The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1896-08-20
PLEASED WITH HENDERSON.
A Western TIan Who Recently Visited
Our Town Writes about the Place
and People


Our Town Writes about the Place
and People
Some time in July Mr.. Chester A.
Hodge, a we'll informed and otservant
gentleman from Illinois, visited this
portion of North Carolina and spent
several days in Henderson. He wrote
series of letters giving his impressions
of the country. the products of the soil,
the people he met with, &C., for the
Du Page County Democrat, Of West
Chicago. In a recent number Of that
paper we find letter written from
Henderson, portion Of which appears
below:
Ny last letter left me at Henderson,
and this still finds me here, with con-
genial people and surroundings. Hender-
son is a beautiful city Of $500 inhabi-
tants, and the business portion is built
of brick. 1t has cotton mill, num-
Der OF tobacco warehouses, where the
product is brought in by farmers and
sold at auction to the highest bidder ;
it is a fine sight. There arc several
factories where tobacco is steamed and
stripped, rchandied and prepared for
the manufacturer and for export pur
poses They also have other small
industries.
Henderson is located on high rolling
ground and is very healthy. The lands
east. west and south Of town are most
ly light, sandy grey loan, which re-
spond very beautifully to tertilizlng.
Tobacco, cotton, corn, some grasses,
| mesarova beans, commonly called SOL
yield very heavy. l have q view OF
owe field that will make 6 tons to the
acre.
Cotton is in bloom and a beautiful
sight. The first day the blossom is
pure white. then it turns a deep red
and falls off when the boil begins to
| form. The blossom is about the size
and shape Of large morning glory.
The fields of tobacco are grand sight,
and are Oh every side a; cotton and to-
| bacco being the money crops, although
| [ have samples of oats four feet six
| inches high, and timothy three feet six
inches high, pulled from the NOW; and
views of corn that will stand ten and
fifteen feet above a mans head; the
corn being planted one foot apart in
the row and the rows four feet apart.
North of Henderson the soil is a red
sandy loan and clay, well adapted to
wheat. Through the kindness of Mr..
E. W. Hite, business man and also a
farmer, | have seen much Of the coun-
try.
| Yesterday l visited Raleigh, the
State capital, AZ miles distant. 1t is a
beautiful city and will be described
later on after another Visit. The time
was spent with S. L. Patterson, Com
missioner State Board of Agriculture,
T. X. Bruner, Secretary, and George
Allen, now engaged in real estate. A
large portion Of the time was spent in
the State Museum, the guest Of these
gentlemen. While highly entertained
and 10th to leave, do not feel like de-
scribing what SO many had the pleas
ure of seeing at the Worlds Fair. The
resources of North Carolina in wood,
mineral, stone, marble, agriculture and
| fruit is wonderful.
One of the most pleasing sights OF
the South is the profusion of flowers.
Wherever the eye turns flowers greet
it - roses, dahlias, passion flowers.
rhododendrons, the magnolia, cape jas.
samine, and honeysuckles. Roses
bloom every month in the year, but
February. Another flower is the crepe
myrtle; it grows about 80 feet high
has top something like a lilac bush,
and trunk from six to ten inches in di.
ameter. The flower is about the size
of lilac and in color from lavender tc
deep purple, the petals being wrink-
led like crepe, gives it the name crepe
myrtle. To my eye it is one of, if not
the most beautiful flower seen.