USA > Maine > First Maine bugle, 1892 (history of 1st Maine Cavalry) > Part 31
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In the early evening we arrived at San Diego, and at on took the ferry for the Hotel Del Coronado, where we were f stay for a day. We were now 3,452 miles from home, though we had ridden further than that owing to side trips. We were rather tired, and after supper most of us preferred to retire to . good bed in the hotel to looking about, even in so glorious a place as this.
DEL CORONADO AND SAN DIEGO.
After a good night's sleep we awoke in good condition for the enjoyment of the pleasures of the day. We found the Dei Coronado a most delightful place-a good place, it seemed to stop in for weeks. With a grand hotel, with a magnificent view of the grand old ocean, with a grand beach, with surf or tark
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bathing at will, with everything required to make a .n pleasant, it was easy to understand why this per a fr. with all tourists. But we were not really happy hende! ! I. By a miscalculation at breakfast time we were dipi joining in an excursion to Mexico, an excursion which was much wished to take. But before night we were quite air In the forenoon we had a delightful sail around the Sun 1 bay, with plenty of pleasant and efficient guides to point let places of interest and answer all sorts of questions, and ir tio afternoon we took a grand swim in the bathing house, soppa! from the Pacific, and then paid a visit to San Diego and enjoyet the beauties and oddities of that place. Being told to take a til out to the pavilion as it was a pleasant side and gave on og view of the city, we did so, and were more than repaid by :le magnificent view we had of the beautiful Mission Valley. do on below us so far that horses at work in the verdant fields loded no larger than flies. It was a beautiful view and we long of long, finding new beauties and new points of interest can! moment. This was one of the finest views we had dering 0. whole trip. And it was no ordinary pleasure to take that ride. the road being built for the cable railroad alone, and hayhb. . the variety of a railroad instead of the monotony of . .. car --- running over ravines and through cuts, and windling abo : as it pleased without any regard for the ordinary highway com missioner. While at the pavilion Ed had a new experience of learned something about the effects of the climate. These si- what appeared to be a small ravine near us, and he after ! to throw a stone to the other side. To his surprise he was sie ble to get one half way across, and yet it looked only a Patla way-like a ravine across which he could easily threw a stone at home. He tried and tried, without success, and gave it the wondering what the matter was with him. When we passed along the road at the end of the ravine, however, he was more surprised to see that it was really so wide when in dem looked so narrow. But he understood why he could not :Bro a stone across it. We enjoyed every minute of the day, Ani-n ing with a few strings of ten pins at the hotel, and not 1 6
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THE COUNTRY FOR WHICH YOU FORONE.
before midnight we bade good bye to the DEL Coronado, Ale! across the bay to San Diego, and again boarded the ILK, which resumed her course at midnight.
EIGHTH DAY OF THE CRETE.
Tuesday, May seventeenth, was to be passed at River-iler hop my sister lives, and I was awake in the morning early, only to and that the train had passed through that city still carlier. Tj0h ] learned that we were to visit Redlands in the forenoon and River- side in the afternoon, and preferring to spend the day with thy friends, Ed and I left the Essex at San Bernardino and returned to Riverside, thus having a whole day with my sister, and todaing the ride about the city through miles of orange groves and raisin vineyards the same as did our party when they arrived there about noon. But as I paid a longer visit to this city later, I will have more to say about it bys and bye. I may say. though, that at this visit we purchased those Mexican sombreros which became somewhat famous during the journey, and which afterwards got into print. They were comfortable, though. Along towards night we boarded the Essex again, and after another ride among orange and lemon groves, and vineyards and gardens, and beautiful country everywhere, anivel at Ine Angeles, where we put up at the Hollenbeck House. Here we had the good fortune to meet friends from home, who left there before we did with a Raymond party, and happened to be here at the same time. And it was good to meet them, so far away from home, even if we were having a most enjoyable trip. In the evening we visited the Chamber of Commerce, while was a wonderful display of the fruit, vegetables, grains, and other products of the country-a display which is continued the year through-a display which would gladden the heart of the min- agers of a State Fair of any eastern State. Ohe gets a very good idea of the remarkable resources of this portion of the country by a visit to these rooms. More than that, we were invited to sample fruit, nuts, wine, etc., and we retired to bel with a feeling that the half had not been told about California.
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LOS ANGELES.
Wednesday morning I was up bright and early, and they quite a stroll about the city alone, finding much to int red m Our breakfast was a good one, as our supper had been the file before, and I was well pleased with the Hollenbeck. IL learned how small a matter will make a man dissatisfied vil hotel or with anything else. At the Hotel Auditoriten Chicago, I was in bad humor with the hotel for so small at the ter as not being able to lock up my room for want of a ker; no the Del Coronado I was out of sorts because the table a ride was so slow that I was deprived of the trip to Mexico; here i was perfectly satisfied with everything. We had had very lo : weather at Riverside the day before-our first unpleasant ego - rience of this sort-and the early morning presaged andthe. hot day, so I inquired of a resident if it were best for in to put on thinner underclothing. He replied, " No; it los! though we would have a very warm day. but if you chowy your clothing you will surely get cold : we weer the same thick - ness of undergarments the year round." His remark in regent to the weather proved to be true-it was very hot-bat I d not test the truth of the latter.
After breakfast the party was taken in carriages on a des through the beautiful city. Ed and I had the good fortune to secure seats in the carriage of J. S. Maltman, who proved to lo not only a very companionable driver, but a man who was qualified to answer all questions and impart much correct infor- mation. He was a resident of Los Angeles, was well acquating. with her history, was proud of his city, but neither gushed re criticised in his conversation. Consequently we enjoyed the ride very much. The ride was a fine one. every moment. Ta city is as pretty as any we saw during our journey. It is bea .- tifully situated, being on many hills, affording many points f :) which fine views can be obtained. and, naturally, very nowy locations for fine residences and grounds. And these naturo! opportunities have been improved wonderfully. Many 0 places did we ride past and through-fine for situation for
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arrangement, for improvements, and for trees, Lrubbery bul flowers. And it must not be forgotten that there ar. in : city very many pretty little homes as well as grand mansione We were much pleased with Los Angeles. We leaned the ty city has grown very largely in recent years, free though the " boom " dropped out four or five years ago, and it has bem i steady, healthy growth -of more real value than the prowin under the influence of the "boom." We saw many House a.m some business blocks in process of crection, and many whist had been recently built. We asked our driver if it we ce-topy ary to have such hot weather at this time of your - for it was very hot -- and he replied that it was not. We were inclined to think he said this to the more favorably impress us with the beauties of the climate, but afterwards found out that he hovi ยท no such idea. Ho explained the weather by saying that it indi- cated an atmospherical disturbance elsewhere; that somewher in the east there was a storm of some kind; that he Imi watched this for years and found it to be so. We did not fully understand the matter then, but we heard the same theory advanced at other places, and after watching the change- for ourselves as well as we were able, we found that his theory wie correct, at least so far as we investigated. At the very time i this unprecedentedly heated term in California, Illinois and adjacent states were suffering from heavy rains and food -.
During the ride we stopped at the fine residence and apply grounds of Judge Silent, where we had a reception, and that was room for all the excursionists. We passed an hour or t! there in the enjoyment of California hospitality to the fallen extent. We were much pleased to meet there Mrs. Josh Fis mont, widow of Gen. Fremont, and our thoughts went quickly back to the Presidential campaign of 1856, and the events well. H followed up to the time of the war. But you rentember there days, comrades, as well as I, and would have been as pleased : see " Jessie," of whom many of you sang in '56. From Je. Silent's residence we drove back into the business part of the city, and to the depot, where we bade our driver and guide pool bye with many thanks. The arrangements for the remains.
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of the day were for those who wish ed to visst Passtime tos so by special train, while those who preferted to visit To were accommodated in like manner. 1. P dont, wie 10 coast and afforded an opportunity for an organ beth, and again day was very hot, very many of us chose Redondo. Il pleased those were who went to Pasadena, we Bbo 0 ml Redondo were equally well pleased, for ve ha! a mibim! ride, a good swim in the Pacific over a good beach, and deliciously cooled.
TENTHI DAY OF THE CRUISL.
At night we boarded the Essex again. We were abon: bo continue our journey under new auspices. We were to len the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad and the care of fil company, and go forward over the Southern Picihe anil: under the care of officials of that company. So we bad bye, officially, to Mr. Breder, though we were pleased to him unofficially all along the route, and put our ches instep of Comrade Myron F. Tarble, Pullman conductor, a Gh Army comrade with whom I soon became acquainted, and! i whom I received many favors while in his change. We will out of Los Angeles in the evening, and prepared for the n !! sleep as calmly, and slept as soundly, as though we ba 100 changed roads and management. And I will say right that our progress through the country was midle just a and pleasantly under the one management as the other.
Thursday morning, May 19th, we awoke to find the calling very hot, and the train running through a de. It courty. V. had crossed the Tehachapai range of mountains, through :le famous " loop," during the night, thus missing atiek of all i wonderful specimen of railroad engineering indicated that we were going to have a hot, uncomfortable r We without much in the way of scenery to take the attention for its discomforts. But this was a false impression. Fre longo were riding through fine fields and among plenty of vegeta of different kinds. This was merely the difference bet water and no water. The soil was just as good and just
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deep through the desert of the carly morning as it so in the gardens, but in the desert there was no water. The mop kim, invents some way to make it rain at will, or to n nefagy : water in large quantities, is the man they want ont in thay country, as well as in many other portions of the great ve -:. We were now riding through the beautiful and fertile Son Joaquin valley, fertile as far as the eye could reach, with se - capped mountains on either hand- the Sienas on the one ein. and the coast range on the other-and it was a grand rich.
FRESNO.
The train arrived at Fresno early in the forenowy, where th excursionists were taken to a ride among the wine abd raisin vineyards for which this city is noted. We rode theough mibs and miles of these vineyards, until vineyards began to lyt : monotonous to the eye as had the orange groves furthersouth. Eu and I were again fortunate in having a good guide -- one who knew what he was talking about, and was proud of his city, bur who did not grow over-enthusiastic. He was a cavalryman in ille confederate service, though in the western array just ad of the Army of Northern Virginia. But though there were no ball in which we both were and over which we could dispute. " found ourselves easily talking over war experiences. I was pleased to be confirmed in the opinion forhed lons 5 that the soldiers of the two armies were much alike, ami the experiences and peculiarities were much the Sting, Weil and east. At all events I had a pleasant time with up new-found confederate friend, whose name, by the way, wort Mr. Darnell. We visited one of the larger wineries, when were stored millions of gallons of wine, and were kindly allowed to sample some of the wine. Then our guide took us on a tool through the Fresno China-town, where we hastily glanced at many strange things, including the Loss house; then we visited the Court House, to the top of which we climbed, and were the i repaid for our trouble by the magnificent view of the city and surrounding country. But it was awful hot, and when we what told that Fresno was the hottest place in California, we th.
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inclined to believe the statement. At room the estar were taken into the Opera House, where there will a sido speeches of welcome and responses, and then dinner the And it was a great dinner and well :v: soy. Tile pionero ures were delicious strawberries, various brands of will bright, smart, pretty girls as waiters all the product ou country.
Dinner over, we took the train again, and all the addre , rode through splendidly cultivated land, still in the head San Joaquin valley, through miles and miles of waring wer and as the air grew cooler the farther we got from: I latter portion of the ride was very pleasant indeed, amit oughly enjoyed. Just before the train started, a Grant hes comrade rode to the train and invited every commade to the bottle of wine as a souvenir of the Department Enchomp held at Fresno last winter. I secured a bottle which neath orates the hall of Tower Post No. 17, Pawtucket. The bord bears on it a handsome picture of the Grand Army hadgy. auch makes a very pretty souvenir.
STOCKTON.
In the early evening we arrived at Stockton. Han a com tee man came into the car and announced. " The post Stockton are going to let you alone this evening be .... . i'm know you are tired. To-morrow more'n. Dright and! band will play, and when the band begins to play For, at al od dress and we will do the rest." We all thanked the good to ple of Stockton for their thoughtfulness, and prepared to spend! the evening according to our own sweet will. Most of the poem retired after supper, which was wise, but Ed and I went (op pb a stroll. We found the Court Ho ise and Che Hall- bodhis ih same building-brilliantly lighted from top to bottom, onl fo making inquiries concerning it, learned that it was high natural gas from wells owned by the city. This time caused other inquiries on our part, and we learned that th rin was lighted the same way-with gas which comeinor 0 ground in abundance ; that h flows up with water, when :9 00. -
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is separated from the gas and utilized for bathing putp This was a new idea, and as there was a natur of gas water bathing house near where we then were, there was nothing for u to do but pay it a visit. This we did, and fancying the E molto , enjoyed a fine bath in this new kind of water, with negen! novel sensation.
Friday morning we obeyed the injunction of the avenir ! before, and when the band played we " get up and de We fell into sort of a line and were escorted to the pavil a. where a good substantial breakfast was served. Here we forum? quite a number of people formerly from the cast, and aring from our own home, all anxious to see some one, it mayerol not much whom so that he came from the old home. This vos the case wherever we stopped, but it seemed as if there were more of them here than anywhere else we had been. After vating was over, there was some speaking, which might an ! probably was pretty good, but only a few were able to hear it. By the way, why is it that people will expect, or try toom. .. speeches under circumstances where they know few can bejr. and where many are compelled, out of courtesy, to pretend to listen, thus putting themselves to great disconfort for nothing? I heard one speech, though. A gentleman from S uth Caro- lina, who stood near where I was, said among other things. " It was my fortune to fight on the confederate side in the war, but I have no excuses to make for that. The scars on my bally. from head to foot, bear testimony to the bravery and valor of those who fought on the other side." Even I, a northern car- alryman, had to applaud those remarks.
The next move was to take a ride about the city, in carvings furnished by the citizens. With our usual good fortune. l'! and I had with us a good driver and guide, albeit we found that he had his prejudices, especially against anything that Game from China. But he knew the city, and knew bol to answer all sorts of questions. Like the other cities there was muth th interest the stranger, and it goes without saying that we copy of the ride, although there was growing up in our hearts a feeling that so much riding around was becoming a little tiresome. Up
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this ride we passed a man on horseback, with a legist genel to his saddle, who our driver said was the 3hiPt. Wennkol what he carried the lariat for, and were infornied that h. card it to catch prisoners with. This was a new and complete! ling idea. In the southern portion of the State as well as if Arizona and New Mexico, we had seen policemen arm 3 vil a lariat, but supposed they had them for the purpose of tr" ing their horses, as we were supposed to do. comroles, wi .. government issued to cach of us a lariat at the begandie the war. But our driver told us that all the officers ir ;bd country, civil and police, carried the lariat for business, to used it, too, when occasion required, often bringing down runaway prisoner as neatly as the cowboy will bring down cow. But it seemed to our eastern minds rather a cruch was to treat men, though on second thoughts it is not so cruel caso dangerous as the more civilized way of discharging a revolta after them. We terminated our ride at a large bathing este lishment run by natural gas water, with a gymnasticattacher. which afforded unlimited amusement to participant and spe. tators alike. It seemed to me, while looking at the stimoer. jumping, swinging on the trapeze, cutting up all sorts of sale nastic tricks, ending with a dive or a plunge into the water tien a gymnastic attachment would be a grand thing to introd tos into the bathing houses in the eastern country.
At eleven o'clock we took the train again, this time for St. ramento, a name which comes down from the fair away pot. with memories of the days following upon 's9. Who the remembers those days does not also remember the song.
" There's plenty of goll in the world we're toi, On the banks of the Sacramento."
One word more about Stockton, though, before we leave it Ed and I were on the way to take the train, when we sur crowd of perhaps a dozen persons collected around a saio 9 door. There was no noise and but little excitement, and out vi curiosity Ed inquired what was the cause of the gatheriny .1 by-stander cooly replied, "Nothing but a shooting match
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This satisfied us, and we passed on. The next mocking, how- ever, we got a new idea of the life and en tomb of that dormay. when we picked up a morning paper and read that . nothing but a shooting match " was where a woman had - hot and killed her lover in a saloon, in broad daylight.
SACRAMENTO.
After a fine ride of about two hours we arrived at Story- mento. Now I want to commend the people of this the capital city of California, for doing up their generous h phiahty in the neatest, most unostentatious, and most satisfactory mother. There was no parade. no show, no brass band, no great time over the visitors. Instead, cach one of us was given a neat little circular, telling us, virtually, to "go as you please." and then setting forth, clearly and distinctly what there wils of interest in the city, and how best to find it, thus leaving every one to consult his or her own taste, and showing them the best way to indulge it. More than this, the little circular gave a bit of street directory, by studying which a few moments the stran- ger could find his way to any locality he chose by the shortest route, and could tell where he was and just how far from any other point at any time. Then the circular containe Isbrie ysp- ful information about the city, such as the location of the State House, the Post Office and other public buildings, etc. Could hospitality do more than this, or do it more pleasantly? The result was that everyone followed his or her own bent in Sacia- mento, and enjoyed the time spent there to the best advantage. Ed and I went first to the State House and climbed to the top of the dome, where we had a magnificent view of the city und surroundings; then to the Crocker art gallery, where we remained two or three hours and wished we could remain as many days; then to the famous Sutter fort, with all its memorie- of old times; then to the swimming baths, where we swam and played in the soft water to our hearts' content and voted that the most comfortable part of the day-it was still very 1. Weather. In the evening we again visited the State House and saw it lighted np, with all the glory of flowers, and music and for
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ladies -- a very pleasant reception without any of the therom formalities. It was a great day at Sacramento.
But the night following was not a good night. Wesley is the car, the car was in the depot, and it was very hot, wil mo air stirring -- not a good night for sleep. Then the porter 0 uncomfortable, and was very slow about mal ing up the ber? that it was very Jate before some of us had a chance to The next morning we had a pleasant surprise. The good ; ple of Sacramento, beside giving us all they hall the day bevor and that in the pleasantest manner possible, Inowing the som were to start at an early hour and would have no opportuni. to get breakfast, kindly prepared a breakfast for us, and suresi b to us in a pavilion close by the depot -- a very thoughtfalacrine on their part which we thoroughly appreciated. Before ! w Sacramento, it may be said that though a very pretty city, . ith many attractive features, yet, being one of the older citle of the State, it does not have the new and modern appearance of other cities which we visited. But we enjoyed our vist then just the same, and perhaps more from the historical touches ne saw.
TWELFTH DAY OF THE CRUISE.
We left Sacramento at 6 o'clock in the morning, and after a not very long ride reached Vacaville, the town which not bin before had been badly shaken by an earthquake. We had. splendid ride about this town. The land was fully, while you very welcome to our eyes after so much level country-" reith the rugged grandeur of the mountains, nor the fertile menores of the plains," is the way one of the ladies of the Essex expo Real it. Being hilly, and being thoroughly cultivated, the conga. looked more natural to the eastern eyes, and therefore bett Here we found the principal fruits to be cherries and pran s We tested the cherries to our heart's content, an I prononerei them good. We saw some of the effects of the earthquah saw where buildings had been thrown down and letet - repaired or partially so, and saw building, in ruins as to " shake " left them. All this was in the way of new sight-sein
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but was not really pleasant. Our driver told us many sowie. of the earthquake and its effects upon diferent popis and in different portions of the town. One thing seemed reasonably certain, that the people were pretty thoroughly Might ned, though no one was hurt. " Why," said the driver, " a good many people went to church the next Sunday who had not been before for years, and they have been going regularly >ver since - a good many have joined the church since then - a good many joined the next Sunday." And it was fun to hear the driver tell it in his own quaint way. So it might seem that there is some good in carthquakes, after all. It all depends on how one looks at the matter. But we enjoyed our ride too long. When we returned to the depot we found the train had gone, and we were left. This was unpleasant at first, but as our carriage was not the only one which was late, we were not lonesome. The accident was not irreparable, however. There were so many of us that the railroad authorities kindly hitched! an engine to a freight car, and we started on the chase for the train. What a ride that was ! What singing, and shouting, and joking, and dancing, and fun. It was voted that that freight car was a smoother running car than the Essex, and some of the party proved it to their own satisfaction by showing that they could write in it with more case. But I was busy with other thoughts than the fun going on around me. While climbing into the car something reminded me that when we went to the front from old Camp Penobscot, in the spring of 1862. we, too, went in freight cars-eight men and eight horses in cach car- and my thoughts went back to the experiences of that ride and of the days that followed. Have the comrades who went to the front at that time forgotten all about that ride? I have not heard it mentioned for years --- not at any of the reunions-and I had not thought of it. We caught up with the runaway train .. which we found waiting for us a few miles from Vacaville, and rejoined our friends. A short ride brought us to St. Helen. in the Napa valley, the valley famous for its wines-a valley in which millions of gallons of wine are made every your- a valley abounding in wine grape vineyards. Our stay here was only
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