The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-04-23
I'M WILDWOOD DAYS.

western iowa ana on the plains anu
in the Rockies in early days from the
pen Of G. Smith Stanton has just made
its appearance from the press of the
J. s Ogilyie Publishing COMPANY.
New YORK The volume is entitled
When the wildwood Was in Flower,
and Is dedicated to the men and NO
men who endured the hardships and
brayed the dangers OF the frontier
that their descendants might enjoy the
comforts and benefits OF civilization.
Il il devoid OF attempts a. fine writ
ing. and preachments, but is invalu-
able as throwing calcium light on CON
dtrions half century ago which have
vein 81 subtle hunor pervades the
book and adds 10 It's interest and
value.
Tie author is son OF the famous
Elizabeth Cady Stanton. known the
world over as one Of The pioneer leaders
il the equal suffrage movement. In
the early co. he graduated from the
Columbia College Law School, and OF
account OF his health decided 10 start
z stock ranch on a large tract Of land
IN western Iowa left Tim in the viii
of his grandfather. Judge Daniel Cady.
The transformation from law Office
II Nassau street 10 an isolated stock
, ranch on the Missouri river was q
!, startling one, and the contrasts are
strongly brought out in the narrative
Al that time the Chicago &. Northwest
ern railroads.&c. first che 10 be COM
: pleted across the stata,-Fad rails
I laid as far as Boone. whence daily
stages started for the west There was
nothing about Boone, when Mr. Stan
4 ton first saw it. to remind him Of
Fifth Avenue or Broadway. He thus
/ describe the place:
i Imagine a out two hundred one
; story detached frame buildings. about
a every other one saloon, gambling
). house or dance-hall, strung along a
street-simply stretch OF prairie
s about sixty feet in width-with not 4
:. tree in sight, crowded with a sample OF
every brand of citizens from border tc
border, and you can pretty nearly size
4 up town at the end OF the line
: Inc buildings were thrown together as
n II was only question of thirty DAYS
before they would again be moved tc
the end of the line There was plenty
4 OF music and whiskey Occasional
fights added to the excitement. Tall
: Dlack-mustached, rough-looking men
with wide sombreros, their pants il
their boots. armed cap-a-pie, jostlet
! their way through the street lookins
g for trouble and generally finding it
e Young officers from the government
al forts, dressed in the uniform Of the
n lited States army, were slipping wine
i. with straw-haired girls Indians deck
:. ed out with feathers. moccasins anC
blanket were on the still-hunt FOL
Z fire-Water to drink and dogs TO eat
= One Of the Indians more successful
d than the others. got too much fire
& water. He shed his blanket, and il
the garb Of Adam, with the exception
of feathers on his head and noccasfns
IS on his feet,with war whoop, knife il
Or hand, undertook TO carve way up the
~ street. Above the heads OF the re
: treating crowd circled lariat. anc
:. as 1t settled over the red man!
. shoulders it frightened, and Mr.. Indiar
y bounced behind a coyboys pony to the
We cooler
i Mr. Stanton was astonished 10 note
ne the amount Of profanity required IL
20 build railroad He figures that i
~ profanity were o. intrinsic value ant
a. could be put in cold storage he heard
n enough of it the two days he passed
y in Boone to pay the dividends on the
= stock Of the Northwestern for genera
~ fiooe m c,orna De ~ e,,,,d -,
= satisfaction in it all. Everybody wa
= an American, and English was the onl,
= language heard The immigrant from
!, the other side had not yet driven the
s American from the labor market
4, Moreover, the sense Of lair play re
: yaded the community, and there was a
z body Of citizens always standing
around who took particular pains to
sec that everybody. no matter who or
what he was, got a square deal
Mr. Stanton's ranch was in the iso-
i ted valley Of the Pigeon river twenty
miles from Wood me, and there he
. lived for the next fifteen years. one
/ Of the first acquaintances he formed
. IN the west, Of the animal kingdom
IL "eS ei4e pldiIle VOL or coyote. His
Il dog and the wolves we're great friends
Il and often played together. He credits
= the prairie wolf with having the most
. unearthly yell Of all the four-footed
8 animals, and declares that any col.
# LACE could get on 10 that yell the others
/, would certainly throw up the sponge.
Z He tells Of the wolves chasing a mail
+ carrier in the DAYS before the railroads
+. when tae mail was carried across Iowa
q relays The mail route between
i Harlan ~ shelby county and Magnolia
: IA Harrison county passed through his
s lend and is YES there that he and his
IN rescued a mail carrier from a
y. pack Of wolves by firing revolvers at
c them That night the carrier told him
1t ne wouldn't cross that prairie again
g for the proceeds Of all the star routes