Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1920-08-06

"a fduO IN Arizona IS Il national
H park at last, after more than
30 years of endeavor by the
nature lovers of the country. Con
gress has passed an act changing this
natural wonder of the world from a
national monument to national park,
aud has appropriated money for its
development. The national park serv.
Ice has succeeded the forest service In
control Of it. Court decisions have
pronounced worthless the fake mining
claims with which it's rim is plas-
tered. And the other day the Grand
Canyon was dedicated as a playground
for the people Of the United States for
ever. And an interesting part of the
exercises was the dedication of me
memorial to Powell (thumbnail sketch
with head).
The average well-informed American
thinks of jamestown and Plymouth
when Americas beginnings are men
toned. That is to say, he goes back
to 1607-20. But by this time the Amer
ican Southwest was near century old.
Allen Chamberiln, writing of the
Grand Canyon dedicatory exercises in
the Boston Transcript, calls attention
TO this. For it was one of Coro-
nado's lleutenants, Don GARCIA Lopez
de CarGenas, who was the first white
man to behold that tremendous spec
tacle, about the year 1910.
From that time until shortly before
the Civil war the canyon seems to
have attracted no particular attention,
aud small wonder, considering its re-
m0teness and the forbidding aridity
of the region on every hand. The re
port OF Lieutenant Ives In 1857 to the
war department on the navigabiiity of
the Colorado river seems to have been
The first official recognition of the can.
son by the government, but it re.
manned for the Powell expedition OF
1860 to put 1t on the map, so to speak
The tale of that adventure, undertake.
en- In purely scientific spirit, was
more thrilling than novel, and at.
tracted considerable public notice
Nearly 20 years later President HaI.
rison, then senator from Indiana,
conceived the idea that the canyon
was a. worthy subject for national
park, and introduced hin in congress
That was in 1856. Yellowstone park
had been created In 1872, the Hot
Springs reservation of Arkansas was
set up as national park In 1850
Yosemite valley had been turned ovei
10 California as early as 1864 as a
state park, and Senator Harrison evl.
IDENTIFY saw that the Grand Canyon
was at least equally worthy of pro
lection from exploitation in the public
interest. AT that time Arizona was a
wild Indian country. and the canyon
was miles from anywhere that could
be reached by rail.
Where Roosevelt Stepped In.
Finally, after more than. so years,
that Grand Canyon National park was
created last year. 1t did not come
easily into being. however, for the OBJ
stacles of selfish ambitions which be-
set the course of the final legislation
required decade of patient and per-
sistent effort to overcome. President
Roosevelt, in his Enthusiastically
timely fashion, interposed powerful
check upon the hankerings OF the
would-be exploiterS when he took mat
ters into his own hands In 1908 and
proclaimed the canyon a national mon.
ument and game preserve BY that
time the Santa Fe railroad had bailt a
line to the southern rim, and every Wis
stor thenceforward became a publicity
agent for the park idea. When the
writer first saw the canyon in 1902,
shortly after the railroad was built.
fewer than 1000 persons made the trip
during the course of season. Nova
days more than 100 times that number
are counted on, for this is one of the
few all-the-year-aroune parks. and in.
stead Of the rude log houses and the
adjacent one-story barracks of 90
years ago. there Is now modern ho-
tel, and attractive boarding camps as
well, where accommodations can be
had to meet varying tastes and re-
quirements.
The interest that was taken in The
park dedication ceremony was indicat
ed by the fact that a special train was
run from the east to accommodate
those who had expressed desire &c