O Spirit of immortal truth,
Thy power alone that circles all
Can feed the fire as in its youth—
Can hold the runners lest they fall!
Christopher Pearse Cranch.
CHAPTER III
THE CONQUEST OF THE PLAINS
The Indians had long since ceased to be a serious menace to the United States, and the policy of the government for many years had been to settle them upon various selected tracts of land west of the Mississippi. But the population of the West was increasing very rapidly, the completion of the railway to the Pacific having given it a great impetus.
THE PACIFIC RAILWAY
FINISHED, MAY 10, 1869
"And a Highway shall there be."