Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1870-04-08

this quiet little village, situated on It's long
rambling hill T? Have yon ever climbed
| the slippery red mud road that leads from
the depot UP to the one street of the town?
Have you at midsummer sat under it's
spreading elms and enjoyed the cool breeze
that came from the western hills, while
you calcl!y puffed your "Salem' pipe,
loaded with Durham" tobacco II YOU
have done none Of these things, you have
yet before you pleasure for the coming
''hot term, which We hope you will enjoy.
buckingham is the county site of Rich
mond county, situated on the Whining
ton, Charlotte and Rutherford Railroad
one hundred and seventeen miles from
Wilmington AS you aware, this rail
road skirts along the border counties of
North Carolina not far from tie South
Carolina line-in fact so pear that o great
portion Of its trade is drawn from the lat
ter State. just before reaching Rocking
ham, on your way up, you leave the level
plney woods "ud strike hills, the iirst of
which are Of sand, covered with majestic
pines. From these you pass into the roll
ing red hills east Of the Pee Dee river, and
on the first OF these is Rockingham, six
miles east OF the river.
Having domiciIed at one of the small
hotels of the place, you wander out to
take look at the village, and you find, if
you turn eastward, that after walk of O.
few hundred yards you are in the sandy
piney- woods again; Or if you turn west
ward, that you arc in the rocky hills Of the
up country, SO that the village stands just
on 'the divide" between sand and mud
The ridge on which it stands rises from
the confluence Of Hitchcock" and ''Fall-
ing" Greeks, each of which afford fine
water power, OF which I propose to speak
presently. In these utlitarian days man
finds that it IS not only necessary to labor,
| but tha there are seasons when, removed
! from labor and business, he ought to rest.
Hence when city springs into being, as
| they DO come with tremendous bounds in
our country, the second thing after loca-
ting the place Of labor is to locate that for
rest. Look at the suburban villages round
| Now York, Boston, PhiIadeloh1a, and other
cities, what are they but these places of
rest. Happy is that city which can enjoy
both the land and sea. The Summer
| tired citizens Of New York can find their
| Rcckaways where the refreshing surf casts
| itself at their feet, or on their iron rails in
silver palace cars can drive at lightning
speed up into the mountains of their State
and inhale the sweet breeze of the rolling
country.
Wilmington will find with the compile
tion of the Wilmington, Charlotte and
Rutherford Railroad and the Wilmington
and Seaside Railroad that she has the ad-
vantage of both situations at very conven-
lent distances You step into the cars
and in six hours you are snugly seated in
your cottage or boarding house at Rocking
ham breathing the pure air of the hills, or
if the schedule could be changed to suit
you leave after banking hours on any eve
ming and sleep among the hills at Rock
ingham. Here you get the pure freestone
water taken from wells 30 to 60 feet deep,
or descending the hills drink from cool
and gushing springs that sparkle in the
sunlight or moonlight like pnre issues of
diamonds. Such is the Golden Spring on
the place of Mrs. c., not three hun |
drcd yards from the depot. Under the |
shelter Of the wide spreading oaks, |
with the fickering mOonbeams struggling |
through the leaves, you Ia shut your eyes |
and sec the fairies dance around the hill |
side unless, accompanied by some more |
subs tantIaI, yet fairy like" being, you |
find pl; asant converse not SO airy and |
your fancy take not the form of dreams, |
but rather the whisperings Of love. You |
stern old matter Of fact editors may laugh |
at the idea that the fairies dance around |
the Golden Spring, yet I can prove, by |
several persons who have been witnesses,
that there are probably as many there-as
-as-weli as IN any other place on earth.
But to return to the subject. If you will !
leave the depot and follow the track of the
railroad until you cross the ''factory pond"
then turn down the pond to the factory,
you will lind yourself standing over one
of the most delightful little waterfalls you
have ever seen. The volume of water is
not much, the descent is not great, say
thirty i've feet, but the ''fa1, as fall ,''is
a perfect little gem. View it from every
point, from above, then go down and
stand at the foot, opposite the factory,
then cross the log below and go up to the
foot on the factory side, and in every po.
siton 1T is beautiful. The elements OF |
beauty are these-the smooth fall, the
foaming rapid, the whirlpool, the slu;ce,
the rugged black boulders, the roar, the
splash, the spray-ai1 combine to give |
delight. We have fingered by it many a
time and wished it stood just about fifty |
yards from our front window, SO that the |
first glimpse of the early morn and the last |
sleepy look at external things might en-
brace it IN the vision. Look at that great |
five story building right alongside the falls |
One hundred and twenty feet long, walls
which look like an earthquake of two earth
quake power could not shake them, found
ed down on the solid rocks, almost ready
to receive thousands of spindIes and an
hundred looms. and then think that short
IL the beautiful little fall is to be drawn off !
into great turbine wheels, its sparkling and |
roar are to be converted into the fiutter of |
spindles and the clank of looms, and as
you turn away you will sigh that so beau
tiful thing should be destroyed. Let us |
hope it will not be so-but that it will be |
able to make itself very useful and remain |
still ornamental. Does that remind you Of |
many of the fair ones of our land, who be- |
fore the war were simply ornamental. and |
since have become both useful and orna-
mental in the highest degree. So may it |
be with the charming little falls.
Just below this factory you reach bold, |
swift running stream called Hitchcock