The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1883-12-06

and steep the land is it 10 all taken up, so
that farmers seeking government or cheap
lands cannot find it n this section of coun-
try, yet for renters or persons with means it
is good country. The town is building
up rapidly with substantial buildings; it is
a railroad terminus at present. There are
some half dozen churches in the town, the
different denominations are represented and
have good congregations. Good school
houses and an opera house block are among
the buildings of note. A drive of seven
miles out toward the base of the mountains
or timber land, took US to some of the high
est lying lands surrounding the town; it
was up hill nearly all the time. From q
high swell of land we had grand view of
the country for many miles. The face of
the country looked like the waves of the sea
in storm; the great portion was either
ploughed fields lately sown to grain or
stubble fields dotted over with hogs, cattle
and horses. Scarcely house could be seen
as they are usually built in ravines or
gulches IN sheltered places and where the
water is the most convenient. At dis
lance OF a hundred miles or more, we could
see mountain ridges, that border on the
Columbia river, ard but for low clouds We
could have seen some of the snow capped
peaks of Oregon.
At an early hour 10 the morning we
boarded the train and soon were on our
way to Portland, Oregon. At Wallula
Junction We connected with the N. P. r. r.
We noticed at every station along the line
of the road thus tar and farther on, immense
quantities of grain awaiting shipment.
Steamboats, ply on the river 30 that freight
is transported both by water and by rail.
At the Junction the Columbia and Stake
rivers unite and flowing westward enter the
Pacific Ocean. The valley of the Columbia
is rough and uninviting, there being but
little of interest and worth to be seen. The
only town Of note is The Dells, where We
got splendid dinner. There are falls in
the river here and just below, the bluffs
form a narrow passage. Further on We
came to the cascades 10 the river which are
distractions to the navigation of the river.
To overcome the difficulty the government
is engaged in the construction of huge
canal with locks and dams. The work
will cost an immense amount of money and
will relieve Uncle Sam of trife OF that
immense pile OF specie which is getting to
be burden to the treasury department.
AT p. m. we arrived at Portland which is
a noisy, busy place. 1t is the port for the
ocean steamers and as here is concentrated
the trade from San Francisco as we'll as
Chicago, it has become place of strong
competition between those two commercial
cities and not little envy has been engend-
cred. Doubtless Chicago will come out
ahead in the fight tor the bulk of trade now
that there is direct railroad communication.
Already the St. Paul, Milwaukee and Chi
cago commercial man. is the person of
self importance, and his trunks and brass
the dread of baggage smashers and railroad
men in general, but then it is possible they
are necessary evil that we can't get along
without or scarcely along with.
Portland is situated on the Columbia
river, near the housh of the Willamette
river, and among other things for which
the city is noted is the inconvenience to the
travelling public; the principal railroads ter
inmate on one side of the river and the
depots and city are on the other side, but
then this arrangement gives life to trans.
fer monopoly thst is fighting the hotels.
By the way, western life looms up hugely
at these hotels. One must crowd his way
through molly crew of humanity seething
in a fog of tobacco smoke to reach the
hotel register, hslf-drunken second clerk
tries his best to give necessary information
as to your baggage; this same Office room
door stands open to admit the crowd to the
dining room where amid the tobacco smoke
to help along in the seasoning of your
victuals you try to satisfy the cravings of a
stomach unused to tobacco. The transom
of your bed room in the upper hall, if left
open, admits the foul fumes of tobacco
smoke. Oh! where shall we go to find
Gods pure air, pure from rum and tobacco
AS a place of trade Portland is greatly
blessed and many fine stores line her stone
paved streets. Next mornings train over
the Oregon & California road carried US
away from that land and water port toward
this city, the capitol town of the state.
Us.
RIVER NEWS.