Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1875-06-04
So in Advance

regard to large and convenient, sub
s.tantlai and beautiful school build
l9gs' and Furthermore, her school law,
also, is the best.
Battle Greek, As miIas was+ of
jackson, on the Kalamazoo River at
the mouth of Battle Greek, has one
of the finest water-powers In the
State, and manufactured largely. Its
population is 1000. But outside of
Detroit, the "boss" town of Micbi-
gan is Grand Rapids, situated at the
head of navigation, on both sides of
Grand River, forty miles from its
mouth; line of small steamers run
to Grand Haven. This town has the
best water-power in the State, and it
IS fully utilized. There are nearly A
thousand men employed in their fur
nlture establishments alone. In 1870.
the population was I6,5O7-to-day
1t is 30,000-a most wonderful in
crease. Her hotels, churches and
school buildings and business houses
vie with anything in the State. AS
the main business street lies verv
low, they are raising whole rows of
buildings a feet-as they did in Chi
cago, and grading so as to get out
of the reach of high water.
From Grand Rapids I went to
Muskegon, 4s miles n. W., situated
on Muskegon Lake, five miles from
Lake Michigan. 1t contains popu-
lation of 5000. 1t has a daily line of
steamers to Chicago; is one of the
largest lumber manufacturing towns
in the State and has about 80 saw
mills, some of them with a capacity
of 100000 ft. per day. 1t is well
worth ones time to step in and see
one of these monster mills when in
full blast. 1t is surprising to see how
quickly lOgi is put into inch boards.
But at BenOna, opposite Bay City,
is the largest mill in the State-H.
w. Sage d Co.-which, on trial, cut
$4,000 tt. IN II hours. Muskegon
has not yet recovered from the terri
BILE fire of ~. Whole vacant squares
mark where the fre-fend held full
sway. From this point, I went to
Big Rapids, So miles n. E. and SO
miles west of Grand Rapids. It's
population is 5000. The route with
few exceptions, is through an un-
broken pine forest, through which
the forest fires have swept from year
to year, leaving hundreds of acres
OF blackened trees, divested of ev-
cry branch and charred to the very
top. A grand sight it must indeed
be to see the fire raging through
such forest! l wonder not that
there are so many towns burned ev-
cry year among these forests; the
only wonder is there are not more,
and greater loss of life. They build
on the very border of the forest, sur
rounded with dry brush and leaves
good food and inviting to the fire. If
they cleared up and cultivated a
wide belt between the town and the
forest, there would not be so many
such sad reports. There seems not
to be any precautions whatever
against fire. When the forests are
all on fire the only wonder is that
any do escape. Then there are ce-
dar and tamaraek swamps, so dense
with underground that one would
doubt whether squirrel or rabbit
could run through and have any
hair or fur left There are thousands
of acres of the most utterly worth
less, forsaken lands in Michigan I
ever saw; either swamps or light
sands, that drift like the snow. At
MuskegoD, Grand Haven, Michigan
City and St. Joe, one gets his eyes
and ears full with every gust of
wind. 1t is sharp and cutting
worse than hail. One inLales aud
eats sand.
From Big Rapids 1 passed through
Grand Rapids to Holland City, on
Black Lake, miles from Lake Mich
igan, town of 4,OOO-almost utter
ly destroyed by the fire of II. It
has not by any means recovered from
it. Only one store in the business
part, and one church, standing on
the village green, were left, and
thither the people fed for refuge.
Hope College, a German institution,
stands to the west of the town.
To the westward 20 miles, and Il
miles from the mouth Of Grand Riv-
er, is Grand Haven, containing a
population of 5000. 1t has one of
the best harbors on the lake; has a
regular line of steamers to Chicago
and Milwaukee. This is a great sum-
mer resort for people from Chicago
and other cities. There is a fine
drive to the shore. The Cutler House
is second to none in Michigan; op-
posite it are Mineral Springs, used
mainly for baths. 1t is one of the
live, go-a-head towns of Michigan.
VIAToR.