The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1873-06-05
Sr. LOUIS. NAV e1st 197a

: Labor Cholera =: Business in 1t.
Lsats.
T., = <''' sT: LOUIS, May 2lst, 1873.
EDITOR JOURNAL arrived IN
this oity from Texa. three days ago. I
spent tho winter in Texas, aud was
quartered most Of the time in Marshall,
in which town are located the head
quarters Of the California and Texas
Railway CONSTRUCTION Company. The
affairs Of the Texas Pacific Rail.
road have been 10 muddIed condition
tor several months past, owing to tho
failure of tie Construction Company to
comply with the terms of contract as re-
CARDS the time Of completing the first
division, which comprises two branches,
in all five hundred miles, both to ter
inmate at Fort Worth. The Company
at one time stood ia great fear of hav.
ing to give up the contract and of for.
letting work already done, as the Texas
Legislature seemed violently opposed to
granting an extension Of time. But, by
dint of perseverance,, the Company has
succeeded in getting the tim. extended
to October, 1874, which gives nine
months beyond tho time specified in
the original contract.
Tho people Of Texas, for tho most
part, are opposed to the building OF
more railroads for the present, and were,
generally speaking, dispe.sed to see
the Legislature weaken and wheel
around into tho traces as naturally as if
it had been trained for the occasion.
The report was current that Tom. Scott
employed an experienced man Of Now
York to take an inventory of tho Texas
Legislature with view Of buying up
opposing menbers, and that the figures
ranged from ten to eig ghteen thousand
dollars. So expert was the man at
reading couutenances, that he did
not make 4 single mistake, and all the
sab1idlzed members we're paid of at
his figures. The highest priced man
was roughly dressed and 'sportsd an
old fashioned bulls eye watch, and cost
the eoormous sum of $4,000. 1 give
this as report has it. How much weight
IS to be attached to these reports
leave to be determined by those who
know more Of the facts than do. The
Texas Pacific Railroad is making bu,
slo" progress, luck Of funds seems to
be the great drawback. The Coastruc.
ton Company, I am informed, is tc
receive $4,000 per mile for construct
ing the road, and I regard it a. al
enormous price when it is considered
that the expense Of building and fitting
up the road will bat little exceed The
cost Of the Brainerd Branch railroad
from Sank Rapids up. But theo, ia
these days, much has to be allowed 70,
tncsdentsl expenses.
The price Of labor on tho grade af
ter a:second out down stands at 81 7E
per day, and at that price there are
plenty of men to be had so that to q
to Texas for work is impraotioable and
ruinous. Strikes among mechanic.
and brick masons have been frequea'
tor money claimed to be long over due
! Gene raj Granville M. Dodge is Sap
erintendent of the construction, and
his name is quite familiar as an absen
witness in the Credit Mobilier. | saw
him 10 his Office at Marshall on the
day Of his reappearance from a 81,
weeks ramble in the "wild woods .
Louisiana" and he reminded me o
famous characters who have figured ex
tensively in yellow.oovered books. H
bad his hat cooked dangerously to on
side, and it only lacked a feather tt
complete the character of Robin Hood
| From the mouth of Red River t.
Cairo, ! came on the steamer "Joh,
Kilgour. She had two cases of Asi
ATTIC cholera on board, one Of whiot
| proved fatal as we reached Memphis
and the other was critical at the time
left the boat at Cairo. Tho boat wa
bound to Cincinnati and will doubles
be the means Of conveying the seourge
to that city, from whence it may exten'
through the Middle and Wester1
States. 1 learned from the officers o
the boat that the cholera had prevailed
to . considerable extent in New Or
leans for several days previous to the
departure Of the boat, and that th,
authorities aud newspapers, for obvious
reasons, had suppressed full facts in re-.
flation 70 il, as well as Of the prevalence
Of small pox, which latter dis.ss,
has carried Of a good many person
during the past winter, while it ha
left its mark upon hundreds Of others
The cholera has not yet made its ap
pearance in this city, but tho daily ar
rival Of boats from tho infected district
it is feared, will soon bring it here ani
to all the river towns.
| Business seems to be brisk in tn,
oity at The present time, and .s n.tura
con sequence men wear happy counte
nances and are seemingly ready t.
smile on tho slightest pretext. N
doubt Congressional conventions hav'
a good effect in raising dropping spiri.
and encouraging to renewed exertioua
If there is any virtue ia promises th,
peopls Of st. Louis certainly have caus'
to rejoice. The whole of'the Atlanti'
Ocean is promised them with which Il