The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1911-04-18

though they were penned in by the
polar ice. or course the telephon.
and the telegraph bring them scraps
of news from the outer world, but the
only way of getting about Is OF
snowshoes or skis. Even then the
distances between the places where
the people live are so great and the
ways so dangerous that few venture
forth. Only the government scouts
whose duty II Is to look after the
wild life in the park and see that II
is not molested by poachers, get out
are like the bears-they hibernate
until spring. An ample supply of fue
and provisions is laid in before the
first snowstorms begin to sweep over
the Continental divide. and there is
little to do until the sun swings
northward and the SHOWS melt
Building a Hotel Amid Arctic Tenn
perature.
Despite the arctic rigors of this re
gion. however, 250 men have been
fighting the cold there this winter
completing the fifth of the big hotels
that are the halting places OF tour
lists In this summer playground that
belongs to the people of the United
States The first order prepared on
the kitchen ranges OF this new hos
telry which stands on the brink OF
the great precipice down which roars
endlessly the mighty cataract of the
Yellowstone. was for nails. Nails big
and little, brads and spikes, ten-pen-
nies and shingles had to be heated
on the cookstoves before the carpen.
ters could handle them. The reason
for this haste was that the new hotel
had to be finished in time for the
summer season. when the park is In
its brief period of verdant glory.
More people will so to the Yellow
stone National Park this year than
ever before. In 1872, when the fed
eral government dedicated it "as
public park or pleasure ground for
the benefit and enjoyment of the peo.
pie" probably not more than IA thou
sand persons a year were visiting It
In the next twentythree years the
number of visitors climbed slowly to
about 5000 annually In 1895, the au-
thorities began counting the persons
who entered the park. and complete
records have been kept ever since
There were 5.43S visitors in 1895
Ten years later the number had risen
to 261SS In 1906, II dropped TO
l7172. The next year Il fell off near
ly a thousand In 1908 The total was
lS,74S Then came the most remark
able increase in visitors that the park
has ever known. In 1909 there were
nearly twice as many 32.545) as the
year before This was principally
due TO the opening of new railroad
gateway TO the park-at Yellowstone.
Mont.-which made 1t much easier OF
access.
A Bit Of {. II. Harriman's Wizardry.
This came about through a visit
that the late L. II Hartman made TO
the park in the summer Of 1904. He
was so impressed by the wonders OF
the park that he Immediately ordered
the location and construction of a
branch from the Oregon Short Line.
a part of the Union Pacific system. to
the western border OF the park This
road. from Idaho Falls to Yellow
stone. Montana, 20 miles from the
lower Geyser basin. was finished No
vember u, 1907. and was opened for
traffic the following June. II is lO7
miles long and cost nearly S2,OO0OOO
It's construction called into play the
greatest energy and skill In the sci
ence of railroad building.
Owing TO the deep SHOWS and severe
winters work could be carried on dur
ing only about four months of the