Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1872-12-06
From, Kansas.
'respordence of The Bulletin.

in Kansas. Wichita is situated in
about the centre of Sedgwick coun-
ty, on the east side Of the Arkansas
river. 1t is built OH broad, level
piece Of bottom land; is nicely laid
out, and. contains some very sub
stantially built business houses and
neat dwellings-also good hotel,
whose proprietor knows how to get
up good hash and charge Kansas
prices for it. Nearly every relig-
ious denomination has some sort of
church edificc, and the town af-
fords a good school. But every
thing business blocks, business
men, dwellings, hotels, churches,
school-houses, and the town site
are cast into the shade by the num-
Der and quality Of the drinking and
gambling saloons. These have
reached the surprising number of
As places where liquors Of all kinds
are sold, on the principal business
street; and | do not know how many
there are off the general thorough
fare where they do not hang out
their sign. The number of saloons
will probably surprise some of your
readers in independence when in
formed that the total population of
this town is only 1900. Perhaps
some of them vii. not feel like emil
grating to a land flowing so bounti-
fully with whisky, and whose other
chief attraction is Texas cattle with
out limit.
Wichita is the present terminus
of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa
Fe Railroad branch, aud has good
jobbing trade from one hundred
miles area of country. So long as
the railroad extends no further it
will be a good place for all kinds of
business. The past season it has
been the "head centre" Of the Texas
cattle trade, and was blessed (as
they call iD by the presence OF
about 1900 cattle men, with their
innumerablc retinue of Mexicans,
negroes and border ruffians. The
larger portion Of these have re-
turned to their homes in Texas,
some exultant over good sales and
fortunate speculations, and others
discounted and cleaned out in unc-
quail contests with "kcno" and
"montc." A remnant Of the tribe
remain, to give the stranger an idea
of what a Texas man can do when
he has "sold his horns" and resolves
to have a "hurrah." These strag-
glers are the very worst type of
border ruffian. They are the kind
who, when they get hard-np, will
"get away with you for ten cents.
There have been shipped from
this point, this season, 4,s00 car
loads of neat and stock cattle, or
about 100000 head in all. The
railroad has made good thing out
of the trade; and here, while speak
ing Of railroads, / want to say that
the A., 7. & S. i. Railroad, its man.
ayers and employees, are only equal
ed for exhorbitant charges and
mean tricks by that other grand
swindling institution, the Illinois
Central Railroad. l think, Of all
corporations that need to be regula-
ted by stringent laws, railroad com
panies are the most deserving. At
ter asking, with all the cheek of a
commercial tourist, for heavy
bonds and subsidies, land grants,
ETC., they compel the public to pay
them their prices for riding over
their roads, and expect them to sub
nit TO all the insolence of bull
headed conductors, brgkemen and
baggage-smashers
The Arkansas valley is destined
to be one Of the richest and most
desirable farming and grazing
countries on which the sun shines.
1t varys in width, in some places
including 80 miles of level and fer
tile land. Where the valley chang
cs to upland, the hills furnish build
ing stone Of superior quality, and a
few acres of land planted in trees
will furnish the farmer with ample
supply Of fuel. Besides, there are
rich mines Of coal scattered over
the State. The soil is good for all
kinds of agriculture, and the water
usually good and plenty. Timber
in most parts of Kansas is scarce.
This is supposed to be the health
est place in the world, and as an
evidence of it / give you just one
fact; The toWn of Newton, 80 miles
north from here, was, uatil this sea-
son, the cattle town. The nice lit
tie graveyard there has just 80 oc-
cupants. One of the quiet sloepers
died of disease. The other 81 died
"with their boots.on," from getting
outside of too much cold lead. !
think this fact is sufficient to con-
vince any unparalleled mind that
all that is necessary to enable one
to live long and prosper is to be
small enough to miss, or spry
enough to dodge, the bullets. 1t is
reliably stated that at Newton the
result Of one Of their little soirees
between the "long horns" and the
"short horns," was 10 dead, wound
ed and missing.
P. NJ. At this point l had laid
aside the pen to rest my tortured
brain, and to refresh the inner man
with good Sunday dinner, hoping
to secure startling item with which
to round up this epistle. l think |
got it, as you shall be the judge.
After dinner, while seated in the
hotel Office with my feet elevated
to an angle of forty-five degrees and
smoking pretty fair cigar, the
door opened and in stalkcd q six
foot Texan rough, with as much
tangle-foot concealed about his per-
son as he could well carry. Glanc-
ing around the room, be at last
drew chair opposite me, and as-
suming my position, commenced
calling loudly for the landlord, at
the same time producing pair of
revolvers. The landlord appeared
and demanded his business. Level