Smyrna times., 1883-11-28
EOT inc smyrna Times.
Across the Continent,
EXTRACTS FROM A LETTER OF DIR. ELLA
+. SWINNEY.
A. l.
TRTESDEII HnrSL,

Gh lNNE4.
TRUESDELL HOUSE.
SAN FRANCISCO, CAL, Nov. 4, 1888
We reached this city safely last
evening, few minutes before nine
San Francisco time, but our watches
Omaha time, said quarter after ten
Going Westward, our watches gained
OF course, and after setting mine sew,
eral times gave up and then when W,
wanted to know the time, we askee
the conductor and he would have tc
stand and look at his watch and sub
tract, before telling us. | had such a
pleasant time in Chicago, at Rev. O
! \. Whlttord's, where | met Miss Whit.
man, another missionary going tc
! China. Here we rested one day
thence we journeyed on together across
the Continent. At Omaha, or rather
Council Bluffs, on the other side of the
river, everything was crowd and push
here we had to have our trunks
weighed again and buy our sleeper5 Ia
! San Francisco.
On the mountains, the mountains.
the snOw-cOVercd mountains then we
came into the deep snow banks. with
drifting winds, showing all night am q
nearly all the next day. not a person
or living creature to be seen only at
long intervals, at the towns and sta
TONS along the route,-so grand. vast
and desolate are the Rocky mountains.
The grade up the mountains was 50
gradual and the whole country rose at
the same time so evenly, that we were
well up the heights, before we realized
1t, entering into snow and barren.
bleak hills, without shrub or tree to
mark the distance as we sped so swiftly
along. Then we went down into Salt
Lake Valley, the most beautiful valley
ever saw, bounded all around with
lofty, snow-capped mountains we
rode for many miles beside this beauti-
full lake.
Then we climbed the Sierra Nevadas
covered with pine trees and snow
banks, again showing all the time.
Here we passed through about 40
miles of continuous show-sheds. with
open places now and then, where we
could look down into this most wonder
iui valley, with its lake and rivers
below.
When rounding Cape Horn, on such
narrow ledge of rock, at such a mag
niicent height, L saw such grand
scenes as | never expected my ewes to
ever rest upon.
Then we came down the Pacific
Slope and when into the Sacramento
valley we came again into green pas
lures and thriving orchards. Such
contrasts OF Winter, Summer and all
the varied scenes, tribes and people. in
a few brief hOurs-words cannot fully
describe the journey across the CONT
nent. We would ride, eat, sleep and
rise again to repeat the same daily
task, with a colOred porter to wait on
US and the conductor to each palace
car to look after our comforts. We saw
only few wigwams and Indians, but
looked in vain for buffalo. How cur
lous this city is, some of the streets
running right up the hills to great
heights, then these long, beauti-
full cable cars in the streets Those on
the Brooklyn Bridge are patterned
from these, going so swiftly and II O
horses or power anywhere to be seen:
they hold on to the cable, moved by
an engine under ground, with what is
called the grip" and the man who
starts and stops the car is called the
"gripman." They COUP these steep
streets and down with exactly the same
speed. Coming, our cars were heated
by steam and SO comfortable, but oh
the cold SHOWS we rode through: we
settled down with the thought that
winter had come, but down here in
California we find Spring, with its palm
trees, pleasant weather and beautiful
flowers, but such is life with its MANY
changes. We are still in the United
States, but strange to say the people here
don't use pennies, never see ANYTHING
less than five cents and ten cents
twenty-five cents they call two bits
Then these beautiful palm trees. in the
front yards and Australian gums. of
which there are several kinds. The
lilies and tropical flowers remain in the
ground all Winter. The fuschias are
enormous, much taller than my head.
trained up like grape vines. The ger
anlums are in masses, away over the
fences, like lilacs, then so MANY new
and rich blooming flowers that | never
saw or imagined before.
We are now counting our meals. sup
posing that after tomorrow morning
we may not sit at any table for a long,
tong time again. want to be on deck
and see the beauties as the steamer
passes out through the Golden Gate.
ana then they say it will be about fif-
teen minutes only, before any one will
be seaslck, so you will not hear from
me again until after New Years, when
arrive on the other side of the world.