October 25, 1937 (Monday) Sulphur & Coal Trip
     Notes on the sulphur and coal trip for fortune.
                                                      Oct. 9- Night train (11:45) for St. Louis.
     Oct. 10- A.M. the endless monotony of Indiana & Illinois’ flat country, which I rather ineffectually tried to break by breakfast and reading of detective magazines.
     Arrive St. Louis 12:30. Crossing the Mississippi River was a sentimental thrill, though I was disappointed by the size. Trivial notes at the station: Missouri has put the mill into circulation thru a cautious tax (I put three away as souvenirs of something or other) the Red-Caps are all white men here (Why?); the train next to our was an aluminum (a monel metal?) streamlined one, the engine name Mark Twain, the coaches Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, etc., which seemed an anachronism to me.
     The ride southward thru Missouri before night fall- superficially, the country (low rolling wooded) seemed much like Western New York - in fact I was struck with during the whole trip how “like” all the country I passed through was. It was not until I was in Southern Texas that the difference in vegetation was enough to make a noticeable difference in the appearance of the country.
     Oct. 11- Mon. A.M. A bright sunny morning; notes from the train windows- general appearance of fields & trees like august in our state; goldenrod abundant; a plant like goldenrod in character, though more feathery & of a silvery white color, a palm-like fern in swamps (later learned was Palmetto) The Spanish moss appeared first in isolated trees, but gradually