The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1896-07-10
TIE Times,
owOSSo. FRIDAY, JULY 10. 1896.
Letter from Montana.

"A LCttCi lIUll riOuldnds
The following letter recently received
by Mrs. George Colt from Mrs. Lois Phil
lips will doubtless prove of interest to oul
readers, coming as it does from far-away
Montana:
You will be surprised to hear from me
off here, but sometimes surprises are
pleasant. thought perhaps you might
like to hear a little Of ourtrip into this wild
west country 50 | will tell you. My sister,
my sister-in-!aw and myself left Bancroft
Monday at $50 am, with our handbags
and umbrellas, en- route for Chicago,
where we arrived promptly at two o'clock
p. m. 1t was raining so that we could
not get out very much. We left there at
six in the evening and took sleeper over
the Wisconsin Central for st. Paul, which
we reached the next morning As soon
as we had eaten our breakfast we took a
street car for Minneapolis, and from there
went out to Minnehaha Falls and the
Park. 1t isa beautiful spot. We spent
most of the day in the park, returning to
st. Paul in time to get our dinner and
take the train for Billings, Montana, at
3:15 Tuesday afternoon, and arrived
there Wednesday evening at six o'clock.
We had lovely ride, passing through
the Bad Lands, which was very interest
ing to all of us. Those immense bould-
ers, it seemed to me that in many places
the jar of the train must bring them
down upon us.
On reaching Billings we met my niece's
husband, Mr. barrow, who had driven
over the country one hundred and thirty
miles for us. We left Billings Thursday
morning at seven O'Clock, and drove
twenty-five miles without seeing any
thing in the shape of house except two
or three sheep herders' huts. We took
dinner that day atTAntelope. 1t is all in
the name, for there is nothing there but
a log house and barn, but we had din
ner fit for king. About two o'clock we
started again, and while driving over the
hills we would see large focks of sheep of
from two to four thousand, an OCCASION
ally an antelope could be seen grazing,
and he was thing of beauty. AS he
would look up and see us he would watch
until we began to get near him when he
would start and trot off up the hill, for it
is all hill. | never saw so much country
to the acre. AS far as you can see not a
tree, but such high hills. When we left
Billings we could see, the mountains COW
cred with snow and we were going to-
wards them. 1 asked Mr.. Darrow if we
were going near them. He replied that
we were going over them. They looked
to be ten miles away and 1 supposed we
would beat the foot of them in two hours
but we drove twenty-five miles that after
noon and at o'clock stopped at the little
town of Lavina.
1t was quite pretty little place on the
Mussel Shell River. 1t consisted lof a
stone hotel, where we stopped, small
building used for postofiice, general
store and a saloon, but the stage coach to
and from Billings stopped there SO there
was quite we'll filled house and every
thing was scrupulously clean. We regret
ted that we were not there the night be,
lore as they had general round up of
the cowboys, thirty in number, on their
bronchos with their separate herds of
cattle. They said it was the greatest
number OF cattle that they had ever seen
/, together in that part of the country, but
we hope to see round up yet.
We left Lavina at six in the morning
and drove thirty-two miles to the foot of
those same mountains-Little Snowies-
and they were properly named as they
were white with snow. We stopped
there on the outside of an unoccupied log
house and right near beautiful spring,
where the water came out from the side
of the mountain. There we spread our
robes and opened up our lunch.box, and
I wish you could have seen us, and how
we did eat, for we had had an early
breakfast and were as hungry as wolves
/ am sure. We and the horses all re-
freshed ourselves from the same spring.
That was the first time we had tasted
cold water since we left Billings. They
told us there we must not drink any wa
ter until we should reach the mountains,