have wandered among the ruins Of
Thebes and Baalbec and viewed from
the summit Of the Acropolis at Ath.
ems, Parnassus' snowy nights, Hymet-
tus and Marathon In the distance. l
have also stood upon the verge Of
Glacier point in Yosemite and Inspi.
ration point in the Yellowstone can
yon; have unused upon Calvary, Geth.
semane and the Mount of Olives. Yet
nothing | have ever seen impressed
me In the way this canyon did; II ia
30 unlike anything else / had ever be.
held. How then would II be possible
TO give more than an idea OF this, the
most wonderful in its way Of anything
the world possesses?
Here may be seen or fancied all
the beauties, grand or appalling things
OF the whole world; all OF the best in
sculpture. painting or in architect
ure cannot compare with what God.
the great Creator. Architect and
Builder. put here in this wonderful
chasm. Here color reigns supreme.
and holds sway as II does in yellow.
stone Park. only in this canyon thu
distances are so great hat color,
hNWNNNA AhAAhnNf ~ NnAA'hNh VI iunA III
the purple immensely Of air,
In the early morning | stood in
front OF the hotel at the rim Of the
chRsm that dropped beneath my feet
down and down for S4OO feet, and
from the fascinating yet terrifying
depth | looked far across TO the mys.
tic chrome-tinted brink, thirteen miles
opposite from where / stood. Shafts
OF light pastellod the sky and below
those paths OF light were masses of
vapor, soft and beautiful. Farther
down tho shadows. deepening into
dark aud dreadful depths, gave me
some %shivering. uncertain moments,
but / had made arrangements the
night before to go down into those
fearful depths. Had | waited. | do
not know, but am pretty certain. the
result would have been the same
hurried through my breakfast and
soon found myself mistress OF a al.
vided skirt and anchored on the back
of a mule, following a guide down into
the canyon. The trail was worse than
any ! had ever experienced; the trail
mp TO the Mer de Glace, Ia Switzer.
land. and the trail in Yosemite we're
not so dangerous. for here the trail
vas icy and covered with snow a part
of the way down, A single false step
or slip, and knew too well what the
consequences would be. II took the
whole day to make the trip. The trail
wound by %tortuous and devious ways
and turns for ave miles into the reril
ous depths.
Tortured by aches ala pains. fears
and misgivings, aud then in moments
OF rapture forgetting all save the sub.
lime, the solemn and grand scenes
that met my yes at every turn raised
me Go such nights OF enthusiasm that
life seemed OF but small concern
There was such a bewildering conm
sion OF strange, unique and appalling
wonders In those depths. where the
spirit Of oosmic tragedy holds sway
and an atmosphere OF awe, and one
Of woe also sends a thrill OF pain
ones being, Il was a day
that viii be remembered while reason
holds sway. and l shall be thankful
an my life that l had the courage 20
the trip down into the chasm.
l stood on a shelf hanging over the
colorado river, and looked into the
half yelled in a thin blue
that extended o. and on. deep /
ming away until lost In the distance.
hen | glanced up TO those vast wallis 4
where were terraces and ~pinnacles,
upon wave OF solidihod color a
eaehing out into boundless space; a a
lighty ocean caught in its turbulent O
airy and stayed by invisible forces, All (