Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-06-09
By David w. Norris.

me OF promise unfulfllled. prom
ised Mr.. T.. S. Benson, of Portland, tc
tell the readers of the T.-R. how that
vast country looked to me over which
the great railway system with which
he is connected holds sway.
Who, in Iowa has ever heard of the
Oregon Short Line? We know what is
meant when one speaks of the New
York Central, or the Pennsylvania
system; we are familiar with the
Northwestern, the Great Rock Island
route, the o." the Wabash, Santa Fe
Milwaukee, the Northern Pacific, 1lli-
nois Central, Great Northern, etc, but
how many of us know what and where
the Oregon Short Line is. And yet, 1t
is a great railway system, thousands
of miles in length. with steamship
lines to San Francisco, and Alaska,
and magnifcently equipped stage lines
into the Yellowstone Park. and other
places inaccessible by rail. 1t runs
thru six great states; 1t traNerses the
arid plains and the fertile valleys of
The west: tunnels the Rock Mountains;
sweeps along the mighty Columbia
for hundreds of miles, and ploughs
the Pacific Ocean for more than two
thousand more. The general auditor
of this great system of transportation
and navigation, is Mr.. e. S. Benson,
of Portland, formerly of Marshalltown,
and our reception at the Hotel Port
Hand was so cordial, that l volunteered
a word of commentator.
A good many people think that good
manners belong to the east; that west
tern people are too busy, in too much
! of hurry to be polite. If any one
thinks that the officials and employees
| of westrn railroads are lacking in
courtesy, he is mistaken. Railway
corporations in the west want to pay
dividends; in order to do this, they
must have patronage; in order to get
| it, the travellers comfort is studied,
land looked after in the most palms.
| taking manner; everything is done
! that can be done, to fayorably impress
/ him with that great and wonderful
/ country. Leaving Butte at p. m. we
i found no difficulty in getting Pullman
accommodations, but there was no din
ing car service. We naturally expected
| to fare poorly at the railroad eating
| houses along the line. AT Butte, we
found one of the daintiest and best
ordered little cafes that can be found
anywhere on earth: we stumbled on to
lit quite by accident but we afterward
| found that same cafe was well known
lin Portland and Seattle. In fact 1T is
the Delmonico of the west. Not know
ling how we might fare further on, we
took precaution to order on elaborate
lunch, but the laugh was on us. when
we found at Melrose, supper fit for
king. at about one half the cost of
1 4 &c of continual
wonderment to the stranger. to find
at all times and places, in that appar
emily desolate country, all the delica-
cies off the season. One is at loss
to understand where all the good things
come from, and how the people get
them, but they are not only supplied,
| but they are served in way to tempt
any appetite. Both salt water and
! fresh fish are abundant, and at Butte
we were served with the most delicious
melons that it has been our fortune
to find. We found that that cafe used
nothing but the famous 'Payette'
| melon, a melon unknown to this coun-
| try. 1t Is grown in the Payette valley
| and takes it's name from that river.
In appearance. it resembles the Hack
ensack, the smaller, but it has flavor
l anu d utiiCdGS, oUl SSi' e't'SA -.
mate can not give to melon. The
Rocky Ford, which comes from Coll
orado, is also a famous melon, and
so is the Brigham. which is grown
in Utah, but neither is quite as fine
as the Payette.
A Magic City.
| The ride from Butte to that magical
little city, Pocatello, is made in the
night, and the traveller has only from
4 D. m. till dusk, to take notes But
we saw many charming scenes on the
way; the Beaver valley, which is ira
verscd for some distance, is especial!
| beautiful, and at one of these pretty
| little towns, wher our train stopped
for minute or two, about sunset, the
| young people We're out enjoying the
cool of the evening, much as they do
in Iowa or New York. They We're we'll
and fashionably dressed, intelligent,
| wide awake. The town had beautiful,
hard streets, and we saw nice equip
ages rubber tire buggies, and good
| horses. Everywhere as one passes
thru that country, he sees eyidenc of
prosperity. The people all seem pros
porous, and they seem to be getting
more fun, and a good deal less work
out of life than we do here. How they
get their money, / hardly know, but
what they have seems to come easy.
| AS night closes in, we only know that
at Monida the stages start every morn
| ing, during the tourist season, for the
| Yellowstone Park. We also learn from
| the folder, that we cross the great
Snake river at Idaho Falls, and are
due at Pocatello at a. M Here we
wait until 6:15 a. m. for the train for
| Portland. The main lines of the Ore
gon Short Line, are from Granger, in
! Wyoming, to Portland, and from IVA
da, in the southwest corner of Utah.
to Butte; the junction of these lines
| is Pocatello.
| While the official headquarters are
at Portland the real headquarters are
at Pocatello. Pocatello is another of
these marvels in a country of marvels.
Situated in the midst of Il desert plain
| it is nevertheless most beautiful little
city of 1900 10 5000 people. one sees
no gardens, on fields of grass. no aifal-
IA, nothing but the dreary white alkali
dust and sage brush. and yet what
veritabe garden this is all to be. Poca-
telo is prosperous, and one of the BUSH
est little towns in America. There is Il
charm about it that one feels but con
not describe. / said there was no vege-
tation all along the tracks, thru the
city, and for mile in length, the Ore
gon Short Line, like the Northern Pa
cific, has a system of small emerald
\