The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-07-24
WHERE PHEY SWAP WIVES
Remarkable Story Told About Some
North Carolina People.
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North Carolina People.
From the Philadelphia Press.
In the region between the Smoky and the
Nantehsla mountains Of North Carolina
there are entire communities Of the most
peculiar people found anywhere in this
great country. Some time since, while
riding across the state. the writer stopped
at a log cabin OF settler on a little creek
at the foot Of Big Smoky mountain, The
head of the family was q fairShaired,
heavily bearded man of 90 years, dressed
in tow linen trousers and a shirt OF the
same home manufactured material. The
woman of the house was tall, raw-boned
dark-visaged female OF 40 or moPe years
Pierre were nine children of varied age and
complexion, all clad in coarse shirts aud
trousers like the father, with the exception
of the smaller children, who were clad in
natures g3rb, with the single exception Of
a long shiru-like garment OF tow linen.
The family was typical backwoods COM
munity.
jenkins, the name of my host, when asked
sis there anything new in this section" re-
piled:
'Nothin' ever hap'ns hyar. stranger, 'oep'
it's MoRmins or a swappin' match"
"a swappin' natoh9 That's where they
meet to trade horses, is it not"
Helm dunno what a swappin match Is,
Sal, said Jenkins, turning in astonishment
to his wife.
"Humphm calculated the woman. "He'in
dunno much. Wy stranger, swappin'
match is where we'uns swop HOSES, mules,
wives, an SIGH"
DO you mean to say that you trade
wives"
"Jes' sol" said the man. IAN there's gwine
to be big swop over yon at Bill Daggs'
tomory."
Early the next morning after simple
meal Of "corn pone," milk, and baked pos
SUN, mounted my horse and with Jen-
kIns and his spouse set forth. Two hours
later we came to halt in front OF Daggs'
cabin. The place, like every habitation
had yet seen in that part of the wilderness,
was a long structure of the typical back
woods North Carolina mountain style.
About dozen mules and horses, twenty
or thirty dogs Of the species called hounds,
a dozen or two Of sheep, two or three COWS,
and couple Of pet coons, and eight men,
six women, aud half dozen children, all
clad in tow linen, homespup garments. re-
cined in the shade of the trees. One of the
women was fairly good looking, but the
others, like the men, were coarse. raw
boned, and homely. We arrived Just in
time TO hear the prelIminaries Of the bust
ness for " hich the appointment had been
made. DaRgs, at whose place we were,
after inviting the crowd to help themselves
from g small keg of what l learned to be
moonshine whisky or "pinetop," as it lie
called in the mountains. preached the sub
ject. Daggs had couple OF horses and half
a dozen hounds to trade, and he found a
customer in the person of short, heavy
set mountaineer, who. after good deal Of
preparatory lying on the value OF his ami
mails, finally made "dicker" for COW,
a lot Of sheep, and a pet bear.
The next trade or proposition came from
Bam Sleeth, a lank-visaged fellow Of so.
Sleeth had with him a tall, black-haired :,
ungainly but muscular woman, which he
offered in exchange for any of the others,
'pervided the 'uns kud agree" Jake Simp-
son offered to take pair Of hounds aud a
COW as boot between Sleeth's wife and Mrs.
Simpson.
Mrs. Simpson was a somewhat better
looking female than the Sleeth woman, but
5leeth refused TO be convinced that the DIFF
ference was so broad as Simpsons PROPOSE
ton would indicate. After half an hour
spent IL trying TO outlie each other a trade