The independent press. (Abbeville C.H., S.C.) 1853-1860, 1855-05-18

town and some Of its prominent mon. Our
town holds population of about seven
thousand, aud covers about as much ground
as your capital, Columbia. It is built upon
bluff Of the river, and a semicircuar
range of hills. Some of the streets are
high, broken, and prcciptous. think this
gives it an additional beauty. The pretty
cottages perchcd upon the hill-tops, with
the slopes carpeted by green covering of
grass, hav" very taking look. It has less
OF ornament, in trees and cultivated gar
dens, than your beautiful and pretentious
Columbia, but it has the advantage in the
number Of its elegant private mansions
Two OF our nabobs, who were building fine
houses, made swap, in which boot was
given to the amount of sixteen thousand
dollars. When that much was given as
boot, between two new unfinished buildings,
You can guess at the whole value of the
buildings. This town was about five years
ago the richest town or city in the world,
according TO population. The late influx
of population has not brought much wealth.
This has reduced the average, but have no
doubt that Montgomery is still the richest
town or city in the world. In voting pop
ulation of six hundred, there are upwards
of thirty persons who are worth one hun
dred thousand dollars, or over one man in
every twenty worth over one hundred thou
sand dollars. Abbevillc is one of the rich
est Districts in South Carolina. Just let
any man apply this ratio to his neighbor-
hood, and see how the account stands. It
is true, some Of these fortunes we're made
by "sharp transactions" and perhaps sharp
er than honest. About the year of our
Lord 1880, just on the heels of ''the flush
times OF Alabama" everybody broke. In
1910, the Wing Congress of the United
States made up panacea and healing plas-
ter for broken backs, in the shape of a bank.
rupt law. These men took its benefits, p:id
off their debts at ten or twenty cents in the
dollar, and took new start. Now they
are rich, and roll in magnifccnce.
BY the way, this place is made up Of
the sharpcst and shrcwdest men in the
world. The acuminated point of diamond
is no sharper than their wits. Nowhere
else have I seen SO much general intelli-
gence. Your State is nowhere in the CON-
parIson. Our town might also have literary
pretensions, if all the talent were not abb
sorbed in the law. Out of that circle, how
ever, we have DR.. L1pscoMDE, who is a
match for any man. Messrs. HILL1ARD and
Moss and YANcEY have a taste for letters
not entirely drowned in the law. Mr.. Hill
LARD unites three rather incompatible av-
ocations-those of lawyer, preacher, and
politician. He succeeds well in all of them.
Lie has good practice at law. He preach
es nearly every Sunday. He was the men,
Der Of Congress from this District for some
years. His present aspirations seem to be
tor the next Vice Presidency, for which he
has been recommended by several papers
MIR. HILLIARD is very impressive and pol
ished rhetorician. He commenced his ca
reer as 'saddIe-bags Methodist preacher"
and has since been a Professor of Bellies
Lcttres in some College. Some naughty
old fellow refused him his daughter when
and because ho was "saddle-bags preacher"
Parents arc not always prophets. JEFF
DAVIS had TO run off with old TAyLoR's
daughter, and FREMONT with old BENroN's.
simply because they were young and OBJ
scure Lieutenants in the army. So tho
girls are sometimes smarter, in matrimonial
matters, than their papas. But this is off
the subject, Mr.. HILLrARD, I have no
doubt, is dcyout man, yet,he has tastes
that would hardly suit your old-fashioned
Methodists. He has fine taste, and dresses
elegantly. To see him drive up to church
and alight from superb carriage, behind a
flashy pair Of one thousand dollar horses,
and take out two or three pretty and snowy
ladies, you would hardly take him for the
man that was to preach. These things.
however, are only tile emanations of the po.
etry Of his nature. He is no trifer, nor
fond Of levity, but isa sad, solemn; and
deeply contemplative man.. He has Had al
life OF strange vicissitudes, aud these have
written q sad epic poem upon his face. 8 3 {
F Ihave spoken before of: the sfirreHdness
and capacity Of. our business t,si,.. a. a an