CHAPTER I
THE START FOR ALASKA.
OUR long trip to Alaska and return, nine thousand miles in all, commenced on June 17, 1892, at the Grand Central Station, New York. Arriving at Chicago the next afternoon, we obtained a good view of the great exposition buildings from our car windows as we passed along the lake front. Shortly afterward we were dumped down at the wretched sheds of the Michigan Central Railroad. It rained very heavily, and ourselves and hand baggage were somewhat wet passing a short distance to a carriage. We soon crossed the Chicago River to the Northwestern Depot, boarded the train, which left at 11 p.m., and arrived at the beautiful modern city of St. Paul at 1 p.m. the next day. The Hotel Ryan was found to be very comfortable, and everything in and around the city is bright and cheerful. Great business activity, and immense and costly buildings are especially noticeable.
Running along the streets are great numbers of spacious and elegant cars drawn by cables. We hailed a passing one, got in, and went slowly and carefully through the crowded streets, up and down hills, with great speed and ease, into the country for some miles, passing many elegant private residences, as costly and fine as any to be seen in any city in the world—notably one built and occupied by Mr. Hill, president of the Great Northern Railroad, now about completed to the Pacific Ocean, whose name you hear mentioned often as one of the great railroad magnates of the West. The streets are clean, the sidewalks wide, the front yards of the houses crowded with beautiful plants and flowers, and in all respects we concluded that St. Paul is a most delightful city.
CHAPTER II
ON THE WAY TO THE YELLOWSTONE.
Livingston, Montana, June 22, 1892.
WE left the city of St. Paul at 4.25 p.m. on the 20th, by the Northern Pacific Railroad, and arrived here at 8 a.m. this morning. A section on the sleeping-car had been previously engaged, and we found it and the dining-room car attached to the train all that could be desired, so that we thoroughly enjoyed the entire trip. Passing through the Bad Lands was a wonderful experience. Great mountains of clay or stone, in all sorts of grotesque shapes and of many colors, constantly attracted our attention until we reached the Yellowstone River, which was higher than it had been for many years. Here things began to look serious, as frequently the dirty and rushing flood came near to the track, and the rise of a foot or so would have caused a wash-out, and have stopped our progress; but for many miles before we reached this station, the engineer moved the train of ten cars very carefully, and we were only two hours behind time. There has been a bridge burned beyond this place, and some bad wash-outs are reported by passengers coming East, who say that they had to travel around six miles on foot, through a country infested with rattlesnakes, leaving their baggage behind; but we expect that all will be clear on Monday, when we shall have been through the park, and will be ready to go on from here West.