The Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1893-1901, 1893-04-12
MOUNTAIN MISSIONS.
THE TRUTH ABOUT THE poor
WHITES OF THE HILL COUNTRY.

S~ecrinnalists vrho desire TO create for
.heinsetrS 4 field of operations and n,
income al il charming and heai;hful
'ontlern climate not infrequently write
'ery touching articles for the northern
press on the depiorable condition Of the
mountain whites" of the south AMI TIN
need OF mission work" among them.
such persons, III descriptions of Ifs
'nions the mountains of wes.ern North
carolina ana east Tennessee, pile on
h agouy" in Il marvellous manner. Some
INES they 10 it with an utter disregard
'or the truth They represent the excep-
lon TO be the rule. and picture scenes
and conditions common enough in parts
u the north and west perhaps. large
tiles as well as country places, but very
rareamong the people Of the Appalachian
region OF the south. One would think
rom their accounts that the southern
mountains were swarming with cave
iwellers. The aim seems to be to per
petuate the ideas of that class of philan-
thropists who find a peculiar pleasure in
contemplating poverty, ignorance and
degradation in the south since the civil
wal
Not long since The Sun noticed an ap-
peal OF this sort for aid to EMISSION work
for fountain whites" showing that it
was IN effect a libel upon the people it
protested to describe. Any person ia
miliar with the Appalachian region of
the south would see at a glance how alb.
surd the whole thing was. The Christian
Union for Dec. 81, 1892, contains IA letter
from Rev. ID Atkins. a Methodist minis
ter OF Hendersonville. n. c., which com
pleteiy demolishes the mountain white"
myth. Mr.. Atkins will be conceded to
know what he is writing about. He was
born and reared in the alleged God for
saken region Of poverty. ignorance, vice
and degradation. He entered ccn
there. entered the ministry ,,.o e
spent II years there as ,;,.a. "n1
teacher. "'h an
"As a Methodist minister" he saws, Il
nave gone into the most u of the way
places and mingled freely with all sorts
OF people in 20 counties of North Caro-,
lima and Virginia and in nearly all the
worst parts of east Tennessee. | have
these people at their homes. have
eaten with them. slept in their houses
and seen them in every condition" Ye,
MIR. Atkins has not once beheld the sluln
scenes Mrs. Paddock described in a re.
cent number Of The Christian Union.
our correspondent" he says, must
found some secluded spot | never
saw. for in all my travels | never saw
he things she writes of, and it seem,
that ! should not even have
OF such things in all these years
There is poverty here and ignorance, too,
'ut neither is in that prevalent form you
would suppose from the article of Mrs.
'addock. You might live here an age
md new heal Of such savage and weird
uneraI customs a, Professor Bemis. an,
ther correspondent writing from the
outh, told your readers about"
Inc situation is not such as was de.
crlbed by The Unions correspondents.
'utting it In a nutshell, Mr.. Atkins saws
I Mrs. Paddock's picture: 'She has pre-.
snted the very worst possible case that
ould be found in the remotest part and
lade 1t a sample of all the 1000. 600 here,
that IT any one should receive an i'm.
from such writing he would sun.
ose no other kind Of People could lie
'und here"
As a matter of fact. the mountain
hltes" are not a distinct class. Their
'~cestors. says Mr.. Atkins. We're not out.
VS.. but pioneers from the coast corn-
y. They generally own their farms and
axe a comfortable living. To say they
Int for a living is absurd. There is lit.
} wealth and not as much luxury as
lght be. but the people live decently.
'ere are some log houses, three-fourths
which have windows. None are plas-
with mud, as alleged, or without
'oden floors. But few have only one
Generally the houses are quite
mfortable. All have good open fire
'ces. Fuel is abundant and costs moth
!, 20 that the correspondents story of
lldren covering their limbs with warm =
les to keep from freezing" is specially i
surd. The people, Mr.. Atkins afirms, =
already religious and moral. They OBJ l.
Sunday and attend Sunday school. -
ere Is scarcely a district where there is
q school for at least three months in
year. Few persons are unable to read
J write. and such cases are so rare as
excite surprise among the neiyhbors.
respects the girls who were de-
lied as overworked and vicious, MI. a,
ms says not n in a hundred would
w herself by that description. 1.-THE
anon virtues" he says-"chastity,
truthfulness. etc.-are rather I,
prevalent than in other sections | al.
seen. The girls are healthy, strona
full of spirit. They marry at a good
make excellent wives and mothers
do much less hard work than thei,
ers of the north and west" and Mr.. . !
spent four years in the west.
do not work in the field. sit is by q
says the writer, 1.-THE custom me
country. Home life is as pure as A..
anywhere ! have BEEN" In a word. and
mountain white" with his abysmal prin
radiation, is a myth and needs no eA"'
ssion. Baltimore Sun. =