The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1905-04-08
THE POINT OF VIEW IN EAST TENNESSEE.

III the narrow valley OF east Ten
nessee, among the spurs Of the Cum
berland Mountains, are domiciled a
hardy, honesty and uncultivated
people.
Their ideas of mundane affairs are
not only primitive, but peculiar. A
good coon dog is considered valu-
able asset, and its owner is envied by
his less fortunate neighbors.
A visitor once asked Tim Adkins
how many dogs he had. He replied
II hain't got but four-looks like
l never kin git start of dogs agin. "
Hen Miller had a young hog in
pen which he was fattening, and Tim
said to him
"Hen, the time and provisions you
give to that hog would keep a good
coon dog"
Tim and his brother Bill walked
over to the county seat one day. The
distance was about fifteen miles and,
being hungry, they 1unched on some
cheese and crackers and bought a
nickel cigar. divided it and went puff
ing away down the street. Tim said:
"Bill, don't you wish some of the
boys on the Greek could see us? We
are sure using some STYLE"
Tim said his country was no good
for fruit. that it did not produce
apples enough to make cider for the
sick.
There are signs of gold and silver
in the mountains. There is tradi-
ton that vast deposit of silver exists
across the Great Smoky Mountains
in North Carolina. One old man
had spent forty winters searching for
it, without success. East Tennessee
abounds in coal and iron, and portions
of it produce fine crops of wheat and
corn.
1t is not an uncommon sight to see
women ploughing and hoeing in the
fields. A gentleman stopped at a
house one hot day and found three or
four stalwart men under shade tree
in the yard discussing the merits of
their dogs, about.a dozen of which,
fat, sleek looking fellows, were basking
in the sun. The gentleman asked if
he could get dinner, and the man of
the house told him that he could, that
his wife would be in from the field in
a short time and cook dinner.
She came in after while, leading
mule and wiping the prespiration
from her face with her bonnet. She
split some wood and soon had dinner
ready. The gentleman said to her
"You have fine country here"
To which she replied: "Well, it's
paradise for men and dogs, but it's
mighty hard on women and mules"
Elkanah Payne, talking on the
subject of cremation, uttered this
thought:
"The people have been trying to
take the Almighty's work out of his
hands for long time, and now they
are trying to beat the devil out of his
job"
One native told visitor that he
had left the country he was raised in
because he wasn't treated right. He
said he got into one of his tantrums
and ''killed niger" and it cost him
5000 to get out of it, when it ought
not to have cost over $50.
The bane of that section for many
years has been moonshining. Illicit
stills have, however, been mostly
broken up by the officers of the
United States.
Those engaged in this industry,
and their friends, consider themselves
victims Of a tyrannical Government.
Nothing could convince them that
they have not perfect right to raise
corn and convert it into anything
they choose.
The advent of churches, schools
and railroads is making noticeable
changes, but the broad and somewhat
grim humor will cling to that people
for another generation at least.