The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-07-29
MEANS GRASS IS MEAN.
THE HILLS AND VALLEYS OF KINGS
MOUNTAIN.


The Way People Worked in the old.
en Tinles.-The Way in which they
Provided for Their Households as
Compared With a Lazy Lien md u
Poverty Struck People.
KINGS CREEK, YORK Co., SIC, July -.
The western portion Of York county Is IN
The StrictesL sense OF the word Al piedmont re.
gion. a range Of mountains parallel 10 the
Blue Ridge runs near tho line which sepa-
rdtrs the two CarOlinns. Several peaks he
these were given at an early period the names
of Nannie's Knob, Henry's Knob, Crnwder'S
Mountain and Kings Mountain.
CrOwder's Mountain is in GnStOn county,
North Carolina, and so Is The grrtier part Of
Kings Mountain. It. was on Kings Noun
tain, In York county, that the Americans on
the ILh OF October, lzsO, defeated the British
Colonel Ferguson. This Was The first real vic
tory gained by the American colonies In their
struggle for Independence, and the most com.
plete victory on record. The Americans had
only twenty eight men killed and they killed
and captured every man in the command Of
Colonel Ferguson. The battle Of Kings
Mountain was the turning point In the Revo-
lutlonary war. Before this all had been de-
very edge of starvation. After In. defeat Of
Ferguson followed the victory of the Cow.
pens the draw battle OF Guilford Court
House, and finally the defeat and overthrow
After the Cal pture of Charleston on the 18th
Of May, l7Sn, there was, so far as any human
being could see, no grounds upon which The
colonies could place hope that they would
be successful, and IT was not until the defeat
Of Ferguson that hope was revived.
Through the Northwestern corner OF York
county there flows large creek called Kings
creek. 1t rises in CASTOR county, North Caro-
lima. and flows In u Southwestern course and
empties into Brond river, about ten miles
North OF Smiths Ford. The name Kings
creek is of doubtful origin. One tradition is
that 1t was so named by Colonel Ferguson
while camping on It's tributaries. II this be
true the name Is coeval with The battle Of
Kings Mountain. Another and better esiab-
lished tradition Is that the name of both the
mountain and creek were given In honor Of a
man by the name OF King, who settled before
The Revolutionary war near the town OF
Kings Mountain on the Air Line railroad.
The region OF country through which
Kings creek flows Is picturesque rather than
beautiful The bottoms jnL out against hills
so precipitous that in many places neither
man nor domestic animal can either ascend
the region generally built their houses In the
bottoms at the edge of the bills, For many
years-untii after The fall OF the Southern
Confederacy very little of the upland was
cleared. The bottoms. although many OF
item have been in cultivation for more Than
a century, are to-day producing OH an average
forty bushels Of corn TO the acre.
The first settlers were men OF energy.
Many of them, although beginning the world
with nothing accumulated what In their day,
was regarded q fortune. They cut down huge
and built with these hewn logs large DWELL
ings. houses, barns. Stables, corn cribs and
meat houses, which they. called "smoke
houses" Al later period saw mills were
built and the old log houses were weather
boarded and ceiled. side rooms and dining
room added TO the rear side and II "poarch" To
the front side. In some OF these old houses
three generations Of men have lived ana died.
These old houses were all about II story and a
half high with chimney at the end capable
Of TAX Ing in n log OF wood eight feet long.
aIghts the mother OF the family sat In one
corner while the father occupied the other.
The mother spun while the htther carded aud
the older children picked the seed out of the
cotton. The barn was full of hay and fodder.
The crib of corn. the smoke house OF bacon
and lard, the stable were occupied by fat
horses aud droves OF cows and sheep ranged
on the hills. When the clothes Tor the family
were all made the father OF the family with
Il wee one OIL his knee read aloud the tales Of
the trial of their ancestors In England or Ire
land or Scotland, while the mother nimbly
piled her fingers In knitting II stocking in
tently listening to the reading at the same
time.
These were primitive times. The people
which they called ireacle, except on rare oc-
casions. BY and by they began ito gather
gear" and buy negroes, and cultivate cotton.
The fingers were supplanted by the cotton
ihe garret and "Nor'd home spun" boughts
The women ceased TO wear checked irocks and
the men home made jeans pants In winter
and CO! peras pants IN summer. Ilnes
empty by the middle of April and the meat
house and horse stables were built In the great
Northwestern cities OF Chicago and Cincin-
natl.
But II is no use to cry over spilled milk.
The country still remains AMI that plenty
with which 1t once aboundrd may stili be
ought back IL the people would only take
common scnse view of things. II 1t were to
day as It was seventy years ago disgrace for
Il :irmer to buy corn the present state OF
things In onr Southern country would be
changed for the better.
This Kings creek region OF country Is
thckly set with what Is known as Means
grass. In other seci Ions OF the south II bears
other names The history of the Introduction
America is this. About the year 1910 one or
the Means family living IN The Western por-
tion OF Fairfield county. South Carolina. sent
TO some region Of country bordering on the
Baltic Sea for some barley seed OF peculiar
variety. When the seed was received IL was
discovered that there were In IL some seed oi
a strange appearance. These seed were plant
ed by Mr.. Means In his garden. The spot In
which they were planted was carefully pre-
pared and well manured. The few seed So%n
terminated and The grass did " ell, attaining
the enormous height OF seven or eight feet
and producing an abundant crop OF seed. Mr..
Means thought he had found II treasure. All
the seed OF the first years growth was cure
fully saved aud at the proper I me sown.
These germinated and produced an abun-
dant crop. In about three years the grass
took full possession of the garden, roofing out
everything else. TO get rid Of it Air. Means
had IT. dug up and carried out and thrown OH
II hill side hoping that he was rid OF his pet.
But to his aston !shment and bitter regret ev-
cry root LEFT In the garden sent up Il stalk and
those thrown on the hill side grew, and the
seed was washed by the rains down into the
bottom y aud In Il lew years the whole planta-
tIon and all the plantations in the neighbor-
hood were polluted with the grass. The name
Means was given To the grass IN honor, or 9th
erwise, of him whoaccdentnlly introduGrd u.
Meuns grass WIS introduced into the West
ern portion Of rOlk county by jas. a. Black.
/ do not know how It. got into Abbey lille
county. From Abbeville county 10 WAS taken
to Alabama by n gentemaI hy The name OF
Johnston where it IL called Johnston grass.
But more about Means grass at another
time. Ii. ID