The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1899-04-28
From Colorado.
CoRTEz, Montezuma Co. I
Colombo.

To the reader Of history It locks q
] though Mexico would be the NOR,
fitting word % follow that headinl
than Colombo, but il is correct d
written. Perhaps it is because NJ
are 80 near Mexico. or New Mexico
that tho names feel the influence.
But perhaps some one asks why il
the preacher y hundred and twen.y J
miles from his home. Well he 10 on
not spree, but u vacation. The
Colorado Missionary Superiutend ent
heard, or dreamed or mistrnsted in
some way that the Silverton preach.
er wanted q vacation. and forthwith
he, the Supt., urged the preacher to
pack his grip and go to Cortez and
hold weeks series of evangelistic
meetings. SO here I am, taxing 1
vacation by putting in three or foul
times as many services as l would ai
home. You know the best vacation,
or rest, or at least change that some
people can have is to pitch in and do
something.
It certainly is a great change in
some respects to come into this Sec
tion. When I loft Silvsrton three
days ago the mountains, the valleys,
the foot hills, the valleys and the
streets were an uubroken mass of
whiteness az they have been for the
last four months aud half. In
coming to tho depot 1 saw drifts of
snow four and five feet deep. But
by the time We had come twenty
miles down the valley there ives no
snow to be seen except on the tops of
the mountains, and when We reached
Durango forty-1ive miles from Silver
ton we found green lawns and all
the signs of opening spring.
As my friend and myself were TAX
ing a walk after supper around the
city of Durango, all at once one of
the steam whistles in the lower part of
the city began q furious blowing.
We said there must be q fire down
there. Then another whistle took
it up, and another, and still another,
and all, till it seemed a. If
every steam establishment in tho
city must be on q regular blowout,
and We said, why, why it must be a
very serious fire. Then the guns BE-
gan to boom and the anvils, and
soon we saw the rockets going up in
all directions, and We thought that
instead OF fire, the city bodily gone
crazy. We stopped = little girl who
was hurrying home, and asked if she
knew what all the racket was for.
Why, she said in surprise, didn't you
know that the Ute reservation is Just
0pened2
The Ute Reservation 10 q section
Of land some fifteen miles wide and
100 miles length in the southwestern
corner of Colorado. and it has just
been opel e1 up for settlement. Du.
rango lies very near the reservation,
md is expecting quite = boom from
his opening up,snd 70 in true Amer
lcan, Fourth Of July fashion, they
we're celebrating. From DnsanRo "a
lamo5 5aons sixtYmflbo aitefIYs1
that is you unldefstand that directly
means in travelling in this mountain
ovs c< untry, the ramshoru style,
going thee miles to make
one. For the first twenty miles No
~ Re climbing up hill uptil We we're
1000 feet above Durango ON starting
point. Then for tho next twenty
miles We were going down hill, un-
LII We had gone down tho 1000 feet
and more too. A little more variety.
you perceive than in travelling over
The seemingly almost interminable
level prairies of Southern Minnesota.
We passed through one section of az
ine pine timber az / ever saw in
Northern Minnesota OF Wisconsin.
As we reached the top of the range
and started down bill again, ! ssw
away in the distance = snow capped
range evidently a long
distance off. ! asked the conductor
what mountain they were. he re.
plied, "the Blue Mountains" About
how tar OF are they, said L: "Oh
about one hundred miles" was his
answer. Think of looking from the
Top of the court house in Worthing
ton to tho northeast about ten or ff
con miles beyond Mankato or the
same distance southwest beyond
Sioux City, and seeing something
to try it we will land you one of our
fox awhile. In fact we
might let you have half q dozen
from right around SilvextoR aud not
miss them.
This Qorte4 is in the heart of the
Monteauma valley some fourteen
miles from the railroad reached by
stage. It is said to be a very fertile
valley, but they have TO- depend en-
tirely upon artificial irrigation. The
water is brought from the Dolores
river Is miles away in = big ditch
They tunnelled through the solid
rock for quite a distances in opening
the way. The water is brought into
the tawn Of Cortsz by a fume some
thing over three miles long, built up
on trestle work; this treetk work il
10 some plaoea over 20 feo* high.
Tho whole d1me cast something over
SCI, 600. It Looks to me as though
Tia same distance could have been
Piped for half that money. But per-
haps that would not have given ths
contractor as large pxo&ta CO as the
flume apd trestle work. Bnt what ID
= preacher sppoeed to know about
financial matters anyways
They say oil things earthly have
au end and 90 perhaps you are be.
ginning to haye doubts % to this