New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-04-20
CGUR D'ALENE SHORT LINE
A RISING CITY ON THE WAY.
"JUsPrSG,o BUILDING, DINING AND GAMBLING -
THOapsON's FALLS.

THOMPsoS's FALLS. NJ. T., April }.-Wheh
passed through this place something more thah
three weeks ago, there nothing herr but ID" ior-
est prmevsl. Now there is a town Of nearly 1000
inhabitants: that is. if those be- said 10 in
habit place who eat meals at irregular intervals
in stray restaurants aud spend the nght- cnroi np
in their blankets under the neighbOTing pine trees.
And this is how at least One-th Of the population
Of Thompson's Falls live to-day. Still, the remain
ing two-thrds snhcc 10 make q pretty large city -
cities 90 out here and the long orderly OF az
gressYsly yellow frame houses-nona ~ them
twenty days Old-which stood staring 40 the tram
IN the ha.fght Of the early dawn ~ ~ rolled IN
this morning gave me a considerable sio'A, reIpfu-
herring as | did the two or three bright camp hres
hickcring among the red pine trunks which were
all there was OF the city three weeks ago There 1,
still good deal OF the forest left, for no man has
cleared moro than the smallest space he could
soueeza hi. house on. The streets remain forest.
pure and simple. Here and there some puohc-
spirited person has gone far az TO cut down tree
or two IN the main street but even N these cases
zeal for the public welfare has never carried HIM IN
the length of removing the tree after u Wss cut
down, and after studying the question With some
care confess TO having doubts as 10 whether pne
tree when standing Is q much more serious obstacle
70 traffic than the same tree when il has been eus
down leaving a three-foOt stump behind and
stretching the rest Of It's length oblquclY across
the road from sidewalk 10 sidewalk. For there arc
sidewalks Not many OF them, nor very good 81 MO
kind, II i. true. few of the more ambitious
householders have just laid PLANK walks 70 tha
width of their hOuses hut the amount of sidewalk
bears about the same relation % the amount ~ gap
in between a. the strings DO 20 the holes ia hshing
net. still. we have sidewalks, and, il tie continual
clambering mp to them and then jumping down
again for they are all two feet above N" level
of the ground) Is SO fatguing that men prefer to
dodge through the pine trees in the roadway hero
no such artificial Instructions occur. Why, What
would yOu in three weeksf
Ii il a beautiful situation for town beautiful
from an Psthctic point Of view. for neither II the
ground level enough nor is there enough Of i 70
make an ideal town site. But these very facts
make the spot fascinating 10 the impractical eye.
The Thompson River, which straggI"s through tho
town some tive hundred feet from he mack, i
poor nlud-colored streamlet. aud the fall- from
which the place takes its are absurd o. fall.
| But the mountains are superb. They completely en-
circle the little place with hinge, rugged wall
towering I'D steep and straight 80 the height x
three or four thousand feet TILL ~ az ChamouniS ~
/ switzerland. one is puzzled 10 know how the ROAD
ever finds it, way u or out, while conjecture -
utterly batiicd in attempting to guess where tks
! route To the mines can possibly strike through.
Just now, with the deep blue-gr3y Of Nh" pines on
the lower slopes hIOATu mere anu tiiNi' Nt'''
| cling patches of snow and finally giving way 20
level sheet Of white along the peaks the view = one
| which probably no mountain range outside OF tho
! Aims the Himaayas and the Andes could match.
/ Doubtless in writing thus enthusiastically | snail
he suspected By many of having some O""ult BOOM
| ing" end in view. The correspondent who writes
from the West is always suspected Of m nsdouF
! desire TO boom somebody something. B1ta man
might as well seek 10 catch q shadow ~ butterfly
! net as endeavOr to boom such p.a." a 'h.- oY
writing letters TO the East. This city which ba1
sprung ND here in less than 4 month may Dee utterly
/ deserted again IN another. Who know vh"n all
other shortest route to the mine, Will be- dr.
covered At present the best route h. supposed -
be that which rms from here, but a. soon a. an
! other appears as better, business wall rush away
from here as rapidly it has rushed iD and The
spider will build its web in the hall where the
miner feasted and drank deep Why, IN loss than
a month from the very view viii have van
! ished! The snow will be gone in a few wecks and
/ in a few more the air Will be 50 thick with Tho
smoke of forest fires that the passenger rushing
through on the cars IN hardly guess that ;E"rc aro
/ any mountains near Meanwhile in rs sudden ro.-
ous growth in the inter unomoti0ndlIty OF - Lt'.
aud in the very prospect OF its transitions, Tho
whole place stand, typical OF al that belongs -
mining craZes.
/ Perhaps one of the most Characters e features .
the passion for jumping jumping J.
euphcmisin for stealing with special Application -
the stealing of land by violence, and ronA- IN
mining camp. among what have been called ths
/ g.ntlemanIv crimes There had been % certain
amount of dcsultory jumping of towu-lot> by mdi'
ylduals almost since the city had started; but
| few davs ago the citizens came 10 IN" conclusion
that this frittering away Of their capacit'' Nv
/ pecemeal was unworthy If them and Of their CITY,
so m the last two days they have turned ont pa
force and have jumped the railroad right ot way
The right of way consists OF strip of land 200 ie.5
! wide on each side OF the track. Until th.c' lays
ago this strip had been respected aud LEFT vacant.
/ II does not seem 10 have occurred q anybody -
/ hmm II until suddenly an original minded citizen
set 10 work and built himself 4 small t"n-ioo5
! shantv rivht IN the middle Of It. At first people
i.crod: then they pondered. The orgnAl-nIinded
/ one had undoubtedly got himself huus" and by
/ very cheap and easy process. H. wdu.d be very
nice .very one agreed. To get houses equally c&siy
, and cheapy And why nOt3 Besides, tne right ~
way Is already cleared of It's timber, 81 ina, settling
on il offered the double advantage Of saving Tie ~
/ pense of buying \ lot and of avoiding the abor of
timber telling. 20 the next day three OF f"nr moFs
I followed SUR, and yesterday the poprlace m1de
rush and have ytakod out every inch of tue -lsred
strip within the inhabited portions OF The town.
Already four small houses finished on Il ami tho
fonndatious of a dozen more are laid, vhile very
/ one IS wondering what the railroad company VIII
, do aud knows not whether 10 De more di.u-'o OF
asiouuded al the aulacity Of the whole proceeding.
/ Another thing which Is highly characteristic 90
these brand new cires IL the gambling. II y not
that every alternate saloon iof the seventy hou-'s
! in the place more than forty are SALOONS has lis
! faro table and It's game ot poker That would
scarcely serve to dlierentlate IL from many Al old
ana nomlnally wcll-cOndGcted city. But ina
regularity is in the way IL IN which all manner of
/ straige games with elaborate lay -oGt~ have
usurprd Tie principal corners and points Of vantage
/ on the sidewalks and IN the IOadwayS The Pho
,roD their tarO-ta blCs. aud al day