The Kansas herald of freedom., 1855-08-18
me Libsher.

the West6eld, Mass, Newsletter, last
week, and this week copy letter of his.
published IN his journal, on the 30th of
May last. There is net a resident of
Kansas who win not declare the moment
he reads that letter, that Mr.. Porter was
either crazy, drunk, or wilful falsifer.
Charity would ascribe the former condi-
ton to him. and we are the more ready to
fall in with that idea from an expression
of his which We itaiicise in the last para
graph. If his friends should have occa-
sion to inquire into his mental condition,
and will refer to us, we viii undertake
to establish. before any Legally constituted
commission, the fact of his lunacy, so far
as relates to Kansas matters, else waive
any claim to being posted in law matters
Every reader of the Herald viii be able
to point out the discrepancies in the fol-
lowing letter, without any effort on our
part in that direction -
Shady Side"
BONNEVILLE, No., May Is, 1855.
You viii see from the date of my let
ter, that am on my way home. / left
| the Hampden Colony on Wednesday last,
and am now on board the steamer Edin-
burg bound for st. Louis, Mo-. where |
shall arrive if prospered on the 18th inst.
To tell long story in few words. | have
seen enough to convince me that Kansas
is hune5ag. and have seen the elephant
in all his magnificent proportions, &c
| have no doubt but that the country was
intended only as the residence of Indians
and negroes, with the wild animals that
roam over it for company, not forgetting
rattlesnakes, which are plenty. Yet to
those who are still thinking of emigrating
| can say that there is any quantity of
prairie land here, which can be had at
S1,25 an acre; but there is no wood On
much of the land, and little or no water,
and, except in the region of the Neosho,
there Is very little prospect of the country
ever filing up; aad | very much doubt
whether Kansas ever viii become State,
either free or slave, for want of inhabit-
Tants. Were the country supplied with
wood and water. it might soon become
State Of which all would be proud. The
Colony at Hampden has laid out a hand
some paper city, aud also township six
miles square, and that is about all | can
say about it. Here is little timber, a
decent stream of water, and town OF
some seventyfye persons in all, with
little cash among them, and small guam
tity of edibles, with market only one
hundred miles off. Should there be a
fruitful season, there may be enough
raised to last the people next winter, but
as it takes some five stout yoke OF oxen
to pIow the sod, there are few who will
get in more than from FIVE TO six acres
oil corn this spring. iu consequence of tic
want of teams
There has been only one rain for a
year past, and the water stands in pud-
dies, covered with filthy green scum,
and passed cne place yesterday where
twenty persons had died of cholera in
five days, and eight lay in one church at
the same time awaiting burial. This
must be sickiy country, and instead OF
my health improving, it is no better than
when | LEFT home. The ground in Kan
sas is all baked so hard that it is next TO
impossible 10 plow it, and there will be
very little raised this year. All kinds OF
provisions are extremely dear; -four will
be from Is 10 10 dollars barrel; cheese
is So cents a pound; beans 3 dollars
bushel; butter Lave not tasted for days
and weeks; and the water is hard, and
has an unpleasant odor. Hundreds are
going home every week, having seen
enough of the elephant. The country
has been raised entirely too high, and
the lecturers and book writers on Kansas
should be made to pay all our expenses
out here and home, for telling SO many
faisehoods about it as they have But 1
have seen for myself, and shall try 10 per-
suade my friends to let we'll enough
alone, and stay where they are. There
are men in Kansas who have their fami-
lies there, and as they have spent all in
getting out they must remain, although
they would gladly go back. | have seen
thousands of Indians and Mexicans Oh
the plains, and they are the only fit peo-
pie to live in Kansas. There was ter
rife storm recently, with tremendous
thunder and the sharpest lightning ever
saw; the hail stones were as big as wal
nuts, and in some places were about
fool deep, the next day. The weather is
warm like june or September. and the
grass is six inches high on the bottom
lands. Since 1 teft home alt seems Ike
a perfect 6tank, as 1 have not seen letter
or paper from any person in Westfed.
| am not sorry went to Kansas. have
seen enough of the world, and learned
sufficient of human nature to fill vol
ume But time speeds on, aud L VIII
draw nv letter to close. Il. I.