The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1886-11-10
A FIERCE FIGHT,
The Worst Conflict Yet Waged Upon eth,
Dark and Bloody Ground.

The Worst Conflict Yet Waged Upon "The
Dark and Bloody Ground.
The original name of our State was
Kamtuckee, and had no reference, as
some writer's fancy, to the extensive
cain-brakes which once covered q
large portion Of it's most fertile soil,
but, IN the aboriginal Language of the
day, denoted "the dark and bloody
ground" from the fact that various
tribes of Indians from the North and
the South, coming to hunt every win
ter in its territory for some reason
unknown to history or even tradition,
uninhabited save by wild game,
would frequently meet by chance
ana ''make game OF each Others"
and as these savages, like most nncivil
practical jokers, never could or would
take a joke, but got lighting mad"
of course the ground. often was dark
ened with their red blood. Time, that
great equalizer Of all things human,
at last brought in superior race from
"old Virginia." who hunted these
hunters so assiduously whenever they
made incursions into this old
neutral ground, that they after
stubborn. sanguinary resist
ance simply concluded to stay at home.
But, alas! little did these Kentucky
heroes and heroines who had wrested
from cruel savage foes their ancient
hunting and battle grounds ever
dream that their own progeny would
ever have to fight more cruel and
savage foe than they themselves fought
the heartless, relentless, persistent
demon of alcohol!-this ubiquitous,
ubiquitous Ishmael Of humanity, with
''hand raised against every man" and
woman and child, but whose hand in
turn is at last being raised against
this universal despoiler Of mankind.
Why, had some one claiming pro-
phetic vision ever told these Kentucky
warriors that ere many years had
passed there would be seen here foe
so much more insidious, untiring and
destructive than this Indian foe-a foe
who would MAIN and murder 10000
men, women and children for every
one this black hearted, red-handed
slayer and scalper of the green forest
ever killed and mutilated, they would
have Laughed him to scorn." DR.. C.
G. Graham, a Kentucky centenarian,
who has since been gathered to his
fathers" wrote a letter to me in 1888,
which l published in the Southern
Herald July II, of which paper l was
the editor, and in which he says that
he has fought in three wars, viz: The
war of 1872 the Black Hawk war and
the Mexican war and in all these hi
witnessed the curse Of alcohol by
which many a drunken officer has led
his command into the trap of death
and alcohol has killed two United
States soldiers for every one that ha.
been killed in battle" '
And we ex-sOldiers of the last wal
know that alcohol took big and de
structive hand in various ways during
that mighty contest. Varily. Mars has
slain his thousands. but Bacchus, Gam
brinus and Whiskinus have slain theil
ten thousands; and as Gladstone says
'liquor has destroyed more people thar
war, pestilence and famine combined.
But the Northern papers are constant
ly flinging at us the jibe that Ken
tncky is still the clark and blood,
ground" on account of the mountain
feuds in the eastern, poorer part of oul
State; yes. and ''mOonshine" whisk,
is at the bottom of all these; for if i
has not made all the participators il
them drunkards. it has made many O
them such, and most of them thriftles
and idle; and even one drink of thi
poisonous excitant is enough often t,
inAame any old feeling Of jealousy
envy or hatred, and to make then
reckless insulting, quick to take offense
and rash to the fighting point. Jane
W. Bowles, in XVIth amendment.