Nebraska advertiser. [volume] (Brownville, Nemaha County, N.T. [Neb.]) 1856-1882, 1870-03-17

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stories of the sufferings of the early
emigFants-Of lost stock, wrecked
wagons, and dead mems bOnes-that
haunt this awful DEVILS Gap.
We pass on, and a sigh Of relief es-
capes US as the last car rolls past the
| gorge, and we emerge from. Echo
Canon into a more extensive plain,
bounded by stupendOus mountains,
whose view is shortly cut off by the
| gloom of gathering night. But can
not leave the canon without allowing
my, pen to linger over the record Of q
most beautiful and significant sight.
1t was about three O'clock, the day
fair and sunny, at point where the
mountains reared their stupendOus
heights on either side, and covered
the canon with shadow. / saw above
me, glimmering in the clear transpar-
ent air, a single large and lovely star.
Star of the daylight in the Rocky
MOuntainsl Was there another one
that saw it? Shall / accept it as an
omen of future good p?
Since leaving the Black Hills the
weather has been warm and pleasant.
During the night we pass very in
teresting portion of our journey. Og-
den, quite a nice city, bordering on
Salt Lake, also COFinne and PrOmOn-
tory. At the last named place We
change cars and speed on, The shad-
ows Of night are around US, and on we
go; while close upon our left the dim
far-stTetching wateTs'Of the Great Salt
Lake repOse and glimmer in the star
light. We experience a profound re-
Fgret that we could not have viewed
the great interior basin by day. r
Nov. 2l.-Daylight finds us speed
ing over the Desert-the Humboldt
Desert The country presents a level
tract of land, bounded on either side
by either side by grand majestic
, mountains. The soil is strongly inn
pregnated with alkali Sage bush and
grease wood, with occasional patches
!. of wild rye, are the only vegetation.
The weather during the day is warm
+ and pleasant; at night it is freezing
. cold. We pass section houses, Chi
nese camps, eating statiOns-all small
board shanties. We see a few Indians,
, the only ones we have seen on the
! Journey, begging at the camps.
Passed ElkO last night, a pretty little
town, regretted it was at night. We
go on easily. safely, making our eight
or ten miles per hour At Elko run
ners came into the cars, bringing ap-
+ pies, pears, grapes-the finest fruit
z ever saw. We have had q perfect
feast, and the children are delighted
2 Halted this morning at ten O'Clock
: long enough to allow the gentlemen
2 to take bath in warm spring, the
, stream of which was plainly visible 8
= few hundred yards off in Humboldt
Valley. An old gentleman, a passen
/ ger, seventy-eight years of age, OBJ
s served rs he saw the men running t.
b. the spring through the thick sage
: brush: "I don't see what they wan
= to run away out there for, a scuftin
= out their boots ~ -. .|-..
e Higho! what fun the cOnducto
} made last night. He is a jovial hear
l ty soul kept US shaking with laugh
ter.
Nov. 22.-Had q nice time this NOR
e ming; got out and took break fast a
e Winnemucca; had a splendid break
: fast-fresh buiscuits, buckwheat cakes
: tea, coffee, ham and eggs, sweet pO
7 tatOes, Irish potatoes, butter, pies. &c.
/ meals 50 cts, besides the landlord
gave us a new Frank LeSlie's Illltstrd
= ted. Nice landlord! good breakfast
= We will patrOniZe him every time VIZ
? travel that route.
: We still go on while the same seem
2 ingly endless mOnOtony of sage brush
and grease wood covers the broad val
: ley, and the mountains repOse silently
} in the distance.
Along the track where the ground
has been thrown mp, the soil has ar
ashen grey appearance, as though the
country had at some distant day been
deluged in burning lava, fire anC
: smoke. .fI fI1 .al
We are now within one days traye
of Sacramento. How near it seems
: and yet how far! It's most lovely
/ day; the sun shines with dazzling
: lustre the heavens area dreamy blue;
f the brown valley stretches far and
level, with near pictures of brown
: mountains and distant views of tai
blue. peaks that lift their brOws far uT
; in the clear air, and seem tc kiss the
skies. %
l am anxious to see what will come
= after this long mOnOtOnOUs valley OI
/ the Humboldt. ..
How many fine views we pass in
the night. That romantic spot, the
, Maiden's Grave, we passed last night
T An emigrant girl was buried there
years ago, her grave left with only Z
/ rude board to mark the spot but
when the rough, hardy men of Cali
fOrnia came to build the railroad,
they enclosed the grave with a neal
= stone fence, and placed a stone cross
at the head, the symbol of christiani-
, ty; the incident worthy of record is
/ sublime and praiswOrthy. s-......
AfternOOn.-We are at Humboldt
/ City, and behind I'M the mountains we
can see the mines-faint indications
: where the feeble powers of man is
! striving to wrench from the bowels O1
the eadamantine rocks, earth's precious
gems.
We now pass a spot where some
, Cinnamon are delvslg in the ground
and bringing out sulphur. 1t looks
! like the pure article. What will they
! not find in these regions?
Nov. 23.-We awake this morning
= and the grand beautiful scenery Oi
California greeted our eyes. Break
! tasted at Truckee, a nice little town
= of 1000 inhabitants. The view il
essentially California; tall, slOping
mountains covered with towering
: trees; valleys in which meandeI
! sparkling streams. ...f ...---.t. ..
= We are now nearing the summit Oi
the track-reaching an altitude Of 7042
feet descending at the rate Of 80 feet
per mile, we go down 500 feet in six
miles. The scenery is grand beyond
description. Here on the summit OF
the Sierra Nevada's men were tied by
! TODps till they could nick q fOOt-hOld
and after that the road was built, al
what an amount of labor and eX-
pense! 1 look down from this awful
, heighth and see the tops of tall pine
trees far, far below me.
} 1t is by far the grandest, most fear
, fully sublime portion of the road, but
, much of the view is shut off by snow
, sheds, which are very substantially
. built to ward off the avalanche from
T the Overhanging mountain. We pass
through numerous tunnels. Snow
sheds and tunnels are so closely con-
: | uacfpd that OUp can gQoreniv foil N4-hau