The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-03-24
Gtregnteltiq
FROM THE SOUTH.
Some Further Notes from Our Late
correspondent.
WHEELING, March 2sd, 1869.


whites and blacks at the South, as OF
very many people elsewhere, is whis~
| ky. 1t is the fashion of the country
down there to sell whisky in the viii
| lage groceries and some OF the cross
road stores, just as 1t used to be in this
country. And people who are consid-
cred respectable and even leading char
acters are not above frequenting these
groceries and taking their drams, and
| taking them often enough, too, to
come forth qnite the worse for their
| load.
l think it likely that the most viii
famous liquor in the United States or
groceries. In the first place, much oft
comes originally from Cincinnati, stop
ping at Louisville, perhaps, for re-
medicatiOn-whichi is a suspicious cir
cumstance of itself, and, in the next
place, 1 presume from what have
heard that the Southern standard in
regard to such spiritual matters ran
down nearly to zero during the rebel
lion, and finally became very much de-
mOraliZed, indeed; SO much SO that at
this time an inferior article of even
Cincinnati whisky, duly remedicated
at Louisville, and, perhaps, again tam
pered with at Nashville, satisfies the
cravings of the thirsty Southron.
l have heard that during the war those
who W ere accustomed to free use OF
the ardent would drink corn juice fresh
and hot from the still, with the fusil oil
all alive aud rank in it, rather than go
| without their necessary stimulus. 1t
was thus perhaps that many OF those
who survived both the whisky and the
war, acquired their present uncritical
and somewhat degenerate capacity for
the article known as benZine.
The whisky groceries of the South
rejoice in the advent of "Court Week" "
for then comes their harvest and great
reward. Court week is an institution
in the South that we cannot duly ap-
preciate in this country, especially the
first day thereof as we happened TO see
it during our travels. The public
square OF the village that boasts the
possession of the Temple of Justice is
alive at AN early hour of tho day with
horses, mules, oxen ana wagons ana
with a great influx OF the rural popu-
lation clad in homespun. The former,
that is the horses and mules, are hitch
ed all around everywhere, in front of
the stores, groceries, shops and offices,
wherever there are hitching accommO-
dations. The oxen stand in the square
anywhere, yOked to their load of wood
or cotton, or whatever il may be. 1t is
not unusual to see six steers yoked to
very small load. but then the steers
are OF very small and scrawny pat
tern, probably not more than one-third
as heavy as those used in this country.
You naturally wonder what brought
all these people to town on the hrst day
OF Court. DO they all have business
with the lawyers. Ifthey do they must
certainly be the most litigiOus people
in the world. I am impressed from all
heard and saw that tho lawyers Parn-
dice, so far as personal influence Is con-
ceInCd, ~ at the South. And j can thus
understand why it was the people in so
1H.A o.
sistance to the Secession movement,
The lawyers are the father-confessors
of thousands OF them and were vlrtu-
ullv the keepers of the consciences OF
all such, for universal Intelligence does
prevail at the South, and the people are
not as independent and self reliant In
their business matters as they are at
the North. A lawyer at the South re-
minds us of our readings of the Priests
in Spnin, IL kind ofintellectual machine
for very many people. During Court
week they move about among the peO'
pleimuch, 1 suspect, AS the Brahmlns are
accustomed to move in and out of their
temples among their votaries III the
domain OF Juggernaut.
The outside of the Southern Court
houses that we happened to see was not
prepOssessing, and the inside OF the one
/ went into to behold Court in session
was still less inviting. 1t was scanty in
dirty enough not to have been cleaned
since the war. Down stairs, on the
opposite sides of a dark and cheerless
pAssageway, were the county Offices.
The rooms looked more like cells than
Offices. Up stairs the Court held It's
sessions, and on either side OF the pull
pit where the Judge sat, and the little
pen where the lawyers confronted the
two benches belonging to the Jury
were little aisles at the ends of which a
few people were huddled with their
backs tothe fire. The Judge, supe-
rior looking man, sat i'll his pulpit, pen
In hand, making memoranda, as took
it, in the docket. The Jury were Suing
listless and mute, for no lawyers We're
about, and the spectators before the
wood fire made no other sign than now
and then to whisk their homespun
coat tails and scratch their legs. l
| thought these were the most solemn
proceedings 1 ever looked upon, and
really it was relief to see the tip stah
put his head out OF the window and
call John Doe and Richard Roe into
court AS it was near the middle OF
the dav the Roes and Does were sup
posed to be refreshing themselves along
with their friends ut the Groceries, for
YOU must know that in this shire town
where / attended Court there was no
| tavern. The travel is too scant and the
whisky business too prOmiscuous for a
tavern in that little place to thrive.
They say that 1t is something more
than ordinary to hear the Southern
LAWYERS when doing their level best in
| a big case, as for instance murder
| trial. Then is the time that a Congress
sional aspirant puts himself squarely
| on his mettle and tickles the ears of the
listening crowd with such swelling
neriods Of pathos and bathos as melt
them away entirely. Amusing incl
dents are told as to some OF the Judges
| that get upon the bench in the SCUM IN
these days, as illustrating their high
Qualifications for the positions they hll.
Somawhere. in Alabama or elsewhere,
| a learned Judge delivered charge after
the trial of a case between two partners
| in ono of these groceries that nave
haen talking about, in the course OF
whicn he is reported to have salo that
"if the Jury believed from the evidence
that the plaintiff and defendant were
partners in the grocery, and that the
pIaintiff bought out the defendant and
gave his note for the interest, ana tha'
the defendant paid for the note by de-
liyering to the plaintiff COW, Whlch he
warranted mot breechy,' and the war
ranty was broken by reason or tne
breechiness of the COW, and the Plelnun
drove the cow back and rendered her u -
the defendant, but the deienuan'
refused to receive her, and the plain
Elf took her home again and put
: heavy yoke or poke upon her to preVen'
her jumping the fence, and the COW IN
attempting to jump the fence by reason
ofthe yoke or poke broke her neck and
died; and If the jury further believe
that the defendants interest in the gro
carv was not worth anything: that the
n!aintiff's note was worthless, and the
coIv good for nothing, either for milk
or beef, or for green .. hlde. then tht