We were surrounded by

taken by a tremendous thunder-storm. prairie; and the captain had to lay his craft close to the shore, and cast anchor, there being no stump or tree to hitch to. He is of opinion, that there should not be a cabin on steamers navigating these prairie rivers, where the winds sometimes sweep along with unbroken violence. We saw the Pilot Mounds in the distance, where the military road leaves the Kanzas bottoms and passes through a depression in the bluff to the crossing of the Blue. We passed some small creeks on the right, with settlements on them; and Clark's Creek on the left, affording some fine timbered lands and good springs.

“A little after sunrise on Tuesday morning, we neared Fort Riley, its fine stone buildings looming up grandly in the sunbeams. It is located at the junction of the Republican and Smokyhill forks of the Kanzas, on the second bench or roll of the prairie, having higher bluffs immediately behind, from which the building rock is quarried. It is soft limestone, easily cut into with a pick, and can be split into any shape; we noticed the same horizontal strata cropping out at all elevated points in the prairie. Crossing the Pawnee or Republican fork by the government bridge, we had a good view of the fine country between the two rivers, which rises gracefully backward in high, swelling prairies. Here there is a saw-mill just started. We strolled up the Republican, gathered some black raspberries, and crossed a spring branch, then mounted a high bluff, whence we could see the beautiful Republican valley a long way up. It is nearly three miles wide, high, dry, and level, with a loose, black, rich soil. The river flows in a serpentine course through the prairie bottoms, at some bends making nearly a circuit of six or eight miles, and coming back to within a mile of itself again the banks generally having a light fringe of timber, with occasional groves near the water's edge, in the ravines, and on the bluffs. This is truly a delightful valley- the most inviting for settlement we ever saw. "The Excel' made a short trip up Smokyhill. Lieut. Sargent, from the fort, accompanied us. We had an exciting time. The constant announcement from the man who heaved the lead was, 'No bottom.' The river was full and the current strong, but we had great difficulty in getting round the short bends. It keeps on

the course of the main Kanzas, coming a little more from the southwest. There is more timber on this river than on the Kanzas, above Pottawatomie, and the soil is better. We observed a deep marl deposit on the bluffs, beneath black soil, and the bottoms inclined up prettily from the river. A little way up we saw a band of Fox Indians crossing over, going north on a buffalo-hunt; and their motley procession stretched along over the prairies for miles. Here and there in the party was carried a pole, with a swan's neck or eagle's head and tail, &c., stuck upon it for a flag. They had with them about five hundred horses, all of which looked well. Great was the surprise manifested on seeing the Excel' puffing along up these unknown waters; but, poor fellows! the startling scream of the shrill steam-whistle, and the impetuous snorting of the iron-horse, will soon scare off the buffalo and other game from your huntinggrounds, to return no more you, too, must follow in their trail, or succumb to the irresistible influence of civilization.

"Some forty miles up Smokyhill, an extensive bed of gypsum has been found, specimens of which have been tested and proved to be of superior quality; we brought a small specimen home with us. Salt is also alleged to be very abundant on the Saline fork; the waters of the Smokyhill are often quite brackish, and when the boilers of the Excel' are filled from that river, there is a slight incrustation of salt deposited. Specimens of coal, both bituminous and anthracite, and of tin, lead, and iron ore, have been brought in. Hints have been given that gold abounds, but in parts-unknown! There cannot be a doubt, however, that valuable minerals will be found cropping out beneath or interspersed in the primitive formation, as we ascend toward the Rocky Mountains. The country rises very rapidly inʼthat direction from Fort Riley; up the Republican, for instance, the ascent, in the first three hundred miles, is said to be two thousand feet. The rock in the vicinity of Smokyhill is principally limestone, and the river bottoms are a sandy loam. The upland prairies are broken, but of black, rich soil, particularly where limestone predominates; the valleys are also very rich, and the soil mellow. Passing over the high uplands, often there is nothing to be seen but prairie spreading out beyond, till it is lost in dim distance; when all at once, as if by magic, you come upon a

So.

a

with fine springs and clear running water. This is, indeed, a wellwatered region, and must be salubrious and healthy. We previously mentioned the scarcity of timber above Pottawatomie; it may here be added, that it is inadequate to supply what would be needed for agricultural purposes, and hardly sufficient for firewood. Here and to the westward, a new era in agriculture must be inaugurated new system must be practised. Nature demands that it should be Instead of clearing timber lands, as in eastern states, the citizen-farmers of Kanzas must grow their timber. There is fuel wanted, but coal in many places can be got with little labor; houses must be built, and fences made, but, in the absence of sufficient timber, excellent rock for all purposes can be procured in abundance; or, for fencing, the farmer can hedge himself in most completely with Osage orange. The country abounds with the most luscious grapes. Stock of all kinds are remarkably healthy; and these rolling prairies will make the finest sheep-walks in the world. In fact, this may be designated the PASTORAL REGION OF AMERICA. The gardens at Fort Riley look well; and we procured some beautiful wild prairie flowers.

"The difficulty of navigating the Smokyhill with a stern-wheel steamer of such length as the Excel' prevented Capt. Baker from venturing so far up as he otherwise would. A shorter side-wheel steamer, of very light draught, adapted to the navigation of these interior rivers, will soon be put on the trade. We left Fort Riley, on the return trip, on Wednesday morning, and came down 'kiteing.' Passing rapidly in review the splendid scenery of which we have attempted to make hasty memoranda, we entered the Missouri about daylight next morning.

“Before concluding these brief notes, it must be remarked, in reference to the productions and climate of Kanzas Territory, that there are, no doubt, superior hemp lands in its central and western portions; but Nature unmistakably indicates stock-raising as the proper and most profitable occupation for the farmers who shall settle there. In the great Kanzas valley below Pottawatomie, and in the eastern region along the Missouri, there are some of the finest hemp lands in the world. Wheat, corn, oats and vegetables, grow as well there as in any of the western states. Those in the Platte

Purchase, immediately east of the Missouri river, who attend to fruit-growing, say that their apples, peaches, plums, &c., cannot be surpassed anywhere; we can see no reason why as much may not be said of the same crops in the region across the river.

"The winters are generally dry and pleasant, and the roads fine; but little snow falls, and this lies on the ground only for a short time. Sometimes, however, there are very cold spells' of weather, but they are not of long duration. For instance, the masons in Parkville, Platte Co., Mo., quarried and laid stone last winter with but little interruption on account of the weather. Common cattle, colts, mules and sheep, can be wintered on blue-grass, provided the pastures are allowed to grow up in the fall, and the stock have a little corn or hay occasionally. February and March are frequently quite pleasant, and much ploughing can be done in the mellow dry loam of the Kanzas valley. The summers are quite warm and long, the thermometer (Fahr.) not unfrequently marking up to near one hundred degrees in the shade. The high prairies, however, are generally fanned by cool, refreshing breezes; and as we ascend the branches of the Kanzas from Fort Riley, there is a rapid rise to a cooler region. In May and June there is a superabundance of rain; but the latter end of summer and fall is generally dry."

Phillips, Sampson and Company's Publications.

A WORK OF GREAT INTEREST!
JUST PUBLISHED.

HISTORY

OF THE

PROTESTANT CHURCH IN HUNGARY,

FROM

THE BEGINNING OF THE REFORMATION TO 1850.

WITH REFERENCE ALSO TO TRANSYLVANIA.

TRANSLATED BY

REV. J. H. CRAIG, D.D.,

HAMBURG.

WITH AN INTRODUCTION,

BY J. H. MERLE D'AUBIGNE, D.D.,

PRESIDENT OF THEOLOGICAL SCHOOL, GENEVA.

Comprised in one volume, duodecimo, of 500 pages. Price $1.25.

Extract from the Introduction, by J. H. Merle D'Aubigne.

"I wish to recommend the narrative to the notice of all friends of Protestant faith. No complete history of the church of God in Hungary has as yet been published." "The work that we now offer to the public ought, therefore, to be considered worthy of attention, were it only for its novelty; but more particularly so on account of the labor that has been bestowed on its composition. The author is a man possessed of enlightened piety, sound judgment, integrity, faithfulness, and Christian wisdom, — qualities well calculated to inspire perfect confidence. He has obtained his materials from the most authentic sources. Government edicts, convent protocols, visitation reports, and official correspondence, have all been consulted with scrupulous attention, as is proved by the numerous quotations he cites. He has thus sought to place the authenticity of his book on an indisputable basis, and at the same time to render it impervious to the shafts of hostile criticism."