Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1912-11-05
PEN PICTURE
OF THE WEST
]. J. PIERCE Delighted With
Scenes While Going Across
Continent
WRITES TO FRIENDS
FROM NEVADA TOWN

estate broker and member of the
Board of Public Utility Commission
ers. is on western trip. He is
having delightful time visiting
places OF interest through the West
and naturally ohservant, he iotted
down many interesting notes. and has
written them In entertaining manner
for THE EVENING JOURNAL Mr.. /
Peirce, in his letter sent from Reno, !
Nevada, SAYS
Il thought few lines might inter-
est you by letting you know what /
have seen. heard and experienced on
my way to the Pacific coast ! left
Philadelphia on the 10th inst, arriv-
ing ia Chicago the following morn |
ing. 1 noticed the corn crop through |
Ohio. Indiana and Iowa is very good
The conductor, going west ON the
train from Columbus, Ohio, who has
run of 1SS miles, told me that he
did not thing that in all that distance
along bis run there was enough wheat
grown TO feed half a dozen families,
but all other crops were good. left
Chicago at $50 D. m. on Friday the
18th on the Overland Limited, u. p. aud
S. p. II. r., composed only Of Pull
man cars. and arrived in Reno on
Monday morning, the 14th. little be-
hind schedule time In crossing the
mountains in Wyoming and Utah and
Nevada, there was considerable ice.
and the frost had cleared most of the
trees OF their leaves, which made IL
look like winter, together with the
surrounding snow-clad mountains.
Reno is very pretty little city with
aomo 5000 or 1000 population. II isl
situated on the Truckee River and
between high mountains There are
many iine buildings. The streets are
almost sixty feet eide and many well
paved. There is good serviceable
electric street car line which runs a
considerable distance out of the city
TO places of amusement. such as parks
and Monana hat springs, whore a large
covered natatorium is built. The
pool Is about 100 feet long and so feet
wide. It's depth runs from TO feet
The temperature of water is from so
h. 100 degrees. IL contains regular
bath houses for men and women. On
one side are several different private
apartments about 10 to II feet square.
They contain water fed by as many
different springs from 80 to 100 de-
grees. Many persons who are af-
nicted by rheumatism battle in the
heated apartments and many cures
have been made
"The land i'm the valley is almost
q dead level, and IL is watcred by
irrigation. The farm land sells for
from $500 to $500 per acre. They raise
wheat oats, potatoes, truck of diff
ferent kinds. apples and pears an'
alfalfa
Visited the Mines.
ron last Sunday a party Of four o
as went out by rail about ~ miles q,
a place called the Steamboat whore
on the side of the mountain, there are
many hot springs. tho steam from
which can bo seen for miles. There are
several pools OF boiling water We
saw two men scalding and cleaning d
pig az one of the pools.
''The surface OF the mountain is sole
rock and barren. The surface IN
many places is cracked open from
six TO twenty-four inches wide foi
several hundred feet in length, alonl
which In places the boiling wate
epurts up two to four feet In places
A seems to be hallow underneath ant
the water can be heard boiling ans
roaring. Many persons so there TO
rheumatic troubles and are general.
cured or benefited
Yesterday, Saturday. the 26th,
party Of FIVE of us took the $50 trail
for Virginia City, where the celebrate
Comstock mines are located. opcne
many years ago by two men name
Fair and MacKeg. out OF which min
We were told over 0.00O.000 in gol
and silver has been taken. We wer
told that the stockholders were PAL
af one time SO 900 600 per month FL
seven consecutive months. Il is IN
richest aud deepest mine IN the worll
Through the kindness of a bank Office
In Reno. who made arrangements Wit
the superintendent Of the mine. "
were taken down and shown throue
t.
We were ushered into a big roo
where there were a big bath tub an
shower baths and ordered TO dsrob
Zach OF use was furnished with a su
Of flannel clothes. an old hat an
shoes At 10 a. M, we. with Mis-
Hazel Lee Roberts, 10 years oil
daughter OF Congressman Robert
Carson City. Nevada, entered n
cage. which holds six to eight pc
sons and descended the shaft TO q
2000-foot level Miss Roberts ";
dressed like a man. We were show
around the engine room. which
sixty to seyeniy-fiye feet long al
thirty TO forty feet wide IL contain
large engines used for hosting an
drilling: also to suck and distribu
air through the different drifts. III
men wear nothing but the thine
pants, and are naked above the wal,
We were piloted through two or thr
drifts for about quarters of
mile. ln places the heat was awf'
from los TO 100 degrees. Tubs OF
water are kept in several places a
~ -.-1cople dip their arms In Il. a
throw il on their heads and necl
while some of the workman hi
chopped ice to their heads. Tn
have long rubber hip boots on, a
III them up with lump ice, Sol
workman will squirt with hose.
water on the ones at work for +
hinuteS and take turn about in Il
way
Down 25O0 Feet.
I'VE were then d to another sh
and let down several hundred T
where we we're piloted through sew
ri drifts there 70 another shaft. WI
we were lowered to a depth OF alb
275O feet Then we we're led throl
several more drifts. Some seemed
me to be half a mile ling The
in places was almost unbearable.
often would come to a blower