| Show FROM SALT LAKE TO BUTTE BUTTE CITY montana october 11 1894 bound for the settlements of the saints in alberts alberta canada I 1 left salt lake city on monday evening the ath lust the distance from the capital of utah to butte montana is 97 miles by rail after leaving idaho palls falls formerly engle BOOK op oa snake miles from salt lake city the therall railroad road crosses the great snake river valle valley yand and enters the mountains on the be north through beaver canyon rhe fhe grade up that mo mountain obtain gorge is very steep and our engine became disabled aisa bled in round log a big curve whick delayed us quite a while anti and before the long train could get a fresh start it became necessary to back down clown into the lower erd of the canyon reaching the top of the mountain at ark an elevation of feet above sea level levei the passengers were informed that they were in ia the state of montana aud and on the headwaters of the missouri river proceeding down grade along rod bed rock BOOK creek and crossing the big hole river we crossed the continental divide and found ourselves in that region of country which is drained by the deer beer lodge lodger a tributary of bitter boot river which to is a trib tributary of salmon river we soon oon re reached the small railway station called silver bow from which it is in seven alies to butte the monotony of the he long ride from salt lake city to butte was somewhat relieved by the singing chatting joking etc etc of neatly nearly a score of colored gentlemen gentle gent lemeD meu 10 all professed ministers of the gospel and represent ins ing the african methodist dono denomination luina they were bound for helena where a grand conference is to be hold held by them isome of them were black as a stove others yellow some were old other young and some middle aged lut all were jolly Joll and happy together the responsibilities not bill ties of their pending conference did not seem to bother them in the least their free and cheerful attitude might serve an as a rebuke or a warning to the very long faced and melancholy ministers ot of the same religious tion ion but of a different color A couple of young ladies of massive builds build who judging fudging from their attire belonged to 90 the salvation army also amused their follow fellow passengers by singing ater the 13 ball alland and other popular sin airs this was evidently intended for their awta ears only but the strains were sufficiently loud to be heard and appreciated at least by some of the african fellow travelers the latter were good sink sing ers era the first impressions of butte upon a stranger strang bk as obtained by a view from the window of a union pacific railway car in approaching the city are disappointing so far as appearances go only a partial view of the town can be obtained owing to the intervening bills and broken gullies As the train nears near boub butte the passenger finds the monotony of arid and plain and abandoned placer mines relieved by tee sight of great bull buildings dings which upon inquiry he be learns are shaft houses and smelters shelters sm elters the immensity of the build ings perched on the hill sides some af them hundreds of feet above the valley im impresses upon the stranger the oie conviction that mining in butte Is ia conducted upon apon a eollo coll esal scale the smoke from hundreds of tall tail chimneys greets the eye are the smelters shelters sm elters casting a glance to the north the tops and abd the sides of the mountains ate are seen to be crowned and thickly dotted with shaft houses house nearly two hundred in number X several of these structures together 11 with the machinery and plants are said to represent investments of floco fl each though the mines cabbe cab be seen been from the railroad only a small email portion of the city of butte it is visible belore before a correct idea of the town can calm be formed the visitor must take a trip through some of its principal streets at least the heart ol of the city is nearly two iwo miles from the lower railway depot butte is located on the sloping sidle side of a mountain in the very heart of the great mineral belt of the continent and nu mediately across the continental divide on the ane west side the mountain side upon which the city stands faces south and is a gradual incline quite steep in places from the tum mit to the valley tit t its base the rho streets run very irregularly as compared to salt bait lake city having been laid out to conform to the show and golubes and natural lay of country the main street runs rung newly nearly north and south and extends all the way up from the bass base to the top of the tee hill or mountain on which the city tends stands main street and others of the principal thoroughfares abound with fine bus stores and business bul nees blocks blocke there are also some good churches and school buildings the court house is a substantial and fireproof fire proof structure cost coating it has baa a prominent central location and commands com manda a magnificent ent view of the city and valley the city to la well lighted by two electric works and a large gas plant the health of the city to la said to be excel lent thin is largely accounted for by its ita favorable location which permits the best beat possible drainage but it is hard for a visitor to believe that the immense volumes of smoke and pei pai bonous gaeser which ascend from the numerous smelters shelters sm elters and which cause a dense log fog at times timea to rest the city are re not injurious to health butte is one of the most moat important ant mining cities in the world it pro duces millions of pounds of copper every years year and silver and gold cold equal to the revenue of a principality the rile ground under the upper part of the ely city Is IB honeycombed with tunnels bad drifts and palatial business blocks pretty homes and mining industries are mixed up in veritable confusion the country surrounding butte is and the railways getting la in and out lutat st least on the east are very much tarie led up in the moun tolas As a mining camp butte certainly ranks very high but as a rest resi dence city there are thousands of places in our great country which would be much more desirable the altitude is feet feat above the level of thil the sea but owing to its location on jhb sunny side of a mountain the pip place la is much warmer thau than other towns in montana of about the same S altitude AAA I 1 de the county of silver bow in which butte is located to Is the smallest county in MoD montana tans and has a population of nearly people more than two thirds of whom reside in butte or its immediate vicinity the surface of the country is very and broken abounding in lofty mountain peaks pleasant valleys deep gulches and verdant canyons cany one the soil of the valleys is very productive and inhabited by ran ranchman ranchmen ranch ohmen men who find a ready market at good prices for every product raised Ago according to the U B S census montana had bad in 1890 a population of to in 1880 there was only inhabitants Inba bitante hence the increase in ten years was over per cent there are perhaps over people in the state stat enow now the great majority of these are defendent denen deDen dent upon the mining industries dus tries according to official statistics recently compiled montana has up to date produced gold to the value of about and silver worth over of this in gold and in silver were produced in 1893 the output of gold commenced to lo 1862 1 1 that of silver in 1876 the production of lead is in nearly equal to that bat of sliver silver and that of copper vastly more As a ample it may be stated that M montana produced pounds 0 of f dopper copper worth over nineteen million dollars io in 1892 during the same year pounds of lead valued at was produced the area of the state of montana Is miles nearly twice that of utah the temporary capital is helena and at the next election it will be decided by popular vote where the permanent capital is to be anaconda a ruining mining town situated twenty seven miles of butte will pull against helena for the possession of that boon butte though the largest city in the state is not dot in it this time as she only ranked as number three in the former race lor for the possession of the capital helena and anaconda pulling the heaviest vote were thus ac according conling to legal enactment left as the final contestants te for the future capital of montano montana ANDREW JENSON |
