The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1876-03-29
THAT PIKE MONEY.

To the Editor Of the Mnrristown Gazette: -
& A friend of his halcyons days has APP
preached .tt Wilberforce and quericd
g PROFOUND the two hundred dollar
clause, oh tmost sapient"- Resting his
fevered brow upon his hand for mo-
ment, he spake thusly: 5.st- -=- -
Once upon time there was a great
State called Tennessee; and that State
Convened Legislatures aud tlTat Eegis-
lature was composed of men great after
their pattern, that is, cut bias or slaunch-
wise. So much brain had 10 bubble,
and two of the .globules were a "dog
law" and a q turnpike act" The dog
law wis IA good trick Pythias, and
many q meritorious cur went to dog
heaven. The turnpike act was curious
thing, ilslevfncing creative power and
putting turnpike where none had been
before aud where many think none Will
ever be. -,
Harne came the guide man, haule came he,
There he saw turnpike, where schiike ought to be.
Guide wife, guide wife, what is this see? 5
This surcIy's not q turnpike such 81 II ought tobe
You old fool you blind fool, can't you better see.
IT'S good old-fashioned turnpike the neighbors
made for thee. 49,.
Miles have Travelled, thousand leagues or more,
turnpite such this here rake never seed STORE
Like line trees they put upon this pike
three g,ites, through which the milk of
human kindness was to be extracted from
the wayfarer. In brief. they asked folks
70 an opster supper, but Wished them to
pay for it, $500, ts-.s s.af..s- -,f7,
Didst ever see gatea Present tosthyl
minds eye chestnut pole working on q
pivot; suspend to the shorter and larger,
end sack of rocks; and pend from the
tapering end a telegraph WIRE Pull
down the wire, up goes the rocks; take
a half-hitch with the wire in post and
the gate is g cooked" When the con-
'traption goes OFF the rocks come to The
ground and up goes the wire with a
twanging wliz. lis thing of beauty
a joy forever. baas hus gsacfCu eTse /
The citizens of Hamblen county res
pented, and peradventure they hired
fat man to sit down on their; gate and
twas thing of the past But in Grain
ger and Claiborne, the home of the eagle,
the gates stood. faat nf4G EgassH rs
s When these gates were put in. opera
tion May and curious were the remarks
from the passing stranger. They would
have been fortune to one horse de-
batting society. One man asked where
the pike was; was told 4heswas on IL; TO
which he angwered:f Well, say.P A
woman said she had but fifty cents for |
coffee and analine, aid proffered pay in
Lei t. 4
A third stranger, and he was a naughty
Kentuclsian, remarked, :" it was hell of |
a pike" and referred to Bluegrass. Yet
the gates were founded on rock.
Now, these mHtterings and meanings /
reached the ear of man who made his /
living asking questions and had his fin !
ger in. eyerybody's pudding, whether |
hot or cold. He mounted his horse and |
/ ode to the river called Powel's The |
fcrry.nan was pleasant man, and to the |
pudding finger he exclaimed: Yea,
verify, the lamentations are sore, and of /
q truth two hundred dollars have gone
from this gate into Grainger.' ABah,
bs5i fmJf heart is as water Then was
the question agent exceeding wroth, and /
he yelled, Why hath this sum gone a T
windingS For how can Claiborne build
her pike if Granger takes the money?
Yea hath she not gate of her own?
Kismet, have said it. - But the ferry
man spake not a word. F.s,,F .h4graa-
Now, In those days, there lived anoth-
PIT man. famous for his knowledge of
c 1nmon law, and good fellow gener-
ally. His only fault was, when he was
4 boy heswould wink at the girls during /
recess. Soshe and the agent Fnamed mp I
and dowln and pinned away for grief about
the victims of them " gates; those upas
trees of revenue And the goddess of I
Liberty changed the good boy into a
and the pudding pnnchcr
into an owl, and they flew away and
took refuge among the wooded hills near
The river called the Powel's.
The helated traveller oft hears the Z
Of these birds, more especially4
he wearied teamstcr as he zurgese bis {
IAam up the river hills. Whenv his wag. /
On semfperiodically strikes g chug hole
soft as oars upon the Tnoonlit sea,
DreatlEes fIles word, etlalnn 8t.V eIhcn
rom their eFries comes She Sympathetic /
Try Of the olEl-aad whippo oE.win,. ex-
slafming,; g., $50 - ~.ss4~tes4 Il
i I .s.,Ir :. Dakons - CoHeel ~e~~w~wd
TsIolyshurei = Toby shure = i
L. theie no balm III Gileadg -
- WRBERFWRCE