Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-09-19
It Ranks Among the Worlds
Sublime Spectacles.
ONLY SIX MILES LONG
NATURAL WONDERS NOT FOUND
ELSEWHERE.
Control by the Federal Government on
the Plan Adopted With the
Yellowstone Park Urged.

BY WILLIAM r. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence Of The Star and the Chicago
Record Herald.
SENTINEL HOTEL.
Yosemite Valley. Cal. Sept. 10. 1905.
Excepting the Grand Canyon of the Col
orado and Niagara Falls, we may rank the
Yosemite valley as the most sublime and
beautiful natural spectacle in the world. 1t
Is tiny park-only 1900 acres of grove
and garden-surroundedb by a wall of gran
lite varying from $500 to 1900 feet in
height and almost perpendicular Half
dozen beautiful waterfalls plunge over the
precpices and form the MERGED river. which
flows out OF the valley through glorious
canyon to irrigate the San Joaquin valley.
From the tops of the various mountain
peaks that surround the Yosemite one can
see labyrinth of canyons, gorges. lakes
cataracts and forests. Such an assemblage
of natural wonders is not found elsewhere
on the earth's surface, but they have been
too often described for me to attempt to
paint the picure.
In the statutes of the Congress of the
United States it is described as "a cleft or
gorge in the granite peaks of the Sierra
Nevada mountains. in the county of Mari
posa." 1t has level floor 1900 feet above
the sea. covered with magnificent forests
and myriads of Towering plants. 1t Is six
miles long and varies from half mile to
a mile and one-half In width, and belongs
to the state of California.
Surrounding the Yosemite valley on all
sides is the Yosemite National Park, with
area of 625,000 acres. created by Con-
gress in 1890. Surrounding the Yosemite Ma
ional Park is the Sierra forest reserve of
nearly a million acres, or j, 500 square miles,
created by executive proclamation, and in
Guiding what the national commission de-
scribes "one of the finest timber belts in
the world"
Private Holdings.
Within the park and the forest reserve
are about GOO0O acres of timber pasture
and agricultural land, purchased and pat
ented by private parties and corporations
before the park created. which are
now valued at something like 100000. By
readJusting the boundary lines recon-
mended by the Chttenden commission, the
private holdings, which should be pur-
chased by the government can be reduced
to 22347 acres.
This includes portion of a tract of tim
Der equal in value to any in the world, and
belonging to the Medera Sugar Pine Lum-
Der Company, a Michigan concern. 1t ad-
joins the Mariposa forest of big trees, and
the wagon road to that reservation passes
through 1t. The company cuts its logs on
the mountainsdes, slides them down
chutes to a steam railway, which winds in
and out OF the forest and hauls them to
an enormous sawmill, where an average OF
IS 900 feet of lumber Is cut each year
and fioated. one board at time, in a
small wooden canal called hume a dis
tance of fifty-eight miles to MADEIRA station
in the San Joaquin valley. The fume .ep-
resents an investment of $3.50 0cS;, the saw
mill and log railway afJ., $500 600 and
other parts OF the piant bring the total up
TO millinI collars. The standing timber
SrrpSTesents twenty years supply for the
mill, cutting 35.00O.0O0 feet year. which is
sold from s. to $40 a thousand.
The forest obtained by the original
patentees under the homestead and pre-
emption laws at $3.50 acre. 1t was
bought BY the lumber company In small
tracts at from s. to $50 an acre. The Chit
tenden commission, In its report says: 1T
is apparent that the government would not
be able to buy or condemn these lands for
less than $50 an acre, and they would prob
ably cost considerably more than that. AS
the tract embraces some 10000 acres, the
commission assumes that the government
would not consider favorably the payment
of such sum- The line was therefore
drawn to exclude the greater part of these
holdings. 1t also excludes a considerable
portion of mineral lands, some of which
has mines that have been worked for
years.
Discovery of the Valley.
Shortly after the discovery of gold in 1919,
this part of California, which rich in
minerals. began to fill up with prospectors
and miners and there was more or less
trouble with the Indians, who according to
their customs. would raid the mining settle
ments around Mariposa and the outlying
ranches in San Joaquin valley and then re-
tire into the mountains. where they could
remain indefinitely with stolen cattle horses
and other booty without fear of discovery
or pursuit. Matters became so serious that
in the spring of 1851 the settlers organized
what was known a. the Mariposa Battal-
ion." under command of one Capt. Boiling,
for the purpose of pursuing and extermi-
mating the savages In the fall OF the same
year they followed an Indian war party
through the forests into the most beautiful
valley that any OF them had ever seen, and
their descriptions given after their return
to Marposa were SO enthusiastic that sew
eral parties made their way to the won
derful spot during the following year. But
the general public had no information of
the Yosemite until 1855, when Thomas
Ayers. a San Francisco artist; Walter Nil
lard. Alexander Stair and j. NJ Hutchins
spent the summer in explorations and dur
ing the following winter filled the news
papers with glowing accounts of their expe-
rienCes.
Hutchins settled down in the valley. built
cabin and afterward a hotel. which is
stiH standing, although remodeled, and is
used as an annex 10 the Sentinel Hotel He
lived here more than forty years and al
though he never made any legal entry OF
the property, and his claims were repu-
dated by the courts, the state paid him
$4,000 in 1874 for his squatter's rights and
also paid $4,000 10 other settlers who were
occupying available sites in the valley II
IS singular coincidence that Hutchins was
Killed In 1902 within sight OF his original
residence. He had been absent for several
years and was driving down one OF the
trails with his wife In wagon to make a
VISIT. ms horses became frightened and
plunging, threw him over the dashboard and
crushed his skull upon pile OF rock.
r Acquired by the State.
In 1854. fearing lest this beautiful park
should fall into the hands OF private citt
Gems. Mrs Jessie Benton Fremont. Fred
Law Olmstead. Rev Starr King and other
influential people persuaded Congress to
grant to the state of California the CLEFT
or gorge In the granite peaks In the Sierra
Nevada mountains at the headwaters 81
the MERGED river, In estimated length hfteen
back from the edge OF the precpice." Sec
ton of the same act granted 10 the state
Tour sections OF land. embracing what is
known as the Mariposa Big Tree Grove,