The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-11-20
wysT yIRsIyIA,s GINSENG DIGaERs.
Interesting Account ofan Isolated Back.
woods People.


Interesting Account ofan Isolated BACK
woods People.
To the Editor Of the Springfield Republican.
Your copied paragraph about "saugers'
in West Virginia Is not correct. There is
no such a people there as described. /
have lived in that state q years, have
travelled in and became acquainted in 80
Of the 81 counties Of the state, and claim
to know. In some, Of the mountain
districts Of West Virginia ginseng is
abundant, and poor people hunt and dig
1t for market at season Of the year when
there is no teamwork or numbering going
on, and make good pay. That Is, man
and two, three or more children will some
times get three or four pounds day Of
ginseng, which, when dry, Is worth 10
cents pound, and that Is large pay.
Sometimes, several men and families, IN
time when no other work can be had, VIII
unite and go into unsettled regions where
they can find ginseng, erect temporary
dwellings Of logs, and stay until they have
dug all the ginseng in the vicinity, or rl-
i'll The season is over, and then go back to
their homes. They never call It ginseng,
but "Sang," and their neighbors call
them "Sangers," or sang diggers, and
somo editor by careless writing or some
negligent proof-reader has changed 1t TO
nnsauger," | suppose. That is the way the
name comes.
but what is said OF their loose way OF
living is incorrect. Lawful marriage il
known among them, and they arc not
distinct class, OF population. SOme cases
there are where men take up" with
woman and live out Of wcdlock, rs in
some instances men do in more advanced
communities. But they have schools and
preaching among them. They are afraid
Of laws, and especially fear the United
States government. When they offend
against the laws 1t is in the expectation
that they will escape detection, not In de-
flance OF law. They are simply the shift
less and unthrifty few scattered over the
State, in nearly but not all counties. Back
from the main highways and water-courses
the most OF them live, and they are types |
OF the most shiftless IN any State. The
difference between them and the same
kind here In Massachusetts, is, that they
are more isolated and can more easily live |
without suffering In the mountains Of
West Virginia than human beings could |
here. They have plenty Of game; deer,
bears, coons, opossums, rabbits, squirrels
and ducks, quail and partridges are oil
plenty. II they live far from the stores,
they take their ginseng and furs and buy
coffee, and powder and lead and whisky.
That is all they never buy ''backy, they
raise their own tobacco; the women culti-
vate the corn, and grind it in hollow
rock, II they live far away from mill.
They never eat snakes and owls. 1t may
be because they can get an abundance OF
much better food. But they are not com.
PEELED to eat crow.
Every farmer in the State will get gin
seng to take to the store to sell, II there is
any near him. His little boys and girls
will dig ginseng and snake-root and the
''old woman" will see that 1t Is cleaned
and cured ready for market. The citizens
who have acquired the name OF sang.dig-
gers or sangers live away from the water
courses, and cannot get n chance to cut
sawlogs, or stavc timber or railroad ties,
without going Il long distance, so they hunt
and haul tirewood, and for about month
in tile year help the children gather gin
seng. They usually live In log cabins OF
one room, hut they have fre-places that
will take in nearly aquarter OF q cord OF
wood at time, and never suffer from cold
weather when at home. But this kind
OF population is changing all the time.
They 20 TO the railroads or TO tho rivers
and get work and move their families from
the mountains to tho valleys, send their
children to the public schools, and make
rapid improvements. 'rr..l
The native Yirginians themselves exag-
geratc shamefully when talkingabout their
more humble ncighbors In the mountains.
| have hoard young men who had been
from the city TO the wilderness to fish and
hunt tell most abominable lies Of the PEG.
pie they had met in the excursions
presume the account you printed Friday OF
an imaginary people was obtained IN the
same way from some inconsiderite young
ster, who wanted to make his story inter
esting. Last summer five young men
from Wheeling walked through tho noun.
tains to the head.waters OF the Elk and
Gauley rivers, and around through Charles
ton to their home, over 800 miles. Two Of
the five were green enough to tell some
such stories as that You printed, and the
published them in the Wheel
ing papers. The return mails brought to
the Wheeling papers well-written, inlig-
nant dsniels Of the city chaps stories, re-
buking the slandcrers severely, and show.
ing that the mountainous were not only
not barbarians, but that they knew enough
to write for the newspapers and expose
tho ridiculous conduct OF thoIr visitors.
Ono old preacher has labored among the
people roierrod 10 for So years, and hc Is
an educated, energetic, honest man. He
travelled all this time in the region where
there are more sang diggers than in any
other section, HG has Travelled on rail-
roads, seen steamboats,, and knows what Is
the Capital Of the United States.
South Hndiey, Norember 0, 1878, r.l