then we lay on the grass and laughed with sheer bliss of being alive.this have i known once in japan,once on the banks of the columbia,what time the salmon came in and california howled,and once again in the yellowstone by the light of the eyes of the maiden from new hampshire.four little pools lay at my elbow,one was of black water (tepid),one clear water (cold),one clear water (hot),one red water (boiling).my newly washed handkerchief covered them all,and we two marvelled as children marvel.
"this evening we shall do the grand canyon of the yellowstone,"said the maiden.
"together?"said i;and she said,"yes."
the sun was beginning to sink when we heard the roar of falling waters and came to a broad river along whose banks we ran.and then--i might at a pinch describe the infernal regions,but not the other place.the yellowstone river has occasion to run through a gorge about eight miles long.to get to the bottom of the gorge it makes two leaps,one of about one hundred and twenty and the other of three hundred feet.i investigated the upper or lesser fall,which is close to the hotel.
up to that time nothing particular happens to the yellowstone--its banks being only rocky,rather steep,and plentifully adorned with pines.
at the falls it comes round a corner,green,solid,ribbed with a little foam,and not more than thirty yards wide.then it goes over,still green,and rather more solid than before.after a minute or two,you,sitting upon a rock directly above the drop,begin to understand that something has occurred;that the river has jumped between solid cliff walls,and that the gentle froth of water lapping the sides of the gorge below is really the outcome of great waves.
and the river yells aloud;but the cliffs do not allow the yells to escape.
that inspection began with curiosity and finished in terror,for it seemed that the whole world was sliding in chrysolite from under my feet.i followed with the others round the corner to arrive at the brink of the canyon.we had to climb up a nearly perpendicular ascent to begin with,for the ground rises more than the river drops.stately pine woods fringe either lip of the gorge,which is the gorge of the yellowstone.you'll find all about it in the guide books.