The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1888-07-26
"DIRT ROAD" WALKER.
A PEN-rICTURE OF THIS GENU-
INE TARHEEL.
How he Won his Name. What They
Think of Our JovfaI Captain Up
North.

How he Won his Name. What They
Think of Our JoviaI Captain Up
North.
Pittsburgh, Pa, Post
The man who wears the largest
suit of clothes Pittsburg tailor ever
made, drinks three quarts of water
at each meal, and who has the quail
ties supposed to go with rotundity and
temperance, ought to furnish a good
character sketch. No microscope is
needed to pierce the personality of
this man he may be analyzed with
the naked eye Fo far to make his
acquaintance, except your hand may
ache little after the grasp it got, or
your sides be sore for a week from
very excessive merriment you
would like to meet him. Well, go to
the Pittsburg post Office and ask to
see Captain William w. Caraway, in
spector for the Pittsburg division.
You'll find him, provided he is not
out in the woods after game, hard at
work in little den back among
books and letter racks. The position
of postal Inspector is no sinecure. Its
possibilities are many, and its duties
arduous. It takes broad shoulders
like those of captain Carraway, 70
bear them gracefully.
You see typical Southerner when
you meet inspector Carraway. He
was born on a plantation in Lenoir
county, North Carolina, where he was
a planter at the breaking out of the
war. When Lee surrendered at APP
pomattox he found himself reduced to
poverty All the family estates were
swept away and young Bill was pos
sessed of little else than the title of
captain, we'll earned at the head of
Company f, Third North Carolina
Calvary. Having happy penchant
for storytelling, the captain can spin
some exciting yarns about his war
experiences On one occasion he had
been sent by conveyance to carry Sc
cret message of great Importance when
he met a squad of Union Soldiers in
dark woods. They hauled him out OF
the wagon ann covered HIM with
their guns.
"Where are you going you id
rebel p yelled big fellow with ri
f1e at his shoulder.
"I'm sickly, and my physician
thought buggy ride would do me
good" replied Carraway as he cough
ed up lung.
The fellow scanned his-six-and-a
half feet good southern stature. you
see that road ?" he asked arrogantIy.
eyes" Carraway replied.
"Well that's n dashety dashed fine
dirt road Skip you"
But ICarraway had skipped, and
neve< heard the pet epithet. In after
ye.fs he became newspaper writer
iamed all over the South for his wit
and racy stories of the war. This
was among the first he ever wrote,
and it gave him the name of 'Dlrt
Road Walker name which has
clung to him ever since. He used to
sign all his productions I'D. E. Wal
kerr and many persons in North Car
olina think he was christened just
that way. Mr. Carraway did most Of
his writing for the Raleigh N. c.
Daily NeaUs and Observer. He has
always been an active politician, and
knows every man, woman, child and
fence corner in North Carolina. He
stumped the State with Governors
Jarvis and Scales, and won them
many vote by his witty speeches
and quaint campaign songs. Sing
ing is a great feature in political cam
paigns south of Mason and Dixon's
line, as it never fails to attract the
colored vote. Captain Carraway
saws he has sung "Sweet Violets' in
every town and hamlet in the Old
North State.
In 1886 General Villas appointed
Carraway post-office inspector, and
sent him, as the captain puts it, "to
arctic Minnesota to cool off. After
putting in winter there, he was
transferred to Florida, possibly to
''thaw out" AS noted by the Po st, he
has been retained at Pittsburgh for
another term. When he was at
Washington the other week, and
learned that he was not one of the for
ty inspectors to be dropped off the list
| he sent this characteristic letter to the
postmaster at Pittsburgh:
| "All the clouds which lowered
around our house have lown away
and Nash and will soon be with you
Our cervical vertebras have not beer
severed, and we have been placed on
the list of the blessed Convey our
kindest to our friends, and pull down
the blinds CARRAwAY."
Captain Carraway is fond of his ae
tive exacting calling, and urges bu
one objection to it. 1t keeps hin
away from his North Carolina home
There are 13 little Carraways down
there who think the world Of thei
3O0-pound father. His eyes dim as HI
describes the funny things cropping
out of his brook, bakers dozel
strong.