The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1878-12-26
For TIE Eagle.
4 Letter from an Old Citizen.
DALLAS, POLK Co., KAN. }
December z, 1878.


December z, 1873.
EDITOR EAGLE:-l will try to fulfil
my promise TO white letter for your
paper. Sickness in my family and the
death of my babe, which occurred on
October 30lh, cast gloom over the
bright prospects Of our new home ana
unii, me for writing, which please ac-
cept as an excuse for this delay. First,
will give you short account OF ou'
trip from Wichita 10 this place. W.
left Wichita on the morning Of Sep
TENDER 26th, and reached Council
Bluffs at ga. m. of the 9th. This parl
If the route is too well known to you,
readers to be worthy Of mention here
At Council Bluffs we purchased tick
cts for San Francisco. Trains are now
made up and start from the union de-
pot at Council Bluffs, instead of Oma-
ma, as before The fare by emigran'
train 10 San Francisco, is $i5 3d.
children over twelve years old full fare
between five and twelve half fare
each full ticket being allowed one hun.
Ired pounds of baggage free. Thi-
does not include bedding and provis-
ions necessary for the trip. This
amount of baggage i checked through
on the express train. One express
and one emigrant train leaves daily.
As it may Interest some Of your read
crs 10 know what an emigrant rain j,
| will just say: the cars are very plain
yinished passenger cars, attached to
he through or fas' freight trains, and
run at an average of twelve miles az
hour. The seats are not cushioned
but this deticiency the passengers sup
ply with their blankets and bedding.
Each car is furnished with two stoves
anu water tank, and both well sup
piled. Each passenger is allowed o
full seat, and two ty turning The seats
together and putting a good board be-
tween can make very comfortable
bed. Provisions can be had at any of
the stations along the routs, and OH
the train, each train boy carrying a
miniature grocery and tobacco store,
and can furnish passengers with near
ly everything in their line in Kansas
City or San Francisco. Men without
families are put in cars TO themselves,
the smoking car. The emigrant cars
being attached 10 long train are con.
sequenily free from the smoke aud
dust of the engine, which in a great
measure compensates for the delay and
disadvantages incumbent TO cmigran;
trains. Our train left Council Bluff
september 27th, at p. m, and reach
ed San Francisco at q. IN. October
18th. OF the country along the route
can say but little, over One-haif being
passed in the night. However, | must
say few words about the great Platte
valley, as my Convictions were chang
cd aud my expectations disappointed
selves nearly opposite Fort kearnev.
Tor believe il is now called kearney
City). aud from there TO the crossing
of The North Platte we bad good
view Of the valley, and was sarorised
at the infcrior quality OF the soil and
lack at improvements and thrift, as
compared with the Arkansas valley.
There are some good towns along The
route, but they are invariably at the
end of a railroad division, aud are sup
ported more by the shops and bust
ness of the road than by the country.
We would sometimes run for miles
over fine looking leve. prairie coun
try without passing house, the
country looking almost As wild as i,
was thirteen years ago, when passed
through there. From Platte valley to
Ogden the road passes over a rugged
dessolate country. Here we change
cars, it being the terminus OF the Ca-
ion Pacific, and take the cars of the
Central Pacific railroad. We stop
ped only long enough TO get out OF
one car and into another, aud had no
opportunity of seeing anything of the
town. 1t was late in the evening wneu
we made the change, and with the
mountains on the one side and the
lake on the other, aud only \ few miles |
between, could see bu; little worthy
of mention in this article. For about |
two hundred miles from Salt Lake |
valley the road .passer over barren. !
alksli country, the omly vegetation /
growing being grease weed, small /
shrub that grows on very thin alkali /.
soil. About noon the day after leav
ing Salt Lake valley we came to the /
famous Humboldt wells on the head 1
waters Of the Humboldt river. |; is !
said that no bottom has ever been I
found in some of these wells. These |
wells are well known to every Cslifor-
MIA emigrant as the first water reach.
ed after crossing the great DESERT
the railroad following the route OF the
old wagon road. The Hamboldt val
ley, oowa which the railroad runs for
\ considerable distance, is settled BY