Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1916-07-27
Chas. H. Lester, The
Vanl!derlust, Z Visits
The Old Home Town
Noted Auto Wanderer Spends Week
With Wife and Son in Former
"Haunts' in Watertown.

II there is man in the United
States who has travelled more extern
sively by auto than has Charles HI.
Lester, former Deuel. county farmer
and business man. former member OF
the city council Of Waertown. and q
man of wide experience, generally
speaking, The Saturday News hasn't
heard Of him.
Mr.. Lester has never kept a com
plete record OF all his travels but he
says that his total auto mileage runs
up into hundreds of thousands sew
eral hundred thousand, at all events.
The machine that he is now driv-
ing-a Stutz, which he is now using
a second season-has covered nearly
forty thousand miles, and is still able
to give a good account of itself.
Yellowstone Trail Not Good.
Mr.. Lester and his son Roy, who
has travelled with his father in the
majority of his journeys, arrived in
the city last Monday, coming here
from the Yellowstone Park, where
they spent a week in sightseeing.
Mrs. Lester had reached the city the
preceding day by rail from the west
ern coast. After visiting old-time
friends here for week or so, they
expect to leave for Boston and other
eastern seaports before returning to
their home at El Paso, Texas.
Your Yellowstone Trail" said Mr..
| Lester to a News man, isn't as good
| a piece Of roadway as it might be,
In fact, there are numerous bad
listretches in it--stretches that, with q
little work, properly applied, might be
put into much better condition. Or
dinarily one would expect excellent
| roads in prairie country like the
Dakotas and eastern Montana but the
highways seem to have been sadly
neglected in many vieinities.'
Mr. Lester deviated from the Vel
lowstone Trail west of the Missouri
river, driving over to jamestown, N.
D., thence to Aberdeen, then on to
this city.
| Horses and the Park.
In former years a private concern
had a monopoly of transportation In
| the Yellowstone Park. The same
company still has the same monopoly
excepting that travel by private con-
veyance is not prohibited. Up to
last year automobiles were not per-
mitted in the park. Now, however,
one may drive his own machine under
certain restrictions.
But it would not surprise me. y
said Mr.. Lester, ''if the horse.drawn
carriage (nnless driven by the owners
on sightseeing trips, as the privately
owned autos are now permitted to
travel the park roads) is banished
from the park within few years.
You see,' continued the man OF
l. ~
extensive travel, time is an element
since the automobile has come into
SO general use. The professional man
or the business man, or the teachers,
and others who enjoy the privilege
OF a vacation, have only about so
much time at their disposal for their
vacations. They don't like to spend
half of their time, OF more, in riding
in the horse-drawn conveyances.
There is nothing much to see between
the principal sightseeing points in
the park nothing even as interesting
or Inspiring as may be seen in other
parts Of the Rocky Mountains. The
chief points of interest are the Nam.
moth Springs, the geyser basin lying
q half days Journey (by horse con
FeyaDce5 south OF 1t, and the mag.
nifcent Yellowstone canon and sur
roundings
Auto Buses Suggested.
When you've seen these three re-.
glons you've seen the best there lis
% be found in the park A man should
really take q half day "a whale dayI
would We be better) to view the Nam
moth Springs and the Immediate sur
roundings. Another day can be BRO.
htable spent in the region Of the gey-
ser basin. Then, when one reaches
ne canon and the Yellowstone river, 4
le wants TO spend another day Or sol
mere ll "a order to drink 10 all the|l
'eauties and awe-inspiring scenery.
After that he's ready to leave the
'ark, for there Is nothing else worth|
W Sntle But Il he q compeIled to
rayel by stage, with horses az the|
tcoatinued % Pass