Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1881-01-29

W men arriving NJ LeAl0StOu We lOuuu IL
located over q mile back from the river.
1t was the county seat of Lafayette coun-
ty, and had a courthouse, partly finish
ed, II the center of y public square, which
was surrounded by a few business hous-
es that gave it the appearance of a coun-
try town. The land around the city was
oil a goo 4-a!ity, covered with a heavy
CROWN OF first settlers
were just making a start In M world.
and corn was the principal crop ralseu.-
As an old saying they lived principally
or ''hog and hominy," and I never
knew people who enjoyed themselves
any better than they did. When they
finished cultivating their corn, they
spent most of their time in town, as
we'll contented as if they possessed mil.
lions. As there was no market to induce
any one tn raise more than for home
consumption, the land flowed with "milk
and honey" When they had no bees of
their own they could find plenty of
wild honey in the timber.
Hogs ran wild, and in the fall oil tthe
year they made good pork. They were
regarded as public property, and who
ever got them first came ont ahead. The
country was full Of game, such as deer,
turkeys, geese, ducks, prairie chickens
and rabbits. The best catfish l ever saw
are caught in the Missouri river; they
are very fat, and sometimes weigh 100
pounds. Wild fruits were abundant, and
OF an extra quality. consisting of black
berries, strawberries, mulberries, grapes,
plums. cherries and crab.apples. They
were much enjoyed before tame fruit
was raised. which soon became very
abundant, and the Missouri genetlng ap.
pie commands the best price in the north
OF any other apple raised. l think there
a more promising field tor settlement
than Missouri. Take her soil, which in
cludes almost every variety Of rich, roll
ing prairie and timberlands capable Of
producing most OF the leading staples Of
the country, such as. hemp, tobacco.
wheat, corn, oats and potatoes, while for
the raising of fine stock it has no equal.
With a climate so we'll adapted to the
soil. and SO inviting to the Inhabitants of
all sections OF the country, where they
can enjoy the delightful temperature
that always exists between the temper
ate and torrid zones. The winters are
mild, compared with the states north,
and the thermometer often rises to
summer heat, and very seldom drops
down to ten below zero. There being
no lumber IN the country the people had
to live in log cabins without windows,
and when they wanted light they had to
open the doors, thus enabling the ladies'
to do their sewing and the men an op
p~ortunity to read the bible, as newspa
pers had not found their way SO tai
west, nor had the telegraph superseded
the pony express, which carried james
Buchanan's message through to the Pa
ci6c in six days, a distance of 2.60l
miles. w. H. Russell, OF the transpor
tation firm OF Russell, Majors & Wad
dell, an old resident OF Lexington, start
f ed the pony express, which brought tn
latest news from the plains. Mr.. Rus
f. sell, when a boy, volunteered to carr
u some important dispatches to For
: Leavenworth, and while passin;
! through the woods between Lex
ington and Independence. In tn
night a gang OF wolves took ate
/, him, making a tremendous noise, an
s running him for dear life, until the
came so close that his only chance of e:
cape was to climb a tree. where he IT
manned until morning, being entertaine
# by the dismal howls OF the voracious al
It imals through the night.
70 The pioneers of the west often exp,
rieneed hardships and privations not r.
allied in the older states. The want
y mills to grind the gram is mostly felt
all new countries, and especially in Mi
is souri,, where water power is so scare
and hard to improve. The first mil
were run by horse power. and when
g person wanted grinding done he had
l. furnish his W teams, and pay toll ju
r. the same, and those that had no tear
n were out of luck. Some had hand mill
81 while others grated their meal. whit
J. made good. sweet bread. We started
= mill on a small stream below Dove
= which was a great convenience to tt
Q. public, and 1t still retains the name
lie Edwards mill. The mlllers in tho!