Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1899-08-31
Letter From Boston.

Letter From Boston.
Dear Folks.-Boston, with all her
famous streets-her streets that no one
but an old inhabitant that has been
here for at least sixty or seventy years
can find their way about upon-found
me last week very carefully but
earnestly irving to find my way from
the North Union depot to the musical
part of this city.
found my way, but not without a
great dc Il of inqniring, getting on and
off streets cars, tried patience and Q
couple of real tiredlimbs. They say
/ that when BOSTON was laid out that
| the cattle made the streets-that is,
understand me. in driving the cattle
from the then village tO the pastures
tho cattle were allowed to take any
route they wanted and when street
was laid II was laid on one of the
numerous routes taken by the cows.
| That sounds tritle odd hut If there
are any douh,ers let them come and
tackle the proposition nj finding their
way about here and they will mot only
be convinced hut .hev will think that
Roston at that t,me had cattle that
drank something besides water.
OF course haven't had tim" 10 see
amy Of .he c,tv and snprosr il will
take time Ia ee. acquainted with the
place, hut I have seen the famous
common and it certainly is wonder.
nothing like 1t in the world unless it is
the London parkcs where u person can
do or say any thing lie wants to.
| On the common you can see tho
white, the black and the yellow mans
burden if that is what you want to
call it, you can see ball game, q prize
| fight (between boot tlacks) hear any
thing from Mormon sermon to the
hard luck story of tourist print, in
fact you can find anything 1t Is the
one place In the U. s. to study mono.
logy.
Just across from the common Is the
botonical gardens and they are filled
with all the plants, trees, flowers and
shrubery known to man, 1t is q very
beautiful park as we'll as interesting.
Y esterday, Mrs. Wilson of Natick, in
vited a small party to drive from
Natick to Wayland, Concord, and back
and must say it was one Of the most
enjoyable trips ever took. Concord
suppose is the most famous city in the
States. 1t is q famous saying tina
sculpturer, and an occasion" but Con-
cord gave them all.
The first place of interest we visited
was the Free Public Library and while
it was not as large as many have
any l have ever visited. The next
10 f0 Mi ~
the place where the Minute men first
resisted the British, it is a fine drive
down what is called the avenue of the
Pine" or Monumental street; it stands
at the head of the street leading off to
little bridge where the first of the
| fighting took place. Its fine monu-
ment and it fills person with sad
ness to think that we had to shed so
much blood to become free country.
To the left of the monument Is little
grave that markes the resting
place of 1.-TWO British Soldiers" That
is all it says that is known.
From there we went to the old
Sleepy Hollow burying ground, there
we found the graves of such people as
Lousia May Alcott, Ralph Waldo En-
erson, Henry d. .rhoreau, Nathaniel
Hawthorne and many others. 1t is q
most beautiful burying ground, one
of the finest in the world. AS we
came back we passed the old "Sch0ol
of Philosophy" where few years ago
Emerson, Hawthorne, Thoreau, Sousa
Alcott and others used to meet every
day and carry ON their school, 1t was
not school in the strict sense because
there you studied life, man, history.
how to raise corn, weather, and in fact
any and every subject known to man.
1t stands in the rear of Orchard
House near Lousia Alcott's old home,
and is now closed as is her old homo.
On the Lexington road you pass the
Wayside Inn, House of Hawthorne
and it is one of the prettiest places in
Concord. We visited many other
places of interest there but as time is
short will not have time to- mention
all On our way back we stopped at
the wayside inn made famous by
Longfellow in his poem "Tales of q
Wayside Inn," and 1 think it is the
most interesting place have visited;
the old inn stands as 1t did two hun
dred years ago; the sign, "The Red
Horse Inn" still hargs in front, the
same old knocker is on the door and
the same old bed and bar are there as
in the time that Washington and other
great men stayed there. Lafayette
and Washington use to go there when
time would allow. 1t has since been
visited BY most of the famous people
of our land and as Longfellow said:
GAS ancient is this hosiery as any
in the land may be-" built in the old
Colonial days when men lived in "a
grsnder way with ampler hospitality.
1t is a grand place and western peo-
pie who cone east should be sure and
see 1t. In our drive I discovered one
thing and that was that the roads are
about as crooked as the streets are in
Boston; they do not know what q field
of corn looks like; all the farmers
seem to raise is vegetables. Will
write more about the city when l get
so I can know little more about
1t. Yours.
FRANK HARRIS.
Boston, Aug, "a, '99.
Remarkable Rescue
Mrs Michael Curtain, Piainfield, ILL.,,
mo hoe tho ototoropt thof che ooNrht