THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES 
 
 Ex Libris 
 
 Katharine F. Richmond 
 
 and 
 Henry C. Fall 
 
 CHAS. H. HORTON, 
 JOOKBIKTIDE: 
 
 Air,rTiin(r Star Kllilrlinff.
 
 "^5ft >
 
 7 (&JL-JL. 
 
 
 
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 HISTORICAL RELICS 
 
 White Mountains 
 
 1631 to 1855. 
 
 r; o s T o x : 
 PUBLISH F.i> uv :\ATHAMI;L NOTES 
 
 >;<,. i 
 
 .. 5.
 
 ALSO, 
 
 A CONCISE WHITE MOUNTAIN GUIDE; AND A METEOROLOGICAL 
 TABLE FOR 1853-4, GIVING THE INDICATIONS OF THE THERMOM- 
 ETER, ON THE TOP OF MOUNT WASHINGTON, AT SUNRISE, 
 NOON, AND SUNSET, WITH A SYNOPSIS OF THE 
 SAME FOR EACH SUMMER MONTH. 
 
 BY 
 
 JOHN H. SPAULDING. 
 
 BOSTON: 
 PUBLISHED BY NATHANIEL NOYES, 
 
 NO. 11 COBNRILL. 
 
 1855.
 
 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, by 
 
 J. H. SPAULDING, 
 In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts 
 
 Stereotyped by 
 
 HOBART ft BOBBINS, 
 
 Mew EngUnd T vpe tnd Stcr eotjpe Foundry,
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 THERE may be no locality combining more general interest 
 for the pleasure-seeking tourist than the WHITE MOUNTAINS. 
 Here every season thousands come from different climes, on a 
 pilgrimage, that they may pay most worshipful tribute in 
 spirit-felt wonder, and songs of praise. My apology for 
 attempting to originate and compile the following pages, is 
 the belief that the curiosity of the travelling public requires 
 a work embodying my design. The pencil of " Oakes " and 
 the pen of "Beckett" have nicely defined every explored 
 locality, interestingly connected with the particular geography 
 of these mountains ; besides which, the number of those 
 may be called " legion " who have made fancied famous 
 record for the world of their "White Mountain impressions. 
 These mountains are a fadeless pictured page in Nature's 
 wonderful book, or a gigantic monument of ruins formed 
 by an overwhelming change, that widely disfigured the origi- 
 nal geological formation of this wild region ; and as a massive 
 rock-shadow in a strange land, is to a journey-sick pilgrim 
 with a gushing cold-water spring by his feet, so my impres- 
 sions of these famous "old peaks" now rise to my sight. 
 An ambitious presence in fancy is with me now, with a voice 
 saying, like a prophetic whisper from " Gheistland," " Res- 
 cue from the twilight of forgetfulness the HISTORICAL RELICS 
 1*
 
 TI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 OF THE WHITE MOUNTAINS ! " The curious data of olden times 
 the antiquities of this anciently named Agiochook, with 
 the statistical facts of modern origin, necessary for a concise 
 history of " these bald old heads of nature '.' have never been 
 tangibly combined. The trials and daring exploits of the 
 fearless adventurers, who in other days filled the historic 
 blank of this renowned locality, are rich with rarities for a 
 work of interest to the reading world. Their life-relics have 
 twined around them, by traditionary remembrance, pleasant 
 associations of undecayable interest. We may for future 
 visions gaze back from the cloud-capped crags into the valley 
 of the past, and rescue from the oblivious mist of years the 
 oral monuments, that, tinctured by the life-passion of times 
 long gone, linger like visions of light upon the map of 
 memory. 
 
 Vanity is not the power that prompts me to desire success 
 in this task ; but as storm and time cover the names chiselled 
 upon the top crag of Mount Washington with moss, so, 
 with a round of years, " Old Mortality" should come, to 
 brighten up the vestiges of the past, and catalogue new 
 events with the re-chiselled. 
 
 The antiquarian collections of interesting facts, found in the 
 library of the Massachusetts Historical Society, having been 
 open to my inquiry, my humble tribute of respect is due that 
 society for the arrangement by which my research has been 
 favored; and their assistant librarian, John Appleton, M.D., 
 is, for his politeness to me as a stranger, deserving my last- 
 ing gratitude. The kindness of J. M. Rix, Esq., of Lancas- 
 ter, in giving me free access to his library of choice books, is 
 happily remembered. N. Noyes, Esq., of Boston, and B. F. 
 Whidden, Esq., of Lancaster, have my sincere thanks for 
 assisting me in obtaining the facts here registered, from the 
 most authentic records. J. H. S. 
 
 Lancaster, June, 1855.
 
 TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 Legendary Qrigin of White Mountains, 1 
 
 First Tisit, in the Year 1631, 2 
 
 Origin of Name " Crystal Hills," 3 
 
 Darby Field's Visit' 1642, 4 
 
 Indian Veneration for Agiochook, 6 
 
 Geographical Situation, 8 
 
 Geological Features, 8 
 
 Minerals, 9 
 
 Scientific Measurements of the Mountains, ...".... 12 
 
 Height of the White Mountains, 14 
 
 Perpetual Congelation, 14 
 
 Snow Arch and Bank, 15 
 
 Dining under Forty Feet of Snow, 15 
 
 Alpine Flowers, , 16 
 
 The Veteran Pilot, 16 
 
 First White-Mountain Guide, 16 
 
 First Hotel, 17 
 
 Indian Prophecy on " Giant's Grave," 17 
 
 The " White-Mountain Giant," 18 
 
 Place of his Birth, 18 
 
 Record of his Strength, 20 
 
 Carrying the Kettle and Deer, 20 
 
 Halter-Breaking the Mountain Buck, 20 
 
 The Giant lugging the Old Bear, 20 
 
 First White-Mountain Bear-Show, 21 
 
 Catching the Wildcat with a Withe, , 21 
 
 The Two Close Shots, 22 
 
 Ethan's Pond, ' 23 
 
 The Giant carrying a Lady, 23 
 
 The Men who named the Mountain, 23 
 
 First Night spent on Mount Washington, 24 
 
 Blue Pond and the Giant's Load, 24 
 
 First Mount-Washington Bridie-Path, 24 
 
 Location of that Old Path, 25 
 
 Ethan's Stone Cabin, 25 
 
 The Old Iron Chest and Roll of Lead, 25 
 
 First Ladies on Mount Washington, 25 
 
 First Horseback Ride, 26 
 
 White-Mountain Guides, 27 
 
 Tradition of Silver and Gold, 28
 
 Vm CONTENTS. 
 
 PAG a 
 
 Tradition of Carbuncles, 80 
 
 Carbuncle Hunters, 31 
 
 The Red Man's Curse, 31 
 
 The Indian Ghost, 31 
 
 Lost Spirits' Looking-Glass, 31 
 
 Bogers and his Rangers, 32 
 
 Silver Image, Wampum, and Money, 33 
 
 Bangers' Relics found, 30 
 
 Strange Sights seen, 38 
 
 The Old Fortune-Teller, 41 
 
 Search for Silver Image, etc., 42 
 
 The Old Brass Plate, 48 
 
 Discovery of the Notch, 49 
 
 The Hunters Nash and Sawyer, . . . . , 49 
 
 Description of Notch, 49 
 
 Silver Cascade 60 
 
 The Flume, 50 
 
 First Settler through the Notch, 51 
 
 The First Female, 51 
 
 " Granny Stalbird's " Bock, 52 
 
 Story of " Nancy's Bock and Brook," 52 
 
 First Goods brought up the Notch, 54 
 
 First Produce carried down, 55 
 
 First House in the Notch, 55 
 
 Avalanche of the Mountain, 58 
 
 Origin of Indian Fire- Worship, 67 
 
 Destruction of the Willey Family, . 58 
 
 Names of the Family, 59 
 
 Wonderful Escapes, 59 
 
 Destruction of " Ethan's Cabin," ..60 
 
 Origin of Peabody Biver, 60 
 
 Darby Field's Second Visit, 61 
 
 Death of the English Baronet, 62 
 
 Death-Leap of the Moose and Dog, 64 
 
 Indian Exile Pealsucep, 64 
 
 Silver-Mine found, 68 
 
 White-Mountain Hermit, 68 
 
 The Stolen White Girl, 69 
 
 White-Mountain Hotel, 71 
 
 Dwelling-Place in the Clouds, 72 
 
 Nazro's Temple Vision, 72 
 
 Summit House, Mount Washington, 74 
 
 Tip-Top House, Mount Washington, 74 
 
 Mount- Washington Carriage-Road, 76
 
 CONTENTS. IX 
 
 FAGB 
 
 White-Mountain Objects of Interest, 78 
 
 The Crystal Cascade 78 
 
 The Hermit's Lake, 79 
 
 Fall of a Thousand Streams, , 80 
 
 Tuokerman's Ravine, 80 
 
 Glen Elise Falls, 80 
 
 Lake of the Clouds and Star Lake, 80 
 
 " Gulf of Mexico," 81 
 
 Bones in the " Burnt District," 82 
 
 The " Devil's Den," 83 
 
 Bearing and Distances of White Mountains, 84 
 
 Height, Bearing and Distances of other Mountains from Mt. Washington, . 84 
 
 Franconia and its Attractions, 85 
 
 The " Old Man of the Mountain," 86 
 
 The Pool, 86 
 
 The Flume, .87 
 
 The Basin, 87 
 
 The Cascade, 87 
 
 Mount Lafayette, or the " Great Haystack," 87 
 
 Eagle Mountain, 88 
 
 Length of Days at the Summit of Mount Washington, 88 
 
 Thermometrical Table for 1853, 89 
 
 Summary of the Weather for same, 91 
 
 Thermometrical Table for 1854 92 
 
 Summary of the Weather for same, 94 
 
 Routes and Distances to the Mountains, 97
 
 HISTORICAL RELICS 
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS 
 
 LEGENDARY ORIGIN OF THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 
 
 .COLD storms were in the northern wilderness, and a 
 lone red hunter wandered without food, chilled by the 
 frozen wind. He lost his strength, and could find no 
 game ; and the dark cloud that covered his life-path 
 made him weary of wandering. He fell down upon the 
 snow, and a dream carried him to a wide, happy valley, 
 filled with musical streams, where singing birds and game 
 were plenty. His spirit cried aloud for joy ; and the 
 " Great Master of Life " waked him from his sleep, gave 
 him a dry coal and a flint-pointed spear, telling him that 
 by the shore of the lake he might live, and find fish with 
 his spear, and fire from his dry coal. One night, when 
 he had laid down his coal, and seen a warm fire spring up 
 therefrom, with a blinding smoke, a loud voice came out 
 of the flame, and a great noise, like thunder, filled the
 
 2 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 air ; and there rose up a vast pile of broken rocks. Out 
 of the cloud resting upon the top came numerous streams, 
 dancing down, foaming cold ; and the voice spake to the 
 astonished red hunter, saying, "Here the Great Spirit 
 will dwell, and watch over his favorite children" Old 
 Legend. 
 
 FIRST VISIT, IN 1631. 
 
 DR. BELKNAP, the learned historian of New Hampshire, 
 gives Walter Neal the credit of being the first explorer of 
 these mountains, as early as the year 1632. Merrill's N. 
 H. Gazetteer of 1817 concludes, from the best authorities, 
 that Kobert Neal, Walter Neal and others, visited these 
 mountains as early as the year 1631. Josselyn, in his 
 New England Rarities, gives the following description, 
 which, with little variation, is found also in Belknap, as 
 an extract from Hubbard's MS. History, credited to 
 Walter Neal : 
 
 " Four score miles (upon a direct line) to the N. W. of 
 Scarboro' a ridge of mountains runs N. W. and N. E. an 
 hundred leagues, known by the name of White Hills, upon 
 which lieth snow all the year, and is a landmark twenty 
 miles off at sea. It is a rising ground from the sea-shore 
 to these hills, and they are inaccessible but by the gulleys 
 which the dissolved snow hath made. In these gulleys 
 grow savin bushes, which, being taken hold of, are a good
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 3 
 
 help to the climbing discoverer. Upon the top of the 
 highest of these mountains is a large level, or plain, of a 
 day's journey over, whereon nothing grows but moss. At 
 the further end of this plain is another hill, called the 
 'Sugarloaf,' to outward appearance a rude heap of mass- 
 ive stones, piled one upon another ; and you may, as you 
 ascend, step from one stone to another, as if you were 
 going up a pair of stairs, but winding still about the hill, 
 till you come to the top, which will require half a day's 
 time, and yet it is not above a mile, where there is also 
 a level of about an acre of ground, with a pond of clear 
 water in the midst of it, which you may hear run down ; 
 but how it ascends is a mystery. From this rocky hill 
 you may see the whole country around about. It is far 
 above the lower clouds, and from hence we beheld vapor 
 (like a great pillar) drawn up by the sunbeams out of a 
 great lake, or pond, into the air, where it was formed into 
 a cloud. The country beyond these hills, northward, is 
 daunting terrible, being full of rocky hills, as thick as 
 mole-hills in a meadow, and clothed with infinite thick 
 woods."* N. E. Rarities, 3-4. 
 
 * Another writer, after giving a similar description, adds, " We 
 had great expectation of finding precious stones on these moun- 
 tains ;" and something resembling crystals being picked up, was 
 sufficient to give them the name of " Crystal Hills." They were 
 long called by that name. AUTHOR. 
 2
 
 4 HISTOKICAL BJELICS OF 
 
 DARBY FIELD'S VISIT, IN 1642. 
 
 June 4th, 1642. " Darby Field " (says Winthrop, in 
 his Journal), "an Irishman, living about Piscat, being 
 accompanied with two Indians, went to the top of the 
 White Hill. He made his journey in eighteen days. His 
 relation, at his return, was, that it was about 160 miles 
 from Saco ; that after 40 miles travel he did, for the most 
 part, ascend ; and within 12 miles of the top was neither 
 tree nor grass, but low savins, which they went upon the 
 top of, sometimes ; but a continual ascent upon rocks, on a 
 ridge, between two valleys, filled with snow, out of which 
 came two branches of the Saco river, which met at the 
 foot of the hill, where was an Indian town, of some 200 
 people. Some of them accompanied him within 8 miles 
 of the top, but durst go no farther, telling him that no 
 Indian ever dared to go higher, and that he would die if 
 he went. So they staid there till his return, and his two 
 Indians took courage by his example, and went with him. 
 They went divers times through thick clouds, for a good 
 space ; and within 4 miles of the top they had no clouds, 
 but very cold. By the way among the rocks there was 
 two ponds : one a blackish water, and the other reddish. 
 The top of all was plain, about 60 ft. square. On the 
 north side was such a precipice as they could scarcely dis- 
 cern the bottom. They had neither cloud nor wind on
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 5 
 
 the top, and moderate heat. All the country about him 
 seemed a level, except here and there a hill rising above 
 the rest, and far beneath them. He saw, to the north, a 
 great water, which he judged to be 100 miles broad, but 
 could see no land beyond it. The sea by Saco seemed as 
 if it had been within 20 miles. He saw, also, a sea to 
 the eastward, which he judged to be the gulf of Canada. 
 He saw some great waters in parts to the westward, which 
 he judged to be the great lake Canada river (St. Lawrence) 
 came out of. He found there much Muscovy glass ; they 
 could rive out pieces 40 ft. long, and 7 or 8 broad. 
 When he came back to the Indians, he found them drying 
 themselves by the fire ; for they had a great tempest of 
 wind and rain. About a month after, he went again, 
 with five or six of his company. Then they had some 
 wind on the top, and some clouds above them, which hid 
 the sun. They brought some stones, which they supposed 
 had been diamonds; but they were most crystal."* 
 Winthrop's Journal, p. 247. 
 
 INDIAN VENEEATION FOE AGIOCHOOK. 
 
 According to antiquarian research, the aboriginal name 
 of the White Mountains was" Agiochook;" spelt, also, Agio- 
 
 * We may reasonably conclude that Darby Field's trail was up 
 the ridge between Tuckerman's Ravine and the valley of Dry 
 River. AUTHOB.
 
 6 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 cochook, Agicoochooke, Agriochooke; signifying, by ancient 
 Indian nomenclature, " Mountain of the Snaivy Forehead, 
 and Home of the Great Spirit." Schoolcraft, in his " Indian 
 Wigwam," page 248, gives, as the Algonquin pronuncia- 
 tion of these mountains, "Waubik," or "Waumbick;" 
 meaning " White Rock." Becket, in his "Guide," calls 
 them, from ancient authority, " Waumbeket Methna," sig- 
 nifying mountains of the " Snowy Foreheads." The lore 
 of legend, the voice of tradition, and the record of history, 
 point to these mountains as a locality of great interest. 
 In olden times, from far and near have come the brave 
 and fair red children of the wilderness, to offer, in wild, 
 shadowy glens, their sacrifices of vengeance and love ; and 
 where their songs rose, with the echoes of thundering 
 waterfalls, to mingle with the roaring wind of the tempest 
 cloud, upon the snow-crowned rock, there they rever- 
 ently believed the Great Spirit listened with satisfaction 
 to their tributes of esteem. When the first white man 
 came here, to climb to the top of this bald mountain, an 
 old Indian, with his tomahawk of stone, flint-pointed ar- 
 row, and tanned war-dress, from the skins of moose and 
 bear, standing proudly erect, shook his head, and said, 
 "The Great Spirit dwells there; he covers steps above the 
 green leaves with the darkness of the fire tempest. No 
 foot-marks are seen returning from his home in the clouds." 
 The explorer's thirst for daring adventure overruled the
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 7 
 
 fear created by the Indians' superstition ; and, after learn- 
 ing that the Great Spirit sent a high wind, in a thick 
 mist, and caught up to the top of Agiochook a single sanop 
 and his squaw, that the wilderness and all the mountains 
 except this, might be covered for two suns with water, and 
 that they might then return as the only mortals who should 
 ever come down the " White Rock " from his dwelling 
 place, he went to the top, and safely returned. All old 
 authentic records agree, that the aborigines unitedly had 
 a peculiar superstitious veneration for these mountains. 
 They considered them- the dwelling-place of the invisible 
 One, who, with a motion of his hand, could raise a storm ; 
 and accordingly they deemed it pardonless sacrilege to 
 ascend them. Traditions teach us that a few have been 
 found so daring (in the long history of the Indians) as to 
 press, with their moccasined feet the moss that grows 
 above the region of scrub vegetation ; and such have been 
 doomed to wander forever invisibly among wild gorges, 
 with no resting-jj)Iace save the damp, cold caverns in the 
 rocks, and no hope of ever reaching the "happy land" 
 beyond the setting sun. To this day, those are to be 
 found who credulously believe that the strange noises often 
 heard among the shadowy cliffs (instead of giving credit to 
 wolves and wild-cats) proceed from lost spirits, that miser- 
 ably exist here in hopeless torment, perpetually bewailing 
 their fate. 
 
 2*
 
 8 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 GEOGRAPHICAL SITUATION OF WHITE MOUNTAINS. 
 
 These mountains are situated in the State of New 
 Hampshire, and County of Coos. Their latitude is 44 
 16' 34" north, and longitude 77 20' west. Since their 
 discovery by the early voyagers along the wild coast of 
 New England, they have ever been regarded with won- 
 der and admiration. Deep, shadowy gorges, where the 
 everlasting waterfall lives among massy crags, with its 
 endless thunder-song; the yawning chasms, filled with 
 snow, and romantic, flowery glens, shaded by a gnarled 
 growth of old forest-trees, combined with an area of fifty 
 thousand three hundred and forty-one acres of shattered 
 rocks, piled high up to the clouds, in the wildest disorder 
 imaginable, form the remarkable outline of this famous 
 locality. No wonder that the rude, nature-tanned son of 
 the wilderness, as he gazed upon this gigantic pile of rocks, 
 standing up from its original bed six thousand two hundred 
 and eighty-five feet into the clouds, was filled with super- 
 stitious veneration ; for here, in all coming time, the en- 
 lightened sons of science may pay willing homage, where 
 the Great Spirit dwelt in storms, and gave the thunder 
 his voice, and the lightning the flash of his anger ! 
 
 GEOLOGICAL FEATURES. 
 
 According to the report of the geological surveyor of 
 the State of New Hampshire, Dr. C. T. Jackson, the feat-
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 9 
 
 ures of these mountains, geologically considered, possess 
 little peculiar interest. The rocks in places consist of a 
 coarse variety of mica slate, passing into gneiss, and con- 
 taining a few crystals of black tourmaline, and quartz. 
 The cone of Mount Washington and its summit are covered 
 with myriads of angular and flat blocks, and slabs of mica 
 slate, piled in confusion one upon another. These are 
 identical in nature with the rocks in place, and leave no 
 marks of transportation or abrasion by the action of water. 
 The nucleus of these mountains is granite rock, and the 
 mica slate found on the top of the different peaks is but a 
 superficial crust ; and it is observable that the sedimentary 
 deposit, or granite, has been disturbed by upheavals, 
 which, with the action of a comparatively moderate heat 
 for ages, has doubled back and twisted and broken these 
 large sheets of mica slate, and left the fragments exposed 
 in the wildest confusion, for mortal wonder. 
 
 MINERALS. 
 
 Various local traditions are in existence to prove the 
 adventurous belief of many, that yet, in some unexplored 
 or enchantment-guarded places, are mines of wealth of 
 immense value. These tend to tantalize the imagination 
 of many; with how much probability for future real- 
 ization is not my province to decide. In this book will 
 be found certain of these traditions, which, in their proper
 
 10 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 places are deemed worthy of record, for the gratification 
 of public curiosity. 
 
 The minerals yet obtained among these mountains are 
 not satisfactory to the spirit of discovery. Southerly 
 from the top of Mount Washington is found a vein of 
 quartz, containing crystals of fluor-spar of an apple-green 
 color, and crystallized in its primary form. This attracts 
 the attention of collectors of minerals, and is worthy of 
 notice as a curiosity. A few quartz crystals, in the form 
 of six-sided prisms, also occur at the same place. Near 
 the location of these crystals has been found, lately, a 
 new bed of black tourmaline, which has furnished some 
 finely-shaped crystals. These specimens are found in large 
 masses of milk-quartz, near the routs to the summit of the 
 mountain, from the old Crawford or Davis path. On a 
 branch of Dry river, have been found some remarkably 
 large and transparent specimens of quartz crystallization, 
 and much search has been made there for a bed of dia- 
 monds that are of a rare quality. An old hunter (San- 
 born) is now living, who faithfully affirms that, many 
 years ago, while fishing, up a small branch of Dry river, 
 under the eastern side of Mount Pleasant, he came to a 
 place where the water ran between two high white rocka 
 so covered with perfect diamonds that it was blinding to 
 his eyes to look upon the same. He succeeded in break- 
 ing off three with his fish-pole, which he sold for five dol-
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 11 
 
 lars each, at Old Abel Crawford's. Several exploring 
 parties have been in search of this treasure ; and as lately 
 as 1853 the same old gray-headed hunter who made the 
 discovery, went with two other treasure-seekers, armed 
 with drills and powder, &<?., and made thorough search, 
 for several days, among all the small northern branches 
 of this river. Not far from the top of Mount Wash- 
 ington, in every direction from that point, are found 
 veins of white and rose-colored quartz, with here and 
 there fine crystals of quartz ; and on Mount Franklin have 
 been found many fine specimens of crystallization. In or 
 near the gateway of the Notch are found rare amethystine 
 crystals, specimens of which will readily sell to mineralo- 
 gists for five dollars each. Tin is found in veins on some 
 of the southern spurs of these mountains ; in the valley 
 of Dry River, are streams so impregnated with iron that 
 the bushes and trees along their shores are loaded with red 
 rust ; and in such places not a fish, or thing of animal life, 
 can be found. Particles of lead, with specks of silver, 
 are found on a branch of Peabody river ; but so far noth- 
 ing of that kind has been found sufficient for important 
 notice. As yet, there are many deep glens and wild crags 
 in all this mighty pile of mountains, where the explorer 
 has never left the print of his feet upon the moss. With- 
 out doubt more minerals will be found before these moun- 
 tains are perfectly well known.
 
 12 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 SCIENTIFIC MEASUREMENTS OF THE MOUNTAINS. 
 
 Rev. D. Cutler twice visited the Crystal Hills, in the 
 beginning of the eighteenth century, and took barometrical 
 observations, by which he calculates the highest peak to be 
 ten thousand feet above the sea. 
 
 Dr. Belknap, in his famous New Hampshire History, is 
 persuaded by his observations, that the computation of ten 
 thousand feet as the height of the Crystal Hills is too 
 moderate, and he concludes that subsequent calculations 
 will make them much higher. Mr. Bowditch published, in 
 the transactions of the American Academy, a logarithmic 
 calculation, founded on Professor Peck's barometrical ob- 
 servations, giving the Crystal Hills an elevation of seven 
 thousand and fifty-five feet. Capt. Partridge, United 
 States engineer, visited these mountains in 1804, and 
 took barometrical observations on several of the principal 
 peaks. His calculations give to the highest summit an 
 elevation of six thousand one hundred and three feet. 
 
 July 2d, 1816, a mountain barometer of Englefield's 
 construction stood, on the highest peak, at noon, 24.23, 
 the accompanying thermometer being at 57. Same day, 
 at Cambridge, Mass., similar observations were taken ; and 
 a logarithmic calculation, made by Professor Farrar, from 
 the data thus obtained, resulted in establishing six thou- 
 sand two hundred and twenty-five feet above the waters
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 13 
 
 of the ocean as the height of Mount Washington. A geo- 
 metrical admeasurement taken by Professor Shuttuck, on 
 the north-west side of the mountain, on the plain near the 
 present ruins of the Fabyan Stand, gave to the summit an 
 elevation of six thousand two hundred and sixty-eight feet 
 'above the level of the sea. William Maclue, author of 
 the " United States Geological Map," made geometrical 
 admeasurements on both sides of the mountain ; and his 
 conclusions fixed the height at six thousand two hundred 
 and sixty-six feet. In 1840, C. T. Jackson, geological 
 surveyor of New Hampshire, by means of barometrical 
 and thermometrical observations, made for a period of 
 twelve hours, at a time when the weather was remarkably 
 favorable, and the atmospheric pressure was stationary 
 throughout the state, as shown by other observations made 
 at the same time, ascertained the height of Mount Wash- 
 ington to be six thousand two hundred and twenty-six feet 
 above high-water mark at Portsmouth. According to the 
 Cincinnati Times of Dec. 1st, 1853, the United States 
 coast surveyors, in Aug., 1853, made, by calculation, the 
 summit of Mount Washington six thousand seven hundred 
 and forty-three feet above the sea. William A. Goodwin, 
 Esq., one of the engineers of the Atlantic and St. Lawrence 
 rail road, by a survey made by levelling from the ocean to 
 the top of Mount Washington, makes the height of that 
 peak six thousand two hundred and eighty-five feet. Pro-
 
 14 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 fessor Guyot, of Cambridge, Mass., by barometrical ob- 
 servations taken at the same time, nearly agrees with 
 Mr. Goodwin's survey. This is, doubtless, the actual 
 height of Mount Washington. In 1854, Messrs. Ricker 
 and Cavis, chief engineers of the White Mountain car- 
 riage-road, by actual survey, made the height six thousand 
 two hundred and eighty-four feet. 
 
 HEIGHT OF WHITE MOUNTAINS. 
 
 Mt. Washington, 6,285 ft. 
 
 Mt. Monroe, 
 
 5,349 ft 
 
 " Adams, 5,790 " 
 
 " Franklin, 
 
 4,850 
 
 " Jefferson, 5,710 " 
 
 " Pleasant, 
 
 4,715 
 
 " Madison, 5,361 " 
 
 " Clinton, 
 
 4,200 " 
 
 " Clay, 5,011 
 
 
 
 PERPETUAL CONGELATION. 
 
 Many suppose that in the darkest and most shadowy 
 gorges of these mountains snow and ice may be found 
 at any season of the year. This is a mistaken opinion ; 
 for it can be satisfactorily proved, by those who know, 
 that the latest appearance of old snow, for several yeara 
 past, has been in Tuckerman's Ravine, as late as Aug. 
 20th. This ravine, by observation, is found to retain its 
 winter burden the longest ; and being, as it is, fairly ex- 
 posed to the sun, this, unexplained, appears remarkable. 
 The northern winds of our extremely cold winters pile 
 there, from the surrounding summits, a good share of the
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 15 
 
 snow that falls on them ; and there is but little doubt that 
 in our most severe seasons for wintry storms, the snow- 
 drift in this wild gorge is a hundred feet deep. Much has 
 been written and said about the endless snow-arch and per- 
 petual snow-bank of Tuckerman's Ravine, by those, even, 
 who, with the light of science around them, should be 
 aware that in the latitude of these mountains the line of 
 perpetual congelation is, by scientific observation, found 
 to be at an elevation of seven thousand eight hundred and 
 seventy-two feet above the sea level. To strengthen the 
 conclusion that the snow may here be seen in piles a hun- 
 dred feet deep, the following true account may here be 
 noticed: 
 
 DINING UNDER FORTY FEET OF SNOW. 
 
 The water that runs from Tuckerman's Ravine passes 
 under the great snow-bank, and, with the warmth of sum- 
 mer, wears a curious channel. July 16th, 1854, D. 0. 
 Macomber, president of the Mount Washington carriage- 
 road, and Engineer C. H. V. Cavis, of that road, with the 
 author of these pages, dined in that snow arch. It was 
 then two hundred and sixty-six feet long, eighty-four 
 feet wide, and forty feet high, by measurement, to the 
 snow roof, from which constantly dripped down cold ice- 
 water around us. A heavy thunder-shower, while there, 
 passed over us, and after the shower we found any 
 3
 
 16 HISTORICAL RELICS OJ 
 
 quantity of little hardy alpine flowers, fresh and fair, 
 watered by the water from the great bank. 
 
 THE VETERAN PILOT. 
 
 In 1792, near the famous " Giant's Grave,"* lived a 
 solitary pioneer of this mountain wilderness ; and a rude 
 cabin of logs, covered with bark, was his only shelter. This 
 man had no neighbor nearer than twelve miles, and naught 
 but a rough hunting-path, marked by spotted trees, led 
 thither through the notch. Wild beasts were plenty in all 
 this mountain region. The first glowing accounts of the 
 early hunters scarcely equalled the reality. All the streams 
 were full of trouts. Moose, bears, wolves and wild-cats, 
 were all very numerous in their undisturbed haunts, within 
 the shadow of these towering crags, where the Indian 
 hunter dared not leave his foot-marks. The name of this 
 white man, who here lived in solitude, was Abel Crawford 
 the one who in after years most justly gained the title 
 of the Veteran Pilot. He was the first guide for gentle- 
 men strangers, who first came here to see the mountain 
 scenery, independent of any scientific purpose. Let the 
 name Crawford live with this mountain memory ! The 
 steps of the old Veteran Pilot were among those gray old 
 cliffs, and dark, shadowy gorges, when log-cabins were the 
 only habitation in all this northern wilderness. Then he 
 
 * A well-known mound near the Fabyan ruins by the northern 
 shore of the Amonoosuc.
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 17 
 
 dressed in the tanned skins of the moose, and became in 
 the chase a perfect Nimrod and a true disciple of the 
 famed Izaak Walton. 
 
 FIRST HOTEL. 
 
 By the present ruins of the old Fabyan stand, on the 
 westerly end of the " Giant's Grave," was erected the first 
 public house for White Mountain visitors, in the year 
 1803. A record of this fact is found in E. A. Crawford's 
 journal, page twenty, of which the following is a true 
 extract : " My grandfather built a large and convenient 
 two-story dwelling on an elevated spot (this elevation has 
 since been named Giant's Grave). This house had two 
 stories under ground. From the chamber over this, in 
 the second story, was an outside door, which opened so 
 that one could walk out on this fine hill, from which, to 
 the stranger, the view was beautiful." 
 
 When owned by E. A. Crawford, in the year 1819, 
 that house was burned ; and it is a singular fact that this 
 is the only fine locality for a -public (White Mountain) 
 house, in full view from the tip-top rock of Mount Wash- 
 ington ; and yet here three public houses have been burned 
 since the year 1805, on and near this " Giant's Grave." 
 
 INDIAN PROPHECY ON GIANT'S GRAVE. 
 
 There is a strange tradition extant, of an Indian, who, 
 long years ago, stood on that mound, with a blazing pitch-
 
 18 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 pine torch, lighted at a tree struck by lightning, and, 
 swinging it wildly around in the darkness, he said, " No 
 pale-face shall take deep root here ; this the Great Spirit 
 whispered in my ear." 
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAIN GIANT. 
 
 The name of E. A. Crawford is deeply chiselled upon 
 the rocks of this gigantic Mount built by nature (Mount 
 Washington) ; and the lady who shared in life his joys 
 and sorrows has, in her "White Mountain History," 
 reared a testimonial to his memory. Will not my humble 
 tribute of a stone, laid in silence upon his grave, be 
 accepted by all who pleasantly cherish the remembrance of 
 " Ethan of the Hills," or the " White Mountain Giant " ? 
 
 The subject of this sketch was born in Guildhall, Ver- 
 mont, in the year 1792. When but a mere lad his parents 
 moved to the White Mountains, and here he grew up a 
 giant mountaineer, illustrating by his hardy habits, how 
 daring enterprise and pure mountain climate nerve the man 
 and stamp the hero upon mortality. Inheriting the house on 
 the westerly end of the " Giant's Grave," with an encum- 
 brance that made him worse than destitute of all worldly 
 goods, he was one day shocked, when returning from 
 hunting on the hills, to see his home burned down, and 
 his wife and infant sheltered only by an open shed. 
 Twelve miles one way, and six the other, to neighbors,
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 19 
 
 here he was with his little family in the wilderness, desti- 
 tute of every comfort, save that of hope. The sunshine of 
 joy, unclouded by sorrow, and the warm smiles of good 
 fortune, seem ever attendant upon the lives of some, con- 
 stantly beckoning their favorites forward to the green 
 fields of abundance, and bowers of pleasure and ease. 
 Others, perchance born under a less favoring star, in their 
 growth rise up like giants, breasting manfully, step by 
 step, the wrecking storms of adversity, and by their own 
 heroic exertions, hew out for themselves characters deeply 
 lined, amid the black shadows of sorrow and disappoint- 
 ment. Of such a mould was the spirit of Ethan A. Craw- 
 ford. The inconveniences of poverty, that come like a 
 strong man armed upon poor mortality, and sickness 
 and the many hardships linked with every-day life in a 
 new settlement, fell to this man's share. Yet he cheer- 
 fully performed the duties of life with an iron resolution, 
 that stood misfortune's shocks as firmly as his own moun- 
 tains stand storms and the changes of time. He was a 
 tall, finely-proportioned man; and, though called by many 
 the " White Mountain Giant," beneath the rough exterior 
 of the hardy mountaineer glowed constantly, in a heroic 
 heart, the warm fire of love and manly virtue. The art- 
 less prattle of his little children was sweet music to his 
 spirit, and his ambitious aspirations were constantly 
 invigorated by social comfort with his little family. 
 3*
 
 20 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 CARRYING THE KETTLE AND DEER. 
 
 The first display of Ethan's giant strength recorded ia 
 of his carrying on his head, across the Amonoosuc river, a 
 potash-kettle, weighing four hundred pounds. 
 
 In 1821 he caught a full-grown deer, in a wild gorge, 
 four miles from home ; and as the trap had not broken his 
 leg, and he appeared quite gentle, he thought to lead him 
 home. Failing in his attempt to do this, he shouldered 
 him and trudged homeward, over hill and through tangled 
 brushwood, feeling by the way, perchance, like Crusoe, 
 with his lamas, how fine it would be to have a park and 
 many deer to show his visitors. But his day-visions van- 
 ished ; for, on arriving at home, he found the deer so much 
 injured that he died. 
 
 At another time, he cauyht a unld mountain-buck in a 
 snare ; and, finding him too heavy to shoulder, he made 
 him a halter of withes, and succeeded in halter-leading 
 him so completely, that, after nearly a day spent in the 
 attempt, he arrived at home with his prize, much to the 
 wonder of all. 
 
 THE GIANT LUGGING THE OLD BEAR. 
 
 In 1829 Ethan caught a good-sized bear in a trap ; 
 and thought to bind him with withes, and lead him home 
 as he had the buck. In attempting to do this, the bear 
 would catch with his paws at the trees ; and our hero,
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 21 
 
 not willing to be outwitted by a bear, managed to get him 
 on his shoulder, and, with one hand firmly hold of his nose, 
 carried him two miles homeward. The bear, not well sat- 
 isfied with his prospects, entered into a serious engage- 
 ment with his captor, and by scratching and biting suc- 
 ceeded in tearing off his vest and one pantaloon-leg, so 
 that Ethan laid him down so hard upon the rocks that he 
 died. That fall he caught ten bears in that same wild 
 glen. 
 
 The first bear kept at the White Mountains for a show 
 was caught by Ethan, while returning from the Mountain 
 with two young gentlemen he had been up with as guide. 
 Seeing a small bear cross their path, they followed him 
 to a tree, which he climbed. Ethan climbed after, 
 and, succeeding in getting him, tied his mouth up with 
 a handkerchief, and backed him home. This bear he 
 provided with a trough of water, a strap and pole ; and 
 here he was for a long time kept, as the first tame bear of 
 the mountains. This was about the year 1829. 
 
 Ethan caught a wild-cat unth a birch vrithe ! Once, 
 when passing down the Notch, he was attracted to a tree 
 by the barking of his dog, where, up among the thick 
 branches, he discovered a full-grown wild-cat. Having 
 only a small hatchet with him, he cut two long birch 
 withes, and, twisting them well together, made a slip- 
 noose, which he run up through the thick leaves ; and
 
 22 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 while the cat was watching the dog, he managed to get 
 this noose over his head, and, with a sudden jerk, brought 
 him to the ground. His dog instantly seized him, but 
 was willing to beat a retreat till reinforced by his master, 
 who with a heavy club came to the rescue. The skin of 
 this cat, when stretched, measured over six feet. 
 
 Ethan's two close shots are worthy of note. One fall, 
 while setting a sable line, about two miles back of the 
 Notch, he discovered a little lake, set, like a diamond, in 
 a rough frame-work of beetling crags. The fresh signs of 
 moose near, and trouts seen in its shining waters, was 
 sufficient inducement to spend a night by its shady shore. 
 About sunset, while engaged in catching a string of trouts, 
 his attention was suddenly arrested by a loud splashing in 
 the still water around a rocky point, where, on looking, 
 he saw two large brown moose pulling up lily-roots, and 
 fighting the flies. Prepared with an extra charge, he 
 fired ; and before the first report died in echoes among the 
 peaks, the second followed, and both moose fell dead in 
 the lake. Ethan labored hard to drag his game ashore ; 
 but late that evening bright visions of marrow-bones and 
 broiled trouts flitted like realities around him. That 
 night a doleful dirge rose in that wild gorge ; but our 
 hero slept soundly, between two warm moose-skins. He 
 cared not for the -wild wolves that scented the taint of the 
 fresh blood in the wind. That little mountain sheet is
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 23 
 
 now, from the above circumstance, known as " Ethan's 
 Pond." 
 
 Ethan was always proud to speak of how he carried a 
 lady two miles down t/te mountain on his shoulders. It 
 was no uncommon affair for him to shoulder a man and 
 lug him down the mountain ; but his more delicate 
 attempts to pack a young lady down the steep rocks, he 
 seemed to regard as an important incident in his adven- 
 turous career. Miss E. Woodward was the name of the 
 lady who received from the Mountain Giant such marked 
 attention. By a wrong step she became very lame, and 
 placing, as well as he could, a cushion of coats upon his 
 right shoulder, the lady became well sealed, and he 
 thus brought her down to where they left their horses. 
 
 By Adino N. Brackett's Journal, published in Moore's 
 His. Col., vol. 1st, page 97, it appears that Adino N. 
 Brackett, John W. Weeks, Gen. John Willson, Charles J. 
 Stuart, Esq., Noyes S. Dennison, and Samuel A. Pearson, 
 Esq., from Lancaster, N. H., with Philip Carrigan and E. 
 A. Crawford, went up, July 31st, 1820, to name the dif- 
 ferent summits. Gen. John Willson, of Boston, is now, 
 1855, the only survivor of that party. "They made 
 Ethan their pilot, and loaded him with provisions and 
 blankets, like a pack-horse ; and then, as they began to 
 ascend, they piled on top of his load their coats." 
 This party had a fine time ; and, after giving the names 
 of our sages to the different peaks, according to their alti-
 
 24 HISTORICAL RET.TCS OF 
 
 tilde, they drank health to these hoary cliffs, in honor tc 
 the illustrious men whose names they were, from this date, 
 to bear ; then, curled down among the rocks, without fire, 
 on the highest crag, they doubtless spent the first night 
 mortals ever spent on that elevated place. In the morn- 
 ing, after seeing the sun rise out of the ocean far, far 
 below them, they descended westerly from the apex about 
 a mile, and came to a beautiful sheet of water (Lake of 
 the Clouds), near a ridge of rocks, which, when they left, 
 they named "Blue Pond" It doubtless looked blue to 
 them ; for something they carried in bottles so weakened 
 the limbs of one of the party that Ethan was, from this 
 place, burdened with a back-load of mortality, weighing 
 two hundred pounds, down to the Amonoosuc valley. Thus 
 we find Ethan most emphatically the " Giant of the Moun- 
 tains" He never hesitated to encounter any danger that 
 appeared in his path, whether from wild beasts, flood, or 
 mountain tempest. 
 
 The First Bridle-path on the White Mountains was 
 made in 1819. As there had got to be ten or twelve 
 visitors a year, to see these mountains, at this date, Ethan 
 thought, to accommodate his company, he would cut a path 
 as far as the region of scrub vegetation extended. It had 
 been very difficult to go without a road, clambering over 
 trees, up steep ledges, through streams, and over the hedgy 
 scrub-growth ; and accordingly, when the fact of a path being
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 25 
 
 made was published, the fame of this region spread lite 
 wild-fire. This path was started at the head of the notch 
 near Gibbs' House, and, extending to the top of Mount 
 Clinton, reached from thence to the top of Mount Wash- 
 ington, nearly where Gibbs' Path now is. Soon after the 
 completion of this path, the necessity of a cabin, where 
 visitors could stop through the night, was perceivable by 
 Ethan ; and accordingly he built a stone cabin, near the 
 top of Mount Washington, by a spring of water that lives 
 there, and spread in it an abundance of soft moss for beds, 
 that those who wished to stop here through the night, to 
 see the sun set and rise, might be accommodated. This 
 rude home for the traveller was soon improved, and fur- 
 nished with a small stove, an iron chest, and a long roll of 
 sheet-lead ; the chest was to secure from the bears and 
 hedge-hogs the camping-blankets ; and, according to tradi- 
 tion, around that old chest many who hungered have en- 
 joyed a hearty repast. That roll of lead was for visitors 
 to engrave their names on with a sharp iron. Alas! that 
 tale-telling sheet has been moulded into bullets, and that 
 old chest was buried by an avalanche. How all things 
 pass away ! 
 
 In 1821 the first ladies visited Mount Washington. 
 This party, of which these ladies numbered three, had 
 Ethan for its guide, and, proceeding to the stone cabin, 
 waited there through a storm for several days, that they
 
 26 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 might be the first females to accomplish the unrecorded 
 feat of ascending Mount Washington. This heroic little 
 party was the Misses Austin, of Portsmouth, N. H., being 
 accompanied by their brother and an Esq. Stuart, of 
 Lancaster. Everything was managed as much for their 
 comfort as possible ; the little stone cabin was provided 
 with an outside addition, in which the gentlemen staid, 
 that their companions might be more retired and comfort- 
 able. This party came near being what the sailor might 
 call " weather-bound." They were obliged to send back 
 for more provisions; and at last the severe mountain- 
 storm passed away, and that for which they had ambi- 
 tiously endured so much exposure was granted them. 
 They went to the top, had a fine prospect, and, after an 
 absence of five days, returned from the mountains, in fine 
 spirits, highly gratified with their adventure. This heroic 
 act should confer an honor upon the names of this pioneer 
 party, as everything was managed with so much prudence 
 and modesty that there was not left even a shadow for re- 
 proach, save by those who felt themselves outdone ; so says 
 record. 
 
 In the summer of 1840 the first horse that ever climbed 
 the rocks of Mount Washington was rode up by old Abel 
 Crawford. The old man was then seventy-five years old, 
 and, though his head was whitened by the snows of many 
 winters, his blood was stirred, on that occasion, by the
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 27 
 
 ambitious animation of more youthful days. There he 
 sat proudly upon his noble horse, with uncovered head, 
 and the wind played lightly with his venerable white 
 locks. Truly that was a picture worthy an artist's skill. 
 Holding that horse by the rein, there stood his son Ethan, 
 as guide to his old father. The son and the parent ! 
 worthy representatives of the mighty monument, to the re- 
 membrance of which, their pioneer exertions have added 
 fadeless fame. From that day a new era dawned on these 
 mountains. Forget not the veteran Abel, and Ethan " the 
 White Mountain Giant" 
 
 The White Mountain Guides should all be remembered. 
 In our lengthy notice of Ethan, the White Mountain 
 Giant, we do not mean to eclipse the worthy deeds of 
 other noble mountain spirits, who have followed his old 
 path, and even made new ones for their own feet. This 
 mountain region is truly haunted, as it were, by peculiar 
 influences, that call to its attractions as dauntless men for 
 guides as our New England mountain-land can boast. 
 Ethan A. Crawford came here when this was a wilder- 
 ness-land, unknown to fame. The fashionable world knew 
 nothing of its peculiarities. He spent much time, even 
 the energies of his life, exploring the wild gorges and dan- 
 gerous peaks of the mountains, and became a mighty 
 hunter. He was, in fact, the bold pioneer who, with his 
 old father, opened the way whereby the " Crystal Hills " 
 4
 
 28 HISTORICAL RELICS OP 
 
 became known to the world. " Honor to whom honor is 
 due ! " Then let us not be unmindful of Ethan, who 
 grappled with nature in her wildness, and made gigantic 
 difficulties surmountable ; and let us remember the names 
 "Tom Crawford," "Hartford," "Hall," "Cogswell;" 
 "Dana, and Lucius M. Rosebrook," "Leavitt," "Hayes," 
 and others, who have followed piloting for a series of years 
 on these mountains. These aj:e all men in whose hands 
 the tourist was comparatively safe ; and, though the most 
 of the above names are with the past, others are on the 
 stage, who have an ambitious desire to outdo, even, in 
 skill and management, those whose footsteps they follow. 
 We will not praise the living guides of the White Moun- 
 tains; their actions speak monuments of honor to their 
 own names. Have confidence in their integrity ; and may 
 they never betray their trust ! 
 
 TRADITIONS OF SILVER AND GOLD. 
 
 From an ancient record, in manuscript, found in an old, 
 worm-eaten chest, among files of papers relating to the 
 early exploration and survey of the northern wilderness, 
 appears the following : 
 
 " Espying what could be found in this wild country, as 
 we came to the shadow of this exceeding great mountain, 
 we drew near to a little lake among high rocks. Here
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 29 
 
 we still hunted a moose, and, kindling a fire of pine knots, 
 enjoyed a great feast. Game was thick here; and we 
 could as easily count the sand as the spotted fish in the 
 stream. By this water we discovered a pine log, much 
 decayed, with fire-marks on the ends, and the middle was 
 burned out like as if a fire had been kindled on it to make 
 it a rude canoe. We found good store of curious stones, 
 that we esteemed to be diamonds (crystal quartz). At 
 the foot of a high rock, near the water, we picked up cer- 
 tain leaves of fine silver and gold as thick as a man's nail ; 
 and we found all the little mountain streams shining with 
 particles of silver, with many shining bits in the rocks. 
 After many days of toilsome travel, we returned from this 
 wonderful mountain, with bloody, bare feet, and got of the 
 Indians moccasins, made of raw moose-hide. We found 
 rude wigwams, made of poles stuck in the ground, with 
 birch-bark spread over. Around these hunting places 
 were many horns of moose, and piles of bones, eagle-claws 
 and bear-skins, which made us liken these great valleys 
 among the hills to the home of many wild beasts. No 
 man, among all the wild men we met, dared go up to the 
 high, naked rock, for fear the ' Great Master of Life ' 
 would destroy them. In a black storm of rain that fell 
 there, the mountain trembled, and the rocks were like 
 altars burning with fire. From a peak of bare rocks we 
 saw the wide land of the Iroquois Indians, with the great
 
 30 HISTORIC A r, UEUOS OK 
 
 valley of the long Canada river. Lakes, high hills, and 
 deep valleys, where wild men hunt elks, moose and bears, 
 were around us. It is a terrible wilderness of mountains 
 and game." Old Manuscript. 
 
 TRADITION OF CARBUNCLES. 
 
 Some of the early explorers of these mountains with 
 great solemnity affirmed that they saw, hanging from the 
 crags, great carbuncles, whose brilliancy was glorious to 
 behold. This report attracted the attention of adventur- 
 ers ; and several exploring parties have visited these moun- 
 tains, with the hope of finding rich and rare gems of great 
 value ; but, though various attempts have been made to 
 gain possession of these wonders, none have yet been ob- 
 tained. It is recorded that some of these carbuncle hunt- 
 ers have taken with them spiritual advisers to " lay " or 
 " exorcise " the supernatural guardians of the mountain 
 wealth ; but all to no purpose. In an old White Mountain 
 record is found a journal of a carbuncle seeker : " Hear- 
 ing that a glorious carbuncle had been found under a large 
 shelving rock, difficult to obtain, placed there by the In- 
 dians who killed one of their number, that an evil spirit 
 might haunt the place, we went up Dry river, with guides, 
 and had with us a good man to lay the evil spirit ; but 
 returned sorely bruised, treasureless, and not even saw that 
 loonderful sight." Recently no mention has been made
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 31 
 
 of wonderful carbuncles ; and there is a tradition that an 
 old Indian pronounced a curse, called " the red marts 
 curse" upon the pale-faced gem-seekers; and when he 
 died his last wish was (to save his spirit the trouble of 
 keeping the mountain-treasure from the white man's pol- 
 luting touch, by enchantment), that the Great Spirit would 
 send a black storm of fire and thunder, and splinter the 
 crags, and roll down the carbuncles with mighty ava- 
 lanches, and bury them deeply in the valleys, beneath the 
 ruins of rocks and trees. 
 
 THE INDIAN GHOST. 
 
 There are those now living in the shadow of these 
 mountains who seem to believe that, every " fall of the 
 leaf," on a certain night, a supernatural brightness glows 
 upon a particular crag, and the giant ghost of an Indian 
 warrior, fancifully arrayed in a black bear-skin war-robe, 
 with a bloody stone tomahawk, and a broken horn-beam 
 bow, may be seen dancing in the wind, by the light, to the 
 measure of his self-sang dirge. At such times the snow 
 disappears from off the rocks around ; but no mountaineer 
 has ever been found capable of climbing the ice-crags, t5 
 satisfy the curiosity whether or not fire-marks may at 
 such times be found. 
 
 LOST SPIRITS' LOOKING-GLASSES. 
 
 If a humble addition may here be allowed, might not 
 
 4* '
 
 32 HISTORICAL HEI.IOS OK 
 
 these 'wonderful carbuncles have been merely rocks seen at 
 a distance, covered with water or ice, with the sunlight 
 reflected to favor the delusion ? Or, if we need a tincture 
 of the miraculous, perchance some of Darby Field's Mus- 
 covy glass was so arranged by the mountain genii, as to 
 answer for looking-glasses, in which lost Indian spirits 
 might see themselves. But even this isinglass, of such 
 size, cannot be found, for a wonder. Has not the brother 
 of the speculative Yankee who attempted to whittle the 
 north pole up for tooth-picks, spirited this even away, 
 that it might be devoted to mechanical purposes by the 
 utilitarian age ? Speak, ye who can say ! 
 
 ROGERS AND HIS RANGERS. 
 
 The night of October 3d, 1765, the St. Francis Indians, 
 at their village on the bank of the river for which their 
 tribe was named, held a grand war-dance. Fair maidens 
 and brave young warriors were there, with light hearts ; 
 and wildly in the night rose their triumph-song, as they 
 swung in air the scalp-locks of a hundred pale-facss. They 
 dreamed not that a spy was in. their ring, and that ere 
 another sun the three pale-faced captives, who sorrowfully 
 listened to their barbaric jubilee, would wade through 
 their warm blood, and be far on the long trail over the 
 mountains. 
 
 llobert llogers, dispatched, with two hundred (some his- 
 iorians say five hundred) tried rangers, through the long
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. OO 
 
 wilderness, to chastise these Indians lor that in celebration 
 of which they this night held the great dance, was there ; 
 and when daylight returned, their village was in "ashes, 
 and hundreds slept the sleep of death. Belknap, in his 
 New Hampshire History, says: "The houses of these 
 Indians were well furnished, and their church was richly 
 adorned with plate." Two hundred guineas, with a silver 
 image weighing eight pounds, and a great quantity of rich 
 wampum, were taken from this church as lawful plunder. 
 Satisfied with his work, llogers made his retreat up the 
 St. Francis river, intending with his men to pass the carry- 
 ing-place to Magog Lake, thence home to the south part 
 of Laconia: (N. H.). The snow came on deep, and, being 
 pursued by the remnant left after the destruction of that 
 Indian village, several of their number were killed ; and, 
 after wandering many days, they became scattered, and 
 . many perished by hunger and cold. The early settlers 
 of Cohos (Coos) found relics of this ill-fated party, and 
 later, among the White Mountains sad vestiges arise in 
 the twilight of tradition ; and, faithful to the living history 
 of this famous mountain, they shall have record. 
 
 SILVER IMAGE, WAMPUM, AND MONEY. 
 
 In the retreat and pursuit following the result of Rogers' 
 
 expedition most of the rangers followed their leader's 
 
 command, while small detached parties, throwing off all 
 
 martial restraint, made independent homeward trails for
 
 34 HISTORICAL RELICS OP 
 
 themselves. One small party of nine, leaving the waters 
 running northward, passed the highlands, and came upon 
 a stream that evidently fell into the Connecticut. Here 
 they resolved to strike that river at the head of the falls 
 (now called Fifteen MilSs Falls), southerly of Upper Cohos, 
 and, following up the stream (John's river) that came from 
 the " Crystal Hills," pass over to the valley of the Amo- 
 noosuc, and through the Notch, homeward. This party 
 had*expected to meet a detachment on the Connecticut, 
 from old No. 4 (now Charleston N. H.), with supplies ; 
 and, being disappointed in this, in a most travel-worn 
 and destitute condition, after waiting several days they 
 yielded to the guidance of an Indian runner, who offered 
 to conduct them to the great pass of the " Crystal Hills." 
 They did not dream that this Indian was acting false, by 
 knowing the prophecy of the gray-headed old Indian, who 
 in the St. Francis church said to the plunderers of the 
 treasure there, " The Great Spirit will scatter darkness 
 upon the path of the pale-faces ! " How literally this 
 prophecy was fulfilled, the end shows more clearly than 
 facts seen in the mist of dreams. This Indian guide led 
 his charge up the Connecticut to the mouth of the next 
 river, which he called Singrawack,* and from thence they 
 
 * This name signifies "Foamy Stream of THE WHITE ROCK." 
 In memory of a great hunter, Israel Stark, who long ago hunted 
 in the valley of this stream, it has been called " Israel's river."
 
 TUB WHITE MOUNTAINS. 35 
 
 followed up to near the foot of the White Mountains, where 
 he left them. This little party had in charge the plunder 
 taken from the Indian church, and to him who bore the 
 treasure, the Indian gave a rude birch-bark map, descrip- 
 tive of their route thence. The reason given by the Indian 
 guide for going no further was pretended fear that the 
 Great Spirit would kill him, if he left his footprints in the 
 shadow of the great snowy Agiochook. The ranger who 
 received the birch map did not notice an apparently 
 accidental scratch given him on the back of his hand by 
 the guide on the receipt of the map ; but when his hand 
 began to swell, suspicion rested upon the false guide. 
 Symptoms of poison became strikingly apparent, and the 
 increasing inflammation gave speed to his blood, and fear 
 mingled with pain pressed madness into his brain, and 
 with frightful shrieks of rage he rushed to a high rock, 
 and, throwing himself down, was dashed to pieces. The 
 gloom of death in their midst, combined with the startling 
 circumstances, was like a black night-shadow upon the 
 future prospects of this little party ; and, holding a brief 
 council, the decision was that their companion came to his 
 death by a slight wound of a rattlesnake's fang, designed 
 by their Indian guide. With the remembrance of the 
 
 This river turns the machinery of the thriving village of Lancas- 
 ter, as it passes through, on its foaming track to the broad Connect- 
 icut, with which it mingles a mile below Lancaster village.
 
 36 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 Indian prophecy fresh in mind, they resolved to bury the 
 mangled remains of their mate, with his knapsack contain- 
 ing the stolen treasure, carefully in a rude cave, where the 
 red hunter dared not leave his footmarks. 
 
 According to old tradition, of that party of nine but one 
 ever reached the settlement below the mountains. Being 
 misled by their false guide, they miscalculated as to the 
 certainty of passing down the mountain notch ; and, being 
 the distance of two river valleys to the northward of the 
 point from which they might have passed through safely, 
 they wandered many days in vain attempt to attain their 
 object, and, after extreme suffering from hunger, and the 
 rigorous storms of approaching winter, one only arrived to 
 tell the sad story of misery and death. This ragged and 
 forlorn-looking mortal had with him six knives, and in his 
 bloody knapsack was a piece of human flesh, of which for 
 the last eight days he declared he had eaten to support the 
 flickering spark of life that now but faintly burned within 
 him. 
 
 RANGERS' RELICS FOUND. 
 
 When the early hunters came to the valley of the Cohos 
 (meadow of pines), on a pine-tree standing up in a wild 
 gorge, on what the Indians called Singrawack, was a bark- 
 less spot, whereon was a curious mingling of storm-worn
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 37 
 
 hieroglyphical characters. Near this was found the 
 remains of a military dress rusty buttons, &c., with a 
 gun-barrel, lock, rotten stock, and a small copper kettle. 
 In another place, while digging away the rubbish at the 
 foot of a steep bank near which a block-house had lately 
 been erected, in place of an expected spring of water 
 were found six old gun-barrels, and what appeared to be 
 a pile of knapsacks, containing a quantity of frogs and 
 fish-bones. A certain old hunter, by the delusive influence 
 of three similar dreams, fancied that he should become 
 wealthy by untiring search for precious treasures among 
 the White Hills. One day, while engaged in his exploring 
 operations, a terrible mountain storm obliged him to seek 
 shelter under an overhanging cliff. While there he noticed, 
 back in a dark corner, among the shadows of this rude 
 cave, several flat stones piled up in a manner too curious 
 to be natural. On examination under this pile, he found 
 a rusty old hatehet, and a roll of birch-bark, neatly 
 encased in wild-bees' wax. A disagreeable stench rose 
 from the damp mould within the crevice wherein these 
 relics were secured, and a silent fear of he knew not what 
 caused the old hunter to instinctively withdraw from 
 further examination. Within the birch-bark roll he found 
 a parchment, formed of an Indian-tanned fawn-skin, on 
 which were written many characters, which to the unlet- 
 tered hunter were mysterious. He carried his unaccount-
 
 38 HISTORICAL RELICS OK 
 
 able prize to the nearest settlement, and, being void of all 
 antiquarian spirit, sold it to a distiller of spirits for two 
 quarts of potato-whiskey. Here the mysterious manu- 
 script disappeared, and by many it is believed to have 
 been burned with the whiskey-shop in 1804. Be this as it 
 may, the old hunter now fancied he could lead a party of 
 treasure-seekers to the hiding-place of the silver image, 
 and other treasure supposed to be there somewhere, in 
 sacred keeping of the mountain genii. Ere we proceed to 
 notice the party in search for the secrets of the mountain 
 cave, we will note other wild traditions, that stalk before 
 us like gigantic shadows, speaking from the past, saying, 
 " W7iether false or true, time-honored fictions, in this 
 imaginative age, are as much of a legal tender for the liter- 
 ary world, as dry modern facts.'" 
 
 STRANGE SIGHTS SEEN. 
 
 Years previous to a settlement near these mountains, a 
 hunter brought from thence what was considered by many 
 a vague report of a strange vision seen. He was alone, 
 and what part imagination had to do with what he fancied 
 to be true, judge yc who please. He was camping far up 
 among the White Hills, on a stream called by the natives 
 " Singrawack," one night, when his camp-fire burned low, 
 and a dreamy restlessness mocked his desire to enjoy 
 profound sleep ; and to his sight, on a background of deep
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. oil 
 
 blue sky, arose the craggy mountain, enlivened by the 
 magic splendor of a moonlit night. The mountain's 
 northern side was hid in its own dark shadow; but silvery 
 moonbeams were glittering upon its pointed rock, and 
 around its top hung a still, thick mist. Above the mur- 
 muring of mountain waterfalls rose a strange noise 
 indistinctly ; but, being of a stout heart, he heeded it 
 not, save as the ominous hoot of some solitary owl, or the 
 lone howl of a hungry wolf, giving zest to his hopeless 
 employment by keeping up his spirits with a rude sere- 
 nade for the moonlit night. The hunter's nerves were 
 like steel, but a fanciful influence changed the mist to a 
 great stone church, and within this was an altar, where 
 from a sparkling censer rose a curling wreath of incense- 
 smoke, and around it lights dispersed a mellow glow, by 
 which in groups before that altar appeared a tribe of 
 savages kneeling in profound silence. A change came in 
 the wind ; a song loud and long rose as a voice-offering to 
 the Great Spirit ; then glittering church-spire, church and 
 altar, vanished, and down the steep rock trailed a long 
 line of strange-looking men, in solemn silence. Before all, 
 as borne by some airy sprite, sported a glittering image 
 of silver, which in the deep shadows changed to fairy shape, 
 and, with sparkling wings, disappeared in the rent rocks. 
 A loud laugh of brutal triumph, combined with the strange 
 vision, startled to consciousness the hunter ; and, musing on 
 5
 
 40 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 what had passed, he rekindled his fire by the light of 
 morning over the eastern mountains. 
 
 Another report declares that, not far from the period 
 of which we speak, another hunter was startled from pro- 
 found sleep in the dead of night by most hideous screech- 
 ings, as of a man in the last agonies of extreme torture. 
 At intervals, through the remainder of the night, above the 
 roar of the mountain stream rose strange noises, either 
 through fancy or reality. 
 
 Connected with the same odd train, so much in keeping 
 with the spirit of wild legendary adventure, comes another 
 account, that, in a superstitious, witchcraft age, might cause 
 some credulous ones to become confident. There once 
 came a great storm, out of which came a voice, saying : 
 " That pagan treasure from St. Francis may not remain 
 a secret to adventure till the Great Spirit's thunder dies 
 on the crags of Ayiochook." When these words were pro- 
 nounced, the apparition of a skeleton Indian, with ribs 
 like loud-sounding harp-strings, was followed by an armed 
 train of pale-faces ; an Indian village was burning, and 
 from the blood and ruins of the fire-lit night a soldier 
 appeared, bearing a silver image, money and wampum, 
 away to the woods. After thus much of the wonderful, 
 the precise locality of the treasure, with a power to do 
 away the influence of enchantment, was reserved for the 
 genius of
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 41 
 
 THE OLD FORTUNE-TELLER. 
 
 The history of " image memory" as connected with these 
 bald peaks, has connected with it the old Fortune-teller, 
 who, by her wonderful disclosures, had the credit of being 
 leagued with the spirits of another world. By her high 
 pretensions, she held the power of divination, and among 
 her superstitious votaries passed for what no mortal is. 
 She had a magic stone, said to have been found in a cave 
 among the mountains, and possessing marvellous supposed 
 virtues. This was considered as a priceless treasure by 
 Indian Magi fit offering to the Great Spirit. Such was 
 the "favoring star " that ruled her strange destiny, that 
 from this stone she pretended to read events of the past 
 and future. Her home was a rude mud hovel, in a by- 
 place, where she was visited by but few, save those who 
 ignorantly believed in her magical power. She sought no 
 mortal sympathy, and busied her loneliness in seeking poi- 
 son-herbs, which were potent helps to her power. Many 
 believed she could blast the hopes of youth by one wither- 
 ing look of displeasure, change the boldest heart to one 
 of fear, and dry, by one wave of her hand, the blood of 
 ambition in the veins of manhood ; and, in short, her vic- 
 tims believed her immortal. Her art was solicited as an 
 aid to the accomplishment of the object had in view by 
 the fortune adventurers.
 
 42 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 SEARCH FOR THE IMAGE, MONEY, AND WAMPUM. 
 
 The hunter who had found the hatchet and bark roll, 
 with four other adventurers, made ready for a search for 
 the silver image, &c., with the old fortune-teller as a 
 figure-head for the enterprise. She agreed, if the party 
 would but abide her arrangements, they should be suc- 
 cessful. Accordingly, her labelled phials, apparatus for 
 burning drugs, smattering of mystic words in an un- 
 known tongue, with the magic stone, completed for her 
 a fancied latent power, equal in confidence to try skill 
 with the mighty magician of all foul incantations. She 
 pretended the treasure they sought was under the influ- 
 ence of strong enchantment ; and, by a fancied combination 
 of astrology, alchemy and divination, she declared that 
 the next night the situation of the stars would be favor- 
 able for their purpose. With pick, bar, spade and axe, 
 together with the old Fortune-teller's spiritual weap- 
 ons, early in the morning this little party started for the 
 mountains, with sufficient imaginary power to lay the 
 ill-will of the most fearful hobgoblins that ever walked in 
 darkness. Once in motion, with their physical and spirit- 
 ual apparatus in view, a moderate stretch of fancy might 
 startle the supposition that, with individual assurance, 
 their object was to dare the infernal regions, and poison 
 the imps with a refined portion of the old fortune-teller's
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 43 
 
 phialled-up venom. The old hunter who had found the 
 relics had but little faith in her art ; yet his love of ad- 
 venture led him to brave the ridicule of those who were but 
 slightly tinctured in mind by superstition, while he at the 
 same time cherished an injury against her that was deeply 
 hacked in his memory. He was an old bachelor, and he 
 believed the old fortune-teller had been guilty of poison- 
 ing the one of his choice, to gratify the ill-will cherished 
 by an unwelcome rival ; and he had been heard to say, 
 " Give me but time to prove that the old hag is not in- 
 vincible by her covenant with the devil, and I die con- 
 tented" In sullen silence he marked out their path ; and, 
 as he trailed along with his rifle laid across one arm, with 
 a hunting-knife, suspended by a leathern girdle, in its 
 shaggy bear-skin sheath, it would have been pleasant to 
 those who are gratified by studying variety of character 
 to have noted his proud bearing. He had already had 
 hard words with the old fortune-teller, and now there was 
 meaning in the stern expression of his weather-tanned 
 face. Time had deeply furrowed his brow, and habit had 
 thereon contracted an eternal scowl, which, with a cold, 
 fixed stare, as he plodded onward, told of a design that 
 was steeling his heart for its accomplishment. 
 
 It is sufficient to hasten forward to the concluding 
 scene, by noting that the old fortune-teller and the hunter 
 had a falling out, as they halted to eat their " cold lunch ; " 
 5*
 
 44 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 and, drawing his knife, he swore he would know on the 
 spot whether she was in league or not with invisible 
 powers. Bloodshed was doubtless alone prevented by timely 
 interference of others of the party, and she declared she 
 could find that treasure without the hunter's aid, and 
 would not proceed further under his guidance. From this 
 point she became guide ; and, having assumed this right, 
 such scrambling over bush and log, through swamp and 
 brook, was seldom undergone before, perchance, by one 
 who on winged thought could compass space by the art of 
 magic. Much of the activity of better days had been 
 kept alive by the old fortune-teller, by her active habits, 
 through woods and fields in search for roots and herbs ; 
 and either on the uprising vapor from broken phials, or 
 by the transforming power of magic, they arrived, about 
 sunset, near where accounts had fixed the location of the 
 treasure. The precise spot was soon pointed out by the aid 
 of a peculiar rod, and the " magic stone ; " and all things 
 were prepared for successful search, when that night the 
 position of the "favoring star " might make known the 
 exact moment. The night threatened to be dark and 
 showery ; and, with gloomy forebodings of an uprising 
 tempest, the wind roared mournfully over the lone wil- 
 derness ; and high up among the rocks, in a narrow copse 
 of scrub spruce, glimmered a little, wavering fire. Around 
 that fire, within range of the fitful glare it sent out upon
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 45 
 
 the starless night, was the male portion of that treasure- 
 seeking party (excepting the old hunter), gravely watch- 
 ing every motion of the old fortune-teller, as, with a jab- 
 berish jargon of discords, she tended a pot of simmering 
 herbs. Lazily the hours crept on towards midnight, and 
 all wondered why the old hunter did not come ; and, at 
 last, with all things ready, the female genius gave the 
 watchword " ready ! " and next followed the order 
 " strike ! " with the caution not to cease searching till 
 she gave warning that the spell was broken, and the treas- 
 ure was within their grasp. Then arose the din of spade 
 and bar, and the clinking pickaxe struck sparks from the 
 flinty rocks, as the diggers toiled on ; and, busy as a 
 bewitching spirit in a gale of wind, the old fortune-teller 
 fluttered about, now here, now there, strewing the mid- 
 night air with volatile odor from an uncorked phial, urg- 
 ing the men to unremitting diligence, and ever and anon 
 waving her wand through the black night, with a wild 
 muttering of strange words accompanying. Wrought up 
 to the highest pitch by avaricious excitement, nerved by 
 mingled fear and hope, they had little heeded the terrific 
 warfare that the elements were gathering in the distance 
 to break in fury about their heads. The dolorous mur 
 muring of the roused wind, that at dark swept over thA 
 groaning woods, had now increased to a heavy gale, thai 
 wildly whirled about the naked rocks, above and below
 
 46 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 and the lightning, that had long been advancing with a 
 wider curve over the front of the on-coming thunder-cloud, 
 now changed the black darkness to a mighty heaving mass 
 of liquid fire ; then the roar of the thunder burst among 
 the craggy rocks, echoing in continued peals, shaking the 
 very mountain with a noise like the voice of an upheaving 
 earthquake. A terrible crash followed, like the falling 
 of a hundred towering pines ; and, with the flood loosened 
 from the clouds by the shock, rocks and trees rolled in 
 fearful destruction down the mountain gorge. The flick- 
 ering light of their uncertain pine torch disappeared in 
 the wind, and between the vivid flashes that in quick suc- 
 cession followed appeared a slight glimpse of total chaos. 
 Consternation seized those men ; and, hesitating, the 
 voice of the old fortune-teller screamed, amid the dire con- 
 fusion of thunder, wind and water, " Dig, men, dig ! the 
 power of light or darkness cannot harm you ! This raging 
 is the powerful influence of strong enchantment ! Dig ! 
 dig ! the treasure must come forth amid the convul- 
 sions of the elements ! " Ere she had finished speaking, 
 another flash revealed the diggers standing, like pale 
 ghosts, reckless of her command. Like a wild fury, she 
 leaped into the hollow among moved rocks, and, with one 
 despairing shriek, fell to work, cursing her companions. 
 A loud, shrill whoop rose up with the din of the storm, 
 in mocking answer to her rage ; and when next a blue
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 47 
 
 twinkling flame spread over the black rocks a ghostly 
 light, a giant form arose from the mist, hurled over the 
 precipice kettle and phial, and, taking the " magic stone " 
 in both hands, when next a flash lit up the scene, a fierce 
 grin appeared upon a visage strangely like the old hunt- 
 er's face, a deep groan followed, again electric fire 
 lit up rock and cloud; and, with a wild, loud laugh, 
 the phantom of the mist was seen dragging the old for- 
 tune-teller by her hair towards the brink of the precipice. 
 Our heroes of " image-seeking memory " waited to see no 
 more. Fancying the powers of the earth and air com- 
 bined against their enterprise, they made random leaps, 
 through the darkness, down precipitous rocks, and anon 
 lighted for a moment by a flash on the steep and danger- 
 ous way, arrived in the low valley, wet, weary, bruised, 
 and frightened. Next morning the sun rose clear over the 
 mountains, lighting the mist that hung on the glitter- 
 ing rocks ; and where the last night's battle had been, 
 upon bush, rock and moss, sparkled a thousand rain- 
 drops, like priceless gems in nature's- glorious crown. The 
 fate of the old fortune-teller and hunter to this day 
 remains a mystery ; but the track made by the scathing 
 lightning that fearful night may now be seen ; and the 
 traditions preserved by the simple-minded settlers near 
 associate with their importance a saintly fear, when they 
 call to mind the circumstances of that night. Around
 
 48 HISTORICAL REUC? OF 
 
 that time-honored spot, strange wail ings may now be heard 
 when the wind is high ; and some fancy that a giant 
 Indian spirit watches near, and, with goodly semblance of 
 sincerity, the same believe that, bound in some dark cav- 
 ern, the old fortune-teller and hunter in spirit dwell 
 together in torment. 
 
 THE OLD BRASS PLATE. 
 
 About the year 1802, a curious brass plate, covered 
 with hieroglyphical inscriptions, of apparently ancient 
 date, was found under a rock near the top of Mount 
 Washington. When it was placed there, or by whom, is 
 yet a profound mystery. There was through the plate a 
 hole, and a piece of rusty copper, that appeared to be a 
 bolt once used to secure it to the rock. According to 
 tradition, this brass was of irregular shape, having been 
 apparently much eaten by rust ; and, from its real appear- 
 ance, the characters were said to be in an unknown 
 tongue ; and, in short, of very imperfect and doubtful im- 
 port. This was found by an explorer, or hunter ; and, 
 being carried to the then new settlement of Jackson, below 
 the mountain, for a while created a short-lived excitement, 
 and at last disappeared entirely.
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 49 
 
 DISCOVERY OF NOTCH. 
 
 By record it appears that this remarkable defile was 
 known to the aborigines, but was never used by them as 
 a crossing-place for their captives, or as a war-path, till 
 white explorers in part wiped from their moral vision the 
 dark superstition that such approach to Agiochook would 
 be deemed by the Great Spirit pardonless sacrilege. For 
 many years after it was known to the first hunters 
 this Notch became forgotten or neglected, till the year 
 1771, when it was re-discovered by two hunters, Nash and 
 Saivyer. They drove a moose up a wild mountain stream, 
 surrounded by towering crags ; and, with the belief that 
 it was a deep gorge, surrounded behind by mountains, 
 they followed, animated by the thought of making an easy 
 conquest of their intended victim. Imagine their disap- 
 pointment when they found their purpose thwarted by 
 tracing the foot-prints of the moose along an ancient Indian 
 trail, over high precipices, to a little meadow quite on the 
 other side of the mountain ! These hunters published this 
 interesting discovery, and were rewarded by the tract of 
 land, northerly from the Notch, known as " Nash and 
 Sawyer's Location." 
 
 DESCRIPTION OF NOTCH, ETC. 
 The Notch is a narrow rent, extending more than two 
 miles between towering crags. This is doubtless the
 
 50 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 mighty work of some overwhelming internal convulsion ; 
 or, perchance, the deluge here tore mountains asunder. 
 The entrance of this wonderful chasm is about twenty-two 
 feet wide, forming in itself a strange natural gateway, 
 with high mountain fragments piled up on either side, 
 receding as you go down, till their tops reach the clouds. 
 ,From a little beaver meadow the Saco river rises north- 
 erly from this gateway, and, struggling down its narrow 
 bounds, shares with the road its wild gulf; and, having 
 passed through the mountain, bears its tribute onward to 
 the ocean. Words cannot describe faithfully the magnifi- 
 cent scenery of the Notch. This wonderful display of 
 Almighty power creates invariably sensations of awe and 
 mortal weakness. Passing low down between the ruins 
 of mountains rent to their foundation, the tourist will 
 notice a beautiful waterfall on the left, that, foaming over 
 a series of rocks, falls in one place, nearly perpendicular, 
 eight hundred feet. This was by Dr. Dwight very appro- 
 priately named Silver Cascade, and is said to be one of the 
 finest waterfalls in the world. Below, a short distance, on 
 the same side, falls another stream, clear and beautiful. 
 This, from having worn a channel deeply into the rock, is 
 called The, Flume. In one place this stream leaps a 
 hundred feet ; and its whole course from the clouds down 
 is foamy and wild. For two thirds of the year a more 
 desolate place can hardly be imagined than this Notch.
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 51 
 
 Dismal winds moan through the leafless trees, and 
 through the fissures of the rocks ; and methinks the poor 
 storm-bound traveller here in fancy has heard the genii 
 of the mountain, sending through this gorge a deafening 
 chorus of most frightful music. Woe, then, to poor mor- 
 tality, when the snow falls fast, and the king of tempests 
 rides on the wings of the hurricane through the clouds, 
 armed with winter's cold, blinding sleet, and avalanches 
 of ice ! 
 
 Thejirst settler through the Notch was Col. Whipple, 
 from Portsmouth, N. H. He came up in the year 1772, 
 and he was at that time enabled to get his cattle up 
 through the Notch by means of teacles and ropes, as the 
 hunter's path was over several precipices, now shunned 
 by the travelled way. All the way through the northern 
 wilderness of Laconia (now N. H.), with the needful means 
 of civilization with him, he came, scaled the crags that hang 
 around that mighty rent through mountains, and by his 
 enterprise earned the honor of being the first white man 
 who made a permanent settlement in the township of 
 Dartmouth (now Jefferson). 
 
 The first female through the Notch was one who in her 
 old age was known as " Granny Stalbird" She came up 
 with Col. Whipple in 1776, as his servant-girl. After- 
 wards she married, became a widow ; since which, learn- 
 ing of the Indians the virtue of roots and herbs, she
 
 52 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 became a noted doctress, and was famous in all this new 
 country for her skill. After enjoying life for nearly a 
 full century, she died, leaving her name in the memory of 
 many pleasantly cherished ; and the history of a vast 
 rock, that long ago tumbled down from the mountains, 
 bears the name " Granny Stalbird's Rock." One time, 
 while passing on her professional duties through the 
 Notch, she was overtaken by a terrible storm ; and dark- 
 ness coming on, with torrents Of water from the clouds, 
 that swelled to a fearful height the wild mountain streams, 
 she sought shelter under this rock, and laid there through 
 a sleepless night, with the doleful music of water, wind 
 and wolves, around her. The habits of this useful old 
 doctress were quite masculine. On foot, or astride of an 
 old horse, she might commonly be seen in the road, hast- 
 ening from house to house on her errands of mercy. Bad 
 travelling and severe storms, were never insurmountable 
 barriers in her path of usefulness. To do good to the 
 sick was her life ; and her God sustained her for long 
 years as a worthy ministering spirit to the afflicted. She 
 needs no monument to her memory more lasting than that 
 which lives in her deeds. 
 
 STORY OF NANCY'S ROCK AND BROOK. 
 
 On a branch of the Saco, below where the Willey 
 House now stands, a girl perished in 1778. Her sad
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 53 
 
 story is worthy of notice here. Nancy came up through 
 the Notch with Colonel Whipple, soon after his settle- 
 ment, and a hired servant of his gained her affections. 
 She learned to place in his fair promises all the confidence 
 of her guiltless heart, and, long cherished as a true friend, 
 the wretch, having moulded her affections completely to 
 his purpose, agreed to go to Portsmouth and be married. 
 They first went to Lancaster, to make necessary prepara- 
 tions for their intended journey through the wilderness. 
 She trusted her lover with the money the colonel had paid 
 her for two years' service, and, false to the common feel- 
 ings of humanity, he left her, and hastened away on his 
 long journey. There was then no road, and a dense wil- 
 derness, thirty miles to the first settlement below the 
 Notch, with only a hunter's path, marked by spotted trees, 
 was to be passed ; but Nancy, when aware of her lover's 
 treachery, resolved to follow, at the hazard of life. There 
 was a light snow upon the ground and trees, so that, when 
 she got back to the Colonel's, she was thoroughly drenched, 
 and the cold winds of autumn had chilled her. In vain 
 her friends there tried to dissuade her from following ; 
 but persuaded by her determination that her false one 
 would camp at the Notch that night, she thought by 
 travelling without rest she might overtake him there. All 
 night she wandered, and when morning came she reached 
 the spot where the ashes of his camp-fire were yet warm ;
 
 54 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 but he was gone, and in vain, with benumbed hands, she 
 tried to rekindle the fire. Wet, cold and hungry, and 
 excessively wearied by over-exertion, she still clung to the 
 false shadow of a hope that lived in her heart, and made 
 one more desperate effort to she knew not what. 
 
 That branch of the Saco, in that lonely mountain gorge, 
 sings a song that never ends ; and by it is a rock that 
 stands as a wasteless monument, silently defying time and 
 storms. These bear the respective names " Nancy's Rock 
 and Brook," and here her body was found, with her head 
 resting upon her hand and cane. Fearing for her safety, 
 as she did not return, her friends followed her the next 
 morning, and found her frozen stiff. The lover of this 
 unhappy girl heard of her horrible death, and, smitten by 
 conscience, became insane, and after a few weeks died a 
 raving madman. This is a concise sketch, as told me by 
 some who, knowing the above facts, yet live to bear record 
 that my description is true. 
 
 Her tragic fate, though horrid to relate, 
 Shows how true love controls a woman's fate. 
 
 The first goods brought up the Notch was a barrel of 
 rum, which was given to Captain Rosbrook, by a mer- 
 chant of Portland, on condition he would get it up through 
 the Notch. The captain made record, that after crossing 
 the Saco river twenty-two times, with a horse and two
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 55 
 
 poles, and several men, he succeeded in getting as much 
 of the rum up as was not used, in the enterprise. 
 
 First produce carried down through the Notch was a 
 barrel of tobacco, raised in Lancaster, by one Titus 0. 
 Brown. Thus, we see, rum and tobacco ranked here, 
 where, among many good people of olden times, they were 
 considered absolutely necessary, as first. But, thanks 
 be to reformers, may the day not be far distant when an 
 intemperate use of either shall be looked upon by the 
 public, under the influence of moral persuasion, as an 
 evil to be ranked in the same light with the follies of 
 witchcraft ! 
 
 FIRST HOUSE IN THE NOTCH. 
 
 The Willey House is the oldest building erected in the 
 Notch. This was built in the year 1793, by a Mr. Davis, 
 to accommodate the unfortunate storm-bound traveller, 
 who, from curiosity, or on business, might dare the dangers 
 of this wild pass. Then a little grassy meadow stretched 
 along the bank of the Saco ; tall rock-maples, and a tower- 
 ing mountain barrier, rose in the background from this 
 little home of the pilgrim. How like a cool shadow of a 
 great rock was this retreat among the frowning crags ! 
 But the thundering avalanche came, and, since August 28th, 
 1826, the spirit of desolation has brooded over that fated 
 spot. How lonely there is the dirge of the high wind, as 
 6*
 
 00 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 it sweeps down that solitary chasm ; and the wail of the 
 sunset breeze, with the loud requiem of the on-rushing 
 hurricane, is most mournful, for human bones are there 
 palled in an avalanche's ruins ! 
 
 AVALANCHES OF THE MOUNTAIN. 
 
 Betimes around these " gray old piles of eternity " rise 
 heavy black clouds from the four points of heaven, that 
 shroud all " tip-top " in the darkness of night, and cast 
 gloomy shadows on the deep, wild gorges below. Then the 
 invisible genius of storms loosens the howling winds from 
 their secret caverns, down comes the outpouring tornado, 
 the mountain shakes beneath the tramp of the on-rushing 
 tempest, and the rough rocks smoke by the violence of 
 the merciless elements. It is fearful, then, to be high 
 among the rocks, with the roaring hurricane's breath, 
 wildly rushing clouds, heavy thunder-peals, and vivid 
 lightning-flash, mingled in one overwhelming discord 
 around. Then mighty piles of rocks, and acres of forest 
 growth, roll down the mountain side, new streams burst 
 out among the rocks, and thus have these famous peaks 
 become deeply marked by the desolating track of the 
 thundering avalanche. Wide over the valleys below scat- 
 ter the ruins, like the eruption of a volcano ; and loud 
 reverberations among the echoing cliffs, move away like 
 distant thunder. These land-slides generally start near
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 67 
 
 the upper region of scrub vegetation, and, deepening and 
 widening as they rush down, carry with them the forest 
 growth, huge rocks, and all the loose earth, even to the 
 bare granite ; and thus, in some remarkable storms, thou- 
 sands of acres are made desolate, with a thundering noise, 
 like that heard when an earthquake lifts for deliverance. 
 Tourists, on all sides of these mountains, must have 
 noticed long scars, like wide roads, reaching down to the 
 lowlands, that curiously contrast, by their yellow or red- 
 dish hues, with the dark, evergreen growth through which 
 they sweep. These are the paths of avalanches. 
 
 ORIGIN OP INDIAN FIRE-WORSHIP. 
 
 Doubtless the profound veneration which has ever for 
 these old towering piles prevailed among the Indians 
 originated, in part, from these terrible visitations that 
 have here at times shook the foundation of this wild 
 region. The gleam of the lightning flying from cliff to 
 cliff, the voice of the thunder speaking from the black 
 cloud, and the dire confusion of the desolating avalanche, 
 all told of the Great Spirit, to whose almighty power 
 they offered sacrifice with reverence. From the tempest- 
 clouds of Agiochook, for the red hunter, had been sent 
 down fire that shivered the tall pine of the cold, shadowy 
 valley of Amonoosuc ; and by it he learned to cook his 
 moose-meat, and warm his wearied limbs. From this
 
 58 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 gift of fire from the clouds grew up with the tribes of the 
 northern wilderness, according to the imaginative tradi- 
 tionary lore of old, the celebrated fire-dance, fire-worship, 
 and sacrifice of game to fire. 
 
 DESTRUCTION OP THE WILLEY FAMILY. 
 
 Some few instances are on record, and others live in 
 tradition, of destruction of human life, as, also, of wonder- 
 ful escapes from death, among these mountains, by the 
 resistless avalanche. The following account, by its start- 
 ling details, first attracts our notice. Some time in June 
 before the great " slide " in August, 1826 there came 
 a great storm, and the old veteran, Abel Crawford, coming 
 down the Notch, noticed the trees slipping down, standing 
 upright, and, as he was passing Mr. Willey's, he called 
 and informed him of the wonderful fact. Immediately, 
 in a less exposed place, Mr. Willey prepared a shelter to 
 which to flee in case of immediate danger ; and in the 
 night of August 28th, that year, he was, with his family, 
 awakened by the thundering crash of the coming avalanche. 
 Attempting to escape, that family, nine in number, rushed 
 from the house, and were overtaken and buried alive 
 under a vast pile of rocks, earth," trees, and water. By 
 a remarkable circumstance, the house remained uninjured, 
 as the slide divided about four rods back of the house 
 (against a high flat rock), and came down on either side,
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 59 
 
 with overwhelming power. The little meadow there, on 
 the Saco, was entirely destroyed, and to this day wears 
 a desert aspect. A commodious two-story hotel has been 
 erected near this spot, and thousands each season come to 
 stand upon the rock that saved that famous old Willey 
 House, by turning the force of the thundering avalanche 
 aside. There is, near by, a rude mound of small stones, 
 piled up by strangers, who have visited this spot to see 
 where three children yet sleep in death, beneath the ruins 
 of that fearful night. 
 
 NAMES OF THAT FAMILY. 
 
 Samuel Willey, jr., aged 38. 
 Polly L. Willey, 35. 
 Eliza Ann, " 13. 
 
 Jeremiah L., " 11. 
 
 Elbridge Gr., aged 7. 
 
 Sally, 5. 
 
 David Nickerson, " 21. 
 
 David Allen, 37. 
 
 Martha Gr., " 9. 
 
 Two first, parents ; five next, children ; two last, hired 
 men. The three first and three last have been found, and 
 the other three are where the avalanche overtook them 
 that fatal hour. 
 
 WONDERFUL ESCAPES. 
 
 In Moore's Hist. Col. of N. H., vol. m., p. 226, is found 
 the description of a remarkable escape from death, one 
 dark and rainy night, on the side of Mt. Washington.
 
 60 HISTORICAL EELICS OP 
 
 This we will style The Destruction of Ethan's Cabin. The 
 description is as follows : " We were on the north-westerly 
 side of Mt. Washington, August 27th, 1826, about two 
 miles from the top. The storm continued to increase; 
 the very summit seemed to shake in the tempest, and an 
 involuntary dread touched our hearts, as the noise of the 
 hurricane grew louder, and sudden gusts swept over us, 
 and dashed down streams of water upon our frail cabin. 
 Our fire was put out, and, fearing lest delay might be 
 death, we hastened down the mountain, and crossed the 
 Amonoosuc as best we could, which stream was now roar- 
 ing along like a tremendous cataract. The next morning 
 sun shone out, and we beheld where one slide had the 
 appearance of passing directly over where we had the 
 night before camped." Ethan in his journal says : " God 
 only knows what must have been their fortune, had they 
 remained; and truly thankful they seemed to be for 
 their escape. It seemed really a providential thing their 
 being saved. My cabin, where they were stopping, was 
 destroyed, and the old iron chest and blankets were all 
 swept away and buried, except a few tattered pieces of 
 blankets that caught on bushes down the river. All else 
 was lost." 
 
 ORIGIN OF PEABODY RIVER. 
 A description of another wonderful escape is found in
 
 THK WHITE MOUNTAINS. 61 
 
 Kev. H. White's History of New England, page 327. 
 " The father of Oliver Peabody, who resided at Andover, 
 Mass., in one of his excursions into New Hampshire met 
 with an adventure which has connected his name with the 
 geography of the country, and which, for that reason, as 
 well as its singularity, may, perhaps, with propriety, be . 
 mentioned here. He was passing a night in the cabin of 
 an Indian, situated on the height between the Saco and 
 the Androscoggin rivers. The inmates of this rude dwell- 
 ing were awakened in the course of the night by a loud 
 noise, and had scarcely time to escape, before the hut was 
 swept away by a torrent of water rushing impetuously 
 down the hill. On reconnoitring the spot, they found 
 that this torrent had burst out suddenly from a place 
 where there was no spring before." This is supposed to 
 date back to the origin of the branch of Peabody river, 
 that runs in front of the Glen House, and hence came its 
 name. 
 
 DARBY FIELD'S SECOND VISIT. 
 
 This extravagant description, by one who occupies a 
 prominent place as an early explorer, is deemed worthy 
 of record as a curiosity. It might as properly have been 
 noticed in connection with his first visit. Had it then 
 been in my possession, there it would have appeared ; but 
 my manuscript, up to this page, now being in proof, here
 
 62 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 let it be recorded as a worthy relic, rescued by accident 
 from the antiquarian collection of the Massachusetts His- 
 torical Society. In a worm-eaten old edition of Win- 
 throp's History, vol. n., page 107, is found the following : 
 
 " In his second visit in 1642, Darby Field went up the 
 Saco in birch canoes with his party. He found 10 falls 
 on that river to stop boats, and there were thousands of 
 acres of rich meadow to Pegwagget,* an Indian town. He 
 then went up a hill 30 miles in woody land, and 8 miles 
 up shattered rocks, without tree or grass. The top is 3 
 or 4 miles over, all shattered stone, and on one end is 
 another rock about a mile high, with an acre on top. At 
 the top of the plain rises 4 great rivers, at the first issue 
 having as much water as will drive a mill. Connecticut 
 from 2 head?, at the N. W. and S. W., Saco on the S. E., 
 Amascoggin at the N. E., and Kennebec at the N. by E." 
 
 DEATH OF THE ENGLISH BARONET. 
 From all the hardships of adventurous life among 
 these mountains, but one instance of rashness proving 
 fatal has been known of late years. Many fancy that 
 there is much danger attendant upon a visit to this 
 famous place ; but the fact that no serious injury has been 
 suffered by the thousands who here climb to the clouds, 
 
 * Conway.
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 63 
 
 with the exception of this solitary case, ought to make 
 assurance double, that, with necessary prudence, danger 
 here is trifling. Much credit is due to the faithful man- 
 agement of the experienced guides who are employed, for 
 the benefit of company, at the hotels around the moun- 
 tains. 
 
 In the autumn of 1851, late in October, a young Eng- 
 lish baronet visited the White Mountain Notch, and, 
 notwithstanding snow was on all the bald peaks above, he 
 determined to visit the top of Mount Washington. He 
 could not be dissuaded from the rash attempt ; go he would. 
 A guide went with him to the top of Mount Clinton from 
 Gribbs', and, finding the snow deep, and the wind rough and 
 wintry, the experience of the guide warned his better 
 judgment that it was highly imprudent to go further ; and, 
 having said all he could to discourage going forward, he 
 turned back, supposing the Englishman would soon follow. 
 Night came on, but no Englishman, and early the next 
 morning a party followed. They tracked him to the top 
 rock of Mount Washington, to near where the north end 
 of the Tiptop House now stands. Fabyan's house was 
 then standing, and being westerly in full view down the 
 Amonoosuc valley, he started down apparently with the 
 calculation to reach that point. Down where D. Field, 
 in his first visit, said, " There was suck a precipice as we 
 could scarcely discern the bottom" they followed his trail. 
 7
 
 64 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 They found where be fell many times, and at last marks 
 of blood were on the snow, and from thence he appeared 
 to drag himself along. In the valley of the Amonoosuc 
 they found his body, mangled, and nearly naked. He was 
 lying on his face in a little stream. In the remains of 
 his clothing were found thirty dollars in gold, and a large 
 check, payable in New York city. 
 
 DEATH-LEAP OF THE MOOSE AND DOG. 
 On an eastern spur of the White Mountains is a beetling 
 crag, down which a hunter once drove a moose, and his 
 dog, pressing eagerly on the track of his intended victim, 
 followed, and both were mingled in one mangled mass of 
 bones, flesh, and blood. There is a tradition of a man 
 who during the early survey of the township of Sherborne, 
 was hired to climb that ledge over which the moose and 
 dog leaped, and his reward was to be the best lot of 
 land in the township. He succeeded in accomplishing the 
 daring feat, and the object of his hire has since, by the 
 nerve that caused him to not look back or falter in the 
 attempt, become a pleasant home for a second generation 
 of his enterprising name. 
 
 INDIAN EXILE, PEALSUCEP. 
 
 A sun's journey up the Androscoggin from its mouth, 
 in a wild glen, by the shore of a little lake that was curi-
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. DO 
 
 ously surrounded by a fanciful setting of evergreen ver- 
 dure, stood the wigwam of a young hunter. His name 
 was Pealsucep, and a pretty young squaw was the light 
 of his rude home. They were happy together, for the 
 Great Spirit had smiled upon their love, and given them 
 a son, a bright-eyed little boy, who filled the hearts of 
 his parents with unclouded hope. When he walked upon 
 the lake shore, and picked curious stones, and danced 
 merrily among the wild-flowers, it showed the fulness of 
 his youthful joy to their hearts, and they were happy. 
 One day, when the hunter was away to the chase on the 
 hills, a pale-faced stranger came to his cabin, treated his 
 squaw rudely, and in pretended sport gave his boy a toss 
 out into the lake to see him swim ashore. The little 
 fellow struggled manfully, and regained the shore amid 
 the shouts of the pale-faced sailor, who then offered the 
 squaw drink from a bottle, and departed. Pealsucep 
 returned, and the little lad soon after grew sick, and, linger- 
 ing three days, died. The squaw told the story of the 
 pale-face, to which the hunter listened silently, with down- 
 cast look. He went often to the grave of his little boy, 
 and made fit offering there, that his journey might be 
 swift and bright beyond the sunset. But from this time 
 there was a black cloud upon the path of Pealsucep ; the 
 cruel fire of jealousy was kindled with undying rage in 
 the deep feelings of his spirit, and in vain did his guiltless
 
 00 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 squaw declare her innocence. Like a tender flower that 
 nestles for protection against wind and storms in the shade 
 of some defiant mountain pine, she felt her support was 
 gone ; a blight came over her hopes, and she died. 
 Silently and tearfully Pealsucep laid her by the side of 
 her little boy. Two moons passed away ; his tribe became 
 indignant, called a council, and the gray-headed old chief 
 sent for Pealsucep, and said : " You have sent your squaw 
 away before the Great Spirit called her. Ymc are a swift 
 hunter and brave ; but never make afoot-mark among the 
 hunters of your tribe after to-morrmv's sun, u?iless you 
 take the cripple that lives by the river for your squaw." 
 Pealsucep looked upon the cripple, shook his head, and 
 ere sunset had gathered a pile of pine-knots near his cabin 
 door. When darkness that night came down upon the lone 
 wilderness, he kindled his knot-pile, and by its light laid 
 upon it the bodies of his squaw and son, and, leaving them 
 there to consume, bounded away to the gloom of the thick 
 woods, filling the night with fearful shrieks of anguish. 
 With the morning light he returned. His hunting-dress 
 was in tatters, his hair strangely tangled, and, silently 
 gathering the ashes of those he once loved into a rude 
 bark-box, up towards the mountain he turned his lone 
 steps, and made for himself a new path in the wilderness. 
 Tradition says that upon a foaming stream, in the shadow 
 of the " Great Spirit's " home, the ashes of that squaw
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 
 
 67 
 
 and her boy now repose, with a rude stone pile to mark 
 the spot. What of Pealsucep ? He made a vow ; and, if 
 tradition be true, the Great Spirit heard it. He dared 
 His displeasure ; and, high up among the clouds, breathed 
 a promise to the Invisible Influence of storms ; and most 
 faithfully a whisper came to his spirit. Deathless hate 
 and untiring revenge against his tribe and the pale-faces 
 were the burden of his wishes. For years he appeared to 
 be the incarnate embodiment of a destroying genius, that 
 walked in the wind, and silently speeded the arrow of 
 death on its fatal mission, till his tribe dwindled away, 
 and the pale-faces abandoned their settlement at the 
 mouth of the Kennebec. By tradition he was instrumental 
 in destroying the war-party at Lewiston Falls, by a false 
 light, set, as they supposed, by their runners who went 
 forward to prepare camping-ground. This light, instead 
 of being set at the head of the falls, was set down below ; 
 and, coming down the river after dark, taking the light as 
 guide for turning their canoes ashore, all went down, and 
 perished. At a certain block-house he shot several senti- 
 nels, and at last was himself wounded, by the stratagem 
 of a sentry at that post. He this time crawled away to 
 the river bank, floated across, and, filling his wound with 
 moss, lived for a long time on beech-leaves and roots, and 
 recovered. He took several prisoners, for which he re- 
 ceived of the Jesuits a bounty ; and among others there was
 
 a little girl by the name of Mary Crager, whose fate adds 
 a curious page to this list of mountain relics. This Indian, 
 according to tradition, once found, while climbing a spur 
 of these mountains, a quantity of fine silver ore. He was 
 scrambling up a steep ledge, where, to facilitate his 
 ascent, he took hold of a bush that came up by the roots, 
 revealing to his wondering gaze hanging pieces of ore that 
 appeared to have oozed out in its richness from the 
 crevices of the cliff. This Indian in 1779 was very old 
 and feeble ; his great age made him quite harmless, and 
 he lived in a shadow of the Great Spirit's home ; and 
 there his bones now moulder, by a rushing mountain 
 stream, that sings an endless song for three the little 
 Indian boy, his mother, and old Pealsucep, the exile. 
 
 WHITE-MOUNTAIN HERMIT. 
 
 Thomas Crager was the first white man who ever dwelt 
 near the White Mountains. He lived at a time so unfor- 
 tunate that law supposed if a person could not swim, when 
 arrested, they could send their spirit into the body of some 
 neighbor's cat, and walk the night doing mischief. Ac- 
 cordingly his wife was executed as a witch ; and this sad 
 event bowed his spirit low in the shadow of grief. But 
 one little ray of hope beamed through the night of his 
 soul ; this was his love for his motherless little girl. One 
 evening, when a number of little children were at play
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 69 
 
 near a wood, suddenly the cry arose that an Indian had 
 carried off little Mary Crager. Nerved by the spirit of 
 desperation, the last tie binding this unfortunate man to 
 civilized life was now severed ; a'nd, equipped for the chase, 
 he shaped his course for the unpathed wilderness. Near 
 the White Mountains he came to an Indian village, but, 
 failing to find the object of his search there, he took 
 advantage of the native superstition existing among the 
 red hunters of that wild region, and went up to dwell 
 among the rocks, where, undisturbed, he for a long time 
 lived, to savage fancy, as an adopted son of the Great 
 Spirit. Unannoyed by savage neighbors, fish were plenty, 
 abundance of game lived on every wooded steep and shady 
 glen, and in his habitation of solitude he was lord of the 
 realm he trod. The crystal waters and pure air of the 
 mountains gave him health and strength ; and as years 
 rolled away, void of the exciting passions of busy life, he 
 grew old slowly, for a glimmering hope yet bound him to 
 earth. In his intercourse with his red neighbors, he was 
 respected on account of his home being, like an eagle's, 
 perched among the rolling clouds ; and, having learned 
 that a little pale flower had long been in the possession of a 
 gray-headed old Indian, who made his dwelling-place 
 alone, distant from his tribe, he sought for him, and found 
 what strengthened his fears. He found, in the possession 
 of this Indian, a piece of what he knew to be the dress of
 
 70 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 his little girl, the evening she was stolen away. The 
 Indian was now very old and feeble, and, raising his 
 trembling hand when Crager came into his presence, the 
 flash of vengeance rekindled his dim eyes, and it was a long 
 time ere he could so calm his fears as to gain from him 
 in broken English the sought-for information. In the end 
 he learned from the Indian, by promising to instruct him 
 in the use of a gun, that the child he sought was sold to 
 the Jesuits, on a big river towards the sunrise, and that now 
 she was a tall woman, if living. It is sufficient for the 
 purpose of these pages* that, after a series of curious 
 adventures, Crager succeeded in finding his daughter, 
 among the eastern Indians of the Abnakis tribe, married, 
 and living like a native squaw. He found also in the 
 possession of old Pealsucep specimens of silver, and 
 learned from him the tradition referred to in our notice of 
 the exile ; and, by making a solemn promise to bury his 
 remains, when dead, by the side of his squaw and boy, he 
 received a rude description of the locality of that mine. 
 But to this day the world, perchance, is no richer, save in 
 fancy, for the tin, and lead, and silver, with which these 
 mountains abound. Perchance more silver may some day 
 be made by working the tin veins of Jackson, and the lead 
 
 * In a forthcoming edition of THE INDIAN TRADITIONS AND 
 LEGENDS OF AGIOCHOOK, this tradition and ita details will appear, 
 perchance. AUTHOR.
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 71 
 
 mines of Shelborne, than can be realized by magic appli- 
 cation for hidden treasures and silver mines. 
 
 WHITE-MOUNTAIN HOTELS. 
 
 The world-wide reputation of these mountains, gained 
 since they were first called " Chrystal Hills" in 1631, 
 yearly calls to their airy heights and shaded sylvan retreats 
 thousands from all parts of the world, that in this moun- 
 tain land they may for a season shake off the perplexities 
 of business life, and freely receive the invigorating influ- 
 ence of health and comfort. For the accommodation of 
 these numerous visitors, mammoth hotels have been 
 erected in the most attractive localities ; and, being man- 
 aged on the most approved city style, the " Alpine 
 House" at Gorham Station, " Thomson's Glen House" 
 " Gibbs' Notch House," and " The White-Mountain 
 House," give satisfactory evidence of their deserved popu- 
 larity by the liberal patronage seasonably bestowed upon 
 each. Within a pleasant drive of the base of these 
 mountains are delightful villages (Conway, on the Saco ; 
 Gorham, on the Androscoggin ; Lancaster, on the Connect- 
 icut, and Whitefield, near the Amonoosuc), where the 
 free circulation of fresh mountain air, and pure water, 
 foaming cold from icy indentations among snowy cliffs, 
 afford to all who come and tarry a pleasant and healthful
 
 72 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 contrast to the sickly, pent-up city street, where floats a 
 hot atmosphere of pestilence and death. 
 
 DWELLING-PLACE IN THE CLOUDS. 
 
 The possibility of erecting a permanent summer home 
 for man on the top crag of Mount Washington, was 
 for a long time looked upon with serious doubt, and con- 
 sidered only a fit subject of speculation for the visionary. 
 
 The rude stone cabin, in our reference to " The White- 
 Mountain Giant" being the first shelter wherein mortals 
 could on this bleak pile of rocks find an artificial resting- 
 place, was ever by the winter storms rendered a most 
 desolate object, though sheltered behind a bold crag. The 
 shingle roof, split down in the woods on the mountain 
 side and packed up on the backs of men, was scattered to 
 the four winds. The levers of the frost, and the wild 
 hurricane, tumbled down the thick stone walls ; and every 
 spring a roofless heap of ruins, with a rusty old stove, and 
 the iron chest, was left to tell a sad story of the invisible 
 power that over these towering summits stretches the arm 
 of destruction. 
 
 NAZRO'S TEMPLE VISION. 
 
 A peculiar genius, in 1850, obtained a supposed free- 
 soil title to the top of Mount Washington, with all the 
 privileges and appurtenances to the same belonging ; and,
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 73 
 
 erecting gateways upon all the bridle-paths leading up to 
 " the peaks in the clouds" exacted one dollar as toll-fee 
 from each and every person who ascended. He also 
 published a naming proclamation in the papers of the day, 
 of which this is a true copy : 
 
 PROCLAMATION. 
 
 FOURTH OF JULY ON 
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS 
 
 There will be a solemn congregation upon TKINITY 
 HEIGHT, or Summit of Mount Washington, on the 
 Fourth Day of July, A. D. 1851, and 1st year of the 
 Theocracy, or Jewish Christianity, to dedicate to the 
 coming of the Ancient of Days, in the glory of His King- 
 dom, and to the marriage of the Lamb ; and the literal 
 organization in this generation of the Christian or purple 
 and royal Democracy (let no man profane that name !), 
 or the thousand thousands, and ten thousand times ten 
 thousand of the people of the Saints of the most high 
 God of every nation and Denomination into the great- 
 ness of God's kingdom and dominion under the whole 
 heavens ; and there will be a contribution for this purpose 
 from all who are willing, in the beauty of holiness, from 
 the dawn of that day. 
 
 JOHN COFFIN NAZKO, 
 Israel of Jerusalem.
 
 74 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 The appointed fourth of July was as dark and rainy as 
 any, perhaps, that ever shrouded Mount Washington in 
 wildly-flying clouds ; and Nazro, meeting with strong 
 opposition in toll-gathering, relinquished his temple-build- 
 ing designs, and, throwing away his gate-keys to the en- 
 trance of this mighty altar, retired to United States ser- 
 vice, where, perchance, he may be now plotting the way 
 to fortune among the clouds. 
 
 SUMMIT HOUSE ON MOUNT WASHINGTON. 
 
 The matter-of-fact enterprise of two thorough-going 
 Yankees, J. S. Hall and L. M. Rosebrook, came to the 
 task in 1852, and the above-named house was erected 
 within a few feet of the highest rock of Mount Washing- 
 ton. (See right-hand house in cut on first page.) This 
 structure is of heavy stones, blasted with powder from 
 the mighty paramid on which it stands ; and it is twenty- 
 four feet by sixty-four feet, firmly secured to its everlast- 
 ing foundation by cement, heavy iron bolts ; and over the 
 roof are tightened four strong cables. In opposition to 
 the prophecies of the unbelieving, this house stood the 
 storms of winter; and the next summer another house 
 was etone-built, and called the 
 
 TIP-TOP HOUSE. 
 This house was erected by Samuel F. Spaulding & Co.,
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 75 
 
 and cement and iron rods hold this monument of daring 
 enterprise, in proud defiance of wind and storm, to the 
 most bleak top crag of Mount Washington. This house 
 is twenty-eight feet wide by eighty-four feet long ; and 
 has a deck-roof, whereon the visitor may stand and look 
 down six thousand two hundred and eighty-five feet, on to 
 the vast map spread on every side at his feet. (On the 
 first page of this book this house is seen in the engraving, 
 with a telescope, and three visitors on its roof, under a 
 flag of our country.) 
 
 These two houses are unitedly managed by a company 
 of hardy mountaineers, who spare no pains to make this 
 famous resort a true home to the admiring stranger, and 
 a pleasant resting-place to the travel-worn pilgrim. All 
 who seek health and pleasure in this pure mountain cli- 
 mate, or a gratification of curiosity for the wonderful in 
 sublime scenery, will find here ample accommodations for 
 their comfort, both day and night. The changing scenes 
 and reflections connected with e'very sunset and sunrise, 
 enjoyed from this elevation, are remarkable beyond descrip- 
 tion. Here too sunlight plays upon the bald rocks, while 
 black storms, armed with wind and thunder, move like the 
 shadows of destroying giants in the habitated regions 
 below. Here the moon, with its starry host, sends down 
 its solemn light upon the gray crags, kindling into a fiery 
 glow a hundred lakes, ponds, rivers, and dashing moun- 
 8
 
 76 HISTORICAL RELICS OF 
 
 tain streams, and strangely enlivening every shady glen 
 with flitting lights and shades for the sombre world. Never 
 did Seer from the land of the pyramids, or Chaldean star- 
 gazer, study the heavens from an observatory like this. 
 Ye who would enjoy the sports of stream and forest, come 
 to these mountains ! Ye who delight to behold the works 
 of nature in their most sublime flights, come to these 
 mountains ' Ye who have a love for novelty and a desire 
 for true pleasure, come and behold God's wisdom dis- 
 played in the bold outlines of this gigantic monument of 
 his almighty power ! Here the undying features of grand- 
 eur were moulded in imperishable materials by his hand ! 
 
 MOUNT WASHINGTON CARRIAGE-ROAD. 
 
 A company, known as the Mount Washington Carriage- 
 Road Company, was chartered in June, 1853, by the Legis- 
 lature of New Hampshire, with a capital-stock of fifty 
 thousand dollars. The first day of September, 1853, this 
 company was organized at the Alpine House, Gorham, 
 and the following board of directors was chosen: D. 0. 
 Macomber, of New York ; John M. Woods, R. J. Robin- 
 son, and Abner Lowell, of Portland; J. R. Hitchcock and 
 James Dingly, of Gorham; and Barker Burbank, of 
 Shelborne. D. 0. Macomber was chosen president; J. 
 R. Lufkin, secretary. This road is to be sixteen feet 
 wide, macadamized, and have a protection-wall, three
 
 THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 77 
 
 feet high in dangerous places. A route has been thor- 
 oughly surveyed and located, with no greater rise than 
 that of one foot to eight, to the top of Mount Washington, 
 from Thompson's Glen House. The distance by this road 
 varies but little from eight miles, and it is now June, 
 1855 in rapid progress towards completion, under the 
 contract of Messrs. Rich & Myers. When a carriage can 
 run to the top of Mount Washington, who can prophesy 
 what a bright new era will dawn upon White-Mountain 
 life ? The plan of this road reflects great credit upon the 
 enterprise of the president, D. 0. Macomber. The part 
 now located is so calculated as to bring in plain prospect 
 the most varied and wild scenery of the eastern side ; and 
 a survey is this season anticipated, by which the road will 
 be located somewhere down the western side ; thus com- 
 pleting a carriage-route that for novelty, and unparalleled 
 wonder-exciting location, will not in the western world 
 have an equal.
 
 78 THE TOURIST'S UUIDE TO THE 
 
 WHITE MOUNTAINS. OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 
 
 On the Eastern side, as the traveler approaches this 
 Alpine region, he will naturally inquire for the objects of 
 interest, to which he wishes to direct his attention. After 
 booking his name for a ride to the summit in the morning, 
 from the Glen House he will pass down southerly along the 
 public road, that connects the eastern and western travel 
 around these mountains. Romantic scenery in its most 
 primitive form everywhere greets attention. A dark old 
 forest rock crumbled from frowning crags unpathed recesses 
 alone haunted by wild beasts, and deep, wild gorges 
 filled with the thunder rush of wasteless mountain streams, 
 pass like dream changes before the admirer's vision, and 
 about three miles from the Glen brings us to 
 
 THE CRYSTAL CASCADE. 
 
 This is situated on the right hand, in a dark ravine about 
 a hundred rods from the road, and the whole height of the 
 falls is nearly a hundred feet. This fall is broken in its 
 course by projecting rocks, which scatter the water-drops 
 in showers of spray, like liquid silver, upon the surround- 
 ing foliage. Over other indentations of the cliff the 
 water courses down green beds of moss, among stunted 
 trees that struggle for existence in the scanty soil of the
 
 WHITE MOUNTAINS AND FRANCONIA. 79 
 
 fissures and seams of splintered crags. This stream is a 
 tributary sent down from the wild gorges on the southerly 
 side of Mount Washington. Should the adventurous 
 tourist choose this route to the summit, he may find the 
 way rugged and wild, but the change of scenery along the 
 highly romantic gorge will well repay the extra tax upon 
 time and nerve. In one place the 
 
 HERMIT'S LAKE, 
 
 set like a rich gem in its fanciful frame-work of changeless 
 evergreen, appears, and stopping to enjoy the prospect, the 
 idea of overwhelming wonder rushes upon our spirit in this 
 solitary spot. Across this little lake, high up among the 
 rolling clouds, frowns Mt. Washington, a view of which 
 from this point strangely contrasts with the sparkling rush 
 of noisy water, and the evergreen freshness of surrounding 
 woods. To the westward rises the craggy top of Mt. 
 Washington, and upon all sides, except the outlet through 
 this little lake, known as The Crystal Stream, appear high 
 towering cliffs, rendered a picture of desolation by the 
 deep, wide track of many an avalanche. Little spots of 
 verdure, blasted shrubbery, and piles of granite fragment 
 appear below, with the long snow-bank and famous snow- 
 arch,* 1 through which runs the stream that tumbles from 
 
 *See decrp',ion of snovr-arcb, 15!h psge.
 
 HO THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO THE 
 
 the ragged cliff above. Over all mark the mighty pile of 
 mountains that hangs high in bold relief against the sky, 
 and behold the famous 
 
 "FALL OF A THOUSAND STREAMS," 
 
 divided in its descent into silvery streams that in number 
 will warrant the above appellation, and you have a picture 
 of the Mountain Coliseum here faintly referred to, and this 
 also is known as Tuckerman's Ravine. 
 
 Glen Elise Falls are situated a mile below Crystal Cas- 
 cade, and considered an object of quite as much interest as 
 that of its rival. It is on the left side of the road, a few 
 rods off, in a deep, dark ravine on Elise River. The 
 water falls in an unbroken sheet about eighty feet. On 
 top of the crag from which this stream is projected, stands 
 a finely rooted old hemlock, that in defiance to the warring 
 elements stretches its shaggy top out a hundred feet above 
 the top of the fall. Up this tree a boy once climbed to the 
 very top, in presence of a party of visitors, and looking 
 down into its fearful vortex of boiling water, nearly two 
 hundred feet, seemed perfectly indifferent concerning his 
 dangerous position. Descending, he was rewarded for this 
 dare-devil feat by an admiring stranger with a York shil- 
 ling. " The Lake of the Clouds " and Star Lake," set
 
 WHITE MOUNTAINS AND FKANCONIA. 81 
 
 like glittering diamonds in rough granite frames, on the 
 indentation between the tops of Mt. Washington and Mt. 
 Monroe, will well repay the excursionist for a visit to their 
 romantic shores, distant from tip-top a mile and a half. 
 " The Gulf of Mexico " and " Spcndding's Lake," are at 
 least worth a trip from the Atlantic, from all who would 
 look with proud satisfaction upon nature in her sublimest 
 mood. These curiosities are situated near the head of the 
 most northerly branch of Peabody River, between Mt. 
 Washington and Mt. Clay, and are similar in feature to 
 the general outlines of Tuckerman's Ravine. In place, 
 however, of seeing another Fall of a Thousand Streams, 
 the tourist must be content with loosing from the over- 
 hanging cliff vast boulders, that smoking and thundering 
 down deep in the gorge below, are splintered and lost amid 
 the ruins of trees shattered on their downward trail. This 
 little lake, known in its wild bed as " Spaulding's Lake" 
 to appearance was formed by a slide from Mt. Washington ; 
 and very recently another slide, from the southerly crags 
 of Mt. Adams, has left its rusty, iron track, and piled its 
 ruins in wild confusion high up within the waters of this 
 lake. On this pile, as an apology for the name given this 
 solitary sheet, may be seen engraved, " J. H. S., 1853." 
 
 Many places of interest are yet around this gigantic 
 pile of peaks, but partially explored. The field is open to
 
 82 THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO THE 
 
 the spirit of discovery, and besides the piles of cows' 
 bones found last season in the " burnt district," by Mr. 
 Hall, places worthy of note and more relics interesting to 
 the antiquarian will doubtless yearly be brought to light, 
 till these cliffs and gorges, from being an " unknown cer- 
 tainty" become, like a book, thoroughly understood and 
 admired. 
 
 On the westerly side of these mountains, the chief ob- 
 jects of interest are the Notch, (already referred to on 
 49th page,) the Upper and Lower Falls of the Amonosoc, 
 Mt. Willard, and the carriage ride to its summit. The 
 wilderness valley stretched over thousands of acres, with 
 the old site of the Fabyan stand, opened in the wilderness, 
 for the travelers' relief, like a desert oasis. Here stand 
 upon the " Giant's Grave," (that famed spot,) where, ac- 
 cording to legend, sleeps one of the race which lived in 
 the time of the Saurians and Mastadons! Here lift up 
 your voice, discharge the shadow of Ethan's cannon, once 
 kept there, blow a tin horn, or fire a pistol, then listen to 
 the vibration of echo, sounding among a hundred peaks ! 
 Ere you bid farewell to the scenery from this mound, be- 
 hold the westerly declivities of the Titanic brotherhood of 
 craggy White Mountain summits, stretching along the 
 southern sky, with their dark fissures, silvery water- 
 falls flashing in the sunlight, and deep wide tracks that
 
 WHITE MOUNTAINS AND FRANCONIA. 83 
 
 silently tell where the destroying avalanche has been. 
 Around these mountains are unnumbered streams that 
 afford abundant sport for the trout-catcher. 
 
 " The Devil's Den" up the side of Mt. Willard, seen 
 from the notch opposite the Silver Cascade, though as yet 
 but imperfectly explored, it deserves a passing notice. 
 From below it appears like a dark hole in the steep cliff, 
 and though various attempts have been made to explore its 
 shadowy secrets, from the day it was first discovered by 
 old Abel Crawford, till 1850 it remained among the un- 
 visited wonders. To F. LEAVITT, Esq., belongs the credit 
 of succeeding, by means of a rope let down from the over- 
 hanging rock above, in the accomplishment of the daring 
 enterprise of first visiting that spot. Fancy a man sus- 
 pended over a dark gulf more than a thousand feet deep, 
 by a rope let down from a ragged crag to a dark hole in 
 the mountain, around the entrance of which were scattered 
 the skulls and bones of animals, and you have a glimmer- 
 ing of the picture. Our hero lost all desire to enter that 
 dismal cavern, and kicking the rope, was again drawn up, 
 and since that time, by his description, no explorer has 
 been found with sufficient nerve and curiosity to make a 
 second attempt. As there has never been discovered any 
 possible means by which that den can be approached by 
 foothold up the rock, and as the old Evil One has such
 
 84 THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO TUB 
 
 daily business with mortal affairs, rather than believe that 
 to be his abode, it appears more just to conclude that alone 
 there the mountain eagle finds a solitary home. 
 
 BEARING AND DISTANCES OF WHITE MOUN- 
 TAINS. 
 
 Mount Washington as the centre, from which 
 
 Mount Adams is distant 4 miles, N. by E. 
 
 " Jefferson, " 3 " N. by w. 
 
 " Madison, ..,"-" 5 " N. N. E. 
 
 " Clay, " 1 " N. w. 
 
 " Munroe, " 1 " s. w. 
 
 " Franklin, " 2 " s. w. 
 
 " Pleasant, " 3 " s. w. 
 
 " Clinton, " 4 " s. w. 
 
 HEIGHT, BEARING AND DISTANCE 
 
 OF THE LESS IMPORTANT WHITE MOUNTAINS AND OTHER MOUN- 
 TAINS IN THE VICINITY, FROM MOUNT WASHINGTON. 
 
 Distance. Bearing. Height. 
 
 Davis' Spur, 2 miles s. S. E. 5,400 feet. 
 
 Notch Range, 8 " s. w. 4,500 " 
 
 Willey Mountain, 8 " s. w. 4,400 " 
 
 Mt. Jackson, 6 " s. w. 4,100 " 
 
 Mt. Webster, 7 " w. N. w. 4,000 " 
 
 Giant's Stairs, 8 s. 3,500 "
 
 1VHITE MOUNTAINS AND FRANCONIA. 
 
 85 
 
 Mt. Crawford, 
 Mt. Moriah, 
 Franconia Mount, 20 
 Mt. La Fayette, 19 
 Twin Mountains, 14 
 Mt. Carigain, 
 Moose-hillock, 
 Saddle Mountain, 22 
 Mt. Kinsman, 
 Mt. Cannon, 
 Mt. Whiteface, 
 Chicorua, 
 Kiarsarge, 
 Double-head, 
 
 Distance 
 9 miles 
 
 i Bearing. Height. 
 s. w. 3,200 feet. 
 
 7 
 
 N. E. 
 
 4,700 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 8. W. 
 
 5,000 
 
 " 
 
 19 
 
 W. S. W. 
 
 5,200 
 
 " 
 
 14 " 
 
 W. S. W. 
 
 4,700, 5,000 
 
 " 
 
 14 " 
 
 S. S. W. 
 
 4,800 
 
 tt 
 
 31 
 
 s. vf. 
 
 4,600 
 
 " 
 
 22 
 
 S. S. W. 
 
 4,000 
 
 " 
 
 25 " 
 
 W. S. W. 
 
 4,100 
 
 u 
 
 20 
 
 w. s. w. 
 
 4,000 
 
 
 
 24 
 
 s. by w. 
 
 4,100 
 
 (1 
 
 22 
 
 s. by E. 
 
 3,600 
 
 u 
 
 15 " 
 
 8. E. 
 
 3,400 
 
 
 
 11 " 
 
 S. E. 
 
 3,100 
 
 
 
 FRANCONIA AND ITS ATTRACTIONS. 
 
 The tourist who would enjoy the whole scenery of this 
 land of mountains and valleys, must not fail to come or go 
 by the way of Franconia. Some of the most prominent 
 attractions of the vicinity, situated 28 miles from the 
 White Mountain Notch, and known by the above poetic 
 title, are the " Old Man of the Mountain," (immortalized 
 by Hawthorne,) " The Pool," " The Flume," " Franconia
 
 86 THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO THE 
 
 Notch," " Mount Lafayette," " Ferrin's Pond," (the old 
 man's wash-bowl,) " The Basin," " The Cascade," " Mt m 
 Cannon," and " Mt. Eagle." 
 
 THE OLD MAN OF THE MOUNTAIN, 
 
 is a profile of the human face, situated on a peak of solid 
 rock one thousand feet high, and nearly perpendicular 
 from " Ferrin's Pond," known as the " old man's wash- 
 bowl" This profile was discovered about forty years ago, 
 while a party was laying out the road that passes it, and a 
 guide-board directs the traveler's attention thitherward. 
 This likeness is produced by the irregular projection of 
 
 five blocks of granite. Its semblance is quite life-like, 
 
 
 and is truly a worthy object of wonder. Various Indian 
 
 utensils and relics have been found in that vicinity, which 
 inclines to the belief that this with the aborigines was an 
 object of superstitious homage. A foot-path from the La- 
 fayette House leads directly over the top of the old man's 
 head, and sometimes a mortal may be seen standing among 
 the bristly hair (bushes) of the old man's foretop. The 
 entire height of this profile is sixty feet. 
 
 The Pool is situated midway between the Basin and the 
 Flume. It is about a mile from the Flume House, in a 
 wild, romantic grot, completely walled in by rocky cliffs.
 
 WHITE MOUNTAINS AND FRANCONIA. 87 
 
 The Flume is about a mile from the main road, and 
 nearly in front of the Flume House. A foot-path through 
 the woods leads the visitor to the spot. A wild mountain 
 torrent, falling over precipitous crags and loose fragments, 
 through high walls, between which hangs a vast granite 
 boulder, under which the water foams. 
 
 The Basin is a deep excavation in granite, which has 
 been formed by the wearing waters of the Pemmasawasset, 
 aided by the action of stones that the stream has swept 
 into the cavity. In this Basin is a ledge of rock, so worn 
 by the current as to present the form of a leg and foot of 
 giant proportions. This is termed the " old man's leg." 
 
 The Cascade is below the Flume a short distance. The 
 rock here for the distance of six hundred and twenty feet 
 has been polished by the continual current of the stream to 
 a surface like glass. 
 
 Mount Lafayette, or the " great hay-stack," is a lofty 
 conical pile of granite, 5,580 feet high, situated to the 
 south-westward of the village of Franconia. A foot-path 
 leads from the Lafayette House to the top, and the view 
 from that point is considered but little inferior to the 
 prospect from the summit of Mt. Washington. 
 
 Mount Eagle, on which is an eagle's eyrie, is fifteen hun- 
 dred feet high, and rises but a few rods from the Lafayette
 
 88 THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO THE 
 
 House. Echo Lake is about two hundred rods from this 
 house, and from its shining waters are taken many of the 
 nicest kinds of trout. 
 
 The Flume House is, with the Lafayette House, well cal- 
 culated to satisfactorily accommodate all who seek pleasure 
 and health in this mountain region ; and taken as a whole, 
 we challenge the territory of our Union to furnish for the 
 Summer tourist a more desirable retreat than our own 
 White MouTitain and Franconia Scenery. 
 
 LENGTH OF DAYS. 
 
 The days at the summit of Mt. Washington are about 
 forty minutes longer than on the ocean level, in the same 
 latitude. 
 
 THUNDER STORMS. 
 
 There were but few thunder storms that approached 
 near to the summit ; the greater part of them passing 
 below, and following the deep valley or gulfs, that sur- 
 round Mt. Washington. But it is a grand sight to behold 
 a black cloud passing along, almost beneath your feet, the 
 lightning playing through it, and the thunder rolling and 
 reverberating among the neighboring mountains, while at 
 the same time the sun is shining brightly upon the tops of 
 the mountains. Yet such scenes are often witnessed, and 
 they fill the mind with awe and wonder.
 
 WHITE MOUNTAINS AND FRANCONIA. 
 
 THERMOMETRICAL TABLE, AND SYNOPSIS OF THE WEATHER, 
 &c., &c., AT THE SUMMIT OF MT. WASHINGTON, FOR THE 
 SEASONS OF 1853-4. PREPARED BY NATHANIEL NOYES. 
 
 JUNE, 1853. 
 
 JULY, 1853. 
 
 Day. 
 
 Sunrise. 
 
 12 M. 
 
 Sunset. 
 
 Day. 
 
 Sunrise. 
 
 12 M. 
 
 Sunset. 
 
 8 
 
 32 
 
 40 
 
 34 
 
 1 
 
 43 
 
 55 
 
 45 
 
 9 
 
 31 
 
 45 
 
 40 
 
 2 
 
 32 
 
 46 
 
 38 
 
 10 
 
 38 
 
 52 
 
 48 
 
 3 
 
 44 
 
 53 
 
 48 
 
 11 
 
 44 
 
 47 
 
 43 
 
 4 
 
 52 
 
 60 
 
 54 
 
 12 
 
 32 
 
 48 
 
 44 
 
 5 
 
 42 
 
 51 
 
 42 
 
 13 
 
 43 
 
 56 
 
 47 
 
 6 
 
 39 
 
 48 
 
 39 
 
 14 
 
 48 
 
 60 
 
 55 
 
 7 
 
 29 
 
 47 
 
 37 
 
 15 
 
 53 
 
 59 
 
 55 
 
 8 
 
 38 
 
 50 
 
 49 
 
 16 
 
 54 
 
 62 
 
 55 
 
 9 
 
 41 
 
 49 
 
 45 
 
 17 
 
 54 
 
 56 
 
 52 
 
 10 
 
 45 
 
 50 
 
 45 
 
 18 
 
 43 
 
 48 
 
 40 
 
 11 
 
 45 
 
 54 
 
 48 
 
 19 
 
 39 
 
 49 
 
 42 
 
 12 
 
 40 
 
 52 
 
 45 
 
 20 
 
 50 
 
 66 
 
 58 
 
 13 
 
 38 
 
 49 
 
 45 
 
 21 
 
 48 
 
 57 
 
 50 
 
 14 
 
 42 
 
 59 
 
 49 
 
 22 
 
 54 
 
 58 
 
 55 
 
 15 
 
 52 
 
 62 
 
 51 
 
 23 
 
 58 
 
 60 
 
 55 
 
 16 
 
 51 
 
 56 
 
 52 
 
 24 
 
 56 
 
 42 
 
 35 
 
 17 
 
 44 
 
 49 
 
 37 
 
 25 
 
 30 
 
 36 
 
 32 
 
 18 
 
 39 
 
 55 
 
 48 
 
 26 
 
 24 
 
 37 
 
 30 
 
 19 
 
 52 
 
 53 
 
 50 
 
 27 
 
 32 
 
 44 
 
 38 
 
 20 
 
 42 
 
 50 
 
 41 
 
 28 
 
 34 
 
 43 
 
 35 
 
 21 
 
 38 
 
 45 
 
 46 
 
 29 
 
 45 
 
 64 
 
 58 
 
 22 
 
 42 
 
 60 
 
 56 
 
 30 
 
 54 
 
 61 
 
 53 
 
 23 
 
 50 
 
 66 
 
 56 
 
 
 24 
 
 54 
 
 64 
 
 59 
 
 
 25 
 
 52 
 
 63 
 
 55 
 
 
 26 
 
 50 
 
 51 
 
 45 
 
 
 27 
 
 43 
 
 59 
 
 49 
 
 , 
 
 28 
 
 39 
 
 47 
 
 45 
 
 
 29 
 
 44 
 
 59 
 
 54 
 
 
 30 
 
 49 
 
 59 
 
 56 
 
 
 31 
 
 50 
 
 59 
 
 49
 
 90 
 
 THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO THE 
 
 AUGUST, 1853. 
 
 SEPTEMBER, 1853. 
 
 Day. 
 
 Sunrise. 
 
 12 M. 
 
 Sunset. 
 
 Day. 
 
 Sunrise. 
 
 12 M. 
 
 Sunset. 
 
 1 
 
 42 
 
 59 
 
 50 
 
 1 
 
 41 
 
 51 
 
 47 
 
 2 
 
 49 
 
 51 
 
 49 
 
 2 
 
 45 
 
 58 
 
 55 
 
 3 
 
 48 
 
 58 
 
 49 
 
 3 
 
 50 
 
 58 
 
 55 
 
 4 
 
 49 
 
 54 
 
 48 
 
 4 
 
 52 
 
 55 
 
 54 
 
 5 
 
 45 
 
 54 
 
 53 
 
 5 
 
 50 
 
 58 
 
 57 
 
 6 
 
 51 
 
 60 
 
 49 
 
 6 
 
 57 
 
 59 
 
 56 
 
 7 
 
 46 
 
 53 
 
 48 
 
 7 
 
 56 
 
 49 
 
 45 
 
 8 
 
 49 
 
 58 
 
 48 
 
 8 
 
 30 
 
 40 
 
 36 
 
 9 
 
 50 
 
 52 
 
 52 
 
 9 
 
 33 
 
 44 
 
 41 
 
 10 
 
 48 
 
 59 
 
 57 
 
 10 
 
 37 
 
 40 
 
 32 
 
 11 
 
 52 
 
 62 
 
 59 
 
 11 
 
 28 
 
 29 
 
 27 
 
 12 
 
 52 
 
 60 
 
 59 
 
 12 
 
 24 
 
 29 
 
 30 
 
 13 
 
 59 
 
 60 
 
 56 
 
 13 
 
 32 
 
 36 
 
 39 
 
 14 
 
 58 
 
 60 
 
 50 
 
 14 
 
 38 
 
 46 
 
 42 
 
 15 
 
 45 
 
 57 
 
 53 
 
 15 
 
 45 
 
 50 
 
 47 
 
 16 
 
 50 
 
 56 
 
 55 
 
 16 
 
 38 
 
 42 
 
 
 17 
 
 49 
 
 62 
 
 55 
 
 
 18 
 
 48 
 
 58 
 
 51 
 
 
 19 
 
 33 
 
 37 
 
 33 
 
 
 20 
 
 30 
 
 35 
 
 36 
 
 
 21 
 
 36 
 
 46 
 
 45 
 
 
 22 
 
 39 
 
 40 
 
 35 
 
 
 23 
 
 33 
 
 43 
 
 42 
 
 
 24 
 
 37 
 
 46 
 
 45 
 
 
 25 
 
 44 
 
 42 
 
 36 
 
 
 26 
 
 31 
 
 47 
 
 42 
 
 
 27 
 
 42 
 
 47 
 
 47 
 
 
 28 
 
 34 
 
 35 
 
 32 
 
 . 
 
 29 
 
 31 
 
 46 
 
 43 
 
 
 30 
 
 38 
 
 51 
 
 50 
 
 
 31 
 
 46 
 
 49 
 
 46 

 
 WHITE MOUNTAINS AND FRANCONIA. 91 
 
 SUMM AKY. 
 
 The following is a Synopsis of the Weather during each 
 month : 
 
 JUNE, 1853. 
 
 Mean temperature at Sunrise, * 43.3 deg. 
 
 > " 12 M., 53.5 " 
 
 " " Sunset, 45.7 " 
 
 Thermometer stood lowest, 26th day, 24 " 
 
 " " highest, 20th day, 66 " 
 
 JULY, 1853. 
 
 Average temperature at Sunrise, 43.5 deg. 
 
 " " 12 M., 54.2 " 
 
 " " " Sunset, 47.7 " 
 
 Thermometer stood highest, 23d day, 66 " 
 
 " " lowest, 7th day, 29 " 
 
 AUGUST, 1853. 
 
 Average temperature at Sunrise, 44 deg. 
 
 " " 12 M., 51.5 " 
 
 " " " Sunset, 47.5 " 
 
 Thermometer stood highest, 1 1th day, 62 " 
 
 " " lowest, 20th day, 30 " 
 
 SEPTEMBER, 1853. 
 
 Average temperature at Sunrise, 43.2 deg. 
 
 " 12 M., 46.8 
 
 " " " Sunset, 44.2 " 
 
 Thermometer stood highest, 6th day, 59 " 
 
 " " lowest, 12th day, 24 "
 
 92 
 
 THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO THE 
 
 JUNE, 1854. 
 
 JULY, 1854. 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 N 
 iH 
 
 jj 
 
 OQ 
 
 Self- 
 Register 
 during 
 night. 
 
 S? 
 
 R 
 
 1 
 
 ri 
 
 e* 
 
 IH 
 
 4 
 
 OQ 
 
 Self- 
 Register 
 during 
 night. 
 
 10 
 
 44 
 
 46 
 
 40 
 
 36 
 
 1 
 
 40 
 
 42 
 
 42 
 
 39 
 
 11 
 
 38 
 
 46 
 
 45 
 
 38 
 
 2 
 
 40 
 
 48 
 
 48 
 
 48 
 
 12 
 
 42 
 
 52 
 
 47 
 
 42 
 
 3 
 
 54 
 
 58 
 
 58 
 
 53 
 
 13 
 
 48 
 
 58 
 
 48 
 
 44 
 
 4 
 
 54 
 
 60 
 
 60 
 
 54 
 
 14 
 
 46 
 
 54 
 
 45 
 
 45 
 
 5 
 
 54 
 
 54 
 
 50 
 
 40 
 
 15 
 
 46 
 
 52 
 
 46 
 
 41 
 
 6 
 
 40 
 
 48 
 
 46 
 
 46 
 
 16 
 
 42 
 
 46 
 
 36 
 
 29 
 
 7 
 
 49 
 
 56 
 
 58 
 
 50 
 
 17 
 
 31 
 
 41 
 
 42 
 
 42 
 
 8 
 
 50 
 
 57 
 
 56 
 
 56 
 
 18 
 
 48 
 
 54 
 
 51 
 
 48 
 
 9 
 
 60 
 
 60 
 
 54 
 
 45 
 
 19 
 
 49 
 
 54 
 
 52 
 
 46 
 
 10 
 
 45 
 
 50 
 
 48 
 
 40 
 
 20 
 
 46 
 
 51 
 
 42 
 
 40 
 
 11 
 
 40 
 
 56 
 
 56 
 
 45 
 
 21 
 
 ^43 
 
 57 
 
 50 
 
 45 
 
 12 
 
 46 
 
 54 
 
 46 
 
 31 
 
 22 
 
 50 
 
 57 
 
 50 
 
 45 
 
 13 
 
 32 
 
 51 
 
 47 
 
 44 
 
 23 
 
 46 
 
 49 
 
 48 
 
 44 
 
 14 
 
 44 
 
 58 
 
 51 
 
 50 
 
 24 
 
 44 
 
 48 
 
 46 
 
 39 
 
 15 
 
 50 
 
 62 
 
 54 
 
 50 
 
 25 
 
 39 
 
 44 
 
 36 
 
 33 
 
 16 
 
 50 
 
 64 
 
 58 
 
 53 
 
 26 
 
 34 
 
 48 
 
 44 
 
 36 
 
 17 
 
 54 
 
 62 
 
 57 
 
 46 
 
 27 
 
 42 
 
 52 
 
 47 
 
 46 
 
 18 
 
 48 
 
 50 
 
 55 
 
 55 
 
 28 
 
 54 
 
 58 
 
 56 
 
 36 
 
 19 
 
 55 
 
 63 
 
 61 
 
 55 
 
 29 
 
 36 
 
 54 
 
 48 
 
 42 
 
 20 
 
 56 
 
 70 
 
 63 
 
 57 
 
 30 
 
 46 
 
 46 
 
 46 
 
 40 
 
 21 
 
 58 
 
 60 
 
 58 
 
 51 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 22 
 
 52 
 
 62 
 
 58 
 
 52 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 54 
 
 55 
 
 57 
 
 51 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 24 
 
 53 
 
 56 
 
 54 
 
 54 
 
 
 25 
 
 54 
 
 60 
 
 55 
 
 54 
 
 
 26 
 
 56 
 
 60 
 
 54 
 
 39 
 
 
 27 
 
 39 
 
 45 
 
 40 
 
 38 
 
 
 28 
 
 41 
 
 50 
 
 49 
 
 45 
 
 ~" 
 
 29 
 
 48 
 
 49 
 
 52 
 
 45 
 
 
 30 
 
 47 
 
 48 
 
 44 
 
 40 
 
 
 31 
 
 40 
 
 50 
 
 5) 
 
 48
 
 WIIITE MOUNTAINS AND FRANCONIA. 
 
 93 
 
 AUGUST, 1854. 
 
 SEPTEMBER, 1854. 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 ri 
 
 d 
 
 r-l 
 
 1 
 
 Self- 
 Register 
 during 
 night. 
 
 f 
 
 <D 
 
 ja 
 02 
 
 g 
 
 
 i-i 
 
 o5 
 
 9 
 
 02 
 
 Self- 
 Register 
 (luring 
 night. 
 
 1 
 
 50 
 
 61 
 
 56 
 
 52 
 
 1 
 
 48 
 
 52 
 
 50 
 
 
 2 
 
 54 
 
 51 
 
 46 
 
 36 
 
 2 
 
 38 
 
 50 
 
 50 
 
 
 3 
 
 38 
 
 40 
 
 45 
 
 44 
 
 3 
 
 51 
 
 52 
 
 51 
 
 
 4 
 
 46 
 
 47 
 
 46 
 
 43 
 
 4 
 
 40 
 
 50 
 
 49 
 
 
 5 
 
 45 
 
 56 
 
 54 
 
 47 
 
 5 
 
 54 
 
 60 
 
 59 
 
 
 6 
 
 47 
 
 54 
 
 45 
 
 31 
 
 6 
 
 58 
 
 64 
 
 57 
 
 
 7 
 
 33 
 
 38 
 
 36 
 
 32 
 
 7 
 
 52 
 
 49 
 
 42 
 
 
 8 
 
 33 
 
 42 
 
 38 
 
 32 
 
 8 
 
 33 
 
 41 
 
 45 
 
 
 9 
 
 34 
 
 66 
 
 48 
 
 36 
 
 9 
 
 46 
 
 45 
 
 43 
 
 
 10 
 
 38 
 
 56 
 
 50 
 
 44 
 
 10 
 
 32 
 
 42 
 
 34 
 
 
 11 
 
 45 
 
 60 
 
 54 
 
 49 
 
 11 
 
 32 
 
 46 
 
 46 
 
 
 12 
 
 49 
 
 52 
 
 52 
 
 51 
 
 12 
 
 40 
 
 48 
 
 46 
 
 
 13 
 
 52 
 
 54 
 
 51 
 
 33 
 
 13 
 
 30 
 
 40 
 
 45 
 
 
 14 
 
 33 
 
 34 
 
 36 
 
 32 
 
 14 
 
 36 
 
 42 
 
 38 
 
 
 15 
 
 41 
 
 47 
 
 45 
 
 44 
 
 15 
 
 40 
 
 40 
 
 32 
 
 
 16 
 
 48 
 
 55 
 
 49 
 
 48 
 
 16 
 
 36 
 
 
 
 
 17 
 
 48 
 
 55 
 
 48 
 
 46 
 
 
 18 
 
 47 
 
 50 
 
 40 
 
 39 
 
 
 19 
 
 39 
 
 58 
 
 48 
 
 44 
 
 
 20 
 
 45 
 
 59 
 
 50 
 
 46 
 
 
 21 
 
 46 
 
 50 
 
 48 
 
 40 
 
 ' 
 
 22 
 
 42 
 
 49 
 
 40 
 
 30 
 
 
 23 
 
 30 
 
 - 54 
 
 52 
 
 50 
 
 
 24 
 
 50 
 
 56 
 
 50 
 
 36 
 
 
 25 
 
 36 
 
 40 
 
 38 
 
 38 
 
 
 26 
 
 39 
 
 44 
 
 46 
 
 45 
 
 
 27 
 
 46 
 
 44 
 
 38 
 
 39 
 
 
 28 
 
 39 
 
 48 
 
 43 
 
 39 
 
 
 29 
 
 39 
 
 56 
 
 60 
 
 48 
 
 
 30 
 
 48 
 
 50 
 
 57 
 
 51 
 
 
 31 
 
 51 
 
 56 
 
 60 
 
 48 

 
 94 THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO TUB 
 
 SUMMARY. 
 
 The following is a synopsis of the weather during each 
 month : 
 
 JUNE, 1854. 
 
 Mean temperature at sunrise, 43.5 deg. 
 
 " " 12 M., 50.8 
 
 " " sunset, 46 " 
 
 " by self-register during night, 40.8 " 
 
 " " of the month, 45.3 " 
 
 Coldest day, 17th mean, 38 " 
 
 Warmest day, 28th mean, 56 " 
 
 Range of thermometer, 29 " 
 
 Thermometer highest 13th and 28th, 58 " 
 
 " lowest 16th, 29 
 
 Northerly winds prevailed 16 days. 
 Southerly " " 5 days. 
 
 Clear, and mostly clear, 12 days. 
 Cloudy, and mostly cloudy, 11 daya 
 Rainy, part or all of the day, 5 day; 
 
 JULY, 1854. 
 
 Mean temperature at sunrise, 46.9 deg. 
 
 " " 12 M., 53.9
 
 WHITE MOUNTYINS AND FKANCONIA. 95 
 
 Mean temperature at sunset, 51.5 " 
 
 " " by self-register during night, 46.2 " 
 
 " " of the month, 49.6 " 
 
 Coldest day, 27th mean, 40.5 " 
 
 Warmest day, 20th mean, 61.5 " 
 
 Range of thermometer, 
 
 Thermometer highest, 20th, 70 " 
 
 lowest, 13th, 31 " 
 
 Northerly winds prevailed 25 days. 
 
 Southerly " " 6 days. 
 
 Clear, and mostly clear, 22 days. 
 
 Cloudy, and mostly cloudy, 9 days. 
 
 Rainy, part or all of the day, 5 days. 
 
 AUGUST, 1854. 
 
 Mean temperature at sunrise, 43 deg. 
 
 " 12 M., 51 " 
 
 " " " sunset, 45.8 " 
 
 " by self-register during night, 41 " 
 
 " of the month, 45.2 " 
 
 Coldest day, 14th mean, 34 " 
 
 Warmest day, 1st mean, 55 " 
 
 Range of Thermometer, 36 
 
 Thermometer highest, 9th, 66 "
 
 96 THE TOURIST'S GUIDE TO THE 
 
 Thermometer lowest, 22d, 30 deg. 
 
 Northerly winds prevailed, 30 days. 
 
 Southerly " " 1 day. 
 
 Clear, and mostly clear, 26 days. 
 
 Cloudy, and mostly cloudy, 5 days. 
 
 Rainy, part or all of the day, 3 days. 
 
 SEPTEMBER, 1854. 
 
 Mean temperature at sunrise, 42 deg. 
 
 " " " 12 M., 48 
 
 " " " sunset, "''. ' 45.8 " 
 
 " " for the month, 45.3 " 
 
 Coldest day, 10th mean, 36 " 
 
 Warmest day, 6th mean, 59.7 " 
 
 Range of Thermometer, 58 " 
 
 Thermometer highest, 6th, 64 " 
 
 " lowest, 16th, 6 " 
 
 Northerly winds prevailed, 14 days. 
 
 Southerly " " 1 day. 
 
 Clear, and mostly clear, 10 days. 
 
 Cloudy, and mostly cloudy, 5 days. 
 
 Rainy, part or all day, 4 days.
 
 ROUTES AND DISTANCES 
 
 FROM 
 
 o?e 
 
 From Bo'ton to Portland, _--._- 105 miles. 
 " Portland to Alpine House, Gorham, N. H., via Atlantic 
 
 & ht. Lawrence Railroad, - - - - - 91 " 
 " Alpine House to Glen House, at bas'e of Mt. Washington, 8 " 
 
 196 miles by Railroad, 8 miles by stage, - - 204 " 
 
 COCHECO ROUTE. 
 
 From Boston to Dover, via Boston & Maine Railroad, - 68 miles. 
 " Dover to Alton Bay, - - - - - - - 28 
 
 " Alton Bay to Centre Harbor, by steamer, - - 30 " 
 " Centre Harbor to Crawford House, - - - - 56 " 
 
 96 miles by Railroad, 30 by Steamer, 56 by Stage, 182 " 
 
 EOUTE via WEIRS AND CENTRE HARBOR. 
 From Boston to Weirs, - - - - - - - 103 milee. 
 
 " Weirs to Centre Harbor, ...... 10 " 
 
 " Centre Harbor to Conway, ----- 30 " 
 
 " Conway to Crawford House, ..... 24 " 
 
 103 miles by Railroad, 10 by Steamer, 54 by Stage, 167 " 
 
 From Boston to Plymouth, N. H., by Railroad, - - 124 miles. 
 Plymouth to Flume House, Franconia Notch, by stage, 24 " 
 Flume House to Profile House, - - - - 6 " 
 
 Profile House to White Mountain House, - - - 26 " 
 White Mountain House to Crawford House, - 5 " 
 
 Crawford House to Willey House, - - - - 2 " 
 
 BOTJTE via WELLS BIVEE AND LITTLETON, N. H. 
 
 From Boston to Wells River, - - - - - . - 162 miles. 
 
 " Wells River to Littleton, - - - - - - 20 " 
 
 " Littleton to Crawford House, - ' - - - - 23 " 
 
 182 miles by Railroad, 23 by Stage, - - - 205 " 
 
 ROUTE via 8EEAGO LAKE. 
 
 From Boston to Portland, ------ 105 miles. 
 
 " Portland to Standish, ....... 16" 
 
 " Standish to Bridgeton, by steamer, . - - - 28 " 
 " Bridgeton to Conway, __-_.. 21 " 
 " Conway to Crawford House, - - - - 24 " 
 
 115 miles by Railroad, 51 by Stage, 28 by Steamer, 194 " 
 
 DISTANCE FROM DIFFERENT HOUSES TO SUMMIT OF MT. WASHING- 
 TON. From Alpine House, by carriage 3 miles, ponies 6 miles. 9 miles. 
 From Glen House, by ponies, 6 miles. From Crawford House, by 
 ponies, 8 miles. From White Mountain House, by carriage 6 miler-, 
 ponies 3 1-2 miles, 9 1-2 miles.
 
 Summit House, Mt, Washington, N. H. 
 
 The undersigned having purchased and connected the 
 
 TIP-TOP AND 
 
 Hope to be able to accommodate satisfactorily all who 
 visit this romantic and popular Summer Resort. 
 
 The House is situated within a few feet of the highest peak 
 of the Mountain, is 
 
 Six thousand two hundred and eighty-five feet above the level of the sea ! 
 
 And commands a grand view of the whole group of the White 
 Mountains, numerous Lakes and Rivers, the Ocean, City of 
 Portland, and Towns and Villages hi all directions. A view of 
 the scenery from the summit during the day is truly sublime, 
 and those spending the night here, are amply repaid with a 
 fine prospect at sunrise and sunset, and Telescopic views of the 
 Moon and Stars during the evening. 
 
 Parties wiping to visit Tuckerman's Ravine, " Gulf of Mex- 
 ico," Lake of the Clouds, Star Lake, or any other interesting 
 locality in the vicinity, will be furnished with an experienced 
 GUIDE, by the Proprietors. 
 
 The Houses at the base of the Mountains are unsurpassed for 
 comfort and elegance. Persons desirous of obtaining a GOOD 
 VIEW of the whole Mountain Scenery, should ascend from one 
 side, pass the night upon the summit, and descend by the 
 opposite side. 
 
 The SUMMIT HOUSE will be opened to receive company, 
 June 15th, 1855. 
 
 SPAULDING & Co., 
 
 PROPRIETORS.

 
 This book is DUE on the last 
 Rte stamped below. 
 
 FEB 
 
 REMINGTON RAND INC. 20 213 (533)
 
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