The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-01-04
CHATTANOOGA
and VICINITY
MR.. RICHMOND WRITES ENTER
TAININaLY OF THE CITY.
Charming Trip Through the South
ern Cotton Fields-An Enterprising
Population Containing a Large
Proportion of Northern Enterprise
and Pluck.
Written for The Tribune.

and PLUCK.
Written for The Tribune.
II ROM historic Atlanta, the tourist
naturally goes to historic Chat
tanooga, a distance of 81 miles.
Leaving the main line of the l.. and n.
at Bennington. we, for u thousand
miles, traverse the great Southern
Railway which has a mileage of over
1000 miles, through the heart of the
corn, cotton and timber belt, and his
| toric fields of the civil war; Every rod
of this ride is over historic ground,
where was heard the rattle of musket-
| ry and roar OF cannon ut some time
| during the famous four months cam
| paign, that terminated with the cap
| ture of Atlanta. over this track and
| on either side of 1t We're fought some
| of the fiercect battles of the civil war.
| The signs Of that great conflict are
now almost obliterated and cotton
and corn now grow luXuriantly on the
| soil once Redeemed with the blood of
| heroes. BY the courtesy of Assistant
General Passenger Agent William Fl.
| Taylor, of Atlanta, we were allowed
''stop-overs'' lat WILL" to visit these
historic places which dot the country
| around for the rest of our journey to
Washington. To describe them fairly
would require a special letter there
fore I will make mention of only one
place en- route ut this time. About
three miles out from Atlanta is Il large
oak tree where Confederate General
Joseph T.. Johnson surrendered his
command to General Hood. when lie
confessed his inability to keep the
YANKEES out of Atlanta. A board sign
on this tree explains the day and date.
A terrible conflict followed where
thousands were slaughtered, and Cen
eral Sherman entered the rebellious
stronghold in triumph and laid the
city low. The old earthworks still re-
main as powerful reminders of the
"lost cause"
In fifteen miles from the city, in
Stone Mountain, are the noted gray
granite quarries comprising in one sec
tion some 5000 acres, used in paving
and curbing the streets of Atlanta
Cincinnati and Philadelphia, etc, and
extensively used in various public
buildings. This particular granite
hardens with age. The red shale
ground along the line of the road is
called rotten granite" when dug, but
hardens on exposure to the atmosphere
Red shale land is very strong and pro-
ductive. We travel through large sec
tons covered with fields Of cotton anG
corn, and from every hut are seen from
a half dozen TO twenty pairs of Picka-
niny black eyes peering forth to greet
the passing train that ever gives
hearty response to their Young Amer
lea" salute-the flag. In tifty-tive miles
Aragon is reached. Here are cotton
mils-one employs 600 whites This
is called the Cotton belt" Cotton is
planted by April Is and plucked in the
last of August and September.
EFFECTS OF THE CYCLONE.
At Silver Creek station we see the
effects of the cyclone that reached to
birmingham where houses We're laid
low and trees uprooted-and great
dcsolation followed it's trail.
Al lincale, was another large cotton
mills. 400 feet long. employing 1,6OC
hands in making sheetings alone. AT
Rome, Ga. (half way between Atlanta
and Chattanooga. is another Gotten
&C ntcI', located at the junction of three
rivers, that form the Coosa river Here
are cotton mills, also charcoal furnaces,
pig iron works etc, with a population
of $500. "Shorter" Woman's college is
located here. At Dalton are large lum-
Der mills. Here we see cars of Scran
ton coal, retail at $500, while Tennes
sec and Alabama bituminous, sells at
81 and $3.50. The large music publish
ing house Of A. ]. Showalter G. CO., EN-
plCying $50 hands, is located here. Dali
ton has population of 5000 and is
thriving city. But the objective point
OF our journey is Chattanooga, the
Queen City of the Mountains" whose
gates swing wide open to the world
and where old Lookout Mountain, the
recorder of ages, stands aloft in solemn
grandeur overlooking the busy, prog
ress!ve city at its feet.
Chattanooga is located on the Ten
nessee river near the junction of the
three great states of Tennessee,
Georgia and Alabama, 565 miles from
it's mouth. The river here which al
most embraces the city, is half mile
wide and the same size as to depth,
volume of water, general width and
length as the Ohio river, comprising
$500 miles. This bustling city living
under the shadow of and at the base
of lofty Lookout mountain is almost
surrounded by mountains and hills,
with the Tennessee river on the north
west 1t is the industrial and COM
mercial center of a maveously rich
section carved from these three above
named states SO manifest We're the
natural advantages OF the city's loca-
tion, that the unlettered Indian could
not fail to read them, as he roved from
the lakes to the Gulf and he chose it's
present site for camping ground. "the
only available natural path leading
through the mountains north and
south-the place where the lines con-
verged to a point the meeting and
crossing of ways by water and by
land"
Being about equal distant between
the larger cities of the north and
south, east and west, makes this the
natural crossing and divisional point
for all lines of railroads which now
stretch out from the city like spokes
of wheel, to all points of the COM |
pass, following the valleys which con-
verge at this point and the course of |
the river which breaks through the |
Cumberland mountains few miles be- |
low the city, comprising no less than |
twelve separate and distinct compet- |
ing lines. In this later time the shrewd |
man of business quick to see the bear
ing of every resource In the develop |
ment of industry and commerce, has |
confirmed the judgment of the Indian |
savage.