The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1867-09-06

left Omaha Wednesday, August
%, at 81 A.. NJ, and arrived at st.
Joseph at noon Thursday. Distance
$50 miles Fare ST. Left st. 10. at
3 in the morning of Friday, by the
railroad called the Platte Valley Rail
road, and arrived at this place at GA.
n. There is Platte River in Mis-
souri, running nearly parallel to the
Missouri in southerly direction and
emptying into that stream below
Leavenworth. Hence the present
name of the railroad connecting St.
10. and Leayenworth. The distance
is 46 miles. Fare ~ IS, including
price of ferriage over the Missouri
River at this place, and omnibus to
depot of connecting train or hotel.
The road runs down on the Missouri
side, and connects by ferry with
Atchison, Kansas, and runs through
Weston, Mo. It has been running
for some considerable time to Weston,
but has but recently been completed
to East Leavenworth, across the Mis-
souri, River from this place.
The trip down the Missouri River
was very Interesting The boat.
III. Lacey-would be called very or
binary one on the Ohio River, but
was, by the help of the rapid current
of " Big Muddy" enabled to make
the trip in good time. Owing to the
danger of navigation at night, she
laid up from dusk to daylight-about
ten hours. She belongs to the Han
nibals and St. Joseph Railroad Com
pany, and runs from Omaha to con-
meet with that road In good stage of
water there are four fine boats of the
line, but only three now Their trips
are made enthusiastically, when
navigation is difficult ~, -,.S &
The Missouri, from, Omaha to st.
Jo., is a succession of bends and bars.
The river curves continually, which
is a wise provision of Providence, as
thereby the current is impeded,
and navigation rendered passable I
The channel sets In close to the bends 5
and opposite there is invariably an
ugly bar. Of sand and mud studded
with snags The banks where struck
by the current are continually crum
bling away. The, channel changes
most unaccountably. For instance.
Elwood, Kansas, small town oppo-
site St. 10. has been half wash
ed away within few years.
The channel then changed to the
Missouri. side; now tits on the Kan
sas side again. 1t changed, also, OPP
posite Leavenworth this season, / am
informed, so as to give great uneasi. 4
ness to the people there. A funny
illustration of the uncertainty attend
ing the owning of land on the river
was given by Michigan der whom Z
talked to In Omaha. was asking
whether the Union Pacific Railroad
Company owned the bottom in front
of Omaha Said he It ain'tany
use for anybody to own it; warranty
deed wouldn't hold it" I asked him
gage on it. Yes; Big Muddy has
got mortgage on II, and nav fore
close it at any time
On the Nebraska and Kansas side
of the Missouri there is a range az
hills of gentle slope, running along az
various distances from the river. On
also range of hills, but they are
sleeper and scanned with gulleys
or canons. This gives them a
wrinkled appearance in the dis
lance. s9Fhel bottoms, which extend
along the river ON both sides,
are Of varied width - sometimes
four or five miles They. certainly
would be excellent for raising. corn.
but a very limited surface is culti9
waited. Iinoticed number of places
where the corn was being washed into,
the river; also fences and large trees
The tim Der is mostly cottonwood,
though down toward St. Jo- there Is
hard wood to be found NJ ;ss1sg93d:5,f1'i
Nebraska City is the most import
ant town seen on the way down, Belle
vue and Plattsmouth, and, Browns
vile, Nebraska, and White Cloud,
Kansas, are pretty places. Stone and
timber are both plentier below Omaha
than near that place. Fe1s Esssg GO
AT Nebraska City l talked with a
farmer who had removed from Wayne
County, Indiana, about three years
ago, TO farm near Nebraska City.
He told me that he intended soon to
remove to Illinois or Indiana. I
asked him why. He said that timber
was too scarce and dear to suit him
and the grasshoppers were too thick
At Nebraska City the boat took on
large quantity of wheat. 1t was
Spring wheat, small, red grain. Mar
ket price one dollar per bushel.
The current of the Missouri is so
rapid that nearly double the time is
required to run up than down. We
Il 4