Willmar tribune., 1907-11-06

The marvellous architectural ability
Of the forces of nature il strikingly H.
Illustrated in southern Utah, where
three great natural bridges, one the
largest in the world, span the canyon
of the White river. At the present
time this magnificent, romantic, wild
scenery is almost inaccessible, being
hundreds of miles from the nearest
railroad line, but the government pro-
poses to create two new national
parks so as to include these natural
wonders, and as result they will be
made more accessible, as the new
reservations become popular with the
tourists.
Expanding a cliff-dwelling hunt into
a search for new natural wonders,
party of biologists, archaeologists ana
engineers spent six weeks last sum-
mer in San Juan county, Utah. The
party carried commissions from the
government to map the uncharted ter
ritory where the natural bridges are
found and to make a survey of the
country. Incidentally the party made
an archaeological map of the cliff
dwellings found profusely in the
canyon caves and the ruined pueblos
that dot the mesas.
San Juan county has an area OF H.
900 square miles, and, according to
the Utah state board of statistics,
there are less than 500 persons in the
whole county. Not more than a few
score of these citizens live outside the
| towns of Monticello and Blih City
| frontier settlements, whose popula
| ton consists of cattle and sheep own
, ers.
The exploring party, led by Prof
Byron Cummings, of the University o1
Utah, and Prof. Edgar L. Hewett, Of
the department of the interior, left
Thompson's Springs, Utah, on the Rio
Grande railroad, went by stage g
miles south of Moad, gathered ar
outfit of horses and pack mules ant
crossed 65 miles of desert to Monti
| cello, at the east base of the Blue
mountains. From Monticello th'
l SAA~A
took a southerly course through
! Montezuma canyon, tributary of th'
San Juan river. After spending tel
days among the cliff dwellings ant
ruined villages of the canyon the part!
| reached the San Juan, Is miles eas
! of Bluff and close to the Colorado
line. Bluff is 55 miles south of Monti
cello and 72 miles west of Mancos
Co... the nearest railroad point.
Supplies were taken on at Bluff, ant
the caravan of nine persons moVe'
westward toward the Colorado river
across a country that is seldom trav
crsed by a white man. Utes and Pa1
Utes leave their summer wicky-up
near the San Juan and COLORADO
rivers for cooler places high up OF
the Elk Ridge or the Blue mountains
trails are almost unknown and waite
is as scarce as trails. The guide le
the party over broken country
through waterless canyons and acros
desert, rocky wastes toward Whit
canyon, which writhes and twist
down from the Elk Ridge to the Colo
rado river.
Near Bears Ears peaks, at the sun
NIT of the ridge, White canyon spring
out of the pine forest, winds throug
tumbled rocks and deepens into a
impossible split in the earth. In it
course toward the Colorado rive
wh;to oonvon covore over 100 mile:
and there is only one place in tn
whole distance where entrance ca
be effected without the greatest da1
ger. This is through Armstron
canyon, a small tributary, reache
after a days ride north Of the geners
course through forest of scrub pinol
Following this canyon down fe'
miles, the first camp was struck
the shadow of the Edwin Mature
Bridge, the smallest of the three ma
ural wonders.
The entire formation of the splendi
arch is of white sandstone. Here an
there a streak of gray and the brow
stain of water lend weird effect t
the picture. Towering 1000 fee
above the canyon on either side is
solid background of dark red rocl
with dashes of crimson. The re
beds were originally part of the Ell
Ridge, and dip to the south and Yves
toward the Colorado. The water {
another age cut through the uppe
formation into the white sandston,