ALONG THE SHORE

-Daniel F. Keefe of Glens Falls entertained a party of friends and relatives at the Hundred Island house Wednesday. On the way down the lake the pleasant lawyer was in a poetic frame of mind and apostrophized the scenery in set terms by quotations from Shakespeare, Scott, Byron, Burns and Moore.

-LeGrand C. Cramer and family today removed to Lake George, and during the season they will be at their handsome cottage there.

-F. G. Crosby and wife, Crosbyside, Lake George, gave a reception Thursday afternoon of last week to celebrate the eightieth birthday of Mr. Crosby.

-George R. Fish, proprietor, Locust Grove house, is a noted trout fisherman. Recently he brought in fourteen pounds of lake or brook trout, I have forgotten which.

-Adirondack hotelkeepers say that never before in the history of the woods has there been so many visitors at this time of year as at the present. A North Creek correspondent writes that large parties of fishermen are arriving there daily and taking various routes into the woods. The fishing is pronounced the best in years.

- The handsome new excursion steamer, the L. G. A., is almost ready for launching. Recently an additional force of workmen were put on so that the craft may possibly be running on or about July 10. It may safely be said that the L. G. A. will be worthy of our beautiful lake. The steamer was built entirely by day’s work and out of the best materials. The craft is in every way staunch and seaworthy. It should be entitled to receive the confidence and endorsement of the public.

-The Union College graduating class, to the number of eighty, will spend two weeks on Lake George, at the Lake View House. The students will arrive at the head of the lake in a special car from Schenectady, leaving the Old Dorp immediately after the class dinner, June 25. President Webster will accompany the party.

-Mrs. Clarence Sanford, at present residing on Assembly Point, is entitled to take high rank as a member of the Kamera Klub. The lady has recently taken forty views of the L. G. A. grounds – excellent pictures which will be preserved in a souvenir album.

 LAKE GEORGE AND THE FORT WILLIAM HENRY HOTEL. 

The fairest scenes are apt to lose their charms when viewed through an atmosphere of physical discomfort or amidst uncongenial company. Fortunately for the traveler, in 1868, more than two centuries after good old Father Jogues, T. E. Rossle & Son may be said to have rediscovered “The Holy Lake.” The old wigwam at its head (southern end) they raised, enlarged, and embellished, until it stood forth almost an Aladdin’s palace, four to six stories in height, with mansard roof, and a lake front of 342 feet. Along this entire front runs the great piazza, which has become famous through the praise of the many habitues of Lake George.

It is twenty-four feet in width, and supported by a row of Corinthian columns thirty feet tall. The outlook from it at all times is little less than enchanting, commanding, as it does, the level reaches of the lake for miles, with a number of the most picturesque islands and promontories. In the evening, by full moonlight, or on a peaceful Sunday, while the orchestra  discourses sacred music, and the only undertone is the flutter of cool dresses, dainty ribbon and fans, and the low voices of friendly promenaders, life here seems entirely worth living.

Under the dome is the general office, including a ticket office, telegraph office, bazaar, news, book and cigar stand, etc. West of this is the drawing room, and on the east, suites of apartments, bijou parlors and the large billiard hall, while at the back is the great dining hall, with accommodations for nearly one thousand guests. The lake and mountain air, always circulating, supplies the best condiment. Fruits and vegetables are brought crisp and fresh daily, from the Roessle farm near Albany, and the choicest meats and provisions from the metropolis. Shooting galleries, croquet grounds, bowling alleys, etc., are to be found in the grove near the hotel. A cabinet of  Indian and historical curiosities, gathered from the locality, attracts great interest. The proprietor, Col. T. E. Roessle, spares no pains to make the Fort William Henry attractive in all respects.

Assembly Point, Lake George, June 14, 1890.