New-York daily tribune., 1859-06-01

and ,ent To the aid of the one in trouble. The
r,,e of proeress is OF course sOaike these train
will do well if they make twenty miles the first
week, considering the weather. But then the feed
Of the teams Qke the lodgings Of the mem costs
nothing, as they hive on the broad prairie, and
though they will often be fearfully hungry or dry in
hayersing grassless tracts their route, they are
said generally to gain in flesh (for which there il
ample room during journey of three or four
months. Of course, they improve in docilits and
effectiveness. being at first so @ild that, in order
to be yoked, they have to be driven into the corral
formed, as may have explained, by the wagons
closely ranged in hollow square, the tongue OF
each being run under its next neighbor for defense
against Indians or other prowlers). Very few
wagons or cattle come back; the frcighting Is
all one way, and both wagons and cattle are usually
sold at or near their point 4 destination for what
ever they will fetch-to be taken 10 California or
disposed Of as they best may.
We drove into Leayenworth City about IL
T. m., and found that the delegates from TINS
county had generally given up the IDEA OF reaching
Osawatsmie judging that the Convention would
have to be adjourned or postponed on account OF
the swollen streams being impossible. stranger
Creek barred all egress by way of Lawrence,
which We had intended to make resting-p1ce
for the night; a creek nine miles south OF Leayen-
worth had turned back the stage running in that
direction; in fact, no stage made ITS way out OF
LeayeDworth that day in any direction when was
not forced TO return balled by the high water. 80
at 3p. m we shipped our horses and wagons on
board the steamboat ID. A. January, and dropped
down the Missouri some 30 miles, past the bleach
ing bones of several dead cities not including Quin-
daro which insists that it is still aiye) to Wyan-
dot, in the lower corner of Kansas, with Kansas
City Missouri, three miles of, in PLAIN slght across
the mouth of the Kansas or Kaw River. Wyandot
though hemmed in and impeded, like Quodaro' by |
an Indian reserve back Oft is alive, and IS beco-
ing, what il ought fully TO be- the outlet and inlet
between Southern Kansas and the Missouri RIver.
II has a beautiful location, and decided natural ad-
vaDtages over Kansas City, which, with other
Border -Ruian sronghOlds south of it, has hitherto
enarossed too much of the travel and trade of
Kansas. We halted at Wyandot night had
an impromptu Republican gathering and some off
hand talk in the evening and set forth at 6 next |
morning for Osawatamie (46 miles a little west of |
south by bee-lne, but over 30 by any practicable |
route) which we were desirOus of reaching before |
night as the Convention was to be held next day. |
Our route led southwest over rolling woodland |
through the Wyandot Reserve, descending into the |
bottom of the Kansas or Kaw Ryer-said hot |
tom being from one TO two miles wide, and very |
heavily timbered with Elm, Yellow Oak, Black |
Walnut, Hickory, Cottonwood, Sycamore, Bass |
wood, DC. Nearly all the rivers and larger creeks |
of Kansas run through similar bottoms or inter |
xales, from half mile to tlTee miles wide, and
timbered much like this These interaes are !
composed of dark, rich mold oftener over than
under three feet in depth but they are so level that
they could hardly be cultivated without drainage
even were it advisable to strip them by wholesale
of timber, as it decidedly is not The houses aud
barns that shall yet thickly dot the adjacent prai-
ries are now mainly growing in these bottoms, aud
should stand there as trees till they are wanted.
When cleared and drained-and in some places the
rottng out of the stumps and thorough plowng
thereafter will go far toward efecting the drainage
will yield bounteous crops OF almost
.s'ne that does not dread frost. Though 1t seems
l.. l.
hardly possible that thei- sol should be richer than
that Of the praires it is deeper, aud probably con
tains more varied and choice admiA'ure ol 'he
elements of vegetation But the Kansas OF nd"
bottom was not only soaked but covered Win
water-for it had rained here smarty only the pre-
cedinp morning after it ceased at Etchson' ana
the bottom was for the time an Eli but impossible
morass. l trust the citizens Of Wyandot will not
long leave it thus.
We crossed the Kaw on far wooden toll
bridge I2O0 feet long, just erected-or, rather, not
quite completed In default of toll house OF gate
keeper a man at work on the bridge took the toll
in his shirt-sleeves. / believe no other bridge
across the Kaw is now standing, though there has
been one at Topeka, 80 miles up, aud perhaps at
other points. Bridges are sorely needed through
out Kansas not only because the streams sre al
dcted to rapid and vast augmentatOns from thaws
or rains, but because their banks are almost per-
pepdicular and often miry toward the bottom
while the streams are nearly az deep at either shore
as in the middle, making the attempt to ford difd-
cult, even when II is not dangerous.
The Kaw was, of course, nearly full Gall the nv
ers of Kansas have low banks), and was running
very swiftly; still, il seems OF moderate size for
river 800 miles longs but all the rivers of this re-
eion the Missouri included seem small, consider
ing the area drained by them. The facts that they
run rapidly apt to be deep, and that their depth
is nearly uniform from side to side. account for this
appearance.
Half an hour after crossing the river, We
emerged from the road sud the Reserve upon the