, 1889-09-21
1T CAUGHT HIM.
A Washington Correspondent Who
Was Pleased With Cheyenne.
He Describes His First Impressions
of the Town
And Predicts Great Things for the
Near Future.
New York Times.l

AhS = "Aha 49, S1RANOA Ob1Ae -
first Enthusiastically in the distance, and its
roofs, trees, tasteful dwellings, clean
roads, modern station, electric light
poles, aud street cars, coming into closer
view to destroy the illusion. The Union
Pacific has erected q handsome stone sta
ton, with an imposing tower, commod-
ious offices, and tasteful appointments,
at Cheyenne. 1t is an agreeable intro
ductlon to the city. Beyond are the wide
streets, unpaved, but well rounded and
hard, the result simply of cutting the guis
tiers and browning" the roadway. The
sidewalks are tagged along the principal
t~horoughtares and planked on the less
frequented streets. Compactly built up,
with many three and two-story brick
buildings, the business streets rave a sub
~stantial look. There are many shops
with heavier stocks Of goods than would
be looked for here. But they supply
more than Cheyenne's 1000 or 5000
people, Their goods go up into the
Chugwater section, down toward Denver
and eastward and westward. sharing the
trade in the latter direction part way TO
Ogden. Then the Burlington road. that
runs in here to compete with the Union
Pacific, also opens the way for business
into the upper end of Utah and the ex-
IRENE western part of Nebraska.
Walk along the streets that are north
of the railroads and business thorough
fares and you find that the people live in
comfortable houses. Some of them are
low in structure, the prevailing height be-
ing a story and a half. These are coy
little cottages. making up in superficial
area lack OF heil h.. Others. tie homes of
men who made comfortable fortunes when
the cattle business was tempting everybody
to try it, are modern structures OF stone
or combinations of stained shingles and
clapboards, built upon lines familiar in
the most stylish Eastern towns. There
are three or -four long rooted and lowered
bcuses, with enclosed galleries and grace
full portes cochereS hat would not be amiss
at Newport or on the shores of the Hud-
son. Every where there are lawns of bril-
liant emerald, the grass cropped close and
showing the teaderest care. Irrigation
produces this rich crop. The water is
turned on daily from the supply brought
to the city from a FOUNTAIN stream a few
miles away. Three or four blocks away
from the railroad there is a park, in which
the lawn is as soft and verdant as it is on
Boston Common in June. The trees. set
out a little too regularly and thickly, are
cottonwoods, ~catalpas and box elders.
They are small, too, but they are very
promising, and they are certainly better
than nothing. Five years ago there we're
few trsts anywhere in the city. Now
they are planted along all the streets out
of the business part OF the city They all
look as if they were habitually wind
tossed.
One cannot look about long without no
ticing abundant signs of an advanced CIV
llization. There are three or four excel
lent school buildings and a Roman Cath
ole convent school that is as big as all the
public schools put together. The Episco
pal church, a structure OF very graceful
proportions and thoroughly ecclesiastical
architecture, is built of native light color
ed stone, and is the handsomest of many
admirable church edIices. There Is a
free library of two thousand OF more vol
umes, provided under territorial law au-
thorizing a county tax OF one-eighth to
one fourth mill for increase of books.
The city maintains it, and it is patronized
by 900 borrowers of books. The electric
light and the telephone are old ~acquaiut-
auces. Cheyenne lays claim to having
the first street lighting electric plant in
the country. Bicycles lean up against
many shop fronts or spin along the streets.
The city has a garrison of the Salvation
Army, aud the post band, consisting of a
bass drum and a shrill voiced woman,
performs nightly at a street corner, and
even entur to make a short march by
some OF the very orderly and quiet sa-
LIONS.
/ should not have thought of saying
anything about the lack of life and move,
ment in the streets If my attention had
not been directed 10 the fact by q resident
or two. They were sensitive about it and
supposed | had noticed it. They &C.
counted for it. Up to three years ago
things went very well in Cheyenne. The
Wyoming grazing lands swarmGd with
cattle driven up from below. American
and foreign cattle kings, employinR nun
dreds of cowpunchers to look after their
herds, made Cheyenne their QUILTING
and resting point. The ranchers put
some of their wealth into the houses
that look so comfortable in the midst OF
bright lawns. The bullwhackers put
their money into games of chance and
fancy trappings for their horses, and
killing FROST inderd. The winter of
ISSG-S7, long and severe, killed many
cattle left % shift for themselves on
lhukGo All Will NN- v - "Cus
breaking up the ranges that had been
rounded over before. 1t was well that
the men who had made money rapidly
had been public spirited when they were
prosperous. An era Of retrenchment be-
gan. The cowpunchers, who soon got rid
OF all they had earned. sought other
fields of adventure and profit. The
grazing of herds in thousands went out
of fashion. Instead of a few great
drives, there were presently a great many
small herds, raised by men occupying
government lands for nothing or lands
taken up under some one of the land
acts. The business was down to hard
pan"
When the boom vas on the cattle
men who were making great fortunes
rapidly built a neat clubhouse here, set up
a caterer to serve its patrons, and made it
an attractive place for the assembling of
the young men who were following Tor
tune elong the borders of the Rocky
Mountains. They say that the bead is
of. The clubmen say that bottom has
been reached, that the effect of the disas-