A VISIT TO EUROPE 329 



which is the cause of it all, and of which our finite intelli- 

 gence is but an atom— an infinitesimal spark! 



On my return trip I bought a ticket to Toronto and one 

 to Kingston. Even the temporary inclemency of the 

 weather helped me to see the sights of Niagara in their 

 different aspects. The contrast, for instance, between the 

 effects of the bright sun-light and the dark, threatening 

 clouds close by, upon the blending white foam in the 

 depth, as seen from Goat-Island, was a spectacle of Na- 

 ture which may almost be called ghostly in its effect. 



The impression this great wonder of Nature makes 

 upon the beholder cannot easily be described. It is too 

 grand, too overwhelming, to be expressed in human 

 words. Only he, who has stood near the bottom and heard 

 the indescribable roar and seen the stupendous volume 

 of rushing waters, can even faintly grasp the idea of the 

 Power and glory of his Creator, who tells him in an un- 

 mistakable voice: ''Humble thyself, for all the works of 

 this earth are mine. I am the Lord!" 



And once seen you will never forget Niagara Falls, nor 

 the Voice which spoke to you. 



It is evening. I am penning these lines while seated 

 upon a rock and leaning against a fir-tree; to my right 

 yawns an abyss two hundred feet deep, and in front of 

 me are the Falls in their magnificence, clad in the golden 

 light of the setting sun. Darker and darker grows the 

 spectacle, the Horseshoe Fall seems veiled and soon noth- 

 ing but the everlasting roar reminds one of its royal pres- 

 ence. In the midst of it all I am thinking of Home and of 

 California. 



Friday, May 15th, 1868. 

 The romantic trip to Lewiston exceeds my expectations. 

 The road has evidently been hewn into the rocky banks 

 of the Niagara river. While the American scenery on 

 this road is decidedly attractive, that on the Canadian 

 side has a still greater charm, which I enjoyed so thor- 

 oughly that I regretted not to have made the trip on foot. 

 We reached Lewiston at 10:50 and proceeded at once to 



