Democratic banner., 1851-07-09
Correspondents of The Banner.
Notes nv the WAY.

May 2SM, 5I-M0nffceHo NminnTy. work
men now placing the iron rails on the track be.
tween Alton and this point. The enginesfsia'
forms ms that the grade Of the R. R. from The
depot at Alton for the first mile is 70 feet, and
that ali Immediately succeeding section is still
sleeper. An lS ton engine, he says, can draw
l6O tons up q 20 lset grade 10 the mile. at rate
of Is 10 20miles per hour. Ripe Strawberries
on table here. Green peas and bests on S. B.
yesterday. Weather Oppressively hot, both day
and night.
S. B. Pruirie State, Peoru, M-Peoria Lake
a much smaller body OF wafer than the maps had
led me 10 expect, Notwithstanding the extraor-
binary rise of water which at this time June ] J
washes the piers Of the bridge across il, 20 feet
above low water mark. The little towns and
houses OH the. low banks Of the river below, are
mostly one story under water; hut Naples, the
present western terminus Of the road, (and where
] saw q train of cars come in from Jacksonville
and Springfield,) Meredosia, BeardstowD and
Pekin were high and dry. Peoria is a smaller
town, and the buildings are not so large and cost
lly as I had supposed, but its location is delight
lfuL, and Mature seems 70 have exerted herself in
surrounding it with the most lovely landscape.
Yesterday mercury got up 10 IS in the air,
and 20 , in the wafer at Naples. To-day at 8
IA. NJ, 20 in the air, and Al in water of the river.
At 8 p. M. we reached Lasalle and Peru,
two towns on the north SIDE fine river, extend
ing some miles along the bold elevated bank
.tl,inly scattered houses and no we'll defined line
Of demarkation 10 tell us where Peru ends and
Lassalle begins. Fare 10 this place S. a piece;
accommodation good enough; but travelling on
this river will make a Missourian proud Of our
.Keokuk Packets. Here | learned that the roads
had been rendered nearly or qnite impossible
by the rains. and took Canal Packet "Prairie
State" f"r Chicago, l0l miles, over which we
fiosted. by horse power, in % hours. This is a
noble ditch, designed originally for Il Ship Canal, |,
and cut on The north section IL feet deep through !
beds of regularly stratified rock, for the pur pose !
Of Ceiling below The level OF Lake Michigan.-
This plan, after incredible labor was wasted.
was abandoned, and huge pumps, propelled by
two steam engines of II INDUSTRIOUS boilers, are
made 10 throw $4,000 cubic feet Of wafer per r
minute from the Chicago creek, ,ix feet high !
the canal, when the feeder. on the sum lev -
some Is miles from the city, gets TOO low, !
substituted. /
This Canal, passing through apparently an or
binary prairie formation, follows the bed OF what Il
cnce have been u mighty river, which con- I
veyed the walters OF Lake Michigan TO the Gull In
Of Mexico, till it was dried up by a Union Of the .
lakes at The Siraights OF Mackinaw. Thele
rocky banks of this ancient river stand boldly \
'ut, running parallel with each otlet, deeply .
with water lines, resembling ntth the
EASTERN shore Of the Mississippi abovc Alton, :
nut the distance from one bank 10 the ntherIs
,roves that this must have been q much larger q
liver than the Mississippi. ~
CAieGgo.-Here for the FIRST tisbe ! srhn-ssedI
specimen Of plank ronds, otherwise streets al
,aved with plank. DrRys and carriages pass so|a'
loiselcssly that one accustomed 10 The din aid oil
latter Of 81. Louis, car hardly realize that he is q
n the midst CT one OF its great commercial ri-
ais. Weather has grown cold, winter %clotlIes
ndis p.nsabie-- wafer in Chicago creek Gu in j,
he lake near by 81. ~
June 4M.-Took passage on steamer Si,liana, as
which they say cost sos, 900. Weather cold-Ias
angins all dav from AZ 10 So. IN.
June M.--Of Shi6nigan, we have touched al '.
'ankeran. Rrnosha, Racine and Milwaukee, ni
liz has been to-day about as il was yesterday, nj
nd the wafer near the shore So.
Ercning.--30 miles south Of MAINTAIN Islands,
ne shore ui tie lake Just i~i>crrmL.le. .tif 20, n
39-wiud still north, Iiy. n NH just "
Imped overheard, in u tt vi deiirium ire n.l rs. !"
lis grave is deep and cold, anu his Iaie Il lr>>nn J.
all who dare Irifle with themselves Ly Il 'itHl- W
Use OF a once fashionable though useless It
iXnry. 1T
9Th June--VMackin0U Early in The morn. air til
8, wafer near The island 46. Apple tree. put. fe
ng out their leaves, but saw no blossuins.- nc
trawberries and red currants in bloom. Bios ~
'ms of red cherries timidly looking out Of their ma
as If in lear OF a visitor from the north +,
Vegetation Of all kinds, trees and shrub. :.
cry appear sickly and small. u
Mini Clair Ritter Have passed through an y"
her great inland sea, Lake Huron. Weather o
ggy most of The wsy. Barometer ran downto
} inches on the lake, and Capt. AppleGy, con- ga
was on The alert for a squsll, tho mi
ink % cannot be much below the true range a
the instrument here, as we are near 500 feet en-
the level Of the ocean. Tenn erature ofIls
T near midway between this and Mackinaw al Sc
43, water AZ. Il is remarkable that it has no
zen a little colder at noon most oil the time on
e lakes than at sunrise, and that air and water
e usually abou! the same temperature. l..
Both banks Of this beautiful river are dotted 'e
it'll houses, mills, ship yards, &c.. with we'll
Ihiyated farms in the rear; but prejudice need TIC
We no part in convincing the traveller that jena CO
an gives higher evidence OF industry and en- an
prise than John Bull, who owns the farms and Sc.
llages on the left aide of the river an,