Part 1

Grown-ups talk a lot about "SEEING AMERICA FIRST." They say that this is the most wonderful land in the world and that everyone ought to see it before going to any other country. That is exactly what we Berry Wagon Boys are going to do, and as we travel we are going to write this little book for other boys and girls to read.

Our home city, Detroit, is as interesting as any place we shall visit. We love to hear of the days when Cadillac and his hundred men landed here and built their fort and how within a year six thousand Indians had camped within sight of the stockade. Detroit does not look much as it did then. It is now one of the leading Metropolitan Cities of the United States, and is growing as fast as Jack's famous beanstalk. It has grown from 400,000 to 800,000 within the past ten years, and it is lucky that there is lots of room for it to stretch in, for when people once get the craze for living in Detroit, no other place satisfies them.

We always take visiting friends to see the sights of Belle Isle, our island park. They are amazed at the wonderful fish in the big aquarium and interested in the zoo, the public bath house with its 800 rooms, and the beautiful casino. After taking them to a fine lunch at the Boat Club, we auto around the five and one-half miles of shore drive, and they "oh" and "ah" till it sounds as though they were taking a singing lesson.

There is no fleet of fresh water passenger steamers in the world equaling those which call Detroit their home port, and our Detroit River is too fine and dignified to cut up any of the antics in which some rivers indulge. It never rises and messes up the city for it is too busy carrying its countless boats of precious freight.

Detroit is a great manufacturing city, and it is quite likely that the flowers and vegetables in your garden, the medicine that cures you when you are sick, and the auto that you ride in, came from our city, for Detroit leads the world in these manufactures.

One thing is certain, if the varnish on your floors and furniture is the best that can be bought, it came from BERRY BROTHERS.

Canada is larger than the whole United States including Alaska, and probably it would keep on forever if the Pacific ocean did not stop it on the west, the Arctic on the north, and the Atlantic on the east.

Ottawa is the capital of Canada, and the Parliament buildings are among the finest buildings in the world. Just to look at them makes one think of kings and queens and all sorts of grandeur. We found it hard to imagine that a little over a century ago, terrible Indian massacres were taking place here. The Hurons and Algonquins used to come down the Ottawa river with their canoes loaded with furs, and the cruel Iroquois used to lie in wait to torture them in order to get those pelts.

Montreal, on the St. Lawrence, is another beautiful city. Here we saw great ocean steamers unloading freight from all parts of the earth. The harbor of Montreal was the first port in the world to be lighted with electricity, so that the loading of steamers can go on by night as well as by day. They put in as many hours as possible, for during four months of the year the river is frozen so that no commerce can go on.

In the old Chateau de Ramezay, which used to be the governor's residence, were signed the papers which made the colony an English instead of a French one.

A hundred and seventy two miles beyond Montreal lies Quebec. No, it does not "lie," for it stands way up on a high bluff above the St. Lawrence. This bluff is called the Citadel and is one of the strongest fortresses in the world. It is sometimes called "the Gibraltar of the Western Hemisphere."

Quebec is divided into two parts called the "Lower Town" and the "Upper Town," so that the city seems to have an upstairs and a downstairs. You can climb up or down through some queer, crooked, narrow street like Mountain Street or Breakneck Stairs, or can ride in a big "lift" which is the English word for elevator. The Lower town is very picturesque and artists like it, but we boys think the Upper town is much more cheerful and beautiful.

We often read of walled cities, but until we saw the ruins of the old wall in Quebec, we had never seen a walled city.

We are visiting Aunt Penelope who lives in a part of Boston which is called the "Back Bay." The waters of the bay used to roll right where her house stands, but by filling in with earth the Bostonians made the land and some of the finest buildings in the city stand on this "made land."

We can see the golden dome of the State House from our window and in walking over to see the building we went through the Public Garden. It seems like a magical spot, for yesterday the flower beds were filled with violets and crocuses, and today those are gone and tulips are in their places. When these begin to fade, other blooming plants will be set out.

In the old part of Boston are some very narrow crooked streets and people say these were once the path made by cows across the meadows. There are very few of these streets left and the newer part of Boston has some of the finest streets in the world. Commonwealth Avenue is famous for its width and costly homes, and Brookline, the finest part of the city, is said to have more wealth and beauty to the square foot than any other city in the United States. The roads around Boston are fine and besides the interesting buildings, lovely parks, and historic spots, one is constantly catching glimpses of the blue harbor.

Climbing up the 295 winding stone steps of Bunker Hill Monument was "some climb," but the view from the top was wonderful.

Old North or Christ Church is interesting because from its belfry the two lanterns were hung as a signal to Paul Revere to start on his famous ride, and from Old South Church the patriots who took part in the Boston Tea Party started. They disguised themselves as Indians so that the British would not recognize them. It took a lot of courage to pitch that cargo of tea into Boston Harbor, and if I could choose a Boston ancestor, I would choose one of those brave men.

One of the most historic spots in Boston is Faneuil Hall. It was given to the town by Peter Faneuil as a place in which to hold town meetings, and the most fiery speeches of those old Revolutionary patriots were made in this old building which is called the "Cradle of Liberty."

Harvard is the oldest university in America. It was founded sixteen years after the Pilgrims landed. In Memorial Hall we saw over a thousand students eating dinner. The collection of glass flowers at Harvard is famous. There is only one man in the world who knows how to make them, and unless he tells someone before he dies, his secret will be buried with him. He has made flowers exactly like those in all parts of the world.

We went up to New Haven to see Yale, for these two universities have been rivals ever since Yale was founded fifty years after Harvard. The wonderful old elms on the campus are famous, but we Berry Wagon Boys would rather see a football game between Yale and Harvard than to see all the glass flowers or historic elms in the world. The Harvard fans would wave their deep crimson pennants and yell: "Rah-Rah-Rah (9 times) Harvard!" Yale champions would wave the Yale Blue, and shout: "Rah-Rah-Rah (9 times) Yale!"

Although Princeton is much smaller, its students love it just as well, for of course a fellow would not love his mother any less because she did not weigh 400 pounds. Anyway, in athletics, the orange and black of Princeton are as well known as any college colors and their yell has cheered Princeton boys to victory on many gridirons: "'Ray, 'Ray, 'Ray! Tiger, Tiger, Tiger! Sis, Sis, Sis! Boom, Boom, Boom! Ah, Ah, Ah! Princeton! Princeton! Princeton!"

The buildings of Cornell University at Ithaca, N. Y., are at the top of a high hill and the campus is as fine as any in America. When Ezra Cornell founded this university he said: "I would found an institution where any person can receive instruction in any subject," and when we had been through the buildings we decided that his wish had come true. The Cornell colors are red and white, and their yell is: "Cornell! I Yell, Yell, Yell, Cornell!"

West Point, is the finest military school in the United States and we wish we had space to tell about the wonderful drilling we saw there. It is way up on the cliffs overlooking the Hudson. The West Point colors are black, gold, and gray, and their yell is "Rah, Rah, 'Ray! Rah, Rah, 'Ray! West Point! Ar-may!"

There is not very much of Old New York left. The great sky-scrapers have crowded out most of the ancient landmarks, but there are a few relics. For instance, way down town is the Sub-Treasury building. It looks like a nice dignified old gentleman dozing and dreaming of the past, while the great high buildings around it with their rushing life are like hustling boys and girls, full of energy and spirit.

Another old-timer is Fraunces' Tavern. In Washington's day it was the most popular tavern in New York. When the British evacuated New York there was a great celebration, and that night General Washington dined at Fraunces' Tavern. A few days later he went there to say good bye to the generals who had served so bravely during the Revolutionary War. Those small-paned windows have looked out on over a century and a half of New York life, and if the old walls could speak, they could tell thrilling stories.

The most historic house in New York is the Jumel Mansion. In Washington's time it was the handsomest house in the city, and besides, it had a fine situation way up on Harlem Heights overlooking the river. It was there that General Washington made his headquarters. It is what grown-ups call "very quaint," and the glass for the windows and the hand-painted paper for the walls came over from France. We saw the narrow hall where the sentry paced back and forth as he guarded Washington's slumber, and the council chamber where the general and his staff decided so many questions. There is the cupboard where Andre, the spy, hid, but the secret passage down to the river has been closed because of the river rats.

After the war the Jumels, (some wealthy French people) bought the house, and later Madame Jumel married the famous Aaron Burr. Jerome Bonaparte, brother of the Emperor Napoleon, once visited Madame Jumel in this house, and many other distinguished people have slept under its roof. It is the most interesting house we have ever seen, and someway it has made United States history seem more real than it does in the school books.

Anyway, when at sunset we went down to the harbor and looked out at the Statue of Liberty, she seemed to sort of belong to us and to all American boys and girls.

An architect said to us: "New York has a wonderful skyline." He explained that the "skyline" is the silhouette that the buildings make against the sky. In some cities the buildings are so nearly one height that the skyline is level and uninteresting, but in New York there are tall sky-scrapers, low buildings, domes, towers, and smokestacks, so that the skyline is full of variety. The picture shows the skyline of lower New York as we saw it from Brooklyn Bridge, which is the oldest bridge connecting Brooklyn with Manhattan. It is over a mile long. The bridge was designed by John Roebling, but he died before it was begun. His son took his place, but he worked so hard planning and superintending the work that in three years he became an invalid. Then he took a house overlooking the bridge, and from his invalid chair he watched through a telescope and directed all the work till it was completed ten years later.

Not far from Brooklyn Bridge is the Stock Exchange, which is the most famous business building in New York. We never knew that tame men could act as wild as they do there. It is where they buy and sell stocks and of course they are all anxious to make as much money as possible and everyone seems to be gesturing and screaming and no one seems to be listening. It is as exciting as a football game.

After all the wild noises of the Stock Exchange, we went to the most quiet place in the city, Grant's Tomb. We thought it would look like a cemetery, but it is a beautiful white granite building high up above the Hudson. The inside of the building is finished in white marble and there are the great red porphyry tombs of General Ulysses S. Grant and his wife. People who have traveled across the sea say that Napoleon's Tomb is more showy, but we were satisfied with Grant's Tomb. Someway it made us proud of America and its heroes.

By this time the sun was setting behind the Palisades on the other side of the river, and those great cliffs looked like pictures of castles on the Rhine. The Hudson is far wider and more beautiful than the Rhine, though, which is another good reason for "seeing America first."

One of the finest parts of SEEING AMERICA FIRST is the trip around the Great Lakes. They are so large that people call them "inland seas," and when you are out of sight of land, it is just like being on the ocean. Our steamer was what grown-ups call "a floating palace," and we learned many interesting things as we went along.

We never saw so many kinds of boats before. Great barges full of iron and copper ore, small steamboats tugging a whole line of lazy big barges, fine sailing vessels looking exactly like picture-book ships, and little naptha launches that came out and played around our big steamer when she neared a port. The great whaleback steamers looked like angry sea monsters snorting smoke out of their high stacks, but they are really kindly creatures for they carry immense loads of wheat or ore from the Lake Superior region to the southern and eastern ports. Another kind of boat is known as a "rabbit," and the pictures on the opposite page show you these queer craft.

People had told us that Lake Superior is twenty feet higher than Lake Huron, and we boys were dreading the plunge which our steamer would have to make, but it was as quiet as a mill-pond, for our boat merely sailed into a sort of box or "lock" and the water was slowly lowered till we sailed out on Lake Huron without even a jolt. There are locks between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, too, for Niagara Falls would not be very easy for a steamer to climb or descend.

It is wonderful to watch the loading and unloading of the huge freight barges. There are great derricks which reach out giant arms and pick up monstrous loads and carry them up or down to deck or dock.

Before the Erie Canal was built, the steamers could only go as far as Buffalo and there the freight had to be taken from the boats and loaded on trains in order to be sent farther east. The Erie Canal crosses New York state like a great water boulevard and connects with the Hudson at Albany and a boat sailing from Chicago can go clear to New York City and get a glimpse of the ocean before starting back to the inland seas.

We Berry Wagon Boys thought we had seen big machinery before, but when we went to the huge steel mills at Gary, Indiana, we felt about as small and unimportant as a couple of undersized ants standing before the Pyramids of Egypt!

Gary is called "the steel capital of the world," yet only a few years ago the spot where the city stands was just miles of dreary sandy beach on the southern shore of Lake Michigan. Columbus discovered America all ready-made, but Judge Gary and the other men who were in the big steel company did not discover Gary, they actually made it! Way up in the Lake Superior country were enormous stores of ore, but there was no coal and no limestone, so the ore had to be taken far away to be made into steel, and the freight made the steel very expensive. These men decided to find a place where the materials could be brought together more cheaply. It had to be on the lake, so that steamers could haul the ore. It had to be near several railroads, so that they could bring the coal and limestone. It had to be near a big city so that there would be a near-by market for the steel. Besides, they needed a lot of space to grow in. They bought 9000 acres and seven miles of that barren shore 25 miles from Chicago and they set their designers to work. The whole thing was built on paper before they began to build it out of concrete and cement. If anything was in their way, they just moved it. They had to move a river and a hundred miles of railroad track. Even then they had to build four of their big blast furnaces right out in the lake. It cost over two million dollars just to get things ready for the buildings.

If you were to go to Gary today and see the fine city they have built for their workers to live in, the paved and electric-lighted streets, the pretty homes, the parks, the wonderful steel plants, the fine harbor and the docks where great steamers are always loading and unloading, you would find it hard to believe that all of these had grown up out of that sand in ten years.

Until today all that we Berry Wagon Boys knew about meat was that we liked our steak rare and our pork well done, and we never thought where all the meat comes from or how it is prepared for the market. Here at the Union Stock Yards of Chicago we have learned many interesting things. Almost every farm in the United States has some cattle, hogs, and sheep, and out in the far west there are huge ranches where thousands of cow-boys are employed to care for the great herds of cattle. In Texas there is a ranch larger than the whole state of Connecticut.

Farmers used to kill their own stock and sell the meat in the nearest town, but now there are great meat-packing centers to which they ship the live stock and where it is turned into canned meat or sent in refrigerator trains or ships to all parts of the world, and because of the intense cold in which it is kept, the meat will remain fresh for months. The packing industry amounts to hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

In the stock yards of Chicago, there are over twenty miles of streets filled with huge pens, each pen containing hundreds of cattle, pigs, or sheep. While they are waiting to be killed, they are fed on good food and watered with pure artesian water, so their last hours are made as pleasant as possible.

If the creatures could know how very useful they are to be, it would be quite a comfort to them, for besides being made into dried, canned, smoked, or fresh meat, they furnish materials for fertilizer, brushes, oils, glue, lard, leather, hairpins, mattresses, and many other things. The packers say that they can use every part of an ox but its kick and every part of a pig but its squeal.

After the meat is prepared for the market, it is kept two days in a great chilling room where ten thousand sides of beef can be chilled at one time.

It was interesting to see the sausage meat being pressed into the intestines of the pigs, for the big machines can fill a mile of skins a minute. We saw them making lard, too, and are proud to say that American lard is shipped all over the world and is considered the best. The reason that American meat products are so good is because the inspectors do not allow any carelessness.

Chicago has so many fine sky-scrapers that we Berry Wagon Boys had almost passed the splendid Harvester Building with just a glance when the man we were with stopped us and said: "Take a good look at that building, for if a boy had not had ideas and perseverance, it would never have been built. His name was Cyrus McCormick, and he lived in Virginia. In the blacksmith shop on his father's farm, Cyrus and his father used to make lots of labor-saving things and the boy decided that he would invent a machine which would harvest the wheat better and more quickly than could be done by hand. He spent every spare minute working on the invention and was twenty-one years old when he saw his first reaper at work in the harvest field. He thought that every farmer would want to buy one, but it was ten years before he sold his first machine. Soon after this he sold another and after that, the orders came so fast that he went out west to the little city of Chicago, which was quite young in 1847, and built his first factory. This factory was the father of the nineteen huge factories in which the International Harvester Company now makes every machine that a farmer needs for any season and any crop." We saw only three of these plants, but when we had been through the McCormick Works, the Deering Works, and the steel mills and had seen all the wonderful things that are done in those factories, we did not wonder that America is famous for its farm implements.

People complain a lot about the high cost of living, but if the grain had to be planted and plowed and harvested by hand, I guess the American kiddies would have to eat their bread and jam without the bread.

We Berry Wagon Boys are visiting our Uncle Silas who owns a great farm of fifty thousand acres in the northwest. When we look out over the big wheat fields that stretch for miles, it is like looking out over a great yellow sea, only the waves are made of wheat instead of water.

Uncle Silas says that wheat is among the earliest known foods, and that bread is the earliest known cooked food. The people of Egypt were eating wheat bread four thousand years ago, only it was not like the bread we have today. It was called "koscoussoo," and consisted of flour and water cooked together in a basket over boiling water. Wheat was brought to America by our forefathers, and George Washington was a great wheat grower for those days. He had a mill at Mount Vernon and shipped flour to the West Indies.

When Uncle Silas and Aunt Mollie came west thirty years ago, this country was just bleak prairie and one could travel miles without seeing a sign of human life. They lived in a mover's wagon while building a sod house. After three years they built a four-room house and they were as proud as kings. As fast as they made any money they bought more land, so now they own miles of this wonderful country.