Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1856-07-25
Correspondence.
For the Standard.
Letter from Iowa.
MAoUAKETA, June, 1856

lStIu1lIlS puISueu, &C. VIII now tFy anu
finish the picture. l may perhaps write
of some things of which have written
before, but will try and give such facts as
viii be interesting to your readers.
First, then of wild fowls the most
noticeable are the Prairie Chicken or
Grouse, the Quail and the Wild Turkey.
The prairie chicken is fowl nearly as
large as the domestic hen, living princi-
pally on the open prairie, when it lays
its eggs and rears it young. The turkey
does not appear to be very common, and
l have not yet seen one, but the quail and
chichen are very numerous, and during
the early part of Winter are caught in
traps and sent to Chicago and the East
S fGHr t 5a hHg u HRGFg fish g HHfR efRa
that of the domestic hen.
Deer are found, too, in some localities
in considerable numbers, but where the,
country is so thickly settled as in this VI
cinity, they are not often met with.
The most common of the vermin tribe
are the gopher, the prairie squirrel, and
the rat. The gopher is a kind of mole,
much resembling the large meadow mele
in form, but nearly as large as large
rat. They burrow in the ground, making
long channels few inches below the sur
face, and seldom coming to the light ex-
cept to bring the earth from their excava-
tons, or when caught, as they sometimes
are, by setting trap below the surface
in their path. They do considerable dam
age by disfguring the fields with the little
mounds Of earth which they bring from
their habitations, and by roofing up an6
eating potatoes.
The rat is the same as in the East
and very numerous, as the cow crib o
the farmer furnishes him with plenty 0
food.
The squirrel is about as large as tn
ground squirrel of the East. They ar
very numerous, and sometimes yer
troublesome, roofing up newly plante
corn to an unpleasant extent.
Fences are mostly made of rails. Som
make picket; others wire or rod fenc'
The wire fence is made by setting post
about two rods apart, when wires al
passed through staples driven about eigl
inches apart in the posts. Sod fences al
made by digging ditch around the fie
: = to be enclosed and throwing the sod ar
=, earth on the inside. Hedges are Guilty.
ted to some extent.
The water is generally very good al
clear, to and through the country seen
to be underlayed with one vast bed
limestone rock, it is very soft. II
streams are clear, though few, with us
ally hard bottom and margins free fro
t. bushes. As an instance of the scarci
n of streams, viii state that rode TIN
ed teen miles in one direction, the other da
ie' and neither crossed nor saw one. Wat
u however, is easily found by digging e
al feet in the low places between the swe
It's or rises of ground.
II 1t is the general opinion in the Es
nS' believe, that people do not suffer fir
the ague in this State. So far as / {
learn this is in some sense true. Th,
however, have the ague here, though W
Vill little in comparison with what they suf
ing in some other States. The country
led generally very free from marshes.
i've my thirteen-mile ride the other day, l
Bile not see single marsh, or pool of ST
EN- nant water. The lay of the land and
character of the soil is such that in v,
short time after a heavy rain very Ii
T water is stagnant on the surface.
ous Not having stagnant water in which
NC breed, Mosquitoes are very scarce ant
no, some localities are not seen at all. So
+bo make this criterian by which to iuc
the of the health of locality, and say t
nm when there are no mosquitoes it is healt
- =. or free from the ague.
,ro Wages are no higher here than v
,bIo you. Joiners get only from 81 ,25 to s.
r of per day, and board themselves; and ,
ror er mechanics about the same.
hot The people who live here, hail f
;u,. all parts Of the United States, and f
rbo most OF the countries of Europe. n
.bo of the foreigners in this vicinity are
mans, with few Bohemians. In S,
80 localities the foreigners settle in |,
bodies to the almost entire exclusion
- Americans. In Dubuque, the Irish
o. so numerous that they take the city
49, eminent into their own hands, and mo-
,.lr olize all the public offices. A few n
bose to the south of Dubuque is large
bese Element of them, occupying the f
tide prairie | have yet seen. AS is 1
n with the Irish, they are dull and u