"Chicago to the Sea." Eastern Excursionist / A complete guide to the principal eastern summer resorts, including: Niagara Falls, the White Mountains, Saint Lawrence and Saguenay Rivers, Montreal and Quebec, the New England sea beaches, etc., and how and when to enjoy them.

by William C. Gage

THE NEW SUSPENSION BRIDGE.

This structure, although opened to the public in 1869, is still called the new bridge, to distinguish it from its elder brother, two miles below. Previous to the construction of the New York and Brooklyn bridge, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world, its roadway being 1,300 feet in length, and its cables 1,800 feet long. It is 190 feet above the river, being suspended from two towers, each 100 feet in height. Access may be had to the interior of the towers, and very fine views are obtained from their summits.

From the bridge itself a magnificent view of the Falls may be had, the finest, in fact, to be secured from any one point, the entire line of the cataract being embraced in a single glance, and in closer proximity than is possible elsewhere, except from below. The view down the river is also a fine one, comprising the deep gorge through which the stream flows, with its precipitous banks on either hand, and the Railroad Suspension Bridge in the distance.

The strength of the new bridge is estimated by the engineers as thirteen times greater than sufficient to bear any weight that can possibly be placed upon it. The year of its completion it was subjected to the severest gale it has ever had to withstand, and safely and successfully “weathered the blast.” All fears, therefore, as to its security in ordinary weather, are entirely groundless.

VIEW OF THE FALLS FROM THE FERRY.

Reaching the American shore by this method of crossing, the first point of interest is