Millheim Journal. [volume] (Millheim, Pa.) 1876-1984, 1878-03-14

sHSgAEM1srazHas swHwgmuMznaIuS
fare with howie-knives. The next
morning their bodies were found
locked in the embrace of death, and
mutilated horribly.
The building of the Atlanta and
Richmond Airline Railway, has
done much TO improve and civihze
the people. Gainesville is now -
thriving city. I recollect it before
the war as a dull, sleepy town, of
five or six hundred inhabitants. 1t
is, comparatively speaking, an old
town, its settlement dating back TO
the time when the original posses
sorS of the countrV-the Creek and
Cherokee Indians-were the near
neighbors Of the cracker pioneers.
The peculiar geographical location
Of Gainesville, and its nearness to
the goll country, soon made it
village of considerable Importance. ;
but after progressing to a certain
point, from some cause or other it
ceased TO grow, and for upwards of
fifty years remained almost at
stand-still. Architecturaily speak.
ing the town was q failure. In lay
ina eut Georgia shire-town the
first business is to stake off a piece
of ground for the public square. In
the centre of this plot, which rarely
exceeded two acres in extent, the
courthouse was built. and this was
the grand centre around which re-
volved the towns civilization. The
business houses -frail, rickety af
fairs of wood-were built around
the Sgcare. From four TO eight
roads radiate6 from this central
point, and along these were scatter
ed the dwellings Of the inhabitants,
as a general thing but slight i'm
provement on the business houses.
Saturday was market day in Gaines
vile, and on Saturday the public
square presented quite lively APP
pearance.
NJ q ~ W~stN A r. n 4 u
Sale day and court week brought
out the rural crackers in full force,
aud .orse-trading, dog and cock
fighting, gambling, fighting and
drinking were extensively and mis-
cellaneously INDUCED in. The
square and the roads leading there
from we're crowded with all manner
anu make of vehicles from the coun-
try loaded with shuckS, chickens,
butter, eggs, dried fruit, whiskey,
wheat, corn and ginseng. The side
walks were alive with the owners of
these vehicles, hard featured, sun
Drowned men, in home-spun hunt
ing SHIRTS and deerskin leggings {;
women equally hard-featured and
sun-browned, with here and there
the fresh, rosy face of a girl, in
calico anu linsey-woolsey. An in
credible amount of whisky was
drank and pounds of tobacco chew
cd by the men, and the women, not
to be behind their lords, dissipateu
in miller Wy on candy, varied by
a continuous dipping of snuff. BY
sundowD the town was deserted,
and Monday morning business was
resumed on a less eXtravagant
scale, The groceries - Of which
there were five-it is true, sold less
whisky and tobacco, but their sales
still footed up a respectable sum
these Injuries were as indispensl-
bic to the every day life Of these
people as bread ar6 meat). The re-
mainder Of the merchautS-those
not hunting or fshing-opened up
their stores and SCI out in front a
row Of boxes which were speedily
occupied, each by young cracker.
When eVIry seat was taken, jack
knives were produced, and the MORN
ing was spent in whiting, talking
politics and tobacco chewing, with
regular ard frequent adjou. nments
for drinks. In the afternoon they
became more aesthetic, and az the
sun wheeled around past meridian,
the shady sides Of the square were
alive with little parties solving the
deep mysteries of poker and old
sledge, or inEocently chucking mar
bles. There were still frequent ad-
journments, when all hands repair.
ed to the groceries. The advent of
the railroad has made the town more
metropolitan, but the cracker"
may still be seen on public days.
Altogethe er visit to this section of
country will amply repay the lover
of quaint h umanity, and it will be
years before the Cracker" disap-
pears or loses his distinct identity
in an admixture with the iniiowing