Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1885-06-09
ARKANSAS LETTER.

my eye, " lClOr hugo Is dying.
Ere this, the great French genius is
numbered with the dead, and the
busy brain las ceased to create the
wonderful ideas and clOthe them in
glowing language. 1t was Victor
Hugo who said, "FOr halt IA century
| have been outpouring my volumes
of thought in prose and verse, in his
tory, philosophy, drama, romance,
ode and ballad and yet appear to
myself not to have said the thou
sandth part Of what was within me
and when | am laid away in the
tomb | shall not reckon my life fin
ished." lie who strove to interpret
the subtle workings Of the mind and
the passions Of the human heart, is
now but lifeless clay. The world Of
art and literature has gained price
less gift, and Victor llugo's name
will live long after the Vanderbilts
and Astors of to-day have passed
away and been forgotten.
This is real May day, sun shin
ing brightly OH waving grass and
ripening fruit, down in the orchard
| can see plum and peach trees bend
ing under their load, and the birds
are having Il regular morning COLI
cert out yonder in the pine thicket.
This is a fine country for fruit-grOw-
ing, but it has to be neglected, when
all the time is to be given to cotton
raising. 1t seems as if all the ener-
gy Of mind and body is offered up
as sacrifice on the altar of King
Cotton. Wasn't 1t Elisha Hicks, an
'old-time" aboltionist, who would
never wear cotton clothing? not
from pride but principle. ''lle felt AS
if he were wearing that which cost
the tears and blood Of the negro
slave" II may not be quite 50 bad
nor, but there are Il few ichite slaves
in my opinion and worst Of all, they
do not realize their condition. They
work on in piti!ul, desperate sort
of way, striving to exc Out dull eX-
istence, by tOiling in the hot sandy
fields, planting cotton, 'chopping'
cotton aud at last picking" cotton.
The men seem thin and OverwOrked,
the women (and some Of them work
out,") have melancholy, detected,
Observation-Disclosures that APP
pealS to ones sympathy. There are
great elements in the Southern char
acltr, and 1 love the South, yet it is
something to be deplored that the
''march of progress has been 50 slow.
a cynic might say it was refreshing,
in these days Of culture" to meet
with human being, over age, who
could neither read nor write. There
is such Il cheerful indifference as to
the future, and such Il childlikc trust
in the honesty of mankind, that ii
sets one to wondering if such d life
is not the happiest after all-the fires
of ambition never burn out Meu
souls nor suspicion and disappoint-
ment eat out their hearts. Such ig-
morance as | have drawn this moral
from, is an exception and not the
rule. The people Of this country are
beginning 10 realize the importance
OF schools, and newspapers find Their
way into many an humble home.
There is one thing that is charac-
teristic of the Arkansas man, woman
and child, and that is endurance
The everlasting pine seems to be
typical to their nature. Both tree
and man cling to the sandy soil and
endure the storms alike-speaking OI
newspapers reminds ne of scria
that Is running in one Of the leading
papers--and hope I'm not il-natur,
ed enough to criticize too severely
but do sincerely wish the author
or aulhoress, whoever he or she is
would leave out several columns oI
the "Children-of-the Abbey" style
and substitute little practical read.
ing. Now | confess that I'm mol
very "practical myself, yet | do ap
preciate few grains of "commol
sense" in Il novel-do not care abou
the conversation all of the "cIimbins
order," and too much leaning to-
wards the "nanby -pamby." In tht
serial referred TO, the heroine Give,
on a smile for a week." and the hero
is "wild with delight over the rec
objection of a dream" and so on at
iniinitum. Their 'every day talk,
exhausted Webster's Unabridged
and as Tor flowers. tbev fairly live,
Oh them! Violeis, daisies, iaponicas
roses of every name and color, came
lias, lilies, and all kinds of .,exouisit
buds" were heaped and piled. "re
gardless of expense" fyi the hcroin,
10 choose from to adorn her "Iovel,
person." | believe the hero had tn,
unselflshness TO wear a "few wilheret
daisies" in his butlon-hole, suppos
they were a nIemento of some "happ,
hour" when he quoted poetry i
blank verse. without remorse. Nov
| I