Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1871-08-15
FACTS ABOUT EAST TENNESSEE.
The Cumberland Fable Lands.
Etc,
No. XXXIII.

No. XXXIII.
We give the following letter, which will
prove of interest to every one having an
eye to the celebrated Cumberland table
lands:
CROssVILLE, CUMBERLAND Co, Tenn,
July 2lst, 1868.
MEssRs. RULE & RICKs:
GeRtJeDlen: Knowing of your wish to
make known outside the borders of our
own State, our advantages of climate, soil.
water, mill privileges, &c, [ avail myself
Of your journal to give information to the
people Of the North, of the exceeding sa-
lUbrity OF our climate, the fertility of cur
soil under fair system Of farming, and
the great and many advantages to be Sc
cured 10y them in coming from the terrible
winters which they endure, and from the
rich and sickly prairies, on which they
witness the wasting Of their families, to
this climate, so genial and prOmOtive of
physical comfort and longevity, and to
this soil, which so amply rewards well di-
Tected industry.
I shall write particularly Of the Cum
berland table lands, expecting that the
friends of other portions of the State will
look to their own interests. / have no
wish to build up this at the expense of any
other locality inside our borders, but this
mountain district has been so recklessly
and shamefully traduced, that | gladly
stand forth as its champion.
We haye been, and are isolated. No
railroads, no good pike nor common
roads our population sparse and poor,
our industries paraIyzied, our system Of
agriculture that of 100 years ago, our agri
cultural implements as primitive as in the
days Of the patriarchs, nearly total ignO-
rance Of what was going forward in the
outside world, postoffices, either none or
without business, with postmasters' sala-
rieS at two dollars year! Such was a
true picture Of this country only very
few years since; and in the spring of 1866
our roads were nearly impossible, bridges
all destroyed, fences burned by opposing
armies, or by fires set in the woods; log
houses abandoned and decaying, many of
them burned, barns falling down, open
fields growing up to blackberry, sawbrier
and sassatraS; Of cattle hogs and sheep
rclrcely any; population of the county,
by estimation, 1,500, of which were two
n rthern families. Then. nearly every
man who came into this town was armed
with q pistol or rifle, or both. Until July
of that year not post office in this coun-
~. Crops made with a bull iackass, q
COW, Il hoe q mattOck or by any agency
that would break the soil. At that time
| do not know of but one farm upon which
was an acre of cultivated grass. Such was
our condition in 1866. It is sad to Temem-
Der, it was sadder to witness. But now the
contrast.
We have here postoffice which is re-
ceiving and sending out six mails per
week, the postmaster receiving salary of
over one hundred dollars; and in the
county are seven pOstOffices. Our pop
ulatiOn is UOw nearly 1000 souls and in
clUdeS about one hundred and fifty North
ern families. Many of our old log cabins
have been repaired, and are inhabited
many new ones built; to 4 considerable
extent our fences have been rebuilt, and
many old fields clearedup, cultivated, and
now producing fine crops of clover, red
top or timothy, good plows, moving ma
chimes and other improved agricultural
implements introduced many hundreds
ofacres seeded to the various grasses the
best variety OF potatoes, probably, that IS
to be found in any county of this State.
Much attention has been given to gather
ing the best seeds, and the finest fruits of
the North nurseries have been establish
ed, and are prOspering vineyards plant
ed the choicest breeds of cattle, swine,
and poultry introduced. In truth there
is amongst US a wide spread spirit Of i'm
pr0vement and progress which has already
accomplished much, and is full of promise
for the future. EmphaticalIy, we have be-
come live people! In many cases those
who have slumbereG all their lives, are,
at last thoroughly awake, and will 10
more become drones. They begin to real
ize the advantages Of well directed enter
terprise.
In future numbers l shall speak, in de-
tail, of our fruits, soil, advantages for stock
raising, curative qualities of our climate
and waters, mineral wealth, &c.
Yours truly,
w. w. POWELL.