The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-07-23

THAT Proves the Pluck and En-
terprise of Western Americans
More Forcib1y Than Any Event
Connected With the Settlement of
the Country.
By Judge Charles e. P1andrap.
to form a company of about 100 or more
men, calculate the probable expense to
each and divide 1t, purchase an old whal-
ing ship, fit her up with hunks and cook
Ing appliances, get an outfit and sail.
OF course there was nothing involved in
the enterprise but the departure, the
voyage, and the arrival at San Francisco.
No steamer had ever crossed the ocean
at this time, and all navigation was done
in sailing ships. So great was the rush
that scarcity of ships was soon felt.
remember distinctly, on one occasion,
when an old, played out vessel was pur-
chased by party which proposed to
take out printing press and start the
first newspaper, was seized by the mari
time authorities and condemned as I'M
seaworthy just as she was ieaving port.
The next morning she was gone, and
made one of the quickest and most sue
cessful voyages of the emigration. 1t
is curious fact that out of all the ships
that enlisted in this hazardous enter
prise not one was lost or seriously dam
aged.
The overland route involved more dan
gers and hardships than the one by sea.
Many people died on the way from ex-
haustion and disease, and many were
killed by the Indians, but the emigration
never ceased or even lessened from these
reasons. l have followed the trails made
by these emigrants in the Sierra Nevadas
anG 1t seemed almost impossible that
animals could have climbed the precipi-
tous mountain slopes they encountered.
These hardships, however, did not go
uhrewarded, because to enjoy the dis
tinction of being a "Forty-niner." was
ever afterwards a. badge of nobility on
the Pacific coast.
1t was not long, under this vast influx
of immigration, before, California became
we'll settled state and its business re-
Iadons with the rest of the country. or
as it was then called, ''the states" be-
came very extensive and important. and
the difficulty of ntercommunication was
seriously felt. There were no teleeraphs
and no railroads, and no way for business
men to correspond with each other, ex-
cept across a continent on wheel or
around continent by sea. What was to
be done? 1t did not take the genius of
American enterprise long to solve the
problem. The overland immigration and
its incidents had developed a class of men
skilled in horsemanship, Indian fighting
ana all the accomplishments that attend
the latter, such as courage wary intelI-
gence, and peculiar sagacity in trailing
and scouting, only learned by intercourse
with wild animals and wild men. Such
men, for instance. as Col. William Cody.
now celebrated as Buffalo Bill" and
Robert Haslam, distinguished as "Pony
Sob" are It's best representatives. This
class Of men much resemble the rough
riders of today, and could be relied upon
for any enterprise that involved adven-
ture, courage and endurance. At the
same time the country was not lacking In
higher degree of intellect which could
conceive a project that would call into
play the utmost ability Of this class of
men.
California had been, and I think was
In 1860, represented in the senate Of the
Urnted States by Senator Guin, who was
associated with Alexander Majors and
Daniel E. Phelps in transportation mat
tiers. They conceived the project of re-
ducing the time between the Pacific coast
and the states by the establishment of
an express from St. Joseph on the Mis-
souri, river, to Sacramento, in California.
distance of about 1900 miles which was
| to carry SOecial business mails