The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1884-03-13

way by which the train Is carefully
| picking Ils way along BE is ap-
preaching the city Of Netilston.n
where he Is Informed be e TO pass the
night, the Memphis track fruEa point
fifteen miles beyond Nettiston--(the
latter place being 90 miles from Mem
phis)-being under Ester, water, water.
Wherefore, the traveller must transfer
himself, bag and baggage at Nsttleton,
TO the Iron Mountain branch road
leading 10 Helena About dusk the
train rushes into NettletOn. At the
junction of two great roads, with nu-
merous Commercial advantagesn-
one would expect to see . long line Of
omnibuses, with just IS long q line Of
persistent hotel criers, assaulting the
passengers, right, len and center Is
they stepped from the failroad car
riazes. But, behold There Is no
busy street, with its cataract Of vehi-
cles; no e-storied bOuses or altitudin-
ous suirss. There was only modest,
uupretsntious building called hotel"
and Il was In that place we were to
tarFy for the night. One porter had
his own way. He was q dictator, an
sutocrat, a. great as a brakeman !
Here was anOthor house. with boards
which had never known a plane, and
with sleeping rooms which had never
kept family secret, for the reason
that the partition cracks were like
sounding boards Blue was the trav-
eler as ne was shown to such sleep
ing room, where a homemade rug
vss the carpet, q box stove the poor
attempt Of q heating apparatus, and 9
water-coIored portrait Of Josephine
the sole picture In the room. But
then, here must end the complaints,
Being shown TO supper, the mood was
changed. Here was q well provided,
clean, tempting table-a bill Of fare
far superior to that Of any eating sta
tion on the Kansas Pacific line The
bed was good, the talk and noise of
adjoining chambers we're soon
drowned by q deep slumbeT, and
much refreshed by g good nights
rest and q splendid breakfast in the
morning. the travellers were ready to
see all that was to he seen on the way
to Helena
The train Is now moving down
CroWley's Ridge-eonspicuOusly On
elevated portion Of country in this
land of swamps. Eastward the 81.
Francis and Mississippi have driven
the whole people and their household
gods from the lowIands to the high
lands for protection. The grand for
ests are still on either hand. The
railroad track is on piles ct times, to
place il above the still rising aud en-
croaehing water. The train moves
along through q country with which
fhe writer Is familiar. Although It
was p years ago he was wearing the
blue and marching through with the
cavalry along the same ridge and
through these same swRmps, be is still
familiar with the ''lsy Of the land"
20 little has It changed. While all
the rest Of the world has advanced
and obliterated its old landmarks,
the st. Francis river country remains
as Il was during the war. The same
pinched-faced, ague-qusking, tangled
whiskered, Idle inhabltant gazes
with the same wonder on the peace |
ful traveller Of to-day as ne did upon |
the blue-ceated, brAss-buttoned, sa-
ber-clanklng, warlike traveller Of '62. |
His common remark then was II want |
to he left alone; I hain't done moth
ing" And surely to-day there is no
deep abiding indication that he has
done anything. The man Of 'S4 is
the ghOstly apparltion of '62, with not
q single variation. The eolored people |
are largely in the majority, and among /
the sour-looking, silent Caucasians
It is really refreshing to witness
the happy, laughing blacks, who
seem to be the only people who have
any enterprise or activity.
High noon is at hand, when the
hills Of Helena appear. The train
moves again through water. Now the
swollen Mississippi bursts upon the
view, and the train hauls up at the
levee. The river at this point was
said TO be l25 miles wide-the over
fow extending from the Helena hills
TO the hills in Mississi ppi. Helena
has changed little since the war, like
the surrounding country. II is the
same dull, sleepy southern town-less
active than in 1852, IL possible, by rea-
son Of the absence Of military opera
tions. The hills would not come TO
the river, so the river is going TO the
hills. The fiat on which the major
part of Helena is situated IL being
worn away by the waters Of the Mis-
whole streets which existed
in '62 being under water. BY reason
Of the water, Helena was the Ultima
Thule of travel Its commerce, ex-
cept in cotton, was not sufficient to in
duee the fast passenger steamers TO
make q landing there.
One notes In Helena the absence Of
stone foundations to houses. They !
are set on high piers, and no cellars
exist. The town is 30 frequently Hn-
ier water that Il is necessary to abol- s
sh foundations, in order 70 getsFid Of {
the dampness. The cisterns-upon
which the population chiefly depends |
or water,-are built half above
ground, and rounded on Is they are, .
ook like q collection Of hGts, OF Syr- .
an houses. By steps, sscent ls made B
o the opening, where the water Is '
lraWn. Cisterns are built mp in this Il
Eay to escape the overflow. Helena o
vas quite a"battle grOuudDduFing the
var, but vestiges Of the bill fortrsaes
ne scarce. To the northwest, on ,
Tooded bin, ,is the Union soldisrs'esn- r
terry. And In the same nslghboI- y
iOOd are those who wore the gray,
We have thus written somewhat Of q
UT trip through Arkansas. The re
urn trip exhibited no new features. :,
)ur trim to Mardi Gras is still In the y