THE YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK 41 



lakes, in the warm openings of the woods golden 

 with sunflowers, on the banks of the streams, by 

 the snowy waterfalls, beside the exciting wonders 

 or away from them in the scallops of the moun- 

 tain walls sheltered from every wind, on smooth 

 silky lawns enameled with gentians, up in the 

 fountain hollows of the ancient glaciers between 

 the peaks, where cool pools and brooks and gar- 

 dens of precious plants charmingly embowered 

 are never wanting, and good rough rocks with 

 every variety of cliff and scaur are invitingly 

 near for outlooks and exercise. 



From these lovely dens you may make excur- 

 sions whenever you like into the middle of the 

 park, where the geysers and hot springs are reek- 

 ing and spouting in their beautiful basins, dis- 

 playing an exuberance of color and strange mo- 

 tion and energy admirably calculated to surprise 

 and frighten, charm and shake up the least sensi- 

 tive out of apathy into newness of life. 



However orderly your excursions or aimless, 

 again and again amid the calmest, stillest scenery 

 you will be brought to a standstill hushed and 

 awe-stricken before phenomena wholly new to 

 you. Boiling springs and huge deep pools of 

 purest green and azure water, thousands of them, 

 are plashing and heaving in these high, cool 

 mountains as if a fierce furnace fire were burning 

 beneath each one of them ; and a hundred gey- 

 sers, white torrents of boiling water and steam, 



