The
ground is so level, that the woods on the horizon had the effect that
the first sight of the dark line of land has at sea. In many places near
the road on each side, small farms were established, and good-sized
fields of Indian corn were growing; and wherever there was a railway
station, a town, or even a "city" with one or two churches, and an
hotel, besides grocery stores and wooden buildings of various kinds,
were in progress in this immense wilderness.
The rain poured down incessantly, giving the country a melancholy and
forlorn appearance. Towards the latter part of our journey, we descended
into and traversed the great valley of the Mississippi. We passed
several coal-mines, and here, where the vein of coal is eight feet
thick, the land, including the coal, may be bought for one pound an
acre. The country soon assumed the appearance of a great swamp, and is
most unhealthy, being full of fever and ague.
At length our train stopped, and we were ushered into omnibuses of
enormous length, drawn by four horses, and two of these caterpillar-like
looking vehicles were driven on to the steam-ferry, and in this
unromantic way we steamed across the great Father of Waters, and a most
unpoetic and unromantic river it appeared to be. There is nothing in
its width here to strike the eye or the imagination, though its depth is
very great, and it has risen ten feet within the last week.
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