The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1891-07-21

steps will be taken toward the passage
of an act empowering and encouraging
| the organization Of a rival corporation
having Skyland as it's termini. l say
termini partly because North and
rSouth Skyland will be the objective
points, and partly because in all my
literary work [ have never before had
an opportunity to use the word termini.
I ordered for my pyrotechny about
200 pieces, including a paper bag of
torpedoes and a package of punk. 1t
was generally understood as far away
as Upper Hominy and Sandy Mush
that on the evening of the Fourth |
would let off over 200 pieces of pyrO-
techny, including a part Of my thumb.
Many children at the breast came from
a distance, bringing their dinners with
them and remaining through the day.
People came from as far Westas Pisgah.
One man Brought the smaller of his
children in an old band wagon. His
other children, who were not yet quite
so helpless, were loaded ON a hayrack
and came on later.
1t was a gala day for Skyland. The
fireworks had come, and some friends
from AsheviIIe brought a lemon with
them. We spread the buffalo robe on
the grass and a table was brought out
for the speaker. For convenience l
divided up The exercises of the day
into two parts-viz., Part I, morning
exercises at the grove; Part II, evening
exercises at the grove.
In speaking Of the grove [ did so
more for devilment than anything else,
for this end Of the State is all grove,
being q virgin wilderness against which
a tongue of scandal has never breathed
the breath of the deadly upas tree, nor
bigot forged a chain. Oh, would that
[ were safely back in that bright land
again, as the fellow says.
The morning exercises consisted of
the usual selections" America" on
the organette, accompanied by child
voices; reading of the Declaration Of
Independence and a few selections
from the proceedings of the Tennessee
legislature; complimentary prayer by
the chaplain; singing of Red, White
and Blue" by a man from ~Statesville;
piece on the melOdeOn, entitled Pee
wee Bird Waltz, by a young woman
from a distance who is visiting North
Carolina, and who was left at Busbee
Station by the train whilst gathering
golden rod; address by me touching
on 1.-The Growth, Progress and Final
PUNK of Nations
There is hardly room here for more
than a resume of the address, for it
was long, covering, as it did, the his
tory of man and the evolution of gov
eminent from the feudal ages, and
even back of that extending through
barbaric centuries, and 50 on down to
the present time, when National and
State government becomes not only a
duty but a pleasure.
The speaker touched with great
power and feeling upon our duty as
citizens, owing it as we do, he went on
to say, to ourselves and u posterity
to suitably prepare u minds and
hearts by early education and a~ssocia-
ton for the great duties of citizenship,
and both by our precept and our prac-
tice SO live that we may safely leave
the mere act of voting to other heads.
The speaker said also that to the newly
arrived citizen voting is a new and
thrilling experience. Why not allow
him more of it to do, while we who
have the taxes to pay and who there
fore need rest and change of scene,
may safely take much needed rolaxa-
ton on election day, and if we do not
like the result we can write a piece for
the paper signed TAX Payer" and
marked on the top communicated.
This wasfollowed by applause, which,
on being looked up, turned out to come
from the wife of the speaker, who had
been huckleberrying, and hearing a
noise in the direction Of the speakers
stand had drifted around that way,
and having met the audience before
shook hands with him and sat down to
hear the address.
The speaker touched lightly on the
subject Of the presidency in 1892, and
said that while his health was never 50
good as it was at this time, yet he did
not wish his name used for two reasons.
| One was that he had been too fearless
in his denunciation of large moneyed
interests, and the other was that he
would rather lecture all winter at his
nrncnnt nricnS than To deliver ten free