The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1870-02-01
4 VISION OF THE FUTURE.
a Dream Not Al q Dream.

]
obtain wherewith to fill his columns, suffus
es his brain with ''trifes light rs air" to
which be otherwise would not devote a mo
ments thought, and there never was an nm
fortunate "local, to whom ghouls of printers
and copy boys did not appear in his dreams
and demand that he spin them . paper
web from his brain. He passes through
life with some demon in his wake wherever
he may go,chsnting the eternal dismal strain
"copy "-"hslf column more f" Our "local'
was almost driven distracted BY the megrims
which these inky demons inspired, the other
day and retired at midnight to the refuge
sleep. They pursued him there, ''u''He'
him tipht and like the one eyed cHieooer IN
the Arabian tale, he wss oorne through Tue
air. to the highest point on the Bluff. There
thew act him down with injunctions TO attend
TO what he saw, and to have it wrought into
"copy" as soon as possible. He turned
himself round about and surveyed, and at a
short distance on a little grassy hummock
sat figure blending in curious way the
ridiculous and the venerable.
| 1t was the figure Of An aboriginal centen-
arisn bent and wasted; the face corrugst.
ed copper-co!ored mass of wrinkles, with
eyes clear as jewels lighting it up from be
meath over arching and receding brows. A
ridge of stiff gray hair like bristlea extend
ed across the center of his head, and other
wise he was bald. He was dressed in puris
naturaiib,s of dirty blanket, and very
little else to speak of, and as We looked at
him he seemed to look through us, and
| beyond us to the CLASSY surface of the river
| flowing beneath US, smoking gravely mean
while, and emitting great puffs of smoke
| from his mouth and wide fat nostrils. We
could not remove my eyes from his. They had
the CLEAN of blown ember, and seemed TO
contain sl the little remnant of vitality in his
wasted, time racked body. Suddenly, a. we
looked, the smoke from his pipe beanie more
dense. We turned, and the good town of
Soek Island had disappeared. The snow had
melted, the river was no longer bound IN
letters OF ice, aud fragrant spring had passed
over the land, scattering bloom and emerald
freshness in her wake. Here and there
! little mounds Of earth were surmounted by
] long, cleaning blades of maize, with golden
floss, dallying with the south breeze floating
from each. A few squsws and psppooses
were gathered about the paths of the wigwsm
village, and one or two sturdy white men,
with faces imbrowned by the seasons, were
erecting log nut. We turned to look a,
our companion, who was still smoking more
vehemensly, his mind bent on the lump CT
hollow calumet, whose interior was alter,
nasely glowing and fading out as his
wrinkled cheeks closed together, in convul
sive sucking. His body moved sinuously
up and down, and his legs were drawn under
him like Sianese Joss. All this time, our
mind WAS absorbing the details of the
aboriginal picture Just presented. The valley
was filled with smoke, when we turned
again, and the picture was shut from our
view. Suddenly, the bent figure at our feet,
stood erect The fierce light faded from
his eyes. 1t was replaced by an expression
of mild, beuignant triumph. He re
moved his pipe from his mouth and with
deliberate dignity waved it over his head
Ike Harlequin's sword of Hath The sea
of smoke below became Hinged with q brgh
rosy color, like sun set cloud. Metallic
sounds like the far off resonance of black
smith snvils blended tremendously in RI th'
{ mi, he n. bad o,r :,
wesried out by the long continued silence.
Suddenly the cloud was rent like q vail roll
ing IN graceful curves apart and upward. the
one half towards the mouth of Rock River
the other towards the head of the Island
and there stood revealed sights and sounds
of Titanic grandeur, to our wondering awe
struck senses. Our eyes wandered over a
wilderness OF monstrous brick structures.
We looked into the gaping mouths of grea,
chimneys shooting out pillars of fire and mass
es of dun colored smoke. Industrial Gehenna
was before US. The roar of machinery, the
wall Of circular saws penetrating the ribs of
forest monarchs of Minnesota, the rapidly
repeated blows of trip hammers, the whirr
of cotton machinery mingled with the hum
of traffic com bined to make a symphony,
with cyclops as performers, and the count
less instruments played by natures grand
est organist, the genius of steam
that celestial Beethoven could
surpass. 1t was the music that told of
indu wealth, population all employed,
and q community free from strife and cark-
ing care. A glorious adagio, interpenetra.
| ed the tripping sound ofsteam hammers and
the allegretto whirr of ponderous shafsing
1t was a grand deep sonorous hymn of
praise to him, who ruleth and careth for all
and has endowed the earth, the air, and sur
roundings of Rock Island, with elemental
wealth with coal that generates the inef-
fable essence of power, that produces plenty
from sterility; with broad river flowing
to the sea; with pneumonia space in the
shape of beautiful Island, to escape from
unhealthy gases of the crowded town, and
take whitfs of reverence along with health
freighted air amid Goods first temples"
Two broad rivers flowing in sinuous curves
about US, engendering power as illimitable
a, steam, and which is ours for all time.
The hills round about US were dotted with
lovely villas and grand mansions, lawns
with fountains bubbling up in front, and
classic as the groves of Academus with the
harmonious disposition of snowy statues
sculptured in cleaning marble. A great
Boulevard of trade thronged with people
and filled with bazaars of retail traffic, and
warehouses with goods in great bales and
boxes, bisected the great town from end to
end. Immense granite railway stations
were to be seen at the edges of the town,