Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1911-05-17

the following interesting letter from
Herman Buchner to Atty. E. NJ.
Lowry.
Sacramento CAL, Apri 30, 1911.
Dear Ed: During my wandering
on the west Coast 1 have thought
frequently of you but never seem to
find time to write. Tourists hardly
ever have time even to sleep or eat.
You will see hereafter how your name
was brought up and that it set my
spirit in motion to write you.
left Los Angeles five weeks ago
to start on my second leg of this race,
stayed day at Santa Cruz and went
through st. Lorenzo Canyon to the big
tree country where I found one of
the Lords great creations, number
OF the big trees. 1t will not be neces-
sary to tell you how high they are
or their circumference, as that is a
matter of record I might write pages
Of what saw on the way in and
around San Francisco but that is not
my intention.
I left Petaluma Cal, Saturday.
yesterday morning, on the last leg of
the race. l went back to Market
Street Pier, s. f., to get new start.
We had to cross the bay TO Oakland to
get on the train; then up along the
shore of the bay to Porta Costa where
the train was placed on carferrY
boat which is claimed to be the largest
carferry boat IN the world 1t is
large as it had four tracks and each
track held nine cars.
We crossed over to Benicia which
is 81 miles from Sacramento What
found remarkable was that the entire
distance was plain, mostly swampy
and for some ten or more miles under
water. There seems nothing on the
horizon to break the view. It was
only a few miles from Sacramento
where a little higher land was found.
Sacramento is only 30 feet above sea
level
I was Informed that the ebb and
tide effects the Sacramento river at
this place, and that il is, in fact
tidal city I could not account for
this great body Of water but was in
formed that it was the overflow from
the Sacramento and Republican rivers.
When one looks at the map around San
Francisco one will find Sacramento
ninety miles away You have an idea
Of the extent Of this great bay.
Nh. and Mrs "A. r. Tiel had in
vited me to pay them visit SO I
stopped with them few days. 1t is
not necessary to give you description
Of this city as that you can get from
any encyclopedia but a few things
which I ascertained may interest you.
Mr.. Tiel took me up to take look at
the capitol building In my expIora-
tion found the assembly chamber.
took seat On the speakers chair and,
perhaps, was one of the first Badgers
who occupied the chair. There was
no cheering or waving of handker-
chiefs the great room was perfectly
quiet and those present raised no OBJ
jeCtions.
Afterwards I passed into the Law
Library and asked to be shown to the
corner where the Wisconsin Reports
we're on the shelves. [ made some re-
mark about Wisconsin and the young
lady said that she was from Wiscon-
81, ,.,J
Ashland told her | was from Ian
caster, Grant county. why" said
she, ~ have schoolmate who came
FROM Lancaster. I wondered who it
could be. She said it was Charlotte
Lowry. I told her knew Charlotte
since she was born. She was highly
pleased. We had a pleasant talk to
gether. Before leaving I requested
her to sign her name in my memoranda
book and it is this she wrote Wini-
fred Merrill, State Library, "HelIo
Charlotte. Sacramento Cal.
From there we passed into the
General Library. Your name always
brings up our conversation about the
naming and meaning of the word
Potosi. You were the only one
who gave us satisfactory
answer about the derivation Of the
word. 1t occurred to me that it was
a fine opportunity to find something to
fully satisfy me about the derivation
and meaning Of "Potosi. /" The young
lady attendant placed me in charge of
another attendant and sent me to case
516 where many reference books as to
minerals were found. I took out
dozen books but, could not find the
word "Potosi' in the index. 1 found
it in the Encyclopedia Brittanica