The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1881-09-29
negro who pronounced the

The negro who pronounced the
mule to be first cousin TO old Nick
merely gave utterance to the d~cep-seat
ed antagonism existing between the
two; the biped and the quadruped, the
Butter and Sur Rebutter, as the law
yers would say. A mule never loses an
opportunity to exercise his heel IN
bruising the darkey's head. As an IN
stance of this, witness the accident At
Swift Greek bridge last week. A steam
engine was being hauled out TO a farm,
when suddenly the bridge broke, and
the boiler, trucks, smoke stack, drivers,
and four mules, all went down together
No lives were lost, but as soon as the
crash subsidized, an old mule glanced
around, cooked his ear. and shot to
windward with his only unbroken leg.
The hoof just reached the skull OF a
terrified negro, aud the tap laid him
out, dead as a door nail, for several
hours. His opinion of mules is toe
deep for u~tterance, unless the English
language can be somehow handled as q
club.
We were pleased to have a cal
from Mr.. A. II. Stokes and MIR. +. {.
Geer, two prominent citizens of Dur
ham, and subscribers Of the Farmer
and Mechanic. They visited Raleigh
to examine our city Halls, as they are
erecting a fine brick Hall in Durham.
Ii will seat 800, aud be neatly fitted. A
court pom, and Offices for the county
officials will occupy the same building
the Board Of county commissioners hav
ing contracted to lease it for three years
The young Aetropoli. Of T~obaccodom i,
fortunate in the number Of her enter
r sing citizens. There are % large
brick buildings now under root, upor
the site of the blazing embers last
spring and also half a dozen othel
buildings under contract.
On Monday morning the foundations
Of Mrs. Mahoney's Classical Academy,
or Seminary. were laid.
Durham is now enjoying a stupen'
dous tobacco boom" Acting Stamp
Agent Dixie says the sales of Revenue
stamps up to Monday evening had pass
ed ninety thousand dollars-larger thar
auy previous month The total fol-
September will exceed 500, 600. Las
month it was $SI 600.
Walking along Fayetteville street
on Monday evening, noting the CLOSED
stores, the flags at half mast, tn.
tacade's draped in funeral Grape, ano
the crowds of people pouring out Of the
churches, We rejoicad that the whirlins
whirligig Of time has brought so many
changes aound, that now at last oul
people can forget that the President
was a partizan, a Radical" a "stal
wart," (who didn't receive q single
Southern Electoral vote,) and mourn
for him as a man, and an American.
Wonderful. indeed, are the changes
For. as it happened. this Monday after
noon, September Both, ten years ago, u,
saU a uery different spectacle, on tbs
same Fayetteville street, Of the capita
Of North Carolina. On that evening the
editor of the Farmer and Mcchanic,
and other respectable and honest citi-
zens of North and South Carolina, were
driven along the street, with arms tied
behind their backs, and all fastened to-
gether. like a slave-gang in Central
Africa. These gentlemen had given no
trouble, had made no threats, or at
tempt to escape and we're surrounded
by troop of United States marshals,
with battalions Of Yankee bayonets
within call. Why then were they
marched about the streets chained like
dogs? Mere to crafty the malice OF
their captors. Merely to annoy the bet
tor classes Of our people by exhibiting
one OF their number, in this Notifying
! situation But that was all ten years
ago!