National Republican., 1881-12-03
SALT LAKE CITY.
Description of the Stronghold OF Nor
moniam-The Iscopie.

mOnism-The People.
Salt Lake City is remarkable for cover
ing more ground in proportion to its population
than probably any other town in the world. With
about twenty five thousand inhabitants II is more
than two miles long by about two miles broad.
AS In a the newer and most of the older cities of
America, all the streets cross one another at right
angles; all are 1872 feet in width, and each of the
square blocks enclosed by them is ten acres.
These dimensions were prescribed by Brigham
Young, whose intention was to have only eight
houses on each block, so that every residence
should have garden of an acre and q half
However, in many cases more houses than this
number have been erected, while in the
business streets the houses are, of course,
continuous. The streets are lined with trees
poplnrs, naples, and acacias-the plats
round the houses planted with apple pear, plum,
and peach trees; and these have thriycn SO well
that when you see the town from distance or
even when you look down on II from the upper
stories of the still unfinished Mormon temple,
which towers above the other buildings II appears
q mass of foliage among which only the highest
houses are discornable Rivulets of clear water
run along the sides of most Of the thoroughiares
and supply numerous drinking fountains. These
are all drawn from the stream called City Greek,
wSn naeaa Is ~ thH S S9HTes E .he G,ys Sma
led his hock into these remote regions beyond the
Rocky Mountains the plain around Great salt Lake
was not merely q solitude, but an arid desert Lev
els and hill slopes were covered up n height of
700 feet above the sea-thn Is, 5000 feet above the
lake--with sage brush aud other dry and prickly
copt In the deep channels OF q few streams de-
sccnding from themountains, and hardly yany rain.
IL required courage as well as foresight to resolve
to fix city in such n spot. But Brigham Young
perceived that the soil was fertile, needing nothing
but irrigation to mako Its fertility available. He
established himself on the banks of City Creek, at
point where he could command the How of its
current, and thereby able not only TO direct the
water over the slopes so as TO irrlgate them and
facilitate cultivation but also to confirm his au-
thorlty over the people, since disobedience would
be punished forthwith by stopping the water sup
ply of n rebel. The outward aspect of the streets
Is much like that of other new Western towns
the same wooden sidewalks, handsome stores,
filled with the luxurles as well as the necessaries
Of life; big hotels, where everybody oongregates
In the evening, and handsome opera house,
in which travelling companies give their perform
ances from time TO time. In the conntenances Of
seryable. The Western American type is mixed
with an unusually large proportion of Old World
faces and hgures-tho figures less full, wiry, and
sinewy, the faces less lean and intelligent About
two-thirds of the inhabitants are MOrmons, and
the most of these are Europeans by birth-many
Welsh many English, many Scandinavians
smaller but still considerable, number come from
the Southern States of the Union few, 1t is alleged
Though upon this point one cannot quite trust
GENTLE testimony, from the Eastern and Middle
States. Hardly any Roman Catholics are brought
over. The number Of the Saints in the whole
country Is placed by themselves considerably over
twohundred thousand. OF these much moro than
half live in the Territory of Utah, around Salt
Lake, and some forty or fifty thousand more in
the neighboring Territories of Idaho, Arizona,
and Montana, and in the adjoining State OF Me-
vada The rest arc In other parts Of world, pre-
pairing to join the main body here.--PaH Mall Ga
effle.