Some Of The Officers Had Come In With Documents Which They Wished To Have Mailed.

And while we stood waiting, corporals and privates, servants of other officers brought in letters which Lieutenant So-and-so "was particularly desirous of having mailed this morning." The driver was magnanimous enough to submit to me whether we should wait.

We all felt accommodating the postmaster I saw was particularly so and we concluded to wait till everything was in, and perhaps we would have waited for some one to write a letter. I could not but think it would be a week before another mail day; and still I could not but think these unnecessary morning hindrances were throwing a part of our journey into the night hours. Returning again to the eastern bank of the river by our fine ferry, we soon passed the spacious residence of Mr. Olmsted, a prominent citizen of the territory. We made a formal halt at his door to see if there were any passengers. Mr. Olmsted has a large farm under good cultivation, and several intelligent young men in his service. In that neighborhood are some other as handsome farms as I ever saw; but I think they are on the reservation, and are cultivated under the patronage of the war department. The winter grain was just up, and its fresh verdure afforded an agreeable contrast with the many emblems of decaying nature. It was in the middle of the forenoon that we reached Belle Prairie, along which are many good farm houses occupied by half-breeds. There is a church and a school-house. In the cemetery is a large cross painted black and white, and from its imposing appearance it cannot fail to make a solemn impression on minds which revere any tangible object that is consigned sacred. A very comfortable-looking house was pointed out to me as the residence of a Catholic priest, who has lived for many years in that section, spreading among the ignorant a knowledge of Christianity, and ministering to their wants in the hour of death. And though I am no Catholic, I could not but regard the superiority of that kind of preaching for visiting the sick, consoling the afflicted, and rebuking sin by daily admonitions, is the true preaching of the Gospel over the pompous declamation which now too often usurps the pulpit.

The dinner was smoking hot on the table when we drove up to the hotel at Swan River; and so charming a drive in the pure air had given me a keen appetite. The dinner (and I speak of these matters because they are quite important to travellers) was in all respects worthy of the appetite. The great staple article of Minnesota soil appears to be potatoes, for they were never known to be better anywhere else Eastport not excepted and at our table d'hote they were a grand collateral to the beef and pork. The dessert consisted of nice home made apple pies served with generosity, and we had tea or milk or water, as requested, for a beverage. After partaking of a dinner of this kind, the rest of the day's journey was looked forward to with no unpleasant emotions. The stage happened to be lightly loaded, and we rolled along with steady pace, and amidst jovial talk, till we reached the thriving, but to me not attractive, town of Watab. Three houses had been put up within the short time since I had stopped there. We got into Mr. Gilman's tavern at sundown. I was rejoiced to find a horse and carriage waiting for me, which had been kindly sent by a friend to bring me to St. Cloud. It is seven miles from Watab to this town. It was a charming moonlight evening, and I immediately started on with the faithful youth who had charge of the carriage, to enjoy my supper and lodging under the roof of my hospitable friend at St. Cloud.

LETTER XIV.

ST. CLOUD. THE PACIFIC TRAIL.

Agreeable visit at St. Cloud Description of the place Causes of the rapid growth of towns Gen. Lowry The back country Gov. Stevens's report Mr. Lambert's views Interesting account of Mr. A. W. Tinkham's exploration.

ST. CLOUD, October, 1856.

IF I follow the injunction of that most impartial and worthy critic, Lord Jeffrey, which is, that tourists should describe those things which make the pleasantest impression on their own minds, I should begin with an account of the delightful entertainment which genuine hospitality and courtesy have here favored me with. I passed Blannerhasset's Island once, and from a view of the scenery, sought something of that inspiration which, from reading Wirt's glowing description of it, I thought would be excited; but the reality was far below my anticipation. If applied to the banks of the Mississippi River, however, at this place, where the Sauk Rapids terminate, that charming description would be no more than an adequate picture. The residence of my friend is a little above the limits of St. Cloud, midway on the gradual rise from the river to the prairie. It is a neat white two-story cottage, with a piazza in front. The yard extends to the water's edge, and in it is a grove of handsome shade trees. Now that the leaves have fallen, we can sit on the piazza and have a full view of the river through the branches of the trees. The river is here very clear and swift, with a hard bottom; and if it were unadorned with its cheerful foliage-covered banks, the view of it would still add a charm to a residence. There is a mild tranquillity, blended with the romance of the scene, admirably calculated to raise in the mind emotions the most agreeable and serene. For nature is a great instructor and purifier. As Talfourd says in that charming little volume of Vacation Rambles, "to commune with nature and grow familiar with all her aspects, surely softens the manners as much, at the least, as the study of the liberal arts."

St. Cloud is favorably located on the west bank of the river, seventy-five miles above St. Paul.

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