The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1888-05-10

know it and not put themselves in peri
The 'Arkansaw traveller is part of ou
traditions, our 'lares and penates,' bn
the Arkansas traveller is not tolerated
1t is like saying, school butter in th'
olden time. 1t provokes difficulty. I
is like saying 'ither' and 'nither.' So
thought would put you on your guard.
| Well, I expect he saved my life, ane
shall always feel grateful to him.
The Arkansas of to day is not the same
it vas forty and fifty years ago. Like
| old North Carolina and Alabama, it is
fast coming to the front. 1t has been
cleared up and drained. The malaria
has been driven away. Beautiful villages
dot the railroads all along the line, and
more cheerful, healthy people I never
saw. Speaking of the children, an old
settler said to me; "Look at their lips
look at their lips-don't you see there is
blood III them, but it didn't use to be So
You can always tell malarious country
by looking at the lips of the children"
At Forrest City there was huge black
bear that had just been brought in from
the up country and all the boys in town
both black and white gathered around to
tease and frolic with him. There is
plenty of game here yet and hunting
parties find good sport now and
then. In coming on to the capital I
stopped at another charming little town
called Lonoke. 1t used to be called
Lone Oak, because there was but one
there, but the name has been abbreviated.
I have forgotten how much cotton they
do handle there, but there is nothing else
to handle, and it seems to be all that is
wanted to establish a thriving colnmu.
nifty. 1t is splendid climate for fruit.
Peaches and apricots and pears are
crowding the trees, and Just such gardens
as I see all about these towns I never
saw anywhere. The prairie lands of
Texas are as rich, but they are waxy.
The difference is very striking. These
lands are loose, and dry out quickly after
rain. The roads never get very bad !;
but the cleaning away Of this heavy tim.
Der is no small undertaking. No grub.
bing has to be done, and but little of the
timber is felled. 1t is girdled and killed,
and in two or three years is easily SUBJ
dued to the plow. After that the trouble
is in rolling the logs as the big trees
decay and fall. But that is winter work
and does not interfere with farming
operations. I speak advisedly and eau
tiously when I say that these immense
forests are at least one-third higher than
those on the best bottoms in the Eastern
States. They are visibly nearer the sky.
I saw hundreds of white oaks that were
Eve to six feet in diameter at height
ofsix feet from the ground. When they
fall them for stocks for the saw mills four
good axmen attack one tree at time,
and sometimes makes a half days work
in throwing it. I measured several
stocks at a saw mill that were five feet in
diameter. Of course the carrylogs have
to be large in proportion, and are geuer-
ally manned with six yoke of oxen.
This is big country-this Arkansas
and am told have only seen the
suburbs, and don't know nothing yet.
But this country produces some Curl
Gus people as we'll as big trees. I had
barely arrived in little town and did
not know soul, but I soon discovered
that many of them knew me, when tall,
-boned, solemn locking individual
approached me, with stick under his
arm, and said in emphatic tone of voice,
IT want to see you, come this way" l
followed him few steps, wondering who
he was and what he wanted. He kept
about two steps ahead of me, and gave an
occasional glance backward to see if I
was following him. Thinking that ]
had gone far enough, I stopped, and he
said "come right along, want to see
you at the hotel" So I followed, and it
occurred to me that he vas the sheriff or
the town marshal, and was after me for
taxes or license or something. for they
do sometimes make me pay ior talking
out here. Then again I thought that
maybe he had heard me say Arkansas
somewhere. Nevertheless, I followed
along and felt as mean as a dog, for I
didn't know what / had been doing.
When we got to the hotel he took q
chair and silently motioned ME to
another. For moment he looked col.
emnly at me and said nothing. I could
stand it no longer and, rising up, said:
"What is it you want with me, sir ?"
He chewed his tobacco fast and hard,
and said: II wanted 70 know if you
could play on the pianner."
Somebody ought to have taken my
picture right then. There was indigna-
ton, yexation and relief all mixed up
together in my countenance. I never
replied, but left him with utter disgust.
Another feller heard it and it was told
over town, and my new-found friends
soon got familiar enough with me to say
"Well, major, can't you give US a tune?'
The poor fellow was mentally, but moi
bodily, drunk, and that wss all of it.
learned that he was a most excellent cit.
izen when sober, and was rarely any
other way. BILL ARP.
How 10 Enrich Poor Land Without
Stable Manure.
a North Carolina farmer, writing tt
i