The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1911-12-08

t -s
- oME three hundred and
lES Y eighty miles west Of Albn'
VS@EM qIerque, N M. Jon the main
IVA line Of the railroad is sttu-
~ ated the little city Of Will
Jams, Ariz The place received its
prosaic name from the noted pioneer
scout, Bill Williams. who lies buried ct
the foot of Bill Williams mountain
nearby. The city has picturesque To-
cation, $3.50 feet above sea leveE and
is at the, junction Of the Grand Can
yon railroad which leads to the won
derful erosion, some 60 miles north.
The Grand canyon is acknowledged
TO be incomparably the. worlds grand
est natural wonder. Within the gfgan-
| tic stretch Of the canyon. varying
from five TO twelve miles in width.
the. Colorado river and its tributaries
wind their ways for over 200 miles.
Most OF the svallsf.of the canyon rise
to the Incredible height of 5000 to
5000 feet. and sdisplays every variety
| of curving ridge and ravine, Of fell
|precipice and rocky gorge.
Fully 100 tourists, EN- route to- Cali
fornia, daily switch. off here for = view
|of the Titan Of Chasms-the most
/ gigantic example of erosion on the
globe The marble and gigantic walls
of this stupendous water-worn trench
are from 1000 to $500 feet high, often
very precfpitous and, perpendicular.
sculptured into wildly fantastic forms.
and brilliantly tinted in deep red and
yellow. brown and gray, purple and
black. The canyon is about 240 miles
long - and, through the rocky gorge,
the work Of centuries, the turbulent
river winds IT'S way with varying de-
scent. The channel contracts and then
expands a tortuous ribbon Of silver.
whose boundaries OF objects, though
gigantic in size, are. lost to sight in the
magnificent -envffpnments. sTS
.ss .Seeae hof sRlendor. FssA
In SOME places, these huge cliffs fair
" oTerhang the Matsr-eand the boat
man, looking upward, can see but q
narrow strip Of: blue sky. Frequently
clouds gather ayer.astbe: top of 4. the
gorgae and one floats along in dark;
ness From the rim above, the rush.
ing and the Whitening Of the waters
below may Be seen, but the distance is
so great That no sound is ever heard.
Stolid, indeed. is he who can front the
awful scene and view its, unearthly
splendor of color. and form without
quaking. ,s1i1is labyrinth OF immense
architectural forms is endlessly varied
In design. fretted with. ornamental de-
vices, festooned with. lace-like webs
formed from talus from the upper cliffs
and painted with every color known to
the palette in pure transparent tones
Of marvellous delicacy.
Never was a picture more har-
monious: never a flower more ex-
Quisitely beautiful The Grand canyon
country is not only the hugest, but the
most varied and Instructive specimen
Of earth building and destruction on
the globe. Nowhere else on earth 10
there such an example OF deep enaw.
iEg waters or OF water high-carxtnr.
New Y rke may boast Of its Niagara !:
California, its Yosemite: Kentucky. its
Mammoth Cave: Virginia, its Natural
Bridge, and Wyoming, its geysers all
wonderfully elaborate and grand in
their way. but here. IN an altitudinons
mesa. Is q chasm that would hide them
all and then be but partially decorated.
much less filled sNss
Wonders OF Chalcedcny Park. IN
While the Grand canyons are the
greatest they are by no means the
only objects Of interest IN this, land 81
wonders. With its castle domes, thumb
buttes and solitary sugar-loaf peaks:
its mesas Of bare rock. beds Of ashes
or leagues Of yellow and vermilfon
sands. Arizona abounds in the strange
and the wonderful Chalcedony park
In Apache county, covers 1000 acres.
amid q vast desert Of sandstone and
lava, with the fragments Of thousands
of gigantic pines and cedars brought
By flood or glacier and changed ~
natures chemistry into brilliant min.
erals Of exquisite colors. At intervals
one sees on every side gdlches torn
out of the solid rock by the vceaee1ees
grinding of flint on :f3int.a exuoaiiIstk
broken logs Of every conceivable
length and size. IN all shapes and
colors imaginable Throw overall the
blazing rays s6 the ,sout hern III, 81; ana
you are surround ca with Jewels miles,
and miles Of them. So Brilliant AZ 81
dazzle the eyes and make Aladdin 81
fabled cave u fushl1Shl<s lii ttrf1esff Tan
fIx1t<t x &a.sSx 49, 9. .<,a.. e * k -