The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-03-16
SAYINGS AND DoIN0s.

them in the new Metropolitan Church,
in which he is trustee.
|
SAYINGS AND DOIHGS.
"There's chiel among ye, takin' notes,
An l. faith, he'll prent 'em."
To the Editor OF the Intelligencer:
The Colonel's success in showing so
good an outcome from his farming ella
ted him not little. Virginia seemed
to him, more clearly than ever before,
| the garden of the world, and his farm
ing the perfection of agriculture. A
feeling akin to pity came over him for
| the outside barbarians, who were so
| unfortunate as not TO be born within
the bounds of the Mother ofPresidents.'
He hardly closed the door behind him
at home before he eagerly narrated to
Sally his success with the Yankee.
And, during all the week, he wal lked
around more briskly, gave orders more
peremptorily to the boys and hired
hands, and put on generally several
unwOnted touches of dignified style
keeping up the character of Virginia
gentleman.
It was not long before he made it in
his way to call again on the Captain,
and, the Yankee not being there, he
| hardly waited for the usual mutual en-
quiries after Sally and Molly and the
weather. before he broke in with
The Yankee didn't make much In
running down VirginiaH
The Captain knocked the ashes from
his stogie and answered.
You made a pretty good showing
from your years farming. But, now
that the Yankee Is not here, we
may as we'll confess the truth, that all
our farmers don't do as we'll as you do.
This touched the Colonel in n weak
place. He specially prides himself on
having things little better than his
neighbors, and on being particularly
sagacious in his calculations. SO he
readily replied.
That's a fact There's neighbor
Barnes. His farm is most as large as
mine, and he has quite as much or it
under cultivation. And yet he hardly
makes the years ends meet. l don't
see he's bit better off than he was ten
| years ago.
And responded the Captain, isn't
that too nearly the case with the larger
part of our neighbors p
The Colonel evidently began to see
whittier the Captain was leading him,
and answered with some hesitation.
There's too much truth in that. But
it needn't be so. It isn't the fault of
the country
1T is of the people, though, quietly re-
torted the Captain 1T is easy enough
to say that things needn't be as they are.
But the fact remains, that, while you
and few others are doing we'll, and
all might do so, the majority are not do
ing so. Unfortunately, your thrift and
success are marked exception to the
general rule
yes said the Colonel, 'all that be may
true. There are shiftless people here.
But that don't make out that Virginia
is poor place.
Virginia isn't poor place, by any
means,' said the Captain, 'and in all
countries there are some who do better
thar most others. But it is true that, with
what 1 believe arc greater advantages,
our best farming is not equal to the
best farming in many other States, and
that our average is far below their's.'
why, how you talk, Captain broke
in the Colonel. Il didn't expect to near
Virginian talk in that fashion. be-
lieve travelling has turned your head,
and that you have lost your State pride.
We'll, l don't know about that"
said the Captain. But 1 can't shut my
eyes to undeniable facts. When go
into the States north of us, see better
houses, better barns, better fences, bet
ter stock, cleaner fields and heavier
crops, while L don't see that their soil is
any more fertile than ours, or that our
facilities are materially less than theirs.
l wouldn't like to own it to our Yankee
neighbor. But the fact is, that they do
farm it better than we do. We arc
behind the times; and good ways
behind too.'
'Do you find any Of them that does
any better than l do?' interrupted the
yes replied the Captain. 'What you
get off from your farm is only very
small part of what they often get from
such an amount of no better land. l
know man who is making fortune
from only seventeen acres OF land; and
l can pick several seventeen acre pieces
on your farm that are naturally as good
and as faVorably situated for precisely
the same productions rs is his. know
another who is laying up yearly nearly
as much money from three acres as you
are from your two hundred, and have
an idea that he don't work any harder
than you do. and has even less capital
invested. And 1 know another, who
got over five hundred dollars from the
| twenty-secondth part of an acre.
But those are eXceptions.'
NO more exceptions than your farm :
ing is among West Virginians.'
but persisted the Colonel, 'Ours is
a grazing country, and we require more
| land
1T is true,' said the Captain, that
ours is better grazing country than
theirs. But 1t is also equally well
adapted to the very things which they
cultivate. So that this only shows US
|
tunities to be greater and our results
less.'
For my part retorted the Colonel a
little sharply, pm content to live as
have lived, and do rs my father before
me taught me to do. That suits me well
enough!'
That's the very trouble. We have
stood still from the times OF our fathers
before us, while others have been max
ing progress and improving. And now
they are long way ahead of us.
Well continued the Colonel, you
preach well. Why don't you practice a
little.'
'The fact is. Pm Virginian. and I
don't feel inclined to. But l know it
ought to be donei and like to see it
going on. And, l confess, too, that
/ will welcome Yankees, or anybody
else, who will do it. I'd like to see our
State as thrifty and prosperous AS any
State around u.s.
20. l like improvement of course; but
I'd rather it were done by our own
foIks-by native Virginians.'
The Captain now relit his stogie, and
whitfield away in silence until the Col
onel presently rose TO leave.