The gazette and Democrat. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1860-1860, 1860-08-23

Willis in IllinOIs-NOveltY Of Prairie |
TIavel-OvertaIiug and Outrunning
Thunder ShOwer--sRailrOads aud Wild !
Administrator of Birds at the Steam |
From the Home Journal
To overtake thunder shower, whirl
though it and outrun it. was the first of
the days exciting novelties. We saw it
ahead Of us, on the prairie, just as you
see single black cloud in the sky, with
sunshine all around it. 1t was moving
in the same direction as ourselves, proba.
bly, at about twenty niles an hour; and
we soon began to overtaAe it with our bet
ter harnessed thunder and lightning. The
conductor pointed the dark mass out to
me, some ten or fifteen minutes before We
entered the outer skirt of the shower; and
we were in a pelting rain, with lightning
and peals of thunder, for perhaps ten min
utes-emerging in fair weather on the
other side. and leaving the storm to lag
after ue. like the "slOw coach" that it
was! But certainly, i. was queer thus
to give thunder and lightning the go-by.
1t seemed to me, somehow, ant,cipatory
Of another state of things. When we go
telegraph ing about. at the beginning Of
cur spirit-travels in the next life. lam
sure | have a vague impression of hav-
ing done something of that sort, before
experience of distancing a well-trained
thunder cloud being laid away in my
, memory.
But it is TO the wiid animals of the
r prairie that the swiflness OF the rail-train
is most inexplicable. Ages upon ages
have established certain relative rates oil
speed between man and the subject race:
) OF creation-the mounted hunter being the
fastest pursuer for which the elk and re-
indeer, the bear and the prairie.woIf the
: fox and the wilde the skunk. otter and
: marten. are at all prepared. The small
n line of the rail-track nearly hidden in grass
1 is not recognized by these wanderers ovel
Il the vast plains of the West, and while
s thinking themselves still safe in their ,owr
/ horzonedged wilderness, they suddenly
IL see the coming of the new monster! 1t ii
: daily experience, of the trains on th
n railroad across Illinois; TO overtake SOM
one or more Of them; and il is curious
ESQ the different conductors and brake
8 men all told me, how none of them seen
}, TO have the sagacity TO escape By running 0,
II at right angieS Almost invariably the,
J. flee before the pursuer. and are run dow
8 at last, to fall faintiug with terror an
: exbo oustiou in the neighborhood o. tn
81 track.
To the wild birds on the prairies tn
alarm Whistle seems the most formiabl
n part of it. With the settlers cat le grain
10 loose, 1t is necessary 10 Eave the scream
OF the pipe unusually sharp and loud
4. and the engineer often pulls the string G
70 his fearful zenith piercer when flock q
Of wild geese, pigeons, or prairie'hens ar
a, flying over. Murder! the voice of tn
at new monster! To the great saving of tn
huntsman's powder and shot, half of tb
birds, at least, will fall seuseless to til
a ground with pure fright! We saw bu
N one approach TO tragedy Of this kind
an astonshed eagle whom We put to
speed for horizontal fight of about fiv
l. or six miles, and whom the braEema
pointed out to me as likely 10 come dowr
AZ But when he found we were getting to
d. close upon him, the royal bird took to
S. series OF upward gyralions and was 500
al out Of sight wiser, OF course, as to III
future policy Of keeping above the lsvC
Of things now and noisy!