The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-09-18
THINK SOUTHERN
CHIVALRY AFAKE
The Extraordinary Language Of The Young School
Marin From Cincinnati Who Proposed
to "CiviIize" Our Mountaineers.

they vote, the Republicans thinking
they are voting against slavery and
the Democrats think they are voting
fCr it. Think of it. In all my rounds
CT homes last year 1 found one book!
These mounta,ineers never see news
paper or a ma gaZine or periodical.
They have simply toiled on their lands
to raise enough to eat and wear for
themselves and their families, ana
little more produce which they eX-
changed ct tho country stores or HUI"
son for some nccessaries. This way
they 1--we year after year. Into TINS
mountain country L went alone last
winter to bring civilization to these
ueople. Mrs Mitchell, of Dayton, u,
gave me $1,000 to fit up the school
building and the other building
as a home for the pupils, ana
there last winter / taught 3 boys ana
girls of this community the simple
everyday civilization OF setting tables,
washing on IL wash-board, how to
write and read; in fact how to live ac-
cording to civilization. circuit was
established for Methodist minister
and cur part of the community, 10
souls came to the church and sat all
day on the floor eve have no benches),
without dinner to hear the gospel at
ternocn service. Many of these people
travelled 35 miles in rough country
wagons drawn by mules. l saw only
one horse in the country. If l can
just get the Ohio people to give me
money and old chairs and clothes, and
if l could just get piano to take
back with me this winter, should be
in some degree happy. l have got
he railroad people to transport any
thing 1 can get free for me. oh. If the
q n;,r;1i Ion 1lyy IN IL
ize the debt they owe humanity and
give of their old clothes to these poor,
isolated people of the North Carolina
mountains.
''And her concluding sentence is the
plea of the pretty little woman who
IS giving her young life to the civiliz
ing of these poor mountaineers. MISS
Abbott begs for old clothes, old furni- /
ture land if / could get just an old
piano to show them ana play for them
when they wait for hours for the min
lister of the gospel in the school room
on Sunday afternoons, what joy She
says cone box of clothes sent us last
year was a revelation tc the people"
Miss Abbott is the guest of Mr..
Noah Page, of Carroll street, River
side, and will be with the Pages until
September 1st, when she returns to
her work with the mountaineers
Mr.. Squires went on to sayt
after publishing the above article,
I replied to it in my paper, Stating
that if Miss Abbott said that these
people had never heard Il of George
Washington she was ignorant of the
Christian name of about one third of
the male mountain population; that
SO far as Valentines Day was con-
cerned it is of heather origin and we
cared nothing for it; that the Fourth
of July is celebrated in these localities,
my own of Lenoir, six miles away, the
business houses always observe it as
holiday; that SO far as ice cream
being an unknown quantity in that re-
gion it mattered but little if true, the
mountain springs are cool enough to
satisfy the thirst of our population;
the rocking chair story was too ridicul-
Gus to be even noticed; that pianos and
organs are plentiful in the community.
and that piano was in the home of
the nearest resident to the school and
Miss Abbott had played on it; as td
the arts of civilization being unknown
/ said that our people are as we'll up
as those of the mountain localities of
Miss Abbott's neighboring State of
West Virginia and were rapidly de-
veloping along all industrial lines that
the history of their own country waY
we'll known even to the most ignorant,
and many are the times we have heard
those mountaineers. who could not
read tell the tale of Kings Mountain
and the legends of Revolutionary Days.
The only thing that Miss Abbott pic
tured correctly was the relative loca-
ton geographically of her own school
with reference to Lenoir and Hudson,
and that these people were proud,
which was predicted. she would find
out to her sorrow. All the tales about
the methods of farming, architecture,
house furnishing and women's fur
nishings and fashions We're described
as false. Spinning wheels have be-
come almost an unknown quantity
there as everywhere else. Her de-
scription of politics was absurd and
it was shown that where she spoke of
the sparseness of churches within
three miles of her school house door
were seven evangelical churches, regu-
larly ministered to by capable minis
ters and comfortably seated. In the
township, where she said there were
no horses. the tax roll. which is never
padded, showed sixty-four horses
Again, Miss Abbott was truthful in
saying she would like a plentiful sup
ply of old clothes to sell to the more
ignorant and poor of the locality, as
she had done the year before instead
of using them for sweet charity"
Miss Kennedy, of Bessemer City,
North Carolina the principal of the
school in which Miss Abbott was a
teacher gives quite a different version
in the following article
Miss Kennedy's Views.
Editor Lenoir Topic:
Dear Sir: Having been a co-worker
In the school at Mitchell House with
Miss Mary Abbott last winter, after
reading the article written by her and
publshed In The Topic of August 3rd.
1 Ieel IL my duty to say a few words
IN de1ence OF these good mountain
people. having spent the past five
winters among them I feel that am