St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1860-04-12

,. Friends, make vnto you good fences and
barns, plant trcee, bushes, aud strawberry
beds, and look as if you intended to live
in Owatonna
! Lectured on Tuesday evening, in Mcr-
f'rd's Hal! to a wcll-llea house Of intel
ligcnt looking people-Mr. Merford refu-
sing any compensation for house or lights.
Started next morning, Wcdnesda, for this
place, parting with my good friend Or.
Ware, last; and meeting the good luck Of
comfortable, covered stage. In it was
MIR. Sommers, late Clerk Of the Senate,
returning home from St. Paul; and had
an exceedingly pleasant ride through a
beautiful country Of rich farming and pas
turc lands, interspersed with belts Of hea-
Ivy timber. "Nico Lake" is tho only lake
III Central Minnesota. It is shallow and
grown quit, oyer with wild rec. There
isa little village ne:r, and mined fov it,
lying in Dodge County. They informed
nc that wheat had been sowu there weeks
: previous. I'odye is rich, wheat growing
couaty. The soil is Il ciay-loam, and al!
this kiud appears to yield more spears of
grass to the square yard than our North
ern: more sandy, soil. The sod is more
COMPACT sad the roots closer together; yet
their wheat: Germ, an: root crops appear
Ia1erior to ours and / saw or heard Of
no natlral meadows such as we have W.
there, witt, their six~!eet-Aish grass, ma.
hinyy hay superior to timothy.
| BROWNSVILLE, Monday, March 2eth.
Was interrupted in this letter by ,]r.
| bancroft, editor Of the Manto:vi!le E:c-
press, with a carriage to take me TO his
Ehousc. There had 50 much talkirs to
%, there was no time for writing. Mrs.
!! Is. is an old friend from, Crawford Co., Pu.
II was she who wrote the letter i incorpo.
rated into the Letters to Country Girls
| - you may Judge we had a pleasant time.
! lecture here this evening, and 20 up
in the morning boat to La Crosse. It gen
orally comes along about three o'clock so
that shall not set much sleep; but am
we'll. and shall not lie seriously sick for
son1s time. J. G,S. i
! WISnSA. Friday, March 3l'th go
DEAR .WlLL :-I!erc I am at last. and
have news from" home. The last news !
had from st. Cloud previous to this morn.
ing was several days oil when left St.
Paul on the g <th uit, So I have been a
whole Month without hearing. and had
Tyrown tiasety. Amongst the letters await
ing me here, l find invitations to lecture
III Chicago, Milwaukee and Racine; but i:
is too late in the season now, and / am
!lomcward bound My tour would have
been pecuniarily more profitable mad I
kkgo'e to these places but ] like best to
talk to Minnesota people. Even over in
La Crosse felt as il it We're a strange
country, while the moment touch Min
nesota soil [ feel at home. All that I
love most IS here The people have been
to Inc like brothers and sisters. I have
share<! her hard times, and intend to share
them to the end, aud value more than I
can y the opportunities I have had of
becoming personally acquainted with SO
many Of her best and notlest sons and
daughters-adopted Of course like myself.
| Idroppad my narration in the. stage
j from Owatonna, comfortable covered
conveyance on bright, warm day when I
had Mr.. SoMMERs fora travelling compan-
ion: and q most agreeable one he proved
to be. He and Mr.. .IANrcR Of Alantor-
vile, Representative from Dodge County,
who was in company in 4 private convey
ance, advised me to stopin Wasioja, q viz
!age four miles from Mantorsiile, did 50
and found it like Owatonna, only more SO.
Not fence. worth the name. No trees, no
shrubbery, no. gardens I was there tho
greater part of two days, for the stage only
passed once in twodays; and it was beau
tiful, bright warm weather, jnst, the wealth
er for fixing fences and transplanting, vet
| did not see one man, woman or child
doing anything to make their homes look
like places to live in. I learned that the
proprietors had been contendiug. with
Mantoryille for the County Seat, and had
lost. Both places have spent as much
energy in this petty struggle IS would !
have made theft respective towns desirable
pk1es of residence. IT. wonder v,,tenl lltha |