Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1873-07-05
For the Essex County Herald
LETTER FROM THE WEST.
NUMBER FOUR.

NUMBER -FOUR.
EMMETsBURG, Iowa, June %, 1878.
Left Port Byron, at eight o'clock
in the evening of June II, on the
boat Red Wing for McGregor situated
two hundred miles up the Mississippi
River; passed many places of interest,
one of which was Dubuque,a very neat
city situated very near the river on
the Iowa side, built on a small strip
of bottom land along the shore, with
houses extending back from the river,
one above the other on the bluffs, which
makes it look very romantic from the
boat as we pass up the river. There
are only two bridges across the river
between Rockland and st. Paul, one of
which is very nice one. The River
is very high at this time owing to
warm weather and rains up north
which is taking off the snow, it is the
regular June freshet which they have
every year. All along the river on
either side are lodges of rocks that
come down very near, and it was with
difficulty railroad was built along
the Iowa side of the river.
Arrived at McGregor at six o'clock
p. M, the 18th, where we left the boat
and took the cars for Algona, Iowa,
at half past seven o'clock on the morn
ing of the 18th. which is 175 miles
from McGregor. After we got five
miles from the river, passed some OF
the most beautiful prairie lands in the
West, with some beautiful villages, or
rather, as they call them here, cities.
(St. Johnsbury VT, would be q nice
city Of the West.)
Charles City is very pretty place,
should not call it as large as Lancas-
ter N. H. Mason City, small village,
lies also on our route. Algona is the
west terminus Of the railroad, although
it is under contract to Spencer, fifty
miles farther west, passing through
Emmetsburg. We took a private
conveyance from Algona to Emmets.
burg, which is about % miles, cross
ing some of the most beautiful prairles
of the West, and some very thrifty
looking farms but large portion is
not cultivated.
At Emmetsburg the grasshoppel
plague was the main topic of converse.
ton when we arrived there. To us
it was indeed a novel sight. They
seem to travel about twelve miles eacf
day that is the front will be about thai
distance from the rear. 1t was three
days from their first appearance here
before they were entirely gone, ant
the second day every thing was com
pletely covered with them. They
seemed very hungry and would aligh
in garden and devour its content,
at once and not leave a green thing
that they would eat. Peas and bee Il
they will not eat. The farmer
thought at first that the entire whea
and corn crop was destroyed, bu
what wheat fields l have examined ar,
coming on again as it would if shee]
had eaten off the tops. Some fields
however, are nearly destroyed. L
was very fortunate that they came s.
early in the season as the wheat crol
was not forward enough to have i
spoilt entirely.
There is deal Depreciation abou
where they come from, and it is gene
, rally concluded that they come iron
Utah Territory, which of course max
i them Mormons, and perhaps that i
! the reason why they are so hume
q rous and pass off SO quickly; we hav
. not heard much of them since the
q left here, but presume they are il
q mischief somewhere. At Spence
and other points west they did muc
/ more damage than here. They loo
q. very much like grasshoppers we hav
in the East except they are nearly a
of a size and all have wings; they a
p so hop lively you scare them, an
! they will give hop and then fl
swiftly off. 1t is not known here hor
! much territory they passed over br
4 supposed large space, about so mile
in width some say. J. VIII.
B. H. Campbell, Moderator In chot