Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1859-08-13


the places that knew them once, but shall
know them no more. This class is not nu-
merous, but is more influential than II
should be in giving tone to the society Of
which its members form a part. Prone to
deep drinking, soured in temper, always
armed, bristling at word ready with the
rife revolver or bowie-knife, they give law
and set fashions which, in country where
the regular administration of justice is yet
a matter of prophecy it seems difficult to
overrue OF disregard / apprehend that
there have been, during my two weeks So
journ, more brawls, more fights, more pis-
tol-shots with criminal intent, in this log
city of l50 dwellings,, not threefourths
completed nor two thirds inhabited, nor
one-third fit to be, than in any community
of no greater numbers on earth. This will
be changed in time--I trust within year,
for the empty houses are steadily finding
tenants from the two streams of emigration
rolling in daily up the Platte, as well as
down Cherry Greek, including some scores
of women and children, who generally stop
here, as all of them should; for life in the
Mountains is yet horribly rough. Public
religious worship, regular mail and other
clVllizing influences, are being established;
there is a CLEAN Of hope that the Arapa-
hoes-who have made the last two or three
nights indescribably hideous by their infer
nal war-whoops, songs and dances, will at
last clear out on their foEay against the U tes
they have SO long threatened, diminishing
largely the aggregate of drunkenness and
riot, and justifying expectations of com
parative peace. So let me close up my
jottiugs from this point-whch circumstan-
ces beyond my control have rendered too
voluminous--with a rough ambrotype of
LIFE IN DENVER.
The rival cities of Denver and Auraria
front on each other from either bank of
Cherry Creek, just before it is lost in the
South Platte The Platte has its sources
in the South Park of the Rocky Mountains,
a hundred miles S. w. of this point, but
Cherry Greek is headed off from them by
that river, and, winding its northward
course of forty or fifty miles over the
Plains, with its sources barely touching the
Mountains is capricious stream, running
quite smartly when we came here, but
whose broad and thirsty sands have since
drank it all up at this point, leaving the
log foot bridges which connect the two cit
les as useless as an ice-house in November
The Platte, aided by the melting of the
SHOWS on the higher mountains, runs near.
ly ful[banked, though the constant sue
cession of hot suns and dry winds begin
to tell upon it, while Clear Greek, which
issues directly from the Mountains Just a.
bove its crossing on the way to the Gre
CORY Diggings, is nearly at its highest, and
will so remain till the inner mountains are
mainly denuded of their snowy mantles.-
But, within few days, foot-bridge has
been completed over the Platte, virtually
abolishing the ferry and saving considerable
time and money to gold-seekers and travel
lers, while another over Clear Creek pre-
cludes not only delay but danger-several
wagons having been wrecked and two or
three men all but drowned in attempts to
ford its rapid, rocky current Thus the
ways of the adventurous grow daily smooth.
er, and they who visit this region ten years
hence will regard as idle tales the stories
of privation, impediment and "hair breadth
escapes" which are told, or might be, by
the gold seekers of 1859.
OF these rival cities, Auraria is by far
the more venerable-some of its structures
being, / think, fully year old, if not more.
Denver, on the other hand, can boast Of no
antiquity beyond September or October
last. In the architecture of the two cities
there is, Notwithstanding, striking SINH
larity logs, cut from the ada
cent bottom of the Platte, and roughly
hewed on the two perpendicular sides, and
chinked with bilets of split cottonwood on
the inner and with mud on the outer side,
forming the walls of nearly or quite every
edifice which adorns either city. Across
the center of the interior, from shorter wall
too wall, stretches a sturdy ridge pole, US
ually in a state Of nature, from which
''shooks" or split saplings of cottonwood
their split sides down, incline gently to the
transverse or longer sides; on these Gin the
more finished structures) coating Of earth
is laid, and, with a chimney of mud-daubed
sticks in one corner door nearly opposite
and hole beside it representing or preig-
uring q window, the ediice is complete
OF course, many have no earth on their
covering of shocks, and so are liable to
gentle inundation in the rainy season; but,
though we have had thunder and lightning
almost daily, with brisk gale in most in
stances, they have had no rain worth nam
ing such here for weeks, and the unchinked,
barely shook-covered houses, through whose
sides aud roofs you may see the stars as you
lie awake nights, are decidedly the cooler
and airier. There is new hotel nearly
finished in Auraria, which has a second
story floor; beside this, mine eyes have new
er yet been blessed with the sight of any
floor whatever in either Denver or Auraria.
The last time slept or ate with floor
under me-our wagon box and Mother
Earth exceptsd-was at Junction City,
nearly four weeks ago. The Denver
House." which is the Astor House Of the
Gold Region, has walls of logs, floor Of
earth, with windows and roof Of rather
fimsy cotton sheetiag, while every guest is
allowed as good bed as his blankets will
make. The charges are no higher than al
the Astor aud other first class hotels, ex-
cept for Iiquor--25 cents drink for dn-
bious whisky, colored and nicknamed to
suit the taste of customers, being the regn.
lar rate throughout this region. had the
honor to be shaved there by nephew-so
| L. - rfajc