St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1880-11-05

city, in every large hotel, on every
railroad, as conductors and directors.
In the great mercantile houses and the
immense Touring mills, we found true
and noble men from Vermont, many of
whom came west, with no capital ex-
cept good character, and strong
healthy body, to seek their fortune;
and many of them to my knowledge
have already acquired fortune. Such
young men will al,uays succeed, espe-
cially out west. 1 cannot if l should
attempt it, give you any idea of the
vastness of the wheat and corn fields
of the great state of Kansas, or the
tens of thousands of cattle and sheep we
saw as we passed over the vast plains
of Mexico, Colorado and Kansas. Please
let some one else have that job, which
is altogether too much for my capacity.
At Kansas City, very smart and
growing city of the west-a second Chi
cago-we found several business men
we knew, among them Geo. R. Hallett,
son of Mr.. Russell Hallett, who is doing
a frst-rate business in merchandise.
In City of Leavenworth, Kansas, we
found Geo. Vaughan, formerly druggist
on Railroad street, doing good busi-
ness. Having had before leaving home
most cordial invitation from our old
and most highly esteemed friend and
former we'll known citizen of St. Johns
bury, Gen. Asa P. Blunt, to visit him
and family at his headquarters as gov
ernor of the military prison at Fort
Leavenworth, we decided. to avail our
selves of that pleasure. The Geneal
came down from the Fort, three miles
to the city, and received us in his hearty
and friendly way, of which so many
friends of his in st. Johnsbury know SO
well, and took US to the Fort in state,
riding in four-mule United States am
bulance, which we enjoyed ever so
much as it was very novel to US. We
found the General and family in their
delightful and pleasant home, amid
very lovely surroundings. There are
nearly 400 military prisoners there at
the present time, whose terms of i'm
prisonment vary from 2 to 10 years.
Gov. Blunt keeps them all employed,
many on the land of which the Govern
ment has many thousand acres in this
q. S. reservation. Some two or three
hundred are employed in the large me-
chanical shops, all of which, together
with the latest improved machinery,
have been added to this institution
since it came understhe very efficient
and able management and control OF
General Blunt. / will only men
ton that among the various industries
here there was manufactured more than
$4,000 pairs of army boots and shoes OF
the very best quality the past year.
After attending the State Fair al
Leavenworth and bidding goodbye to
Gen. Blunt and family, and Andrew
West and family, lately of st. Johns
bury and Danville, we left for Wiscon-
sin to visit our Oldest brother, who was
among the very first white men thai
settled in the town of OconomOwoc, 3(
miles west of Milwaukee. 1t is now 6
most delightful city of about 5000 in.
habitants. 1t is called "the city of the
lakes" and is great summer resort fol
thousands of people. We visited Law
renee and Topeka, both cities celebrat.
ed in history for those bloody scenes
through which Kansas was called tt
pass in her struggle for freedom from
the oppression of slavery, for which
that heroic soul, John Brown, with hun
dreds of others gave their lives. A
Topeka we had a pleasant call from Mr.
Charles Parks and wife, son of Judge
Parks, who has good position on tina
long railroad of which have spoken.
In closing this much longer lette
than intended, 1 will simply say tina
in regard to the general moral and re
ligious element of society in that far OF
land of Colorado and New Mexico,
found it about as another had expressed
it, "That beyond the Mississippi ther
was no Sunday, and that beyond th
Rio Grande there was no God )" and ii
my judgment some parts of the countr.
have visited would be found full a
good missionary ground as the Sand
wich Islands or the Chinese Empire
! Yet there is hope for America. Coz
, bless our native land. E. F. B.