Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1884-06-20
PUEBLO, COLO.
IRAN.


June y, 1884.
EDITOR South KENTUCKIAN:
| hope you will not be disagree
ably surprised to find that | have
complied with your request to write
You something Of this city. The
PucboS (num bering about $4,000 in
habilants) though built as one city,
have two charters, two Post Offices
and in fact Il separate form of gov
eminent in every way the city, how
ever, is far from fulfilling the saying
that "a house divided against itself,
etc, for | know Of no place in the
State with a more hopeful future.
The Besscmer Steel Works that have
recently created such sensation in
the East are located here. / have
been over Them several times and
seen the whole process Of converting
the iron ore into iron and the making
Of nails and steel rails. | wish /
could give you some conception Of
how beautiful this process is, wit
messed at night when the building is
lighted with electricity. Perhaps
those of you who have seen but lit
tie Of the refining Of gold and silver
can ysmpathizc with me in my fas-
ciDatiOn for the smelters. There are
two here already and third is being
erected. | spend quite liberal por-
ton Of my time in going over them
and enjoy it, although there is very
little about il | thoroughly under
stand. You doubtless know there
IRE some things in the process that
are jealousy guarded secret by the
mctalurgists. | hope YOU will not be
malicious enough to think that my
wOmanish curiosity is getting the
upper hand Of me on this subject; il
is really deeper interest that de-
serves better name. have visited
the State Lumatic Asylum here and
find it far surpaSscs our own in.
structure and convenience. You
will probably be surprised 10 know
that although this asl lum is lie only
one III The State, there are at present
only about ninety inmates, fact
that the people here consider convil :,
cling proof that the climate is Il pana,
ceaI for every human IL. | have re-
nlly witnessed the effect of gold
excitement in the average western
mind. 1t was rumOred here some
weeks ago that gold had been dis
covered at Mt. Pisgah. place about
forty miles inland from here; in a
few hours the excitement had pcrva-
died the whole city, and so strong
was the faith Of the people in the re-
port that many gave up excellent po-
SitiOns Oil he chance of its proving
true. For several days the city was
almost deserted and then they began
to return, the saddcst, most disap-
pointed lot ever saw. The mine
had been "salttd." find myself
growing more interested IN the east
crn crops than | had ever deemed
possible, probably from the fact thai
we have no crops here, the soil being
barren and unproductive, only pro-
ducing tough grass called gramma'
in consequence of which the sur
rounding country is used chiefly for
stock ranches. am perfectly infat-
uated with the West now, but at first
| was greatly disappointed, as l fam
cy all people are who are accustomed
to green fields and forest lands.
There are no trees here except the
cottonwood and very few of them
the soil is barren, the alkali dust is
not only disagreeable but very des-
tructive to female tinery. l have
never cnvied men so thoroughly in
my life as the ones see walking on
the streets here, they haven't fear
of solled skirts, and can go home and |
read their newspapers in peace with
no knife plating to brush. l am go
ing TO Del Norte in few days over
the Rio Grande road and will fry to
tell you next time something of the
lie Vcta Pass. NJ. b. S.