Omaha daily bee., 1874-07-07
NEBRASKA SKETCHES.
From Omaha to Sioux City.
Especial Correspondence Of THE BEEF
SIOUX CITY, July 5.

Especial Correspondence Of THE BEEF
SIOUX CITY, July 5.
EDITOR BEE:
From Omaha to Sioux City by
rail is a trip Of no consequence, but
with horses and buggy it is quite a
journey, especially if the roads are
muddy. AT Blair we stopped at the
Maher House, which is a good
hotel with reasonable charges. Mr..
Maher also keeps a general store,
over which is a photograph gallery
that is now vacant. Here is rare
chance forsome e%nterprising artist,
as Blair is large enough to support
a first class gallery. Two elevators
furnish the grain shipping facilities
for Blair, while Omaha has none,
and is apparently content to let the
surrounding towns carry off her
grain trade. Twenty miles north
of Blair, situated on the Missouri
Valley bottom is the beautiful little
village of Arizonia, containing how
ever, the finest store in the country,
which, together with three-fOurths
of the buildings In town and a vast
tract of well cultivated land is the
property of one of the most genial
hospitable gentleman to be found
anywhere. l refer to Mr.. w. B.
Newton. who also owns a fine ferry,
which is literally patronized by
emigrapts who cross the "Big Mud
dyu to find a home in the fertile
prairies of northern Nebraska.
Decatur is a rather sleepy town
on the southern edge of the Omaha
Indian Reservation. The only in
dioation of life Is where the stage
stops, and this is at the Fuller
House, which Is certainly q good
hotel, with a gentlemanly land
lord.
In going through the Omaha In
dian Agency, you see plenty of half
naked savages swarming from
loathsome looking places. The
Government has built plenty ofgood
and substantial houses for them,
and endeavOrs, in every possible
way, to civilize them, but, as a rule,
they prefer to live In tents, and e
fuse to labor In any way. The
Omahas are dull pupils in the Gov
eminent school of civilization.
Just north of this is the Winnie
hago Reservation, Here some pro-
gress is being made, and you actu-
ally see good farms and fine stock
owned by In,iians who cultivate
the soil themselves, and, some of
them, are reputed to be wealthy.
Schools are established among them
and fairly attended. Mr.. Taylor
Bradley, the agent at this reserva-
ton, is q man who Is evidently well
adapted for the control of savage
minds, and he seems to take great
pride In educating them In the ways
of civilized people.
He has now just completed a mag
nifcent industrial school, three stO-
ries high and one hundred by sixty
feet,
On leaving the Agency and en-
tering Dakota county, we found the
first indication of the grasshopper
ravages, which has again, this year,
destroyed hundreds of acres of
growing crops that otherwise would
have given a bOuntiful yield. Da-
kOta City, situated six miles west of
Sioux City, is a very quiet, pretty
little village.
Opposite Sioux City is Covington,
which is taking a Rip Van Wrinkle
sleep, when 1t could by a little ex-
ertiOn become q formidable rival to
its thrifty neighbOr across the water.
Sioux City is as lively as usual,
and is putting up more substantial
buildings this year than ever before.
Tomorrow we will visit the coal
mines and that wonderful volcano,
an account of which we will endea-
vOr to send i'm time for tO-morrOw's
BEE. RANGER.