The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-08-21

nt a stranger and form an opinion of him
instantly by casual inspection of his
features and yet we do not know Wheth-
or il is his eyes or nose or mouth or chm
or forehead that impressed us; we know
that the eye is the index of the soul, the
spiritual emotions-and the brow IS the
measure of the intellect. There Is the az
uuisitive nose and the lighting chm ana
the eloquent lips and the rarge. generous
ears, but when we meet man we nave
not known, we do not stop 10 inspect
either of these features. but glance III
the whole combination makes up ou'
verdict.
| was Illuminating about this the otheF
day while travelling from Covington to
Eatonton 4 gentleman on the UppoSlt"
side of the car interested me because
saw at glance he outmeasurcd the
average man. He was quite large III
frame aud his head and chest were mas
Sivc. His hair and beard were thick,
coarse and slightly silvered. He had on
a black silk travelling cap and wore
white handkerchief carelessy thrown
around his neck He was reading lit
tie book ut his leisure with an occasional
glance at the fields and farms that
seemed to be flying behind us rs the
train sped on its winding way. | knew
that he was an intelligent, cultured man,
: and possessed much force and vigor
mentally and physically, but how did
know? He is preacher or teacher or
perhaps judge, thought |, but if
could see the book that he is reading /
could tell. BY and by he laid the little
book on the seat and walked to the rear
end of the car and looked out. too got
up and took n glance ut the little book.
1t was Il history of the Vanderbilt uni
versity-my doubts were removed. l
had never met DIR. bowman. the new
president of Emory College. but WAS
sure this was he. Without hesitation l
introduced myself. and we had pleasant
intercourse until we separated at Eat
onton. and he journeyed on to Milledse'
vile. am sure that he is a gentleman
and scholar. and will make Il worthy
successor TO DIR. Gambler.
The books that man or woman reads
are a good index not only of their pro-
feSsion, but of their character. ! wouldn't
give nickle for a young man or young
girl who reads nothing but modern trash.
and takes no pleasure in the grand old
literature of past centuries, How many
college graduates, male or female. III
Georgia have read Coleridge, Words
WbFlH. ATId9s lbii 1ibNt4s NstAllt'bNii'
Cowper. Burns. Charles Lamb. Addison,
Goldsmith Dr. johnson or even Shakes
peare? How many have shed delicious
tears over Gencvieve and the Hermit. or
been convulsed over John Gilpin and
Tam O'Sbanter? How many can repeat
n single verse Of Gray's Elcgy. Since
the passing OF IIongfcllow and Fitz
Green FInlleck and Bryant. who arc our
modern poets Whit n0veliStS have sue
ceeded Dickens Thackeray. Cooper and
Hawthorne
But ! was iourneying to Eatonton. old
classic Earonton, the county seat Of Pit
man, one of Ge0reia'S historic counties.
where many of her great men used to
live. Half n century ago these great men
fiecied the country with their autocratic
presence and their aristocra1ic mansions.
The Sh0rters. H0ltS, LamarS. Napiers.
Abercrombies, Turner's. Trips. Reds,
Meriwethers, Branhams and Coopers
have PASSED away bat the landmarks.
the old mansions with their tall, fiuted
columns and stately groves have been
well preserved. / was q guest in the
spacious house where my college mate.
Billy Reid. lived some fifty years ago.
The hall is eighteen feet wide and the
rooms twenty-five feet square. The huted
columns are three and one-half inches in
diameter at the base and thirty feet
high and have been standing for sky
years. Good. amiable Billy Reid How
we all loved him. But fortune did not
favor him and his life was not a success.
Eatonton is one of the old towns IN mid
die Georgia that has liveu and almost
died several times. but is now on the up
grade and boasts Of her water works
oIanfpio fohf ND
handsome churches IT is a town Of set
tied trade. settled religion and settled
politics. The habits and customs of theI
people have not changed mach since thcI
war Twenty years ago there were n
few gentlemen Of easy fortunes and dig
niied leisure who gathered In the piazza
of the hotel in the afternoon and talked
over the latest news and there is am
other set who do the same that can nj
ford to do that-that are not in a hurry
to pass their lives away and arc not
crazy after the almighty dollar. Solo
mon says that Fin leisure there is wis
DOM" and so these gentlemen become
the oracles of the community. If the
reverse be true and there is no wisdom
where there is no leisure Atlanta must
have q population Of 100000, mostly
fools. / visited the canning factory thar
IS now DnSy putting up peaches for the
army and is making hay while the sun
shines, for peach time will soon be over
and the war, too, and then the factory
will shut down until next summer Can
ming fruit and vegetables is about the
most simple business | know Of. IT re-
quires no skill, no genius, no experience.
Anybody can do it. About four white
men and twenty negroes run this one
and the pay roll is only $50 week.
counted seventeen wagons unloading or
waiting for their turn to unload their
fruit. Their contents varied greatly
both in the quantity and quality of the
fruit and they got from % cents to 40I
cents a bushel. The output is about g..
600 cans n day. hut | did NOT find ou
how much money it brought. The owner
says he is going to build a crate factory
for the next peach crop. When expressed
my fear that timber could not be found
] was told that Judge Lawson had | 700
acres of sweet gum forest in -ons body
and that would run factory for many
years. But | never saw any forests of
any kind rs ] journeyeu to Eat0nton.
] saw nothing hardly save cotton-cott0n