The Big Stone post. (Big Stone Gap, Va.) 1890-1892, 1891-12-18
Airy Tongues.

meet with success.
-
AIRY Tongues.
The "roacly," scrubby members OF The
Virginia Press Association who went or the
recent tour through Texas are now pouring ont
Walls oi their wrath upon my poor inofans'vc
head ali because Of the truthful little skctc..
published in the Posi- few weeks since.
little thought at the time OF writing that sketch
that these fellows would have the ;eincrity TO
b!ate out their disapproval as they have done.
The fact is that gave them credit for having
more sense than they have since displayed. /
knew chat they were rcrdant specimens OF
humanity, but thought they would he sensi-
bic enough ut ,east, not to parade themselves
before the readers Of their respective sheets as
tho very fellows so correctly portrayed IL the
Posr. Had they kept their mouths shut, those
not well acquainted with them might have IN
Guided some Of them in the excepted dozen,
that were "passablc {" bat one might az well
advise jack-ass To cease his braying as to
counsel these fellows to keep silence. The
fool is in them and the fool will come out.
Some of these stars Of journalism since say
ing their little say about the writer have COM
mcnced to hug themselves, SO well are they
satisfied at the roasting to which they imagine
they have treated tue Posi- man. 1t is anus
ing to note with what an air of complacency one
Of them remarks "He's done for"
The frs. sound Of protest against my little
pen portrait comes from the Bristol News II
the shape of a suppressed squcal. The News
had evidently loaded up Tor what it thought
would be diSnifed roar, but the attempt was
abortivc and the result an insignificant whine.
With fifty~years OF practice Cook may become
q clear writer, but he had better take my adj
vice and 90 into the millinery business.
Then there is the Abingdon Virginan, show
ing in its every line the truth of my assertions
as to the roachiness Of some Of the crowd that
went to Texas. What downfall is here. II
was but few months ago that the Eirginian
was Justly considered one OF the best wecklics
in the State, its editor, Thos. II. Mason, one
Of the rising young journalists Of the South
west. 1t is sad to contemplate the contrast
between what it is now and what it was then.
Mason has left it and others have taken his
place the result is the wrecking Of :, fine piece
OF newspaper property. lam informed that The
real editor Of the paper is young sprig that
has just been turned loose upon the coantryby
one OF the Southwestern high-schcos. that his
head has not yet had time to be reduced to the
receptive state, being filled with the notion,
common to those with 4 little learning, that al
knowledge dwells within him. If this be true
there is no occasion for wonder at The rapid
decay OF the Virginan. The only wonder is
that it has not died natural death ere this.
Mr.. litter, Teat, Tecter, Tddledcwinks or
whatever his name is has lots to learn yet.
Nor.hrop, Of the Roanoke Herald, also e%-
plodes with indignation at the idea that he
should be called "roachy." lie dcrotcs nearly
two columns Of space to proving that ne is mp
to snuff and should be included i'll that dozen
of "p..ssaGI bic" ones. lie is clever manipu
l.tor of figures and tries hard 10 reserve
place for himself among the elect. Ii It wcre
mere question of room and arithmetic he
could doubtless be casscd with The dozen q:
excepted ones. There is room for you, MIR.
Nortimop, but Tam afraid you coa;d not fill
the bill. There is an unmistakablc suggestion
Of "roachincss about your makeup, tina;
must exclude you. know it is not your fault
and that you would change it if you could, but
you are nevertheless made that way. God i'll
his infinite wisdom has seen fit to create YOU
of the roachy kind, and we poor human be-
ings must bow to the Divine will. You have
my most profound sympathy and hope the
seeming injustice here may be righted here
after. You should seek consolation in prayer
ful attention to the passage of Scripture which
saws "thc last shall be first; and the first
last"
am under obligations to Northrop for the
quotation "When niger throws brick out
into the dark, and g dog bowls, something is
hit" How aptly does this fit the case these
bowling professors. Some Of these must have
been hit, and hit hard too, to induce them to
make themselves as ridiculous as they now
appear. The only construction that reasot:-
able man can put upon their protests is that
they plead guilty Of being "roachy I" and
" scrubby" and are kicking because this fact
has been exposed. Why did seq iit to give
away such nasty family secret, ask one of
them. There is no denial OF the existence Of
the secret, but a protest against its being re-
vcaled. 1t is no family secret of mine, have
no reasons for suppressing the facts; and If
can keep such crowd as this from. again
going on junket through The country posing
as Representative Virginians will care little
for all the abuse that the riff-raf portion Of
the Virginia press can pile upon rae. am
proud chat am q Virginian, and | would hate
for people to form their idea of Virgnians
from intercourse with the majority of the fell
lows that took this Texas trip.
DR.. Talmage has evidently been one Of the
boys himself. In sermon before the students
Of the University Of Michigan last Sunday he
said The only kind Of nature comparatively
free from temptation, SO faras can judge, is !
The cold, hard, stiugy, mean Temperament.
What wou!d Satan do with snch 9 man ii ne got
him 4 Satan is not anxious to get a man who,
sf.er while, may dispute with him the realm
,f everlasting meanness. Its The generous
foaag man, the ardent young man, tue warm I
searted young man, the social young man, that |