Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1885-02-11
AN ENGLISH VIEW.

AN ENGLISH VIEW.
A correspondent Of the London Times,
writing from one OF the towns of Piedmont
Virginia, and taking for his theme 1.-THE
South of To. day." depicts in an interesting
manner, and not without touches Of sympa-
thy and admiration, the changes that have
taken place in the social customs, modes Of
feeling, industries and financial condition
of the Southern people during the last four
teen years. 1t is a description by an intel
ligeut, educated Engishman who has spent
that length of time in the United States,
and nine years, off. and on, in the South
freedom from bias quite impossible to the
Northerner or Southerner accustomed to see
everything through mist of sectional or To-
cal prejudice. Though drawing his data from
observation of the whole South, the CORE
spondent of the Times takes Virginia as,
for purposes of illustration, past, present
and future, all admirable type Of the South.
"No Southern State will compare with her
from historical point Of view, nor will any
equal her record during the late civil war.
Materially and physically she is fair cX
ample Of the South, embracing all varieties
of climate, surface and production, with
special advantage, perhaps, only of loca.
ton" The Virginian's passion for land in
former days; his slipshod method Of care.
less culture over wide areas; his habit
OF "squatting on the top fence rails
to superintend the operations not infre-
quently of u single negro;" his aversion to
taking his own coat off, joined with easy
going social qualities, genialiLy, 'promiscu-
Gus Hospitality" chat ard "a habit of saun-
tering through life"-these are traits that
were more or less characteristic oft the whole
South down to period extending from 1873
to 1877. By that time western competition in
the growth uf wheat aud CUru, sU, Gully
management, the wholesale use of stimula-
ting fertilizers and increasing labor difficult
ties had put an end to mixed farming on
large scale by hired negro labor, had brought
the large farms 10 the hammer, and had
driven their owners for the most part into
mercantile pursuits. such properties were,
"a q rule, subdivided at sale, and three or
four small farmers were firmly planted
where single one languished before" The
new proprietors took their coats oil, and
with wonderful results. Some landowners,
however, sowed their lands with grass and
took to stock farming, and the tendency
with these has been to increase their acre
age, in direct contrast with tho subdivision
Of arabic land Others planted orchards
and set out vineyards. Others still went in
to small manufactures. Credit was lack
ing, and "every item of improvement
in the rural districts was paid out of
bard-earned local savings" This ex-
perience drought that lesson in the
-. 90 n
the slave districts" The process of trans
formation is still going on. 1.-THE genial
representative of old-fashioned colonial
life" survives still here and there, but as a
rule he has been succeeded by son. who,
Though immeasuraby better suited to
compete in the rush OF modern American
civilization, has lost many of those distin
| gushing traits that made his father attrac-
tive" Everywhere there is talk Of i'm
provement, and wherever the soil is good
there are strong signs Of improvement, and
the people are busy and cheerful" Sec.
tional rancor has disappeared. ut will be
long time, it is true, before Virginians or
| Carolinians make much fuss on the Fourth
of July" but "the social dislike of North
erners has for all practical purposes worn
itself out" People are busy trying TO, make
money, and sentiment is giving way 10
materialism Politics is still, perhaps, the
greatest bugbear of the South. "rhe feel
| Ing between blacks and whites in Virginia
| ia excellent" but doubts rs 10 questions ui
national policy fade into nothing before be
| contemplation of Ethiopian ascende"sy. or
the ascendency Of uuscrupulous d'lna-
gogues elected by the black vote" The CO.
existence OF kindly personal relations, as he
tween the blacks and whites, with absolute
political separation, which has puzzled "Eug-
iishmen and Northerners," "and led to many
mistakes on their part injurious to the South,
is easily explained rs due to ''the rooted
traditions of the whites, that cannot COM
prehend even the bare idea of social fusion
| in the remotest future" This state OF
things ENSURES the negro against the i'll
treatment strangers are apt to think he
| must in his present position be liable to-"
Rivalry and jealousy, which are at the root
of persecution, cannot thus come into play
to embitter the relations of the two races.
The industrious negro is universally re-
spected, though he uniformly votes against
the property holding class. Yet the Times
correspondent can say: 81 have never seen
in Virginia the faintest attempt at bulldoz'
inp.n The negro schools, supported in the
main by the whites. are fourishing. The
ultimate results of the education of the ne.
gro girls he considers doubtful. The i'm
mediate result he says is ''unquestionably to
unfit the women for household service. The
difference in trustworthiness and value be-
tween a woman of fifty, who was raised as g
slave, and one of twenty-five, raised since
the war is amazing" Much is said by the
Times correspondent of the beauty of the
country and the opportunity it presents te
the capitalist for the profitable investment
of his money, whether in land, in forests
in mines, or in industrial enterprises.
A GREAT DIsCovERY.-The greatest dis
covery of the nineteenth century is DR.. Les
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