New-York tribune., 1886-04-02
THE CAROLINA HIGHLANDS.
".
NOTES OF AN AUTUMN TRl?.

tics Bnt when one has left the cares OF the worm
bshiad for a season 20 breathe an air thaI eN'i''
like wine while cvery sonse is quiokcnoh "nu ro'IoS"
by novel exIeriences in endloss viclSsi'uue "nu '
fancy il Liadsi into steady glow surrounding opoct'
10 not present themselves for contemplation Ill tne c',
b,ri l-ht OF common day. Everything Is eaVciopeo
with rosy nmbus through which II appears III 'nas
niHed not to say glorifei. form. oao VINO III ''N'
holiday tcnper looks of from tho roof o. his n"' upon"
land where evoy prospect plcases and man nj uc' uoo'
mo- b,,In to s IA vile the hcahen in the hynn mas
only conmseraon for the Ignorance when a'FS II td'
ia an inyur fold for almost anything. The propicn
which keeps o5ruding itself upon hm Is whethcr 'o
can be euduroi anywhere else IL thlS Journey h'u
been made I'm eay spring when the frost was 't tha"
Ing mt Of the ground and the mules roof wohd oHer
lrss elevated he sank In the glucy Hui' 'nc
nroanect MINT have lacked the enchantment lent 10 IL
by tho mellow haze OF October Or IL the hiSdes ha'
bscn marched with trouh-. Bat here the iihu DFoNo'
break, In with protest that in the Highlands droutu
never kno WA condition watch would 20 far toward
making this a farmers paradise. Aud yet we notoi a"
wa came tina the fertile Shenandoah Valley was ga'phg
| for rain. This lies. however, at u lower ievel'
Rut mat across the Tennessee border, where SOIL ana
climate ctunot bo widely dissiinlat from 'o'e "lo"
nos 10 the eas VS. found town that ma plainly pocn
strred at period long past with an ambition 10 cnD
into position OF consequence, and then growing
vesry OF tie struggle hal lOOsenei It's grip oni was
sliding back into It's OH ;lnal seepness Tho Local etor
was busy man. but he took time TO warn rs against IN
abandoned ch1racier who had lately set up rival
papsr and to explain why his TOW lookcl 'red somo
yeNs 20 when the railroad iJst penetrated INC wdef-
meas an energetic little emigration boom was started ana
noyeorners be:an to bustls aboIt-but somehow they
laed to get on. Bal luck AMI hai seasons followed
and now there were people going out OF the county
than coming ill., In the light OF disaVpointmens OF TINS
sort ths farmer wno is looking soulhwIrd FOR homo
would prob,bly make forecast II hc counted on an
occasional dry year And yet hore is NJ record that
the crop OF appci.ck ever failed The ofcnads Know
no off, years Bat this, p'rhap3 Is owing less 70 an
assured annual rainfall titn to soil so fere tnHt tne
tree roots lind material for Doth wooa aau lruit
every year.
n tina man On the mule gives car the seductive song
ot the land agent Or the homcsick vail OF the disGp-
pointoi emsrant rlsts his own innlmed fancy, MS
e,na. OF the agricultural possibilities OF this region
will be small value The better course VIII DC 10 lay
down afew solid facts and upon this basis the inquirer
can hull an opinion OF his own Ana In the ir't place.
u. "a are sDund ant wool water The enisrant who
has wintereI hole scoopod ont d blum on tho tree
s,s plains OF tho West will probably consider tmpef'
iue and untaing anil springs "a possessions OF
prime value Again, the climate 80 closely resembles
that " the Eastern ;ates that tho newcomers export
ence can bs IN ale Immediately available Tho soil Is
.rons Not only do tho tees show this but the crops
sscn on tho yellow mnlatto lands a. well as the
chocolate anl rs1 soils all TroYe IT, IL is go)i lana
where corn noar8hes the very comb OF sharp ridges
900 feet high The land when cleared Is smooth-not
river bottoms, Dnt even On lds stcoP
sopes the rocky skeleton OF the hills Is rarely thrust
through tho thick mDnd. AMI tho cearincs arc not
,trewn with boulders in regions north of tho drift
,ne The hill anls do not wash like to more sandy
cotton levels. When the forests arc wasted torreots
will begin gnlly their way to the streams below onta
:ra.s sward will hold the so in place for generations
Grass and clover form the only assured basis ,0r dvcrs
d,I f,rnine and Wa saw littls OF either except tho
introduced japan clover which is taking possession
wherever II rooh0ld II Is the universal test
n,ny however that wherever scrf s sovn covera ana
pasture grasses grow with persistent uNnrince Short
winters and good grazing in coo summers promise
ccess to the s,ocknan, ald when the elm peeer or
no, pnlt on tine suni.h model Is dsf laced b. swine
with hams aua shoulders and the scrub COW Is graded
I'D by introduction OF improved breeds ana sheep are
guaranteed rights before the law which cur or his
owner will respect the possibilities OF stock and dairy
hnshandry here wi bo worth considering. Fruits,
,rse and small. all the cereal grains sorghum. Irish
9oaoes aud tobacco under careless forms oI
tlage yell bountlsul crops.
rho Highland farmer then produce much ~ what
ne need, to his trial comes when he wishes
70 dispose OF Ms surplus. Markets arc remote and
r,nsportaion expensive lie count upon i'm proved
facilities for moving crops IN the future but can he hope
FOR Il homs market Tho mineral wealth OF the noun
tsns aud the tint f. the forests with water-p'w wer
evoryWhere ought to attract enterprise outside of ae
culture Already too this region is grosnS III repuie
IS health rcsOrt-a fact to he considered in estimating
~. probable growth II populatlon And after all, how
long 1t when county after county III Now fotk
md Pam ,vy.ni. were AS Inaccessible and arseiy
settled these mountain counties OF North Carolha
to-dly The best bottom ltnts alS Already duuef
cultivation aud held at $50 AMI upward per acIe-at
loast their full value Away from the railroads wood
b, had for dollar Dr two an acre ana from that
10 teu or twenty dollars according 10 Improvement and
location Timber has been OF such sm. account that
wen the valuable varieties like walnut and cherry
until recently were not saved IN ciearins l"no -
IS not yet the practice I" cut down tho trees but to
rie them and leave them TO dec y while te settler @
! ploughs about them Ono OF these deaichlhSs Win
Tie skeletons Of its great trees slowly wasting "way -
not "a pleasing sight. One old settler with ber. and
sye like an eagles told me tbat he ioOhod bacA Win
remorse al the trees lie had murdered lie came h'o
his children born when his nearest neiehbor W.
or;v miles away. He had cleared 900 acres 9nd "a
expressed you couldn't shoot rifle ball across
iyc-acre lot" He had worked all his ne 10 get the
tmber ont o. way and Railroad has come nfdr
lim and The black BIRCH walnut ana wild cherry ne lds
destroyed wou be worth more ihan all The er9i he mas
raiscd and II he had cultivated carefully ono th O tne
hs a on he cr,t,rc tract Black walnut rails not
split from trees that would be worth $l5O apieceh New
since the Western Carolina Railroad has been
tat of tin her aud begin To reaT that crest
products have some value Mach OF the choce tiioer
howeyer had already been bought by specnlaors who
secured the black walnut Tor example ihrongh IaFge
low 20 cents tree Some OF these trees are carod
Ike ardseye maple and are exceptionally valuable tx
erts claim the ability to distinguish a" cured walnut
or tulip poplar as It stands but Es-'as no one San e
eed Curled poplar makes an exquisite inside ilnlsh
aud cured walnut tree has brought more than $1,000
\ Tor Vencerlhg Hcau ol tTaci oi -
for -, 200: this stood single black walnut from
800 resIzed Tho poplar too. las been
largely bought 10y dealers and being Of the best sub
s,tue+ tor the nshng white pine VIII become more
valuable in the future. In the village of clyde we saw
a meeting house not large as Trinity Church. but
sufficiently commoious for a country congregation
being apparently forty odd feet long and tho onre
atructure from the sill :, the OF tue neat little
steeple mado from single tulip tree aud enough
timber left 10 pnid considerable portion OF the
seats Tree OF such dimensions are not common IN timber
lands that sell for - But when II eInhered
that constantly discovered for varieties
thought worthless the value oi tho bard wool of tho
Highlands should taken into account by the rnigrant
present landowner would I've glad to give tie
wood thousand to any who would to
/ remove it.
There are fair schools in the Villages, but the villages
are far jet and tho emigrat with small capital who
cheap land away from the more pOpulous sections
must fofegO educational privileges for time. Roads
arc few In the back country aud "f in sparsey
| ed little Bridges
rarely seen. And yet the harlshlps OF what may he