Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1906-08-31
CHAPTER v.

- The tOWn was dDluHO Wall NV
works for a local celebration OF the
close of the war was in progress as he
made his way up the slope OF the levee
through narrow passageway that ran
between two mountainous piles OF COT
ton bales. AT other points there were
equally great piles of corn and oats III
sacks pork in barrels. hams and bacon
in boxes and finer goods of every KIND
in bales and packing cases, for CAIRO
was lust at that time the busiest en-
trepot in all the Mississippi valley.
The town was small, but its business
was larger than that of many great
cities. The little city lay at the point
where the Ohio river runs into the Mis-
sissippi From up and down the Mis-
sissppi from the Ohio. from the Ten
nessee and the Cumberland and even
from far up the Missouri great fleets
of steamboats, were landing at Cairo
every day to load and unload cargoes
representing a wealth as great as that
of the Indies. A double headed rail-
road from the north carrying the prod
uce of half Il dozen states and con-
Meeting by other roads with all the
great cities of the land made its termi-
nus at Cairo. Two railroads from the
south - traversing five states - ended
their lines at Columbus, a little farther
down the river, and were connected
with the northern lines by steamboats,
from Cairo.
Cairo was the meeting place OF COM
merce between the north and the SOUTH
Out of the upper rivers came light
draft steamers. Plying the river below
We're steamers of far different col-
struction by reason of the easier con-
ditions of navigation. At Cairo every
steamboat. whether from north or
south, unloaded its freight for reshlp-
ment up or down the river, as the case
might be, upon steamboats, Of differ
ent type or by rail. And all the freight
brought north or south by rail must
also be transferred at Cairo, either to
river steamers or to railroad cars.
The south was still thrOnged with
northern troops, numbering hundreds of
thousands, who must be fed and cloth
ed and otherwise supplied, and so the
governments own traffic through the
town was in itself q trade of vast pro
portions. But that was the smallest
part Of the matter. Now that the war
was at an end the south was setting
to work to rebuild itself. From the
Cumberland and the Tennessee rivers,
from the lower Mississippi, from the
Arkansas, the Yazoo, the Red river,
the White, the st. Francis and all the
sest OF the waterways Of the south en-.
ergetic men of broken fortune were
hurrying to market all the cotton that
they had managed to grow and to save
during the war; in order that they
might get money with which to buy :
the supplies needed for the cultivation |
Of new crops.
Cairo, either for sale to eager buyers
there Or for shipment to the east and
o market.
In return the planters and the south
ern merchants through whom they did
business were clamorOus for such
goods as they needed. Grain, hay,
pork, bacon, agricultural implements,
seed potatoes, lime, plaster, lumber
and everything else necessary to the
rebuilding Of southern homes and in
A,rc nj i,,fn ond |
out again by train loads and steam
boat cargoes night and day.
AS Guilford Duncan emerged from
the alleyway between the cotton bales
and reached the street at top of the
levee a still burning fragment of the
bagging was badly torn exposing the
lint cotton In way very tempting TO
fire. With the instinct Of the soldier
he instantly climbed to the top of the
pile, tore away the burning punches of
lint cotton and threw them to the
ground, thus preventing further harm.
AS he climbed down again a man
confronted him.
"Are you Waterman" asked the
man.
mo; I'm only man in search of
work"
"Why did you do that, them" Queried (
the stranger, pointing to the still burn
ing cotton scattered on the ground
con general principles, suppose"
answered Duncan. "There would have
been terrible fire if hadn't"
whats your name"
"Guilford Duncan"
"Want work."
eyes"
"What sortY
"Any sort--for good wages" That {
last phrase was the result of his stoker t
experience. s
"Well, do you want to watch this c
cotton tonight and see that no harm G
comes to it, either from fire Or-whats L
wOrse-the cotton thieves that go down q
he alleys, pulling out all the lint they q
AN from the torn balesT t
"Yes, if can have fair wages"
"Will So for the night be fair tt
vageST Ii
"Yes-ampe. How far does your ID
reight extend up and down the levee" II
"It's pretty nearly all mine, but I U
ave other watchmen on other parts IL
1t. This is new cargo. Your beat u
yill eXtend'- And he gave the young III
Ian his boundaries. VI
you'll be off duty at sunrise Come III
, me at o'clock for your pay. I'm ~
aptain Will Hallam. Anybody in
Miro will foil Won whore nv office ia