Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1871-09-15
From Tie .1Ulcysoa MtrliiJencer.
Home Views.
No. ] T..

Tunnel Hill, the name given,to that part cf
the Stump Ilonsc mountain under whcl, the
great tunnel Was to pass is clear uf timber,
and furnishes panoramic view, in all dircc
tons, OF great beauty, not SO extensive as
Mount llulyukc, the mitch in the White
Mountains, or even CAESARS | lead in our State.
but sufficiently vide and expansive to attract
the attention of all admirers Of the gran ana
picturesque. just here, where hotel should
be erected, you have almost under your feet.
the lovely valleys Of Cauc, Conncross and
Ccoucc creeks n little to the east, Jocassuc
and Chcohec, whilst al'nCst in touch he
spires aud white walls Of Walhalla, rise in view.
Then the modest villages Of Pcndlrton, An
dcrson and Grecnvlle can be seen on a cear
day, and the view southwark loses itself in
numerous farms and cottages, scattered over II
seemingly vast and endless plain To the
north and westward, you see mountain piled
on mouutain, reaching far into Georgia aud
North Carolina.
ln the meantime, you are standing on OK
tcnslvc mounds of stone, raised from the shafts
Of the tunnel, Of good building size and di,
mensons, sufficient in quantity for a goodly
sized town, and in view of immense beds Of
limc>tonc So that hotels and country houses
could here Lc completed at most reasonable
CO t.
The soil of this elevated ridge is fertile ns
| the growing crops Of grain, vegetables aud
fruits will show but what it could be made.
from the FREQ use of lime, so contiguous, we
leave others to imagine aud calculate But
the peculiar fitness and adaptation of this luca
ton for other enterprises, we cannot refrain
from suggesting. This table land starting
from Tunnel Hill extends westward for twelve
or fifteen miles, almost without habitation or
farm, aifording boundcss range Of P"atnragc
fer cattle, horses, sheep md hogs; covered
| {" me summer with natve grass and pen vines,
from three to five feet in height traverscd
with small streams each furnishing sufficient
alluval bottoms and hill sides for grass and
clover for winter forage, for large numbers of
such stock. Those lands are worth now from
one to three dollars per acre, and little en-
ergy and enterprise with very small capital,
could be nadc the nucleus of business of no
small dinsnsiOns and profit. In close cont.
guilty wllbe found water powers for mills,
carding machines and other manufactures.
In riding ulong this extensive plateau one
I will scarccN see enough kinc to cover one
much less Thousand hills; and it is source
of wonde, and surprise, that such field
should bowholIy untenantcd, unoccupied and
aitogethd neglected. But this is not all, tho
unbrokcl forests abound in chestnut oak, rcd
and blak oak, all especially adapted for the
manuftture Of leather. The bark of tho
chcstnlt ook containing tho best and strong.
est tahin, being now sought for by North.
crn pntlicr dealers, hundreds of miles from,
thcanncry--its tannin distilled and transpor.
tc9in barrels to bo used in the manufacture Of
lather.
five Southern people ever learn the ordi.
nary principles of economy, surely such ad.
vantagcs will be seized and turned to proper
account. IN this single section can be found
all the necdful materials and appliances
land, timber trees, bark full of tannin, lime,
water powers aud the cattle should be here,
feeding on these miles of virgin pasturago
to bc slaughtered horo, the meat to DO sent In
ice cara, to market, the hides and tallow used /
on tho spot, and manufactured articles only
transported,