314 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



gusta (Georgia) he would be confined to the house, for the same rea- 

 son, one quarter of the year ; in St. Paul he would be kept in-doors 

 between a third and a quarter of the time ; while in Boston he would 

 have to be housed a good third of the time." 



Many invalids who recognize the force of these data would, never- 

 theless, hesitate to come to Colorado because of their im^^ression that 

 the people are rough and only semi-civilized, and that the lack of ac- 

 commodations is so great as to make life, especially for a lady, unen- 

 dui'able. Persons, gaining their information from newspapers, have 

 a vague idea that the State is infested by the cow-boy element, that 

 everybody carries fire-arms, that society is lawless or at the best crude, 

 and that social life is regulated by the nouveaux riches. Such persons 

 would be astonished at the facts in the case. In Denver they will find 

 regular and well-laid streets, numerous and magnificent public build- 

 ings, imposing rows of business blocks, numerous and flourishing 

 banks, stately churches, and, above all, comfortable and wealthy 

 homes. A personal investigation will convince any one that Denver 

 is the finest, cleanest, most healthful, and by far the most imposing, 

 of any of the so-called new cities in the United States. It is a false 

 impression that leads any one to think that affairs are crude in Colo- 

 rado. Throughout the State, even in the smallest towns, are to be 

 found people of culture and refinement. It is a noteworthy fact that 

 the average of education is higher here than in almost any other part 

 of the Union, and there is not a town in the State that is wanting a 

 circle of people who have both read and traveled. It is also a mis- 

 taken impression that lawlessness prevails. In the mountains one can 

 go anywhere unarmed, while in the centers life and property are as 

 secure as in the East. 



It is an equally mistaken idea that would cause one to hesitate 

 about coming to Colorado for fear of the privations he would have 

 to endure. Throughout the State the comforts of living, in any given 

 place, are as great as they would be in a place of equal size East. 

 Most of the towns are supplied with water- and gas-works. The 

 markets have fruits and vegetables in their seasons, and fish and 

 oysters from the coast. Such articles as groceries, clothing, furni- 

 ture, are to be had as readily here as elsewhere. Hotel accommoda- 

 tions are as good as, if not better than, are to be found in most places 

 of equal size East. 



It should be remembered, however, that the expenses of living may 

 be higher in Colorado, which is a new country, than in the older and 

 more settled portions of the Union. This is to be accounted for par- 

 tially by the fact that the home production is inadequate to the con- 

 sumption, by the gi-eat distance that intervenes between this State and 

 the centers of supply, and by the fact that it is impossible to grow 

 certain things in this soil. As the question of expense is often of 

 prime importance to invalids who would like to come to Colorado, it 



