February 25th, 1872.

Our train stopped on the west bank of the Missouri River and we waited several hours while our luggage was transferred into cars belonging to the Chicago Railroad. Then the train began to proceed slowly over the still unfinished bridge to the other side of the river.

The rich, moist loam of the Mississippi and Missouri basin is very suitable for growing Indian corn, the common grain grown in the most fertile regions of these states. Corn is said to have first been the staple crop of the native Indians of this area, hence the name ‘Indian corn’, and the practice then spread around the world. Corn is very nourishing, but the kernels are hard and difficult to digest and, according to physicians who have conducted experiments, can take as many as five hours to digest. However, if eaten with other, more digestible grains and meat, it is good for the stomach. Enormous quantities of corn are exported to Britain, especially from the states of the Mississippi River basin.

February 26th. Fine.

At three o'clock in the morning we passed Burlington, where we crossed a long bridge over the Mississippi. The river marks the boundary between the states of Iowa and Illinois, and we were now entering Illinois.