﻿ACADEMY 
  OF 
  SCIENCES. 
  141 
  

  

  higher 
  then 
  the 
  edge 
  of 
  the 
  cup 
  all 
  around 
  the 
  rim, 
  yet 
  without 
  overflowing 
  

   When 
  this 
  was 
  done, 
  it 
  became 
  at 
  once 
  evident, 
  on 
  sighting 
  across 
  the 
  smooth 
  

   surface 
  of 
  the 
  water, 
  that 
  the 
  other 
  peak 
  was 
  higher 
  than 
  the 
  one 
  on 
  which 
  we 
  

   stood 
  by 
  an 
  amount 
  which 
  we 
  both 
  of 
  us 
  estimated 
  to 
  be 
  not 
  les$ 
  than 
  500 
  07* 
  

   600 
  feet. 
  

  

  As 
  to 
  the 
  proofs 
  that 
  the 
  peak 
  which 
  we 
  climbed 
  i'i 
  not 
  the 
  one 
  originally 
  

   named 
  Mount 
  Whitney 
  by 
  Profess.or 
  Breicer's 
  party, 
  in 
  1864, 
  they 
  are 
  numer- 
  

   ous 
  ; 
  and 
  among 
  them 
  are 
  the 
  following 
  : 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  first 
  place, 
  Mr. 
  Clarence 
  King, 
  in 
  1864, 
  on 
  reaching 
  the 
  summit 
  of 
  

   Mount 
  Tyndall, 
  remarks 
  as 
  follows, 
  in 
  the 
  Geological 
  Survey 
  Report 
  (Geology, 
  

   vol. 
  I, 
  p. 
  386) 
  : 
  

  

  " 
  On 
  getting 
  the 
  level, 
  it 
  was 
  seen 
  at 
  once 
  that 
  tliere 
  were 
  two 
  peaks 
  equally 
  nigh 
  in 
  

   sight, 
  and 
  two 
  still 
  more 
  elevated 
  — 
  ail 
  within 
  a 
  distance 
  of 
  seven 
  miles. 
  Of 
  the 
  two 
  

   highest, 
  one 
  rose 
  close 
  hy, 
  hardly 
  a 
  mile 
  away 
  ; 
  it 
  is 
  an 
  inaccessible 
  bunch 
  of 
  needles, 
  

   and 
  we 
  gave 
  it 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  Mount 
  Williamson. 
  The 
  other, 
  which 
  we 
  called 
  Mount 
  

   Whitney, 
  appeared 
  equally 
  inaccessible 
  from 
  any 
  point 
  on 
  the 
  north 
  or 
  west 
  side 
  ; 
  it 
  is 
  

   between 
  seven 
  and 
  eight 
  miles 
  distant, 
  in 
  a 
  south-southeast 
  direction, 
  and, 
  I 
  should 
  think, 
  

   fully 
  350 
  feet 
  higher 
  than 
  our 
  peak." 
  (Further 
  investigation 
  showed 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  really 
  

   600 
  or 
  700 
  feet 
  higher 
  than 
  Mount 
  Tyndall.) 
  

  

  Now, 
  the 
  peak 
  which 
  we 
  climbed 
  is 
  certainly 
  not 
  350 
  feet 
  higher 
  than 
  Mount 
  

   Tyndall, 
  but 
  very 
  nearly 
  the 
  same 
  altitude. 
  In 
  fact, 
  as 
  closely 
  as 
  we 
  could 
  

   judge 
  by 
  our 
  water-level 
  at 
  such 
  a 
  di-stance, 
  Mount 
  Tyndall 
  appeared 
  a 
  ^r/^e 
  the 
  

   higher 
  of 
  the 
  two. 
  Moreover, 
  this 
  peak, 
  instead 
  of 
  being 
  between 
  seven 
  and 
  

   eight 
  miles 
  distant 
  in 
  a 
  south-southeast 
  direction 
  from 
  Mount 
  Tyndall, 
  is 
  be- 
  

   tween 
  twelve 
  and 
  thirteen 
  miles 
  distant 
  from 
  it, 
  in 
  a 
  direction 
  about 
  S. 
  37° 
  E. 
  

   true 
  course 
  ; 
  while 
  the 
  genuine 
  Mount 
  Whitney 
  [i. 
  e., 
  the 
  highest 
  peak) 
  is 
  act- 
  

   ually 
  distant 
  from 
  Mount 
  Tyndall 
  only 
  about 
  seven 
  and 
  one 
  quarter 
  miles 
  in 
  a 
  di- 
  

   rection 
  about 
  S. 
  26° 
  E. 
  true 
  course 
  — 
  thus 
  corresponding 
  exactly 
  with 
  this 
  remark 
  

   of 
  King's 
  in 
  1864. 
  It 
  is 
  evident 
  enough 
  that 
  this 
  difference 
  between 
  seven 
  or 
  

   eight 
  and 
  twelve 
  or 
  thirteen 
  miles 
  of 
  air-line 
  distance 
  involves 
  an 
  error 
  which 
  

   Mr. 
  King 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  likely 
  to 
  make 
  in 
  his 
  estimate 
  of 
  the 
  

   distance 
  in 
  1864 
  ; 
  while 
  the 
  direction 
  S. 
  26^ 
  E. 
  also 
  corresponds 
  far 
  more 
  

   nearly 
  to 
  Mr. 
  King's 
  words, 
  " 
  a 
  south-southeast 
  direction," 
  than 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  

   S. 
  37° 
  E. 
  does. 
  

  

  Again, 
  after 
  Mr. 
  King's 
  ascent 
  of 
  Mount 
  Tyndall, 
  and 
  the 
  return 
  of 
  the 
  

   party 
  to 
  Vi.salia, 
  Mr. 
  King 
  made 
  another 
  excursion 
  into 
  the 
  mountains, 
  leaving 
  

   Visalia 
  July 
  14, 
  1864, 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  making 
  an 
  attack 
  on 
  Mount 
  Whitney. 
  

   He 
  followed 
  from 
  Visalia 
  a 
  trail 
  which 
  appears, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  his 
  description 
  and 
  

   my 
  information 
  give 
  the 
  means 
  of 
  identifying 
  it, 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  the 
  present 
  Hock- 
  

   ett 
  Trail, 
  to 
  the 
  point 
  where 
  it 
  crosses 
  the 
  main 
  Kern 
  River. 
  From 
  this 
  point 
  

   Mr. 
  King 
  followed 
  some 
  route 
  among 
  the 
  upper 
  branches 
  of 
  the 
  Kern 
  River, 
  

   which 
  he 
  has 
  not 
  described 
  with 
  sufficient 
  clearness 
  to 
  enable 
  it 
  to 
  be 
  accurately 
  

   traced 
  on 
  any 
  map 
  with 
  which 
  I 
  am 
  acquainted 
  in 
  the 
  Geological 
  Survey 
  Office, 
  

   or 
  elsewhere, 
  to 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  Mount 
  Whitney. 
  In 
  his 
  attempt 
  to 
  scale 
  the 
  

   summit 
  of 
  the 
  mountain, 
  he 
  did 
  not 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  succeed. 
  But 
  the 
  highest 
  

   point 
  which 
  he 
  reached, 
  as 
  indicated 
  by 
  his 
  barometric 
  observation, 
  was 
  '• 
  ac- 
  

  

  