Canada is partly separated from the country south of it by a chain of
beautiful lakes called the "Five Great Lakes." They are so large that a
person can sail many days on them, passing from one to another and
sometimes losing sight of land. At times the water is so rough that the
traveler becomes ill from the rolling of the big steamer and says, "I am
seasick," although he is far from the ocean. The northern waters of
these lakes wash the shores of Canada, while on the south the children
of the United States play on the beaches and swim in the waves.
These children are proud of the fact that they live in the United
States, and call their country "The land of the free and the home of the
brave." Their people have come from many lands. French, German, Irish,
Polish and Jewish boys and girls, besides those of many other countries,
sit side by side in the schoolrooms and play happily together with their
tops and dolls.
The United States of America, for that is the full name of this country,
reaches from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and from Canada on the north
to Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico on the south. It is a country of high
mountains, fertile valleys, broad plains and mighty rivers. Its children
know neither the terrible cold of the far north nor the burning heat of
the equator, for they live in the temperate belt of the earth. No season
of the year is long enough to tire them, for spring follows close upon
the winter, and is soon followed by the pleasant warmth of summer. Then
comes the autumn when the leaves change their color and Mother Nature
makes ready for her winter's rest. At last the snow falls and covers the
earth with her white mantle.
The Mound Builders.
In the long ago a strange people lived in the United States. They left
no books to tell their story, but here and there through the country
mounds of earth which they built are still standing. Some of them are
shaped like birds with wings outspread, others have the forms of fishes,
snakes, and human beings. Still other mounds show that they must have
been used as altars upon which sacrifices were burned, and others,
again, contain tools, dishes, idols and ornaments. Some of the ornaments
and dishes were decorated with the finest carvings. Heads of people,
frogs and birds are still to be seen on the pipes that have been
preserved in the mounds all these years. Tools have been found to show
the mound-builders, as we call these people, knew how to work metal, and
other things tell the story that the men of that long ago were wise in
many ways and could not have been savages. There are earthworks near
some of the mounds that seem to have been built as forts, so they
probably fought in wars. Yet we can only guess as to their life, for no
one knows their history.
The Indians.
When the first white men visited America they found Indians living
throughout the country, along the banks of the rivers and on the shores
of the ocean. Their homes were for the most part tents covered with bark
or the skins of animals. When the boys were still tiny little fellows
they learned to use bows and arrows so that as they grew up they would
be good hunters and warriors like their fathers.
In some parts of the country the girls helped their mothers tend fields
of maize which to this day is called Indian corn. Cakes were made of
this and eaten with the fish and game killed by the men.
In other places the women and children gathered the wild rice that grew
in the shallow ponds. This, together with the berries picked by the
girls, the honey taken from the nests of wild bees by the boys, and the
sap from the maple trees, added a good deal to the daily fare of meat
and fish.
The red children were taught to bear cold and hunger without
complaining. There were days when they feasted and had all the good
things to eat they could wish for. But their parents did not understand
the need of looking ahead. During the summer the berries and the honey,
the fish and the game were plentiful, and the people did not seem to
remember that winter would soon follow when the earth's mantle of snow
and the ice on the rivers would make it harder for them to get food. So
there were times when they and their little ones went hungry to bed and
woke up in the morning with no breakfast before them.
The boys grew up with a love of war, and looked admiringly at the men
when they went away from the village with hideous, painted faces, and
with tomahawks and hatchets at their sides, to take other unfriendly
tribes by surprise and to scalp as many of their enemies as possible.
While the boys were busy with mock battles and hunts in the forests
after game with their fathers, the girls worked with their mothers
weaving baskets and tanning the skins of the wild animals brought home
by the men. They also got wood for the fires and helped in the simple
cooking. They played games with their brothers, too, and both boys and
girls were never so happy as when sitting around the lodge fire,
listening to the fairy tales told by their grandmothers and to stories
of war and the chase by the "braves," as they called their warriors.
The parents of these red children did not need to work so hard for food
and clothing as did the Indians of Canada, because summer in the United
States is longer and warmer, and winter is not so cold.
With soft moccasins on their feet the Indians stole noiselessly over the
forest paths, and in their light birch canoes they glided along the
streams, with never a hat on the head and with light clothing on the
body. They feared nothing save the war-whoop of enemies.
There came a day when a white man and his followers appeared in the
country. It was Leif, the son of Eric the Red, who had left his home in
Greenland and started out in search of adventure. He steered his course
southward and came in time to Newfoundland, but the country did not
please him. So he continued on his way till he reached the eastern coast
of the United States, and there he landed. During his stay Leif and his
companions met no other people, but to their great delight they found
vines from which hung large clusters of grapes, and for this reason they
called the place Vinland. When they were ready to leave they loaded
their vessel with grapes, together with lumber from the forests, which
was even more precious to them than the grapes, because as you know,
there were no trees in Greenland. Then they set sail for home to tell of
the land they had visited which had seemed so warm and beautiful to
them.
After Leif, other Norsemen came who settled along the shore of this
country and lived here for a while. They met the dark-skinned natives
with whom they had trouble. After a while they went away, never to come
again. During their stay here a Norse baby was born, to whom the name
Snorri was given, and this boy was, no doubt, the first white child born
in the United States.
After Many Years.
More than four hundred years passed by and the red men lived on in their
own savage way, hunting, fishing, and making war upon each other. Then
something happened which led in time to great changes for the red
children. It was in the year 1492 that Columbus discovered a small
island of the West Indies, lying southeast of the United States. The
natives, who were gentler and less war-like than the other Indians of
North America, greeted him with delight and brought him presents of
fruit and gold.
Not long after the coming of Columbus many Spaniards, hearing of the
rich treasures of the West Indies, followed him there and settled. One
of them, named Ponce de Leon, stayed long enough to gain great riches.
But he was fast growing old and all his wealth could not keep him young.
Then he began to listen to the stories the Indians told him of a land
not far away, in which there was such a wonderful fountain that a person
had but to drink of its waters to live forever. They called it "The
fountain of youth."
Ponce de Leon's eyes grew bright. If only he could find that fountain!
He set sail with a few followers, and one beautiful Easter Sunday he
came in sight of a land rich in flowers. Such a land, he thought, must
be the one to contain the fountain he was seeking.
The sails were furled and the Spaniard and his friends stepped on shore.
"Let us call the place Florida, for it is a land of flowers," he said,
and so this peninsula, reaching out from the southeastern part of the
United States, has been called Florida to this day.
Ponce de Leon remained in the country for some time, wandering about and
drinking the water of stream and lake, yet as you may believe, he failed
to discover the fountain he sought. And, alas! instead of youth, he met
death, for, as he was about to leave, he was pierced by the poisoned
arrow of an Indian who did not trust the white men like his brothers of
the West Indies.
Through Ponce de Leon's discovery on that beautiful Easter Sunday other
Spaniards followed him to Florida and settled there with their wives and
children.
The Coming of the English.
French settlers followed the Spaniards to the New World, but except in
Canada, they did not stay long.
Nearly a hundred years passed when at last English ships began to visit
the country north of Florida. They carried home wonderful stories of
necklaces set with pearls as big as peas and worn commonly by the Indian
maidens, of countless hares and deer in the woods, of delicious grapes,
cucumbers and melons that grew wild on the vines, and of rich forests of
oak trees that grew larger and better than those of England. Then, too,
a strange plant grew abundantly in the fields. This plant the Indians
put in pipes and smoked.
"A colony should certainly be planted in that beautiful country," Sir
Walter Raleigh told the queen.
She listened thoughtfully to what he said, and not long afterwards a
party of men and women sailed from England and crossed the ocean to live
in Virginia, as the new home was called in honor of the virgin queen,
Elizabeth. Governor Dare was the leader.
The colony settled on an island near the shore, and here was born the
first English white child of the United States. The new baby, whose
grandfather was Governor Dare, was called Virginia like her home, but
sad to say, no one knows how long she lived nor what befell her, for
Governor Dare went back to England for a time, and when he returned
little Virginia and her people had disappeared and there was no one to
tell where they had gone. Perhaps the Indians had killed them, or had
made slaves of them and taken them far inland. At any rate, none of the
neighboring red men would tell what had happened to the white strangers
who had come to live among them.
Other English settlers followed soon afterwards, however, and built
villages among the Indians; and among the oak forests of Virginia little
white children were born in rough log houses and played on the beaches
along the shore. Their fathers planted fields of corn, and tobacco which
they had learned to smoke. They hunted deer, hares, and wild turkeys in
the forests.
These early English settlers built walls around their villages in case
of sudden attack, for they could not trust their red neighbors, who were
not pleased to have the white strangers settling in the country around
them.
The little English children were generally happy. The country around
them was beautiful, the birds sang sweet songs in the trees near by, and
there were flowers and fruits in plenty. When Christmas came they
watched the Yule log burn in the big fireplace, and gathered around
tables loaded with roasted turkeys, venison and other good things to
eat.
Years passed by, and other settlers came to America. Most of them were
from England, but there were some from Holland and Sweden and other
countries of Europe.
Among the newcomers were the Quakers under William Penn, who called
their new home in America Pennsylvania, meaning, Penn's woods. They were
gentle and peaceful and had little trouble with their Indian neighbors.
Then there were the Pilgrims who landed at Plymouth in New England one
bleak November day. They were quiet and sober-faced. They left their old
home to seek one in which they would be free to worship God in the way
they thought best. As it happened, they chose for themselves the coldest
corner of the United States in which to settle and they had before them
years of struggle and hard work.
They found the winters in New England colder than those they had known
in England and the sharp winds crept in between the cracks in the walls
of their rough log houses, chilling their backs even when they were
gathered around the blazing logs in the big fireplaces. The crops of
corn and beans were often scanty, because the soil was poor, and around
them not far away were the Indians, some of whom scowled and muttered
ugly words when they spoke of the white settlers who were hunting the
game in the forests, and planting gardens on the land to which they
thought they alone had the right.
The children of the Pilgrims were taught to be very quiet and sober in
their ways. They loved to listen to the squirrels chattering in the
trees, and to watch the rabbits scamper across the paths. They gathered
blueberries and blackberries in summer and chestnuts and hickory nuts in
the autumn. The boys dragged their sisters on rough sleds over the snow
in winter and waded with them in the brooks as the days grew warmer, and
at such times they laughed and chattered like all happy children. But
when they reached home their faces became sober and their voices low,
for they were taught that among older folks children should be seen and
not heard.
When evening came they sat in straight chairs in the big kitchen which
was the "living room" as well, while the men talked over the day's work,
and the women knit socks for the family.
Sometimes as the little Pilgrims settled themselves for the night's
sleep they were roused by the howling of wolves outside. They shuddered
as they thought, "Suppose that had been the war whoop of the Indians
coming to attack our village."
On Sunday when the Pilgrims went to church the men led the way armed
with muskets which might be needed at any moment in defending their
families.
After the Pilgrims, the Puritans came to New England. They were even
more sober and strict in their ways than the Pilgrims, and they, too,
had trouble with their Indian neighbors.
Perhaps the jolliest people who came from Europe were the Dutch, who
settled on the Hudson River in New York. You remember poor Henry Hudson
who was left to his sad fate in Hudson Bay. Before he went there he
discovered the beautiful river of that name, and when he went back to
Europe he told the king of Holland about the Indians he had met, and of
the loads of rich furs which they brought home from their hunting trips.
His words were not forgotten, and so it came to pass that the thrifty
Dutchman made settlements in that part of the New World which they
claimed through the discovery of Henry Hudson. They were not poor, like
the Pilgrims east of them. They brought chests of linen and silver from
Holland, and they built comfortable homes for themselves on the banks of
the Hudson River, with porches where they sat with their children on
summer evenings, telling fairy stories and laughing together in their
own jolly way. The children's eyes grew bright as they listened to the
stories, and as they looked out on the woods and fields in the silvery
moonlight, they fancied they could see fairies in gauzy green robes
dancing on the grass and little brown gnomes stepping out from under the
rocks.
The Dutch children had the grandest time at Christmas. They hung up
their stockings by the fireplace the night before and then, as they lay
in their beds, too much excited to sleep, they fancied they heard the
reindeer of the good Santa Claus pawing away the snow on the roof
overhead. Of course there were presents the next morning and a lovely
Christmas tree, followed by a feast of all good things that grew about
the new home. Yes, Christmas was the best day in all the year to the
rosy-cheeked roly-poly Dutch children with blue eyes and flaxen hair.
While they were having such good times, their fathers were trading with
the Indians with whom they had less trouble than the Pilgrims and
Puritans. They sold the red men beads and blankets, guns and trinkets,
and in exchange took furs of the marten and mink, the beaver and otter,
which the Indians shot or trapped in the country around. Once in a while
a big ship from Holland sailed into New York Harbor, bringing tea and
sugar, blankets and dress-goods for the Dutchmen and their families, and
were then reloaded with the furs obtained from the Indians.
As time passed by the settlements along the shores of the United States
grew larger and more numerous. The Indians scowled more and more deeply
and there were dreadful wars between them and the white men. In their
spare time the settlers made roads through the country and cleared away
some of the forests. In the north they traded with the Indians for furs
and planted fields of corn and other grains and vegetables. Farther
south tobacco and cotton were raised on the plantations. Sheep were
tended on the hillsides and the wives of the settlers carded and spun
the wool and wove it in hand-looms into clothing for their families.
Cargoes of Negro slaves were brought from Africa to work on the
plantations. The cotton that was raised there was sent across the
Atlantic to be made into cloth in the factories of Europe.
During all these years the white men did not move far inland because of
the Indians, and of mountains which must be crossed. At last, however,
some brave men ventured out alone into the wilderness beyond. They found
there were valleys between the mountains, and through these they passed
to the other side. They often had to hide from the watchful Indians, not
daring even to make camp-fires lest they should be discovered.
These explorers found that on the other side of the Appalachian
Mountains, for that was the name given to them, was a beautiful country,
richer by far than that on the eastern side where they had been living.
There were also many rivers flowing westward, making the soil rich and
fertile. Forests of maple and elm trees, as well as pines, spruces, and
oaks which were abundant along the coast, were to be seen there.
[Illustration: Picking Cotton on a Georgia Plantation.]
When the explorers returned home they told such bright stories of the
country to the west that the families of some of them agreed to go there
and live. In those days there were no trains to carry them and not a
single road through the mountain passes. The journey had to be made on
foot or on horseback, and few household goods could be carried. At any
moment the travelers might be surprised by Indians, so the men were
obliged to keep their muskets loaded and ready to shoot every moment of
the way.
When the place for the new home was reached the men and boys set to work
to cut down the trees and make a clearing, while the women prepared the
meals. Everyone must eat and sleep outdoors while a rough log house was
being built. All through the night a big fire was kept blazing to keep
the wolves and other wild animals at a distance.
The new house was easily furnished. A few chairs, a rough table, and
some bedsteads were made from the trees that had been cut down. The
feather beds brought from the old home were spread on the slats of the
bedsteads; the family Bible was laid on the table; the kettles, also
brought from home, were hung on cranes over the fireplace, and
housekeeping in the wilderness began.
Notwithstanding the hard life, the girls and their brothers grew up
brave and strong and ready to push still farther into the wilderness
than their fathers had done. West of them,--far west as it seemed
then--was a mighty river flowing from north to south through the country.
It was the Mississippi, or Father of Waters, as the Indians well called
it, because so many large streams flowed into it on either side. The
Frenchmen from Canada had long since sailed along the Great Lakes and
down the whole length of the Mississippi, and for this reason had
claimed the land on both sides and made settlements at different places.
Now, as the English settlers moved westward, they did not wish the
French to own any part of the country. By and by there was a great war
between the two peoples--the French who held Canada and the Mississippi,
and the English colonies who were living in the eastern part of the
United States. Then came the battle of Quebec and the French gave up
their rights in North America.
But there were other troubles still, for wars took place with the
Indians who had become bitter enemies, but they were beaten again and
again, and driven still farther west till few tribes were left east of
the Mississippi.
Then there was another war--a very great one this time--and with England
herself. The Revolution was fought through seven long years. With
General Washington as their leader, the people fought on to victory,
when they in truth made their country the free and independent United
States of America.
After this more and more men took their wives and children and traveled
west in search of new homes. They had found by this time that in many
places there were great plains where they did not need to make a
clearing, for the ground was covered with grass for miles in every
direction. Some of these grassy plains, or prairies, were quite level.
Others stretched in long, low waves of earth. The soil was rich and the
grass grew long and thick. There could be no better place in the world
for raising corn, wheat and hay, or feeding cattle.
Rough roads had been built through the wilderness by this time, so the
women and children, together with the bedding and dishes, were bundled
into big clumsy wagons with rounded, canvas tops called
prairie-schooners. Horses or oxen were harnessed to the wagons and cows
were hitched behind. Then away started the family for the distant
prairies.
All day long the people traveled, but when evening came the animals were
unhitched from the "schooner" and allowed to feed on the grass; supper
was cooked over the camp-fire, and beds were made upon the bottom of the
wagon, where the family would sleep during the night.
Many days were often spent on the journey, but like everything else, it
came to an end at last. Think if you can, of a sea of grass stretching
around you as far as the eyes can see; not a building of any kind in
sight; not even the smoke of a passing train to remind you that there
are other people in the world; no sound in the air except the chirping
of the crickets or the howling of the wolves; in summer, the blinding
sun dazzling your eyes and turning the grass a withered brown; in
winter, a carpet of snow stretching around you over the earth in every
direction. This was the life in store for the boys and girls who went
out on the prairies to seek a home in the early days of this country.
To be sure a herd of bison sometimes appeared near the children's home,
and then the men hurried out with their guns to kill as many as possible
before the animals were put to flight. Before the coming of the white
men these bison roamed together in thousands and the Indians of the
plains made their tents and clothing from their skins and feasted on the
flesh of the bison. Every year since that time they have grown scarcer
till only a few are left in the country, and these are on exhibition in
the parks of the west.
After the sun set in the evening sky the children of the prairie did not
venture far from home, both on account of prowling wolves, and for fear
of the Indians who might be skulking near by.
Lewis and Clark, and What They Saw.
Not many years after the Revolution Thomas Jefferson, the third
president, did many things for the good of the United States. Through
his advice the people purchased a great deal of land in the southern
part of the country from France, to whom it had been given by Spain. It
was called the Louisiana Purchase.
Jefferson was not satisfied yet. He thought, "There is a vast country
beyond us of which we know nothing. No one of our people has yet crossed
it and reached the Pacific. This should certainly be done."
He knew it would be a dangerous journey, for it was a wild country,
roamed over by tribes of fierce Indians. Two men, however, offered to
lead the expedition. Their names were Meriwether Lewis and William
Clarke.
In the summer of 1803 they started out at the head of a party of men,
carrying with them presents for the Indians they might meet, three
canoes, two horses which should help them in hunting game, and a few
blankets and cooking utensils.
During the winter they camped on the banks of the Mississippi, and with
the coming of spring they began their journey up a broad river which
emptied into it and which we know now as the Missouri. As the men
followed the course of the river they moved farther and farther into the
west. All summer long they slept under the stars, but as the cold winter
set in and deep snows fell, they made rough cabins in which to live, and
went no farther on their journey for several months. They killed bison
and other game which furnished them with food, but they could not keep
the biting cold out of their huts, and they suffered with the cold.
Fierce Indian tribes were around them on all sides, friends were far
away, but they had no thought of turning back. So, with the second
spring, they pushed on.
When they reached the source of the Missouri there were high mountains
before them, much higher than the Appalachian, and with their summits
crowned with snow. After a long, hard journey they reached the other
side, and launched their canoes on a small stream which grew ever
broader till it entered a large river. This was the Columbia, along
which they traveled till the Pacific Ocean lay spread before their eyes.
They had journeyed more than four thousands miles since they left the
banks of the Mississippi and were the first white men to cross the
United States. They had visited the homes of Indians who had never seen
a white person before or even known there were such beings. They had
crossed broad plains where thousands of bison fed on the rich grass.
They had discovered broad rivers shaded by lofty forests and crossed
mountains containing mines of gold and silver, which before long would
be opened up to give their rich stores to the people of the United
States. They still had before them the long and dangerous journey home,
which they reached two years and four months after they had left it.
There was great rejoicing among the people when the news spread of the
safe return of the travelers and of the wonders they had to tell. From
that time many boys and girls looked forward to moving into the great,
far-western country with their parents.
On a Wheat Farm.
Many of the children of the prairies live on farms where wheat is
raised. As the sun shines down on the broad fields, the tiny grains
sprout and grow with astonishing quickness. Then, when the heavy dews
fall at night and the earth cools, they get new strength for the next
day, so that the farmers gather abundant crops.
As the summer days pass by and the wheat ripens, the children in the big
farm house get ready for an exciting time. Their mother makes dozens of
pies and loaves of bread and cake. A cow and perhaps a hog or two, are
killed and cut up, for an extra number of "hired hands" begin to arrive.
The farmer himself is unusually busy. Big machines and engines are
brought out from the barns to be cleaned and oiled, for the wheat is
about to be harvested.
[Illustration: How They Harvest Wheat on the Prairies.]
It is interesting to watch the work go on in the fields, it is so
different from that of the old days before the threshing and binding
machines were invented. It seems almost like magic to the watching
children as acre after acre of waving grain is cut down, bound into
sheaves and threshed, almost in the "twinkling of an eye."
Then away it is whisked in big wagons to the flour mills in the town
near by from which it is sent far and wide to be made into delicious
bread for hungry boys and girls.
The Cornfields.
In the northern part of the prairies wheat grows best because it can
bear a great deal of cool weather. But corn is different; warm, moist
nights suit it well. So, although we can see corn growing all over the
eastern part of the United States, it thrives best in the southern part
of the prairies where the weather is much warmer than in the north.
Corn is very fattening, so the farmers who raise this grain usually keep
herds of cattle and many hogs. He stores much of the harvest in the
barns to feed the "live stock" and raise them for market.
On a Cattle Ranch.
The boys of the prairie help their fathers, not only in the wheat and
corn fields, but also in raising herds of cattle, flocks of sheep, and
great numbers of hogs.
Beyond the prairies, yet east of the Rocky Mountains, are wide stretches
of land called the Western Plains. Grass grows on these plains, but the
soil is not so rich as on the prairies and is therefore not so good for
farming.
As the people moved farther west, settling on the prairies, they began
to think what use could be made of the plains beyond. They decided that
cattle could be raised there. But first the tribes of Indians who were
roaming freely about must be forced to stay in certain parts of the
country which the government of the United States reserved for them.
Sad to say, many a little red child growing up on such a reservation had
hate in his heart for the white men who had seized the land that was
once the free hunting ground of the Indians. Again and again the red
children watched their older brothers and fathers go out to attack the
men who had ventured into the "wild west." Again and again the soldiers
of the United States were sent against them.
It was a dangerous life for the ranchmen, so that many of those who
undertook to raise cattle on the Western Plains, left their families
behind them. It was not a safe place for women and little children. The
ranchmen had to live in the roughest manner. They had immense herds of
cattle which were allowed to roam for miles over the grassy plains and
were rounded up from time to time by "cowboys," as they are called.
These cowboys were bold and daring fellows who carried pistols at their
belts, rode half-wild horses called mustangs, and were ever ready for
danger, since at any moment a stampede might arise among the cattle.
Imagine a herd of untrained cattle feeding together. An unusual sound is
heard which fills them with a sudden fright. They toss their heads, kick
up their heels and dash wildly away. This is called a stampede. Now, if
the cowboy in charge is not quick to use his wits he will be knocked
down and trampled to death by the hoofs of the fleeing cattle.
On Lake Michigan, one of the Five Great Lakes, is the large city of
Chicago. The children who live there grow up in the midst of noise and
bustle, for a great deal of business is going on about them all the
time. Every day long trains of cars come rolling into the stations
bringing wheat and corn, cattle and hogs. All of these have been raised
on the plains and prairies south and west of Chicago. Many of the
animals are killed and dressed in the city and then sent away to be sold
in the eastern markets. Others are loaded on big steamers waiting at the
wharves and sent on a long journey through the Great Lakes and St.
Lawrence River and across the ocean to Europe.
Down South.
The children who live in the southern part of the United States have
warm weather nearly all the year. They need few of the woolen garments
or the furs which feel so comfortable in winter to the people north of
them. Their clothing is mostly of cotton or linen, and they eat less
meat and more fruit than their northern brothers. Their homes require
little heat, and even the cooking is often done in a small building
separate from the house so that it shall not be made uncomfortably warm.
Let us make a short visit to a cotton plantation "down south." We shall
be made welcome, without a doubt, because the southern people are very
hospitable. The planter has been told when to expect us and a low,
comfortable carriage drawn by a span of beautiful horses is at the
station when we arrive. A black coachman in livery helps us into our
seats, cracks his whip, and away start the horses at a lively trot. We
pass forests of yellow pine trees, and possibly some tobacco fields. The
air is fragrant with the odor of flowers and we listen to the songs of
the blackbirds and mocking birds. All too soon the horses are turned
into a driveway shaded by tall trees, at the end of which is a large
house with broad verandas. Our host and his family are awaiting us and
give us a cordial greeting.
After we have rested and eaten a delicious dinner, the children of the
home show us over the cotton fields where Negro workmen are busy among
the long rows of plants. The cotton would not ripen in a short summer.
It must have months of heat and moisture. Then the flowers will go to
seed and long fibers will reach out and wrap them in blankets of cotton.
The cotton is separated from the seeds by the work of a machine, called
the cotton gin. The seeds are ground into meal which is used in
fattening cattle. Many herds of cattle in the south are fed on
cotton-seed meal which takes the place of the corn given them in other
parts of the country.
As we walk about over the fields the children of the planter tell us
many stories of the Negro workmen, what fun-loving creatures they are,
and how fond they are of good things to eat. Water melons please them
especially and a group of "darkies" is never so happy as when they can
sit around a pile of the juicy melons and feast to their hearts'
content. In many of the Negro cabins there is sure to be some one who
plays the banjo, to whose music big folks and little dance merrily when
the day's work is over. Once the Negroes were the slaves of the white
planters, but they are now free and support themselves like other
workmen.
Our little southern friends ask us if we have ever seen 'possums, as the
black people call the animals. After everyone on the plantation has gone
to sleep, then the cunning opossum steals from his home in the woods to
pay a visit to the hen-house. He springs up and seizes one after another
of the fowls on the roost, whose blood he sucks till no more is left in
their bodies.
The Negroes are very fond of a 'possum hunt. Soon after dark they arm
themselves with clubs and axes and go into the woods with a few dogs to
scent the game, carrying torches to light the way. The axes are used to
chop down the trees where the animals climb to get out of the way of the
hunters.
A mother opossum with her little ones is a queer sight. The babies are
scarcely larger than mice and they hang on to their mother's body by
winding their own tiny tails around her larger one. The Negroes go on
'coon hunts too, for they can sell the skins, while the meat is nearly
as delicious as that of the opossum. Raccoons have long bushy tails and
belong to the bear family, though they are much smaller. They catch
birds in the trees, sucking their blood and eating the eggs whenever
they find them. They like green corn, too, which they steal at night as
it is growing in the fields.
Our little friends go with us to the stables and show us their ponies,
telling us of the lovely morning rides we may have through the country
if we will stay with them for a few days. But we must bid them good-by
and travel to the busy towns of the east where many of the people work
in factories and stores and have little time to spend in the beautiful
outdoor world. Before we leave the sunny south we would like to take a
peep at a rice plantation in the low marshy country, and to watch the
men gathering tobacco leaves and hanging them to dry in large sheds, but
the northern train is waiting and we cannot linger.
Among the Factories.
The children of a factory town often know little of the free, happy days
that a farm gives to its boys and girls. Long rows of houses where the
workmen live, and large brick buildings where the machines are noisily
running from Monday morning till Saturday night--these are what a person
sees on every hand.
The country settled by the Pilgrims and Puritans, and much more east of
the Appalachian Mountains has such poor and stony soil that it is not
good for farms. In such places we find the manufacturing towns where the
cotton raised in the south and the wool from the sheep of the western
plains are made into cloth for millions of people in the United States.
Here also are large tanneries where the hides of cattle are prepared for
harnesses, shoes, bags and many other things for which leather is used.
In New England there are many factories where thousands of boots and
shoes are made for the boys and girls of America.
Fishing.
Long ago, before the days of the factories, many ships sailed away from
New England ports after whales in the Arctic waters. Now-a-days
whale-bone is still valuable, but the oil is not needed so much as in
the old times before gas and electricity came into use, so that whaling
is not so common. But many men are still busy fishing for herring,
halibut and cod, which are plentiful in the waters along the northeast
coast and off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. Many a boy living on the
coast goes on fishing trips with his father and becomes so fond of the
free life of the sea that he decides to be a sailor for the rest of his
life.
Many lobsters and clams are also obtained along the coast, and farther
south are rich beds of oysters. In Chesapeake Bay more than one-third of
all the oysters eaten in the world are grown, and most of these are
shipped from the beautiful city of Baltimore, at the head of the bay.
Thousands of men and women there are busy, day after day, opening the
shells and taking out the oysters which are then put into tubs and cans
for shipment.
In a Lumber Camp.
When the white men first came to the United States, almost all the land
between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mississippi River was covered with
forests. Most of these were cut down to make clearings for the settlers'
homes. Some of them, fortunately, were left. Among the largest forests
still standing to-day are those near the Great Lakes, where the
lumber-men work in much the same way as their Canadian brothers. When
the snow is thick over the ground, they leave home with their teams of
oxen and horses and go to the distant woods, where they build log-houses
for themselves and stables for the animals. There they live during the
cold months of the year. Sometimes they stop long enough in their work
to go bear and deer hunting and so get fresh meat which makes a little
change in their daily fare of bread, beans and salt-pork.
The logs are carried to the nearby streams on sledges which move easily
over the ice and snow. When spring comes they are floated along the
streams and lakes to the saw-mills where they are made into lumber.
Getting Coal.
Many of the children living in the Appalachian Mountains to-day have
their homes near coal mines and their fathers are busy digging out the
coal that brings warmth and comfort during the winter to so many people.
In some places the rocks have been washed away, but in others the coal
is still so far underground that the miners have to work day after day
where the sunlight never shines.
Iron is also found in large quantities near the coal mines, and trains
of freight cars carry both these minerals to cities not far away where
they are used together in making steel.
Among the Rocky Mountains.
Great quantities of iron are found in the low mountains near Lake
Superior, where the miners are constantly at work with the help of steam
engines and powerful machines.
The richest copper mines of the United States are also found near the
shores of Lake Superior. A pig, we are told, discovered the best one of
all in a curious way. It had strayed from home and fallen into a pit,
where it scratched and rooted in its struggle to get out. In doing this,
it laid bare some copper, which was discovered by its master when he
went to look for the missing pig.
Hunters are fond of visiting the Rocky Mountains, where they still find
the fierce puma, or mountain lion, with its sharp teeth and claws, and
bright eyes. Night is its favorite time to roam and it is then that the
mountain goat needs to beware, for the cat-like puma shows no mercy.
Children who live in the western part of the United States have
sometimes seen a grizzly bear brought home by a friend after a hunting
trip among the Rocky Mountains. It is the strongest and most dangerous
of all the bear family. One blow of its paw is powerful enough to kill,
yet if it is not disturbed a person has little to fear. It does not care
for the flesh of other animals but is contented with a dinner of berries
and tender shoots like its brothers, the brown and black bears.
One of the most graceful animals the children of the west have ever seen
is the bighorn, or Rocky Mountain sheep. It browses on the grass found
on the steep slopes where the hunter has hard work to reach it. Its ears
are quick to hear the slightest sound, when it will toss its head and
flee from possible danger with long leaps.
Among the Rocky Mountains are mines of silver, gold, and copper which
have brought fortunes to many people of the United States. The silver
mines especially are among the richest in the world. The men who work in
them generally leave their families at home, and go away to "rough it"
as they say, for a mining town seldom has many comforts and the boys and
girls who do go there to live miss the good schools, and many other
things to which they have been used.
About fifty years ago gold was discovered in the state of California
which lies on the shores of the Pacific Ocean. The news filled the
country with excitement. As time passed by the gold mines did not prove
as rich as the people expected, but they discovered that the country was
valuable in other ways. Trees grew to enormous size there and the warm,
moist climate of the western coast was the best possible for raising
fruit. To-day the children of California feast on pears, plums,
apricots, grapes, peaches, oranges, and still other fruits which grow
very large and beautiful. There are many wheat farms, too, in California
where rich harvests reward the men who own them.
Beyond the Rocky Mountains and lying between them and a lower range
called the Sierra Nevada, is a high plateau, where the rain falls into
streams which dry up or form lakes before they can make their way to the
sea.
The largest of these is called the Great Salt Lake whose water is four
times as salty as that of the sea.
The Colorado Canyon.
There are still other plateaus southeast of the Great Basin where the
streams have worn away deep valleys called canyons. The largest of these
rivers is the Colorado, whose canyon is so wonderful that travelers in
the west always wish to visit it.
In some parts of the canyon the steep cliffs rise on either side for
about a mile up into the air. As the traveler in the valley below looks
up he can see the stars shining in broad daylight. The rocks at the
sides are of different colors--gray, brown, red and purple. The best time
to visit the canyon is at sunrise or sunset. Then the light from above
falls first upon one color and then upon another, making a beautiful
sight as the shadows change from moment to moment.
The National Park.
The United States is a great country, as its people believe, and
certainly no others in the world can boast of a park so large as theirs.
When Lewis and Clark had traveled a long distance up the Missouri River
they reached that part of the country which is now called the
Yellowstone Park. A better name would be "Wonderland" for such it is to
the thousands of people from all over the world who visit it every year.
This great reservation is sixty-five miles from north to south and
fifty-five miles from east to west. It contains not one, but many
charming parks, lovely valleys, sparkling waterfalls, high mountains,
deep valleys and one beautiful lake, called the Yellowstone Lake.
We can travel in a comfortable parlor car to the very entrance of the
Wonderland where we will first visit the Mammoth Hot Springs whose
waters are as clear as a mirror. They contain lime and iron, and for
this reason many people drink the water which they take as medicine.
The largest of the Hot Springs bursts out of the ground near the summit
of a high hill, from which it pours down over the slope and as it falls,
makes deep basins in the earth below.
Some of these basins are tiny and others quite large. They are of
different colors--red, green, and yellow, and the edges are worn away
into the prettiest sort of beadwork by Mother Nature.
Now let us leave the Hot Springs and visit the geysers about fifty miles
away. Each has a name of its own. There is the Giantess, which from time
to time throws up a great quantity of water for a short distance. You
must be careful not to venture too near when the Giantess wakes up, or
you will be soaked with water in an instant.
Another geyser is called Old Faithful, because you can depend on his
appearance at just such a time. He shows off his accomplishments once
every sixty-five minutes. Old Faithful sends up a few little jets of
water at first but every moment they become larger and stronger, till
suddenly, with a tremendous roar, the water spouts up one hundred and
thirty feet in the air. By the end of five minutes the water subsides
and only a small stream rises.
Still another geyser is called the Beehive, on account of the shape of
its cone. The water does not fall to the ground again but moves up
through the air as fine spray.
One of the most interesting of all the geysers is the Castle. As you
near it, the air around may be perfectly quiet. Then, all at once, you
you will hear a loud rumbling noise as though quantities of stones were
rolling over each other, and at the same time the lashing of water is
heard under the earth. The noise becomes almost deafening, the earth
trembles under your feet, and if you are wise you will hasten to some
spot quite a distance away. Suddenly a column of water rises straight up
into the air at least one hundred and fifty feet. The spray from it
falls over the ground around like heavy rain and those who have not been
wise enough to flee like yourself are drenched with hot water.
We must not leave the Wonderland without visiting Yellowstone Lake. It
is very beautiful and stretches its long arms in among the mountains as
though to embrace them. On the western shore of this lake you may catch
trout if you will. Then, if you are hungry, you may take a few steps and
drop the fish, still on the hook, into a boiling spring. Behold! your
dinner of delicious trout is ready for your eating.
Yellowstone River flows out of this wonderful lake and at first moves
smoothly and quietly. Then, as it is about to make its way through a
mountain-pass, it makes leaps and bounds in the form of cascades and
waterfalls, wearing the earth into a deep canyon, which is as full of
interest as that of the Colorado.
In your visit to the Rocky Mountains you will, no doubt, wish to climb
Pikes Peak. It is named for Major Pike, who tried to climb to the summit
but failed.
"Only a bird could succeed," he afterwards said. Now-a-days, however,
hundreds of travelers go every year to the top of Pikes Peak.
Niagara Falls.
Nearly every one who travels over the United States takes a trip up the
beautiful Hudson River, and goes to the top of Mount Washington in New
England, by using the railroad built up the side of the mountain, and
over which the train moves slowly with the help of a double engine.
Perhaps the most wonderful and interesting of all sights are the Falls
of Niagara, between Canada and the United States. Out of Lake Erie, one
of the Five Great Lakes, flows the Niagara River, which soon reaches a
cliff over which it pours its whole body of water with a sound like
thunder. If you stand near the foot of the falls you must wear
waterproof garments, or the dashing spray will drench you in a few
moments. The longer you look, the more wonderful the sight appears and
before long you feel as though you would like to stay there forever,
watching those mighty waters falling, ever falling, and never resting in
their course for a single moment.
In winter the spray covers every bush and tree near the foot of the
Falls and as it freezes almost instantly, strange forms are built up on
the twigs and branches. Then in the bright sunlight the world around
seems like fairyland. Masses of ice are carried along with the water of
the cataract and become piled up below, making a bridge of ice across
the river.
The children who visit Niagara Falls are sure to wish to enter the deep
cave in the cliff directly under the falling waters. No matter how
carefully they may enter, they will be drenched by the spray unless they
are clad in waterproof from head to foot. They have a strange feeling
while they are in the cave. The loud rumbling of the water and the
trembling of the earth fill them with a sort of fear and they are glad
when they are once more out in the sunlight and at a safe distance from
the mighty cataract.
A Peep at Big Cities.
There are many large and beautiful cities in the United States, each of
which is particularly dear to the children who live there. Sometimes
they think of their brothers and sisters of a hundred years ago who
warmed themselves in winter before burning logs in big fireplaces, who
traveled in lumbering stage-coaches and were lighted to bed by home-made
candles or smoky whale-oil lamps. Many of the children of to-day have
steam-heated houses, lighted by gas or electricity; they travel short
distances in electric cars or automobiles, and longer ones in
comfortable trains moved by steam-engines; or perhaps they take water
trips in roomy steamboats where they can move about as freely as in
their own homes. They talk with distant friends by merely taking down
the receiver of a telephone. Steam, gas, electricity--all these
conveniences are found not only in the cities of the United States, but
on the distant prairies for the use of farmers and their families.
Washington is the capital of the United States. It is the place where
the business of the country is attended to and the laws are made for the
protection of the people. It is a wonderfully clean and beautiful city,
and has many grand buildings which may well be called palaces. The White
House, the home of the president, is the copy of a palace in Ireland
which was built for the Duke of Leinster. The National Library is very
large and some people think the building devoted to it is the most
beautiful in the world. The Rogers Bronze Door which opens into the
Capital is a great work of art. The most important things in the life of
Columbus and the discovery of America are pictured in the bronze. This
one door cost thirty thousand dollars.
There are large art galleries in Washington and many other buildings
where you can pass day after day and constantly find new things to
interest you. But before you leave the city you must be sure to visit
the beautiful marble monument built in honor of George Washington.
[Illustration: Children Working in the Cotton Factory in a Big City.]
At the mouth of the Hudson River is the great city of New York, next to
the largest in the whole world. It contains many beautiful homes, fine
churches, lovely parks, and business buildings many stories in height
which, like others in Chicago, are called "sky scrapers." On an island
in New York Harbor stands the famous Statue of Liberty given to this
country by France. Persons who wish to do so may climb up into the head
of this statue which is in the form of a beautiful woman with a torch in
her uplifted hand. The crown on the head is composed of windows from
which there is a fine view of New York Harbor.
Another island in the harbor is called Ellis Island, where most of the
emigrants who have left their homes in other countries, land when they
reach the United States. Irish and Poles, Italians and Russians, men
with children clinging to their sides, and women with arms clasped
around tiny babies, all dressed in the fashion of their old homes, step
from the big ships and take their first breath of the free air of
America almost under the shadow of the Statue of Liberty.
New York is the greatest manufacturing centre in the United States.
Clothing, books, cigars, furniture, leather goods and many other things
are made here for the people of this and other countries.
The good old city of Boston is on the eastern coast of Massachusetts. It
has a fine harbor like its sister city in New York, and many large ships
from all over the world are seen at its wharves.
Ten years after the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth the Puritans founded
Boston. It is a quaint city with narrow, winding streets, much unlike
Chicago and New York and many other cities built later on. The State
House on Beacon Hill has a gilded dome which can be seen in the sunlight
for miles around. This is often called "Boston's breastpin." There are
many old buildings in the city, around which are woven interesting
stories of the early days of this country. Here stands Faneuil Hall
where many stirring words were spoken. For this reason it is spoken of
as the Cradle of Liberty. Then there is the Old South Church a "meeting
house" of the olden times from which the Boston Tea Party started out to
throw the tea which had come from England into Boston Harbor. The
cemeteries, in which some of the greatest men of the early days of the
country were buried, are still kept with the greatest care and are
visited by travelers throughout the year. Boston is a manufacturing city
and is the largest market in the world for boots, shoes and leather
goods.
In the state of Pennsylvania, settled as you know by the Quakers, is the
city of Philadelphia. This name was chosen for it by William Penn
because of its meaning, "brotherly love," and the peaceful spirit of
that great man is felt even now in the quiet streets, lined with quaint
old houses.
Philadelphia was once the largest city in the United States. It is still
a very busy one. Quantities of coal from the mines not far away are sent
to this city and from there shipped to other places. Iron and steel
goods are made in its factories and many of its people are busy in the
cotton mills. On the river front near by there are large shipyards where
ships have been built for the United States navy.
The children of Philadelphia are especially proud of Independence Hall
where the famous Declaration of Independence was signed and the bell
rang out to tell of what brave men had dared to do. This "Liberty Bell"
has been carefully preserved and may be seen even now after all these
years.
There are many other large and beautiful cities in the country. One of
these, San Francisco, lies on the far western coast, on the borders of
the Pacific Ocean. It has a deep harbor, into which come sailing many
ships from China and Japan, bringing cargoes of silk and tea. Many
Chinamen are to be seen on the streets of the city, and pretty Japanese
children with black eyes and soft yellow skins play in the parks with
the little Americans. More wheat is exported from the city of San
Francisco than from any other in the United States.
There is so much to tell of this great country and of the children who
live here in happy homes, that it is hard to stop, but we must leave it
for the present and travel south to Mexico.