The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1885-03-06
THE TOWN TRAMP.

L .
That IL, itwould be long II I would tel
It all. But there were some thing,
that happened that don't want Il
put on paper, and I guess it won't tax,
me long to tell all that needs to b,
told.
|
AS I said, 1t was a long trip and {
hard one, for we followed the back
bone of the continent and were always
among the mountains. Mountain,
are grand when one stands off and
looks at them with plenty of money in
his pocket. But 1t takes the grandeur
ous of them for most people, when you
have to toll up them and dow them
with your pocket lighter than the all
at their tops. One day you will be
freezing and the next day, down in the
valley you can hardly get your breath
for the heat. And the odnr of the
pines and frs is sweet at irst. But
when you have had nothing else in
your nostrils for months it gets mighty
stale. At first you think the pine
needles are very soft and pretty, but
before long you would give them all
for one good, honest, broad lowland
leaf.
That's the way it struck me, and
that's the way it works with nearly
everybody. But it was different with
Hal. For six years we were in the
mountains, but they were as grand to
the last day as they were at first, and
the odor of the frs was as sweet, and
the fine needles as soft and pretty.
The ougher our road was, the more
he gloried in the mountains, and he
was always calling me to look at some
new scene that was strange or grand
or beautiful. And then when didn't
answer, which was pretty often, he
would drop his head and commence
humming his old song,
''Over the hills, and far away"
-
But am forgetting my story. 1t
was in September I guess that we got
to Salt Lake City and we were tired
enough to rest awhile. It was a good
place to rest. Plenty Of women and
children that did our unused eyes good
to..see if they were Mormons. Plenty
of milk and eggs and fruit that could
be had almost for the asking. 1t was
two weeks before we could make up
our minds to take the road again. We
got pretty well acquainted with the
Mormons in that time and we liked
them. They were honest and accom-
modating and treated us well.
~
It wasn't long after we left Salt
Lake till we came to the Ute reserva-
ton and crossed it. 1 don't wonder
that the Utes rebelled when they were
taken from their beautiful Uncom-
pahgre country to that barren waste.
There isn't a patch of G reen on it as big
as a mans hand. Sand and sage brush
and alkali from one end to the other.
1 know we travelled go miles once with
out finding a drop of water. The
was made, If it was made for
any purpose, which I don't more than
half believe, for centipedes and taran-
tulas and coyotes, and they ought to
be left in peaceful possession of it.
-
We crossed over corner of Colorado
where we found lots of water, anyhow,
and some grass in the valleys. Fish in
the streams, too. sometimes, though
not always. New Mexico, most of it,
vas repetition of Utah-sand and
age brush and alkali. We didn't
mind the sage brush, for il makes the
'est camp fire you can get, but the
and and the alkali are rough on trav-
'lers. From the Colorado line to
santa Fe about all the decent water |
We had to drink was got by melting
now that we found i'm shady places. |
after we got to the Rio Grande though
We didn'. have any more trouble in |
hat line.
Got into the Black Range a: last and |
was like home to settle down and go
o prospecting again. Both of us were
ired enough of horseback rides and
re vowed that the next long trip we
BOX would be on railroad, and east
lstead of west. There had been a
God many big finds in the Range, and
wasn't long till we struck lead
nat we thought would show up well.
efore this we had just dug our pros
ect hole and then sold out. but we
included we would work this lead ,
II it struck the bonanza we wanted.
- II
We worked faithful for two or three
eeks and the lead was looking better
'ery day, when Hall took sick with
e mountain fever. The nearest town
knew of where we could get med {
inc or doctor was 100 miles away. Il
lerc was no use to talk of trying to I
ke him there, and I couldn't leave '
m alone, 30 L just stayed there and l