The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1902-06-27
In Sunny California.

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA. June 19.-My
wife, little boy and myself reached thi.
land of the Setting Sun" about ten dav:
since, and will say that everything thu,
tar is fully up to our expectations.
We had a very pleasant trip acros:
plains and mountains, reaching here Z
little more than five full DAYS after leav
Jug Baltimore. The country from Balti
more 10 Chicago is very similar to our
own Maryland, except, perhaps, Ill
and around the larger cities; Harrisburg
and Pittsburg, with their smoke having
every sign of large manufacturing plants
Through Illinois, Ohio and Iowa we
traversed much level country, and as we
came through everything was very wet,
they having had very wet month dur
ing May OF course l could not help
thinking how much we had needed rain
in Hartford during that very time. AS we
came on through Nebraska and Colorado
| the country became much dricr, and also
more rough and hilly. After leaving
Denver via Denver and Rio Grande Rail
road, we passed through a more pic
turesque section of country than | had
ever expected to see; the Royal Gorge"
being beyond all my powers ot descrip-
| ton. When crossing the suspension
| bridge, about midway through the gorge,
| we had straight walls of rock on either
| side, said to be two hundred and seventy
feet high. The gorge is 80 feet wide at
bottom and only 70 feet at top The
trip all across the Rocky Mountains was
a continuation of views, various descrip-
tions, canyons and gorges, plateaus and
ravineS and always lots of SNOW in the
mountains in all directions. We passed
down the western side Of the Rockies,
mostly during night, and came ont into
Utah in the morning, reaching Salt Lake
City, the home of the Mormon, about o
A. NJ. Then we made short stop, but
saw little of interest, however, except
Brigham Houng's temple and number
of long, low houses with from four to
nine doors, as the case might be, where
one man to each house was said to have
as many wives as there were doors to
that house; each wife having her own
door, which she must use exclusively
This information was mostly received
from a porter, so do not care to vouch
for veracity)
The trip across the Sierra Nevadas was
also very picturesque, around the long
loop above Doemcr Lake, coming back
couple of miles almost beside our previous
course only far, far above it; then into
the snow-sheds, which cut off our view al
most entirely for forty-one miles. We
made a stop on the summit, however,
long enough to each get a good big snow
ball. quite novelty to us on 9th of une.
We drifted down this side of Sieras
into California, travelling about 20 miles
beside the first irrigation ditch we had
ever seen, and often times we could see
the farmers and fruit-raiscrs turning the
water into burrows afew feet apart, thus
refreshing and advancing crops when ma
ture failed to furnish sufficient moisture.
We reached Oakland, just across the bay
from San Francisco, about p. NJ. June
10th, and San Jose, our present stopping
point, about O'Clock that same evening,
and alter going to the Hotel St. James
and getting good baths, change of CLOTH
ing and nights rest, we all felt as well
as when we started from Maryland |
Since that time all has seemed more like
il dream than a reality. The long, beau
titul valleys, with pretty towns and good |
roads, lined with palms and flowers and |
fruit trees of all descriptions, laden with |
fruit in all stages of maturity, and not |
by any means the least important nor
least noticeable feature, the good horses,
all are signs to me of prosperous and |
healthy country.
J. H QUlNBY.