The Coeur d'Alene press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1892-1907, 1905-12-30
VICTORIA CATARACT
IT 10 ONE or THE NOTABLE WON
pERs or THE WORLD.

IL was on the I'D Of November. 1855.
that the friendly natives with whom be
was travelling brought DIR. David Liy-
insstone for the tirat time within sight
and sound Of the wonderful cataract
ON the Iambezi river. now known a.
ths Victoria falls. Before nnding II,
the good missionary had journsyed for
nearly two years, and from his point
u departure a Thurman. In Cape Col
0ny, had traversed quite A,OO0 miles Of
hitherto unknown country.
To-day one takes the train at Cape
Town 0n Wednesday. passes through
Kimberley GA Thursday. reaches Buln.
wayo on Saturday. aud late ia the aft,
efu0On ~ sunday begins TO see in the
distance lhe rising pillar Of mist from
tAe great cataract
I'll. natives eail IL ''Aioai -oa tuni. "
meaning 'tia roaring smoke" Twenty
niirs away the spray thrown back
trJtm the depths 0f the tremendous cav
WA intu wAteh the river tumbles ar
pa.hrs like L column u smoke rising
trani 4 burning village. and during the
last mils 1T the railway journey tbs
rear 81 the falling water becomes no
Eie,nbie Finally. when The edge OF
llae eLasfn is rraohesl. II the river IL Ia
drsst. the eye and ear are assalied BY
a combination VI PHENOMENA inst prob
ahiS raHnlg be dupilcatrsl as maryela
aug Wherr elise aa the planet.
Itas Iirst question: that h asked Of an
American Vito has sevaa lhis African
Wpsisisr Estsegaiiy IL. Hos do@ss IL cotn
parv win Niagara Itaere 10 no pos
albiIigt IL comparison. The tso are as
diitrgs'lft a. slAy ani nlghs. Niagara IL
4 Fstt tss-s picture la q loseiy natural
fratae I.rrry point and line and
caF9r ~ n5stoHieAs roek. trssaabilng
sariare ana gliding sgaEeg i d touch Of
HAai s-sile ts, at4 Victoria ~ simply q
l-saesgs4gssaas4. ssFFsas gaah 10 ssss gssoF
81 aba apparently utsvl.dins PLATA. which
90 ua* saEsa simply swallows a river
la nlauneF thar pF4siaees almost q
ihFlli yr liarnn
Itv Aaeiyt~-sl rnliey for a hundred
mlies 8F thpnf iI4 every direction from
thU cataract Il rough and hrukea
plagvsu covered with how brush ana
atuuy,sl trrse. wish hrgv and thege 40
u4irrgp - saual,rr tsaaaltlr Fa-rh. al
Thoroughly unlairrs@tlRR Tie hsrbage
D. but fatally Er~en aud tAs tropical
eky u'ilg fatally biua II il q haas
h7lt tome landscape. wanting Ia clear
rut iiasu .n ey~gy diFe~tion AMI ia~kiug
Al-ptr esrs sil3wg else. that sistnent
1874" alNaya unrugIseiutssty herk Ia a
payurr picture life The alssrncr II
ilgls prziucea In ihc lnlnd a FEELING Of
lssssi.ffs-ss AID eftea Of fear Acrnaa
Tina Hassiun arrus sprcafn . river that
su ht.s} llHs = perhaps halg a mile
81 f.. lf deaf man wefv following
dgna ISIS % IT, tanks hs waah notice
httir but the quist watsr ard shr odd
iszsttl'E column ~ SMOKE ahead AZ
Ehis sstluun uaa approached be ssuuhi
sA4-~zi 60 ser The river banks lsendinE
and ihs water lowing away 20 ono
sllr ~ the suanAmraiinn aud nalght
Eiapee ~ the right ard left TO hoar thss
ittsgi3ssa tmken But The panorama
etaaKrs ~ b. gasca. The river h 40
fls8re. anal there. whsgp ii should b.
IA nglf sbr brown plain. AZ lsnely.
isFnah rzFverszi and taunogulanua aa ever
uHv must - tWruty miles farther bs
tafc the vanished wafrF aud the mur-
faen IT IN" land again rommlngle. be
faFu u viii lze possible to walk aionR
70" bank In company with the river
10 suiitiea u tbs Transformation
Meantime the pillar u smoke haa ~
as'lsssi itself into danas tnlat foressd
Upward IN terrible puts from a yawn
las sash stretching directly acrnsa the
issl ef The river This fearful abyss IL
'Frry secoud swallowing thousands OF
inias ~ ereeH aud white water and
tsrirt7HR w blasts Of mist that riae
buRlrssts IT fest into the air ana hurry
E4sag y Eth the winds az IL rejoicing
at their escape from the inferno be-
low aud somewhere, nearly 900 feet
holpw. tho eutrappcs river ID nghting
IT. way between sheer walls Of hlach
Furk toward a narrow cleft IN the
eastern wall. whence IL escapes, foam.
inR and boiling through the s,rvasa
and curves - a dcpp gorge leading Oh
To tho eastward. One goja TO an edge
Of this delivering chaam and looks
down upon tho tossing waters, ever
pressed from behind by other foods
struggling out OF the narrow black
gateway. and perhaps the most prom.
inent mental sensation In that Of thank.
fulness that even In such a grim and
CHASTITY way nature hnH provided a
means by which the fearful ait OF \
throat above that has swallowed the
strram can dlsgvrEp II again without
causing an Overwhelming catastrophe.
The Victoria cataract should he visit
81 Ht least twice before one Is compa-
tent 10 pass an opinion upon Il. When
tho river Is in food duly the scene il
simply terrible. One Sees nothing but
an enormous sheet OF water disappear
Ing Into the. bowels Of the earth with
noise a. Of mountains falling upon
one another. while from the awful Eash
comes back In fierce gusts and swfria
the foamlnR breath Of the tortured ele-