Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1906-03-01
Letter from tho South.

Mississippi river and while we
are stopping at this place will
commence a letter to you. This
is sure going to be an ideal trip.
We are the only lady passen-
gers going the entire trip and
the world is ours, | tell you.
Took the boat at New Orleans
at 5 y. M. last night. The cap
tain lives in the city and is
lovely. He tells us everywhere
we pass and made us get up at
daylight to see the scenery;
took us over to an elegant
plantation home no one living
in it now. | can not think of a
person leaving such a home.
The sugar plantations seem
like little towns. Some are the
rice plantations and in some
places water is carried over the
levec into the rice fields. 1t
looks odd to see the ground
lower than the river back of
the levee. They are now build.
ling a new levee there by leav-
ling some homes between the
two, and wen some towns as
the one we are now at. The
business portion comes between
| the two levees and the houses
must be moved or left to ruin.
We see the remains Of what at
one time were beautiful homes.
The immense pillars standing
remind one of the old ruins of
Rome. have alwayssupposed
a Creole was the white person
with just a little negro blood to
give the beautiful black eye,
and when remarked the same
to the captain last night he al
most fell off his chair and ex-
plained they were children of
Spanish or French parents. He
is. as a child, from Illinois, but
said had | said this to a south
erner they would have gone
straight up. Just now he came
in to have us go out on deck
and see a Creole lady whom he
would be talking to. She had
the beautiful eyes. We have
Elegant meals on this boat,
finer than any we have yet had
at any place only the coffee.
My, if could only have a good
cup of HUNS" coffee, what a
relish it would be. We will
reach New Orleans a week from
oday and Monday and Tuesday
are only the real big days of
the carnival. We paid our room
| up past the time we will be
away to hold it for us. We are
in an elegant place, right at
city hall where King Rex and
his court comes and is present
ed the keys to city, breaks the
bottle of champaign, etc, so on
our gallery. as they call 1T, we
could not have a better place
had we looked the city over.
Friday was our high touch of
southern life. In the morning
I'VE took an autoseeing the city,
and surely no city can boast of
finer residences than st. Charles
avenue. The one impressing
me most was owned by a Mr..
Brown, the cotton king. Only
la few wears ago he came here
with $4,000 in his pocket; today
he is worth his millions. In
the afternoon we took in the
races and there we saw a sight
| can not say | admired. Ladies
play the races same as men.
Not being allowed to go below
to the pool room, men come
around and sell, others giving
tips. One girl not over II put
up on odds and three to one,
ETC., until we saw her hand in
5000. Before we left they
counted her out $4,000 in cash,
and she was only one in many,
and so excited as they did get
| asked if nice ladies did this
and they tell me they do. One
young man made $4,000 that
day. The people are disgust
ling but the horses are fine.
Not much like our races; none
of that jockey business. A man
goes in front of the horses and
says stand back until they are
all in line, and when they say
go they go; only have one start.
There are not less than twelve
or fourteen in a race. The
first was a hurdle and that was
fine. We had only seated our
selves until our friends, Mr..
and Mrs. Cohen we met on the
train, came in, so we were with
them all afternoon and went