The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1882-08-29
Those Six Girl Tramps.
END OF THEIR PEDESTRIAN TOUR IN THE
NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS.


NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS.
MONROE, n. c., August 27.-Yesterday
the party of six girls who started out about
August LIST TO walk all over North Caroline
arrived at Laurenburg, where their tramp
ended. They are all well and in good
spirits. They started in the neighborbood
OF Hendersonville nearly month ago,
upon what was regarded by their friends
as 4 very wild scheme, to walk over North
Carolina and see all the principal points OF
interest in the State, and to pay especial
attention to the mountain scenery. They
made all their arrangements for the
proposed Journey as quietly as possible, for
they knew attempts would be made to di-
suade them from the undertaking. Their
friends were taken completely by surprise
when they were told, day or two before
the commencement o. the walk, of the in
tention to tramp over the State without any
escort. To the suggestion that, going
alone and with no one TO protect them, they
would subject themselves TO insult, they
replied that they were willing TO make the
attempt, and they declared to-day that from
first to last they had never received one
rude word or rough Jest from any one.
On the first week Of their trip the girls
suffered much from exhaustion, and the
Youngest and weakest OF the party, Miss
Murdoch, had to stop and rest because Of
severely blistered feet. 1t was feared that
she would have to abandon the trip, but
she kept up nobly, and after the eighth
day began to gain strength, and is now
one Of the healthiest Of the travellers.
Their record shows that the young women
walked 420 miles. They started out
with the expectation OF making be-
.,Ntl
wore pair OF stout red-leather shoes
and short walking costumes. They
carried strong stats in their hands and
knapsacks upon their shoulders, III which
were packed their hammocks and other
necessary articles, They also wore very
broad-brimmcd hats, which, however, do
not seem to have protected their complex
ions, for they are all burned brown. Two
OF the girls carried pistols to protect them
from wild eats and bears. Much OF the time
they slept in the open air in their ham
mocks under canvas coverlets, which were
used to shield them from heavy dews and
rains. One night. ten DAYS ago, appro-
hending n severe storm. they camped in Il
graveyard and slept between the graves.
Another night, in the mountains, they were
throwni into CONSERVATION by the appearance
OF bear, but the beast, being as frightened
a. they were, He'd without Offering to mo-
lest them. A novel feature of their under
taking was the keeping OF what they called
their log-book. In this a record OF their
impressions and adventures was kept, each
taking her turn in excepting the log" The
book contains 1,24G closely-written pages
They spent three days in exploring the
celebrated Bald mountain, whose myteri.
Gus rumblings some years ago created SC
much excitement. They not only made
the difficult ascent to the top, but went
into one Of the crevices, which they exam.
ined minutely with the aim OF discovering
what caused the strange sounds in the in
terror.
The novel trip Of the six young ladie,
has been much talked about, but rs They
avoided the crowded thoroughIares they
were ignorant OF the interest taken in them
and were much astonished and slight,
irritated when they learned that bets hat
sbeen made that they would not make 40(
miles in the month. The girls end theil
trip now because three OF their number
will begin their schoO-days early in Sep
TENDER. They assert their determination lc
walk over the uncXplored portion OF the
State next summer. They leave tomorrow
by rail Tor homes near Hendersonyille.