Class 
 
 Book 
 
 COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 
 
M©yi|teaiFi 
 
 :• liaise •:• 
 
 SUMMirn OP TJHB fiLLEGHANIES, 
 
 / 
 
 By ^. G. ^ANGBOI^N. 
 
 ^. 
 
 Jl^ 
 
 illustrated by B. H. 8mitb. 
 
 CHICAGO: 
 
 KNIGHT AND LEONARD. 
 
 1884. 
 
Copyright, 1884, 
 
 By C. K. Lord. 
 
 KKIGHT & LEONARD . 
 
 N' 
 
JiOUNTAIN fcAKE iARK. 
 
 .-■ E are off for the Alleijhanies ! Bag- 
 i^^aoe packed and expressed, the hot 
 sun pouring down its burning rays, 
 the engine with its long train panting 
 ^^^f to be set free upon its iron pathway, 
 
 c/^ ' the ring of the bell, and we are gone. 
 
 We have left "old ills" and cares be- 
 hind us, and we are absolutely " out of 
 the dunii)s " and have sworn ttj be at 
 -.. peace with the world — at least for a 
 
 7'^-.. month. The advantages of travel on a 
 
 v^''-A> 
 
 ■^ 
 
 railway are so complete, and distance is of 
 so little account nowadays, that one in his 
 splendidly equipped car would imagine he was sim- 
 ply taking his ease in some drawing room, did he not 
 look from his window to see the objects like dreams flitting 
 past. The Baltimore & Ohio Company has not spared means 
 or skill in the fullest equipment of its lines. The comfort it 
 affords its patrons is unsurpassed, while the unparalleled 
 scenery along its route is its grandest feature. 
 
 Here we come to a halt at the very summit of the mount- 
 ains, three thousand feet above the level of the sea, and 
 midway between the famous resorts of Deer Park and Oak- 
 land we find MOUNTAIN Lake Park, "Beautiful for situa- 
 tion," a natural gem rapidly receiving as superb a setting as 
 art can '''ive it, a wilderness which is being " made to blossom 
 
as the rose." The I'ark contains eight hundred and fifty 
 acres. Three hunch-ed of these have been cleared, a\'enues 
 carefully laid off and named, the natural drainage has been 
 supplemented by engineering' skill, and a large number of 
 
? 
 cottages, varying in size, style and cost, has been erected, 
 twenty-three within the past year, some of great beauty 
 and of substantial character. The artist finds ample subjects 
 for his pencil in this sequestered, shady villa, where he beholds 
 ornamentation and modesty harmonizing, and surrounded 
 with the thick green foliage of " nature's own '" oaks. 
 
 The best of roads for carriages have been constructed, 
 already aggregating from eight to ten miles within the 
 grounds. Here is a quaint, peaceful " city of magnificent dis- 
 tances," whose avenues are broad and long, and where crowd- 
 ing is out of the question. Under the tall and arching trees 
 the sunlight and shadows play, and now and then one catches 
 a glimpse of a towering mountain peak in the dreamy gray of 
 the distance, adding a peculiar charm to the carefully planned 
 avenues. Again has the B. & O. manifested its interest in the 
 success of the Park by constructing a fine roadway from the 
 Deer Park grounds to Mountain Lake, and thence by Lake 
 Youghiogheny, along the mountain ridge, southward, making 
 a complete circuit of road bed, thus affording the best oppor- 
 tunities to those who enjoy the pleasure of a picturesque 
 mountain drive. 
 
 Of course the trees here have not been reared in infancy in 
 the nursery, and been taught how to grow, and where. The 
 flowers have not been cultivated amid advantages of the hot 
 house. These are in their native mountain freedom and glory, 
 and richer foliage never hung from branches, and sweeter 
 wild flowers never bloomed amid the rocks and rich 
 mosses, or lifted their plumes of snow or purple amid the 
 rank green grasses of the meadow, where birds of many 
 crests and songs build their nests hard by "the liquid lapse 
 of murmuring streams." The study of botany is a feature in 
 
-^ 
 
 A 
 
 the educational advantages of the Park, and ample practical 
 experience can be found by the diligent student. 
 
 Nothing can contribute more to the attractiveness of a 
 summer resort than the cool, refreshing springs that gurgle 
 from the rocks, or the silvery streams that feed the lake 
 
and heighten the beauty of the landscape. There is the 
 " Little YoLigh," flowing from its source in the mountain and 
 threading the grassy glades, where countless numbers of 
 daisies, " mountain sweets," sprinkle their pure white and 
 yellow along the banks. A rustic bridge spans the stream, 
 and near by is a rustic summer house, inviting a call and a 
 rest, gratefully accepted by the multitude that thread their 
 way from the depot to the park grounds. 
 
 A lake, mirror-like and serene, lies before us, made up of the 
 waters of the "Broad F'ord Run," the united flow of twenty- 
 three springs of pure water. The boat house is handsomel}- 
 constructed, and boats are constantly in readiness for those 
 who enjoy a row in the cool evening and soft moonlight. 
 
 There are many excellent springs, the principal. " Crystal 
 Springs," being famed for its sweetness and sufficiency. Par- 
 tially inclosed by a cluster of thickly foliaged bushes and small 
 trees, it issues from the fissured rocks of the mountain side 
 and speeds on over the white pebbles and stones, murmuring 
 welcome and refreshment to the visitor who, once there, must 
 needs come again. 
 
 Of the healthiness of this resort of the mountains no one 
 will entertain a doubt. To the fatigued or languid, who need 
 change and rest, no atmosphere could be more exhilarating. 
 There are no miasms here, no stagnant waters with decayed 
 vegetable matter, and putrid with disease. An altitude of 
 three thousand feet will drive away all apprehension of 
 malaria and assure us that the air, though a " little cool for 
 summer." is free from the blood-poisoning sporia that, like 
 Egypt's devouring locusts, swarm in the dense atmospheres of 
 lowland swamps and in filthy docks of the heated cities. Here 
 sleep is sweet, balmy and invigorating; the appetite quick- 
 
ened at the sight of savory dishes, and especially the far- 
 famed " mountain mutton," with its sauces of mint. The 
 enchantments of the mountain are medicinal, they calm and 
 heal and, as Emerson says, "these are plain pleasures, kindly 
 and native to us," and "at the gates of the forest the surprised 
 
man of the world is forced to leave behind his city estimates of 
 great and small, wise and foolish. The knapsack of custom falls 
 off his back with the first step he makes into these precincts." 
 
 A short drive along the mountain side on the new road 
 leading to Deer Park is the picturesque " Lake Youghiog- 
 heny." From this up the mountain is laid a "tram way" for 
 cars on which the hardy mountaineer brings down his timbers 
 which he has prepared for transportation or for the B. & O. 
 Road. Leaving the quiet water gleaming in the sunshine, 
 to secure a further view of the bold mountain, and, taking 
 our time, note here and there a mountain hut or a saw mill, 
 or stray along the bounding streams where the angler is 
 successfully tempting the speckled trout. Onward still and 
 a sign-board points us to the "Boiling Spring"; we take the 
 hint and press upwards and are fully rewarded. Near the 
 spring a great avenue has been cut through the tall fir trees, 
 and reminds one of the romance of some poet or legend- 
 writer as he depicts the solemn spirit-haunted groves and the 
 thickly shaded ways leading to some mystic grotto. 
 
 If we had any "superstitious feelings," they have suddenly 
 disappeared as we stand with the company of cheerful visitors 
 gazing on the bubbling fountain or taking a draught of the 
 cool, invigorating fluid. The spring is in the center of a rocky 
 plateau; a wild-looking place, and may be, after all, some evil 
 genius has presided here, if we may trace, in a strong imagina- 
 tion, his footprints on the disordered rocks, and has been 
 driven off forever by the advance of civilization. This spot is 
 well worth a visit, and possesses particular interest. 
 
 Eagle Rock is ascertained to be the highest point of the 
 Alleghanies, and is a distance of about five miles from Mount- 
 ain Lake. High on this pine-crowned height is a great 
 
r 
 
 •fRif r^J'-- 
 
pyramid of rock; and on the very summit lie several of great 
 size, as though Nature had placed them carefully as apices to 
 the strange monument rearing its gigantic head above all its 
 fellows. These, with broad, flattened surfaces, invite the 
 sight-seer to climb upward and stand upon them to take a 
 \ iew as impf)sing" as ever came before human vision, unpar- 
 alleled in scope and unsurpassed in diversified natural beauty. 
 It would seem almost incredible that the eye could take in 
 such distant objects, but so it is that because of the altitude 
 and rarefaction of the atmosphere scenes forty miles distant 
 are distinguishable. 
 
 Rational recreation implies something more than mere 
 animal enjoyment. "Man is an animal that thinks." Modern 
 resorts, therefore, are being planned on the principle that 
 provision should be made for the healthful and pleasurable 
 exercise of the mental faculties as well as of the physical 
 power. To meet this demand the Mountain Lake Park Asso- 
 ciation has set apart a magnificent grove for literary gather- 
 ings, and has provided an ample auditorium for the accom- 
 modation of assemblies. "A feast of fat things" has been 
 arranged for this season. Chief among them is "The Assem- 
 bly," to be held from August 14 to 29, consisting of a brilliant 
 course of twenty lectures on literar)-, scientific and religious 
 subjects, and, in addition to this Lecture Department, a S. S. 
 Normal Department, a C. S. T. Department and a C. L. S. C. 
 Department, these cabalistic letters indicating to all " Chau- 
 tauquans" the fact that this is a Mountain Chautauqua. The 
 programme contains the names of some of the most eminent 
 lecturers of the American platform, and some of the best 
 workers in fields of moral culture. The Assembly will be 
 preceded by a " Summer School of Amateur Photography," 
 
\v 
 
 ENTKANCK TO THE AUDI lORIUM. 
 
 hich is "somcthini^ new under the sun," and will, no doubt, 
 cause an expression of pleased surprise to pass over the 
 countenance of that bright luminary itself, which can hardly 
 help smiling on the enterprise. The New York " Photographic 
 
Times'" says: "This is an excellent idea, and the management 
 are to be congratulated on their discernment in perceiving the 
 advantages of amateur photography as a source of recreative 
 study and practice." The school will be under the direction of 
 Prof. Charles F. Himes, l^h. D., of Dickinson College, Carlisle, 
 Pa., who is one of the pioneer amateurs, a teacher of science, 
 thoroughly in earnest and competent to make the enterprise 
 a successful one. The picturesque features of the Park and its 
 surroundings admirably adapt it to this purpose, and excur- 
 sions with the camera will no doubt be as popular this season 
 as botanical or merely recreative rambles have been hereto- 
 fore. Of the many other plans for the employment and 
 entertainment of visitors we have neither time nor space to 
 speak. Suffice it to sa\^ that nowhere can a more healthful 
 physical, social, literary or moral atmosphere be found than 
 at Mountain Lake Park. Our artist has depicted some of its 
 beauties, but to the eyes that have looked upon the skillful 
 photographs and followed these lines, the lips of all who visit 
 the real scenes described will surely say, "The half has not 
 been told." During the season all trains on the B. & O. stop 
 at Mountain Lake Park. 
 
 X