The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1916-01-26
some REcoLLEcTIoNs OF Fifty YEARS AGO

the horse to a block or platform made
for the purpose, as the vehicles were
very tall. -.
There were very few men left in
the county during the war, and
those would only come to town on
Salesdays, as thai was the day of all
days for booze and fighting. No
knives or pistols were used then, but
everything was on the muscle"
Well, as I said, everybody coming
from the Savannah side, would ride
horse back and hitch to the rail
fence around the Gambrell residence.
Now I want to tell you a little
joke on myself and my boy, Friday,
alias Duck Alex-so we'll remembered
by my old friend, Roche. There
was an old lady doing some kind of
business on the Russell corner men
toned, and she sold ginger cakes
for a dollar each. I often longed
for those cakes, and how to get
more than 1 had the money to pur-
chase, was a problem with me. Al
though only ten years of age, it did
not take us long to solve it. | said
to Duck, you watch the men, and
when all have gone, change the
horses, tying each one in a different
place. When the owners returned
to go home late in the evening, they
seldom found the animals where orr
ginally tied, often looking around,
they would find the horses in a diff
ferent spot. Just about that time
my man would say, "Mister your
horse got loose and I caught him for
you" Of course some caught on
to our little trick. Some would
give him something, while others
would thank him, and again others
would say, why in the hell didn't
you let him 60. Anyway, as treas
urer, + had sufficient cash to feast
on ginger cakes for a day or two
after salesday. That was teach
ing the young idea how to shoot,
and if my good father and mother
had known of our tricks, we would
indeed have been taught how to
shoot.
During the war you were only al
lowed to plant so many acres of cot
ton for each mule, and pay a toll
to the government for this; should
you violate this law, you were tried
a criminal and if convicted pun
ished. I remember once a very
prominent citizen of Cokesbury was
tried for this offense.
, A bale of cotton weighing $50
was considered a heavy one.
They were packed with an old fash
Toned press, with a lever on each side
of a long wooden screw, about twelve
inches thick, and about fifteen feet
long, this could be forced into the
press by hand or mule. Four bales
of cotton was considered a good days
ginning, but often not more than 2
or 8, and it took a mules with a
to pull the gin. 1 have known
six mules hitched to a wagon to pull
four bales of cotton to Hamburg,
was then the best cotton mar
ket in the State, and only received
three cents per pound, returning
an annual supply of salt, iron,
coffee and produce, that could not be
procured here. Hamburg is only
go miles from here, just on this
side of Savannah river, opposite
Augusta. The toll cotton was taken
to the Southern depot as we had
one at that time, and placed
on the platform, for which a receipt
was given by the agent, and your
responsibility ended. After Lees
surrender and just before hostilities
for fear that the Yankees
reach Abbeville and burn this
it was hauled to the gulley,
On the right before you reach the
cotton mill, which was much wider
and deeper than now, and thrown in,
filling it. 1 would guess
there must have been at least five
hundred bales. After hostilities &C.
'ually ceased, there was no govern
nent and this cotton was taken by
Dick, Tom and Harry and concealed
n some way until a market was es-
;ablished and sold. Cotton was
worth S1.00 per pound during the fall
If '65.
We had very few streets open I'M