Wilmington journal., 1876-08-18
LETTERS FROM THE MOUNTAINS.
Hot AND WARM SPRINGS HOTEL,
MADISON COUNTY, N. c.,
july 29th. 1876.

Hot AND WARM SPRINGS HOTEL.
MADISON COUNTY, N. c.,
July goth. 1876.
DEAR JOURNAL: [ do not remember
ever to have seen description of tht
country hereabouts, and only bare
allusion to this one of North Carolina's
many jewels. her hot and warn
springs.
Not feeling competent with my
limited time TO go into thorough des-
cription Of the surroundings, 7 pro.
pose to offer only my first impressions
which may or may not be strictly COR
rect. The country appears mixed M
and tangled in wonderful manner;
the mountains and valleys, rivers and
plains are twisted together III the most
fantastic and yet harmonious confu-
sion Gf | may bo allowed the express
sior); so much so that there appears no
fixed point of the compass; the sun
rises just where it pleases, and it
pleases to rise anywhere except in the
east. The hotel fronts nowhere ex-
cept the river and is placed exactly
crOsswise the world. And after all the
scenery is grand and beautiful beyond
description: the world renowned
French Broad racing and roaring in
front of the hotel, the beautiful
Spring Greek gracefully gliding
through n deep gorge OF mountains
above and around; splendid meadow
just back of the hotel drops into the
great river just below us. From this
you may understand that the hotel is
situated on the point of a small plain
of table land at the confluence of
Spring Creek and French Broad river.
nearly opposite to and in full view of
the celebrated perpendicular rock
mountain known as "lover's leap. }"
One mile below the fathOmless hole
Gn the river) and two miles below
Mount Wilmington, (thia III a: most
remarkable and beautiful con which
rises some five or six hundred feet
from the centre of the French Broad,
and is consequently surrounded by
water, converting tinto an island and,
being nameless, / have christened it as
abOve), four miles below Laurel
Greek, sixteen miles below the town OF
Marshall County seat of Madison).
owenty-six miles below AshevilIe, four
ana half niles above the Tennessee
line, six miles above Paint Rock, and
nine miles above Wolf Greek, the ter
minus of the Morristown railroad, it
is at this point that the Western North
Carolina railroad will connect with the
Mississippi valley and the great cities
thereof.
The hotel is three story building
of brick, $50 feet long with various ex-
tensions, additions and rear prOjec-
tions, calculated to accommodate CONS
fnr foh h1x, a hnJ1f fsun h11nIra1 uIS
and more if necessary. There Is
double collonade twelve or fifteen feet
wide the whole length of the building,
front and rear, which is convenient
and comfortable.
The house is we'll kept by Jas. FL.
Rumbaugh, Esq, (proprietor), who
make his guests comfortable and hap
py, music and dancing with other
amusements being the order of the
day, not excepting hunting and fish
ing, for which there are fine fields!
About one hundred and fifty visitors
are now here mainly from the South,
and it would be difficult to find at any
watering place SO large proportion of
female grace and beauty.
The spring quite near the hoteD is
a remarkable one, bubbling up
through the earth, (over which the
bathing pools have been erected) with
a heat Of trifle over 100 degrees,
charged with muriate of lime, sulphate
of magnesia, sulphate of soda. silica,
carbonate of soda, muriate of soda
and crenate of iron, this combination
adapting it as a rnre remedy for many,
if not all the ills to which poor human
nature IS heir.
liz many respects | regard this
spring as superior to the far-tamed
springs of Arkansas in It's simplicity of
combinations and efficiency as far as 1T
has been tried, but unfortunately 1t is
situated in North Ga, Olina, and conse-
quantly unkno .vn to fortune and fame.
How long will our people remain blind
to their own interests, careless and IN
different to the rich treasures which
nature has so bOuntifnlly showered
upon our land Strange indeed. while
everybody outside of the State not
only see, but are moving heaven and
earth by every conceivable means to
enrich themselves by robbing us of our
birthright, and all through our own
criminal neglect.
I had intended giving yOua detailed
account of my journey from Ashevllle
to this place, but [ reckon the least
said on that subjectt the better. 'ntsf
say, however, it was the biggest ride
for the money my experience through
life has ever realized. resulting in the
loss, or partial loss of much enjoyment
of the rare, rich and beautiful scenery
which encompassed our road on every
side, and the merry river as 1T danced
gracefully on its tOrtuous course
through those grand old mountains.
Nothing like it this side of heaven.
n