Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1883-08-27
A LIVE TOWN
Charlie ston's Prosperity, Politics,
Society and Wlckedness.
THE ERA OF oVEMENT
The Whisky Question up at the Lewis COun-
y Teachers Institute-A Most In
g teresting Session Sum +
.--.-u.. med Up. . 80
SDecial 10 The REGISTER.

CHARIEsroN, WA, August 25.-Charies'
ton Is, in some respects, the fiest town OF
It's size in the country. In social life, in
politics and in wiekedness it takes the
lead. Card parties, dancing parties and
common, plain, sit around parties are
abundant. Gaieties begin as soon as Lent
is over, and the young folks dance aud
fiirt until away late in the summer. when
they generally clay off, for about month
until the weather begins to get little cool,
and then
The WhirI Begins Again. .
snd neither stops nor stays until Lent be-
gins. In fact we have sometimes two or
three parties on the same evening, and
some of our young society people are kept
going st particularly lively gait to ena-
able them to keep up.
Politically. Charleston always manages
to get there" on time; and If she doesn't
get her share OF the offices, she takes live
" part in saying who shall have them. .
CharIeston's wickedness
is proyerbial, and it is said that there are
more real "bang up" poker players and
faro dealers here than in any other place
in this section of country of twice Charles
toms population. l heard an old sport,
we'll known in Wheeling, say the other
day that he had been coming to Charleston,
occasionally, for twenty-five years, ana
that he had never struck the place when
there was not at least one faro bank in
operation, and that he had sometimes
found two or three. The sports here are
the greatest fellows to bet that ever saw.
They will bet on anything.
Sometime ago there was game OF base
ball to be played between the Molden
BOYS and q club here, and | am confident
there was every cent OF 5000 on the game,
although neither club had any record to
speak OF, and it would have been purely
game Of chance. The game was declared
IT on account OF kick against decision
Of the umpire and the bets all drawn.
Then the sports got up two scrub mines
and put their money up on them.
An Era of Improvement
has struck Charleston, and we are having
some excellent streets made, and will soon
have begun a system Of sewerage. Our
people are firm believers in the efficiency
Of the brick street, and We are spending
good deal of money in that direction this
summer. / see by the REGISTER that
Wheeling will indulge in brick boule-
ward, and bully varde it will prove to be
if laid right. l believe, however, that
the fire brick will prove delusion and a
snare, as paving brick. 1t is true the lire
brick is very hard, but the grain is very
coarse and will, fear, make it cut much
easier. The brick with which our streets
are laid is a common red brick. OF fine
grain, and burnt very hard, and having.
plank foundation, the street retains its
smooth, even surface, and there is neither
gar nor friction. One street here that was
laid ten or eleven years ago, shows very
title wear, and with slight repairs would
be as good as new.
business is Booming
here Just now, and the merchants are
doing a much better business than is
usually done at this time of the year. We
bave some wholesale houses here that do
an astonishing amount of business. One
firm of wholesale grocers here sell goods in
Parkersburg and out the Baltimore and
Ohio railroad as far east as Oakland, and on
the Chesapeake and Ohio from over in Vir-
cinia to Lexington, Ky. Think OF it! A
town of six thousand Inhabitants whole.
saleipg goods right under the shadows OF
Baltimore and CiaCinnati and in towns OF
considerably greater population than she
possesses.
The weather
has been fearfully and wonderfully dry
down here, ana corn mas suHereu consluer-
ably. The Kanawha river is almost dry
and only the smallest boats are running.
The Ohio Central Railroad Company,
which has completed their line from Point
Pleasant TO just across the Elk river from
this place, after building bridge and max
ing every preparation to cross into the
city, have
Decided 10 Do So,
although they had already purchased val
liable property for depot. Most of the
right Of way has been procured-and large
ly paid for-by this road to Kanawha Falls,
thirty-six miles above here, and bids were
already in for the construction of the road,
when orders come from headquarters to
stop the whole thing and the surveying
parties were called in and the work dcclar-
ed off 1t is thought that Huntington has
gobblsd up that part of the Ohio Central
which lies in West Virginia, and that he
will build the rest Of it--when he gets
ready