The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1894-05-27
IN THE GREAT DISMAL.
,.urroSKsoUE DESCRIPTION OF
4swAMP EXPLORATION.
r.,, nv Diteh-How the Geographic
society Made Merry in the Morass-
Tom Moore Surpassed.

,Ao-e &c n word in the English Ian
mich. more than any other. car
eu"es,s righteousness with 81 in its sound,
word is dismal" then, when one
~,bines with Il the word swamp
,ich. also is not a morass OF merri-
n,t there Is a resultant combination
~ni,h 6nds fitting naturalization IN the
D,snal Swamp-the Great Dismal swamp
The more intense geographers have
calla1 it. -
a. the man remarked after he had
.,ohed a hog for awhile: We'll, they
..ye him a name that suited him.
e1,re ago | made up mind that some
40 dav l would 20 TO the Dismal swamp
I'D see what Il is like The line DAY
rs long in coming. but II came at last,
"A Two weeks ago, when | was informed
mat the National Geographic Society
my was going to march 10 the swamp
and that could go along II had the
Collateral. ] enlisted on the spot
Friday evening OF last week was the
lime set. and promptly at the hour the
s-rnv. TO the number Of eighty. more or
i.es under the command OF General Ill
hs-t Admiral Day and Major General
r,bb Of the geological survey, set ou'
r., us march going down the Potomac
On Norfolk, but not on foot, nor YET
,oimu,ng. At Norfolk the Virginia Beach
contingent. split off and went 10 that re-
sort while we Of the swampers brlgaue'
numbering thirty. hied ourselves on over
20 Suffolk by train. distance oil twenty
three miles.
VIVA, became OF the V. b. contingent /
don't know. except that IT was on manu-
all right Sunday evening in NorIoIA'
reedv 10 take the boat for Washington
n. c.
JrRIcHo DITCH AND HER STEAMER
mile and n half this side OF SunoK
there is n ditch passing under the ran
road track. and this Is Jericho u,cn, VI
canal. as 1t is called. unth you see II omU,
or ~ Won have a grudge against the cahal
emily and want TO call names. Here
everybody got out by direction Of Admiral
nay who had charge Of the contingent,
assisted by Brother Babb, the incarnation
~ General usefulness, and all except nine
non went aboard Of knitting needle IN
The ditch, with a wheel at one end ana
boiler in the middle. This craft by
rane the Jennie Wilson Of Lake Drum
rrond--let us all hope Jennie never was
as long and thin as her namesake-ls
@o,,,Boritv OF swamp navigation, and If
she were Of any other shape she Would
bove n get out Of the ditch and walk, Tor
{, &c only about eight 10 ten feet wide
and two 10 four deep. In order 10 carry
o,v,binr. then, the boat must be as near
80 ,ossihle the definition OF a line-that Is,
length. without breadth or thickness-ahu
mat &c the Jennie Wilson. THINK II you
please Of a boat sixty feet long anu nv
"a half wide. with n depth OF hold
az. ,-.ost sticks I'D out of the water,
"a docs when the boat hits stump or
tahe ber nose into the bank, which she
= hen known 30 DO when the steers
-, Who stands out on the bow with
,ole for a rudder. forgets what ne is there
a. ord uses his rudder TO Kill snakes
With as they gambol along the sedsy
shore or words to that erect
nv Jericho way 1t is called ten mlies
90 I.ake Drummond, the piece de resist
once OF the swamp, and II taxes tne
boat four hours to make the trip whlcn
-.o,,ld indicate that the boat lacks speed
- ,hat the estimate Of distance lacks
accuracv. either Of which doesn't pre-
,.o,t the passenger from having mat
t,rss feeling" In quantities TO give away
nv the time the journey Is coihPle'eu'
60 7 am informed by those who went III
bv the boat AS for myself, went WIN
our marty by express (waeon) SIX or
soven miles TO the Washington ditch, and
was canoed 10 the lake-hve miles al
legged. ,.x
Going over there in that wagon. with
one horse to pull six men, we passed
through the suburbs Of SUFFOLK Whlch
was assured several times by our driver
had a population Of fifteen people. Later
asked Mr.. Hosier, a gentleman who rs
a boomer and has town lots to sell, II
the drivers figures weren't a little shy,
and when I told him what they were L
feared for time that he would do Sc
rious bodily harm 10 the driver, an In
offensive colored man, who didn't hho"
town lot from a truck patch-as, IN
deed. a good many people wouldn't II
they didn't have a handsome map III
colors.
p S.-That driver had better hide in
the swamp until ne can secure some
modified statistics of population.
About the only object OF interest be-
tween Suffolk and the Washington ditch,
beside truck farms and buXom bellies on
vine-clad porches. is what is called Sol
diers Hope. an ancient house. with an
avenue OF trees leading up to it from
the road The house is gone now, and
most OF the trees and all Of the avenue
but once It was famous.
What soldiers hope?' l inquired OF
that driver.
Deed. I doan' know, boss"
What sort Of hope was it?' I con-
tlnued: hope that when they got there
they could take to the swamp and es-
cape from their enemies?"
Oats ~ boss"
"Johnnles or Yanks?'
"Johnnies. / reckon, boss. Gaze de
Yanks got IL on UNI"
I made a note Of this and began ex-
plotting my superior knowledge at the
first opportunity. only 10 be shocked by
the information that the Soldiers Hope
romance belonged 10 the pre-revolutionary
period and had something TO do with our
forefathers. I really don't believe there
was ever anything there. and have lost
confidence in that driver.
IN THE SWAMP.
The head Of navigation on the Washing
ton ditch Is FIVE miles from the lake. and
here we took small boats, each with
colOrsd Gondolier. two passengers 10 the
boat. Here begins the swamp, and here
before one has gone a hundred yards
into the shadowy wilderness Of cypress
and clinginR creepers. before ne has fair
" begun his juniper journey. before he
has more than crossed the threshold Of
the interminable tangle OF trees and vines.
before he is half merged in the mighty
rnorass. he begins 20 feel the impress Of
its mystery and 10 struggle beneath the
burden or it's silence. its solemnity and
its shadows. Moved by such thoughts
as these. l turned 10 my gondoljer:
''who cut this canal?' said