The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1881-05-06
SOUTHERN TOWNS.
The Muahroom Places Developed Since
the War-LrOn Manufactures


The average Southern town which has
grown up since the war, surrounding
railroad station, consists of two to five
drinking saloon, few stores and series
of cabins or shanties of planks or logs,
set hither and thither, without much
reference to town in the future.
Through long range of country there
are no fences on the side of the railroad
track. The trains are kept constantly
whistling to avoid running over cattle or
mules This Is the case within sight OF
Montgomery, Ala, where there are some
1000 inhabitants. Occasionally one
finds a steam saw-mlll put up since the
war in the midst of the wood, saving out
lumber. The rivers are full, almost to
the level of the landscape, IN high water,
and they are principally efficient as to
flooding the surrounding bottoms and
creating new soil for agriculture. Alto
gether the most hopeful country III the
South, for various occupations, Is along
the mountain lines of Alabama, Tennessee
and Georgia, where | saw a number of
iron furnaces, and in two or three cases
cotton mills, built by Northern capital
in a perfect manner. One of the furnaces
which gives the name to the railroad
station was called ''StOnewall," after
Stonewall Jackson. The next was called
"recumseh, p" after Gen. William Te-
cumsch Sherman, and Is operated by ex-
Senator Warner, of Alabama, who was
on Gen. Sherman's staff. Warner got
into the train at his station and talked to
me as far as Rome, Ga, and said to me:
There are Just four towns in the South
which are picking up rapidly-Chat-
tanooga, Rome, Atlanta and Birming
ham. Ala Ny bIother-in-law, Justice
Woods. of the Supreme Court, Is inter-
ested with me in the Tecumseh furnace.
We worked along for some years during
hard times without much returns, but
we are now making money, and so are
the furnaces generally III tins section, of
which there are a dozen or more. All of
them are charcoal furnaces, and two of
these are said to be the largest charcoal
furnaces in the world. We have orders
for iron a long way ahead. The adj
vantages of making iron here are cheap
ness Of materials and of labor
He said that they paid about one dol
lar a day for labor and paid about forty
or fifty cents for cut wood per cord. |
also understood him to say that the ma
terial entering into ton of iron procured
on his land cost only about sixty-fiye
cents. l presume he meant without la
Dor. This was disputed by Mr.. Folger,
who thought Warner must have had said
six dollars and a half, but l am pretty
sure lie said sixty-ive cents. Warner
said that the present Governor of Ala
bama was pretty fair man, and that,
while the State was not improving much,
industry would soon start up. A bank
had inst burst at Rome, Ga, and Sena-
tor Warner was Just going up to see
what had become Of s., 600 Of his furnace
money deposited there. Throughout
the South there is rising opposition to
any more State banks, and general OPP
position to my further noise about what
is called States right" L have shown
YOU in another communication how the
evaporation against States rights, so
called, has broken out among the most
dogmatic soldiers of the rebellion, who
want a better living for their families and
less political theory.