12 THE NATURAEIST : 
Up Pike's Peak. 
T] THE fame of lofty Pike’s Peak 
is world-wide. Fearless and 
erect it stands, far above the 
billowy clouds, seeming to defy 
the very heavens. 
At the dizzy height of 14,147 
feet above the level of the sea 
Nature planted this everlasting 
monument which will last as long 
as this planet of ours continues to 
exist: 
There is something awe-inspir- 
ing about a mountainous country. 
The grandeur of great snow- 
capped peaks and dark, mysteri- 
ous defiles of abysmal chasms are 
never made commonplace by fa- 
miliarity. Thus I had a feeling of 
exilaration and felt a thrill of 
wondrous awe as I prepared to 
make my first ascent of Pike’s 
Peak. 
It was in the fall of 1890. The 
golden spike had been driven and 
the highest railroad on earth was # 
completed, A safe, easy and 
speedy transit from the pictures- | 
que little town of Maniton to the 
top of the giant mountain was 
assured, 
The railroad is a most remark- 
able one. The exact length of 
the road is 46,992 feet, and the 
average elevation to be overcome 
844.8 feet to the mile, making an 
average grade of 16 percent. The 
maximum grade is 25 per cent. 
and the maximum degree of curva- 
ture is 16, with aradius of 359 feet. 
The young readers of this paper 
will, of course, understand that no 
ordinary train could be run upa 
grade like that; but that is where 
the remarkable thing comes in. 
Each locomotive is equipped 
with six separate cog wheels, oper- 
ating from a main drum, situated 
at about the center of the engine. 
The cogs of these wheels fit into 
corresponding teeth on rack rails 
that are laid between the main 
tracks, and in this manner the 
locomotives are made to climb the 
steepest grades or creep slowly 
down the longest inclines with 
comparative ease and perfect safety 
CLIMBING PIKE’S PEAK BY RAIL. 
As the ascent is made, many 
opportunities are given for mag- 
nificient views, through vista in 
the trees, with the great plains to 
the East glowing in the sunlight. 
Many deep canyons, pretty streams 
and high water falls are passed. 
On and on the queer little train 
goes and soon timber line is 
reached. That is 11625) Wece 
high, and above that point no trees 
will grow. 
