The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1892-07-07

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may be passenger.
Our train being behind instead of
having three-quarters Of an hour to
stay in St. Louis we had just time
| enough to arrange for our berths on
the City of Mexico sleeper and get
ourselves and our baggage aboard the
same. Mr.. London hard been thought
full enough to telegraph ahead to have
lower berths reserved for the whole
party and we were fortunate in getting
them. Our train pulled out on time
1925 p. M, May 28th) and we were
soon speeding away at a rapid rate
toward the Pacific coast. At st. Louis
we were LOGS miles from home the
way We travelled, and had just got we'll
started on the journey. A heavy rain
storm was run through early in the
night. It was inky blackness outside :;
| fiercely the wind blew and copiously
the clouds poured out great sheets of
water. Electric lights in towns passed
made weird picture as they flickered
and flared in the misty rain, and be-
tween stations everything looked dark
and dismal and dreary. We retired
early and soon were lulled to sleep by
the rattle of the cars and the patter Of
the rain drops on the window pane.
Springfield, an apparently prosper
Gus town, was passed at 5:35 O'Clock
the next morning, the distance from
st. Louis being 238 miles, and soon
thereafter we entered a regular mining
country where the whole face Of; the
earth adjacent to the railroad had been
bored for '',jack,'' as the ore is called,
and dirt and rock thrown up resembling
vast prairie dog settlement, only on
a larger scale. 1t was neither gold
nor silver the people found but lead
and zinc, and this was told is obtained
in large and paying quantities. This
was in Jasper county. The ore is found
all the way from few feet below the
surface to 200 feet down. 1t is rare
that shaft is sunk to this depth, how
ever. So extensive are these mines
and so great is the yield that this Sec
ton alone furnishes about two-thirds
of the entire amount of lead and zinc
in the United States, so l was informed
by an intelligent and reputable gentle
men of the community whom CHANGED
to meet on the train. One of the chief
towns in the mining district is Ornogo,
which derived its name in rather
peculiar way. When the camp was
first opened twelve or fifteen years ago
near the site Of the present town,
among other enterprises established
was store kept by matter Of fact,
money getting fellow who always
demanded the cash or its equivalent
for his goods and wares, or there was
a disappointed would-be customer.
fla miner wanted to purchase an
article and didn't have the money, he
had to plank down the value of it in
proprietor was & Ore, or no CO." which
he had marked in conspicuous but
crude letters over the door, and from
this the town took its name-Ornogo.
An hours ride brings us into Kansas,
entering the State near the South
eastern corner. The country is level,
we getting we'll into the prairie Sec
ton by this time. AS far as the eye
can reach is one broad stretch Of
living green-grain and grass-spread
out before us. The land is rich and
produces on an average 20 bushels of
wheat to the acre without the use of
any manure or fertilizers.
We begin now to get our first sight
of immense herds of cattle and droves
of horses. They feed on wheat, rye,
oats and alfalfa as it stands in the field,
c1a fof FIJI
picture this is and one / would delight
to see in North Carolina. And why
not? Clover and grasses can be easily
grown with US and the profit when
converted into beef cattle or horses
and mules is greater than that realized
from either tobacco or cotton. But
our people are set in their ways and
it is hard to get them out of the old
ruts. 1 was much interested in the
large fields of alfalfa seen growing all
through this country. 1t grew to good
size, was green and luxuriant and stock
greatly relish it.
The West is a great country for
wind mills. They are used for pump
ing water for stock and household pur-
poses. In many Of the fields were
small ponds or pools of water for use
of the stock and the supply is kept fresh
by constant pumping from the wells.
This part of the State looks like it is
anything but Bleeding Kansas"
Great piles of wheat straw left from
last years crop, waving fields of grain
and pasturing herds indicate that there
is no carnival of grass hoppers out this
way and no immediate danger of star
walton stares the inhabitants in the face.
1t is fine country and impressed me
more favorably than did the central
and Western part of the State through
which travelled some years ago. At
1876 p. M, we arrived at Wichita,
a once prosperous but much over
doomed town. The bottom has dropped
out so to speak and the population to-
day is not what it was three years ago
by many thousands. Several large
manufacturing establishments, a hand
some and costly public school building
and a number of splendid business
houses and elegant private residences
showed that they had built we'll if not
wisely. But they had gone ahead of
the surrounding country and had not
calculated far enough in advance. Real
estate was sold at fabulous prices,
rents were enormously high, people
went there by the thousands, their
means were soon exhausted, their sub
stance gone and many who could do SO
have now gone themselves. This is
the fate of thousands who believe the
Ger drawn tales they read and hear
about the wonderful boom towns at
a distance, or who seek the Ell Dorado
or look for the land of milk and honey
which to them always lies beyond the
confines Of their own surroundings and
country.
But 1 have made this article quite
long enough for one time, and next
week I will take our readers with us
on through the fertile fields of Kansas,
over the mountains and valleys of
Colorado and New Mexico, the snow
capped peaks and barren wastes of