The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1903-10-29
AMONG VIRGINIA HILLS.
THINGS OLD AND NEW.

e thread running from to-day BACK
to the date of the discovery of these
wonderful springs would link together
three centuries.
The story goes, that more than a
hundred years ago an old man with a
sore on. his leg sat down by modest
little spring as it gushed fro,n the hill
side by ril near Buffalo creek, and
bathed his sore with some OF the mud
at that spring. 1t may have been just
to cool the fever, but to HE surprise, no
doubt, he soon FELT that there was vir-
tue in the mud more than the mere
cooling of the fever in his leg. He
applied it again, and then again until
he was convinced of its healing prop
critics.
Thus the medicinal properties OF
Buffalo Llthia Spring No. l are said to
have been discovered.
The old man who discovered the
spring IS said to have built him a hut
and lived nearby for time, and in all
probability his name was Hicks, for
bottom near the spring was In the long
ago known as "H;cke' Bottom"
From the time the old man, whose
name was perhaps Hicks, tatbed his
leg with cake of mud at the spring,
the virtue OF this water has been felt,
aud its fame has spread until thous-
ands and thousands have been healed
OF disease, and it is recognized and
recommended by the medical authori-
ties throughout this country, and be-
yond our national boundaries, as a
great specific for many ills.
The legend-like story OF the discoye-
~ and virtue of this water, 1 have
gathered personally from Mrs. Rebecca
P. Blanks, now past her ninety-third
birthday, who lives with her son, Mr..
! Richard g. Blanks, at his home about
one mile from these famous springs.
About 1903 her father, Mr.. Stephen
IooIe, owned the property on which
the spring had previously been dis
covered, and he built the first house
that was ever built on the premises
" here now stand the great hotel and
+! t:e many cottages on the beautifully
Laid grounds where hundreds of guests
spend the summer every year for the
! benefit OF these wonderful waters and
tha cool breezes from these mountain.
like Virginia hills.
| THE NAT TURNE2 INsURRECTIoN.
The mere I talk with this remarka
lie old lady the more / become inter
ted in her ard her wonderful memo
~ OF things in the long ago. She ha
,st told me how viyidly she recall
tie Nat Turner insurrection, which
struck terrier to so many people in Vir
ginia ard Carolina. She tells how tbs
people In this community becam,
frightened and how many left theil
homes and slept in the woods for fear tn,
insprrection would reach this far ant
they would be killed. In some cases
She says, number of families would
gather together and stay in the sam'
hou+e.
Sire tells Interestingly how 1t wa
I'D al the time that Nat Turner wa
.ch wonderfully smart child it wa
thought all his life he was singled on
For something unusual.
"Grandma Blanks" as she is callet
by every one, says that on Saturda,
before Nat Turner commenced his in
s direction on Tuesday there was
strange atmospheric phenomenon. Th,
sun refused to shine until it was per
haps two hours high ard then it looked
Ike pewter, and the sunshine was blue
IN the late afternoon also the SUI
would become almost red, and lon,
after sunset the skies in the west ant
north were almost blood red. Til,
moon also took on the same pewter
ike appearance with a like effect OF
the moonshine.
! Nat Turner, feeling that he was des
tined for something unusual, took thi
strange phenomenon as signal for hi
work. Thus the story went at tina
time.
This ong-memorled lady remem
bers seeing native born African VIII
belonged to her grandfather, Nj
Stephen Poole; and tells how tb
African woman bore peculiar m arks il
: her temple as means of distinguish
ing her nationality ia Africa.
"Grandma Blanks" tells of the lon
ago time when people had no plate
but Lewter plates, Knives made in th
blacksmith shop and forks made c
reeds and spoons made Of wood. The
had no cups in those days and ate mil
, with wooden spoons from a pewte
dish or plate. Her husband, M
Joseph Blanks, like herself, lived to
ripe old age, dying in 1882 at the az
ofSI.