Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1856-10-11
THE sANDHILLERs OF South
CAROLINA.

Between the Glow country" and the upper
country" Of South Carolina, lies the middle or
sandhill region. large portion of this tract,
which varies in breadth from ten TO thirty miles,
is covered with forests Of pine. inierspersed
here and there with a variety Of other trees
Where il is under cultivation, the principal
crop is cotton. But the land is not generally
fertile, and much Of i, is likely to remain for
long time a partial wilderness The country
itself presents but few interesting features. but
1t is the home Of a singular race or class Of
people, TO whom | may profiably devote few
paragraphs of description.
In travelling through the "miJde country
often passed the rude and squalid cabins Of
the sandhllers. All the inmates Usually fock-
ed TO the door Of their wibdowless dotaieil to
stare al me. And such a lank, serawny, filthy
set Of beings | never beheld elsewhere--not
even within the Purlieus Of the New York
Five Points Their complexion is a ghaslly
yellowish white, without the faintesl tinge Of
wholesome red. The hair Of the adults is
generally sandy, and that Of the children near
ly as white as cotton. The children are even
paler, II possible, than the adults, and often
painfully haggard and siekly looking. They
are entirely unedueated, semi-barbarous in ali
their habits, very dull and stupid. and, in gem
era social position, far below the slave popula-
ton around them. In fact the negro looks
down upon them with mingled pity and con-
tempt. They are ''squattersn on lands belong
ing to others, either with or without their con-
sent. They sometimes cultivate, or rather
plant, small patch Of ground near their cabins,
raising little corn, and few cabbages, mel
ons, and sweet potatoes. Their agricultural
operations never extend beyond this. Corn,
bread, pork, cabbage (fred in lard,) and whis-
key, seem 10 be their principal articles of diet.
To procure the latter and the few clothes they
require, they make shingles or baskets, or gath
er pine knots which they sell in the village /;
but beyond wha, is required to supply their very
limited actual necessities, they will not work
Their principal employmenlA are hunting and
fishing, and their standard amusemenis drinking
whiskey and fighting. Their dress is as psm-
hive as their habits. The women and children
invariably go barelooted and barelegged, their
only garment, apparently, being a gown of
coarse calico The men wear cotton shirt,
and uowsers Of the coarse homespun cloth of
the country, with the addition sometimes of an
upper garment too rude and shspcless TO be
named or described.
| one day met migrating family of these
miserable people. On most sorry, lank, and
almost aeshless substitute for horse, were
packed the entire household effects OF the fam
lily, consisting Of a bed and few cooking u.en-
sls- Two small children occupied the top of
the pack. Two larger ones, each loaded with
a bundle, trudged behind with their mother,
who appeared to be scarcely more than seven
teen years Of age. The father, wild, sinis-
Ter looking fellow, walked little in advance
of the rest, with his long rife on his shoulder
aad his hunting pouch at his side.
correspondent of one of the city dailes
thus describes an encounter with sandhll fam
NY Here, on the road, we meet family
who have been to town. A little girl Of len
years old, with coarse old fragment of dress
on, is sitting on the backbone of moving ske.
eton of a horse, which has the additional task
of trailing along rickety specimen of wag-
on, in which is seated a mana real outside
squalid barbarian, maudin and obfuscated with
bald-faeed whiskey, with child four OF five
years old at his side. Behind this haggard
looking boy upon another skeleton of horse
is coming. What an odd, ouilandish, low
wheeled cart the horse is pulling There sits
the old woman and her grown'up daughter, with
nothing on apparently, except a very dirty bon
net and coarse and dirty gown. The daugh-
ter has basket by her side, and the old wo-
man holds fast to a suspicious looking stone-jug
of half gallon measure, corked with a corn
cob. Your life on it, that is Jug Of whiskey
The family have been 10 the village, with
couple of one horse loads of pine knots used
for light wood. They have probably sold them
for dollar, half Of which has doubtless gone
for whisky, and now they are getting home
Degraded as they are, you see it is the man
who is helpless, and the woman who has to
take care of the jug, and conduct the important
expedition, There are hundreds Of such peo-
pie dispersed through these sand hills. You
see the whole of this party are barelegged and
bareiooted. Aud how bony and brown they
aEel And it is curious fact, that in temper