Servants And Labourers Get Higher Wages There Than In Manitoba,
All The Men Were Averaging Thirty-Five To Forty Dollars A Month
And Their Keep.
They were all Swedes and Germans, of whom there is
an enormous colony in the state.
We are now trying to spend our day at Council Bluff, a large
junction of the Grand Pacific Railway, having come in here at 8
o'clock this morning, and our train to Denver not leaving till 7
o'clock this evening. The hotel is right on the station. The
weather is so hot, that as yesterday, at St. Paul's, where we also
had to spend a whole day, we have never summoned up courage to go
beyond the door. It was suggested we might take the tram and go up
into the City; but E - - has a notion that one city is much like
another, particularly on a hot day.
It is curious how Americans live in hotels; there are several
families in this, and if my letter is not very intelligible you
must forgive me, as I am writing in the grand corridor to try and
catch the slight draughts of air blowing through, at the same time
that half a dozen children are playing up and down.
The scenery yesterday from St. Paul's all along the banks of the
Missouri was very pretty. We both of us sat outside the Pullman as
long as daylight lasted, feasting our eyes oh the water, trees,
etc. The height and luxuriance of the latter seemed quite
incomprehensible after the total absence of forest scenery for so
many months. It is pretty round here; and by the time we get to
the Rocky Mountains we shall have got beyond the stage of thinking
a hillock a mountain, and fairish-sized trees not so wonderful
after all; but at the present moment we are in that pleasing
state, ready to admire anything and everything. We hope to get to
Denver on Saturday night, and rest there Sunday and part of
Monday, and we also hope to get to Church there. Mike offered to
drive us into Warren last Sunday; but as the service was a Swedish
Presbyterian, we didn't think we should be much edified.
* * * * *
DENVER, August 2lst.
We arrived here Saturday evening, very tired and not at all sorry
to exchange the Pullman for a comfortable room and bed, which we
had telegraphed for, and therefore not, like so many of our
fellow-passengers, obliged to seek shelter elsewhere. The
Pullman's are most comfortable, and for a long journey like ours
nothing could be so good; but I am glad that in England we don't
have either these or the ordinary American car in general use. The
publicity is so odious, and one does get bored by the passengers
constantly wandering up and down the train, and the boys who pass
and repass every ten minutes selling books, newspapers, cigars,
candy, and the unripest of fruit, which they are always pressing
you to buy; to say nothing of chewing, spitting Americans one has
to countenance all day long. The last four-and-twenty hours of our
journey have been very tiring. The scenery has been so monotonous;
endless long undulating plains like the waves of the sea, covered
with grass quite dried up, a few flowers, and a bee-shaped cactus.
The heat was very oppressive, a hot sirocco, wind blowing which;
obliged us to keep our windows shut on account of the fine
alkaline dust. E - - had her window open last night, and awoke this
morning to find herself in a layer of ashes.
We skirted the South Platte River most of the time; it was only a
bed of shingles, wide and shallow, with not a drop of water in it.
These plains, extending for thousands of miles in all directions,
are the great "ranching," or cattle-farming districts, formerly
the favourite breeding-grounds and pastures of the buffalo, which,
alas! have all disappeared. We only saw a few tame ones amongst
the herds of cattle; they have been killed in the most ruthless,
indiscriminate way for their furs, and will soon be "things of the
past."
We wondered much, with the river and every visible stream so dry,
how the large herds of cattle and horses were watered; but have
since been told that water is so near the surface the herdsmen
have no great depth to dig to procure any quantity. We thought we
could have made a good pick or two amongst the horses, but we
didn't care for long-legged ugly big-horned cattle brutes. Here
and there was a herdsman mounted on a small Indian pony with a
high Mexican saddle, enormous spurs, and a long lasso, galloping
and dexterously turning his animals.
Our train had to pull up several times and whistle loudly to turn
the animals off the track, there being, as usual, no rail or
protection; but pulling up for them was not half as exciting as on
Thursday night, when we stopped repeatedly to turn a man off the
train who, not having paid his fare, nor apparently intending to
do so, had swung himself in some marvellous way under the cars,
hanging on by the break. Whenever we slackened speed he jumped
off, walking quite unconcernedly alongside; but the moment we
moved on he got on again. We never knew how far he continued his
perilous ride, I fancy that even the officials gave up
remonstrating; anyhow, as long as daylight lasted and we could
watch the men, no efforts on their part seemed to make the
smallest impression.
Three hours before getting into Denver we had our first glimpse of
the Rockies, and although they were then only in the blue distance
we were quite excited about them; and at Greely Station (much
impressed on our minds by having read Miss Bird's book just before
coming here), we came in full view of Long's Peak, - almost wishing
"Mountain Jim" might still be alive to ascend it with us, - and
the whole of the gorgeous range; and quite one of the loveliest
sights I ever saw was watching two thunder-storms on either side
of the Peak break and disperse, whilst the reflections from the
sunset-glow lit up the rest of the heavens.
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