Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-11-14
Guard had kissed Alicia.
MOUNTAIN CUSTOM.
Saint Features of Life in the Highlands of
Virginia.

In the secluded parts of the Virginia
mountains, etiquette is as interesting to the
stray tourist as it is unconscious to the
mountaineeer At first flash the stranger
is inclined to believe with the native that
thar ain none and yer do as yer like
ter. But he soons finds that where the
dictates of society are weak, the rod of
nature is strong, and what the new rule
lacks In whimsicality it makes up in
popularity. There the free but limited
life forms clear cut character that settles
into certain picturesque habits; and these
In time Crystalline into customs that are I'M
felt, and often none the less amusing
because they are so natural. One would
naturally expect in the self contained noun
taineer some distrust of strangers, but
the extreme reverse once met =
traveller who hailed one of these men to in
quire about his road
MY friend, can you tell me how far
Carey's mill is?''
Nav"
"Why not? p
st S burnt up.
We'll, where does Mr.. Carey live p
''Nowheres. -
''How is that?"
Hes dade :"
"Ah! How far is it to where he used to
live?''
"Oh: I dunno faint fur"
Yet meet him in his "home residence
or let him guide you mile. OF two, and
he will first inquire about you in a sly un-
concerned way, and then tell you about
everything in that mountainous region,
from his neighbor's family history to the
medicinal value of "black rattlesnake
root that is, he will tell the commonly
accepted facts about them, and now and then
a theory-if it be established by the common
consent of the neighborhood. My guide
explained a roaring noise that follows a
thunder shower as due to "heat In the
clouds passing over the trees.
But with this caution hospitality is
curiously and charmingly mingled. His
cabin is his castle. In it he and his hounds
hold all the world at bay; but once let the
world be in distress, and in this same little
cabin he will receive and protect the whole
of it, while he himself sleeps on the porch.
Attempt to force yourself upon him and
you will get bullet ask for shelter and
his hospitality knows no bounds.
Once received, you have apparently alb
solute freedom of speech and action. But
you must grant him the same privilege,
absolutely Not the slightest trace of
patronage will be allowed. On one occasion
my companion ventured to suggest that
the old family clock In the corner of the
room was little slow and pulled out his
gold watch to prove it. 'Wall, said the
mountaineer, Il would say that you've
got railroad time, but we keep suntime
here. On one subject only is freedom of
speech denied-religion. Here he draws
the line clear and sharp. As for him and
his house they shall serve the God of their
fathers, and his guests must conform,
irrespective of any private fathers and their
habits. A friend once casually alluded to
the roundness of the earth. Stranger, :"
said the patriarch, "look here. Don't yer
say nothin like er that in my house. Yer
can It make me believe as how the Lord
Almighty first built the earth round like
as yer say, and then fattened it out like as
| see it now.
And the household customs are as
primitive as the philosophy. A tin basin
on the porch and towel hanging on the
door suffice for the whole family and the
stranger within their gates. And in their
opinion good form in washing consists
in the judicious use of these-no more, no
less. Sit down to dinner without it, and
your host may pretend not to notice it, but
he will deluge your plate with bacon gravy
and give you the neck of the chicken: On
the other hand, if you are too particular
in the process, you delay the whole family
and incur the contempt of the host to boot.
Rev. DR.. A--was once putting up
with one of these mountaineers, and after
a lengthy use of the basin stood combing
his long hair. His host watched him for
some time in open-mouthed wonder, then
asked, Say mister, do yer do that ev'ry
mornin ?" Eyes. "Wall, yer must be a
sight O trouble to yourself. y
So long as the people pay more for
patent medicines and for the support of
quacks than they do for the the support of
health boards, so long will they leave open
the doors of their homes to the invasion
of those diseases, which, if not a crime,
are disgrace to have Sanitary News.