the land on which the town of Urbana stands and laid out the village. His pioneer ancestry was a race of men who had fought battles with the Indians; the boy, Quincy Ward, heard many tales of those fights and ofter saw the Indians, learning much of their habits and customs. When he grew to manhood he lived among the Indians in the Northwest, studying their habits and making many wax sketches. Many beautiful floral tributes were sent by the leading art organizations of the country to be laid on Ward's grave, at the unveiling of the memorial, and men in all ranks of life-statesmen, painters, sculptors, literary men, architects, clergymen and educators sent letters to Mrs. Ward expressing their profound sentiments concerning her husband. NATIONAL PARKS AND MONUMENTS Complete List Following is a complete list of the National Parks and National Monuments, together with the dates of their creation, their locations and their areas. Those marked with an asterisk (*) are administered by the Department of the Interior; those marked by a dagger (†) are administered by the Department of Agriculture, and those marked with a double dagger (†) are maintained by the Department of War. Date Name and Location Acres 1832 1872 1890 1890 1890 *Hot Springs Reservation National Park, Arkansas.. 912 2,142,720 161,597 2,536 1892 *Casa Grande Ruin Reservation, Arizona.. 1899 1902 1902 1903 1904 1906 1906 1906 1906 1906 1907 1907 1907 *Mount Rainier National Park, Washington. 719,622 480 207,360 848 159,360 10,522 780 48,966 1,152 160 25,625 160 20,629 5,120 1,280 1907 Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, New Mexico.... 160 1908 1908 *John Muir Woods National Monument, California. 295 806,400 1908 1908 *Lewis and Clark Cavern National Monument, Montana.. 160 10 1908 Wheeler National Monument, Colorado.. 300 1909 1909 +Mount Olympus National Monument, Washington. 608,480 360 Big Hole Battlefield National Monument, Montana.. 5 13,883 1911 1913 +Devil's Postpile National Monument, California. Cabrillo National Monument, California.... 1914 *Papago Saguaro National Monument, Arizona.. 1915 *Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. 800 1 2,050 230,000 Three or four of the dates given in the foregoing list differ from those given in the annual report of the Secretary of the Interior, ours being in each case the earlier. The reason for this is that in each case we have given the date of the first proclamation or act, whereas the Secretary of the Interior has given the date of the second or a subsequent proclamation or act. Papago Saguaro National Monument In the foregoing list will be noted two additions since our last Report. Papago Saguaro National Monument was created in 1914. It embraces about 2,050 acres of rocky and desert land in Maricopa County, Arizona. Within this tract is a splendid collection of characteristic desert flora, including many striking examples of great cactus and other interesting species of cacti, as well as fine examples of the yucca palm. The monument is interesting ethnographically and archaeologically on account of the historic pictographs carved by the aborigines on the rocks. Rocky Mountain National Park The newest National Park is the Rocky Mountain National Park, created by Senate bill 6309, which passed the House of Representatives on January 18, 1915. This park comprises about 230,000 acres which is set aside from one of the National Forests, and lies northwest of Denver in the Counties of Grand, Boulder and Larimer. Congressman Mann of Illinois, in speaking in favor of the bill, said that he had seen a good deal of Colorado and he believed that the most valuable use of a country like that was for the preservation of its scenery. "I think," he said, "the time will come, and I hope it will not be very long in the future, when the vast hordes of Americans who now go across the Atlantic to see some mild scenery over there will restrain their curiosity for the other side of the ocean and visit some of the grand scenery in this country which is to be found in the Rocky Mountains." Number of Visitors The number of visitors to twelve of the leading National Parks during the past eight years is given by the Secretary of the Interior, as follows: Economic Value of National Parks In indicating the economic value of the National Parks, the Secretary of the Interior says that without taking into consideration the cost to visitors of transportation from their homes to the parks, a fair idea of the economic value of tourist travel in four of the larger parks may be obtained by consideration of the financial reports of the concessionaires, to wit, the gross receipts in the Yellowstone for 1913 amounted to $1,186,811.36 as compared with $1,067,161.34 for 1912; in the Yosemite, $359,481.45 for 1913 as compared with $311,444.32 for 1912; in the Mount Rainier, $66,942.76 for 1913 as against $56,735.93 for 1912; and in the Glacier National Park, $161,510.87 for 1913. Eruption of Lassen Peak The most dramatic history of any of the National Parks or Monuments during the past year has been that of Lassen Peak, which is situated in the southeastern part of Shasta County, Cal. Lassen Peak is one of a series of great volcanic cones which extend as far as Mount Rainier, in the State of Washington, and the upbuilding of which has been connected with the origin of the mountain region of the northwestern Pacific coast. On May 29, 1914, Lassen Peak broke forth in eruption, which was followed at frequent intervals by other eruptions of increasing violence. Within one month there had been thirteen outbreaks, the column of black smoke that issued on June 30 rising to a height of 3,000 feet. The strong stench of the sulphur fumes was perceptible at Volta and Viola, twenty-two miles to the leeward. On August 20 there were still more violent eruptions. Volcanic ashes fell a distance of ten miles and the rumbling was heard seven miles away. A forest ranger 16 miles away measured the height of the column of steam and smoke and found it to be 7,000 feet. By the beginning of September there had been about 50 distinct outbreaks. At that time the crater was about 800 feet long and 350 feet wide, and the snow cap for at least a mile around was covered with a thick layer of light volcanic ash. On April 16, 1915, the peak was in eruption for the eighty-ninth time in eleven months. Fortunately no life in any form was destroyed, so far as present advices go, and the chief interest in the eruption is in its scenic and scientific aspects. Lassen Peak is the only active volcano in the 48 States of the Union. Situation at the Grand Canyon The proposition in the last Congress for a government railroad from Marysville, Utah, to the heart of the Kaibab National Forest in Arizona, has caused recent public discussion concerning the establishment of a northern route of access to the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River and the desirability of having a government town-site on the north rim of the Canyon. At present, access to the rim of this Canyon is from the south by way of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad. Owing to the monopoly enjoyed by this company, irritations and jealousies have developed locally, and upon hearing of these this Society made inquiry as to the situation there. The railroad company owns in fee 38 acres at the rim of the Grand Canyon and leases about 76 acres adjacent at an annual rental of about $5 an acre. The Grand Canyon branch of the railroad, running from Williams on the main line to the rim of the Canyon, was built in 1901. Their hotels are on their own land and their stables on the leased land. They completed in 1912 the Rim Road, a wagon road 9 miles long, running westward along the rim from the hotels to the head of the Hermit Trail, and have done some work on the Hermit Trail which is 7 miles long and runs from the rim down to the river. They have been blocked in the latter, however, by the locating of obstructive mineral claims. The Rim Road was built with the permission of the government and the public is free to use it. Their water they have to bring in tank cars from Del Rio on the Sante Fe and Pacific division 150 miles distant. The nearest source of water is down in the canyon 3,000 feet below the rim at the Indian Garden on the Bright Angel trial, but it is impossible to raise the water that height. The company has an investment of nearly $500,000 in the Grand Canyon railway, hotels, etc., and says that it is a losing investment financially, but it is a good advertisement for the railroad. The company feels that it is affording accommodations to the public at actually less than cost, and that it has a right to protect its own interests on its own property, while extending every accommodation practicable to the public. Memorial to Grand Canyon Explorers By authority of the United States Congress, a massive bronze tablet has been cast and will soon be erected on the rim of the |