The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1876-05-18
From the st. Louis Daily Journal.
WICHITA, KANSAS.

From the st. Louis Daily Journal
WICHITA, KANSAS.
The LovELIEsT OF TIE MANY CITIES OF TIL
PLAINS.
Productiveness of Southwestern Kansas--Th
Soil-Hotels-The Country to Emigrats to-
WICHITA, KANSAS, May 10: At ths
intersection or forks of the Big and
Little Arkansas rivers, in most love.
ly spot, where nature exhausts her re-
sources to beautify the scene and en-.
rapture the senses, lies Wichita the
loveliest city of the prairies. From
Topeka, one takes the Atchison, To-
peka & Santa Fe railroad, and leaving
there at one O'Clock, is deposited al
Wichita at nine o'clock in the evening.
i The country from Topeka down,is one
vast ocean ofrich, undulating prairie,
tinged with timber along the streams.
of the latter of which there is great
abundance. All along the line, coal is
found in abundance, and in many
places it is mined extensively, and
shipped all over western and South
western Kansas. The marvellous
growth of this country, and its magic
development simply battle astonish-
ment and choke down wonder. No
one but far western man can realize
how rapidly things are done in Kansas.
1t is useless for me to attempt to de-
scribe it, and it would be futile to es-
say to comprehend the electrical rap i'd
ity with which counties are opened,
cities built, the prairies turned to
wheat fields, the wigwams to school
houses, and the wilderness to the ado
ration of God. For hand in hand with
plow and school teacher, go the min
listers, and churches and temples point
their spires heavenward, where lately
the gopher barked and the night owl
hooted.
Six brief years have scarce elapsed,
since the site of this fairy city was one
dense mass of hazel brush and willow
thickets. The vigorous arm of the
sturdy adventurer cleared out the
bushes, and the first house was then
planted. Now four thousand men,
women and children grace the place,
elegant residences may be viewed dis
persed all around; heavy warehouses,
depots, stock yards, mills, stores, banks,
hotels, etc, are thick in the business
streets. Fine bridges span the rivers,
| good restaurants are in abundance, and
as fine saloons and billiard halls may
be found here as in St. Louis.
The riohnoes of this country cannot
be described or over estimated. No
fences are required, as no stock is al
lowed to run at large, and thus the
poor emigrant farmer can commence
blowing the very day after he pur-
chases his land, for here no clearing is
necessary. know personally of one
man who came out here, last fall, with
his two sons, and purchased six hun
dred and forty acres of land. They
Immediately broke it and sowed it to
wheat and went back to spend the
winter. They have just returned
never having seen their land since
and find it covered with glorious
wheat twenty eight inches high. But
the most wonderful part of the story
remains to be told. The crop of wheat
will sell for enough to pay for the
land, for the labor already expended,
and have profit of two thousand dol
lars.
Now this is the truth, and hundreds
of similar instances can be attested all
over Kansas. Nowhere, on Gods glo-
rious footstool, can the soil be coaxed
with so little labor, as in rich South
ern Kansas.
Wichita is the greatest grain market
in the State. When the season arrives
for the farmers to bring in their crops
the scene is bewildering and interest
ing. The broad streets down around
the depot, where the grain warehouses
abound, are so crowded with farmers
wagons, that one can step from one to
another of them, and absolutely travel
over acres of wagons in this way. a
large stone grist mill, owned by
Messrs. Hargis, Imboden Il Co., is
kept running day and night to its full
lest capacity, and purchasers from all
over the country come here to pYCss
chase wheat, and ship 1t back east..'
The southern tier of counties, such as
Cowley and Sumner, great wheat and
stock raising counties, come here for
their market; and thus reach the east,
over the Atchison, Topeka & Santa
Fe railroad.
Wichita has one large brewery,
owned by Mr.. A. Weigand, where a
most excellent article of beer is made.
Mr.. Weigand supplies Wichita, south
ern Kansas and the surrounding
towns. The "Custom-house," con-
Quoted by Charley Schattner. and
corps of polite assistants, is first
class place, where one can indulge in
a game Of billiards, on frst-class
Brunswick tables, Or be supplied with
a private room for "don pedro" and
at the same time sip his drinks,
straight or mixed. Charley is on Main
street, near Douglas avenue, and |
commend him. The stores in Wichita
are varied and handsome, and their
stock and fixtures would put to shame
many in ST. Louis.
The Occidental Hotel, where am
graphing with my peck, is in every
respect tirst-class and metropolitan.
1t is kept by Messrs. Rouse & Lamb,
in generous and comfortable manner
and one is sure to find pleasant rooms,
clean beds, plethoric larder, good
barber, bar, attentive service, etc. 1t
is large brick edifice and the best
hotel in this section. There are two
first-class banks in Wichita, the First
National and the Wichita Savings
Bank. The latter bank is the Roths-
child establishment of Wichita and
does the leading business. Mr.. Sol.
Kohn, who is also a heavy dry goods
dealer, is the President of the bank
and devotes his entire time to its man.
agement, leaving the dry goods house
to be managed by his partner and
brother. Burt Hyde, Esq, the cashier
of this bank, received his financial ed
ucation at the bank of Clark g. Co.,
Leavenworth, and is ne plus ultra.
The real estate market in and about
Wichita is very active. Town lots are
being sold and transferred with great
rapidity since the opening of the
spaing, and lands are eagerly sought
for and bought. The sales of Messrs.
Steele 81 Levy, who are the leading
real estate brokers of Southwestern |
Kansas, as shown to me by Squire
Steele, from his books, would make |
the agents in ST. Louis turn green
with jealousy. Messrs. Steele & Levy
are agents for all the real estate in
market in Wichita, and Sedgwick
and the adjoining counties.
They have, also, complete set of
abstract books, and can, at glance,
without leaving their Office, know
whether titles are good OF bad.