Gilpin observer., 1912-12-19

OW SOOu eudll we see tuc
mountains?" said to the con-
ductor after our train had
crawled over the Colorado
prairies quite long enough. as
l thought
You are looking at them now!" he
replied. with a patronizing grin re-
served for the all too frequent tender
foot.
What" l exclaimed. 81 thought
those were clouds!"
Thereupon my eyes gradually sep
arated the mountains, more transpar-
ent deep blue from that of the more
Opaque clouds, and to distinguish the
dim white markings of snow fields
lying off there in the July sun. A little
more gradually the configuration of
the face Of the distant range became
visible, and 10! | beheld the veritable
backbone of America-the peak of the
gable!
What absurdly inadequate ideas of
the Rockies" we easterners do have
before we see them! We are wont to
register them as adult Alleghenies.
but the sight of them makes us disa-
VOW any registry at all. writes B. A.
konkle in the Philadelphia Record. l
count my first, experience in the
Rockies" along with my first appreci-
alton of real poem, my first visit to
a real play (it was old Joe" as
"Rip'O. the first time on water out of
sight Of land, my first view of Niagara,
my descent into Mammoth Cave, and
n r,vo NJ hn
Rockies" are not sight; they are
an experience. Even as we crawled
across the prairies to Denver it be-
gan with the peculiarly stimulating
air, SO invigorating as to make one for
get the weary journey and loss of
sleep and revel in lung-filling inspira-
tions. Then, too. the air became so
clear as to seem to magnify, while one
realized certain distinctness Of out.
line in everything that gave a wholly
new sense Of brilliancy. This, in turn.
perpetrates most baffling descriptions
upon ones judgment of distances. The
foothills west Of Denver are IA miles
away. but the granite walls of the old
Front Range itself looks less than a
mile distant.
Domination Of the Mountains.
The domination Of the mountains 10
an experience. too. An elderly country
woman was once visiting in a suburb
for the first time and complained that
she could feel that great city a.
threatening all the time" The noun
tains control the clouds, which play
about them continually like insects
about lamp until their life is burned
out. They dress themselves in clouds
and necklaces Of cleaning snow. and
change their dress 40 times a day. A
part will clothe itself one way. the
next another. and then all will draw a
curtain before them. and in the morn
ing cast 1t all OF and almost reveal
the very freckles Of forest on their
faces until you almost feel the breath
of the snow fields. Those mountains
seem alive. and yet what eternal poise
SO to speak. They control the people
and the cities. Being treasures, a row
of. cities have been built In front of
them across the state. with railway
spurs out and up into their boxes of
silver and gold. Men live up In the
high attitudes, II they can stand 1t:
for not all men can. Georgetown is
one of the Oldest places up there. and
the railroad has to do some tall climb
ing and wriggling along a shelf in the
sides OF Clear Creek gorge or canyon
for over thirty miles OF track before
II lifts itself up to above 5000 feet to
this picturesque little valley. The
rapid ascent makes ones breathing
machinery feel unequal to the task.
Ones lungs are suddenly not big
enough. 1t is well enough to stop OF
at Georgetown before the train begins
climbing on the corkscrew plan, as Il
does just above there. for you need to
practice on that word altitude" for a
few days. It is used nearly as much
as "the." ''is" and was" and com.
pletely displaces NORTH" South"
least" and west"
Be It remembered at this point up
here one never sees a mountain. Col.
orado has her. back up" and what
you see Of great mountain is merely
a slight irregularity in the vertebral
line, for even while you are in a can.
yon you are on a mountain top over
5000 feet high. So. rs you are on a
30-story sky-scraper tvery real scra.
pers Of the sky these). a 40-story one
only looks like a ten-story. And you
have to be told that here within sight
are a half-dozen monarchs OF the
Rockies two and Q half miles high. So