Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1913-01-02
NATURAL BRIDGES.
The Biggest In the World Are In
the Utah Desert.
WONDERS OF WHITE CANYON.

InCO mdSoINO bO"CI'hS SNISHOo, wa
jestic In Their Rugged Grandeur,
Span the Lonely, Picturesque Gorge,
Far From the Beaten Paths of Man.
Among the wonders of the west
which the government has taken I'M
der its care are the remarkable natural
bridges Of Utah. which are. so far as
Is known. without Il peer. In 1908
these three bridges. the Caroline, Au-
gusta and Edwin. were set aside as ma
tional monuments. and later certain
caves and springs near by were added
to the reserved area.
1t Is difficult to give an adequate
idea OF these StupcndouS arches. and
so far they have been seen by few
persons. for 1t is II trip of days across
the desert to reach them. but accurate
measurements have been taken and
convey some notion of their size and
shape. The popular way Of reaching
these curiosities is from Bluff, Utah,
where one can obtain Il guide and out
At. Thence you proceed through dry
washes, old stream beds and sage Gov
cred mesas to the great bridges. which
loom up In White canyon far from the
beaten path of man.
The White canyon. itself Is many
miles long. and the bridges spring
from its steep, light buff walls, the
three being within a distance of five
miles They seem carved by Titanic
forces. for the largest Is ODD feet high
and IS feet thick mt the top of the
arch. The arch Is % feet wide. the
span Is 26l feet, and the height of the
span Is 1877 feet.
The Natural bridge of Virginia Is a
baby in comparison with any of the
three Utah formations. 1t is to be re-
GREETED that these wonderful bridges
are not easier of access. Figures give
little idea of their immensely, and
words but suggest their beauty.
The first account of them given to
the world was that of Horace j. Long,
who visited the bridges In 1908. Long
was an engineer and prospecting in
, Utah. One day he fell in with n cattle
man named Scorup, who was familiar
with Utah ana In particular with the
region lying around the San Juan river,
Scorup, after some preliminary con
versation, said that he had seen some
remarkable bridges so immense and
wonderful that he disliked to talk about
them for fear he would be accused Of
manufacturing the story. He added
that though he had seen them In 1898
he had always desired to go back and
II Long would accompany him and take
, photographs he would guarantee to
guide the engineer to the place.
Accordingly the two men set out with
pack horses aud provisions. and after
a lonely trip through deserts and
canyons and wide stretches where no
! animal was to he seen they descended
into the gorge of the White canyon, the
sides of which are filled with deserted
| cliff dwellings, Two days later they
/ came to the wonderful bridges, the first
of which. of pink sandstone, Scorup
| called Caroline in honor of his mother
Long was fairly da2ed at the beauty
and size of this natural wonder, The
! pink walls were streaked with delicate
colored lichens and stood out In bold
relief against sky of blue. More than
this. both men felt that they were gaZ
Ing on one of the wonders of the world
They pushed rapidly down the can
yon and came to another arch, more
symmetrical and more beautiful than
! the first. with lightness and grace and
charm OF cooring that made 1t splen-
did work of nature. Long named this
the Augusta after his wife and man
aged to get fair photograph. The
arch was so high that the trees of Cal
ifornin would seem dwarfed beside ii.
/ and the men took what measurements
they could by climbing and clinging to
the canyons sides
They found the Edwin, or Little
bridge. several miles down the canyon.
the arch in reality of immense dimen
sious. but small In comparison With
those that they had measured. An
around these bridges are crags and
strange formations. cave dwellings,,
springs and other objects of interest.
but the center of attraction is and will
always be these three towering arches
which span the White canyon.
Undoubtedly these bridges are Of
great scientific interest. not alone be
cause they are so far as known the
largest natural bridges in the world,
but because they are extraordinary eN-
amplcs Of stream erosion. An ancient
river probably carved these great
arches, which may have been known to
prehistoric dwellers of the desert west,
New York sun.
Daily Reminder.
Know myself If you are mediocre