Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1885-05-29
RICHARDSON'S RAnBLEs.
ST. PAuL Nav s5. 1895

i home last Tuesday on q business yisi
to ST. Paul and Minneapolis, / foane
on Thursday that I could have easili
returned the following dag, Friday
but hearing that the famed Robert @
! Ingersell was to lecturoin st. Paul Of
Sunday evening, I concluded to ''la,
i ever and hear him. The question tler
arose ss to how I could best Nil Til,
time for three days-until the date 8
& the lecture--and decided upon a visi
TO Lake Minnetonka ON Friday.
Going to Minneapolis about noon,
found there was no way of reachin,
Z the lake from there until IS O'Clock ii
the evening, and I spent the balanc'
! Of the day in that city, but saw moth
| Ing of special note until /, reached the
4 West hotel, corner of Hennepin avsn
ue and Fifth street. This is structur,
that will compare favorsbly with tn,
finest hotels in the world. {rhe Ryar
hote! in St. Paul will probably excel i
lin spiendor and cost.) St. Paul anc
Minneapolis appear to be vieing with
each other in trying to excel in hote;
facilities, and Minneapolis must watch
close or St. Paul will walk of with the
laurels. Z H. 8 s:
/. At s O'Clock found myself ea-route
| for the lake---1s Miles distant d
passing thaough what I call eci'edly
hard country, filled, with frog ponds
and apparently WORTHLESS marshes with
little or no level land / hardly saw al
acre of level land on the trip to the
lake. The lake itself is beautifully
cut up with islands, isthmuses, and
promonteries-in fact ! diversified but
ragged country, through which, if a
man travels one mile on foot, it will
seem he has gone three. Mound City
was the point on the lake I especially
desired to reach, but not being we'll
posted | boughta ticket to Minnetonka
Beach, hearing that was the nearest
point to Mound City reached by rail.
but after leaving the train / found that
Mound City was four miles further on
in the same direction the train from
which I had JUST dsbarked was going.
Had I been rightly informed | could
have rode on the train two miles an ID
taken q hack ct the end Of the track
for Mound City. The train returned
at $3.50 in the morning, and the fact
dawned upon me that I was in for
4-mile walk il I expected to reach
Mound City that evening. was, how
ever, equal to the emergency, and ac-
cordinly found myself at Mound CITY
a few minutes after sunset. vent to
the first hotel ia sight-kept Jy s. Fl.
Bartlett, wh., think, told me that be
moved there eight years ago and built
his hotel on its present site near the
lake. His place is. thronged during
the summer season with tourists and
pleasure ekers, but in winter it is
entirely deserted. Two other hotels
have since been built, the largest being
the Mound City house. owned by s. A..
Chapman who also; has 10 acres laid
out in town lots, some of which find
ready market &C $3.50. The town is at
the vest end Of the lake and the site
has all the appearance Of an old battle
ground-the breastwerks being plainly
visible-probably the work of the
mound builders, rs there are many
mounds there. MI. Bartlett pointed
out small one near his hotel, out of
which three skeletons had been taken.
He also spoke Of an island near his
place where large quantities of broken
pottery was found, the. adjacent beds
of fine, blue clay leading to the belief
that it was also a point of manufacture.
and the numerous mounds around the
shores Of the lake show that region to
have been thickly populated by that
most peculiar Of people-the mound
builders. .."
Lake Minnetonka has become to the
Sc q.
people of Minneapolis what White
Bear lake is to St, Paul people-a fav-
orite resort, but although these are
both fine bodies Of water, yet the time
is rapidly approaching when Lakes
Mile Laos and Alexandra will super.
sede them on account of their greater.
beauty, and their abundance of fish. ]
Well, ! had the pleasure of listening
to Col. Ingersoll last evening and ha
told us all he knew about God which,
was absolutely nothing, And SO st
seems that knowledge Of God is hidden
in these days, even from the wise. ;as
OF yore. Yours, etc, " T
.-%.@@4 A. NATHAN RICHARDSON q