The Pacific tourist:

124
the red-colored rocks disappearinglark gray
taking their place. How these columns were
formed will ever be a question of interest to
those who are permitted to see them. One of
the Witches especially looks as though she was
afflicted with the "Greciau bend"' of modern
fashion, a fact which does not at all comport
with the dignity or character of a witch. Worn
iini fantastic shapes by the storms of ages, and
capped with gray, they stand as if "mocking the
changes and the chance of time." Four
miles below Echo, we lound a rocky point,
nearly opposite to which lies the little Mormoni
Village of Heinsiferville, on the left side of
Weber River, wi th it s bishop's palace-the largest
brick building in sight —and school-house, also of
brick, niestled under the mountains which lift
up rugged peaks in the background. The valley
now narrows to a gorge, and we approach IVeber
Canon proper. It has high bluffs on the left,
with a rocky castle towering up oin the right. If
Echo Canon was a wonderful place in the mind
of the traveler, wonders, if possible more lrugged
and grand, will be revealed to his gaze here.
High up oni the face of a bluff to the left, as you
pass through the gorge, see the little holes or
caves worn by the winds, in which the eagles build
their nests. This bluff is called "Eagle?test
Roclk." Every year the proud monarch of the
air finds here a safe habitation in which to raise
his young. It is beyond the reach of men, and
accessible onlv to the birds which fly in the air.
Passing this home of'; Fr-eedorai's Bird," before
we have time to read these lines hardly, we are
at the
I'lg,oirsaitd Mile Tree, Devil's Stlide, atc.,
-on the left side of the track. There it stands,
spreading its arms of green, from one of which
halnigs the sign which marks the distance traveled
since leaving Omaha. It is passed in a moment,
and other objects of interest claim your attention.
High upon rocks to the right, as you peer ahead,
see how the winds have made holes in projecting poinlts through which the light and sky beyond can be observed; now looking back see
another similar formation oni the opposite side —
oile to be seen looking ahead, the other looking
back. Now we come to Slate Cut —wheire photograph rocks without number are found. The
rocks are so called from the pictures of ferns,
branches of trees, shrubs, etc., which are seen
traced ill them. They remind one of mossa,ates, only they are a great deal larger-magnified a thousand times, and are not in clear
groundwork like the agates. Lost Creek Canon
now puts in from the right, and around the
curve you call see the houses of the little Mormon
Town, Croyden. It is only seven miles from
Echo. This canon runs palrallel with Echo
Canon for quite a distance, and is said to be
rzich ill the scener y characteristic of this region,
with a narrow valley of great fertility whelk cul
on the south side of the tr ain, will have a pretty
little gl impse of th e uppe r portion of Weber
River, with its green banks and tree verdure-a
charming relief to t he b are, dry plains, s o cora stant and even tiresome. A curious feature of
this little Weber Valley, are the terraces. Nlear
Echo City is a low, narrow bottom, near the
river; then an abr upt asce nt o f 30 feet; then a
level plai n or bottom of 200 to 400 yards; then
a gend tle ascent to the rock bluffs.
The Weber River is exceedingly crooked in
its course, -origina lly o ccupy in g the entire width
of the littl e space ill the Canon-and ill construct i ng the railroa d at various points, the llr oad-bled
here has been built directly into the river, to
m ake room for the track. The average angle of
elevation of the heights of Weber Canon is 70
to 80 degrees, —and the, height of the suminmnits
above the river is 1,500 to 2,000 feet. In this
canon i s found a thick bed of hard, red
sandstone, of great value for building stone
tlvicle can be wrought into fin e form s for cul ve rts,
fronts of buildings, caps, sills, etc. Emerging
froiin the mouth of Wteber Canon- iand turning
to the right, every vestige of rugged canoll
mscenery vanishes, and the scene i s changed
into onie of peace and quietnes s of v alley life.
I/ere the Weber River has a strong, powerful
current-wi thi heavy and constanit f all ov er beds
of water-worn stolr es, and fallen rocks of imlinense size. In the spring and summer months,
it is swollen bytruowf the melting of sow from the
mouptaiks, and is of great depth, -th ough usually
it aveuages bult four t o six feet in depth and its
width, at the mouth of the canon, is usually
120 feet.
aThe r e mainder of it s course to the Great Salt
Lake, is tohurogh a large open bottom of increasig breadth, a long w hich gather little villages,
grain fields, mea dows, brilliant with flowers of
which the Ind i an Pink, with its deep scarlet
clusters, is most luxuriant. The hills are smooth
i outlin o ine, and as we appr oach Ogden, the grand
suLmit of the Waahsatch Mountains, with snowy
peaks, arise behind, in front, and nor thward,
around u s bold and impressive. This is the range
of mountain s which b o rder the east s ide of the
Salt Lake Valley, and will accompany us, as we
go southward to Salt Lake City.
Ilochl; s of theber Canoi.-Rettaring to
tile road; after leaving Echo you will soon
notice, o n the north side of the track, two
ctrious formations. The first is a group of
reddish-colored cones of different sizes and
varying some, in shape, but on the whole
remarkably uniform in their appearance.
These are known as Battlement Rocks. They
are about one mile, perhaps not that, below Echo. Next come the wierd forms of " The
W~it~ches " —looking as thoughl they werse talking
with each other. These ale gray, andi about)
this place it seems that the formnation changes —
I
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TRE raclprc TOURIST.