The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1942-07-16
Looking Up at the Old Man of the Mountain.
Second Greatest Show on Eorth"
Burnum Called New Englond Rcnge

the impressions of Hawthorne, Whit
tier, General Grant, Webster, Mark
Twain, Winston Churchill, and
scores of other men outstanding in
politics, literature, and the arts of
their day certainly warrant the en-
thusiasm of those of us who see
the White mountains in every
mood"
But Grant came to the noun
tains for relief from hay fever"
said the visitor.
'That is true, but he, like many
others, then and now, came here
without knowing the mountains, and
left with an indelible impression OF
their lofty SUBMITS, their tree-clad
slopes, their cascades, lakes, and
scenic curiosities, and their legends
that have inspired multitudes OF
artists, writer's, and just plain peo-
ple."
Darby Field, son of Erin, was
the first man to conquer the heights
of Mount Washington, highest peak
in the White mountains. 1t thrusts
its summit 6,288 feet above the sea
and mile above the valleys at its
base.
1t was just % years after the May
flower had deposited its human
cargo on the shores of Massachu-
setts when Field struck out from the
coast on one of his many trips into
the unknown wilderness that lay
Immediately behind colonial vii
lagos.
Some settlers feared to wander
far from their settlements, but Dar-
by Field was one of those bold ad-
venturers for whom even the hard
life of the colonist was too tame.
He was accompanied by two In
dian guides. On a June day in 1642,
Field stood on the summit of Mount
Washington.
AS the Colonies grew and demand
ed wood for building, for paper, and
for other manufactures, lumbermen
carelessly swung their axes over
the White mountain slopes and
stripped them of their trees. All but
few thousand acres of primeval
forest were cut over.
The forests one sees today are
largely second growth, but no long
er are they in jeopardy.
"Great Stone Face"
Mount Washington is admittedly
the dominating feature of the White
mountains and nearly every visitor
to northern New Hampshire hopes
to stand on its summit. But if your
time is short and storm clouds
thwart that hope, there are scores
of other features that are well worth
a ramble among the heights.
Chief among these is the Profile,
popularity known as the "Old Man
of the Mountain" or as Hawthorne
Great Stone Face" peering from
the rugged granite ledges of Profile
mountain above the highway
through Franconia notch.
It was a mans appetite for par
fridge for breakfast that led to the
oioSoFCly VI tue TIOlllG III 1OOo. Ma
thaniel Hall was a member of a
road-building crew. Early in the
morning he shouldered his gun and
left camp.
With only a well-browned par
fridge on his mind, he silently crept
along the shore of a small lake, his
eyes penetrating the underground.
For some reason unknown to Hall he
looked up-and for a moment was
stunned by the most wonderful
face" he had ever seen.
News of the discovery spread
rapidly over New England. The
road Hall was working on was
pushed through the notch. Men and
women came on horseback, by
stage, carriage and cart. The
popularity of the Profile was one of
the factors that influenced the build
ing of railroad into the Franconia
region and the erection of the IA
NOUS Profile house, since destroyed
by fire.