Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-12-06

country were doing their fall blowing
the same work being done in the farm
ing districts in North Dakota
and Montana. We left Bill
ings, Montana, seven hours late
and connected with the Burling-
ton from Lincoln, Neb. at this point.
Our train was now very long one to
climb the Rocky Mountains; they adj
ded four more passenger cars to the
train and the same to the first Sec
ton, but we climbed over the big
mountains slow just the same On
my arrival here it started in
to rain, The rain was need
kept up raining for ten days and it
was not cold and that melted the snow
on the mountains and started the
flood over the valleys and lowlands in
the western and southern parts of
Washington. About the 10th it turn
ed colder and on the morning of the
goth we saw the ground covered with
about two inches of snow 1t showed
more or less all day, but it turned
warmer and some of the snow melted
1t turned colder that night and now
we have very nice winter weather with
little more snow last night. This
cold weather checked the outside work
that was going on all over the city,
but it may not last very long. l saw
an old timer the other day and he
said it was hard to tell. as he had
lived in that country for 20 years and
had never seen two seasons alike.
Here is one thing-they have no cold
wind here like in Iowa and the middle
states. Spokane is a very lively little
city, up to date in every respect, the
mining metropolis of the northwest,
the best inland city west of st. Paul
and Minneapolis. which is 1900 miles,
and about 400 miles to Seattle and Ia
coma. Spokane is the wholesale cen
ter between the Rocky Mountains and
the Cascade Mountains, with the tim
Der and minerals north and east and
the wheat land in the big bend west,
and the rich land under irrigation
south of here.
What makes this one of the greatest
cities of the inland is the big water
fall of the Spokane river, which is To-
Gated in the center of the city. Spo-
kane is a very fine river with this out
let from the big lake of Occur d'Alene.
The water fall is used most for the
Washington Water Power company,
which furnishes the city with electric
light and suburban towns all around
The same company is the owner of
nearly all the street cars and interur-
ban lines which run for nearly fifty
miles in all directions into the little
mining towns in Washington and
Idaho. must say that the street car
system in this city is enc of the best
I ever seen, and the interurban lines
are doing a big business. | went to
Occur d'Alene yesterday, about thirty
five miles. The round trip ticket is
S1.00 and the fast interurban trains
make that in one hour each way, and
there are eleven trains each way every
day and twelve Saturday and Sunday.
At Occur d'Alene they connect with
the steamboats, for several points in
Idaho in the Occur d'Alene mining
district, and they also connect with
the Occur d'Alene and Spokane In
teruroan railway to Hayden lake and
other points, and all the power is fur
nished from the great water power.
Spokane is divided by the river in
the center The south side has the
business part of the city, with wide
| streets and modern business and of
| fee buildings, three to six stories high
and | understand that they will build
1 a sky scrarer here next year. Several
big buildings have gone up this year
| and a few of them are not completed
IT