The Big Stone post. (Big Stone Gap, Va.) 1890-1892, 1890-09-12
SOUTHWESTERN VIRGINIA.
The Remarkable Development In Progress
Elsewhere, in Addition to the Section
Adjacent to Big stone Gap.
(Rev. \. f. Dickinson. in the Dispaich.)

Adjacent to Big stone Gap.
(R.y 4. f. Dickin,oi,. In the Dspaich.)
Formerly the small farmers of South
west Virginia were of all men most miScr-
able (as farmers everywhere are too apt
to think concerning themSelves). They
raised but little, and there WAS but little
demand for that little The great grass
farmers raised scarcely anything but cat
tie, and hence they had no need to employ
many laborcrs. a hoy or two to look
after the hocks and herds met all the de-
mandS of such farmers. And. besides, the
facilities for transportation were so few
and costly that if Il farmer CHANGED to
raise more than he needed for home con-
sumption il was difficult to sell it for IL
rcmuncrativc price.
II is different now. The multitude of
thriving towns in this section furnish an
excellent home market for everything the
farmer can raisc-trom Il COW to Il
chicken. Indeed they are getting far
better prices in many places out here than
the same products would bring in Rich
mond. And of course, the demand for
all that the farmer can make will increase
enlarged development Of the mining and
manufacturing interests of this section.
SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA ENRIcHNG THE NORTH.
Few persons have any just idea of the
vast amount of money that has within
few years been put into the pockets of
cntcrpriSinG business men who have helped
to develop this country. Three years ago
was told by rich man at the North
that he would give $4,000 to any mali
who would let him "out whole" from his
investments in Southwest Virginia. Since
then he has made more than one million
of dollars here.
". d. Jones, Philadelphia, the notice
of whose death recently was photographed
over the country. with the further an
nounccmcnt that he left an estate valued
at ten millions of dollars. told me himself,
as We rode from Bristol to Wythevillc,
that no investments paid him 50 well rs
those he had made out here His estate in
cludcS many thousand acres of West Nir-
ginia landS--probably 10000 acres. As
passed village Yesterday the conductor
pointed to II splendid residence on
ncighboring hill and said:
The man that lives there came here
from the North five years ago with $30.OOo.
and to-day he is rated 1T $500, 900" and
he added
You will find it 50 cvcrywhcrc; the
Yankee has gotten the cream, while our
people have gotten the skinned milk"
OF course, there are exceptions; many
of them. In every section YOU will find
Southerncrs we'll oil. whose gains have
been rcapcd here within few years. but
the best cleaning has fallen to our North
ern friends. 1t will probably he different
hereafter. At almost every point Of any
Importance YOU will find the Southcrncr
taking the lead in developing the smaller
industries, and these will grow in number
and magnitude Many who have had To
RELY upon Northern capital heretofore are
now able to stand alone; and thus, gradn-
ally. our own people will have Il better
chance to utilize the marvellous resources
of this truly marvellous country. As yet
we have scarcely begun the work; we have
not much more than scratched i few of
the great mining diStricts-hardly peepcd
into one out of ten thousand mines whose
priceless treasure are still shut in from
human gaze. This is the day-dawn merely
for Southwest |!rginia.
NEW RAILROADS.
The projected road from Bluctield to
Hinton, IL distance of only forty miles,
will let the Chesapeake & Onio into this
coal field, and that would help in many
WAYS.
General Malone, representing a north
ern syndicate, is out here in the interest
of Il new railroad from Tazcwell Court
House to Mcdowell Court House. am
told that his engineers are now surveying
the route Within few days the general
has bought $G4 900 worth Of iron lands
He had before that made large purchases
in this same region. In almost every
direction one hears talk of new roads to
be built.
As / passed Bedford City that magic
town was excited over the new road soon
to be built from that point to Big Island,
on the Chesapeake Il Ohio railway. 1t
had just come to light that very soon that
link in the Pittsburg and Atlanta road
would be commenced, and that soon this
competing line would wake up old Bedford
and other adjoining counties.
At Roanoke all the talk was about the
Roanoke l. Southern, which is now being
built to that city. Salem expects to get n
branch of the same road and also the Bal
timore 4 Ohio (and it would seem a little
something Of everything else)
A little further on, ut Christansburg,
| they are talking of new road; while at
Radford they are counting On two more
roads, one of which they will surely get.
Pulaski, too, expects much from the
road that is to open to it q great Southern
trade.
Time would fail to tell of the many such
ventures which are likely to materialize
in the near future. Great trunk lines,
! like the Richmond l. Danville, the Louis