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[Quincey Homer]

Andnow, how can I suitably apologize for havinginflicted another book on the reading public? Iwould not attempt it but that it is the custom amongauthors. And, come to think of it, I guess I won'tattempt it anyway. I will merely say, by way ofexcuse, that my former literary efforts, especiallymy "Rustlings in the Rockies," have brought mein sundry dollars, in good and lawful money, whichI have found very useful things to have about thehouse. If this volume shall meet with an equallykind reception at the hands of book buyers, I shallfeel that, after all, I am not to blame for havingwritten it.

Vain, self-loving man is wont to consider himselfthe noblest work of God, but let him go to the top ofone of these lofty mountains, surrounded by othertowering peaks, and if he be a sane man he will soonbe convinced that his place in the scale of creation isfar from the top. Let him stand, for instance, on thesummit of Mount Hood, Mount Tacoma, or Mount Baker,thousands of feet above all surrounding peaks,hills, and valleys, where he may gaze into space hundredsof miles in every direction, with naught to obstructhis view, face to face with his Creator, andif he have aught of the love of nature in his soul, or ofappreciation of the sublime in his mental composition,he will be moved to exclaim with the Apostle,"What is man that Thou art mindful of him, or theson of man that Thou visitest him?" He will feelhis littleness, his insignificance, his utter lack of importance,more forcibly perhaps than ever before. Itseems almost incredible that there should be men inthe world who could care so little for the grandest,the sublimest sights their native land affords, as tobe unwilling to perform the labor necessary to seethem to the best possible advantage; and yet it is so,for I have frequently heard them say:

And, after all, the benefits to be derived frommountain climbing are not wholly of an intellectual[21]character; the physical system may be benefited byit as well. It is a kind of exercise that in turnbrings into use almost every muscle in the body,those of the legs being of course taxed most severely,but those of the back do their full share ofthe work, while the arms are called into action almostconstantly, as the climber grasps bushes or rocks bywhich to aid himself in the ascent. The lungs expandand contract like bellows as they inhale andexhale the rarified atmosphere, and the heart beatslike a trip-hammer as it pumps the invigorated bloodthrough the system. The liver is shaken loose fromthe ribs to which it has perchance grown fast, andthe stomach is aroused to such a state of activity asit has probably not experienced for years. Let anyman, especially one of sedentary habits, climb amountain 5,000 feet high, on a bright, pleasant day,when

There let him breathe the rare, pure atmosphere,fresh from the portals of heaven, and my word forit he will have a better appetite, will eat heartier,sleep sounder, and awake next morning feeling morerefreshed than since the days of his boyhood.

Although the labor be severe it can and should bemodulated to the strength and capabilities of theperson undertaking the task. No one should climbfaster than is compatible with his strength, andhalts should be made every five or ten minutes, ifneed be, to allow the system ample rest. In thismanner a vast amount of work may be accomplished[22]in a day, even by one who has had no previousexperience in climbing.

The benefits and pleasures of mountain climbingare much better understood and appreciated inEurope than in this country. Nearly every city ofEngland, France, Spain, Germany, and other Europeancountries has an Alpine, Pyrenese, or Himalayanclub. The members of these clubs spend their[23]summer outings in scaling the great peaks of themountains after which the societies are named, orother ranges, and the winter evenings in recountingto each other their experiences; and many a man, byhis association with the clubs and by indulgence inthis invigorating pastime develops from a delicateyouth into a muscular, sturdy, athletic man in afew years.

The possible value of mountain climbing as a recreationand as a means of gaining knowledge, has beengreatly enhanced, of late years, by the introductionof the dry-plate system in photography, andsince the small, light, compact cameras have beenconstructed, which may be easily and convenientlycarried wherever a man can pack his blanketsand a day's supply of food. With one of theseinstruments fine views can be taken of all interestingobjects and bits of scenery on the mountain, and ofthe surrounding country. The views are interestingand instructive to friends and to the public in general,and as souvenirs are invaluable to the author.And from the negatives thus secured lantern slidesmay be made, and from these, by the aid of thecalcium light, pictures projected on a screen thatcan only be excelled in their beauty and attractivenessby nature herself.

The Cascade Range of mountains extends fromSouthern Oregon through Washington Territory,away to the northward in British Columbia. In width,from east to west, it varies from fifty to one hundredmiles. It is the most densely-timbered range on thecontinent, and yet is one of the highest and most rugged.It may not possess so many ragged, shapelesscrags and dark caons as the Rocky Range, and yeteveryone who has ever traversed both accords to the[27]Cascades the distinction of being the equal, in picturesquenessand grandeur, of the Rockies, or, in fact,of any other range in the country. As continentallandmarks, Mounts Pitt, Union, Thielson, Jefferson,Hood, Adams, St. Helens, Tacoma, Baker, Stuart,Chiam, Douglass, and others are unsurpassed. Theirhoary crests tower to such majestic heights as to bevisible, in some instances, hundreds of miles, andtheir many glaciers feed mighty rivers upon whosebosoms the commerce of nations is borne. Mount Jeffersonis 9,020 feet high; Mount Adams, 9,570; MountSt. Helens, 9,750; Mount Baker, 10,800, Mount Hood,11,025, and Mount Tacoma, 14,444. There are manyother peaks that rise to altitudes of 7,000 to 9,000feet, and from these figures one may readily formsomething of an idea of the general height and beautyof the Cascade Range. The foot-hills are generallyhigh, rolling, and picturesque, and so heavily timberedthat in many places one cannot see a hundredyards in any direction. Higher up the range, however,this heavy timber is replaced by smaller trees,that stand farther apart, and the growth of underbrushis not so dense; consequently, the labor of travelis lightened and the range of vision is extended. Thegeological formation in the Cascades is varied.Igneous rock abounds; extensive basaltic cliffs andlarge bodies of granite, limestone, sandstone, etc.,are frequently met with, and nearly all the table-lands,in and about the foot-hills, are composed ofgravel drift, covered with vegetable mold. The Cascadesmay be explored with comfort later in thefall than the Rockies or other more eastern ranges,the winter setting in on the former much later than[29]on the latter, although the winter rains usually comein November. September and October are the mostpleasant months for an outing in the Cascades.

* * * It was late in October when my wife andI started from Chicago for a tour of a month amongthe bristling peaks of the Cascades and the picturesqueislands of Puget Sound. A pleasant ride offifteen hours on the Wisconsin Central Railroad toSt. Paul, and another of three days and nights on thegrand old Northern Pacific, brought us face to facewith the glittering crests and beetling cliffs that werethe objects of our pilgrimage. As the tourist goeswest, the first view of the range is obtained at theDalles of the Columbia river, from whence old MountHood, thirty-five miles distant, rears its majestichead high into the ethereal vault of heaven, andneighboring peaks, of lesser magnitude, unfold themselvesto the enraptured vision. As the train whirlsdown the broad Columbia river, every curve, aroundwhich we swing with dazzling speed, reveals to ourbewildered gaze new forms of beauty and newobjects of wonder. So many descriptions of thescenery along this mystic stream have been written,that every reading man, woman, and childin the land must be familiar with it, and I willnot repeat or attempt to improve upon any of them.To say the most extravagant representations are notexaggerated, is to speak truly, and no one can knowhow beautiful some of these towers and cliffs areuntil he has seen them.

Tradition says their wild shrieks and groans may beheard therein at all times; and no Indians are knownever to have gone any great distance up MountRainier, as they call it. White men have tried toemploy the native red men as guides and packersfor the ascent, but no amount of money can temptthem to invade the mysterious caons and cliffswith which the marvelous pile is surrounded. Theysay that all attempts to do so, by either white orred men, must result in certain destruction. Undoubtedlythe first ascent was made about thirtyyears ago, by General (then Lieutenant) Kautz, and[32]Lieutenant Slaughter, of the United States Army,who were then stationed at Steilacoom, WashingtonTerritory. They took pack animals, and with anescort of several men ascended as far as the animalscould go. There they left them and continued theclimb on foot. They were gone nine days, from thetime of leaving their mules until they returned tothe animals, and claimed, no doubt justly, to havegone to the top of Liberty Cap, the highest of thethree distinct summits that form the triplex corona;the others being known as the Summit and theDome. The next ascent, so far as known, was madein 1876 by Mr. Hazard Stevens, who gave an accountof his experiences in the Atlantic Monthly for November,of that year. In 1882, Messrs. Van Trumpand Smith, of San Francisco, made a successfulascent, and in the same year an Austrian touristwho attempted to ascend the mountain, got withinthree hundred feet of the top, when his progress wasarrested by an avalanche, and he came very nearlosing his life. Mr. L. L. Holden, of Boston, wentto within about six hundred feet of the summit in1883, and Mr. J. R. Hitchcock claims to havereached it in 1885.

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