The Monitor-register., 1897-05-28
Communicated
A Day in Salt Lake.

delphia, are laid out at right angles, and
a few in the central part of the city are
paved with asphaltum. The street cars
run in the centre of the street, with a
sixty-foot driveway on either side. The
main and business portion of the city
needs but little grading. as il is nearly
level. with just enough fall to carry off
the water that comes from the mountains
in the rear of the city.
From early spring until the middle OF
June, or later, the melted snow from the
mountains is carried through tie upper
part of the city through two walled.up
bitches, five feet wide and six feet deep,
and the water rashes down these bitches
at the rate of ten miles an hour. One OF
these streams runs at right angles with
the city, and on quite an elevation above
| the business portion. At intervals little
gates or openings are made at the inter
sections of the main streets and the large
| ditch, and water just from the mountains
is allowed to course down the cutters
during May and June, or later, if the
snow should last longer. 1t is a beauti-
full sight to see pure snow water coursing
down tie cutters when pedestrians are
hugging the shady side of the street.
This city contains quite a number OF
| %millionaires' residences, which are built
on a hill overlooking the main part OF the
city. The owners of these residences, as
a rule, have but little interest in the city,
their principal interest being in mines in
different States, and they have their
homes here for convenience sake, pleas
ant climate and good schools.
The wealthy as well as the poor class
are quite evenly divided between Nor
mons and Gentiles, and while the Gentiles
make no distinction either socially or in
business dealings, 1 was told that the
Mormons were quite clannish and only
dealt with a GENTLE when they had to.
In riding over the city n sees the ear.
marks of early Mormonism in the way of
Brigham Young's fine mansion, his office,
one or two of his favorite wives, and the
three million dollar folly called a temple,
which is seldom opened to the members
and never to a GENTLE. All this fabulous
sum was expended for the church to the
detriment of the city and its poor inhabi-
tants, who by the thousands were living
in novels and not only giving their time
but fittings at the same time.
Had the price of that temple been ex-
pended in improving the miles of streets,
identifying the parks and building pub
lie school houses, tie rising generation,
both Gentiles and Mormons, would have
seen something in Brigham Young as a
dictator to be proud of. But Salt Lake is
no exception to any city or country that is
run by any one religion or sect; the
general public suffer just to the extent
that that particular church advances.
Look at Mexico years ago, when the
Jesuit fathers were supreme in both
church and State affairs; and l have seen
in print that out of the 365 days in the
year there were 212 holidays that gave to
the church nearly double the time than
that allowed to the State; but things are
different there now. California was no
better up to fifty years ago, when the
Spanish and Mexicans owned that terri
tory. While the holidays in Salt Lake
were not so numerous, the fittings were
quite a burden to the early inhabitants,
as the hundreds of one-storied brick and
adobe houses, with not even q sidewalk
in front, together with miles of unpaved
stand as living witnesses to the
way collected fittings were disposed of.
Until the Gentiles got control Of this
city and the city control separated from
the Mormon church, vas there any build
of note in the business portion, but
now Salt Lake has buildings that would
be a credit to any city in the Union. l
ing while there. The church has a seat
ing capacity of 10000, and l think there
were 1000 present. l was told the organ
was the largest in the United States, and
was built in the Tabernacle. The choir
contains 300 voices, and, accompanied by
the organ, made music long to be remen.
bered by a tourist.
The Mormons seem to be very devout
and sincere in their religion, but whether
they are right or not l consider no affair
of mine. They are getting recruits to
their faith continually. and only last
week a delegation Of eighty passed
through Denver en- route for Salt Lake.
from Denmark, Sweden aud Germany
the work of several elders for two years.
One of the chief products of Salt Lake
is making salt, there being an everlasting
supply of the article with which to make
it, namely, the lake itself. The process
of manufacture is simple and inexpensive,
simply make a leYee or dam with the
earth at hand. pump water into it from
the lake, and when the water ~evaporates
take a shovel and VIII eelbarrow and load
the salt into cars. The salt will be from
six to eight inches thick, according to
the amount of water pumped in.
The railroad from Ogden to Salt Lake
is about thirty miles in length and runs
through one of the richest valleys I have
ever seen. The ranches are small and
the principal product is vegetables of
all kinds, with occasionally a field of
alfalfa, as that seemed to be the principal
hay raised there, and they cut three crops
off the same ground in one season. This
comes of irrigation, as everything raised
in the valley is irrigated. There are
railroad stations every few miles, and
with the small ranches and the close
proximity of the houses made it seem
like a continuous village from Ogden to
Salt Lake. Anyone having a rst.class
ticket to the coast and return will be
granted a twelve hour stopover at Ogden
and a ticket to Salt Lake and return free
of charge. To anyone who has never
seen Salt Lake, twelve hours could be
very we'll spent.
July 9th is the iftieth anniversary of
the arrival of the Mormons at Salt Lake,
and they are making great preparations
by collecting relics of the first OK train
that brought Brigham Young and his fol-
lowers. The curios consist of the wagon
Brigham rode in, saddles. COX Jokes, spin
ming wheels, cooking utensils. dresses, fire.
armsworn by some of the ladies and hun
dreds of other articles. A large hall has
been procured and all the articles will be
on exhibition. President Mckinley and
IL Aa-a Aaa. s..;Aal L.