Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1862-01-28
A Sketch of Cairo.

One OF the numerous correspondents
gathered at Cairo, Ills. in view Of an ad-
vance from that point, writes:
You have heard of the modern Cairo,
(pronouced Ka. .ro,) of its subterranean sit
uation on the delta between the Ohio and
Mississippi rivers; but not the mast graphic
power for descriptive narrative can give
faithful picture. am sitting by window
in the st. Charles, the great hotel of the
place. of which the less said the better. The
view is up the Ohio, and will note the OBJ
jects which appear in view. Far up the
river in the back ground is a dark bolt of
woods bordering the Ohio. Nearer, along
the levee, are fifteen or twenty steamboats,,
most of them in Government employ, with
volumes of black smoke ascending from
their tall stacks of chimneys and puffs of
steam vanishing in the air. In the middle
of the stream is the Taylor-Commodore
Foote'S flag ship-looking like coal trans
port, black all over with the exception of
one white stripe along the guards. Still
nearer are the nondescript gun-boats-a
cross between the floating battery, dredg-
ing machine, and mud scow. The sailors
call them mud turkIeS. More Of them anon.
Ascending the levee is the front street of
the city, occupied by train Of cars stand
ing upon the track Of the Illinois Central
Railroad The Company threw up the en-
bankment or rather filled it in. Stepping
down from the embankment upon the
natural alluvium, beheld dwelling houses,
from white two-storied house down to as
mean a shanty as can be found outside of
Dublin. The mud can not adequately be
put into the picture. There is thick mud,
thin mud, sticky mud, sploshy mud, slimy
mud, deceptive mud, impassable mud, which
appears to the sight-to say nothing of the
peculiarities that are understood by the
nose, for within forty feet of my window is
horse stable and pig yard-not an in
closure, but the street, where slops from
the horses and washes from the sinks are
trodden with manure from the stables
You remember Bunyan's description of the
Slough of Despond, into which all the filth
and slime Of this world settled-a descrip-
tion which, graphic as it is, might have
been heightened if he had seen Cairo
But to go on with the picture: there are
sheds, shanties, stables, pig sites, wood piles
and carts, wagons, barrels, boxes-the de
bris of every thing, thrown over the area
| OF animate things, are water carts-two.
horse teams which are supplying the in,
habitants with drinking water from the
I river. There are truckmen stuck in the
mud. There are two pigs having an ire
pressible conflict; also two dogs-one big
black one with white nose-one little white
one, smart, active and energetic, setting al
example to our Generals. They are ha
RAISING foe, charging on the front, on thu
right flank, on the left flank of a fOrmida
BILE enemy-three hogs, while fourth il
advancing to their aid with as much dis
patch as can be expected, considering tina
the mud is more than leg deep. TWent,
feet distant from the conflict soldiers il
their blue coats, officers with swords, sasl
and belt displayed-ladies and gentlemen
are picking their way along the sticky side
walks. This is Cairo. Delectable place