The Kansas herald of freedom. [volume] (Wakarusa, Kan. Territory) 1854-1860, 1858-11-13
Crossing the Continent

Since the days of Lewis and Clark, and
the other early explorers of our continent,
there have been various schemes for ia
cilitating the communication between the
shores of the Mississippi and those of the
Pacific. But, Notwithstanding the fire.
quent marches of exploring parties, troops,
and bands of emigrants, the journey has
continued to be one of great delay and
difficulty. The distance has been some
what shorten by the extension of the
railroad system far out into Missouri; the
roads over the mountains have been some
what improved, and the dangers have
been lessened by the disappearance of In
dams and wild beasts. The settlement
of Kansas, New Mexico, Utah and Cali
fornia have each furnished permanent sta
tistics for the great journey, and it is sur
prising that until now no energetic and
well-planned scheme has been set in ope-
ration for establishing regular mail COM
munication to unite the East and the
West. We have been sending our ships
around Cape Horn, building a railroad
across Panama, sending millions on steam
ships on both sides, talking about rail-
road and a telegraph to the Pacific, and
doing everything but the right thing,
which was to open wagon road and es-
tablish regular mail. This has at length
been done, and the first overland mail
from San Francisco reached st. Louis ON
Saturday night, the time occupied in its
transportation having been just twenty
four days. This is not better time than
the mail by Panama usually makes, but
it is excellent for beginning, and is bet
ter than the time stipulated by the con-
tract, which is twenty-five days. The
whole distance from San Francisco to St
Louis, by the route that the mail takes,
is 1851 miles. The mail is to be carried
twice week, SO that, when the service
is fairly in operation, we shall be getting
news from our Pacific States and Terrific
ries not by semi-monthly installments, as
heretofore, but shall Lave our "three days
later" and "four days later" as we have
our news from Europe.
The mail service is done in four-horse
post coaches, and the route taken is by
way of Fort Smith, Ark, Colbert's Ferry,
Fort Belknap, Fort Chadbourn, Pecos Riv-
er, Franklin, (near Fl Paso,) through Ar
izona to Fort Yuma on the Colorado, and
thence, by a route not described, to San
Francisco. This is the most southerly of
the routes proposed for the Pacific Rail-
road, and its selection probably indicates
the preference of the administration OF
that route for the great work which is SO
necessary for the development of the
whole country. There can be but little
question that the establishing of regular
semi-monthly mail over this route, will
cause population to gather along it at all
available points. Farms and settlements
will appear the telegraph will be erected
first from one post station to another, and
so or until it connects the Eastern with
the Western terminus of the mail route
Then will come the railroad, which will
carry civilization as well as commerce
| and north and south of the main line they
: will extend and ramify, till the deserts
and wilderness and mountains shall be
! come peopled, and the whole country
shall be civilized, settled and homoge
nous. The opening of the overland mai
communication is, in itself, no grea
, achievement for this age. We SHOULD
. blush that it is not accomplished long ago
| But, as one of the foreshadowings of tn
Pacific Bailroad, it is a work of the high
, est interest, and one on which the countr,
f may well be congratulated.-Phladelph
a R,,Ustia