Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1882-02-21
Letter From Estillville.

At last one copy of the NetrS in tw,
months Thanks to the energetic L $
Mail service. Weekly papers received
six times on an average per year, over ;
daily route, and private individuals pay
for that. -. GA .. .- --- .-
don't indulge IN The profane; but il
| did, | could not do the subject justice
Am taking i've weekly papers but lie
not know whether they are published ~
not. 26 years ago Eslilvillc was dull
! muddy place; looked as though il hrd
| been mapping with Grip Van Wrinkle for
fifty years" Thus it was pictured in
Harpcr's Monthly in 1856. In 1863 an
officer in the regular Army at St. Louis
handed me n COPY. Said he. "lIalc, you
are from Scott county, Va. are you not
do you live in Estillville?" "Wcll, no,
not exactly" said |. "Wcll," said he
"hcrc is II pen picture of the place"
told him It was overtlrawn; but the ar
ticle was true then. But twcnty-sX
years has passed. and Estillville has
donncd n new suit, and Is ahead of Leb-
anon, Jonesvillc or Gladeyilc There is
abundant signs of'trHe progress about
| the place, and ut no distant day she will
shine like II "diam0nd in the rough. y
III leading men have qunilrh at the
fountain of progress. Since Porte Cray
OH sketched the place, she has awakened
from her slumbcr.
The time Is near at hand when bcauti-
ful villas will deck her cedar points, and
the planter of Mississippi will spend n
few months each year, aud dwell side by
side with the Green Mountain boy of
Vermont. Col. j. b. Richmond and r.
A. Ayers have already built nice sur
burl al residences between the town
and the Handicapped Clnch Mountain.
Others will follow. Judge Wood MISC
has nice substantial brick Residence on
Main ST., and II. :. Kane has nearly
completed, one of the, best business
blocks in the Southwest. In fact, the
best wall ] ever saw of brick, put up by
your tOwnsman, Mr.. Adams, who, by
the-way, must be direct descendant of
the first Adam. Judge by the honesty
Of his work, for | hold That the first
Adam was originally an honest man.
Capt. Oliphant, aud others of the Rail
Road Co. are In town, and from my first
impression of the man take him TO be
wide awake to business. 49,
Estillville Is no longer the old dull I'M
interesting place of 20 years ago. But
there Is great room for improvement yet.
Ono thing she needs badly, and that Ia n
high school; that she will have ere long,
and then you will sec, on some towering
peak of old Clinch, an observatory,
where the student can sean the heavens,
and receive notes, by balloon from Look
ont Mountain, White Top. AMI The High
Knob in the Republic Of Wise.
There are only two things behind 1886,
and they nrc the U. :. Mails and the
mud. There IS null enough IN The roads
IN this county to build u Chinese wall
all round II, fifteen cublts high.
Please excuse this nonsense; but We
may all he dead before you get this let
ter. II not, probably no one alive now,
VIII live to Geo Il IN print--hcrc NJ least,
Su am not 70 particulars. Farewell
dear Ne,ps, and if we never meet again
on earth, | hope II will be orr good luck
to meet In that land where no mail con-
Tractors can ever go. .tt- p.
Respectfully s.' ID. >. HALE.
Estillyille, W., Feb. IL, 1892.