The star of the north. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1849-1866, 1855-11-22

The rolling prairies Of Wisconsin are ex
tremeiy fine. The soil is said BY lllinoisan
10 be less strong and lasting than Illinois prai
ries, but canno, say whether this is 20, o
only little natural self. laudation of Sucker
dom. But, certainly no prairie country cal
be more besu,iful than this.
Rockford is one oftbose spontaneous iowr'
OF which the north west Is so full. A few
years ago il was a hamlet--now thriving
city. Like all new places, there is a grea
deal of roushness and many .sn all and un
slightly dwellings. A few years will change
all this. Already several dwellings have
been erected that would not suffer 10 com
parison with the villas on the Hudson, and
many substantial residences are posted here
and there upon the fnes, sites, giving sokan
ofisess ssd copf ~, :. 80, = IA
| was shrprs5d 10 learn facl in resad to
the manufacturing of. Reapers, which will
give some idea of the use made Of them in
the west. One mapufaciory here, Manuy's,
has made the las, year 5000 reapers, amount
ing 10 abou, s4oO, 900 worth! This is but
one factory, and many others exist 10 the
State. Every farmer Of means expects to
own reaper and mower as much a. aplow
or harrow.
From Rock6eld 10 Freeport, is another -four.
ishiag city and from Freepor,, upon the Illi.
nois Central Rail Road, through the wonder
fui prairies to Bloomington and Springfield.
had crossed the State, 10 years past. from
east 10 west, but never had traversed the
prairies from north TO south. And no one
can have tbs slightest conception Of la'sd un-
I'll he rides ,weu.y.four hours upon the cars
at express rates, and all the while through
endless stretching prairies! This is indeed
Grand Prairie! Norh Of the Illinois river |,
is rolling prairies but south Of that river, il ia
very level. On either hand you may look
out from the cars and see the far horizon
without bush, shrub or tree. Then comes
faint blue edge to the horizon, which the
experienced eye knows to be timber. !,
grows boider and more distinct: il emerges
as you are whirled along, and you come up.
on its skirts pass on, plunge again into the
plains and lose sight Of forest and bush again,
and have only the wide round sphere Of
brown uninhabi,ed praires. For, early frosts
had sealed the summers work with it's sig.
net. The flowers were gone, the grass was
russeted, the whole land lay ready for win
Ter. Thus hour after hour, hour after hour
morning, noon and night, we sped and never
cleared the prairies!
Since this road has been opened, the laIdt
are rapidly selling. and a few ) ears will make
Central Illinois populous, in spite OF the wan
Of wood and stone, which, but for this road
would scarcely have been distributed for 6
hundred years TO come. =.
As we raw occasional borsemen moving
across the plain, or slow rolling carriages, i
brought back The times, some twelve or fif'
teen years ago, when we made just such pill.
| grimages. Then, as now, there was The feel.
ing that we were upon the ocean. A scene
of it's shorelessness, its wide solitude, the
helplessness of single man moving alore
across vas. plain outreaching all eyesign.,
resembles The feeling Of one in little boaI
in the mids, OF the Atlantic ocean.
We we'll remember the perfect intoxica.
tion of our enthusiasm when we first saw Q
prairie. Il was 40 early in the season, that
the ground was sheeied with flowers. We
rode for hours kneedeep ID color. Each va.
riety seemed 10 keep TO itself. Que colol
would spread out over five hundred acres
Then another would begin, and run q bell
for miles. Thus pink, scarlet, red, yellow
in turn held sway, and filed. ard dazzled the
eye, until one seemed colot-drunk. Blu. now
there were no flowers. Only coarse grass
But even that was grateful to the sight.+
From the Neio York Independent.