Omaha daily bee., 1885-10-20
THE NORTHERN FRONTIER.
The improvements and Enlargement
of Fort Niobrara.


Gen. James s. Brisbin writes in the
Chicago Tribune as follows. Fort Mo.
brara is in the northwestern part OF the
state of Nebraska and we are iustnow very
busy building. The post is very pleas.
ant one, and being enlarged from five
TO an eight company post. When the
present improvements are completed it
viii be one of the best and most comfor-
table posts in tho Department of the
Platte. All the quarters, for both officers
and men, will be supplied with bath
rooms, and contain all the modern i'm.
provemcnts except electric lights The
new sets are three company barracks,
three double sets of officers quar-.
tcrs, and three cavalry stables Capt
Lum's company, Fourth infantry. are
making the adobcs for the new buildings,
and are doing their work we'll. The cap
tain has enormous yards and four mills
ut work, turning out 1900 adobcs each
per day. The yards are being gradually
extended and the capacity of the mills
being increased, so that it is expected
that the yards will soon yield 10000
adobes per day. II will take fully 25O-.
900 adobes to lay up the walls of the new
buildings here, but as about ono.third
break in manufacturing, Captain Lunn
will have to make over 3b0,0 600 to do the
work required Captain William Bis
bcs company II, fourth infantry. is out
in the timber cutting saw.logs. The men
have cut about 600 so far, and will con.
tinuc to cut until 1000 logs are scored. !
was surprised to find so much lumber in
this section of Nebraska. | had sup
posed there was none, but we are getting
out pine Sawlogs two and even three
feet in diameter within two miles of this
post. We have good saw-mill, with
planning mill, shingle-mill, etc, attached
! always like to have plcn V of lumber
and big lumbcr-yard at Il military post
100000 feet this fall, which | think is do
ing very well in II no-timberod country
WELL PLANNED AND BUILT.
This post was originally laid out and
built by Col. Upham, Fifth cavalry, and
Il better planned or constructed post |
have never seen. Every building in the
post is large, roomy and airy, having
none of that squatty, contracted appear
ancc so common in our forts. From the
est building, everything is upon that
large and liberal plan so agreeable to
those who have to live here do not
know Col. Upham but he must be Il large
minded man, and knows Just how n post
should be built. hope the government
will remember this, and when it has other
posts to build send Upham. Army arch
NfcluIt Is, dS TUlt, Int lntanCSb III
the world, and when think of the places
and houses where we have had to live in
out west it makes me sick. Low ceilings
little crampcd-up rooms, bad ventilation,
small barracks where the men were
crowded together like n herd of sheep
this was the rule in army buildings, and
the eXceptionswcrc few and far between.
There is nothing OF the kind here The
barracks are large, and every man has
room to move about; the ceilings are
high and the ventilation perfect. In the
officers house dS the rooms are large the
ceilings high, and the buildings all well
ventilated. There is no cheap paper on
the walls to hide the cracks and dirt but
the walls are painted and the rooms
solid and clean. The houses have the
appearance, inside ut least, of city resi-
dcnceS, and the evidences of comfort and
convenience appear the moment one
opens the wide doors How Upham did
so much work. here with so little money
is puzzle; possibly he did what so many
officers do-helped himself and relied
more on the resources of the country
than the appropriations. A good saw
mill a"d 800 or 400 willing men are II
great help in building II post. Many
hands, dropping even pebble each,
soon make Il great pile.