Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1897-01-14
A Singing Teacher in West Virginia.

| your suggestion, send the REGISTER an
account Of some Of my experiences and
observations in the wilds of West Eir-
gina. The life of a singing teacher, like
that of an editor, is happy in spots.
; Some of the spots are rather dimiGutive,
but they are to be found nevertheless,
amid the arid deserts or frozen zones of
disappointments and veXatous expert
ences Unlike the leopard and the edi-
tor, the singing teacher frequently
changes his spots. In this respect he is
a spotted person otherwise, he is gen
orally free from spots or blemishes. But
| am getting away from my subject be-
fore | have really touched the spot.
The particular spot wish to discuss
is Nicholas county. | wonder how many
OF your readers know where Nicholas
county is Just get out your map and
find it. Prof Kimler need not do this
as he has been here in person. To get
here is no small feat and TO move about
after one is here requires substantial,
feet. Most Of tie people here either ride
horseback, or travel footback; there are
very few buggies. To give you an idea
of their walking proclivities, four of the
pupils who attended my school in Sum-
merville walked some fifty miles, cross
/ ing two mountains to get to the school.
This indicated their interest In musical
education. And they walked back.
But haven't told you how got here.
Shepherdstown to Staunton, from Staun-
ton via Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad to
Clifton Forge, stop over night and take
a local train next morning. preferred,
the traveller may 20 on to Hinton and
stop. Leave the G. IL .. for Gauley
Junction, walk across the railroad bridge
to Gauley bridge. send ferryman back
for your baggage. NOwyou bid farewell
to railroads. The next morning you be-
gin an all-day stage ride, up creeks, over
mountains. through valleys, thirty-twO
miles to Summerville, the county seat,
and here you are. Another route is to
90 via b. Il o. Railroad to Clarksburg
then to Weston and then TO Camden-on-
Gaulcy; then drive by special convey
ance twenty miles to Summerville.
There are no railroads in this county.
| The Pittsburg Il w. Va. terminates at
Camden-on-Gauley just on the edge Of
the county. \ branch of the {. * o.
| from Gauley Junction runs into the
county about five miles. In consequence
of no railroads the county is slow in de-
| L
here but oway to get it to market. The
principal occupation OF the people IS
farming: but our jefferson farmers
wouldn't call it farming. Very little
grain is raised some farmers not raising
any wheat at all, and very little corn.
They claim it is cheaper TO buy their
| flour than to raise it. Corn Is now worth
| fifty cents bushei here, and by next
summer will be seventy-tive cents.
| Wouldn't our Valley farmers like to un-
load some OF their last summer abun-
| dant crop at those prices? The cause OF
such good prices, is simply the farmers
here do not raise corn enough for home
consumption. Some Of them sell their
crop in the fall at fifty cents and then
| buy il back the next summer at seventy
five. Rather poor management, that :;
and that seems to be the trouble Well,
if the farmers don't raise grain, what do
they raise Hay. but not to sell. The
farmer buys young cattle, stutiS them
with hay during the winter and then
sells them. In the summer, the cattle
Craze on the grass in the mountains. 10
make the grass grow on the mountains,
the trees must be removed, and the farm
er ruthlessly destroys the trees, for the
grass is worth more to him than are the
trees. 1t makes my heart sore TO see the
thousands of trees rotting on the ground,
when think of the thousands Of families
who would be glad to have that wood for
fuel. The timber is principally poplar,
though there is also oak, walnut, ash,
chestnut and hemlock Before the farm
ers knew what they were doing they de-
stroyed many valuable trees of curly ash
and walnut. Think of q tree worth two
thousand dollars In spite of the poor
facilities for transportation there is
large business in lumber. Saw mills here
and there turn out large quantities.
Much of the timber land is owned by
rich companies who are holding II for
speculation. There is one tract of ninety
thousand acres owned by one company.
Plenty Of coal. Almost every farmer
has coal on his farm. He sometimes
finds it cheaper TO buy it than to open a
bank of his own. He pays only three
cents buShel for it.
This is poor country for plasterer;
none of the houses are plaStered, the
walls and ceilings being of wood. There
is no limestone here, consequently lime
is expensive. The principal stone, and
there are mountains of 1t, is Il sort OF
sandstone. 1t is soft and easy to dress
when first taken out, but hardens on eX-
pOSure 1t makes a good building stone;
a new courthouse is being built of it.
The people live close to nature, some
Of them in very primitive style. They
are, for the most part, open-hearted,
wholesouled, hospitable, law-abiding,
religious and opposed to intemperance.
This is a temperance county, and has
been for years. The court will not grant
license to any body, not even to drug
stores. School-houSes and churches are
to be found every mile or two. OF course,
there is diSorderly element in some
sections: for instance, at "A Sunday school
entertainment on Christmas eve, six or
eight young fellows full of whiskey lob
tanned across the line in the adjoining
county, found the exercises rather dull
and tried to enliven them by getting up
fight One young fellow drew his pis-
toll to shoot at the ornaments on the
Christmas tree The Justice fixed ii up
with them at twelve dollars apiece. The
other day at my class, which am tend
ing at country church, young fellow,
full of whiskey, got funny and rode his
horse up on the church porch, and tried
to ride into the church. His few min.
utes fun cost him nine dollars. IeXpeci
some day some fool will entertain him.
self and the class by shooting at the notes
on the blackboard. He may strike the
right notes but the music will not be
pleasant to my ears. The people are
fond of music not many pianos, but
nearly every family has an organ. Sing
ing schools are well patronized. had
a good school in Summerville | wish
our Shepherdstown singers could have
heard that class sing. All the parts were
well represented, Good readers, read a
piece through once or twice by the do,
re, mis- and then sing it correctly. They
were earnest pupils. We began at nine
o'clock in the morning and studied til
twelve; again from two till five, then
from half-past seven till nine. The
branches studied included voice-cult
, ! ,ra thaprU cioht -trai n