The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1912-08-22

Bamberg Herald:-Mr. Editor:
Dear Sir-For some time after I ar
rived here I was not very well and
did not feel like writing. But now
l am feeling much better; can take
long walks over the rough hills with
not much fatigue and stronger for
the next tramp. In company with
another sojourner I took jaunt OF
five miles to the famous Pacolet
Falls and back to our boarding place.
making the entire trip in about five
hours. This gave US about an hour
to rest at the falls, to eat our lunch,
drink the cold water, inhale the pure
air and enjoy the grand scenery. For
it is indeed a beautiful sight to stand
below, look up to the sparkling wa
ters as they rush down over rough
rocks from lofty heights, shattered
and broken into many cascades, as
the limpid waters leap from rock to
rock in their mad career. 1t IS a
scene delightful to look upon. See
those huge rocks and steep cllfrs
covered with a dense forestry reach"
ing high up to the summit of the
mountain and with a dense foliage
almost yelling from sight the spark
ling waters you have come to look
upon. You turn away not quite sat-
isfed, promising yourself, if fortune
favors, to come again at some future
time to yet imbibe more of the beauty
and grandeur which nature has so
lavishly bestowed upon Gods most
humble creatures.
But to enjoy and take in such
scenes and beautiful sights it is not
without some effort on your part,
for you will have some deep coves
to descend or lofty hills to climb, all
of which will not infrequently cause
you to pause, take long breath,
and then march on to higher heights.
Low down the cove see that lone cot
tage, there lives mountalneer; he
tells me that he has passed his four
score years and more, hale and hear
ty, yet he could not tell me when the
little log cabin in which he has liv-
ed all his life was built and still the
timbers of which it is constructed
are so nicely notchcd, hewn and
placed one on another and form
ing solid wall as permanent
as the everlasting rocks upon
which it is founded, and per-
fectly in accord and typical of pio-
neer workmanship, something that
has withstood the test of time and
the wreck of ages, and still it stands.
Here an honest mountaineer lives a
simple life. He may not have all the
comforts and good things of this life,
which you may count as indlpens-
able. but his wants are few and easily
satisfied. His revenue may be small
but his expenditures for living are
less. Hence he can look the whole
world in the face for he owes no
man. He pays as he goes. 1t looks
as if he may be hard up. You pass
him on the by-path. He is on his
way to market and has five miles to
travel. See him as he climbs up, up
the steep hill side. He has covered
basket on his arm. What have You
for sale? His reply: A few chick
ems, some eggs, and maybe a few
pounds of nice butter, or vegetables,
such as tomatoes as large as your
fist, or Irish potatoes solid as rock,
a sack of apples, large and red, slung
over his back, only Is or 20 cents
per peck. But if you want the cider
20 down in the cove and there you
can get all you want for five cents,
kept in the cold spring almost as
cold as ice. The cider is fresh, cold
and good, but don't do as I did, for
I drank very freely, not remember
ing I had to climb back over the
mountain, the wagon road zigzzaged
up the mountain side was two and
one half miles to the top, but by a
more direct by-path with sleeper
grade you could make the trip by
half the distance. This we endeavor-
ed to do and thus overtake a party
of ladies that were travelling in a
carriage and had drank cider with us
down in the cove. We soon overlook
them and as we would pass them and
get above, one in great glee would
cry out, "Excelsior!" for truly, we
were above them and making better
speed than they with their span of
horses, but it was hard work on our
part. The day was warm, sultry,
for there was but little breeze down
in the cove. I thought at the time
that l would never undertake such