Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-07-25
CLAY AS A STEADY DIET.
sTH2NGE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN
NORTH ALABAMA.

and Like 1t, and Believe in All
Sorts of Omens and Signs.
Winston County is in the Northwestern
part of Alabama, says a letter from
Birmingham to the New York Times, and
is the most sparsely populated and poor
est county in the State. Until a few
years ago the entire county paid into the
State Treasury less than $1,000 per year
in taxes. Until three years ago it was
thirty-two miles from the nearest rail-
road, and the County Court House was
sixty miles from railroad station.
Churches and schoolhouses were few and
far between, and the time was, not very
long ago, when there were only four
postofRces in the entire county.
The writer spent several days in the
county recently and visited the homes of
number of poor people who eat clay as
part of their daily food. They live in
small log cabins of the rudest kind and
exc out miserable existence by farming,
hunting and fishing. Their farms, or
patches, as they call them, are small
clcarings around their cabins and are
never more than few acres in extent.
Their crops consist of corn, peas and
potatoes, and few who are fortunate
enough to own horse attempt to raise a
little cotton. The land is very poor, and
as the crops receive little work the yield
is always very poor. A few hogs are
raised, but the majority depend on the
country stores for the few pounds of meat
they eat during the year. In almost
every cave and on every little brook
among the hills is ''moonshine still, :"
and the little crop of corn gathered by
the clay -eater is sold to the owner of the
still or converted into ''mountain dew" on
shares. They are too far from market
to sell their corn for money, but they can
carry keg of corn whisky to some of the
larger settlements few miles away and
obtain few dollars in money, some to-
bacco, and coffee for it. Men, women,
and children are slaves to the tobacco
habit. The women chew and smoke and
most of them also use snuff when they
can obtain it.
|
eater is rude in the extreme. The cabin is
usually built of small pine logs from which
the bark is sometimes removed. There
are no windows and usually only one
door. In winter the cracks between the
logs are filed with clay or rags and some
times boards are nailed over them on the
outside. In summer these cracks are
opened in order to allow plenty of fresh
air to enter. There are no pictures on
the walls, no ornaments of any kind, and
often no furniture worthy of the name.
If there are bedsteads they are of the
crudest kind, made by the head of the
family with no other tools than a saw
and axe. Usually the cabin is too small
for beadsteads if the family is large, and
they sleep on quilts and mattresses spread
on the floor. The entire family, otter
ten or more persons, eat and sleep in ono
small room. The cooking is done in one
fireplace, the utensils consisting of fry,
ing pan, a kettle, an oven, and possibly
a few pots. Cooking stoves, sewing ma
chimes and all modern conveniences are
unknown. Many of these people will moi
believe that such things really exist. Afev
circus posters may adorn the walls and
you may find patent medicine almanac,
but books and newspapers are unknown.
None of the family can read. Their parents
before them could not read;. their chill
dren are growing up equally ignorant,
and the majority of them do not believe
in book learning. If the head of the
family belongs to the church he probably
keeps cheap Bible in the house, but
they never hear it read except when somt
travelling minister comes along and stop
for dinner or perhaps stays all night.
The clay eaten by these people is foun(
along the banks of the small mountain
streams in inexhaustible quantities. 1t i
of dirty white color usually; sometime
pale yellow. 1t has peculiarly oily ap
pearance, and this oil keeps it from stick
ing to the hands or mouth. When dry i
does not crumble and few drops o
water will easily soften it until it can b.
rolled into any shape desired. 1t is al
most without taste, but must posses
some nourishment, as these people declar
they can subsist upon it for days. The,
place small piece in the mouth and holt
it there until it gradually dissolves and i
swallowed in small quantities at time
The quantity eaten at one time varie
from lump as large as a pea for the chilt
or beginner to lump as large as hen
egg for those who have eaten it for years
The only bad effect of clay eatin.
seems to be the peculiar appearance i
giv-s the skin of those who become ad
dicted to the habit The skin turns pale
so pale, in fact, as to give the face tn
pallor of death, and then later on it turn
a peculiar pale yellow, color closely re
sembling some Of the clay eaten. Childrel
who addicted to the habit grow old, Al
least in appearance, prematurely, ant
their faces lose forever the bright glow o
! youth and health. There is little sicknes
among the clay eaters, and they live a
long as the average of mankind, so it i
conclusive that the habit is not fatal in it
effects.
1t may or may not be the result of ella,
eating, but these people are as supersti
tious as the followers of Voodoo. The,
have signs for everything, and almos
worship the moon. Corn is planted whel
the moon is full, and potatoes are planted
on the dark of the moon. They will no
start on a journey or begin a job unles
the moon is right, and they foretell storm
and all kinds of disasters by the appear