Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1849-12-17
.respoudenee gftbe Portage Sentinel

Correspondence gfthe Portage Sentinel !,
~ Iowa Cns; Nov. 90, ls4a +
MEssns. ED1roRs:-Haying agreed, upon the
solicitations Of several persans residing in the
vicinity of Ravenna to write to them on my ar
rival here, l am induced, as 8fsaving time,
to communicate this to you and hope it
may meet them through tbeseelppns Of your
paper.
After a journey of someten days by stage'
steamboat and rail road, through rich and fer
tile country, arrived at Muscatine, one of the
most enterprising and important towns OF Iowa;
and judging from its peculiar location, it must
eventually become one of the first commercial
towns on the Upper Mississippi. For its being
principal place for emigrants en- route to varl-
Gus parts of the State, it hs received the appel
lation of s.the Emigrants Depot" An exten-
| sive coal mine has quites secently been found
which gives it great advantage over other towns
on the Mississippi; onseauently property has
taken rise, within theIshort period OF two
weeks, of two hundred pet cent, and those who
were a short time ago in fmited circumstances
have raised to sudden affaence without mental
or physical exertion, and Ethout going to Cal
ifornia
The town contains abott fifteen hundred IN
habitants; who have emignted from many parts
of the world, undoubtedl5ko seeka better home
or more lucrative nlaa6 pursuing their oc
cupations. YOU E1 " g - k4he warm hearted
lrishman; the industffss38 German; the generous
Scotchman, as well ssfhe polished Frenchnan
and the enterpriaing Yankee, all actively engaged
in the cooperation of domestic economy; and
without distinction of age, uniting with cheerful
ness in their moral sports, and seem TO Share
each others misfortunes with the same sincerity
Upon leaving Muscatine, one cannot help bu
} feel delightful sensation Of repose-he hal
emerged frem the noise ami hustle of an enter
prisng town and is pursuing onward Ger tht
rolling prairie. intespersed here and there will
: beautiful groves efthrifty timber. The prarie
, of the w est are not so dismal, nor is the view
so boundless as many people suppose them to be
especially in Iowa where they are so rolling: tn
traveller finds himself ascending an elevation
which disappoints the imagination of beholdin
change OF scenery beyond. Cedar, the oni,
important town between Muscatine and low,
City is so called on account of its being locates
3 on Cedar River, which derives its name frem tn
vast quantity of cedar growing on its banks
On approaching the place one does not observ
prlma tucie all the beauties of the valley; he be
holds only the tame representation Of fields an
flock, without any thing to recommend the seen
beyond human industry; but let him wande
through the wild ravines of her hills let him hea
the storied legends of the past connected with tn
scenes around him, and if he does not feel ther
, is an unseen beauty there, he must be q dull en-
thusast indeed. 1t is the first place the emi
4 grant finds refreshment on his way to the inte
!. rior of the State; and if, perchance, he ther
would seek repose, he is soon hushed to sleep b
the sweet gurgling tones:of the river, and tn
= enchanting scenes around.
4 Iowa City, the capital of Iowa, is located upo
y Iowa River, the once favored spot of savag
nation. The scenery around has nothing re
mantle in it; but the contrast to its condition q
: the present day is wonderfully striking. The
e it presented an assembly offer ce and ungoverr
: able savages, deliberating, perhaps, upon tn
f preparation of some midnight massacre-upo
the accomplishment Of some wild fray into tn
country of their enemies Then the war-whoo
e rung loud and shrill. from the surrounding emf
f nenees, as party of~arriors departed upon thei
mission of blood; or as an equally ferocious an
!, blood thirsty group returned with the laurel'
> which it was ever the pride and glory of thei
savage natures to win-the scalps of the fallel
a Then might be seen the tortured victim in hi
agonies at the burning stake Yainly implorinl
= perk618 that he mfai BE released from pain b
: imfnediate death, or taunting his enemies wit
their weakness, and during them to 90 thel
: worst --., -F.. .s -=- s.. .-=-= e.. .-.
e All this has passed away before the stride {
civilization. and now an institution for the d
: persion of the darkness of Ignorance, and tn
spreading of the light of learning rears there it
dome. Now number of churches have bee
!, reared and human beings meet there to pray
where the savage sent up his deep wild wa
whoop. Nature is changed upon the face of nj
ture. and he who waniers DER the scene, may Al
!, tempt in vain, to realize the strange mutation
which it has passed
>aa Sincerely yours,