The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1865-11-10
ST, PAUL TO FORT GARRY.
lettings of a Journey with the Ok
Brigade.
LETTER NO. 3.

LETTER NO. 3.
sIroMoNE, Andy johnson County.
Editor o,'me St. Paul Pioneer:
DEAR SR-I entrust these few leaves on my
route, at this place to veritable &c Nick of the
Woods" perfect Jibbenousay," who seems
to have rowing sort of commission to kill,
slay, trap and murder any and all offending
varmints for the sake of their precious pelts
and who has with hunters readiness to oblige
"a chiel takin notes, kindly offered to drop
the letter in post at Fort Abercombie. If you
get it and can Withstand the savory Odor of
buckskin pants and stale pemican enough to
open and read it, shall be more than satisfied
of your zealousness and desire for the promo
ton of knowledge under difficulties. Ii you
don't get h-why the world may well mourn
the loss of the Alexandrian library-and, the
missiye of YOUR humble correspondent.
My last left me at about the centre OF DOUG
lass county, on October 9TH, pursuing our SLOW
way amid region where Undine himself seems
to have chosen for the especial residence OF
herself and nymphs. A more lovely country
of dotted lakes, waving GASES OF tall tlmoer,
and NEEDY prairie reaches, don't think the
eve ever rested upon. It would not require
very great process of enchantment to almost
cheat me into the belief that had awoke amid
some of the ducal parks of merrie old England
and that the splendid groupings of woodland,
lawn and moor" were the results of the high
est skill of Ruskins landscape gardening. The
illusion is still further heightened by game to
the manor born-the whirr of the brown pheas-
ants-the gay gambolings of the RABBIT or hare
and droves of timid deer as they troop across
the landscape, or perchance stop and peer at
you from some tangled thicket-their wierd,
mysterious and quiet eyes, SO full of wonder
that one at times almost hesitates to shoot-as
the creature and man reciprocally gaze at each
other face to face" timid innocence" OPP
posed to man armed as he is by the almighty
fiat with the panoply of "power over
beasts of the held" the query of the possibility
of Metempsychosis-ofte makes me careless
of the failure of q two ounce ball-and If oc-
casionally with hearty good will send the
shivering soul of some old gaunt wolf to his
happy hunting ground, console myself by
repetition of the tender hearted poets lines
"Rapacious animals we hate
Rites, hawks and wolves deserve this fate"
Our journey for the last few days has carried
us through the towns of Evansville. Wascata
and Lockport. Our route has generally been
through portions of Stevens, Andy johnson
counties and portion of Otter Tail, (repre-
sented in our political sanhedrins by nv
friend Col. Hewitt. who, hope, will look
a little into his constituency, and see that the
selectmen of each township will bridge the
streams and pass proper laws for the observ.
auce of the eighth commandment, for some
unlucky wight last night stole from me one of
the latest of wild geese that Imagination ever
feasted upon), and left me Illuminating upon
the bare possibility of our proximity to Mar
tial Materially.
crombie, our train being .'correlled" some
distance from the Fort, and we, whose duties
would permit, paid our respects to the COM
mandant, Col. Adams. l can but repeat the
thousand tattering eulogiums l have often
heard expressed of him, 10th as gentleman
ly attest the first, while the high estimation in
which he appears to be held Ivy those he COM
mands-the clearly and orderly appearance of
the Fort-the regularity and elan with which
every soldierly duty is performed-au forced
upon me the conviction of his well-founded
claims 10 Inc latter.
The country around Fort ADercrombie Is
especially inviting, situated as it is on the head
waters of the Red River, or rather might say
upon the Sioux Wood River, as it flows and
forms one of the principal sources of the Red
River of the North. There is q Preservation of
Land |" for military and other purposes, en-
bracirg both banks of the river, and extend
ing, should think, for twenty miles up the
country. The land appears to be very fertile,
the soil being, should judge. quite rich. The
forests in the vicinity arc chiefly soft maple,
American and red elm, black walnut the nettle
tree, bass wood, red and white oak the under
growth the common hawthorn, prickly ash,
grapes, hOrsebriar and moonseed. Among the
herbs noticed the wild and bristly sarsaparilla,
Indian turnip, the gay orchis and others.
Rushes and the remains of the Towering forest
are abundant along the low banks of the river.
The valley prairies above and below the Fort
are rich in pasture grasses, and the remains OF
liguminous and orchideous plants, such as the
yellow ladies slipper. American and tufted
vetch are still ut this late autumnal day visible.
The lower parts near the border of the woods
subject to occasional inundatiens, are filled
with the roads common in lower latitudes in
such localities-the ragged cup.tall thistle,
groat butter weed tubOus sundower and MANY
others seem like old acquaintances, and prove
to me that although in latitude about 46e So
north, the thermometrical range cant be much
if any greater than in our sanity city, while the
sylvia and fauna will compare very favorably
with the Mississippi below the city.
TUESDAY, Oct. 1O.-Busy this morning lay.
ing in our stock of provisions for our departure
from this place, preparatory to the plunge into
the long stretch beyond US with Fort Garry as
the terminous. Paid S1.70 per bushel for Do
tatoes and forty cents per pound for Indifferent
pork-enough to make pig squeal at the ex.
tortiouate price-but feeling willing to patron.
lie the agricultural interests Of Minnesota at
those prices only to the extent which my lar
der absolutely demanded. The traders that
supply the post did not become rich by my
disbursements. After the usual mending of .
cart axle or two, the setting to rights Of some
freight, and the usual good byes and adieus,
Ne fnrn onr facea nort6Ward and start again