The Republican journal., 1881-09-15
Western Wanderings.
CORRESPONDENCE of the Journal.

self command and.forttude. What ''Wt0Y do you
askl Well, indefinite delay in this hottest cor
ner of Uncle Sans domain, 1t is now lust fort
night since entering the Golden Gate
with the intention Of striking out at once for New
Mexico, where we were proposing to pause for a
few days on our return journey What
dismay to learn on landing that all travel the
Southern Pacific and the Atchson, Topeka 4 Santa
Fe R. RS had been suspended on account of ex
tensiye wash outs along the lines in Arizona and
New Mexico. 1t hoped that day or two
would close up the gaps But wash-out followed
wash out until ten days had passed, before could
get the ticket that had been promised me the
company would not sell tickets until they could
forward the holders At last notice came that the
read was open and started. only to be stopped
here at Yuma by the worst wash out yet between
here and Tucson. And here we have been staying
for two days-"W Waiting, waiting, only waiting
And do you know what d. delightful place this
is Here is population OF thousand MeXicans,
Yuma Indians, ad-libitum, with few score of
whites connected with the r. K. and the garrison of
the fort Socially you know how attrac tive these
murderous looking Mexicans are Then the In
dians' Their dress 1t don't amount to much
anyway-beng merelya modification of the South
Carolina costume of dckey and pair of spurs
Happy fellows no tailors bill inopportunely pre-
sen ed, can ever render them uncomfortable And
then the Indian women Clearly this is no place
for dress molr TO put out her sign although a
milliner might do fairly well. once She got the
knack of the peculiar style of head gear After
this, should be happy to report that these nearly
nude savages, splendid in the perfection and sym
metry OF their physical development, were equally
remarkable for their noble virtues, etc etc but
unhappy the men are all thieves. and the women
are all-Let us change the subject. The
rounding country is wide sandy desolation; the
muddy Colorado, swollen and angry, rushes by
(And that is the water we have to drink Over
head the brong sun, raising the temperature to
ITO to l2O deg +. in the shade, Plenty of wind,
but it is scorchng, and loaded with impapable
sand, which mixes pcturesquely with the persp
ration, with which one is always reeking 0 what
wretches we all are The Indians have the best
Of It so far as costume is concerned. There is nC
worry among them about clean cuffs and collars
no disnay est the stock of handkerchets should
prove 10 be Inadequate And here we have been
for two days Here shall be for no one knows
how long Said not we'll that your correspondent
Will soon be crazy or marvel of the Christian
virtues We essayed walk There is no know
ing how delightful 1t would have been. amid these
picturesque surroundings and in this Lalug atmos
phere but that we must everywhere encounter
the nudity of these savages. until the restrained
impulse to kick them out of our path, became alb
soutely painful. little relief experienced
al observing now and then squaw trudging along
under great bundle OF hay, or some other burden,
while her lord and master walked proudly erect
few PAGES in advance. Exactly the thing for her
foul creature that she is We could not hell saying
although it not SO clear how he 10 suffer
his just deserts. Talk OF the drulgery and domes
tic slavery to which these wretched women are re-
duced' True enough they do all the work that
! is done | suppose But how little there is OF it.
The average New England wife and mother whom
we lords of creation pride ourselves upon honor
ing and respecting, performs daily four times
much labor as any one Of these Indian women,
| upon whose hard lot much sympathy has been
| gnorantly wasted. First of all there is not
| stitch OF sewing to be done-that haunting, mex
orable bug bear OF the New England home there
is no house the same as none, 10 be tidied and
cared for; the cookery, whatever there is of it
is of the most rudimentarv sort The children
being absolutely nude, and the adults only one re
move from the same, there is no washing and
ironing and clear starching and all that to be done
| Talk about their being drudges and slaves, II
! they had ten times as much work to do they might
be more yirtuous. White sisters of the North, re
serve all your sympathy for yourselves 50 far as
labor is concerned, your lot is tentod worse than
that of these savages Their degradation may ap-
! peal to your pity but not their imagined nara lot
as drudges
| In the midst OF all this easy going life OF the Pa
clic coast from here to British Columbja have
daily become more impressed with the moral san
tarlness (if that word is allowable) of hard work
/ The hitherto exceptional moral cleanliness OF
| New England people is due, more than have
supposed, to the enforced industry--nay the ex-
haustive toil-to which they have been subjected
Vital energies thus expended seek no outlet of
| licentious indulgence; and we have been saved
by the hardships of our lot, from greater evils
that have become the curse OF this more genial
region. have looked about for some citon oh
iect, hereabouts. upon which to rest my eyes; and
literally but two visible The flag Of Our
country floating unsuhed in the breeze over Fort
| Yuma; and the blue dome overhead All else is
blotched, and stained and marred, and man the
worst Of all Him nothing less than the grace Of
God can hope to cleanse. Bles sed be lis name
for the hope have that ct last. far eft il may be
but at last he viii wash these wretches until they
are whittier than snow
But have arrears to bring up. Let us 90
back fifteen hundred miles to cool and hracng
OREGON,
delightful thing to do, even mentally from this
scorching blazing reeking region.
| We devoted our attention in our last letter to a
general survey Of the Columbia Basin, and to find
ing the balance Of the pros and cons as to whether
the Eastern man shall emigrate to the Northwest
We concluded best to go slow Now | want
to close what have to say at present about that
region BY adverting TO another matter which
stands as one objection. in my mind, to an inds
criminate rush thence. Hitherto the want of ad
equate transportation has operated impedi
ment to the settlement and development of our
mighty Northwest Now we appear to be Oh the
eve of the supply of this long felt want The
hour has come and with 1t the man.
HENRY WILLARD
sees his opportunity and is equal TO the occasion
He now controls every existing line of transpora
ton, and almost every prospective one in this
whole region He began by obtaining control Of
the old oregon Steamship and Navigation Compa
ny; and has gradually extended his operations
until he is the head and manager of company
with capital of $4,000, ooo-and with railway
system that will embrace, when completed, 5000
miles Of track. 1t looks as if he was destined to
be, nay already is, the Railroad King of the North
west Within couple of years some of the more
important Of these lines, including the Northern
Pacific will he open to the public Another run
ming Southeasterly from the Columbia, where it is
expected to form junction with the Northern
Pacific through Baker City in Eastern Oregon, and
| RpS hty IN aHa tn moi inf IT,,in