The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1869-07-08

When at Omaha ! promised, in my
letter that / would write you from this
point in relation to the construction, safe
ty, &c, Of the Pacific Railroad, which
has just been finished and is attracting
much of the attention of the people of
this county, as well as abroad.
This great continental thoroughfare,
your readers will remember, belongs to
two companies-the Eastern end to the
Union Pacific Company, and the Western
end to the Central Pacific Company
joining at point called Promontory, in
Utah territory, some twenty-five miles
north or northwest of Salt Lake. Let
me premise by saying that the build
ing Of this road running, as it does most
Iy, through mountains and deserts, unin-
habited by civilized beings, over seventeen
hundred miles, is a work of great magni-
tude, and one that would only be thought
Of or accomplished by the American peo-
pie.
We left Omaha last Monday, at o'clk
L. NJ. and arrived at San Francisco on
Saturday evening, at 8 o'clock, being
little over FIVE days coming through, In
Guiding a delay of twelve hours at the
junction Of the two roads at Promontory.
What change on the old mode of travel
to the Pacific States, when it required
three to four months to make the trip
CONDITION OF THE ROAD.
The road is in good running condition,
except about two hundred and fifty miles
of the western end of the Union Pacific,
and, perhaps the same distance Of the
eastern end of the Central Pacific, which
is new and was hurriedly constructed du-
H.I 4 IL
am told, will be speedily remedied by
leveling up and widening the road bed.
A number of the bridges on the line are
temporary and are to be replaced by per
manent and more substantial ones as ne
cessity may require. AT a few points on
the road, especially on that part last I'm
ished, where extensive cuts or tunnels are
to be made, the track is temporarily laid
around them. AT number of points |
observed that the work of Strengthening
the track and putting up permanent
bridges was going on.
RUNNING CONNECTIONS.
There is but one train a day running
each way From some misunderstanding
or disagreement between the companies,
connections are not made at Prom0ntory
the point of junction between the two
roads, and passengers going either way
are compelled to lay over for nearly
a day, among as hard a looking set of |
gamblers, pick-pockets and cut-thrOats,
who infest that community, as the sun
ever shone upon. 1t is to be hoped that |
an agreement will be made soon, and pas
sengers saved this infliction.
THE EQUIPAGE OF THE ROAD
Is as good as is usually found on Eastern
roads. Sleeping cars are only run on the
II. +. end of the road as yet. The G.
F. is having sleeping cars brought from
line will be supplied.
EATING HOUSES.
/ was astonished to find so many good !
eating houses on the road. Even in the !
desert there was no deficiency of tables
well supplied with good and wholesome
food. l doubt very much whether the
eating houses at Laramie, Elko and on
the Sierra Nevada Mountains can be ex- |
celled anywhere in the East. Prices of |
meals, from fifty cents to one dollar and |
twenty-five cents.
THE COUNTRY THE ROAD TRAvERsEs.
For some two hundred miles after we |
left Omaha, in Nebraska, we passed |
through a rich prairie country, but after |
that, till we came to the valley of the |
Sacramento river, / would not paw the |
taxes and be the owner of the lands for
agricultural purposes. The country is
a barren waste, devoid of vegetation, ex-
cept cactus and sage brush. However
much these companies may have made off
of the Government in way of bonds, | |
am quite certain they have made little by /
the land grants. The conductors and
other employees on the road are very at
tentive and obliging.
THE SIGHTS BY THE WAY.
are, at some points, grand, especially in
passing over the Black Hills and Sierra
Nevadas. We had view of the snow
range of mountains for hundreds Of miles
on the way-sOmetimes near to us and at
other times in the far distance. We saw
the Indians, buffaloes, antelopes, prairie
dogs and their cities, so much written
about by travellers across the continent
At Carter, west of the Black Mountains,
we met the Chief of the Shoshones and
many of his tribe. He is a fine looking
Indian, much lighter in complexion than
most of Indians we saw. 1t was the first
time he had seen train of cars, and APP
peared to regard it with great interest.
We passed over tee Sierra Nevadas in
daylight. Much of the road is covered
with snow sheds over this mountain, and
e at many points the snow was still remain
ing unmelted. The grade of the road
over the mountain is from 30 to 116 feet
per mile, and requires two locomotives to
carry each train over it. As the train
passed around a point of the mountain
called Cape Horne, by looking out of the
car you can see the north branch of the
American river, two thousand feet, almost
perpendicularly, below you. We had a
good view of Bonner Lake, on the top of
the mountain, as we passed along. This
is small lake, filed with pure, ice-cold
water in the summer, and freezes to a
great depth in the winter. 1t is called
Bonner Lake from the fact that Bonner
and his company of emigrants, thirteen
IN all, were showed in there in the winter
of 1915, ten of whom died and were
eaten by the others before the spring re-
heved them. Snow falls, am told, on
the top of this mountain, some winters.
to the enormous depth of thirty feet.
CREAM FOR COFFEE.
In the desert, where We stopped for
dinner, the lady at the eating house was
asked by one the passengers for cream.
''That is a thing we have never seen
here" said the lady. 'There is not a
cow within one hundred miles of this
place. We have to bring our water forty
miles"
| learned FROM the conductor of the
train afterward that this was literally so