The Cass County Republican. [volume] (Dowagiac, Mich.) 18??-1880, 1858-12-02
Down THE RIVER,
Near Davenport.

Dear Republican Il arrived here
safe and sound from all the perils of al
trip on the father of wa
ters.!" A voyage on the Upper Mis-
sissippi is a sentimental affair. I am
given to sentimentalizing, and would
gladly indulge a little just now, if l
dare trust myself. will only venture
to say that my voyage up, in June,
gave rise to the sentiments Of the grand
and beautiful-beautiful in widely ex-
tending plains, and fields clothed in the
richest verdure, mingled with tr
re- Beautiful and many colored things!'
Grand in mountains towering aloft,
crowned with ancient trees in full foil
age, waving in the breeze. My down
ward trip gave rise to the grand and
sublime A noble river sweeping us
down with its ever flowing tide toward
the ocean, like the tide of time toward
eternity. Mountains stripped of their
yerdure by a& 3 o s
81. "Chill Noyember's surly blasts,' fs
And swept by clouds and storms across
their ragged SUBMITS, echoing to the
scream of the eagle soaring aloft for
his prey-ft surroundings torso mighty
stream, and the proud appellation
which bears se o. .s--a.
rss "The Father of Waters"
What are these great rivers of our
continent the Mississippi, theS st. Law
renee, the Amazon, the Rio de la Plate,
but the veins, of the earth carrying
back to the ocean, as to its great heart,
the waters of the world?
But here comes the mail, and with
it letter for your humble servant, all
the way round by Red Wing, the place
of my last abode. Deeming its con-
tents will be as interesting to your
readers as they were to me, | enclose
it for publication in connexion with
this communication.
Mr.. T. T. ESQ, Dear Sir Your:
asking for familiar news from thi:
place is received. Ouryouthful village
still continues, like other youthful
things, to grow-and that too in spite
of the "times." G.. G. Jones & Co.
have completed their three story bricl
block, so tremendously begun whel
you left. 1t makes fine store room
} 90 by 100 feet on the ground floor
The front room on the second floor, i
occupied as law Office by James Sui
livan, ESQ.,, in company with your OLE
friend J. Gage, as Notary Public. Tw'
rooms at the left of the entrance Oh
the same floor are occupied by ]. NJ
Spencer, Esq, Attorney at Law an
agent for Etna Fire Insurance. o.
the right and in the centre of the foo
J is large room occupied as the print
= ing office for the Cass County Repul
: lican, edited and published, as Cant
would say, "by the cussed Court Hous
Clique" Another room at the Yves
end on this floor is occupied as an al
i, pendage to the store room below. TIL
, front room on the third floor is used {
Lodge by the fraternity of Ere
Masons, and the west room by us, tn
81. o. o. f."
: J. II. Smith has also erected tw
+ story brick block next to Bigelow
! Cabinet ware-rooms, which is all don
but some inside finishing. These built
> ings are intended to be fire proof /
ID. Beckwith's new Foundry and M;
/ chine Shop is under way, doing goo
!. business down on the creek by the raj
n road bridge; and Ashley's new plail
ing mill, sash, door and blind factory,
) in successful operation, on the bank {
o the creek across the track. All thes
: are useful and permanent additions
J. the business of our village. Beside
, these there have been completed an
now under way, during the presel
season, between forty and fifty dwell
h ling houses, several of which will ran
h as first class for this village. TIL
b Methodist Society, / am informed, al
" making preparations to erect hou:
for public worship the coming yea
II How they allmanage to get along the:
y " tight times'' is more than / can tell
Since the 2Sth of October, there h:
been here an almost uninterrupte
"spell'' of dark, damp, cloudy, mist
2 rainy, snowy weather. The snow h:
a not accumulated much, however,
,. the temperature has been most of Il
time above the freezing point.
Tax time is coming round. o.
n taxes are unusually high in this villag
y owing mainly to very heavy scho
o tax for the payment of back indebte
L ness on our school building, for teac
e, ers wages, &c. P. Hamilton's tax
d 5000 more or less. There are sever
II others ranging from $50 to 500 eac
W My own tax is more than six tim
v the amount have ever paid in OF
lie year. The Board of Trustees of o.
G. village have done a good work in flu
'e nishing three water tanks, in connexic
r with each other, and with the Cor
N pany's water station, of capacity
G, hold ESQ bbls. Of water each, for u
at in case of fire. In addition to thi
is 1 am informed they are about to pu
e. chase fire engine at cost of son
he $500, "a second hand article.) Thi
It with an additional tax for engine hous
I'd for buckets, for hooks and ladders, 81
h. and for the repairs of streets a,
Q