The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-09-28
A MOUNTAIN TRAVELLER.
SOMETHING ABOUT A TRIO OF
DEMOCRATIC JUVENILES.

DEMOCHAIIC JUVENILES.
Queer Names of Things and Children
and Queer Ways of the People WHO
Abide in Ca1iny Mountain Regions
Youthful Marriages A Mountain
Trail That Beat the Record. 70,
Roughness.
BULL MOUNTAIN. BUHcoMBE COUNTY
NORTH CAROLINA, Sept. pa left Spruce
Pine on my way south on Sept. Is.
Following a somewhat round about course
l crossed the Toe river several times.
The naming of this river was always q
mystery which my curiosity itched tc
solve.
1t must have been an Indian name /
thought-how then, Toe? And, if not an
Indian name. why Toe. anyhow / asked
this question OF young gentleman l met
up on the Roam, and who had Travelled
about pretty extensively in this vicinity,
and he replied. very glibly, to the effect
that the river was so called from the old
fields of tow along it. This was unsatsfac-
tory, as tow isn't toe. So l afterward
applied TO a distinguished person, who has
| oeen prominent in the opening mp and i'm
proving this country for many years, for in
| formation, telling him the young drum
mer's version. The d. P. laughed loudly
over the young mans Fields of town. and
| said tue only tow he knew of the people
raising along the Toe was tremendous and
unfailing crop of tow-headed children; and
that Toe was merely an abridgement of the
| original Indian name, Estatoe.
These people almost universally give un-
| couth and grotesque names to their sur
rounding localities; sometimes they have a
local descriptiveness, and, as often, are ap-
parently without significance. The sugges-
tons OF Cauey river, Roaring creek, Hol-
low Poplar creek. Llttle-rock and Big-rock
creeks, Pigeon-roost creek, Bad creek, Bulls
Head mountain, Sharp Top. Elk-ho-n,
Potato Top, Bee Tree and Lost Cove, are
| obvious enough; but why Greasy cove.
Greasy creek, or Sinking coyes have not
bee able to find out.
Neighorhoods are usually dis inguished
by the name of the creek upon which they
are situated; and, apropos of this fact. I
heard funny dialogue the other day. There
is Hominy creek out west of here, and one
gaunt, lack-iuster mountalneer said to an
other IN a very friendly tone: WASN'T you
raised on Hominy" Nav" said the other.
strengthening up wrathfully, "Is raised on
les' ez good whites ez yeu wuz"
The only incident that occurred to break
| in on the pleasant monotony of nv MORN
log school house beside the road. There
was big shady spring just across from the
school house. and here l alighted to get a
drink. Through the doorway-guiltless of
| door, could see that there was an ex-
citement within. Presently 1 heard the
sound of switch being applied vigorously,
and saw the teacher-a ys,Ing woman
chastising a vicious-lookiog, red-headed
girl of about II; and just as | mounted and
rode away shrill, fierce voice screeched
| out, II wishttamuddie eff / don't tell papln
Phebe and | stopped for our dinner at a
bouse which, in any of the northern states,
or In any more enlghted part of the coun-
try, one would have expected to contain
| plenty of the comforts of life, if not luxuri-
| Gus refinenlents-a good-sized frame house,
surrounded by large and quite prosperous
looking farm. But it is not means alone
| mot, indeed, means SO much these people
| lack, as the science of living, and when they
become able to buy or build good COM
| Portable house they live in it, and like own
ers and proprietors, who know and value
| the comforts and conveniences they have
provided themselves with, and use
them accordingly, but like robbers
base usurpers-who, having stolen or
wrongfully seized a fine thing. know not
how to enjoy it, but use it ignorantly and
disrespectfully and have small gain of their
| inert. The big rooms were bare and unin-
where ate my dinner; drying apples were
spread out over the porch floors and in
! most OF the rooms; there was not such
thing as a comfortable chair or a book in
sight in the house; the windows were grimv.
ana everything about the place dingy and
unappetizing to the last degree. The
woman who waited upon me was gentle,
patient faded creature of about 10,
who had been married at Is, and
had three very pretty and phenomenally
dirty children. These, according to a very
prevalent taste hereabouts for the bizarre
and striking in christian names. she called
respectively Belva Lockwood, Delta Leonie
and Nigary Aldecky. Belva or (Belvy)
lockwood, she believed they had. some Of
them about the place, found in book-she
couldn't read herself. Nigary came out of
some book, too-it was 1.-The name of some
big falls of water" they said-and a Young
man travelin' through had named Deltv'
When l went to leave, the kind soul Thought
~ cents ample remuneration for my dinner
and Phebe's, and said she didn't feel right
To charge lone woman" anything
My head ached in a threatening sort of
way after dinner, and leaving Burnsville to
my right pushed on, intending to reach. If
possible, the house of the Mount MitchelI
guide by evening. AS left the more omen
country and followed up toward the "head
O. the waters" into the very heart of the |
AiOuhOdluo' Ju9 way became more rugged |
and anything like settlements smaller
fewer, and farther apart. Each miserable
little cabin had, in addition to the small |
held OF corn. some sweet potatoes and NAV |
be few fruit trees, its patcn of tobacco. |
one OF the prime necessities among these |
people here, who all chew it, down to the |
little girls and boys of and Z. The money |
spent among them for snuff and tobacco. or |
the time and labor expended in raising and |
preparing the home made article, would put |
them long way on the road to comnara. |
tive comfort.
The North Carolina mountaineers were |
quite unanimously union in their svmna- |
thles and are now generally good republ- |
cans; but rode past one household in NV
afternoons trip that was certainly q strik. |
ing exception to the generally political |
complexion. F~'
Three picturesquely dirty little tow
headed brats-the two younger ones wear
Ing copper as colored cotton dresses tha |
Oldest, possibly 6-simply and effectively |
clad IN red woolel undershirt that inst |
escaped the ground. tied at the neck with a !
leather string, and having the slesves |
gracefully fastened up By the same means
were PLAYING with all the pretty affection, |
ateness of tiger cubs or young hyenas. in |
'front.' OF more than usually wretched nut