Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1892-02-26
NOTES ON THE WING
From our Farmer Correspondent on His
Way Through the south.
CHARLESTON, 5. c., (
Feb. -. 1892.

CHARLESTON, 5. c.,
Feb. 10, 1892.
Wilmington, y. c., where my last letter
ended, for many years before the date of
the war had maintained the honor of be-
ing the chief exporting port for naval
stores. Its supplies of turpcntne, rosin
and tar were drawn from the extensive for
ests of pitch pine which lie contiguous to
the banks of Cape Fear river whose wa
ters are navigable for small vessels MANY
miles back into the state of North Caro-
lima. Owing to the exhaustion of the
source of supply of this branch of COM
merce and the opening up of cotton plant
ing in the eastern section of the state, the
shipping of cotton has become an import
ant factor of the industry of the city. Two
large cotton congresses of the most i'm
proved pattern have been erected here
within few years, and the shipments for
1901 were nearly $50, 900 bales had the
pleasure of meeting the Hon. C.. ID. Rob
inson while at Wilmington, who is the
largest operator in naval stores in the
world. He was collector of the port under
Cleveland, is native of Bennington. Vt,
and has lived in Wilmington about 10
years. With the building of about 20
miles of railroad which will be finished
in short time, Wilmington expects to
compete successfully for a share of West
ern commerce as the distance by rail TO
Cincinnati is more than 100 miles less than
by any other route. She possesses a nice
harbor on the great Cape Fear river is II
miles from the ocean, the river being nayi-
gable for vessels drawing "a feet of water.
but subject, like all the navigable rivers of
our country, to perpetual appropriations
from Washington to keep sand bars from
forming at the point of entrance to the sea.
She has an elegant customs house and Unit
ed States court house building. post-office
and good hotels. The population is p, 1000,
and, to stranger, the city seems to enjoy a
steady, though not a rapid growth
Travelling towards Charleston the cotton
fields gradually change to rice plantations
The surface of the country is level and
somewhat lower as we proceed towards the
South. The palmetto and magnolia take
the place of the pine, and larger spaces
are devoted to cultivation. Arriving at
Charleston one is surprised at the general
Northern appearance of its inhabitants.
and were it not for the colored element.
which prevails to a large extent, there
would he no distinctive trait to distinguish
this old city from the average city in the
North or West. 1t is true Sumpter is con-
spicuous in the harbOr, and memories of
the past cluster about all the important
| buildings and streets of the town. but the
people are progressive, genial and obliging,
and are as devoted to the Union as their
fathers were to the pernicious doctrine of
state rights during the first half of the pres
ent century. What with Gilmore's swamp
angels, extensive fires that swept over one
third of the city, and last of all the earth
quake that wrecked many of the more
substantial buildings and caused great dam
age to hundreds of others, Charleston has
had enough to have driven almost any peo-
pie from the seemingly doomed town, but
every man has taken hold in earnest to
help renew the commerce that once made
this town the pride of the South Atlantic,
and though the cotton exporting trade has
passed to her more youthful sister, Savan-
nah, there has arisen within few years a
most important element in her trade which
bids fair to exceed all others, and eventu-
ally to make Charleston one of the richest
cities of her size, 81, 900 by the last census.
in this country. In the year of 1878 fos-
sill remains of the fauna of the prehistoric
age were found near the Ashley and Cooper
| rivers, which, on analysis, were found to
contain from 30 to go per cen of phosphate
of lime, useful in applying to the soil as an
element of plant food and entering largely
into the composition of fertilizers. In
1890 $1,000 tons had been reclaimed and
the demand increased as the value became
known. The production has rapidly in
creased, amounting in 1891 to 645 900 tons,
and in all since the discovery to 6,015. 900
| tons, averaging in value, as it is taken from
the ground, s6 per ton, the aggregate being
over $50, 100000. Add to this the cost of
grinding and preparing for market, the
profit of which Charleston people have
mostly received and some idea can be
formed OF the wealth this novel industry is
adding to South Carolina. There seems
to be no limit to the supply or demand, as
large amounts are being shipped to Eng
land and Germany. The future of Charles
ton is assured and there is not city ON
this continent more devoted to the Union
than this the original home of notification
and disunion. c. H.S.