New-York tribune., 1917-12-23

to be forgotten. Not all Of them,
however; the writer Of this review has
collected many of the best in cities as
ar apart as on the Atlantic Coast ana
in the Mississippi Valley, and more than
one version Of one Of the most famous
and significant, "Sir Hugh of Lin
coln," or "The Jews Daughter" which
has but a solitary and fragmentary
version in the book Of Mrs. Campbell
and Mr.. Sharp. These versions have
been printed in The Tribune and de-
served mention at least in Mr.. Sharp's
notes. The best of all the tunes came
10 the writer from Pomfret, where for
generations it was a nursery song in
a family of English descent. OF the
ffty-fve ballads printed in English
, Folk Songs from the Southern Appa-
lachians" thirty-seven were printed in
Professor Child's book. Concerning
the locality in which Mr.. Sharp pur-
sued his original researches, he tells
US in his Introduction that he spent
nine weeks in the mountains, staying
generally at Presbyterian missionary
settlements and visiting singers with
in walking radius" The settlements
were those at Whiterock, Allanstand,
Allegheny and Carmen, N. c.; Rocky
Fork, Tenn, and Charlottesville, Va.
Describing the inhabitants of these
regions (morc particularly of the
laurel country in North Carolina, the
principal scene of his labors), Mr..
Sharp supplies US with an interesting
account of their physical and mental
characteristics which does not always
tally with the notions conveyed by the
writers Of fiction who have professed TO
have penetrated the same region. Their
speech, he says, is English, not Amer
lean, but he does not make plain the
distinction thus drawn. He cites as
an instance the pronunciation Of the
impersonal pronoun with an sspirate--
"hit." They use a number of express
sions obsolete elsewhere, pronounce
many of their words in ian old-fash-
ioned way" talking, in fact, the Ian
guage of past day, the period of
which he confesses his inability TO de-
eide. There being practically no
available markets, they live on what
they grow and grow no more than is
necessary to support life. Little
money is current among them and bar
ter is in kind. "They are leisurely,
CHEEKY people in their quiet way, in
whom the social instinct is highly de-
veloped. They dispense hospitality
with an open-handed generosity and
are extremely interested in and
friendly toward strangers, communica-
tive and unsuspicious." They "know
their Bible intimately and subscribe
TO an sustere creed charged with CAL
vinism and the unrelenting doctrines
of determinism or fatalism." The ma
jority whom he met were Bsptists, but
there were also MethOdists, a few
Presbyterians and some attached to
what is known as the Holiness Sect"
They have an easy, unaffected bear
ing and the unself-conscious manners
Of the we'll bred" In their general
characteristics they reminded Mr..
Sharp of the English peasants whom
he had met in his folksong researches
in England, but they are freer in man
ner, more alert and less inarticulate
and less obsequious. Only few were
able TO read and write, but the major
ity were good takers, with a rscy and
often picturesque vocabulary; physi-
eally strong and OF good stature,
though usually spare in figure; their
features elean-cut and often hand
some; superb of carriage and sure
footed.
II will surprise many Of Mr.. Sharp's
readers to be told that the existence
OF family feuds and "moonshine" dis
tilling are hgments Of lstter-day i'm
sgination. Here are the authors
words: 81 have been told that in past
days there were blood-feuds-a species
Of vendetta-whieh were pursued for
generations between members of GER
tain families or clans; but, whenever
circumstances connected with these
were related TO me, ] was always given
&c understand that this barbarous Gus
tom had long since been discontinued.
! have heard, TOO. that there is 4 good
deal of Illicit distilling Of corn spirit
by 'moonshiners,' as they are called,
in defiance Of the state excise laws;
but Of this, again, personally saw
nothing and heard but little" Mr..
Sharp seems also to have read but
little about the people to whom he
Is giving so handsome a testimonial.
II is easy TO believe that none OF his
hosts took him out In the woods 70
see the operation Of an Illicit still, but
II does not require long memory TO
recall the Allen fsud, which resulted
IN courtroom being "shot up" In
Virginia. His observation touching
the use Of tobacco is also interesting;
Z