The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1881-06-11

rain bow bends its archlike form, one end OF
it, as it were, standing on lofty mountain
knob, and the other dazzling lustrously with
all Imaginary colors in clear sun on the 9TH
er side The shower has transformed the day
the face of nature glislens, refreshed with ram
drops The windows are raised, and the fra
by" are abroad on the mountains, Everything
seems refreshed after the delicious shower,
and as our train bounds onward, the Wild
flowers and mountain lilies flash out like hap
by sprltes and nod greeting AS we pass.
Then it is that We eXclam, "Oh, for an arm TO
snatch them" But they are selfsuifcing in
their perfection where they are We now be
gin to climb the slope of range of hills that
have been stripped bare Of all their forest
beauty The rough, stumpy, stony ridges are
impressive pictures OF mans power to lay ma
ture desolate 1t also reminds us how nature
responds to her necessities. If this were the
fertile land of the west those stumps would be
of trees that do not sprout when cut. But on
these cold, rocky ridges where the plow will
never furrow por the mower never reap, IA
ture plants her oaks and chestnuts, her birch
and poplars, and bids them sprout again III
new successive forests age after age.
Onward we move through continual anu
changing scenes, and finally rise to the last
slope of this desoate yet picturesque ridge.
Gaining the summit, noble breadth Of land
scape bursts upon our vision, Far away to
the south we catch a glimpse OF the Blue
Mountains and many other Of the mountain
ridges which seem to rise one above the other
to the left, the great Water Gap opening like a
giant portal, Following the horizon around
US in another direction we see mingled pano-
rama of blue hills and green forests, bewilder-
ing in their beauty and extent, opening to our
view one of the grandest of Americas land.
scapes.
A couple of "toots" from the IRON horse
warns us that We must be ON the move, and
presently we reach Tucahanna, where all the
steam saw mills are located that have devour.
ed these forests, but which the wild flax hast
ems to cover with its royal pink and purple,
and the sweet elder loads the air with It's heavy
perfume. Bloomsbury is reached in due time,
which turns out to be nothing but sad com.
bnation of weatherbeaten hamlets ard cot
tagcs amid burned forests and swampy mill
ponds, where rarely, II ever, anything Is seen
to "bloom."
ftar 1nnu Wa trp a
most charming region, with ranges of hills on
each side of US, and handsome, wel!.kept farms
IN the villages and on the surrounding hill
tops, Along we skip through this land of
picturcsquely situated city OF Scranton, the
surroundings of which briefly depicted in
my letters from this region last year. AS We
leave the broad valley IN which Scranton is
situated, the scenery becomes more wild and
of different nature, until finally we cross the
line and are ushered into the Empire State IN
the midst of golden sunset lingering amid
verdant hills and smiling valleys, and as we
pass Great Bend the peaceful and lovely Sus
quchanna Is lit up by the last lingering flash
Of a golden plume just disappearing in the
distant west, sklrting the gistening river and
for some miles through Americas matchless
valley
We finally emerge from the Susquehanna
and roll into the Chenango valley, along which
we glide Tor many miles, and then on through
northern New York, during which time We
nnipu al yna hu tya ipr tha ynuroilu M
fire flies flashing in the meadows and woods
and occasionally gaze on the multitudes OF
stars that glitter overhead, and finally alIghl
from the train in The city by the lake Oswego
June ID 1881 j. ID. III.