Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1885-05-06


ney was much like that of any other
take the same. We met with the most
perfect courtesy from railroad officials,
hotel-portcrs, hackmen and fellow
travellers. OF course we took in all the
points of interest about st. Paul and
Minneapolis, and we used to enjoy i'm
mensely the imaginary sensation it
would create among our fellow travel
ers II they knew OF our daring project,
but we never electrified them by dis
closing it, They regarded Us rs a
couple of innocent and inoflensive
teachers in search of recreation.
How we enjoyed the journey from st.
Paul TO our destination! 1t was here
that we had our first glimpse of the
lovely prairies, gorgeous with the red
lilies of the North and thousand other
| flowers that crossed the waves of the
prairie-grass stretching away in end
.ess succession as far as the eye could
! reach.
remember distinctly the first spell l
had OF sinking of the heart. 1t was
when saw, in the midst of a vast plain,
a lone, forlorn little speck away of to-
ward the horizon that was some ones
home, not another dwelling in sight in
all that wide lonely prairie; the next
was when we reached Lawnsdale and
found that the city consisted of two
tents and woodshed. 1t was evening
when we passed through Moorehead
and Fargo, and the luminous ball Of
electric light shining high over the lat
ter city looked weirdly beautiful.
We reached our destination in the dim
twilight of n summer morning. and
stopped to get breakfast and rest a little
before starting on our tour of investiga-
ton preparatory to taking up our
claims Somehow il did not seem so
easy rs il had ut home and not quar-
ter as romantic, but Thompy was as
enthusiastic as ever, and when l said
that wished i had brought few trees
along in my trunk to improve the land
scape a little she said il was wilder
without and what we wanted was the
sunshine.
After interviewing the land agent and
lot more work and bother we finally
started over the prairie on an ox-cart.
The agent said he thought he knew a
place we would like, where we could
have our land joining and the other part
of the section occupied by n man from
New York who had his family along
and his brother-in-law. Did you ever
ride after an OK teamp ! hope so, for
if you have you will appreciate many
privileges that you would perhaps 9th
erwise pass over rs but slight advan-
tages. We moved through the prairie
(bnt that was alD and looked at the
wide monotonous landscape. After the
first hour remarked to Thompy that l
thought we had better go into camp on
the wagon as we seemed TO be about as
far as when we started, but Thompy
said she liked it, that she was always
afraid of fast horses, and she could get
as much exercise and all the scenery
she wanted from her perch on the OK
cart. Pretty soon she did get all the
scenery she wanted. and then that ex-
aspefating girl pulled out q microscope,
and proceeded to analyze flowers, Just
as aggravatingly cheerful and happy as
though she were at o picnic.
Along in the afternoon we came to
the place of the man from New York,
and here we got some dinner and were
shown the glories of sod house. We
had seen them at distance before, but
palace of u sod house, with real win
dows and papered walls, with partitions
of unbleached muslin trimmed with
Turkey red that looked very pretty and
home-like. Thompy went into raptures
over it, and regretted deeply that we
had not brought something along for
our walls. didn't see as she needed
to display our ignorance before that
strange woman, but that was Just her
all over not a bit of proper pride.
After dinner we went with the OK
team to inspect the other part of the
section, which the woman said she
hoped we would like, as she wished we
might be neighboIs; she found it rather
lonely being eight miles from town and
no near neighbors. / couldn't see as it
made any difference where we took up
our claim; it all looked alike to me, and
was beginning to think it might prove
white elephant anyway.
We went TO town to get the necessary
papers and man to help get the
houses ready, for we were to have one
apiece, and we wanted to investigate
tho little store. The woman from New
York, whose name was Herder, said
that her husband and brother would do
all they could to help us, and in short
time our houses were ready for us to
enter and take possession of our long
dreamed-of claims. They didn't look
very inviting, can tell you. We could
find no paper to cover the unsightly
walls, and our furniture was of the
scantiest. We could not make both
houses look inviting, so we used mine
for kitchen, though we conscientious
ly slept in it half the time. They were
very near together and not far from our
neighbors.
When we were fairly settled and had
had our first meal told Thompy that
l felt like the Swiss Family Robinson;
she laughed and said she didn't see
how could feel like the whole family
without having stable in the house,
as they always did. Now / think it
shows an envious disposition to always
| be making fun of n romantic idea just
because you didn't think of it yourself,
but punished her by putting my revolt
yer in sight in hole which / dug for it
In the wall. She dared not take it away,
so she always passed by on the other
side of the room. We got water from a
well belonging to the Herders, who tried
in every possible way TO soften the
hardships of our lot, though Thompy
always pretended there were none
that spoiled bread, no fresh meat, no
fruit, and ell the horrors of canned
goods were fun. We got fresh vegeta-
bles occasionally from our neighbors, rs
we had no garden, il being too late to
make one. When complained it was
| not pleasant, to say the least, to be re-