Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1871-07-13
LETTER FROM FRENCH BRoADyALLEY.
1 Fine Country.

| Unless you have travelled from Leadvale
on the French Broad River to Big Creek,
! in Cooke country, you can form no
| idea of what a beautiful country it
is. [ have seen many portions Of our vast
cOuntry-have gone over the immense
| prairies of the west, but all in all [ have
seen none to compare with the section
about which am now writing. The "bot-
! tom lands'' on the French Broad and
! PigiOn rivers cannot be eXcelled 10y any
! lands in heworld. That is q bold asSer-
| ton, but true. The yield of corn is fabu-
! lous, while wheat and oats is producted in
! the largest quantities.
| Where corn is the great staple, hogs are
sure to be in demand. The two are in
separabIe. No wise farmer would divorce
| them under the circumstances indicated.
The farmers Of Cooke county are acting
upon the principle, and have done so for
years past. In this they have shown their
| good sense. What else could they do
with their vast surplus of corn? They can
command a much higher figure for it by
feeding it to hogs than by shipping it.
They have no trouble in realizing nett
| fifty cents per bOushel, and often higher
figure. In consequence of the adoption of
this judiciOus system, they are growing
more wealthy every day.
One striking feature of our people is that
they have recuperative energy. They are
hopeful, buOyant and elastic. If they fail
or misfortune Overtakes them, they do not
stop to whine over the matter, but, girding
up their strength, they go to work like
men. This they are doing in Cooke county.
They were greatly crippled by the war, as
the people were everywhere in East Ten
nessee, but they have kicked the past out
of their way and bravely addressed them
selves to the living present y few years
will demonstrate the wisdom of their
course. Full barns and plethOTic purses
will be the result.
One thing / think this great country de
| ficient in, and that is in educational lacili-
! ties L do not think she is paying suf1i-
cient attention to this matter. L know she
! is not. While she is advancing in mate
rial wealth, she should not ignore the edu-
cation of her children. Wealth should
not be put above intelligence. If any diff
ference let the latter always predominant.
| am first, last and all the time in favor Of
diffusing the benefits of liberal education,
no matter if we remain poor all the days
of our lives. Children may grow up
wealthy-their parents may leave them so
but what is their wealth worth to them
if they are stupid and uneducated? The
time is now at hand when ignorant
WcdEth cannot "pass MUSTER" as it used to
do. There is now more rigid, eXacting
and higher test of manhood, and woe be
to the young men and ladies who cannot
stand this test .....Ea.E
| Clifton should be the county seat of
| Cooke, and why she was not is one of the
intricate questions ! can't solve, and shall
not attempt to do so. She had hard
| struggle for it, but failed. Newport won
the day. / shall not essay to describe
| Newport It needs none. 1t has gone to
seed long ago. The mOles, bats, owls and
vermin lave driven out the population,
and now have possession of the gay little
village once made pleasant by the Road
mans, the Pulliams, the Smiths, the Nc
| SWANS, the Rankirs, and some others.
Judge Randolph is almost solitary occu-
pant of the place, and his only neighbors
are the freedmen. There is no hotel in
the village, and juries, understand, have
to go about mile to get something to eat.
The lawyers get along without eating!
Clifton, about one mile and half dis
tant on the railroad is a beautiful little
town. 1t is handsomely located and is
growing. There are a number of neat and
well-built residences, and, altogether, it is
a nice place.
One thing it can boast of, and that is q
well-kept hotel. 1t reminds one of an
elegant country home. The fresh butter,
the brown-fried chicken, the broad slices
of sweet ham, the rich honey comb, the
cool milk, and other delicaCieS which are
to be found at this excellent house, do not
indicate the real character Of village
hotel. ALONZo DANTE.