Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1882-04-04
Rawlings from Anywhere.

MARGARET EYTINGE.
Rawlings from Anywhere.
SOME STATEMENTS ABOUT STAUNTON
vIRGINIA-"BLUE BEARD" AND HIS
BLANDISHMENT-A RIGHT RUDDl
RECEPTION WONDERS OF THE WA
TER WORKS, ETC.
From the Yonkers IN. ~ Gazette.
Dear Gazette It has been 90 Ions
since have trespassed on the attention
of the readers Of The Gazette that
Issue rom the realm Of silence with
considerable caution, To those who
have fiattered themselves that I haG
dropped our of existence, aud having
taken courage with the thought, ap-
preached the consumption Of your
weekly banquet without fear of encoun
tering one of my upwhOlesOme letters
this visit tion will be like q second Wis
itation Of the measles to the person who
almost died with the first But I hive
been carrying about with me for many
weeks recollectiOns which rebel against
longer restriction to such narrow quar-.
ters as my bucOlic brain. and culling
them from the lsbyrinth of thorny ex
periences which have striven to choke
them, throw them In the pasture lo'
where the goOily kline of your flock do
Craze. and with an ejaculation some.
thing like that which rounds the aen-
tence IF candidate for the gihbet, await
the result vii b fear and trembling.
It ia of Stauntnn, Va, that I have
something to confide You may have
been there, or you may only know it a.
station on the Chesapeake and Ohio
Railroad 1t Is quite likely that many
of your readers may have passed it on
their way to the White Sulphur Springs,
and. in glimpsing 40 much Of it as i'm
mediately surrounds the station, have
had no strong impulse to get out and
cnltiva'e an Intimacy with the place
To own up at the outset, Stauntnn
doesn't take after that class of mer
chants who, having hut few good wares
to boast of, put tn IN all IN their SHOW
windows There is little of this adver
tising element about the place, and un
less you had business there, or had
through some friend, been given hint
of the heart that was underlying its 80
eial structure. you might not care to 20
one step beyond the grotesque array oi
animate nature which greets the arrival
of every train that touches at this noun.
tain city,
The din Of contending voices that
greets your ears from hotel porters,
hack men, provision merchants, and
numberless other enterprising gentry,
the profusion of swartby faces and un-
aesthetic uniforms that meet your eye
and the energetic-bOt to say adhesive
demonstrations of the tradesmen who
are either catering to that cavity in
your stomach or the sOlicitude associated
with finding proper wharfage for your
baggage, are elements of your recep
ton which. willie they may not startie
you, might impel you to the conviction
that you would enjoy the novelty lit
tie more if you had . seat in the gallery
with your acoustic properties reduced
to a minimum.
Perhaps [ am not competent to judge
of what the average wayfarer's emo
tions would be upon making his debut
in this city, and amidst such surround
ings. 1t had been my privilege to meet
one of Staunton's foremost citizens be
fore undergoing this experience. and il
was this which made my heart warn!
to the place sufficiently to entice me tc
q more intimate association with its bu
siness and social features The voice
aud genial presence Of Major Nelson H
Hotchkiss impeiled me TO an Invasion
of the city. and once ensconced at the
Virginia House, and taking few bear.
ings from a brisk pro menade through
certain of the thoroughfares. l was in.
vested with the semblance of home feel
ing that quite led me to believe myself
Da,uraIized cirizrn.
My good fortune intensified this feel
i"g. for the card which made known tG
the Major that repre- entalive of IHt
Gazette was/in town, h not much
more than lit in the Majors card has
ket before the chivalrcus old Blue BparC
himself, harnessed as usual to bis cav.
eruous pipe. had made resonant the
arches of the Virginia House with tht
heartiest expressions of welcome
had heard this voice before, and mar
velle,i at the depth of sincerity 1t spuk e
but it's volume aud heaTtiness on thi,
occasion convinced me that the Major
was aware of the fact that there VA,
more OF me to welcome this time, and
took the hint, and had exhumed from
the trunk where had put her for saf.
kteping the other memher of the firm
and stood by while the Major, with the
grace and eloquence of Chesterfield,
lmpres>e' upon Mrs Wbipple the con
| victiOn she must feel that she had found
a home atmosphere as far reaching a.
the limits of the Old Dominion. The
eloqueuce, the versatility and sprightly
humOr of our W lcomer were such thai
| irembie at q suggestion Of the dose O
| paris green I would have been Obliged
to take, had the Major been a rival o
mine in the days when I was seeking
the prize which the absence nf th,
competition had made it possible fol
NE to win.
After such a welcome as this, hearty
and expressive enough to reflect III,
hospitality AMI good will of ZION,
| hardly looked for any such warm re.
ception as later on hetokened tbs anx
iety these people feel in making visi
tor see that it is their purpose to max.
| his stay as bright and eff.Ilgent as pos
sible. At about three O'Clock of thu
mor"ing following my arrival, 1 wss
aroused by the enthusing cry OF "tire y
ami opening my eyes. was terrified q
the sight of what seemed to be fam
ing window Instantly I bounded t,
my feet with the conviction that th,
hotel was on fire, and rousing my re
tinue, sprang to the window to learr
the extent of the conHsgra,ion. A
glance revealed the fact that it was no
the hotel. but group Of tinder- Iik'
buildings Immediately opposite which
were being consumed by the fre-fieud
| The inflammable character of tn
structures, the narrow interval betweer
them and our hosteiry, the appallin,
shower of sparks raiuing upon our roof
the din of excited voices and the tram D
hurrying feet were elements of the pic
ture that hardly excited me with feel
ing Of security, and after hasty robin,
hurried below to secure hel p in havin,
our baggage removed TO safer quarters
The night CLERK, young man bounte
Gus with that comforting way which
born in creatures of his calling, adde,
to my souls tranquility by assuriD
me that the Zig was up" and / has
tened out into the street wondering ho1
far up tbe Iiv wS. sn1 ri~hi.,.. ;f