Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1860-09-15
On the Wing.

D
September 4, 1850.
WHY "OcHANAn? WHY "CHEAr RIvRRn,
GINSENG AND THE "SANGn GArHKRERs-A
RoUsu'CouNTRT-NO VKHIcLEs-vAsr Srocx
RANGES -SHEEP-RAIsING WHY ABANDONED
HERE-THE NATURAL ADVANTAGES OF Wusr.
ERN VIRGINIA FOR Stock RAISING.
Dsar Star: / lay awake an hour or more last
night trying to conjecture how this county town
OF Wyoming gets its name Of Oceana and could
hit upon no better solution than because IL In a
good ways from the ocean; which Is about as
satlsfactory reason as the at the Glades gave
me why peat-colored Cheat River gets its oppro-
bious appellation, because II looks like coffee
and isn't! BY the way, this place before it be-
came a county seat bore the name Of Ginseng, a
highly appropriate one, as this root (ginseng) 10
gathered very largely on the mountains In this
vicinity. The time Of gathering IL 10 about sir
weeks, commencing about the 10th of August
This morning as was taking an early stroll a
middle aged woman and ayoung girl, each having
sort Of cloth pouch slung under the left arm and
carrying shorthandled long bladed hoe, passed
| me and assembled the mountain side at speed
which showed them familiar with such rough
| work. | ascertained that they were sgoing a
| sanging," as they phrase it here, and Joining a
party Of boys who were bound on the same GRAND
I"went sanging" long enough to get specimen
OF the root and its top. The root is top, radish.
SNAPPED, but sometimes branching laterally to ac-
commodate itself to the nature Of the soil. The
| Stalk runs up foot or more in hight, bearing
RED berries and throwing out three fve-leaved
branches. The stalk turns yellow sooner in the
season than most other plants, and is thus indi-
Gated to the sang gatherer at long distance.
The root bears such commercial value that 1t is
| hunted perseveringly, and would long since have
Init for
way Of self-Preservation by which the root does
not invariably throw out an annual stalk, but
"lays low and keeps shadyn for a season. Old
gatherers say 1t Is common thing In digging to
come upon these stalkless roots The sang gather
ers average about five pounds per diem though II
Is not unusual to hit upon streak of luck and bag
fifteen or twenty pounds. I'm its crude state II
brings 70 cents per pound. 1t Is then cleaned by
the village dealers and put through steaming
process, by which 1t il reduced two.thirds In
bulk and almost as much in strength, but is i'm
proved In appearance, and AGO uires that delicate
reddish hue so much admired by the Chinese, its
main consumers. 1t is then packed up and sent
to Philadelphia, the ginseng market of the coun.
try, from whence 1t is shipped to China. The
Virginia dealer gets from 81 to 81 10 per pound
for it In Philadelphia, and the Philadelphans get
from the Celestials somewhere near its weight in
gold.
year or two ago a great deal Of Minnesota
ginseng was brought to market, completely glut.
ting II for the time, so that prices tumbled down
with jerk; but. the Minnesota article soon fell
into disfavor, being soft and spongy, and the Old
Dominion root has resumed its old place and
price. Snake root is also gathered in considerable
quantities In Wyoming county for the Philadel-
phia market.
10 -
sreaks of creation and is scarcely to be got at or
through by any vehicular conveyance Yet such
Is the fertility of these mountain sides and of the
str rs OF valley land, that little wealth is repre-
sented by the unpretending farmers and stock
raisers scattered along the Guyandote contracted
here to "Guyan," rhyming with NV Ami and
its branches. Thus on Clear Fork. some three
miles below the courthouse the mountain,
suddenly open out, disclosing a fine spread
OF valley meadow, the property Of an extensive
stoc k-raiser by the name Of Mcdonald, who grazes
annually from three to I've hundred head of i'm
proved cattle, and 10 worth probably s25O. COCO.
though his modest domicile and its surroundings
would not indicate him the possessor Of as many
hundreds Very many cattle summered and
wintered entirely In the great mountain ranges
hereabout, and keep in fair condition through the
year, though Of course they are not az plump al
bOttom-fed cattle. In the severer months Of win
ter the herdsmen break down the limbs Of the
linn trees as browse for these mountain pastured
cattle, and the soft-wooded twigs seem to afford
tolerable fodder. The cattle raised here are sold
to drovers, and make their exit to market through
the mountains and down the Valley of Virginia
This ought TO be an extensive sheep-raising dis.
tict; but the farmers seem to have been discour-
aged by some early bad luck, In the shape Of
ewes and lambs destroyed by wolves, dogs and
the red fox, and have given up keeping sheep II
the experiment should be made on sufficiently.
large scale to justify having proper attendance
given TO the focks, tn ere seems no reason what.
ever to doubt Of its abundant success The coun.
try here, for hundreds Of miles, consists mainly Of
mountainous or broken land, unfit for agricultural
purposes, but rich in quality and loaded with
profuse vegetation, which adapts 1t admirably for
Pasturage. have already mentioned the contrast
OF the rich green Of the verdure here pared to
the lumber complexion Of the landscape in nv
travels elsewhere. ] supposed this might be at.
hibutable mainly to the moistness Of the season,
much rain having fallen here this summer, but am
informed that the country here always presents
this inviting tone Of color. CSN
= Hon. John j.. Crittenden of KentucLy q.