Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1891-05-31
BY THE OTHER ROUTE
GOING TO EUROPE WITHOUT CROSS
ING THE ATLANTIC OCEAN.
War and Geography-The Nicaragua Ca
naI-An Indian Painter--Tho Story ofa
Little GIri-Notes
rcorrcspondence Of the Richmond Dispatch.l

*.
before people can go to Europe easily ana
quickly by way Of Alaska and Siberian
That is question which interests good
many people who are subject to sea-slck-
ness, yet who feel impelled TO join in the
summer rush. As for myself, though
not specially apt to feel qualms upon the
water l am considerably interested, after
several times enduring the unutteraoie
tedium of an ocean voyage, IN the time
when / can railroad II TO Alaska, cross tno
Bering Strait on bridge, ana continue
through Siberia 20 st. Petersburg ana
Berlin.
RaiIroad-men say that it will not be long
American capitalists have already Iuuy
made up their minds to connect ALASKA
with our own railroad systems by q trans
Canadian line-a precedent establisned py
the American connections OF the GRAND
Trunk line. The Boring strait - easily
bridged, or is narrow enough 10 DC oI.
slight matter in any case. On the Otuer
sIde the Russian Government IS pushing
ito trans-Siberian line with considerable
! energy. mainly, of course, for military pur-
noses. So it should not be very long before
| travelled Yankees are enabled TO get INTO
| Europe by the back door. The Oh way
will always be the cheapest and qulc&es''
however. ,,,. l,.o,
] faces in taking the western route. In the
| first place one sees little OF America, III
| the second the Pacific Is always calm III
| summer, and besides Japan, CHINA, ana
British India are very interesting portions
| of the earth TO visit.
| THE UNsPEAKABLE RUSSIAN.
Talk Of the Siberian railway reminds me
of the account which the Rev. Charles H.
Baker, of the Messiah church in Brooklyn,
| gives Of the Russian maps which ne saw III
! Iihis. Having recently looked inns up
| ON the map am able to state that IL les
midway between the termini of the Potl
and Baku railroad, in what used 10 De
| Georgia. but is now part OF the realm or
| the all-devouring Russian. Here in llnls,
| which not so very long ago was about as
barbarous place as any, DR.. BAKER touna
one of the most complete COLLECTIONS OK
maps he had ever seen. especially rlch IA
| tLe Asian department. Russia IS probably
| better informed to-day about the geogra-
nbv of Turkestan and Afghanistan than
The natives themselves and may use It's
| knowledge TO advantage IN the next great
war. DL
ish Palatlnate when informed by landed
proprietor there that when the German
| tro6ns came through to invade France
|
hills better than the men and women who
had lived there all their lives. war Snu
geography thrive together
AN AMERICAN SCHOOL.
We're YOU at the Paris Exposition OF 1889?
Then Won NAV have seen in the American
section quite a large picture representing a
handsome Indian brave sitting upon the
Ground with his back against rock, naked
to the waist, holding IN one hand tiny cru
cifx and in the other hideous medicine
mask hesitating-so runs the story OF the
nicture-between the old faith and the new.
The painter OF that work and of many
other spirlted Indian studies Is DE Cost
Smith. Of this city, an authority on
ali matters connected with the In
dams. Mr.. Smith was born almost
on the edge Of the Onondaga reserya-
ton in this State and has always been In
terested in Indian folklore and tradition.
lie has made several trips TO the Sioux
country, and last about the tine or the
outbreak last summer. and his rooms IN the
Halbein studio building, shared by MT. r..
W Deming, also q delineator OF Indian
| life are a perfect museum OF Indian pipes,
blankets, saddles, medicine, masks, VOL,
skins. tepee poles, and other properties;
| To nv mind such artists rs MI. smith,
Mr.. Remington, Mr.. Deming, and Mr. H..
b. Farnie are doing q very good WORK IN
calling the attention of American artists 10
| tho rich stores of material in their own
| country. IL is their work which has al
readv attracted more attention abroad
| than the thousands Of wlshy-Wa5hy sentl-
mentalities that American artists nave
concocted. These men would welcome
competition. " II there were uoZtu
strong men painting on Indian topics we
| sbould all be better off" said Mr.. smith 70
me the other day. I've should then be
school. But Americans take no interest
in the Indian, although he Is their neigh
nor They will not even believe us when
we represent the Indian as he IS. IL we
represent him as cruel, YlndictiVe,
and savage, they are well pleased, put
they will not believe us when we paint his
virtues as we'll as his faults. The Indians
are not the stoical race which they nave
been usually represented. They are more
sentimental than we are, more emotional.
Their hope of salvation lies IN getting
something to do, but it Is great mdstake
for the Government to try TO make them all
farmers. They make admirable policemen
and cayalrymen. Some might make good
farmers, Others would do as stock-rasers,
and others should learn trades. They Will
not all show the same gifts.
FEASIBLE AND PROMISING.
Mr.. A. NJ. Wellington, c.. f., one of the
editors of the Engineering Noes. speaks in
very emphatic terms about the Nicaragua
! canal. A member of the Nelcs staff, Mr..
StautFer. has madea personal investigation
| of the route of the canal and both he and
Mr.. Wellington are satisfied that 1t Is q
feasible and promising project.
Tho great trouble with the Panama
canal of De Lesseps,n said Mr. Wellington
TO me. aside from the enormous amount
of work involved in cutting through the
mountain for tide-lsyel canal, was the
difficulty of controlling the Chagres
river. In dry weather this is mere
creek. A three-hours' storm transfers
it into O raging torrent which has
time and again done untold dam
age to the works. The canal will probably
never be finished, even with locks, now
that the American enterprise is progress
inc SO fayorably. The Nicaragua river,
YOU know, is not subject to floods. The
great lake at it's source acts like an enor-
nous reservoir to equaliZe its flow. 1t is
like the st. Lawrence in this respect. The
work of constructing q canal along Its
channel will be very simple. The entire
route has now been very thoroughly sur
yeyed.
possesses is its climate. which is by no
means unhealthful, except, perhaps. IN
/ midsummer. The enterprise will undoubt-
edly succeed
All of which squares with what every
American engineer Of experience says.
The best of our engineering experts con-
, demned the De Lesseps scheme years be-
fore its actual failure. If their advice had
been taken the poor people Of France
, might have saved good many of their
hard-earned francs.
THE NEW REVIEW.
Since the Reuieto Of Rerie1os, with an
American copyright, an American depart
ment, and al American edtor-Mr. Shaw
late of the Minneapolis Tribtme--has set
out in the race for circulation and dol
lars on these shores one hears quite
little of its energetic founder, Mr.
= Stead. He is man of whom more will
: be heard in the future, unless | am much
: mistaken. | have never seen more rare
combination of the enthusiast and
/, the keen businessman. OF course every
body knows that Mr.. Stead was imprison-
ed for his action in the Eliza Armstrong
; case. and that he won the plaudits of most
Englishmen and women who think, by tn,
very action which caused his imprlson
: ment. as his object was simply to show uI
: the infamous traffic in Young girls which
: was then and is now possible in Londor
and which has been more recently exposed
in the Werner case.