TO IMPROVE THE SERVICE IN YELLOWSTONE PARK. 



E. V. WILCOX. 



The establishment and maintenance of 

 the Yellowstone Park are commonly sup- 

 posed to be for sentimental and aesthetic 

 reasons strictly. The country included in its 

 boundaries is not open to settlement or for 

 economic use, and only 2 or 3 men have re- 

 tained holdings within this region, in ai semi- 

 private capacity. It seems, therefore, rea- 

 sonable to expect that this, perhaps the 

 most interesting park in the United States, 

 should be managed in such a way as to 

 preserve its timber, game, and natural 

 wonders in as nearly their present condi- 

 tion as possible. It is necessary, in order 

 that tourists may be able to visit the dif- 

 ferent parts of the Park conveniently, to 

 build roads, which are suitable for wagons, 

 to all parts of the Park which are of espe- 

 cial interest. At present the roads which 

 may be said to be maintained in good con- 

 dition simply cover the route along which 

 the Yellowstone Park Transportation 

 Company wishes to carry its passengers. 

 This route includes merely 4 or 5 of 

 the chief points of interest in the Park, 

 namely, Mammoth Hot Springs, Norris 

 Geyser basin, the Lower and Upper Gey- 

 ser basins, Yellowstone lake, and the Can- 

 yon. If for any reason one desires to 

 travel in other parts of the Park it is 

 found extremely difficult to do so with a 

 wagon. The road from Soda Butte to 

 \ancey's is as rocky and as sidling as any 

 road in the mountains, and the bridge 

 across Lamar river, just below Soda Butte, 

 is in a dilapidated and dangerous condi- 

 tion. This portion of the Park is possessed 

 of much interest to tourists. The antelope' 

 along the Lamar river are as numerous, 

 and as tame as in any other part of the 

 Park. The fossil forest and Big Specimen 

 ridge are in themselves of sufficient inter- 

 est to attract tourists. While it is true that 

 the Transportation Company allows only 

 5^2 days for their trip in the Park, and 

 therefore can not travel over longer dis- 

 tances than the present improved roads, 

 there are others to be considered besides 

 the tourists who patronize this company. 

 Of the 10,500 tourists who visited the Park 

 during the past season, over 4,000 traveled 

 by means of private conveyances, and a 

 considerable number of such tourists en- 

 tered the Park by Soda Butte, Snake 

 river, and Riverside stations. None of 

 these roads are in the condition in which 

 they should be, until the tourist reaches 

 the regular circuit, around which the 

 Transportation Company travels. The 

 tourists who visit the Park in private con- 

 veyances are not subject to the regulations 



36 



of any transportation company, and they 

 travel where they desire. In justice to this 

 large body of tourists the roads which lead 

 to other points of interest in the Park, 

 aside from the chief features of this region, 

 should be improved so that those points 

 may be reached in safety. 



One of the purposes for which the Park 

 was established is the protection of game 

 within its borders. Nearly all species of 

 game within the Park are at present in- 

 creasing in number, and this is a sufficient 

 evidence that the protection afforded by the 

 Park is more or less effective. Poaching 

 occurs, however, every year, and may be 

 carried on with comparative safety. It is 

 absolutely impossible for 2 scouts to patrol 

 3,600 square miles of mountain country in 

 summer, when the conditions of travel are 

 best, much less in winter, when the whole 

 country is deeply covered with snow. 

 There are many trails which permit an 

 easy entrance into the Park on all sides 

 by means of pack trains, and these en- 

 trances can not possibly be guarded by 2 

 men. It is not practicable to impose the 

 duties of scout on the soldiers of the Park, 

 for several reasons. The soldiers do not 

 remain any great length of time in the 

 Park, and do not -become thoroughly ac- 

 quainted with the various trails by which 

 hunters may enter. They are, moreover, 

 as a rule, not satisfactory scouts, and do 

 not understand the habits of game to an 

 extent which would make it possible for 

 them to locate the large bodies of game at 

 different seasons of the year. Hunters 

 may enter the Park by various trails on 

 the North as well as by the road from 

 Cooke City. On the West they may read- 

 ily gain entrance by Miller Creek trail, 

 leading from the Hoodoos, or by means of 

 the trail from the North Fork of Stinking 

 Water. On the South they may enter along 

 the Yellowstone river, Snake river, and by 

 trails at the Southwest corner of the Park. 

 On the West there are several entrances, 

 the most important being by the Madison 

 and Gallatin rivers. It is manifestly im- 

 possible for 2 men to guard all these en- 

 trances. Hunters may enter by one trail, 

 remain in the park 2 or 3 weeks, and 

 escape with their game without the possi- 

 bility of the scouts learning of their pres- 

 ence in the Park. At least 15 or 20 experi- 

 enced mountaineers should be employed 

 as scouts for the protection of game during 

 the fall and winter months. At other sea- 

 sons of the year a smaller number will be 

 required. 



Excellent grass is found in the valleys 



