but after having seen it, there seems no reason why
one should not speed on to reach the Niagara falls and
Canada before the summer might get too hot.
I here left the great through-line, which crosses the
United States from the Atlantic to the Pacific, a
distance of 3,000 miles, which was commenced early
in 1863, and completed on the 10th of May,
1869.
As far as Detroit we passed through the northern
portion of Indiana, the garden of the American States,
and Ohio, full of interest to archaeologists on account
of the numerous mounds or tumuli discovered near
Newark, from which agricultural and other implements
of a siliceous material, or horn-stone, have lately been
excavated; also piles of chippings, marking the spot
where these tools had been fabricated. Some few
articles were made of porphyry brought from a distance;
others, knives, chisels, and personal ornaments of the
native copper of Lake Superior. The people who
inhabited these regions in olden times, so superior to
the Indians in civilization, are now generally conceded
to have been the ancestors of the ancient Peruvians
and Mexicans.
At Detroit we crossed the straits between lakes
Huron and Erie in a steamer, and thence by rail to the
famous Falls through very pretty country ; on passing
the grand suspension bridge we were rewarded by a
distant view of the Niagara.
There can be but one voice as to the magnificence of
that enormous sheet of water, which, surrounded by
splendid scenery, suddenly takes its final leap over a
bank of rocks in horse-shoe shape, displaying the most
magnificent colours, from azure blue to a transparent
emerald green, and rebounding below in clouds of froth
and spray,—it is a glorious spectacle ! The principal
fall is on the Canadian side, and about 900 feet
in. breadth and 165 feet deep ; the other, belonging
to America, is half as wide; but the rapids
above, divided by Goat Island and other bits of
wooded isles, add much to its beauty; and the
picturesqueness of the scene is further enhanced by
slender bridges and other artificial means, at least
many people seem to think so ; I confess I prefer Nature
unadorned. From the gallery running below the fall
one probably gains the best idea of the enormous
volume of water. There are other spots and show
places, such as “ The Cave of the Winds ” and “ Prospect
Point,” whence a good view can be obtained,
th a t is, after a dive into your pocket for half or quarter
of the mighty dollar.
The remainder of my journey, until I eventually