. The New England magazine . an over-powering sense of the awesomeness of is in the depths of a dark chasm,beside a bright little stream, and thegreat arch, bathed in eternal sunshine,is far above. From out the twilight, onegrows conscious of something great andmajestic and mystical and Bridge has one peculiar characteris-tic : one realizes its full grandeur at is no first feeling ofdisappointment to graduallyovercome, as with NiagaraFalls. Here is an arch overtwo hundred feet in height,of a blue limestone, whichresembles, under polish, theblack marbles of t
. The New England magazine . an over-powering sense of the awesomeness of is in the depths of a dark chasm,beside a bright little stream, and thegreat arch, bathed in eternal sunshine,is far above. From out the twilight, onegrows conscious of something great andmajestic and mystical and Bridge has one peculiar characteris-tic : one realizes its full grandeur at is no first feeling ofdisappointment to graduallyovercome, as with NiagaraFalls. Here is an arch overtwo hundred feet in height,of a blue limestone, whichresembles, under polish, theblack marbles of the Isle LaMotte. The walls are notice-ably smooth, with onlysuperficial seams and fis-sures; and their curves arebold and broad, with thatsimplicity of outline whichproduces the impression ofgrandeur. Pictures do notgive an adequate impressionof its height; but the illus-trations which accompanythis article are from themost artistic photographswhich have been secured,and those who have not THE NATURAL BRIDGE OE VIRGINIA. 597. seen the Bridge can well judge of itsoutlines and proportions. One muststand beneath it; observe how it dwarfstrees and men ; how it is carven, darkagainst the sky ; how migratory birdsfly beneath its arch — to realize itsaltitude. It is fifty feet higher thanNiagara Falls, and carries an avenueninety feet wide. It has its uses,—-now, as in the days of the Mon-acans, — supporting a roadway and aBoston syndicate. The span itself hasthe precision of measured masonry ; and yet the block of stone between the piersis an unbroken mass containing fifteenthousand cubic feet. The opening hassomewhat the proportions of a horseshoemagnet ; while the walls are not abso-lutely perpendicular, but lean slightly tothe left. Their faces are tinted dull redand ochre, and soft shades of yellow andcream ; colored by the veins of iron andmanganese in the hills above. Wherethe arch protects the walls from the wash,they are of a dark, or delicate blueishgray, with white li
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, bookidnewenglandma, bookyear1887
