Bedford inquirer and chronicle. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1854-1857, 1857-05-08
The SandhiIIers of South Carolina.

| upper country OF South Carolina, lies the
middld or saudhill region. A large por-
tion of the tract that varies in breadth
from ten to thirty miles, is covered with
forests Of pine int erspersed here and there
with other trees. Where it is under cuI-
tivatiou the principal crop is cotton. But
the land is not generally fertile, and much
OF it Is likely to remain for great while
partial wilderness. The country itself pre-
sents but few interesting features, but it IS
the home of singular race or class Of peo-
pie, to whom may profitably devote few
paragraphs of description.
In travelling through the middle country
| often passed the rude aud squalid cabins
of the sandhiilers. All the inmates uSu-
ally focked to the door of the windowless
doulicile to stare at me. And such laak
serawny, filthy set Of beings / never be-
held elsewhere--not even within the pur-
liens Of New York Five points. Their
complexion is ghastly yellow white, with
out the faintest tint Of wholesome red -
The hair Of the adult Is generally sandy,
and that Of the children nearly as white as
cotton. The children are even paler than
the adults, if possible, often painfully bag
gard and siekly locking. They are eutire-
ly unedueated, semi barbarous III their hab
its, very dull and stupid, and in general
social position, far below The slave popula-
ton. Iu fact, the negroes look down upon
them with mingled pity and contempt
They are sqaatters on land belonging to
others, either with or without their consent.
They sometimes cultivate, or rather plant a
small piece of ground near their cabins,
raising little corn, few eabbages, fuel-
Gus and sweet potatoes Their agrieultu-
raj operations have never extended beyond
this.
Corn bread, pork and cabbage fried in
lard, and whiskey, seems 10 be their prin-
eiple articles of diet. To procure the lat
ter, and the few clothes they require, they
make shingles or baskets, or gather pine
knots, which they sell IN the villages, bat
beyond what is required to supply their
very limited actual necessities, they will
MT work Their principal employmeDts
are hunting and fishing, aud their standard
smusements drinking whiskey and fighting.
Their dress is as primitive as their habits
Tue women aud children invariably 60 bare
footed and berelegged, their only garment,
apparently, being gown of coarse calico.
The men wear cettoo shirt, and trowsers
Of coarse houlespun cloth, with the addi-
ton, sometimes, of an upper garment, too
rude and shapeless to be described
one day met a migrating family of
these miserable people. On most mlser-
able, and almost feshless substitute for
horse, were packed the entire effects of the
family, consisting of bed and few cock
ing utensils. Two small children occupied
the top Of the pack. Two large ones, each
headed with bundle, trudged behind
their mother, who appeared to be scarcely
mere than seventeen years of age. The
father, a wild, sinister looking fellow, walk
ed u little in advance of the rest, with his
long rife on his shoulder, and his hunting
pouch at bis side.
4 correspondent of one of the city pa
pcrs thus describes an encounter with
sandhiil family:
.sHere ON the read, We met family who
have been to town. A little girl of ten
years with coarse fragment of dress on,
is sitting on the backbone of a moving
skeleton Of horse, which has the addition
al task Of trailing along rickety specimen
of wagon, in which is seated man--a
real outside barbarian, maudln aud obfus-
Gated with baldface whiskev, With child
of four years at his side. Behind this,
haggsrd looking boy on another skeleton of
horse, is coming. What an odd, outIand-
lsh, low-wheeled cart the horse is pulling
There sits the old woman, and her grown
up daughter, with nothing on apparently,
except very dirty bonnet ami coarse
dirty gown The daughter has a basket by
her side, aud the old woman bolas fast to
suspicious looking jug, Of half gallon
measure, crowned with corn cob Your
life on II. that is jug of wkiskey. The
family have been to the village With con-
Tle Of loads Of pine knots, which they have
probably sosd for a dollar, half Of which
has gone for whiskey, and now they are
getting home Degraded as they are, you
see it is the man who is helpless, and the
woman has to take care Of the Jug, and con
duet the important expedition. There are
hundreds of sach people dispersed through
these sandhills." !"
Low, indeed, is the lowest class of white
people in the Southern States, though no.
where have found them quite so degraded
as in South Carolina. "Poor buckrub," or