Jasper County Democrat, Volume 23, Number 50, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 18 September 1920 — LETTERS FROM OUR READERS [ARTICLE]

LETTERS FROM OUR READERS

F. W. Fisher Writes of Trip Through Yellowstone National Park JTefft, Ind., Sept. 15, 1920Editor Democrat: Of our trip through the Yellowstone national park, which is 62 miles long and 54 miles wide ana contains 3,114 square miles, 1,992,960 acres in the state of Wyoming' and 126*720 acres within Montana and 2,304 acres in Idaho, is all under U. S. control. The park management, which is under government control, has provided several entrances to the grounds. The park s transportation of tourists is via autos which carry 12 passengers, Including the driver, in each car. Camps and hotels are located at all of the points of interest and tourists

are given fine service at all places and accorded all privileges that a law-abiding tourist could expect. Now and then some one, after being told by the guide the requirements and the law, tries to get cute. He soon finds that' a plain case of violation is soon punished. The camps and hotels have a high-class of service which is given by students fro mour high schools and colleges, who are taking their vacations, and are representative from nearly all states in the Union. Some are well ’trained in literary work, as was and is evidenced by the entertainments they put on each night for the benefit of the tourists. We entered the park from the north, leaving Livingston for Gardner, the nearest railroad point, and arrived at Camp Mammoth with my daughter Effie at 11:30 a. m. After dinner, which’ was served immediately, we were given a guide, and after being informed just what was required of the tourist, were taken first to the formations that can be plainly seen from the camp and had their mysteries told and explained to

us. The coloring of these forma-' \tions wouCT" taker an artist to. portrayT‘“'and are caused by the different chemicals in the rock which, by the action of the hot water that flows continually, keeps adding to their growth and beauty each year. We visited the Devil’s Kitchen and also his Frying Pan. The kitchen is an opening in the mountain which you may enter at the top and by stairs and stepping stones continue down until you think, judging by the heat, that Old Satan Is just beyond 'the next turn. You can hear the roar of his flrp and smell the sulphur burning. The Frying Pan is nearby, and everything has the appearance of a great home-coming. We visited a number of small geysers and hot spring? and then took the stroll to the Buffalo farm, which is hear Camp Mammoth. One of bur U. S. scouts has 14 of the herd 'hear the camp for the tourist who

wishes to get a snap shot to carry away or to see them as they roam the forest. There are about 5,000 buffaloes in the pars. In the evening of the first day my daughter returned to her home In Livingston and I was left to roam at large over and among the wonderful sights. I was assigned a tent for a lodging place, containing a camp stove and a good bed and everything that one would need for comfort. There were no locks pn the door, and early in the morning a camp boy will knock at your door and inquire if you want a fire. If you do. he is "Johnny on the spot.” In the evening, at the assembly hall, a scientific lecture was given which was well received. The next morning we were on our way to Camp Faithful, named from the never-failing geyser which plays every 70 minutes and shoots a body of hot water heavenward to the height of from 160 to 180' feet. A number of other geysers play, but are not so regular, either in time or amount of water thrown out. In our trip to Camp Faithful we passed through Golden Gate, just a cliff in the rocks which towered on each side hundreds of feet over our heads and having the appearance of gold We viewed the Cascades, Fire Hole Hill, Roaring Mountain, which roars like a volcano. It Is a mountain 8,000 feet above sea level and is enveloped in tongues of fire which burns continuously but never consumes. At this camp a jazz band of seven pieces followed us and at the expense of the company furnished music for the dancers, which was continued after the literary entertainment, until all were ready to retire. On leaving this camp we were conveyed by auto to Lake camp, stopping on the trail to see the important sights and to feed the bears, which come down to the trail every day, knowing the time to expect the tourists. They were there for the cake and sugar that was taken from the tables at meal time just for this purpose. The cars were brought to a standstill and the bears were fed by some and snap shots taken by others while they were being fed, against the rules but yet they did it. At the camps the garbage wagons dump the garbage in the woods some one-half to one mile from camp, and at about 6:30 each day the tourist could go out to the dumping grounds and could see five or six bears up trees, looking and waiting for the wagon and as soon as it came In sight they would come down after their supper. Frequently one could see a mother bear drag a piece of meat off to the timber where she had left her cubs for safety. Then we viewed tne hot water terraces, the mud springs, the Paint Pots, the Grand Canyon, Inspiration Point, Mt. Washburn, 19,338 feet above sea level; the Fossil forest, Uncle Tom’s trail, which we followed to the bottom of the canyon, where from a great rock shot three pencil springs. The Grand fall viewed from the bottom, where the water is 50 feet in depth, one can look upward and see a body of water come over the rocks at a height of 310 feet from the base. Inspiration Point, which climb we made, is some 1,200 feet. The trout fishing was fine. The largest fish we caught weighed 18% pounds, was caught in Three Rivers, but we just caught sight of It In a curio show window as we enter the park. One could continue to write of the wonders of this park for days, but it would take some one whose imagination and power of description was much greater than ours to cOme anywhere near doing it justice.

F. W. FISHER.