Evening star., 1924-11-02

or Mother Natures few remain
L ing ancient sanctuaries as
result of the Governments de-
cision to establish great national park
hereabouts, a reservation of thou
sand square miles, where the native
wild life of the beautiful southern
mountains may continue to flourish
in its inherited habitat, secure for
ever from the ruthless hand Of mod
ern progress.
Between now and the first of the
year. perhaps, Congress will be asked
to appropriate millions of dollars for
the purchase and development of one
of these areas, and standing well out
in the race for selection is realm
Of marvellous beauty, one of Gods
chosen gardens in the land of sky,
within only few hours motor ride
of Washington-the Stony Man peaks
of the historic Blue Ridge Mountains
of Virginia.
Back in those dimly distant ages
of the beginning, when the Creator
was tracing out this world of ours,
He laid lavish hand upon those
majestic peaks, more than four thou
sand feet above their verdant val
1eys; carpeted them with the choicest
of His flora, succored them upon
silvery brooks, colored them with the
sweetest hueS of artiStry-and pre-
destined that they should be known
as the Peaks of Stony Man by chiseI-
ing them from giant cascades Of
granite.
Authority for the selection Of such
an area, probably to be known as the
Southern Appalachian National Park,
has already been given by Congress as
part of the Nations scheme to create
sanctuaries in every section of the
country where the flora and fauna
particularly native to each section
may be preserved for posterity and
as great, outdoor Fairgrounds for the
people of America.
Until recently the West has sue
ceeded in monopolizing the Govern
ment's national reservations. The
Yellowstone, Glacier National Park,
the Yosemite Valley and other places
where nature carved rare bits of
artistry from highlands and lowlands
alike have returned rich interest for
the millions devoted to their develop
ment in the few years of their exist
ence.
Not only in dollars and cents have
they yielded added income to Uncle
Sans treasury, but the wealth they
have returned him in the rejuvenated
citizens, tired men and women who
found in their wild forests and along
their gorgeous motor trails new life
and new health, can never be calcu-
lated. And now the East is about
to be given it's first national park,
: glorious reservation not one whit less
beautiful and less Pretentious than
those wonderful areas west of the
Mississippi, where every good Ameri-
can has longed to visit some time or
another
THIS first Eastern park is to be
L typical of the South. and for that
reason it will be in the Southern
mountains. 1t must truly represent
in it's wild life as well as it's gen
cral outlines that section, and a COM
mttee of five experts has been ap-
pointed to select the area that rep
resents these essential features most
truly. On this committee are Henry
w. Temple. Representative from
Pennsylvania. chairman; Col. Glenn S.
Smith. acting chief engineer of the
United States Geological Survey, dr.
manager of the Palisades Interstate
Park: Harlan F. Kelsey of the Appa-
lachian Mountain Club, North Caro-
lima, and w. c. Gregg of the National
Arts Club, New York city.
Scores of places have besought the
committeeman to consider areas con-
tiguous to them for the park, but the
selection has virtually dwindled down
to one of three places-in North Caro-
lima, not far from Asheville; in the
Smoky Mountains of Tennessee, and
Stony Man Mountain in the Blue
Ridge range Of Virginia, directly
above Luray, and towering in stu
pendous glory above the Massanutten
Mountains around New Market.
November 10 this committee will
begin what possibly is to be its final
tour of inspection of these sites, be-
ginning at the Stony Man area.
Some weeks ago Col. Smith and
Maj. Welch made a cursory tour of
the parts of the area most easy of
access. Until then Stony Man had
never been considered as a possible
site for the park, but the committee
men were so deeply impressed with
what little they saw that both agreed
it would be essential to visit the place
with the entire committee.
1t had been expected this trip would
not be made before the middle of
next Spring, but Congress let it be
known, quite unexpectedly, that 1t
would prefer to have the committees
report soon after it assemblies in De-
cember
AS a result the committeeman were
obliged to plan their tour hmmedi-
ately, and Stony Man will be the
starting point on the 10th. The ex-
that area, inspecting every nook and
corner of the country there that
might be available for the park.
X
4 THOUGH North Carolina and
"A Tennessee are fighting hard for
the selection of their sites, there
seems little doubt in the minds of
many persons who have visited Stony
Man-and some of them are experts
on the proposition Of national parks
that 1t will be the ultimate spot
where the Appalachian National Park
will be situated. 1t possesses all of
the scenic and wild life features of
the other sites and some quito inn
portant virtues that the others can
not claim, among them being:
First. 1t would be the most accessi-
BILE, really beautiful and great ma
tonal park in the United States
Next Summer the beautiful Lee high