The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-08-27
AMONG THE MOUNTAINS.
From our oi6n Correspondent.

FoRT Sanders WYoM1Na TER7IToRY, !
UNION Pee FIc RR Aug. le, 1888
1t is not often your correspondent has the pri"
vilege OF writing you from Point nearly 1000
miles west of Philadelphia. But here we are
more than 1000 miles beyond the Mississippi
river, aud 6,2 out on the great Union Pacific
Railroad, the wonder OF the age.
Upon the adjournment of the American As.
sociation for the Advancement of Science
which has Just held its seventeenth annual
meeting at Chicago, we determined to see some
thing more of this great West; and q few of us,
members of the Association, started on August
1cth, by the Northwestern Road for Omaha, on
the Mississippi. liver, and former capital of Ne
braska. Remaining here twenty-four hours, we
entered the cars of the Union Pacific for the end
of the road, wherever we might find that to be.
At Omaha our party was vastly enlarged by a
company of excursionists, son dozen members
of scientific associations, with their wives, under
the special charge of Captain Turner of Chicago,
one of the active Directors of the Chicago and
Northwestern RIilroCd, and w. B. Ogden, Esq.,
the iar-iamed railro id protector and capitalist
Of ChicGgo.
Among the company were representative
from Harvard, sUch as Dr.. Could, Genera
Eustic; from Yale, Professor 5lliman, Professors
Whitney and Marsh; Professor hung gerford, from
Burlington University; Mr.. Hall of Albany
New York State Geolo2lst, and Others moi un
known to TIE scientific world.
Delightfully."- luxurious cars were especially
provided for the party, and every facility
afforded by the officers of the road for thor
ough inspection of the road and the magnificent
scenery which It has revealed to the world.
Journeying steadily westward at the rate OF
twenty miles an hour, stopping here and there
at points of special scenic, historic, or geolog
cal interest, we reached in twentyiour hours
the notorious city of Cheyenne, at the foot of
the Rocky Mountains (Back Hills), and SIC
miles from Omaha Cheyenne was for long
time practically the terminus OF the road and
acquired reputation such as Julesburg, Lara
mie, aud now Benton each in succession has
attained.
These towns have a very brief but intense
life, and then lapse into ordinary dull western
villages. So lorg as each is the point of depart
ure for stage lines, emigrant trains, express
routes miners Quitting. etc. etc., they are full
of stores, saloons, gambling hels, and the most
abandoned characters, male and female, which
the whole land can furnish. No one can readily
exaggerate the wlckedncss of these moving
towns, or be duly grateful that the completion
of the road will abolish them.
From the Cheyenne we climbed at the grade
of 80 degrees to the nile, up the mountains to
Sherman, thrty-two miles further west, and
famous as being the highest point on the route
from the Mississippi TO the Pacific Ocean-8262
feet above the sea. From Sherman it is but
twenty-three miles to Fort Saunders, q Gov
ernment post, with 500 men, where we were
very cordially and gallantly received by Genera,
Gibbons, commanding Rocky Mountain District
and General Potter, Commandant of the post.
Here the party dined with General Frank Blair,
and the other Government Commissioners OF the
road who here have their headquarters.
Arriving, at last, after less than forty hours
actual travel, the present terminus of regular
railroad trains at Benton-we were attached to
q train of railroad iron, and hastened on to see
the eighth wonder of the world-the making OF
the road We shall not attempt minute
description Of 1t Qt is of itself enough for a
letter.. l can give you an outline. Imagine
10000 nen-the actual working force scattered
over the plains for lG0 miles - surveying,
grading etc. etc. Then a force OF 500 men
laying the ties and putting down the rails at
the rate of four and five miles day, aud you
can family conceive the building the great
Pacific Railroad. The ties drought up by
cars) are distributed along by mule trains; the
rails are hurried forward in hand cars, drawn
by horses, much as canal boats are propelled
and empty cars returning as fast as feet horses
can run, to be redlled. To keep up to the
workmen is actually weerying to persons
unaccustomed to walking. The worknen
sleep in cars, and nightly pitched tents, and
eat in an immense moving restaurant.
Having all assisted in laying rails and driving
spikes, and thus added our mite to the achieve
ment of the century, we reluctantly turned oul
faces toward the rising sun, and recrossing "Ih(
Divide" which separates the waters of thu
Pacific from the waters of the Mississippi, sitel
long sleep in Pullman's palace cars, W,
reached to-day this delightful Railroad Hotel
Time forbids that should attempt to speak o
the scenery, the soil, the difficulties of construc
ton, the wild animals seen, and the Thousand
varied experiences OF the journey, amons
which interviews with the Mormons and buffalo
hunting have no unimportant place. l.. E. K.
TERRIBLE SUFFERING.