The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1897-08-18
SCALP LEVEL.
A Pittsburg Artist Describes it With
Pen and Words.
From the Pittsburg Leader

place or mllder, less terrifying qualities
it would lie hard TO find. Whatever
tragedy may once have stained its soil
has left no traces in the character of its
people, nor even in their memories, for
gin of the name. 1 could get only two
rather mythical tales, for the truth OF
which no one was ready to vouch. One
serious enough-of an old Indian raid on
a body of settlers by Paint creek. with no
white man left to tell the tale, was so un-
certain in its details that it seemed rather
to have been made 10 fit the name than
the name to be derived from it. The
other is of an early settler who called on
some of his neighbors to help clear piece
of land for house aud farm, and who is
said to have exhorted them ito scalp il
level" This use of the word so took their
fancy tha. il hung 10 the locality and
spread to the village that came later
Possibly the wilderness did not abound
in the plethora of jokes that the daily
papers distribute now, and life was SO
serious in those early days very small
one was boarded and enjoyed over and
over again. The mild satire there was in
the latter part of the name perhaps tick
led their fancy as we'll, for level ground il
most amusingly absent, the town begin
ming at the top of high hill and running
in a zigzag line of one street down to
Little Paint creek, then mp the opposite
bank To a sharp rise and down the other
side. And all the surrounding country
is the series of hills and dales of the Allie
gheny mountains.
''Scalp," 10 which the name is shorten
ed by the inhabitants, is charmingly sit
uated in the mountains, and has been an
ideal spot for the artist fraternity of this
state-their various names are household
words here-Mr. Hetzel, Mr.. Bryan Wall,
Mr.. MCDOWELL. Mr.. Beatty, Mrs. Hall
man, from Piitshurg, have all drawn in
spiration from the charming surround
ings. Its romantic creeks, Little Paint
and Big Paint, which meet in the center
of the village forming Paint creek proper
meander between rocky banks or rush
over ledges in several little waterfalls,
while an almost primeval forest of grand
trees overshadows them. The woods all
about were of unusual beauty and luxu-
rance some of them looked as though
the foot of man had never trodden them,
so thick was the moss on the trunks of the
trees; leaves in depth apparently of a
foot, and rotting trunks falling in powder
from damp and fungus in the dark places
into which the sun seemed never to pen
citrate. As one wandered in them the
name Scalp took primitive significance,
and possible Indians, with tomahawk up
raised, and pioneer days, were easily con-
jured. But alas. all that natural beauty
is fast becoming a past glory, for coal
has been discovered and the railroad is
here.
The artist is driven out, as my stage
driver told me on the road from johns
town. There is bat one regular sketch
er here now, and one artist who has a
little photograph place"
II is very sad 10 see the havoc that is
being made in woods and streams by the
railroad, whose bed is directly in the
brook. They have turned its course
whenever it seemed best to them, dug
out the banks, blasted the rocks and tore
up the splendid trees by the roots with
dynamite. The yellow clay has filled the
creek bed for miles and destroyed its
mossy bottom, so where formerly there
was limpid, enchanting stream, a mud
dy. yellow creek now flows. Many of
the farmers from whom their mineral
rights were bought, with the promise
that during their lives the ground should
not be disturbed, are feeling sadly over
reached, for no sooner were the mineral
rights secured than right of way for the
railroad was sought, and suddenly, TO the
surprise of this peaceful community, men
appeared and all this destruction began.
Three mines are already opened and
houses for the miners are in course of
construction. Whole acres of trees have
been ''scalped lever' with the ground,
not one left TO give a little beauty and
grateful shade TO the coming laborers and
their families. What could not be cut
into props for the mines have been burnt
on the ground, and the country has been
blue with smoke from the funeral pyres
of countless noble trees for weeks past.
The railroad is built by the Pennsylva-
MIA company, and joins the main line at
the village of LOretto. The coal company,
Berwind & White, guaranteed 10000
bushels of coal day if the Pennsylvania
company would build a road.
Scalp Level has been sober, quiet lit
tie town hitherto, having voted against
license for saloon for years, and even
now that il is overrun by the great num-
Der of Italian and Austrian laborers, ii
still retains its character for sobriety.
Scalp has two houses for entertainment
of man and beast, the Veil hotel and
Faust house, which are rather private
families, who kindly admit strangers,
than really public houses. One il receiv-
ed and made at home in the truest sense
of the word, and the tables are furnished
with American lavishness, and with all
the fresh vegetables and fruits the conn
try is so rich in at this season. Before
arriving here L inquired of Murphy, the
aforementioned driver, what the capa-
bilities of Scalp Level were to supply a
table, 10 which he candily replied:
~ amt to say so awfully well ac-
quainted with things there, as ! lately
come, but know the radishes is just in
harvest, and they grow numerous.
So went on in confidence, of radishe,
anyhow, which must add, however, for
the sake of truth, proved mistake, al
though other good things abound and the
numerous" radishes were not missed.
Scalp is quite given up this year TO the
railroad employees, and few or no sum
mer boarders have attempted it.
1t is to be hoped that as soon as the
railroad building is completed Scalp will
return at least partially to the former
quiet, and nature will in time cover up
the worst scars to her beauty, but with
coal trains rushing by, shrieking locomo-
tives and the tramp that follows, the
hope is not great.
Mrs. ]. w. DoUGHERTY.
Scalp Level, Pa, August IA, 1897.
Mt Moriah Items.
The Horner Sunday School picniced in
a -.ls.x-