The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1878-08-30
WESTERN wANDERINGs.
No. Prom EmpOria to Pueblo.


goes by in an almost unbroken
stream of pretty farms and magnif-
icent growing crops. The numer-
GUS wheat stacks and the dark green
corn, leave a better impression on
the strangers mind than all the land
advertisements he may have read.
A good supper at Florence, and we
leave the beautiful Cottonwood val
ley and wind up Doyle creek, and
as we cross the Whitewater hills,
we are surprised at the wonderful
change in the past five years. Hun
dreds of pretty farms appear where
nothing but prairie grass flourished
in 1873. The shadows of the wheat
stacks grow to indefinite length,
the cultivators become deserted in
fields, and we are reminded that
turning out time were the happiest
moments of our boyhood days.
Night settles in and closes the beau
tifrl view and we fall asleep. We
dream something about Newton.
Somebody stirred us up and want
ed to know something about tick
Ell. We doze again, and are again
stirred up by the brakeman reach
ing over US 10 put out the light. We
straighten up; 1t is broad daylight.
Every sign of civilization, except
the telegraph poles, has disappeared
and we can see nothing but an IN
limited amount of room. Our en-
CINE whistles for a station, and
looking ahead we recognize the for
merly pious town of Dodge City.
Dodge City has improved wonder
fully, and may yet figure prOmi-
nently in modern, but we fear ii
will never appear in moral history.
Our train leaves three or four pas
sengers and about fifty kegs of beer
at Dodge. We do not wish to be
understood that this is an average Of
the emigration to Dodge City. The
next train may leave an excess Of
passengers. We leave Dodge City
and the country becomes parched
and dry. Occasionally a herd o.
fat cattle grazing on the short, dry
grass reminding US that although
apparently a worthless desert, the
plains are yet good for something
We begin to wonder whether any
body else is hungry, and why we
left certain good things untouched
on the table at Florence. Our hun
ger increases very much out of pro
wondering whether the pea nut mar
has anything more nourishlng thar
the life of Kit Carson, cigars ani
ivory toys, the train slackens speed
and the brakeman calls out, "L9kiI
twenty minutes for breakfast
A good hotel and splendid break
fast is somewhat different from TIT
old bell-collar steak, section house
at Lakin, a few years ago. 1t is Do
miles between supper and breakfast
We pity any man who cannot appre
ciate breakfast at Lakin. Our TWEEN
ty minutes go by in a remarkabl!
short time. The conductor look
impatiently in at the door, and tn
: few lingering passengerers take tn
hint. Our train moves on and tn
country grows more sandy, dry AM
, desolate at every mile. Prairi
: dogs sit erect to watch us, or if to-
E near the road plunge headlong int
! their holes as we go by. The littl
r prairie owls sail away from tn
track to find more quiet place t
e doze out the balance of the day. Th
: combined representative of i
r luck, dishonesty and want, the cay
Z ote, hustles off amoug the sage brus
+ or at distance sits on his tail an
d wonders whether the noisy mons
% ter will leave anything in the shaI
d OF grease in its track. His last me-
n was probably stolen from SON
!. movers camp, and his next is Oh
le of the most uncertain things in lif
Nothing happened to break the MI
notony except while stopping at
water tank, young man from baC
II east, who had failed to attract gel
If eral admiration by wearing q beaI
tiful smoking cap all the mornin
was thrown into a violent spasm
q buck sgue by discovering 3 jaC
d rabbit doing under q bunch of sal
l. brush about thirty yards from Il
= train. The young man got dow
- his valise from the rack and produ
ed a mounted pistol and opened
v deadly fire. Jack probably dreaI
D. ed something about q fourth of
70 Iy celebration, but the vision VI
a. not clear enough to cause him al
Q. serious uneasiness. At the fif
ne shot he let down one ear TO an q
- gle of forty-five degrees, and as t
hi train moved on we suppose he Fl
H. sound asleep. We pass the desei
IN ed town site of Sargent, Kans
q q fades away and we are in CoIorad
40 at rGanada we cross the Arkansi
ys the only living stream of water '
have crossed in the last two hu
70 dred miles.
w Near Las Animas we get our I'll
glimpse of the Rocky Mountain
ar ninety miles away. 1t lie 9 lit
On cloudy and we can only see da
be streak above light low cloud. Y
ng are told that it is the GreenhoI
q range. Miles and miles of sand a
a sage brush go by. The dark sire
Ie, changes slowly to an endless bla
III ridge. Pixies Peak looms up vi
-, its streaks of snow. The tint
to thickens along the Arkansas, irrig
K. ing bitches begin to cross and
e. cross the road, and stock ranct
~ bebome more frequent. We pi
cF through sandy cuts and around d
lie sand bluffs. Adobe houses grt
re- thicker, and occasionally an apo
OK gy for q fence fits by. We pi