Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1875-05-29
LETTER FROM CALIFORNIA.

sHSy uSothdfu. Dut tnt ldtto loI-
babe, and We spent four of the most
,edious days in that city that mortal
men ever passed, sleeping on the train
It night, eating the stray crumbs that
dropped from the table Of nine hun
1red emigrants, stroHing over the prai-
RE, shooting prairie dogs, and climb
ing dizzy (?) mountains, formed the
laily routine for killing time. Four
days of misery, and we were on to
l59 miles from Laramie
Here our hearts sunk with despair
when We learned that fifteen hundred
and emigrants had been
there two days before US, and had just
left the place. The cheering informa-
ton that the smallpox was in three
stones throw Of US, was also brought
with which to tighten our despair and
disgust. Tho our fate had been hard
at Laramie, we had not conceived of
anything SO terrible as the acconmo-
datiOns of Rawlins. In the beginning,
a poor country, and after the emigrants
ahead of us had been there, the only
thing to be seen in hotels was bread
crusts week old, meat skins, dirty ia
bic cloths, and an immense pile of dir
iy dishes. Well, OF course, this was
like oil upon the troubled waters OF
our spirits, az, in proportion they
rose. After declaring the quarantine
law in effect, we shut ourselves up in
our cars and received no visitors. Here
we passed two days of unmitigated
length and misery, and after effectually
eating out the place, midst songs of re-
joicing, We left for Rock Springs, a
small mining town s miles from the
break. Here the same fate met US.
Starvation seemed bent on taking us
here. However. We managed to hold
our own for two more days.
At this place there are several coal
mines, one Of which was on fire while
We were there. A miner told me ii
had been burning for two weeks then,
and showed no signs of exhaustion
Here | went down into mine mile
below the surface, finding a river, and
an engine at work. These, together
with the coal-walled cells, ami the
Pickering of the miners lamps, pre-
scented quite weird appearance.
At the end of two days time, We are
carried up 8 miles to the break. y
Here We stopped midway very deep
cut, the mud measuring, on all sides,
3 feet We had to get out into this
mud and wade through it for 30 yards,
where we found an outlet to the cut
To get out of it, We had to climb a
very slippery bank, twenty or thirty
feet in height. At the top of the cut
we found about fifty rough road wag-
ons waiting to convey Us and our bag
gage across the break" The bodies
of our wagons were then filled with
baggage, &C., and VIC were placed on
top of the baggage. In this plight We
were transferred 6 miles over rough
mountain country, with delightful
snow storm pelting us in the face. On
the other side we found the train wait
ing our arrival, and soon after de-
scending from our lofty seats, we were
snugly enscOnced in Pullman coach,
wildly endeavoring to reduce the
mountainous ass of mud with which
we were literally covered. A mile be
You'd We reach GOurn River, small
yiIlage and an eating station, but the
emigrants had been here before us, and
consequently we fired i'll" The
Bluff" near this station have the
most peculiar appearance imaginable,
but instead of trying to describe them,
| will give you Prof. IIayden's descrip-
ton. 1.-The walls of these Bluffs rise
perpendicular for hundreds of feet, are
of a grayish buff color, and are com
posed oflayers. apparently sedimentary
deposits of all thicknesses from that
of knife blade to two feet. At the
base of the bluff the layers are thin
and composed of arenaceous clay, with
Illuminated sand stone, mud markings,
aud other indications of shallow water
or mud flats color for 100 feet. ashen
brown. Next above are lighter color
ed layers, alternate with greenish lay
ers, and fine white sand Passing up,
clay and lime predominant, then come
layers of boulders, pebbles and small
nodules.
On we rattle for Ogden, seeing on
the way some of the grandest scenery
along the road. From this point the
scenery becomes more grand and i'm
pressive, the bluffs rising higher and
the gorge narrowing, until the hills
seem to hang over the narrow valley
with their frowing battlements. On
we rush through beautiful canons,
round the base of huge mountains,
over miles of dreary wastes, till finally
we reach Castle Rocks, which derive
their name from the resemblance the
long line of bluffs on the right of the
canon bear to the castles of the old
world. The rocks rise in the distance
to the height of 1000 feet, having very
much the appearance ofancient castles.
Still on we roll, when, short time
after entering 1.-The Narrows of Weber
canon, we reach the ia NOUS 900 mile
tree, fourishing pine, on which a
sign.board is nailed that tells us We
have left Omaha 1000 miles behind.
A short distance from this We como to
Devils Slide. This slide is composed
of two ridges of granite rock, extend
ing from the base nearly to the top of
a gently sloping mountain. These
ridges are 80 feet high, rather narrow
and standing on edge, as if they had
been placed there by men. The two
ridges run parallel up the mountain,