THE PRAIRIES 



B. SHIMEK 



Few pheuomena have attracted as much attention from layman, 

 amateur and scientific observer alike as the absence of trees 

 from the prairies of the ^lississippi valley, and for that reason 

 the literature of few subjects presents as great a variety in 

 quality and value. Prairies and "barrens" were encountered 

 by the first settlers of the great valley, and some of the earliest 

 discussions of the problem are concerned with the prairies of 

 Ohio.^ 



But it was not until the white man crossed the "Wabash river 

 in his westward advance that he beheld the prairies in all their 

 splendor, and all their monotonous magnitude. 



These prairies presented varying aspects. The early settler 

 avoided them at first in part for the reason that he thought them 

 not fertile because treeless, and in part because they did not fur- 

 nish the much needed building materials, fuel and water : but as 

 his experience increased, there were added to these reasons the 

 menace of the prairie fires and the terror of winter storms. 



Both of these dangers have practically disappeared with the 

 settlement of the prairies and the development of shelter-belts, 

 but neither will be forgotten by those who witnessed their mad 

 fury. 



The old-time blinding, bewildering blizzard of the prairies has 

 lost its horror, and though it may still cause personal discom- 

 fort, it no longer menaces the safety of its hapless victims. 



But even in winter the prairie was often attractive, for the 

 storms subsided, and by day the sun-lit sea of snow sparkled with 

 countless ice-crystals which covered its surface, or formed filmy 

 festoons on every pro.jecting culm and blade, and by night it 

 rested in impressive silence under the star-spangled sk^*. 



lAtwater, Caleb. Am. Jour. Sei. and Arts, 1st Series, 1818, p. 116. 

 VOL. VI — 1. 12 



