New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1885-10-04
POVERTY AND Discomfort IN THE ONCE
BEAUTIFUL SHENANDOAH VALLEY.

POVERTY AND Discomfort IN THE ONCE
BEAUTIFUL SHENANDOAH VALLEY
IRON AN OCCASIONAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRBUsEI
BERRYvILLE, Va, Sept. 25.-While walking
through single main street Of this village before the
recent drouth was broken upon Ylrginian with
pick and shovel digging well. The earth that ne
shovelled out was dry and powdery. asked him now
far down he expected to go before he struck water
"For ten foot" he replied, have dug through sohd
dust The wells about here and the criks, and the
streams. springs and cisterns have all DRIED up ana
where ferry boat used to cross heShenandoah Ve
at Ashby's lap the mountain women lift up their SRrt
and wade over I'm water deep 1t is not on this side
Tin expecn' to strike water. but the man I'm diggin
the well for read in the papers about great floods in
China and he swore would dig down TO China in hopes
of riking some lastin' waters
"Havc you had rains here this summer y
"Oh none to speak ola few dews and couple OF
hailstorms."
suppose then that the crops are pretty mueh i"
ureF
Eyes sir; a dcad perfect and complete failure wheat
crop hay CROP CROP tobacco crop corn crop duck
crop and every other crop ever heard OF IN these
parts"
d" Is the duck crop valuable one"
DWELL low reckon 1t is So" he rejoined. pausing IN
his work moment and looking up from his dusty hole
in the ground whic his jaws methOdicay worked nj
ouid of tobacco 1.-THE duck and goose crop is pretty
nigh the main dependence Of a great many poor pine
hill and mountain farmers. Goose feathers pays EN-
better to raise on their say lands than wheat or corn
had four ducks and halta-dozen
geese setting up in my yard ~
home They set two weeks and tie water give out on
the place so made trough and put 1t near EN- and
toted 'em water from neighbor's for another week
arrange to get the trough full OF water regularly for the
next week and me- if the four ducks ana SIX geese
didn't ali leave their There's thousands OF dollars
lost on setting ducks and geese this season" -,
All over the northern part OF this valley once SPOKEN
of ha
distressing effect OF the ong drouh is yet apparent IN
the sns % s Of AUCTION sales Of
hold and personal effects of families who are preparing
TO emgrate to the Western States In the race OF he
6ghting winds and the ARID and 5arehed neIds tne
OF dumb and san q, cH:
has effect Their cropof wheat TINS year average
cents bushels 6sn to did the not T RS
enough pay their phosphate bills The poor farmers
have sought the banks in vain. They can only borrow
money by mortgaging their crops, which are SO poor
that the security is not considered sufficient few
the farmer who is renter sees not glean OF nope IN
the future. The little crop be makes IL taken by the
MANY people thoug ht that III the drOuth curse had
fallen the country and IN the crossroads stores they
arrued that the working out OF some law OF nature
that this valley should become q desert. inc more
learned Of them conended that recurring droughts are
n provision OF nature long recognized as common 10
limestone countries and unavodaOeO nt THESE hatuats
were in depressing minority ana tT sS1 oiav u
known before the war The people OF virginia are as
thus believing eight weeks in the churches and meet
;nghonses throughout the valley each succeeding
were offered p Tor rain In many neghborhoods special
week days wero designated aud the people assem-
of providence to send the welcome raindrops in time TO
save portion OF their crops, and enable the farmers TO
scrape together enough and bread to get through
the coming winter. But still the sun rose red and cop
perry the Blue Ridge every morning and after Oaz
clouded yellow splendOr behind the peaks OF the Ale
ghanies at ns9t Hardly 20 m"f3 as tbs w cedT
blue Tor eight weeks. The winds blew, from
ali points of the compass with other effect than TO
Whr the dust clouds ike great fog banks up and down
the roads and turnpkes coating houses ana FENCES Win
The result of this long continued drouh is stagna-
ton trade and depreciation OF values that IS as
estate for when hard times come upon the 20 idng
farmer and crops Ther hot and wi s9rSe the the
Wolf is also soon standing the door OF the merchant
the Communities broken up and the families who have
left the valley for the West and Texas The natural
the war attracted large number OF yyanians to
it. Men who had been born and bred among tho SPLEEN
G nad Hancaier and rnDi Lebanon Valley. Where
fine opportunity for investment IN this valley where the
natural fertility was just as great aud where sood farm
so d at w "neo Se t %nS G an Bmoro and
Washington we're within easy reach ~ G a yoas b
country looked lovely and P rss' T fGT @ the
Of thrifty and enterprsng Pennsylvania Dutch farmers
santiaI swiss burns that began to country and
in the introduction OF Improved stock and infusion OF
now ideas In the agricultural community. Big nelds
were made small and lined and manured in way that
opened the eyes OF the Old foges and as
10 tho CAPABILITIES OF their soil For several seasons
abundant rains continued TO bless the earth,
lands rose rapidly value $50 $40 and 500 an acre
and the Pennsylyanians were happy. But during the
early years or the seventies the harassng drOughts
came and and went down again and emgra-
tion began From SO good restored val
ues to n great extent and farmers became grazers.
They prOspered until the present time; but now most
OF the Penn ylvaniars have returned TO their native
State, driven back by Nature herself