Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1886-11-04
KANSAS LETTER.


we wholive in Kansas, have been hav.
ing the most delightful time imagina-
ble,neither hot nor cold, but just right
Rain has been abundant, but after oul
hardest ones, one could start out for a
ten, twenty or thirty mile drive, and
find the roads all the better for 1t.
AS for the winds, that idea is pretty well
exploded. If the Napoleon Court House
had stood in Yates Center, it would moi
have been damaged in the storm of last
Thursday. / have been searching faith.
fully and constantly for the typical
Kansas wind, even since 1 have lived
in the State, now well on to seven years
but all my trouble has been in vain.
When l started west, 1 was told that the
winds were so constant and so strong
that people lived in 'dugouts" as they
did not dare to inhabit houses. l ar
rived and found them living in build
ings ofstOne, bricks and wood, as in
other places. But "just wait till spring
and you'll see," so waited as patiently
as possible, and when March and April
finally came, had been used to so
much harder winds, and so much more
Of them, that the disappointment near
ly made me homesick. Then it was
said that was too far east
for the winds; "Go further west
and you will see the cattle
standing with their backs to the
wind, for fear that, if they do other
wise, they will get turned inside out.r
So determined to do my best to find
the storms, winds and cyclones of
Kansas, 1 moved one hundred and fifty
miles west, but with the same result.
Then as for cyclones. From what I had
heard, I supposed I could 60 out of
doors, at any hour of the day, and see
one or more cyclones, sitting around in
the back yard, but 10! another disap-
pointment was in store for me, for so soon
as came the frisky Cyclone moved east
and took up its abode in Indiana, Ohio,
and in other States North and South;
so have finally come to the conclu-
sion that Kansas is fraud, and adver-
tises like all circuses, more than it has
inside the tent. One by one my cher
ished idols, wind, cyclones, lack of trees,
grass-hoppers, &C., have drosped and
faded away, and now I see Kansas as
she really is, and great is the disap-
pointment. But it seems to me that 1
have said just the same thing regarding
Kansas winds several times before, so
I'll try something else.
When left Napoleon, I thought 1
should have time enough in Chicago to
attend to some business 1 wanted to see
to, and also to see the city little, but
it poured down rain all the forenoon, so
as had to leave at noon, I was disap-
pointed in my expectations. But rainy
as it was 1 hunted up an old school
friend, whom all the young people in
Napoleon we'll remember, Albert Fell
lows. He is ticket broker, and is do
ing an excellent business. He inquired
all about his Napoleon friends, and
seems interested in the affairs there.
He has not changed in appearance at
all, nor in manners either, and is APP
parently that he was while living in
Ohio.
Leaving Chicago on the Wabash, I
rode all the afternoon, and on into the
night, with the rain pouring down out
side, making everything look dismal
and water-soaked outside, and every
body look glum and dismal inside the
cars. But the dust did not annoy us as
it would have done had there been no
rain.
Kansas City was reached in due
time, and more than the usual crowd
was in and around the depot, as it was
the time of the Interstate Fair. The
crowd was so great that I lost one train
because I could not get my checks
changed; and the baggage men worked
with the most provoking slowness.
Friday got off to Lawrence, and went
at once to the University, for had but
a short time to see all my friends there,
as the fourth hour was nearly gone.
Things have changed there great deal
since I was in attendance. The School
occupies three immense buildings now,
the University proper, the Chemical
building, and the magnificent new
building of Natural History, "Snow
"Hall," named for Prof. Snow. The
latter is one of the most splendid
structures of its kind in the country;
it has just been completed at cost of
fifty thousand dollars. The Uuniversi-
ty is more prosperous than ever before,
and at last the State Government is
taking more interest in it, and seems
willing to invest money. If this feeling
continues, the future of the University
is assured; if not, its growth will be
and its usefulness impaired.
The next Legislature should not hesi-
tate for an instant to appropriate one
hundred thousand dollars toward; an
observatory, as one is
needed, and needed at once, too, if we
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