The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1867-07-11
Letter from CIV. D. P. Morton.
The Indianapolis Journal of the 9Th. con
taines the following letter from the q ov
Is friend in that CITY. dated -

TO IFleHu IN tnaI CITY, dated
- Hor SPRINGS. June II, 1867
7O9 MY DEAR FRIENDS: We arrived on
the I'd of June, after tedious and tire
2 sonme journey.of nine days byrail, stears
mer aud ambulance. The last sixty
miles from Little Rock we travelled in an
ambulance over the worst roads l ever
saw, fording deep streams, through deep
mire, and ny and down precipitous rocks,
where it would apparently be impossible
for Il wagon to go. ss@
. The hot Springs are found in narrow
valley. between two low ranges of the
Ozark Mountains, running nearly north
and south. They issue from the noun
tain, on the east side Of the valley, about
fifty feet above the base. and are nearly
4 fifty lin number The water varies irz
temperature from 7selto 1852 and is car
ried BY wooden troughs into the tops Of
small bath houses, at the base of the
mountain, situated on the bank of Hot
Spring creek. The patient first enters
the dressing room, where he is disrobed
+
back into another where he enters large
tub filled with water as hot as he cans
bear it. He remains in this five or six
minutes and then goes back further into
the vapor room. This is small close
room, having for its floor an open
q wooden grating, beneath which is res
ervoir Of hot water He sits down on a
little bench, and finds by his side tin
bucket filled with hot water from the
spring, and tin cup. This water he
drinks freely, so hot that it almost burns
his mouth, and, strange to say, dis
covers that he likes it, and that it does
not make him sick. And now, if his skin
is not as impervious as parchment, he
will perspire as he never did before.
After remaining in the vapor few min |
utes lie goes back and again enters the
hot water, stays in that a minute or two,
is then rubbed off and dressed, goes to
his room, gets between the blankets, |
drinks repeatedly Of the hot water, per-
spires about thirty minutes, is then
thoroughly rubbed, puts on dry lannels, i
dresses and goes to dinner with an a?-
petite. The powers of these baths to |
produce perspiration is. extraordinary. /
had no perspiration below the waist
from the time of my first attack, but the
second bath here brought it out pro
fusely on my limbs, and now I can per
spire as well as any body. 9,
The people here, and throughout this
country, have faith, amounting almost to |
fanaticism in the powers of these waters |
to cure every chronic disease, except I
consumption and affections Of the heart.
And, from what I have already seen and
heard, believe they, may very nearly be |
regarded as specific for rheumatism and
neuralgia. Persons are pointed out to
me every day, walking up and down the
valley, who were brought here a few
weeks or months ago helpless and on !
beds CIR filters, who are now apparently |
we'll f} so} .8's@6z ss5s 40 90.
The weather in this secluded little val
ley is comparatively cool and pleasant,
certainly much more SO than at Indiana
polis,and sleep under blanket every
night. We have no mosquitoes, gnats,
and very few flies. The valley is SO
deep and marrow that the sun disappears
behind the western crest by half-past
four in the afternoon, and leavs US in the
cool shadow. The water possesses some
remarkable property which even chemis-
try has failed to discover. It is tasteless,
but many people drink it hot with as
much avieity as if it was ice water, and
it is said that with the aid Of pepper, salt
and little butter. it makes very pala-
table soup. The country around is
wild, mountainous, and very sparsely
populated, the most of the settlers living
by fishing and hunting.
Game is abundant, and we have vent
son on the table three times day, and
this is almost the only article Of food
that is not brought from the North by
wayfof Little Rock. rsr-7 41s~..e.-
There are about four hundred visitors
from every part of the United States and /
Mexico. They are of all styles, and rep
resent every species of disease.
10 We hear very little politics discussed.
That subject is by common consent, ig-
.nored, and it is som etimes amusing to
hear people talk all around it, apparent
ly afraid to refer to anything even re-
motely POLITICAL 'sesldf s. ma g
The mail comes but once week; comes
on Saturday and leaves the next, so that
this letter will not start until next Satur-
day. News to you becomes news to me
about ten days after. a1st5 "7" s4a
These mountain valleys are very fertile
and capable of growing any thing that is