Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1875-07-10
GOING WEST.
fFRoM OUR OWN CORES PoNDENT.l
ATCIusoN, KANSAS, \
June "a, 1875.

ATCIusoN, KANSAS, I
June "a, 1875.
We arrived here last night after
II O'Clock, and leave this morning at
4, SO you see it is utterly impossible
to write anything like a descriptive
letter from this point, in the few min
utes allowed.
At Detianco re took the cars of the
! oirdo, Wabash Il Western Road,
and a few miles out crossed into In
diana and passed through a compar-
atiyely new and undeveloped section
of country, with here and there a
primitive log cabin standing out in
small clearing Emerging from
this almost unbroken forest, we came
in sight Of the Maumee river, and it's
beautiful bottom lands, fine farm
houses and cultivated fields. We
followed the line of the river for a
number of miles, and then struck off
through fiat ,marshy country, which
has not yet been reclaimed to the uses
of agriculture. Judging from the
stagnated character of the water in
these low lands and swamps, we
should say they contained about one
hundred good ague shakes to the
square inch. Emerging from the
swamp lands, we struck a more ele-
yated country along the beautiful
and fertile valley of the Wabash
We passed through Fort Wayne-the
birthplace of ''Mad Anthony''-Wa-
bash, Peru, Logansport, LAFAYETTE,
and many smaller Indiana cities and
towns, when we came to State Line,
and crossed into Illinois. The crops
through the portion of Indiana along
our route are fair. The corn is short,
but looking well the wheat, on the
whole, will not make half q crop
here and there you see 4 field which
will probably make fifteen or twenty
bushels to the acre, and then half
dozen others which will not make
live. The grass crop is fine, and the
prospect for oats was never better.
In Illinois we pass through Dan
vile, Decatur, Springfeld-th capt.
tai of the State-Jacksonville, and
numerous smaller places, until we
reach Quincy, ON the banks of the
Mississippi river. The crops in Hi
nois are much the same as in Indi-
ana. The season is too wet for The
corn on the prairies and fiat lands,
and we noticed immense fields con-
tanning a couple hundred acres each,
III which the corn was not six inches
high, and oyerrun with grass, the
| ground being too wet to cultivate.
At Quincy we took the Hannibal
and st. Joseph road, and crossed the
Mississippi river into Missouri. We
passed through the State distance
of 227 miles to this point, where we
| were transferred over the Missouri
river to Kansas soil.
The wheat crop in Missouri, like
that of Indiana and Illinois, is par
tial failure. The corn, in the flat
lands, is also backward. The grass,
oats and potatoes are looking fine,
and promise large yield. The first
indication we had of the grasshop-
pers was at Breckenridge. Missouri,
where the ravages were comparative
| ly light, and were found again from
Cameron junction into Atchison,
where much of the country for some
distance was literally swept of every
species of vegetation and tame grass,
and looked as if a simeon had swept
over it.
We close this hurried sketch and
make ready to get aboard the excur-
sion train. Win write again at first
opportunity. Ii.