Litchfield enquirer., 1875-01-28
LYONS, Iowa, Jan. 10th. 1875.

LYONS, Iowa, Jan. 10th, lo75. MR. EDzToR, R,-YOfr readers may n6e b as interested in the Hot Springs of Arkan sas as 2 resort for inyalids as we of tn nearer West-but the following descrip tion by one of our ''old settlers. l" an orig inal ''preempter" of Lyons-may not b, uninteresting and will hardly be found set down in the books on Arkansas:
 HoT SPNGs, Ark, Jan. & z
 The best news I can send you this morn ing is that I arrived all safe, and am feel L ing fully as we'll as when I left, and 1T good spirits.
 I feel myself out of the world now, il one of the most God-forsaken places evel seen or ever discovered by man or beast, and can't compare it to any place that ever saw ih my whole life. They say the Great Balm is here, and I am in hopes that I will receive benefit from 1t. From the appearance of things here, itmakes me be lieve that inc devil was pulled out of this mountain by the tail !, and you would thlnl so yourself If yoa could see the great vol ume of hot wster pouring out. and the clouds of smoke. flowing from the bowels of the earth, in such q lonesome, desolate place as this outside world, made out Ol mountain, hot water and smoke.
 I saw nothing of much interest travelling through the State of Arkansas, one of the most poverty-stricken countries lever saw. I will mention one thing, Arkansas hogs. saw eight or ten warming their tails at . camp fire. They don't get anything to eat except roots. They are queer speci- men of the hog species. They have bris- ties on their backs eight or ten inches long. A lnan might get meal out ofone of them by sticking a stick in his hind quarters, broiling him over hot coals, and then sucking the meat and joice from his bones.
 We have had severe spell of weather, which came on about two weeks ago very suddenly-the mercury standing about 400 at noon, and falling to 100 be- low by dark, with high wind. Finally 1t reached 24o below before it "let up. {" Many of our careful housewives (who had little occasion to go out in the evening" failed to realize the severity of the weath- ere, and in consequence wnt to bed hap py in the possession of beautiful budding and blooming house-plants, but arose next morning to find that all their glory had departed. The objects of years of to1l and care were hanging from their supports limp, ifeless and forlorn. We will not attempt to paint all the domestic scenes that followed. but we heard of one man who the next day ordered new and larger coal stove. A farmer told me yes terday he had counted 26 young apple trees split from top to bottom, in his or chard, under the action of the frost. It IS feared that our fruit trees arc much damaged. ,.s-1
 l do not go much on politics" but it seems to us that you folks down East are making a good deal of a fuss over the Louisiana ''coop." We of the West like to swing onr arms and feel free to scotch the first traitor that raises his hydra head If We spoil a good deal of fred tape in doing it. Hence we say 10 Sheridan s.Go ahead, only make a sure thing of it and we'll risk the ho,o of it.
 I judge we are not feeling the ''hard times" as much as you of the East. Our great staples-wheat, corn, oats. barley, and pork, ,-are bringing good round prices with more than an average crop, and were it not for the cry of 'shard times" from the great money eenters of the East, and the severer cry from our near grasshopper-devastated neighbors of the West. sending their sympathetie thrills through us from both sides, ws should scarcely know that it was hard times. Ap- ropos, I have just heard of church Gin good standing" whose combined wealth is supposed to amount to hard on half mil lion. which reports S2O in the ''poor fund" and one dollar and fifty cents given to an aged, infirm, but worthy member of the church, in the 2ooor-house! I am happy to be able add that, when the facts came to be more fully known, better provision was made for the "worthy member, 7" and draw the following moral for the church, es: Have somebody look after the Lords poor that will attend to their business!
 R