and watched the sun rise. Even the misery of extreme cold did not prevent me from enjoying this superb spectacle. The sky was beautifully clear, except near the horizon, where clouds were massed in huge bars. These took on the various tints, -leaden gray, pearl, rose and deep crimson,-which heralded the approach of the sun. As each color appeared on these cloudstrata, the reflection moved like a great shadow over the sleeping world below; but, unlike a shadow, it served to reveal mountain tops, wooded hills, level valleys and streams. Then the long colored rays of light seemed to leap up like a flash to the snowy flanks of Shasta, which were soon all aglow under the flush of dawn. Nothing more impressive could be conceived than this awakening of the snow-shrouded mountains to a new

day.

The vastness of this expanse of mountainous ridges, looking like a storm-tossed ocean suddenly turned to stone, the awful desolation that surrounded me, the sense of loneliness, the feeling of remoteness from the world, all these emotions crowded upon one's mind and brought tears to the eyes. Though the advent of the sun carried life and warmth to the valleys, of which we could catch glimpses through the haze, it seemed to have no effect on Shasta. The wind was as penetrating as before; and, though scarcely able to drag one foot after the other, I set out to follow Gordon to the summit. After leaving the Peak, we struck a hollow in which the snow lay deep. The crust would not bear one's weight, and at every step we sank to the waist. The labor of crossing this dreadful hollow was something which it is not pleasant to recall. The rarefied air made me pant, as though I had been running a footrace. Every hundred yards it was necessary to stop, lean on my alpenstock, and take a rest. Only by the greatest exertion of will power could the benumbed and nearly exhausted body be made to move. Through all this miserable journey of only a short

In

half mile or more, my mind was firmly fixed on reaching the summit, if it took all day to do it; but the sensation of being thwarted by the unwilling body was something strange and unpleasant. It was as though the brain. were outside the body, urging it on, and impatient of its weakness and sloth. At last I reached the hot springs, which are in a hollow just below the summit; and though the odor of sulphur was very unpleasant the warmth was invigorating. These springs form one of the most peculiar features of Shasta. Out of a patch of ground of about half an acre come jets of steam. The rock is heated so that it burns through the shoes. many places the steam bubbles through a number of small holes, lifting the loose rock precisely as pent-up steam lifts the cover of a tea-kettle. smell is the disagreeable odor of sulphureted hydrogen, and the gases are so pungent as to give many persons nausea of the stomach. This seething pent-hole of fierce interior fires is surrounded by snow-fields that cover the burned-out craters of this old volcano; for Shasta at one time, from all geologic evidence, was in active eruption. Among these hot springs John Muir found refuge when he and a companion were overtaken on the summit by a great snowstorm.

The

After a short stay at the springs we set out for the summit. Gordon easily outstripped me, for the rarefied air again made progress slow for me. A scramble up a steep hill of loose stones, and the summit was reached at last. It is crowned by the geodetic monument erected by the Government to aid the coast survey in triangulation. This monument is not impressive, as it bears a striking resemblance to a huge fire-cracker. It is made of galvanized iron, and upon the paint that once covered it have been scrawled the names of hundreds who have climbed the mountain. Just below the monument the best general view was obtained. The air was as clear as fine wine; and refreshed with

some cold chicken and a drink of strong tea it was now a luxury to sit in a sunny, sheltered nook and look out upon the noble view below. On the northern horizon were the snowy peaks of Pitt, Jefferson and the Three Sisters, all burnedout volcanoes like Shasta. A little to the right stretched the famous lava-beds where a handful of fierce Modocs for weeks defied all the troops that could be brought against them. Inexpressibly dreary was this country, covered with patches of snow that made the dark-brown lava more forbidding. Turning to the southeast one could follow the line

Sliding Down the Face of Shasta.

of the Sierra for sixty miles, until there rose from the level Sacramento plain the Lassen Butte, a volcano nearly 11,000 feet high, which is the most conspicuous landmark in the upper Sacramento Valley. The sinuous course of the Sacramento River could be traced for many miles, while beyond the fair valley was the Coast Range, and then the Epiled-up masses of the Siskiyou, Trinity and Scott mountains, which extend in great wave-like ridges until they meet the horizon. It is difficult to tell whether the blue against which the last ridge is outlined be sea or sky; but it is very doubtful, with the height of these mountains, whether any one has seen the ocean from Shasta's summit. Perhaps you get the best idea of the

great elevation of Shasta from a careful study of the little valleys at the foot of the mountain. Big ranches with thousands of head of cattle look no larger than a square on a checker-board, and a river shrinks to a mere silver thread.

The descent of the mountain was far more laborious than usual, because we dared not risk sliding down by the same way we had climbed up. In the first place there were too many jagged rocks in the way, and again, no one could steer a sure course over the icy surface of the great snow-field. Any deflection from the true course would carry one far down into the glacier, which would mean serious injury or death. So we were forced to keep along the high ridge below the southern peak, climbing over the loose rocks and occasionally floundering through the deep snow. When about half way down we reached a point from which it was safe to slide. Seated on a gunny-sack, grasping the alpenstock firmly between your knees and steering a course with the feet, you go down over the smooth snow with the speed of the wind. The rush of the keen air fairly takes away the breath, but the sensation is delightful; for this is probably as near to the motion of a bird on the wing as one may reach until the invention of the flying machine.

The descent was not without its element of hazard; for at frequent intervals great masses of rock came crashing down over the snow from the northern ridge. The warm sunshine evidently loosened these rocks, which came thundering down the mountain.

About four hours were consumed in the descent. We reached the horses soon after mid-day, and a little later we were discussing a meal at the old camping ground, looking out on the snowy mountain that had given us so hard a night's work. Shasta seemed lovelier than ever, with the warm sunlight resting on the dazzling snow; but we had made the intimate acquaintance of the mountain, and knew how deadly was that beauty and how deceptive the sunshine on the summit.

The return over the dusty trail was not pleasant. We felt the heat of the foothills after the piercing cold of the mountain air. The horses moved like snails, and it was a great relief when the town was reached once more. It was some satisfaction for danger and hardship endured to be able to disprove the prophets who had declared we could never reach the summit. But for my part if I climb Shasta again it will not be when the mountain is covered with snow. One ascent of the kind which I have tried to describe faithfully is enough for a lifetime.

Co

OMPARATIVELY few outside of its immediate vicinity, in fact, scarcely any but "navy people," know exactly how the navy yard of the Pacific Coast is situated. There are also, as a matter of course, other things that only navy people know. None but they, for example, know how important a factor of the body politic navy people are.

several

But (to return to the subject that at present demands our attention) the ideas of Americans in general as to the location of their own naval establishments are certainly either very vague or altogether erroneous.

Let it be understood, then, that the San Francisco Navy Yard is located on Mare Island; the New York Yard, at Brooklyn; the Philadelphia Yard, on League Island; the Norfolk Yard, at Portsmouth, Va.; the Boston Yard, at Charlestown; that of Portsmouth, Me., at Kittery; while those of Washington and Pensacola are where their

names would indicate.

The San Francisco Navy Yard, the only one as yet established on the Pacific Coast, is located on an island which, lying along the eastern side of San Pablo Bay, is separated by a narrow strait from the mainland, and is directly opposite the charmingly situated town of Vallejo.

Napa rivers, it can boast immunity from the destructive teredo.

Probably no one hears for the first time the name of the island without question as to its meaning and derivation. Those versed in legendary lore answer with the story of the old white

This island, which is twenty-six miles distant from San Francisco, is two miles and a half long, with an area of about a thousand acres, and an altitude, at the highest point, of

280 feet.

mare.

In "the early days" there was but one ferry-boat on Carquinez Straits and the waters adjacent,-a barge constructed of planks secured to a float made of oil-barrels.

Once upon a time this craft, on its way from Martinez to Benicia, encountered a sudden squall; and it required but a few moments for the terrified animals of which its freight consisted to kick the boat to pieces and betake themselves to the water.

Among those that succeeded in reaching terra-firma was an old white mare belonging to General Vallejo; and the island on which it was found content

edly grazing was named by the General Isla de Yegua, or Island of the Mare.

It is probable, however, that some of the early missionaries named it Mare

Island, from the Latin mare, the sea; just as the region to which it belongs was doubtless named from the Spanish solano, the east wind; though General Vallejo states that the county so called was named for Solano, the chief of the Suisuns.

In the year 1850 Mare Island was granted by the Mexican Government to one Castro, who forthwith sold it for the sum of $7,000, the purchasers.

for a

naval station, the land-locked

harbor having every advantage of accessibility, capacity and depth; while, from the San Joaquin, Sacramento and

owing

to the influx of fresh water

vanced price of $17,500. Within two years thereafter (January 4, 1853), it was purchased by the United States Government for more than four times the last-named amount, and nearly