Star of the Kanawha Valley. [volume] (Buffalo, Va. [W. Va.]) 1855-1856, 1855-02-21
ImportIng d VIE.

Carolina making en- ronte through North
CAROLINA and Yiginia-I spent two sum.
mers and three winters among those bar,
bafians, but never heard the sound Of the
lash. On acerlain day l was invited 70 q
tea party In RichmoRd Va-there were
presentabou twenty couple Of young men
and maidens, old men aud matrons, with
o small spfinkling Of bachelors, who had
doubled teens, WHO from appearance be.
longed TO the upper tens. Supper being
ended, we commenced conyersing in
groups. was much amused and edited
blythe conversation Of an intelligent lady
who had seen eighty winters. She re-
marked that in her girlish days il was Gus
tomaryff for captains Of vessels TO bring as
part Of their cargo large number Of men
and women, who were styled Redemption
is.s, who were sold on their arrival BY the
captain for men-servants and maid-ser.
.yahts to wait on the wives and childrenEof
the planters ormerchants Theyw ereoften
t. sold to serve two Or three years to pay for
their. passage. The old lady remarked
that she had heard her parents tell, .thatin
The early times Of the settlement, it some.
/" times happened that bachelors and widow
ers would select benny Scotch or Welsh
lady, buy their time, and long loretheir
yelrs Of probation expired, they took them
| fosbetter and for wofse, for bed and for
board, thus forming a life co.psrtnershipt
which closed the concern. i, -'
The old lady related with all he spirit,
ual humor of a, lass in her teens) the fol-
lowing amusing incident: r.
Essays she, my grandfather came from
Shetland when in his twenty-frst year
Heisettled in Virginia, and became amer
Chant and planter and grew rieh. His a.
Cdnt in Glasgow was Alexander McAlpin
ioIwhom he consisntdtwo ortI.rle cargoe$
. ofitobacco every year, and received in re-:
tuEn,. cash, dry goods hardware DC. llq:
had foeks and herds. men-seryants and.
naid.serva1ts, hogs, mules and donkeys'
Batole hing he Yet lacked; lie had no
pretty little young wiie to sing to him and
beguile The time with her pratlipg, lively
Yankee tongue, when he came home al
night latigued with counting money, and
ea5ia:ed with worldly pelf--for he had
more Of that than heart could wish. So
after while; he concluded to take wife
as seon as lie could catch one; but there
wasthe rub. his time was SO occupied with
his business that he had no time to court;
and worse than all, he was baShful man.
When threading the streets Of Richmond,
ifhe saw q sprightly maiden Of eighteen
advancing in his path. he would cross the
street. and pass away on the other side,
fearful Of being killedby shot from her
sphrlling eyes. He had often heard his
parents speak much in praise Of tile BON
nisiassies who ployed among the heather
on the hill-tops in Scotland, and,a bright
idea now struck him. When be was leav-
inE the Office one day, his clerk was copy
ing duplicate order for sundries To be
seatas part Of the return cargo. Thinks
he to himself I'll order young lgssie foi
q wife, as the last item on, 1.-The list. The
article was ordered accordingly. At the
same timehe wrote n privte letter ofinstrue-
ton to his agent, Mr.. McAlpin, giving
minute. description Of the afticle wanted;
4 as 70 age, heighth, health, &C.; in sum.
ming up he added, she must be bonny
Ssoth lassie; to lie sent by tie return d
his own ship, her name on the manifest,
bill. Of lading, DC. On her arrival lac
promised TO have. her stored in the house
ola respectable widow, whom he named,
and ifagreeable to the parties concerned,
he would make her his wife in thirty days
after her arrival. Ifnot; and she wished
q return, hewould pay her expenses loss
of time, DC.
when Sandy McAlpin had finished
reading the letter Of instructions, he slow
~ removed the spectacles from his nose,
aud leaning back in his huge old-fashion,
ed Hell-stufed arm chair. and fixing his
eyes on the ceiling in his office, he com
menced md.tering to himself as follows:
The lad his correspondent the in his thir.
tieth year is daft or crazy-he tells me
70 fend him a. wife, as If she was q barrel
D sat herriags-G Good kens the fash (trou- !
ble) was at to get wife myself-but IL
see what the guide wife Says. "a bright
idea. IA. II !
Next day Mrs. McAlpin satin counsel
with Mrs. A. and B. Invitations were
scnt to ten matrons, whose daughters were
il and out Of their teens, to assemble al |
the a.board Of Mrs. McAlpin on the day
following. Each matron was requested to
bring with her a daughter who was noto'er
young to marry yet. All beingpresent an
hour,before tea Mr.. McAfpia read the
letter, andma1c the necessary explanations.
They then sat down to tea; supper being
ended, each lass gave in her ultimatum;
: three only were willing toembark on the
voyage Of matrimonial discovery-the
three agreed to draw outs. Mary Robin.
son drew the the longest straw and was
was hailed the Bonnie Bride. ~
"In ten days thereafterthey were breast.
Ing the waves Of the Atlantic Ocean; they
entered the Chesapeake Bay aftera passage
cftwelye weeks, which at that period was
termeda good passage. Intwo days more
they were ascending the shores Of the
James River, when Mr.. Crawford, fthe
hero Of our tale, heard the ship had arr.
we'd. He manned his own boat with four
stlunai servants, and started to meet
the ship. Mary was standing on the quar-
ter.deck. admiring natures wildes. gran.
dure; she had recoyed from the seassick.
nesswhenfour daysout; the healthful breeze
of the Atlantic had improved on her pref
~ face 0 beautiful freshness; there she