﻿THE 
  SCENERY 
  OF 
  NORTH 
  AMERICA 
  

  

  389 
  

  

  as, 
  for 
  instance, 
  in 
  the 
  Italian 
  valleys 
  of 
  

   the 
  Alps 
  or 
  in 
  Corsica 
  or 
  at 
  Berchtes- 
  

   gaden. 
  

  

  Neither 
  is 
  there 
  in 
  North 
  America 
  any 
  

   view 
  of 
  snow 
  mountains 
  so 
  exquisite, 
  in 
  

   the 
  combination 
  of 
  beauty 
  and 
  variety 
  of 
  

   mountain 
  form, 
  as 
  that 
  from 
  the 
  heights 
  

   above 
  the 
  city 
  of 
  Sion, 
  on 
  the 
  northern 
  

   side 
  of 
  Yalais 
  in 
  Switzerland, 
  where 
  the 
  

   giants 
  of 
  the 
  Pennine 
  chain 
  rise 
  all 
  the 
  

   way 
  from 
  Monte 
  Leone, 
  on 
  the 
  east, 
  to 
  

   Mont 
  Blanc, 
  girt 
  by 
  his 
  aiguilles, 
  in 
  the 
  

   west, 
  with 
  the 
  Dom 
  and 
  Monte 
  Rosa, 
  

   Lyskamm 
  and 
  "YVeis 
  shorn, 
  Rothhorn, 
  

   Matterhorn, 
  Dent 
  Blanche, 
  and 
  Grand 
  

   Combin 
  standing 
  in 
  a 
  glittering 
  row 
  be- 
  

   hind 
  the 
  valley 
  of 
  the 
  Rhone. 
  

  

  Still 
  less 
  is 
  there 
  anything 
  so 
  tremen- 
  

   dous 
  as 
  the 
  great 
  views 
  in 
  the 
  Himalaya, 
  

   such 
  as 
  that 
  from 
  Sindeli 
  La, 
  on 
  the 
  bor- 
  

   der 
  of 
  Sikkim 
  and 
  Nepal, 
  where 
  the 
  eye, 
  

   ranging 
  over 
  hundreds 
  of 
  miles, 
  discovers 
  

   forty 
  summits 
  exceeding 
  20,000 
  feet 
  in 
  

   height, 
  including 
  the 
  highest 
  peak 
  on 
  the 
  

   earth's 
  surface.* 
  

  

  AN 
  UNSURPASSED 
  VIEW 
  FROM 
  PUGET 
  

   SOUND 
  

  

  But, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  neither 
  Europe 
  

   nor 
  Asia 
  nor 
  South 
  America 
  has 
  a 
  pros- 
  

   pect 
  in 
  which 
  sea 
  and 
  woods 
  and 
  snow 
  

   mountains 
  are 
  so 
  united 
  in 
  a 
  landscape 
  as 
  

   in 
  the 
  view 
  from 
  Puget 
  Sound 
  of 
  the 
  

   great 
  peaks 
  that 
  rise 
  like 
  white 
  towers 
  

   above 
  the 
  dark 
  green 
  forests 
  of 
  the 
  Cas- 
  

   cade 
  Range, 
  nor 
  any 
  valley 
  gorges 
  wilder 
  

   than 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Rockies, 
  more 
  beautiful 
  

   than 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Sierra 
  Nevada. 
  

  

  In 
  richness 
  of 
  colors, 
  whether 
  we 
  think 
  

   of 
  the 
  autumn 
  woods 
  of 
  Maine 
  or 
  the 
  

   rocks 
  of 
  the 
  Western 
  Canyons, 
  America 
  

   is 
  preeminent. 
  

  

  Comparisons 
  have 
  their 
  interest, 
  but 
  

   they 
  are 
  tiresome 
  and 
  profitless 
  when 
  they 
  

   attempt 
  to 
  place 
  above 
  or 
  beneath 
  one 
  an- 
  

   other 
  things 
  essentially 
  different. 
  If 
  I 
  

   were 
  to 
  prolong 
  this 
  article 
  by 
  comparing 
  

  

  * 
  Out 
  of 
  the 
  different 
  native 
  names 
  which 
  

   this 
  supreme 
  summit 
  bears, 
  it 
  would 
  seem 
  that 
  

   Chomo 
  Kankar 
  (the 
  Lord 
  of 
  Snows) 
  has 
  the 
  

   best 
  claim 
  to 
  be 
  adopted. 
  It 
  is 
  usually 
  called 
  

   in 
  English 
  Mount 
  Everest, 
  a 
  name 
  given 
  in 
  

   honor 
  of 
  a 
  former 
  head 
  of 
  the 
  Indian 
  Survey, 
  

   and 
  British 
  climbers 
  are 
  now 
  attempting 
  to 
  

   scale 
  it.— 
  J. 
  B. 
  

  

  the 
  famous 
  cities 
  the 
  same 
  conclusion 
  

   would 
  we 
  reach. 
  The 
  charm 
  of 
  Constan- 
  

   tinople 
  or 
  Bombay 
  is 
  not 
  that 
  of 
  Peking 
  

   or 
  San 
  Francisco. 
  

  

  DOES 
  AMERICAN 
  SCENERY 
  HAVE 
  ROMAN- 
  

   TIC 
  APPEAL 
  ? 
  

  

  One 
  word, 
  however, 
  I 
  will 
  add 
  on 
  a 
  

   comparison 
  sometimes 
  made 
  between 
  Eu- 
  

   ropean 
  and 
  American 
  scenery 
  which 
  

   raises 
  an 
  interesting 
  point 
  for 
  discussion. 
  

   Some 
  travelers 
  say 
  that 
  American 
  scenery 
  

   is 
  not 
  romantic. 
  

  

  This 
  sets 
  one 
  asking: 
  What 
  does 
  the 
  

   epithet 
  mean? 
  Is 
  the 
  romantic 
  element 
  

   in 
  natural 
  beauty 
  something 
  in 
  the 
  land- 
  

   scape 
  itself, 
  a 
  particular 
  charm 
  of 
  line 
  or 
  

   color 
  which 
  thrills 
  us 
  with 
  emotion 
  and 
  

   stimulates 
  imagination? 
  Or 
  does 
  it 
  de- 
  

   pend 
  on 
  some 
  association 
  with 
  human 
  life, 
  

   such 
  as 
  incidents 
  in 
  history 
  or 
  references 
  

   in 
  poetry, 
  which 
  bring 
  Nature 
  into 
  rela- 
  

   tion 
  with 
  man 
  and 
  bathe 
  rocks 
  and 
  woods 
  

   and 
  river 
  banks 
  in 
  an 
  atmosphere 
  of 
  

   human 
  feeling? 
  

  

  If 
  the 
  latter 
  view, 
  which 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  

   the 
  common 
  view, 
  be 
  correct, 
  it 
  would 
  

   follow 
  that 
  romance 
  cannot 
  be 
  looked 
  for 
  

   in 
  regions 
  where 
  nothing 
  ever 
  happened, 
  

   nothing 
  — 
  that 
  is 
  to 
  say, 
  of 
  which 
  civilized 
  

   men 
  have 
  knowledge 
  or 
  over 
  which 
  no 
  

   poet 
  ever 
  waved 
  his 
  magic 
  wand. 
  

  

  New 
  countries, 
  such 
  as 
  western 
  Amer- 
  

   ica 
  and 
  Siberia 
  and 
  Australia, 
  cannot, 
  

   therefore, 
  have 
  anything 
  romantic 
  in 
  their 
  

   landscapes 
  till 
  the 
  landscapes 
  have 
  been 
  

   associated 
  with 
  moving 
  incidents, 
  either 
  

   real 
  or 
  imagined, 
  by 
  the 
  poet's 
  mind. 
  

  

  But 
  is 
  it 
  clear 
  that 
  the 
  latter 
  view 
  is 
  

   correct? 
  Are 
  there 
  not 
  regions, 
  such 
  as 
  

   parts 
  of 
  western 
  America, 
  where 
  the 
  

   human 
  associations, 
  historic 
  and 
  literary, 
  

   are 
  absent, 
  but 
  in 
  which 
  particular 
  pieces 
  

   of 
  scenery 
  affect 
  our 
  emotions 
  and 
  imag- 
  

   ination 
  in 
  a 
  way 
  practically 
  indistinguish- 
  

   able 
  from 
  that 
  which 
  European 
  scenery 
  

   is 
  deemed 
  to 
  do? 
  

  

  If 
  this 
  be 
  so, 
  the 
  distinction 
  drawn 
  be- 
  

   tween 
  the 
  two 
  continents 
  disappears 
  or 
  

   becomes 
  a 
  mere 
  question 
  of 
  words. 
  The 
  

   influence 
  of 
  scenery 
  on 
  emotion 
  is, 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  a 
  large 
  subject, 
  too 
  large 
  to 
  be 
  en- 
  

   tered 
  on 
  here, 
  and 
  I 
  leave 
  it, 
  content 
  to 
  

   have 
  suggested 
  a 
  question 
  fit 
  to 
  be 
  con- 
  

   sidered 
  at 
  leisure. 
  

  

  