Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1898-06-10


To Lee Champe. Fred Stiles and Nern
Ayres
Dear Friends:-
Having few minutes OF spare time
this afternoon, thought would write
and tell YOU that had not forgotten my
old friends, hoping, also, that they have
not forgotten me during my absence.
| | am going to try and tell YOU how we
are getting along
! To-day is Decoration day We drilled
| this morning. as usual, but this after
noon we got hall-holiday. About o.
| clock, the regiment formed i'll column OF
companies 70 hear our chaplain preach
memorial sermon After the sermon,
Lieutenant Colonel Little gave short
and interesting address To the boys, i'll
which nc told us that Kansas. during
the last war, had furnished more soldiers
than she had voters, and that all had
been volunteers: that they had been
brave soldiers. and that he hoped we
would conduct ourselves in such a man
ner that Kansas would be proud of US
those who might return.
We had u very pleasant trip across the
continent on the Union Pacific railroad.
We saw all there was t , sec on the way.
from prairie dog town to the ridge OF
the Sierra Nevada mountains. We saw
Pixies Peak ut a distance oi about 30
miles
am not much stuck on the Great
American Desert There is too much
sand and little or no vegetation.
We Travelled in Il sleeping car and
passed through Denver, Cheyenne and
Ogden during the night So did not see
much OF them. We managed To sec part
of Great salt Lake 1t looks very much
like the sandy desert only a little greyer,
or whitcish We crossed the Rocky
mountains in the day time. and think
they are truly named. They look like
great heaps of rocks piled up. heap after
heap, and have scarcely and vegetation.
But the Sierra Nevada mountains arc
during the day picked some flowers
oil of the top of them during one OF our
stops. and sent them home, | do not
know what they were, but they are pretty
The whole range is covered with pine
trees. There are several other kinds ui
trees there. too. but most of the trees are
pines.
1t was a grand sight to look down a
valley, in the morning, and sec The great
pine trees grow small in the distance,
until they looked no larger than the
sage brush OF the desert AnuthcrEraud
sight was to- sec the clouds, at sunset,
hover around the snow-capped noun
tain tops
passed through several snow storms
on our way II began to get warmer
rs we descended the western slope of the
Sicrras into California
Sacramento is the finest city we passed
through on our route The people liter
ally strcWcd our path with flowers.
California flowers are very beautiful
Gala lilies fuclsiaS, etc. growing in
the wards here as roses do At home.
We reached san Francisco, Friday eve
ming May goth, about $50 O'Clock We
had been on the road four days and four
nights We were given our supper by
the Red Cross society, and then marched
to camp which we reached about o.
clock Then we pitched tents and all
were asleep by II O'Clock. Since then,
we have been having all sorts Of times;
some hard times and some good times.
1t was pretty tough, drilling eight hours
dav. which we did at first, as we did
not know much about drill.
Some of the commissioned oiiiccrsc could
not give their men an explanation even
of right face So, OF course we had /"
drill hard They know more now.
We are one of the best drilled regiments
here now Both officers and men learn
rapidly. We drill four hours Il day, now,
and have for some time.
Saturday, May, 9th, went to see
Golden Gate park. 1t is one OF the finest
parks in the world 1t covers 1,200
acres of ground and you will find all