Conservative.
prise of General Brown ; and believe
that the time is not distant when onr
city will be brought within a transit of
three days' travel of Denver ; and that
the proposition of General Brown , to
establish a regular line of steam pas
senger cars from Nebraska City to Den
ver , not only meets with our hearty
approbation , but we have the fullest
confidence that it will prove entirely
successful and be highly remunera
tive. * * *
"That to confidence
prove more fully our
dence in the practicability of the enter
prise thus inaugurated by General
Brown , we request the Commissioners
of Otoe county to take into earnest
consideration the proposition to establish
at the public expense a voad of suitably
low grades from Nebraska City to the
western line of the county. * * * "
Another resolution , offered by A. F.
Harvey , editor of The News , the re
doubtable "Ajnx , " was also adopted , by
which "we the people of Otoe county"
pledged themselves to build such a road ,
on suitable assurance of a second road-
engine being put on the line , and , as
was customary , the New York City
papers were "requested to print these
proceedings. "
Thus it appears that the people were
in a state , not wholly unwarranted , of
exaltation over the prospect that was
suddenly opened before them , that "the
vast amount of travel by stage and
otherwise would be concentrated to one
point on the Missouri river , " and that
point , of course , Nebraska City. Even
if they had known the predicament the
pregnant machine was in at that
moment , they could hardly have taken
a lower tone , for , as The News said ,
"though the present machine may not
be entirely successful , if it is not , its
failure will not prove the system a
failure. "
Next week we find a clipping from
the Scientific American , which in
fluential journal appears to have taken
quite an interest in the steam wagon
project ; but also we find a notice of the
catastrophe.
"General Brown's Steam Wagon ,
which left here last week , has , we re
gret to learn , met with an obstruction
in the shape of an accident. About
twelve miles from the city one of the
cranks of the driving shaft broke , and
stopped further progress for the present.
* * * It is peculiarly unfortunate
that this accident should occur just as it
did. The wagon had got over the lasl
rise of ground , and was about to start
on the long divide which runs clear
through to Kearney , when it broke.
The accident will cause a delay of about
three weeks. General Brown left im
mediately , for New York with the
broken parts to have them replaced. "
After that we hear no more of the
matter for four weeks , The News of
August 80th , 1863 , contains a long let-
: er written by General Brown in New
York on the 16th. He has forwarded
the new crank by express , and says the
"Wagon can be in travelling order again
in about a week. But as to additional
machines , he finds all the shops over
crowded with work , and has therefore
determined to remove a Wagon which
he had in Minnesota and put it on the
Nebraska City-Denver route , which he
will do by the first of November.
"In April next , " he says further , "we
will have two new Wagons with the
necessary cars * * * so graduated
as to propfl the Wagon two hundred
miles in 24 hours. We can then have a
semi-weekly line until about the middle
of July , when two other Wagons of the
same power are to be delivered. They
will enable us to run a tri-weekly line
until the other two Wagons shall be
delivered , which will be about the first
of October , 1863 , when we will be
enabled to keep up a daily line. *
* The success of the experiments
with the Steam Wagon afc Nebraska
City , has created quite a sensation here.
All who look at the subject are satisfied
that the principal [ sic ] has been settled ,
as to the feasibility of using Steam
Wagons on onr Western Prairies. *
* * I leave today for Minnesota , and
will reach Nebraska City in about a
month. "
The editor of The News therefore
exhorts "the people of this city and
county" to bestir themselves and get the
road ready for the imminent prosperity.
"F. C. Morrison , Esq , has explored a
route , and has ascertained that a road
of suitable grades can be made for less
than $2,000. * * * The line of Steam
Wagons from Nebraska City to Denver
ia now a fixed fact. "
Nevertheless , that was the last of it.
The same paper gives an account of the
Indian outbreak in Minnesota , and
states briefly that "Hon. , T. R. Brown's
family , numbering eighteen , were all
murdered. " And that may after all be
the real reason why Omaha and not
Nebraska City became the chief town
of the state.
The writer has found only one more
mention of the project in the papers of
the time. The News of October 25th ,
1862 , contains the following :
"gjQF ThQ people voted by a major
ity of 429 votes to levy a special tax for
the construction of a road , for Steam
Wagon travel through the county.
The steam wagon enterprise will go on
early in the spring. General Brown ,
the proprietor , will be here in a few
weeks. His losses ( some $30,000) ) , by
the Indian difficulties in Minnesota , will
delay the matter some , but not end it. "
And so the county issued bonds for
$2,600 , and the road was built , "with
bridges" says the old book in the court
house ' 'of sufficient strength to support
and hold steam wagons of twenty tons
eaoh. " It was a crooked road , but level
and easy , following the high ground
throughout ; and the firat section line
road south of the north township line ,
when it was afterwards built , because
it followed its route approximately , took
its name , and is known as the steam-
wagon road to this day. But all the
travel the big machine ever accomplished
after its break-down was to be drawn
back to Arbor Lodge , where it stood
many years as a monument , very con
venient for children to play on and for
hens to nest in ; and it was finally broken
up for old iron , thongh part of its
machinery went into the Nebraska City
gas works.
Under the head-
' .AiH AV trnv a. . _ _ . .
ing "Nothing new
under the sun" the Nebraska City News
of August 10 , 1801 , prints a letter from
Thos. L. Fortune , of Mt. Pleasant , Kan
sas , propounding a scheme which , the
editor considers , "is not so astonishing or
extravagant as one might suppose at
first thought. The Chinese are said to
have used steam wagons some thousands
of years ago. "
Mr. Fortune has invented a steam
wagon for running on dirt roads , A
light wagon of his kind will run eight
to ten miles per hour , and a freight
wagon , carrying fifteen to twenty tons ,
four miles per hour , and up a grade of
twenty degrees. He has built one of
his machines in St. Louis , 28 feet long ,
12 feet wide , with 8 foot wheels , and
has it at that time in Atchison ; "she has
given general satisfaction at the latter
place. "
He then goes on to say that his
wagons can be built for $2,500 to $3,500 ,
"according to taste , " and to state the
terms on which he will build a road
from any point on the Missouri River to
Denver , and stock it with his motors.
It therefore seems that Mr. Fortune ia
entitled to the award for priority in
introducing locomotive engines in the
territory weat of the Missouri. If any
one in Kansas or elsewhere can tell what
became of him or his engine , THE
CONSERVATIVE would like very well to
have the information.
Chicago only secured -
A FA I.I.I NO OFF.
cured thirty-five
carloads of young evergreens for
Christmas trees in 1899 , but the year
before the same city consumed seventy
carloads.
Already the scarcity of young and
symmetrical conifers is experienced.
And what shall bo the scarcity of forest
products Christmas time a hundred
years hence ? Then ; will they recall the
folly and extravagance of a silly and
wasteful generation which for Christmas
trees destroyed forests that would have
made millions of homes for the people
in 1999 ? Stop cutting down trees for a
useless custom.
