Mower County transcript., 1890-08-06

Alex Majors, who was tho founder OF
the famous pony express. Colonel Ma-
iors, as a member OF tho firm Of Rus
sell, Majors & Waddell, worked for
years in tho interest OF seCuring daily
stages. 1t was his idea that If stages
left the Missouri river for tho west and
Salt Lake City for the cas-: every day
the business facilities of the vast trans
Missouri region would be wonderfully
improved. 1t was found impossible to
put on q line OF daily stages for so long
distance without some Government
subsidy, and for long time Congress
was appealed to for assistance, At
length the postal service allowed $780,
900 per annum for daily delivery Of
the mails ut the Missouri river from
the west and ut sacramento from the
east OF this sum $500. 900 went to Rus
sell. Majors 4 Waddell for the service
east Of Salt Lake, while the other halt
was paid to ButterAeld & Co., contract
ors, on the other side Of the range.
1t was in the fall of 1859 that the first
stage of the daily line left Atohison,
Kan, then a prosperous and promising
young city, a leading boat landing and
formidable rival Of the then feeble
and struggling Kansas City. There was
a great deal Of rejoicing over the coming
of the new enterprise and with many
good wishes and amidst the shouts OF the
assembled populace, the first coach
whipped gayly OIL. The new line marked
an epoch in western methods of travel.
The spring before line had been put
on from Leavenworth to Denver by
Jones 4 Russell. The stages ran spas
medically and the firm encountered
trouble from the outset This line made
only few trips when the Indians be-
came so hostile that it was impossible
to guarantee traveller safe passage to
the mining camp of Denver. The route
lay from Leavenworth up Smoky Hill
fork and directly across tho plains to
Colorado's capital. 1t was dangerous
and expensive, for the Indians stole
nearly every team of mules that the
company put on the line. The concern
at length fell into the hands Of Russell,
Majors e. Waddell, with all accompany
ing rights and franchises. That pioneer
firm then bought the Hockaday & Lig-
gett company, operating an irregular
and unsatisfactory line of small coaches
from St Joseph tn Salt Lake ON sched-
ule OF twenty-five days. This company
had no post stations and the same ami
mails that started from terminus would
frequently struggle through nearly to
the other end Of the line.
With the two companies out of the
field and guarantee of Government as
sistance, Russell, Majors & Waddell
went to work with vigor In their daily
stage enterprise. They built splendid
ly-equipped, strong and warm post sta
tions every ten or twelve miles, estab-
lished divisions with superintendent in
charge and announced schedule time
of ten days from Atchison to Salt Lake,
distance of 1900 miles. The coaches
left each terminus daily and there was
never a hitch in the good time an
nounced. At first the route taken by
this through line was that known as the
old South pass route, along the Cali
fornia trail by Fort Fetterman and Fort
Laramie. thence up by the North Platte
and the Sweetwater. through the South
pass to Fcrt Bridger, across Green river,
through Echo canyon, over the big
mountains and down Emigration canyon
to Salt Lake City. The daily Denver
stage was soon put on running from
Denver 70 Julesburg, whore it joined the
through Salt Lake coach and delivered
and received passengers. Later the en-