Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1877-06-13
Letter from Illinois.

DIXON, Ill., June 9th, 1871
Messrs Editors Northern Illinois is the pride
Of the state II not of the West 1t is more rolling
than Central Illinois. Its early settlers came
largely from New England and New York visi-
tors often say it is New England, only a little
more So No doubt this country was once covered
with water. Its sediments still remain, giving u
deep, rich, black loan in my vicinity. 1t is from
one TO two feet deep, the subsoi being a reddish
clay very rich, some twenty feet deep, but differ,
in different localities. Then you strike lime
stone very hard, but good for building purposes
1t makes very good lime, and it crops out outside
of ravines and bluffs. You Vermonters would
object TO this section account OF so few spring.
and living creeks We depend for water upon
wells. We drill them. We go from eighty T.
one hundred and fifty feet before we get enough
to be lasting. Wethen get a very good, cool, pure
article, but strongly impregnated with lime. Ii
the swamp lands they dig some twenty feet OF
more and get large flow Orwell, guess milk
aud water will express it. Eight years ago mos
of the water was pumped by hand | have vivid
recollection about that time of wishing myself
back in old Vermont again. It happened in thu
wise, Being left alone on a hot sultry day il
August pumped the water for fifty head o.
rattle and horses. | would pump until my breatl
would give out, then would sit down and gas
awhile, and then would think of your gushing
-prings and laughing rills, and then good ole
national song would force itself into my mind
| Il love her rocks and rlls and tempted hills
| It seemed 10 me il could only have one of thos
| rills would not say a word about the rocks, am
II the temples had been missing | should hav
| paid my devotion to the Great Giver in a temple
| not made by hand
But things have changed wonderfully since
| then. We can now sit in the shade and laugh t.
zee the wind do the pumping. Almost every
farm has n windmill now; we build large tank
or reservoirs that hold enough water to last sew
| eral days. Where there are no living streams
there is no waste land made by them, and VT
think that pays us for keeping our wind mills ii
| repair. We are more subject to drouth than you
are, but our soil bears it much better than yours
can. Wehave dryer atmosphere than you have.
II should tell you how quick our roads become
| dry after rain, you would not believe me unless
| you had been here and seen for yourself.
But then we miss the sugar orchard, which
crown your hll-tops with beauty, and are the
| pride of your state But we miss the sugar more
While your people are alternating among those
grand old monarchs of the forest extracting the
saccharine from their flowing veins enjoying the
mountain scenery and their healthy breezes we
are plodding along in the same old monotonous
way, scratching the back of mother earth and,
neatly laying her garments in folds, making
ready for our seed time, anticipating an abundant
| harvest
| No wonder your lasses have fresher hue and
a redder cheek and clearer complexion than
H. IL.