Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1881-01-15
Hfireinia free g'ress.
II. y. d ". ". u. GALLIHER, Editors.
CharIcsto,cn. Jefferson County. Hest Ia.
January 10, 1881.

Tie Rircrsidc is the title of a neat little
paper. four pages six by eight inches, pub
lishcd at Shenandoah Iron Works, Page
county. Virginia, by Master Clinton Boude.
In the following article the youthful jour
nalist tells of the changes wrought by the
Is. V. II. II. and how the FIRST locomotive
was welcomed;
Since orr last was issued. the Shenandoah
Valley Railroad has been completed 60 Elkton.
and regular trains are running from Wayncsbo-
ro 20 that point The track is laid mile or
more below this place. But where Is Eikton?
Oh the railroad has changed everything The
man vholci this cOuntrya year ago, II he were
to come back now, would hardly know ms
grandmother. There are nc wagons, now, naui
ing iron 20 HarriSOHhug1 tu4d bringing back
store goods. The idle mules are sauntcrlng a
round here looking at the locomotive IN utter
disgust one team, flow, makes SIX trips q
week to Elkton. But where is Eikton? Wen,
Won know where C0nradS Store used to be, and
Elk Run. and Midway, and Mill Bank, and
Roadside? The railroad has dissolved ai these
and prccipita,ed the compound hy the side oi
the turnpike road, about half way between
where Conrads Store and Dr. Jennings Mill
used to he. and called il Elkton Do you un-
dcrstand2 But this is not half In another
column of this paper will be found such namcs
aS Patterson CrCmOua II y0u want 20 know
where these places are, we can only tell You that
they are ON the line of the railroad. Even the
classic Waycriie has been transformed into a
Verbcna and transferred from Rockingham to
Page And what is still worse, we of Shenan-
doah Iron Works, are just shaking for fear that
we NAV bcCaled Mines or llcmatitc, or Eisen,
OF something else and maybe we won't know
ourselves But the funniest thing of all was
the crowds that gathered to see the lrstappear-
oncc Of the locomotive. At Elkt0n there were
old men who hadn't been from nome Tor so
long that they had passed out of the recoilec-
ton of the Oldest nhabitant.' Nobody knew
who they were or where they came from. Then
there were women and babies and girls and
boys The ladies climbed on the piles of ties.
and held their babies up over their heads To get
a glimpse of the top of the smoke stack. One
man. who after running in and out of the house
several times and straining hiS eyes 70 verify
the distant smoke rcpr0achcd ms VIE Tor q
want of public spirit because she wouldn run
nv to the garret window TO hear the whistle T.
The excitement, like the waters that sometimes
sweep down this valley. rose higher by the time
II reached this place. Everybody turned out
Ladies too delicate to walk out only IN hne
weather. stood on the Pee-dee trcStle IN the
piercing wind. for hours, looking for the loco
motive Th, writer impatient az It's slow com
inc. walked twice up To Nerbena 20 meet it
When. al last IL came. one lady owned up and
said She was "aleard of it; but another lady,
To Quiet her fears walked boldly up 70 the lo-
comotive and patted it on the cylinder box
saving. Oh i am SO glad