The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-08-05
From yYloss:gll,sJI,rrs,ss.us., ..
I correspo ndcnce of the II richmond pispafcl.l
Pa,ScEroS, MEackn cbusrY, ~. Va, +

July so, 1879. &
A few notes from this county. almost I'm.
known to many OF your readers, may not he
unwelcome. Mercer county n d true tIauah.
ter of the Old Dominion, Though now lsor..
der county Of The so-eailed State of West
Virginia. Named in honor Of General Marl
Ger, OF revolutionary fame. her county.scat h
appropriately called after the place where
that hero fell. Like many southern towns.
this one suffered much during the war: but
unlike most of them, Il suffered &C the hands
Of those who should have spared il, It's
public and private buildings alike were
burned during the war by order of Colonel
Jennifer, Of the Confederate army, as he re-
treated before the advance of the enemy.
No one has ever been able to know WHY he
thus rendered homeless and penniless the
families OF those who were engaged. heart
and soul, Ia the cause of the South. But be
did 1t, and bis name Ia eXecrated here to this
day. The enemy, who entered the village
just after the foolish deed had been done,
succeeded in saving to some of the citizens
little OF their property, but could not
check the devouring element. The village
is just beginning to recover, rs a new court
house and several new private residences In.
dictate.
Two topics Of public interest absorb the
minds Of the people here at pTesent--namely {:
The election and the crep-faiure. There are
three candidates in the field for the Legisla.
ture to fill an unexpired term-two Con.
seryatives and one Radical. The Conserya-
tive party is largely in the majority here, but
it is thought that unless q compromise Is
effected so as 70 leave but one candidate in
the field that the Radical will be elected.
The crop-faiure Is almost unprecedented
both in its cause and extent. A worm
which is the precise counterpart of the ordi-
nary gr,lb.worm has seriously Injured or en-.
tirely destroyed all the crops except the
wheat, which from other causes has been
reduced much below the average. Millions
Of these grubs infest the earth everywhere.
eating up the roots Of corn. oats, vegetables,
and even grass. There are whole fields
where corn was planted, and nought remains
but few feeble, yellow plants here and
there. In cutting oats and grass the farmers
say that in many places the blade refuses to
cut because of the ease with which the root
less stems pull out Of the earth. Some grass
fields are completely undermined, so as to
destroy all the grass. In almost all you can
find many places where the sod can be
kicked up with the foot, and rolled up as if
it had been cut loose with spade. Owing
to the unusually fine season much of the corn
shows signs of life, but cannot produce grain.
On pulling up stalk you will tind, instead
of its usually strong roots, bunch OF fbrous
roots, which have shot out from the little that
remains Of the main roots which the grubS
have CONSUMED,
The only theory which furnishes proba-
BILE clue TO the presence OF this army OF
worms is that they are from an egg deposit
ted by large black bug which appeared
here in immense swarms last summer and
destroyed much of the forest foliage. Some
suppose them to be the larve OF grasshoppers,
but though your correspondent is no natu-
ralSt he does not think the grasshopper
comes by metamorphosis from another in
sect. Can any of your readers tell whence
they come and what is still more impor-
tant, how to prevent their deprepations
This is high, billy, rugged region. The
soil is generally thin, but produces grass
and wheat quite well. 1t is too high ami
cold for corn. There is plenty of room here
for settlers, and lands are cheap. There are
immense tracks Of ,lnbroken forests in every
direction filled with the finest white oak
timber. Your correspondent took the trou-
BILE to measure q giant white oak OIL East
river, Il tTlOutaTS vi lue lul-iaIueu NEW
river, and found its circumference to be tit-
teen feet and ten inches four feet from the
ground. There are many more nearly as
large.
This county has within its limits an i'm
mense deposit of the finest coal. There is
company now formed to develop this inter-
est by the construction of a railroad up Blue
stone river, near which the-coal beds lie.
The road is to connect with the Chesapeake
and Ohio at Hinton, in Summers county.
There is much left unsaid, but / must
stop, only adding this, which it will not do
to leave unsaid. that abundance reigns here
in spite of the worms, and true Virginia
hospitality dispenses it wherever you go
among the good citizens of the country.
..- HoSPES,