The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1915-07-29
Back From Our Vacation.

turned Sunday evening from our va
cation trip to Wisconsin, where we
spent a week with our sisters. We
were not troubled with either hot
weather or dust on the trip, for dur
ing the eighteen days we were away
we had at least showers on all but
two or three days. We had intend
ed to drive west from Madison cross
ing the Mississippi river at Prairie
du Chen, but the heavy rains had
made the Wisconsin roads in bad
shape, so we started south for Dixon,
Illinois. intending to drive home over
the Lincoln Highway and Interstate
Trail. We left Madison at noon last
Wednesday, heading south through
Oregon, Evansville and GAINESVILLE,
Wisconsin, then to Rockford, Illinois,
the latter part of this trip being over
Z river road which had been washed
entirely away in places. A few miles
before reaching Oregon, we met q
tourist from Illinois who said south
Of Oregon they had encountered a
regular cloud burst near Grand De-
tour, and while he was only In the
edge of it, had to be pulled out three
times that afternoon, and advised us
not to try to drive beyond Oregon
that night, so we put up there for the
night. Thursday morning we learn
ed that the route to Dixon was even
In worse shape than the tourist re-
ported it, and no cars were coming
it., SO we detOured northwest to Polo,
then southwest to Sterling, Illinois,
getting stuck only once in the mud,
steen miles from house and not q
stick or any stones in sight, so we all
pulled green grass and filled up the
mud hole until the wheels would
turn and finally got out of the hole.
At Sterling we struck the Lincoln
Highway and had gravel and macad-
am road almost all the way to the
river which we crossed at Fulton on
the first toll bridge we encountered
on the trip From Fulton we went
to Lyons and south over the pave
ment to Clinton. Our Thursday night
stop was at Mt. Vernon, where the |
only hotel was already filled with
tourists so the landlord secured us
rooms in a private house, just across
the street from Cornell College, the
great Methodist college. 1t has
beautiful grounds, and fine build !
ings. Leaving Mt. Vernon Friday !
morning we wendell our way west |
ward, the going being only fair, with |
stretches of pretty tough roads. The |
country is very billy and the Lincoln |
Highway passed through much |
rougher country than the River-to-
River road which we went east on. |
Lots of hills, and some pretty good /
ones, and the recent rains had not
left the roads in very good shape. We
spent an hour or so in Cedar Rapids, |
and then drove west through Belle |
PLANE to Tama. After leaving Tama |
we drove for several miles through |
the Tama Indian Reservation, where |
the Tama Indians reside. They own /
much land, but make only feeble |
effort at cultivating it, the land be-
ing in very neglected condition,
the corn very small and weedy, and
the Indians living in little shacks |
in half civilized manner. We pass |
ts useae sid Indian sitting by the side
of the road dressed in blanket and
Indian costume who was so Wrlnkled |
we judged him to be at least hum
dred years old About six miles east |
ct Marsha!ltoWn we struck the best !
roails we had found on our return /
trip and the roads were good from
there on west, but we had quite a /
little shower just after leaving Mar
shalltown but kept on going. Reach
ing Ames at O'Clock we decided to
drive through the college grounds
and then on to Boone to visit a short
tine with cousin, and there Is
where we made mistake. 1t was
fine going and Boone was soon reach
ed, but tremendous rain and hail1
storm and a genuine cyclone reach
ed there almost as soon as we did,
nearly four inches Of rain falling in
about an hour. Barnum & Bailey's
circns was exhibiting at Boone, but
the storm interferred with the night
performance and we decided we were
safer in house than in circus tent.
No cars were moving in or out OF
Ames until late the following even
ing, so we remained at Boone until
Sunday morning, and then drove
back to Ames, and on to Des MOines.
Three miles north of Ankeny, we
passed the place where on Friday a
man from Des Moines named Down
ing, who was trying to beat a rain
into Ankeny, had his big Packard
car skid on the road and tip back
wards into twelve foot ditch, kill
ing his wife and he was quite serious
" injured. We did not get through
the mud until we were some miles
south of Des Moines. At Indianola
We found the Interstate Trail south
closed for seven miles, SO had to go
east and south and then back to the
trail. The river south of Indianola
was bank full and had been all over
the bottoms and the bottom road
was quagmire. We would advise
parties driving to Des MOines to take
the Blue Pole line after leaving Osce-
ola, as it is much better than the In
er-State at this time, some heavy
grading being done on the Inter
State northeast fof Osceola. Old De-
catur county was soon reached and 1t
was easy sailing TO Leon, and the
road north of Leon was as good as
any we found on the way home.
ttl We could not but notice how good
the crops were the nearer we got
back to old Decatur county, and no.
where on our trip of almost 1900
miles did we see as good corn as we
BaM here In Decatur county, and our
Rnev,n AVG hovo M kiok cOminN Mich L