Omaha daily bee., 1917-05-06
NO MORE COACHES
FOR PARK TOURISTS
Motor Cars viii Replace the
Picturesque Long Used in
Yellowstone Park.
GASOLINE RoUTs HORSE

About the last place in the world
where coaches are operating Is in the
Yellowstone National park, but on
tune 20 next these comfortable re-
mihdets OF less hectic period will be
cast aside, together with about 1000
coach horses, and In their place will
be luxurious and speedy automobiles.
Tourists have shown that they desire
this sort OF transportation, and Frank
link X. Lane, secretary Of the interior,
has authorized the change. Autonio-
biles, by their greater speed, will be a
convenience to tourists having but a
short time at their disposal, and also
to those, inhrm in health, who have
found the long stage Rides fatigting.
The new method Of transportation
will also permit travellers to pass hur.
riedly by the less interesting places,
spending more time where they most
wish to be. 1t will be possible to go
through the park in two days, and, il
longer trip is undertaken, tourists
may arrange to visit the reniotest
parts of the reservation which have
been inaccessible to ordinary vehicles.
Touring cars will carry visitors
within the girdle OF the parks snow
capped peaks, two-thirds across the
continent, hidden away in the heart OF
the Rocky Mountains, 5000 feet above
the level of the sea, while they look
upon a constant series OF stupendous
sights--a blending OF the beautiful and
terrific, the strange and sublime. The
Greater Yellowstone park will be
about the size OF the state Of Massa-
ehusetts, and the $50 miles OF roads in
it are being put in shape for motor
traffic.
Speeding Up Travel.
The road system of the park follows
a giant circle, from which three long
legs project to the most ,uneonven-
tional and scenic sections OF the reser.
walton, places OF tremendous interest
to which the coaches could not travel
because of the great distance. It will
now be possible for tourists to make
headquarters at any OF the hotels and
reach all such points in comparatively
short time.
The animals Of the park are less an
noyed, it is said, by automobiles than
by the coaches and horses A man
who has driven car through the park
asserts that he t1lototed to the sur1-
n1er ranges, where the elk, deer, ante
lope, mountain sheep, buffalo and bear
stay, and that last summer he left
some chocolate and sandwiches one
night in the car. A bear took the
door off the car, because the chocolate
was In a pocket Of the door, and on
another occasion the upholstery OF the
automobile was torn off by another
animal in search Of something tasty.
II was driving my machine through
the park at night not long ago." said
Huntley Child Of the Yellowstone
Park Transportation company, land
missed by short distance a band of
about fifty elk. I missed one elk by
less than foot I blew my siren, but
there was no traffic cop there, and
the whole band crossed the road in
front Of me. At night you can see
their eyes a mile away. If you are
coming toward them in machine
they won't move. You simply have to
stop. think the lights must hypno-
tie them"
The mode of travel through the
park has been a succession OF coach
ing parties. The larger vehicles have
been drawn by six, the smaller ones
by four, strong horses, we'll fed, well
groomed, spirited yet safe. There
have been in Use 700 Concord coaches,
and these will be replaced by $50 ten
passenger and fifty six-passenger
touring cars.
This feature Of the park astonishes
most travellers. They form, as a rule,no
idea of its perfection or its magni-
ture. For example, there have been
coaches enough to accommodate a
thousand tourists for a continuous
journey Of ten days. Here, too, we're
1000 horses, all Of which could be har-
messed in twenty-fouf hours, and,
since the park is 50 remote, here also
were the eompany's blacksmith and
repair shops, which will now be
lIdHSlOrllcu lHtO garages.
Within the stables have been the
beautiful vanished coaches, varying
in cost from one thousand to several
thousand dollars, and made in Con-
cord, N. H., $500 miles away. On one
Of these tourist read the number 1871.
"Why did you add the fraction7" he
inquired of the manager Of transport
tation.
Because some travellers would not
take number IS COACH" he replied.
"They feared a breakdown or a
tumble into the river; so put on the
half TO take ill-luck away"
Most Americans have little idea
whether the driving distance In the
park is ten miles or a hundred.
Especially are they ignorant Of the
fact that they may leave the automo-
biles at any point, remain at hotel
or camp as long as they desire, and
then resume their journey in other
motor vehibles, without the least adj
dition, precisely as one uses a stop
oyar f;nLat ~, a ra,fro,d Mac. VT.