The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-11-06
Correspondence Of the caurier. .Journa,.

Correspondence Of the Courier. Journal.
NEW ORLEANS, Oct. "a, 1884.
l haze discovered city here, not far
from the Mexican seas, which is built
below The levels of the river. have
before me city here where the wells are
built above the ground. I have come
upon city here Of nearly quarter of O
million people, where thegrayes are built
On top of the earth. And the dead
people in these graves which are built on
the top of the ground in the heart OF
teis mighty aud antique city outuumber
the living.
But notwithstanding all that this is a
healthful and delicious city. The wa.
ter 10 not so bad after all. I have not
yet tried the graves.
New Orleans, on fret sight, reminds me
of g very pretty girl with snudped face.
And il is to be admitted that She ia a
pretty old pretty girl, too. And she
knows tremendous LOT, I can tell Won
But for all that, ahe is q girl that you
can't help falling in love with at first
sight 10 save your life.
ny THE BANKS OF THg MIGHrIEsr RIy.
ER.
1t has mouth and cab speak for itself
l hear you say. My friend, take OF
your hat, and be serious in his presence.
Millions of thoughtful men OF Europe
would gratefully bare and bow their
heads here. These waters come down to
us from the stormy North with their story
Of nearly thirty States. They have
nourished end ministered to needs of q
hundred millions of people. Their work
is doae Tor this year. They are OF thei-
way to the seas TO rest. They are entitled
20 respect.
I, I have basked on the banks of the
Amazon, gone ell the way to the Ganees
to see the worshipers of water, made nv
home on tue banks of the Nile, but no.
where ha7o found river at all like
this l have come upon here. This is O
strong and swift and sweeping river. It
is up and doing and entirely alive. It is
an American river in its fullest sense.
An Independent river 10 this, too, running
on its own account, turning aside for
neither Republican nor Democrat,
Maybe 1t is running the Independent
ticket. Maybe it Is for ST John, the
cold.water man.
Aud how few Americana have seen
this mighty river, or either source or
mouth. 1 know plenty of pretty Eastern
ladies who are willing TO be counted we'll.
travelled. Not one Of them in ten ever
saw this greatest natural wonder of the
world.
Lord Houghton, to whom I dedicated
my book about the Amason, gave din.
ner in celebration of the little, circum.
stance, at which many American ladies
were gathered. A pair of these beauties
were d. srting mis- iordship after dinner
with the wonders of the Nile, which they
had visited.
Now, Lord Houghton owns about half
a county of land in Florida, and, with q
pretty clear eye TO business, suppose, it
occurred to him to get some account of
the Mississippi as we'll as of that tiresome
and too familiar Nile.
An EDglishman's knowledge Of Amer
ican geography Is not very reliable at best,
and it ie no 5;sparagement to imagine
that his iordsfiip in his minds eye located
his own Florida possessions not far from
the banks of the mighty American river.
You guess the sequel2 But, ah, it
would take Henry Irving to depict the
disgust on that old nobleman's face as he
turned and silently waddled away from
these cultured and travelled ladies who
had not seen their OWE @csder of all tie
civilized worid-this majestic Mississippi,
which had been all this time flowing in
their back yard, unnoticeI and I'm.
known!
But it seems like profanity to prattle
on and try to prai:e and call my country's
attention to ibis silent majesty of waters,
Ah, De Soto, what tomb is yours 1t
was time for you to die. The Mississip.
pi's rushing banks were fitting place for
you to leave the world behind; his bo.
som, his great strong breast place to
make the gods envious Of your rest.
Like Balboa after naming the Pacific,
like Moses, indeed, when looking upon
the promised land and tie rivers Of 1t
and the place Of rest for his people, il
was your right to die and remain forever
part of that which you had disco yered
to your people.
It Is hard to escape tie immense fasci-
nation OF this vast surging, sweeping
river before nss here hard 10 cease eny.
ing things of this tremendous stream,
this artery, the life blood of our broad
republic. And, oh, how the poets of old
tho poets when poets were upon earth
would have loved this riverI There ia
not poem in the world worth reading
that has not rivers running all through
it, from the Meander and the other little
rivulets around Troy, on down to the
story of the unhappy Arcadinna. whose
final place Of rest can almost see from
my household. All such places in the
Bible are made green with running riv-
erS. Paradise, that it might be OF
matebless elegance and eternal verdure,