With God in the Yellowstone Part 2

CHAPTER III

UPPER AND LOWER FALLS

After dinner was served on the evening of our arrival, my brother and his wife took a trip down UNCLE TOM'S TRAIL to the base of the Lower Yellowstone Fall. They returned later, excited not a little, to tell of their adventure and what they had seen. I regretted that they did not wait until morning so that I could go with them, but I was so elated with the description of the fall that I was determined to go down the trail, if I had to go alone. The next morning when I saw how hazardous the undertaking would be, there was nothing that could have induced me to descend the rocky steep over which they had traveled.

Sister Lillian and I got a good view of the fall from a prominence near the edge of the canyon, and this satisfied me.

Just before the water makes its tremendous leap, it is compressed within a width of about 100 feet, where it seems to slow down to prepare for the shock before it dashes 308 feet over the rocks. Here from the foaming ma.s.s of spray, gorgeous rainbows may be seen. The eye is then inclined to follow the little stream that dwindles away between the rocky sides of the great chasm, foaming and das.h.i.+ng as it goes, until it looks like a silver thread in the distance. The rainbow colors at the fall, blending with the various tints and hues reflected from the mineral formations on the sides of the canyon, presented a picture that no artist could paint.

My sister and I took the trail along the edge of the canyon and finally made intersection with the automobile road within a short distance of the camp. On the way back, I felt as if I had lighted down on another sphere where I could stay for only a brief period, and that I must profit by every moment of time that was allotted me. Pausing by the roadside, I asked the question, "What shall it be when these mortal bodies put on immortality, when they shall no longer be subject to the laws of gravitation or others governing material substances?

What shall it be to wing one's flight to unseen worlds where there is still a greater comprehension to be had of Him who created the world and threw it from the tips of His fingers into s.p.a.ce!"

It took thousands of years for astronomers to learn that the earth is hung upon nothing; that when G.o.d created it He made it out of nothing, and set the forces in action that were continually demonstrating His omnipotence before their eyes.

The plan of salvation, of which it is my privilege to be a partaker, was never more precious to me than at this time, and I had a new appreciation of the fact that an infinite price had been paid for man's redemption. I felt renewed inspiration to press the battle against sin and unrighteousness to the gates of heaven or to the depths of h.e.l.l.

The Calvary route is often rugged. There are many dangerous places, where if the Infinite One did not clasp our hands and hold them tightly, we would plunge to the depths of the chasm and be wrecked and ruined for time and eternity. We have the blessed consolation, however, that He has promised to guide us with His eye, and never to leave or forsake those who put their trust in Him.

There is an atmosphere of sincerity among the people around the hotels and camps of the Yellowstone that is rarely found in summer resorts in other places. Here the voice of G.o.d in nature is heard in the smallest whisper, and again in tones of thunder; those who are inclined to be giddy and possessed with a spirit of levity, suddenly find themselves sobering up and beginning to think upon those things that involve the interests of their immortal souls.

Many of the helpers about the camps and hotels of the Park, I was told, were students and teachers who had come to the Yellowstone unprepared financially to make the tour, and had accepted positions as waiters, waitresses, etc., in order to pay their way through, and to be able to return by the time their schools opened. Some of them received only slight compensation, and depended on the good will of the tourists to reimburse them for services.

The familiarity that was seen everywhere between man and beast betokens the fact that an earnest of Isaiah's prophecy of the Millennium is being fulfilled. These native animals are free to go wherever they please, and seem to have little or no fear. In many instances they come close enough to eat out of the hands of the tourists. At the park camps and around the kitchens of the hotels, black, brown, and occasionally grizzly bears could be seen at almost any hour of the day eating out of tins or otherwise in search of food.

At our camp, near the kitchen, I found a brown bear with two little cubs. She looked at me with an independent toss of her head as much as to say, "You may be surprised to see me here, but I am enjoying the rights and privileges accorded me under the laws governing the Park; I am taking no undue liberties nor committing any offense." She then took an affectionate look at her cubs and warned me to keep my distance. I a.s.sured her that I had no thought of disturbing them, and so there was an understanding between us. I afterward made frequent visits to the brow of the hill where I could get a good view of her and her little ones.

Tourists often make a mistake in trying to feed and pet the bears.

Signs are up everywhere warning them of this danger. A short time before our party arrived, some person tried to pet a bear and was bitten in the wrist. It taught him and others a lesson. These animals have not been tamed, and the reason they are not so vicious as in primeval days is because no one is allowed to wound or kill them.

When one becomes unmanageable and it is necessary to dispose of it, the government rangers who have charge of the Park remove all traces of blood, and even burn the hide, so as to keep from arousing suspicion on the part of others. Thus we see, in part, what the Millennium will be when nothing shall hurt or destroy, and when "righteousness shall be the girdle of his lions, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins."

[Ill.u.s.tration: BEAR FEEDING "A LA CARTE" _Haynes, St. Paul_]

"The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the c.o.c.katrice' den. THEY SHALL NOT HURT NOR DESTROY IN ALL MY HOLY MOUNTAIN: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea" (Isa. II:5:9).

We could have spent another day at the Grand Canyon, as we had arranged for a five-day tour, but decided to spend more time at Old Faithful Camp near the Upper Geyser Basin, and therefore planned to leave in the afternoon. In the meantime I packed up my things, made some notes in my diary, and went alone to the Upper Yellowstone Fall.

Here, with no one present but the unseen host, I spent one of the most profitable hours of my life. I was in a position to get a good view of the Fall, where the water was das.h.i.+ng more than a hundred feet over the rocks, preparatory to the final plunge of three hundred feet a half mile below.

For a short time, surrounded by nature, with all of its primitive beauty and grandeur, I seemed to forget my burdens, and had a foretaste of what it will be when the cross is laid down and the crown is won. But to be an overcomer, I knew there must be no shrinking from duty until the last battle is fought.

Time forbade my tarrying longer at this place, and I hurried to the camp where I found my brother and sister looking for me. In a few minutes we had bidden many of our newly-made friends good-by and were hurried off in the yellow touring car _via_ Tower Fall to Mammoth Hot Springs, a distance of about forty miles.

[Ill.u.s.tration: UPPER YELLOWSTONE FALL _Haynes, St. Paul_]

In the car was a new driver, and among the pa.s.sengers were the four "Friends" who had started with us from Cody, Wyoming. We were glad to have them, and also to have a change of drivers, so that we might forget the unpleasant experience of the day before at Pahaska Tepee Lodge.

Every person in the car seemed to be in good spirits, and ready to enjoy the trip to the fullest extent. From the time we left the camp until we reached Mt. Washburn, a distance of about ten miles, my time was mostly taken up answering the questions of a woman from California who wanted information about our organization, the Pillar of Fire. I was glad to answer her questions and to give her all the enlightenment I could, but I found that it was taxing my physical strength when I should be at my best to profit by the trip. I silently prayed that a change of some kind might be made. We did not take the automobile road to the summit of Mt. Washburn, an alt.i.tude of 10,388 feet, but turned to the left through DUNRAVEN Pa.s.s, along the side of the mountain, a much shorter road than over the summit.

I had no desire to go to the summit. I had so often been over the highest peaks of the Rockies on all the scenic railroad lines, that I did not care to tax my nerves on such a trip; other pa.s.sengers felt much the same.

The drive around the side of the mountain was hazardous enough for me; and while others expressed no fear, there were times when I felt I should be compelled to get out of the car and walk. A good-natured pilot seated by the driver, who, no doubt, was sent out by the Park company, was skilful enough to divert my attention from the distance to the base of the mountain at our left until we had pa.s.sed over the dangerous part of the road. I shall not forget the manner in which he undertook to make me forget that I was nervous.

TOWER FALL was our first stop. The dizzy heights had almost unfitted me for what awaited us at this place, but my brother and the pilot a.s.sisted me up the steps and I followed others down the trail to the fall, das.h.i.+ng 132 feet over the rocks. The snowy, foaming water has the appearance of white satin ribbon, falling perpendicularly between two towering rocks, whence it gets its name. It lacks the volume of some other falls in the Yellowstone, but its grace and beauty are nowhere surpa.s.sed.

About four miles from the fall, we turned aside to CAMP ROOSEVELT, where we found a great display of elk horns. I was constantly on the lookout for elk, deer, and other animals, as I was told that they were often seen in herds in that locality, but I saw nothing except a lonely coyote, trotting along utterly indifferent to our presence. It seems that the continual blowing of automobile horns has frightened the more timid creatures back from the highways, and only occasionally do they venture close enough to be seen.

CHAPTER IV

MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS

The distance from Grand Canyon Camp to Mammoth Hot Springs, near Fort Yellowstone, was made in about three and one-half hours, with only the one stop at Tower Fall, and the few minutes that we halted at Camp Roosevelt, and the Cold Spring. But there was not one moment of monotony. The harmonious blending of colors, the distant mountain peaks and ranges, the soft-tinted sky, the trees, the water, in fact, all of Nature's best, in a milder form than we had seen about the Grand Canyon at the Upper and Lower Yellowstone Falls, was constantly presented in s.h.i.+fting scenes before our vision, relieving, in a measure, the tension we had been under since arriving in the vicinity of the Grand Canyon.

One place, in particular, that attracted my attention, was a beaver dam and hut that had been constructed by an order of masons whose operations are conducted exclusively upon the principles of home protection, and whose chief aim is to protect the fur trade of which they are the producers. In order to do this and to keep from being stranded, it is often necessary for the beavers to dam up the waters and build a house in which to live.

When they cut down trees, they have the faculty of felling them where they want to build, so as to save as much labor as possible. At our left was a creek and a dam they had built and a house they had constructed, independent of the laws controlling the builders'

a.s.sociation or that of the labor unions.

Their tools are very simple, as they use their teeth for saws, their tails for trowels, etc. In the midst of the dam was the hut, built of unplaned logs, with a well-constructed roof.

Under less favorable circ.u.mstances than is found for animal life in the Park, these little workers with their soft, silken fur would have been hunted down and captured before they could have brought the work to completion. Again, I could not help but exclaim, What a blessing are the laws governing the Yellowstone Park!

[Ill.u.s.tration: BEAVER DAM _Haynes, St. Paul_]

The rangers, with stations interspersed throughout the vast area of more than 3,000 square miles, are employed by the government for the protection of life and property, and arrests are quickly made and penalties fixed when there is any violation of the law. These men are not soldiers, but patrolmen on horseback, dressed in cowboy's uniform.

An ordinary soldier would be unfitted for such work. Men in leather shaps are needed who can break and ride bronchos, throw the lariat, and round up the herds; those who are used to the mountain fastnesses and the buffalo path, the haunts of black, brown, and grizzly bears, and are acquainted with the habits of the elk, moose, mountain sheep, the antelope, the deer, etc.; those who know the habits and lurking places of the unscrupulous hunters and poachers who defy the laws and by any or all means seek to evade punishment. No one is better fitted than the western ranger to track them down and see that they are brought to justice.

When we arrived at the MAMMOTH SPRINGS, we found a welcome at the camp and soon felt very much at home. It was cool enough for a fire, and many of the tourists gathered around the stove in the office and chatted with one another until the evening meal, which proved to be a plentiful repast and well served.

Our tents were furnished after the same pattern as those of the Grand Canyon Camp, with the exception that these were lighted with electricity.

The MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS and the beautiful terraces, in attempting description of which all language has been exhausted, were only a short distance from the camp; without waiting for a guide, we were soon winding our way up the side of the hill and around the road where we could find an entrance to the plateau. I had seen pictures of the many springs and terraces in colors, and had supposed they were overdrawn, but I found myself in the same bewildered state as when I first saw the Grand Canyon. Before I was aware, my tears were flowing freely at the thought of how impossible it would be to describe these springs to my friends and others who, perhaps, would never have the opportunity of seeing them. The blending of colors cannot be reproduced by the brush of the most gifted artist. I was thankful that G.o.d had permitted me to see the work of His hands that I might help others in the battle for eternal life.

Some of our party were looking for the DEVIL'S KITCHEN, but in the absence of a guide were having difficulty in finding it; I had no inclination to partic.i.p.ate in the search. I had been in the ante-chamber of heaven and at the gates of perdition, and this was sufficient for one day, so I started back toward the camp, with a lady who seemed to be satisfied to stay by my side, even though she missed seeing many of the places of interest.

I knew she was tired, and hoped that she might ride the remainder of the way. Soon an automobile came along and took her in. By this time my brother and sister and other members of the party had given up the search for the Devil's Kitchen and overtaken us. Later I was told that it is in the crater of an extinct boiling spring, not far from some of the terraces.

After reaching the camp, I was about to retire, when I decided to go to the office and see what was going on. A number of persons were preparing a program for an entertainment, and asked me to make an address, but I felt that enough had been crowded into one day, and declined.

Before morning, the weather became very chilly, and I had to use both the heavy comforters that had been provided for my bed. My circulation was not good, and my rest was more or less disturbed. I feared a greater change might come in the weather, and decided to get over the ground as quickly as possible even though we should have to miss many of the details of the place.

We had breakfast with Mr. Hayes, president of the Yellowstone Camp Company, who officially, or otherwise, has been connected with operations in the Yellowstone for the past twenty-five years. Mr.

Hayes was able to give us some valuable information, which we greatly appreciated.