Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1877-09-19
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From A Traveller,

MELTON, UTAH, sept. D, 1896,
DEAR COURIER You were pleased |
to say you would be glad to hear
from us, and anything we might find
Of interest on our journey.
We left Ottumwa, Friday night, at
10 As, and arrived opposite Platts-
mouth in the early morning, where
our train was fcrricd across the
"beautiful muddy Missouri in three
sections, by the ferry-boats President
and Nice-Presideft. We were sever
al hours late into Omaha, on account
of having to 60 so far around. ! rath-
er enjoyed it, though while we were
on the boats thought, suppose that
engine should run away as / once
heard of one doing. The scenery
along the line of the u. =. road is
very monotonous until you reach the
mountains OF them l will not at
tempt description for the road has
been traversed too often and the
beauties thereof described by too
many more ready pens than mine.
We were four hours late out of Oma-
ha where they left the dining car.
Let me advise any one contemplating
|
lunch. Next time we will mind our
mother. We did not get our dinner
till six o'clock, and next morning,
breakfasted at eleven. 1t began
raining before we reached Cheyenne
and rained till we had passed the
summit of the Rocky Mountains !;
something very unusual at this sea-
son Of the year.
1 don't feel as though l had cross
ed the great plains. l did not see a
buffalo or A. cayote, not even prai-
RE dog. found much to interest me
in my fellow passengers. Crossing
the plains must be something like a
sea voyage, in point of making ac-
quaintance. Every one you meet is
so sociable and everybody asks every
body else where they came from and
where they are going to. / think by
the time we reached Ogden l knew
nearly every passenger in those three
coaches and it seemed like leaving
old friends when we said goodbye.
| thought it quite journey ! was
undertaking when / left home-half
across our continent-but it dwindled
r down to rather small affair, COM
l pared with the distance some have
6 come and are going on our train
= One young lady came from Scotland
and is going to San Francisco all by
9 herself. Another lady with six chill
dren from Pittsburgh on her way tt
California, was in the wreck at Al
toona, Iowa. Another family from
:, Germany, father, mother, three little
. children and two servants. Whenev.
q er we would stop long enough they
would take the children out and lie
= them roll on the grass. The tired lit
tie creatures would take the grass VI
in great handfuls and hug it up t.
them as though they had found |
e treasure. There were tourists from
# New York three Sisters of Chart!
from Boston going to Nevada;
" "Yankec school nam" going back Il
g California from her summer vacation
1t in Connecticut; Polish jew and hi
! sister--the latter was the beauty o
the train,-and last but not least W.
i had real live Russian COUNTIES
l. aboard the train, and she was wei
70 worth looking at, too-tine features
" tall and straight, her hair, eye-lashe
;. and eyebrows were deep red, he
le complexion Of peculiar luminou
ID Il don't know how better to describ
iD whitencss. with scarlet lips, and al
\ so harmonious, she was really beau
" tiful. And almost forgot, Admire
N Patterson and son, of the .. S. Navy
from Washington enroute to japan
to take charge Of the fleet statione
in there, was one of our illustrious com
a, pany. 1t will scarcely do to mentio
= the lesser lights after these.
. stood on the platform of the rea
car coming down through Echo an
Weber Canons, a most beautiful sun
= shiny afternoon, with the sky abov
- SO soft and blue and the air aroun
nj us so light and clear, and wondere
is If were !, and if this were picc
ar Of the same old work-day world
had always known. But | will nc
- abuse, by comparison, our good low
:" prairics-they are good for some
IT thing more than to look at. G. l.. {