The Brookhaven ledger. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1875-1883, 1876-08-17
Letter from n EBrOOkhavinn.

Illustration. He was remarkably hafd
'eatured. According to his W account
le invited Mr.. Richardson, the distIn-
member of Congress from this
State, the contemporary and bosom
of Stephen A. Douglass, to dine
with him at his house in Washington.
The ceremony of introduction to Mrs.
in her magnificent parlor, had
hardly ended, when she stepped to the
door and beckoned to her husband who
followed her to her room, where she
threw her arms around him and declar-
ed that through her whole life she had
done him gross injustice. what $ the
matter" said Rives. MY dear SIT,
said his wife, u have always believed
Won were the ugliest man III Amerlcn,
but a glance at Richardson has sudden
ly overwhelmed Inc with a sense OF my
mistake"
Some how or other l had got the I'M
preston that we in Lincoln county, and
in South Mississippi generally, lived III
the poorest and least inviting portion
of the State. A glance at the country
between jackson and Grand Junction,
from the cas-, has suddenly oyerwhelm-
ed me with a sense of my mistake. |
admit that this may not be a fair index
to the interior, but if it is, weFhave
nothing to fear from a comparison
Barren fields, occupied with the deVour-
ing sedge, railway stations. captured by
dog fennel, and impenetrable junglos,
intersperse and make up the country on
the line. The towns look dilapidated,
thriftless and uncloan, and it IS not a
matter of wonder to me that the well-to-
do Yankees in the crowded districts OF
the North, seeking homes in the South
and far West, pass by Mississippi. The
specimen one sees from the Oar window
is altogether repulsive. What II the
matter? Laziness! laziness. Cotton!
cotton! Politics! politics! This bar
rem and unproductive desert III the
hands of the average Yankee vould
bloom and blossom.
As we get into Tennessee things put
on a different appearance. The ields
are all cultivated on the line Of the
road, and the corn is really spl0did,
and the tobacco is "lso unusual fine.
We took a sleeper t Cairo, to wake
up in the morning ( ..v or forty niles
from St. Louis and .,.s out upn a
country that makes Il man glad t see
and of which the eyes never tire.
Fields where green corn stands OF the
land at the rate of scventy-tiye to one
hundred bushels per acre; every ten
miles a city, and cattle and horse fat
and sleek: mich COWS such as we ever
see South, and no loungers at tn de
pots! Think of that. There wasposl-
lively at the stations no body but that
seemed to be engaged at something.
Two or three men handling baggage,
express matter, the mails and fright,
with the persons getting on and OF are
all yop see. That, too, III towns oitour
to six thousand inhabitants.
On our way to st. Louis we fel IN
with the editor OF the Water Valley
central and his amiGble vie,
who, like ourselves, were on a sght
seeing expedition to Philadelphia.
Mr.. Brown is the successor OF his
late witty and accomplished BIRTH
er. who was familiarly known in
our State as Central Brown" Tafy
made a welcome addition to otr- pssty
and with them, at ST. Louis, we visItd
several places OF interest, Lafayette
Park and Shaw's Garden being he
principal.
The former is an immense landscape
garden of fifty or eighty acres. laid of
in broad avenues, through trees Of eV-
cry variety, interspersed with t1o'erS
and plants of various and vaFieSted
types and shades. There are sumner
houses and seats under shades, md
walks that cross each other thrugh
grassy plots as rich and green as geen
can be. There are grand bronze tat
ues of distinguished men and cisrns
of cooling water and fountalnsfhat
send up their crystal showers III thtsun
shine. There is an artificial lake With
it's miniature islands of quartz rockand
green plots, where the beautiful val
and the wild goose (tamed) diport
themselves. There are pretty pleasure
boats at the bank and broad seat OF
shore. Altogether it is a lovely pace.
They have a grand stand in the centre,
surrounded with seats, where, al the
expense Of the city. on Saturdays and
Thursdays, a band Of musicians, with
every variety of instruments, play for
the entertainment of visitors. And
here the crowded city throws off its
care and finds rest and recreation; here
the rich and the poor jostle each other
without offence, as they alike drink in
the sights and sounds and fragrance
which fills the place.
But the greatest curiosity we have
seen since W. left home is Shaw's Gar
den. That lies about six miles from
the city. 1t is owned by an immensely
rich old bachelor. who has filled it at a
fabulous cost with all the rare shrubs
end flowers and trees that money will
buy in Europe and America and from
'hS ''"'N VI WIG oCt. ne employ
hundreds of laborers and one half doz-
EN- scientific botanists, at large sala-
ries to classify and keep up and multi
ply his collections. Nothing is for sale
and nothing is charged visitors 10 the
grounds. The attraction to this splen-
did garden is such hat there is q regu-
lar line of hacks running from tie ter
minus of the street cars to the garden
every twenty minutes. You indoaint-
ed on the hacks, ITO Shaw's Gaalen,"
and the owner of tho line is said to be
making more money on his investment
than the street cars make for HE same
distance on theirs.
Would you not like to know how we
came to stop at bingham? Nell, my
letter is getting too long or 1 Fould tell
you.
We leave to-day at noon fofChicago.
Till we reach Niagara. good-lk.
PINEY WOODS.
Cheering News from Illinois.