“Hon. Darwin R. James, who served in the Forty-eighth and Forty-ninth Congresses, is an importer of indigo and spices, president of a savings-bank, and secretary of the New York Board of Trade and Transportation, said: ‘Words fail to express the pleasure of the excursion we are making. Kansas is a magnificent State, and is developing with wonderful rapidity. I thought I knew something about it before I came, but I am amazed at the progress made since my former visit. All that I had heard of Hutchinson, and it was much, has been more than realized. She is a magnificent young city, whose possibilities for the future are unlimited. We might say of Hutchinson “She is the salt of the earth.”’ “Dr. Frank W. Shaw, of Brooklyn, N. Y., being asked for his impressions replied that, while not a banker himself, he could appreciate the interest which men of affairs always feel toward the prosperity of any growing section of the West. The opinions of Kansas which he had heard from the distinguished gentlemen with whom he had the pleasure of travelling had shown him the broader views of observation, but what he had personally seen to-day of Hutchinson and its wonderful industries and possibilities convinced him of the soundness of Western enthusiasm. Those magnificent salt works alone assure the future success of the city. He said he should always feel indebted to Mr. Blanchard for his first view of the substantial prosperity of Kansas and of this beautiful city. “Crowell Hadden, Esq., President of the Long Island Bank of Brooklyn, the oldest bank in the city, said: ‘I am highly gratified at the growth and enterprise of the city. It bids fair to become one of the greatest of Western cities. The recent discovery of salt underlying the city by Mr. Ben Blanchard will add largely to its wealth.’ “Capt. Ambrose Snow, President of the Board of Trade of New York City, said: ‘Yes, sir, Hutchinson has a great future before her. That wonderful salt! Why, it is a revelation to me. With that, and the railroads you have and those you are getting, no power in the world could prevent Hutchinson from forging right to the front and staying there!’ “The ladies of Mr. Blanchard’s party were of much more than ordinary intelligence, and had travelled not a little, and seen much of the world, and were familiar with European scenery. They were charmed with our beautiful streets and neat and handsome business blocks, and elegant lawns and residences. They were unanimous in the opinion that if they could not live in New York they would certainly choose Hutchinson.” Of one fact all were convinced--that Hutchinson could furnish as good social life as we could desire. “Hutchinson’s salt mines are valuable, but her women are far above rubies,” said a gentleman of our party, and we all said “Amen!”