St. Paul weekly Minnesotian. (St. Paul) 1860-1861, 1860-11-09
COMMUNICATIONS.

wIxosA, Nov. ID, 1860.

The grain was pouring into some Of the up
river towns under the impressive figure Of
a cataract" which was designed to rep
resent not the recent fall" in prices, but
very large quantity Of farinaceous psbu-
lnm rushing with very great velocity into
market ike that bedevilled pork which,
aforetim'e, ran violently down steep
place into the sea = thus shown, even at
that early period, the tendency Of provis-
ions 10 take the form of cascades. Butifthe
cereal inundation at Hastings be cataract,
what shall be said Of Winona?-a bigger
cataract say your and how much biggers
How much, indeed!
Everything comes at last to statistics,
you perceive. st. Crispin measures the
Princes foot, and the nineteenth century
demands the inches Of the royal instep.
We feast him, and count the cost ! tell
you Of rivers of milk and honey, and you
ask how much. And so must tumble my
golden torrents over the beetling bluffs in
tabular columns OF quantities, and mete
me out in bushels the metrical flow Of the
tide that goes ont to fill the veins and throb
in the hearts Of millions. But am not
yet prepared to reduce my metaphors to
dry measure. Receipts and shipments and
all that can't give you exactly. But can
tell you what they say. They say then at
Hastings that they receive from 1000 to
5000 bushels per day; at Red Wing from
1000 to 1000; at Lake City and Wabashaw
don't know what I; at Winona between
5000 and 5000 per day. am inclined to
think imagination fills some of these bush
els, and that some Of the figures are figures
Of speech. To bring 1000 or 5000 bushels
Of wheat to Winona-which is probably
about the fact--requires 100 or l25 teams,
carrying 40 bushels each. When these
loo loads are converted into cash, the
empty wagons usually collect on the prin.
cipal business street, which is lined with
well filed shops, and which, toward the
close of fine afternoon, often exhibits for
the space Of two squares a scene of
vehicular compression equal to Broad
way, hundred or more needy farmers
arriving daily with an aggregate of
about $4,000 in their collection pockets
make pretty good customers sand if as
''they say" Winona viii ship from this
YEARS. crop some 100000 bushels of all
rams, worth say ST. 200, O00-a large pro.
portion of this sum in the course Of e
year, We may expect, win find its way TO
Winona again. So, think you will agree
with me that there is q good basis for busi-
ness here. The counties Of Winona, Fill
more, Olmsted, Steele, Mower and Free
born, having total area Of 4oS2 square
miles from the geographical cornucopia
which empties its riches into Winona. Up
on this solid base of back country, there
is rapidly growing up here, one Of the
chief commercial cities in the State. The
completion Of the Transit Railroad will
give its prosperity firm and broad root :
ng in Southern Minnesota. The existing
tendencies of our domestic commerce
point, | thing, distinctly to the develope-
ment--within ten years of three and per-
haps four comparatively great cities in this
State, in which win be concentrated its
principal commercial capital. One Of these
| will be WinOna--if she does not throw
away her trump cards. l am talking Of
the decade jus before US. Beyond that |
will not speculate.
When David Olmsted and others, six
years ago think, down here from
st. Paul to lay out town on the thresh.
hold of the interminal'le western wilder.
ness. David knew what he was about,
and time is but filing out the sketch which
his forethought then drafted. The numer
our friends of Mr.. Olmsted, amougthe ear.
| ly settlers Of st. Paul, will feel solicitous
to know where and how he is. It Is q Sad
thing to say that he has gone to his home
in Vermont, Ito die, and that the progress
of his disease has left no hope Of his re-
covery. But although so feeble as to be
confined to his bed, he still writes with a
6rm and fexile hand, and y the gonial
mood Of healthy soul, to his old friends
OF Winona, telling over again the dreams Of
life, as he goes to dreamless sleep.
In its social aspects Winona captivstes
my fancy. Did it ever occur to you that
the marked individuality which We ascribe
to some cities is but the grouping of indi-
yidual attributes around some central
and commanding character, which be-
comes its ideal and its inspiration! /
have not time nor space to cite instances,
but ii is true the world over. A half
dozen young men here ut Winona, enthu.
siastic, ardent, whole-souled fellows, gave
their own character to the young town at
its birth, and as new elements have come
in, they have become assimilated to the
prevailing type The Winonian is, in fact,
. new distinct species, and any Winonian
represents, only in greater or less de-
gree of efficiency, all the rest All the
hopes, wishes, plans, purposes and opin-
ions Of the individual Winonisn are subor-
dinate to and merged in the common aspi-
rations and ideas of the specific Winonian.
He believes in the Bible mldly--in the
Five Million Loan solemnly--in the Trans.
it enthusiastically in the Cut Off frater-
nally--in Southern Minnesota serenely--
and in Winona, which comprehepds all
these institutions passionately and abso-
lutely, FIRST and last, DOW and forever,
Ameni To the last six articles of this
creed the Winonian consecrates his life
He does not wish, indeed, to revive the
Loan Law, but he regards it as . sacred
tradition to be remembered with rever-
ence, like the ark Of the covenant under
the new dispensation. There is. something
positively religious in his faith 10 all Rail-
roads except the Root River which he con.
siders too crooked for safety. He carries
the profile Of the Transit in his bosom as
the lover carries the image of bis elect. He
is in correspondence with distinguished
contractors on the subject Of tho Cutoff.
and is on affecting terms of confidence
with several Railroad Directors. He i'm.
presses you on the whole as having =
large amount of information on topics init
mstely connected with the "price of nut.
ty," but that reasons Of State impose
restrain on his natural oommunicativeness.
He regards the Minnesota river rs the
northern limit of wheat culture, and un-