Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1903-08-19
A LETTER FROM ALABAMA.
c. B. VerneI ESQ.,, OF Tuscaloosa, Writes
Interestingly OF Conditions There.

Tuscaloosa, Ala, August 18.-Editors
Keowee Courier: Some weeks since
my sister, Mrs. j. f. McCarey, ordered
your paper sent to me for year as a
birthday remembrance. When re-
ceived the first copy and read it from be-
ginning to end it brought many pleasant
as well as sad recollections of the old
days of boyhood among the hills of
Richland and Conneross, and / had
hankering feeling for the old stamping
grounds, which was not able to crafty
at this time, but which l determined to
relieve to limited extent by writing
this letter and reminding some of the
many old friends that used to have of
the fact that am still a going concern.
1t has been nearly fifteen years since
came to this place and fourteen years of
that time has been put into the practice
of the law. For goodly portion Of that
time managed to keep it pretty we'll
concealed from the public that was so
engaged, but gradually it has gotten out
on me that belong to that class which
the common people say has no more
chance for heaven than the rich man of the
Bible. haven't dabbled much in poll
tics, but the people of this county
seemed to think that needed
some kind of punishment for the way
had been conducting myself and decided
to sentence me to u term of four years in
the Legislature. have served nearly
year of my time and think that on account
of good behavior may have my time COM
muted. BY the way, speaking of the
Legislature, Alabama is the only State in
the Union whose Legislature meets only
one time in every four years, and then
can only hold tho session for fifty days.
Isuppose, however, that your readers
and my friends will be moro interested
in the things of my home town, 80 If
you and they will bear with me for q
little while will tell little something
of the "City of Oaks"
We have now about seven thousand
people and are growing, but to be honest
with you, when strangers get to town
we tell them "the city has about ten
thousand people," This is the way with
all towns that have the growing disease.
We are blessed here with the Warrior
river, which has been the cause of some
thing more than two million dollars of
public money being distributed here in
the building of locks and dams in the in
terest of freight traffic. Six of
these have been finished and one
is about complete and three more
have been commenced. Altogether
about five millions will be expended
on the river and while the rail-
roads may still continue to haul the
coal, the use of the river will keep
down the freight rates and portion of
the South will be getting a pittance to
offset the great pension grabbers of the
North.
We used to have an electric light and
ice plant here, but last Wednesday the
boiler-one of one hundred and
fifty horse power-got on its hind
legs and capered and cavorted over
about two blocks of tho town and landed
in the second story of dry goods store.
This is no joke. This boiler exploded
and was carried b. the force of the ex-
plosion six hundred feet, and the part
that lodged up in the second story of the
, store weighs about nine thousand
pounds. Two negroes were killed and
many citizens more or less injured, run
ming and hugging trees after all the
trouble and danger was over. The de-
bris was scattered over four or five
blocks, and as the plant was right in the
middle of tho business part of the town,
it is miraculous that there was not a
greater loss of life and property. In
consequence of all of which we are in