The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1870-07-29

Is the toughest, raggedest, and most
part of Kansas that have
seen. The hills are almost mountains,
with steep sides, covered with huge,
projecting, boulder-like sand rocks.
The timber near the river is as good as
any that / have seen in Kansas. All
over the hills near the river, and ex-
tending for miles back, are forests of
post oak, interspersed with small and
mostly smooth prairies. The trees are
sometimes two or three rods
apart, and the grass grows luxuriantly
among them, which gives them the ap-
pearance of grand parks, and down
deep in the rocky ravines are clear rip
ping streams of pure cold water, some
times formed into little crystal lakes by
great fallen rocks, covered with the
most beautiful moses and ferns that
have ever seen. The scenery on Big
Caney very nearly resembles that of the
Ozark mountain region of Arkansas.
But the whole country is not rocky the
level valleys and nearly level uplands,
both prairie and timber, are, with but
few exceptions, nearly or quite free
from out-cropping rocks. We were in
formed by the settlers that the Big
Caney is settled to its mouth, forty miles
into Indian Territory, and claims have
been sold south of the line for as high
rs eight hundred dollars.
We set our compass at the mound
near the mill, and ran east half mile
and found the second mound, but the
two were not in sight of each other.
We ran back to the first mound again,
and found the variation, by our compass,
to be about eleven degrees and twenty
five minutes. We then started west, ran
a mile of timber with a dense
of dogwoods, grapevines,
and musquitos, and came within few
feet of a line mound. On the rocky
ridges farther west the mounds were
built of rock, they were circular in
shape, three feet high, with fat tops,
and stake in the center of each. We
found all of the mounds in inconspicu-
GUS places. We camped in the evening
in deep rocky ravine, with spring
running through it, filed with dead
wood and growing weeds. Farther
west on our course, and about half way
across the divide we found good
spring, after that we had no trouble in
finding plenty of good water. This
divide is about like the average of Kan
sas uplands, there is good growth OF
grass and rosin weed on it, and with the
exception of the few stony mounds, ii
can be readily cultivated. We crossed
Beaver creek the next evening at Phil
lip Crocker's claim, took supper at Mr..
Crocker's, and camped on a hill mile
west, where we found camp of mos.
quitos, and were
"'Chawed all night,
Till broad daylight,
And then chawed in the morning."
In crossing the divide between Big
Caney and Beaver creeks the line runs
about two miles south, and nearly par.
allel with Flat Rock creek, which is q
small but well timbered stream. Beav.
er creek is small stream, but well tim.
bered we were informed that it is set
tied to its mouth, fifteen miles south Of
the State line. There is town laid out
on the Abilene trail, about mile above
where the Usage trail crosses Beaver
creek. 1t is called McLain City. There
are two cabins on the town site. Mr.
McLain, an old settler, informed us that
eighteen thousand head of Texas cattle
have been driven over that trail since
last spring. The divide between Beav.
er creek and the Arkansas is well wa
tered by spring brooks, and covered
with luxuriant growth of grass an6
rosin weeds, and is splendid range fol
stock. 1t is about ten miles across. We
arrived at the Arkansas river, and found
that the south line of the Usage Reser
walton runs about five miles south O
Arkansas City. If the south line of tht
neutral strip, lying south of the ,Osag'
Reservation, is the State line, the STATE
line mast be eight or ten miles south o
Arkansas City. After making mari
where we struck the Arkansas, we start
ed for home (Arkansas City,. Abou
half mile below the mouth of Grous'
we stopped for dinner, at large spring
on E. A. Wilton's claim. 1t is worth go
ing miles to see. 1t runs a stream tina
would fill six inch pipe. Itpours from
q deep ledge of magnesia limestone
about thirty feet above the level of thu
Arkansas, and dashes down through :
dark, shady, rocky, messy ravine, some
times checked in its impetuous cours'
and formed into miniature lakes, and a
others leaping down and forming beau
tiful little cascades over large rocks en-
tirely covered with moses and ferns
From the spring we followed the roat
through narrow belt of timber between
high bluffs and the Arkansas, and sool
came to the Grouse, which is stream
about the size of the Cottonwood a
Emporia, it is well timbered, and tn
bottoms are very rich, and thickly set
tied. From the Grouse we followed tn
upland road around the heads of tn
deep, rocky sided ravines, emptying in
to the Arkansas. Grouse creek is abou
eight miles from Arkansas City. Whel
about half way over the divide, we stop
ped to look for water, we found cir
cular hole in the solid rock, about tire
feet in diameter, and eight in deptt
with stream of cold clear water run
ming through it at the bottom, and o.
going into it we found passage lead
ing from it, probably into cave. w
call it the well spring. A few rod
from this, at the head of ravine, be
hind some fallen rocks, we found tn
entrance to cave. We entered it an
found the interior to be about five fee
high, and ten or twelve feet wide, wit
stream of cold clear water runnin
through it. We went back about lift
feet, and as far back as we could see |
seemed to be about the same hight an
width. About twenty-five feet froI
the entrance we found circular hol
about three feet in diameter, directl
over the center of the cave, runnin
through the solid rock to the prairie