Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1906-09-12
THE GRAND CANON
OF THE ARKANSAS.
OVER THE MOUNTAINS FROM PUEBLO TO
GRAND JUNCTION.
THE GRAND VALLEY FRUIT.
Some Of the Grandest Scenery Of the World,
Through the Royal Gorge, Eagle Canon
and Canon Of the Grand. and
Over Tennessee Pass.

| over tennessee Pass.
After a most delightful week at
| Colorado Springs and the immediate
vicinity, we departed one evening for
the remainder of our trip, on west
TO Salt Lake City, our western
destination.
After a two hours ride we arri we'd
during the night at Pueblo, the south
lern city of prominence in Colorado,
"the Pittsburg OF the West Here
we spent the night, and the next
morning took in the sights of the
city. Pueblo is quaint old southern
city, entirely different from Denver
and other cities of the state. in that
the southern style, manners and GUS
toms are everywhere evident. Even
the architecture of the buildings is
largely of that southern, Spanish style
so indicative of ease and restfulness.
Pueblo has about 60, coo people, and
is at an elevation of 4,Sl6 feet. It's
principal industry is the working of
iron and steel, for which p lrpose four
immense smelling plants are in con-
tinuOus operation, the only zinc plant
in the United States, and steel works,
second in size, employing 5000 men
and having a monthly pay roll of
$3.50, 900. We visited these Minnequa
Steel Works. where we watched the
process of working the iron ore from
the time it came in on the ore trains
from the mines, through all the diff
ferent interesting processes, until it
came out in finished steel rails, ready
for laying. 1t was grand sight to
see the immense furnaces, the great
cranes, trucks, etc. handling the ore
by the car load, seeing the molten
mass of metal poured from the red
hot caldrons into great coolers and
trnsformed into large pigs and
these in turn put through great rollers
and moulds which gradually shaped
it into the finest steel rails, and laid
them on racks 10 cool
Pueblo is also quite wholesale
center, has many beautiful homes.
some pretty parks and lakes, and is
a typical southern city in every sense.
| We left Pueblo about noon, on the
Denver & Rio Grande, the famous
scenic route over the mountains.
The first place of Importance we
passed was Canon City, bastling
town of about 900 people. where
some of tine fine fruit of Colorado
comes from Just beyond Canon City
we passed through one of the grandest
canons of the continent, the Royal
Gorge the Grand Canon of the
Arkansas. 1t is the most remarkable
chasm or canon in the world throu gh
which a railroad passes. Like Niagara
Falls. Yellowstone National Park
and the big tress of California, it is
one of natures masterpieces, and its
granduer has been heralded in all
parts of the world A few minutes
beyond the town above mentioned,
the train enters the portals of this
grand canon, whose walls narrow
rapidly until at the Hanging Bridge
they are only thirty feet apart,
and rise in perpendicular height for
over half a mile. 1t is mighty
crevice in the earth. apparently formed
by nature for the express purpose of
making a pathway through the
mountains to the west. Alongside the
track, which winds in and out in
sharp curves along the canon i'll its
serpentine path, the beautiful Ar
kansas river flows rapidly, leaping
in seeming furor from rock to rock.
Words cannot depict the grandeur OF
this eight mile ride. 1t seems impos-
sible that a railroad could be con-
structed though this stupendous
canon, but the energy, genius and
persistency of man accomplished
wonders here as elsewhere, and thou
sands of tourists pass these portals
each year.
Soon after leaving the Grand Canon
we came to Salida, thriving city,
and junction point, from which the
lines of the ID. & r. G.. diverge and in
different directions traverse the state.
The next point OF interest was Lead
Vile, the great mining city Of central
Colorado. where vast quantities OF
silver, copper, lead and iron are takel
from the mountains each year. Lead
Vile is "two miles high, over o,00t
feet. and the extreme high altitude il
readily noticed if one attempts th'
slightest exertion. The air is cool ant
bracing, very different from that o
, the lower attitudes. Leadville has TO
years been one of the best minera