The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-12-10
STURDY CHARACTERS
FOUND IN MOUNTAINS,
DECLARES DR., BULGIN
Especial to the Palladium

CAMBRIDGE CITY. Ind, Dec. 10
The best elements of the nation. the
sturdy characters fortified by hard
ship and deprivations, with the best
of ancestry drawn from ireland, Scot.
land, Wales, England, and France are
10 be found in the mountains of the
south, according 10 DR.. Z J. Bulgin's
high school benefit lecture given at
the tabernacle Friday afternoon.
In contrast 10 the poor white
trash" DR.. Bulgin's lecture explained
that the mountaineers include some of
the best blood in the country, drawn
from the Celts, Welsh. Scotch High
landers, Cavaliers, Gauls, especially
Waldensians, and the HuguenOts. who
were driven out of France by relig
iOus persecution.
These varied peoples had settled IN
the south at the same time the Pill
grims were gaining a foothold on the
northern coast. With strong religious
principles. they had refused to sane
ton slavery or the civilization which
accompanied it, and withdrew to the
mountains, where they gained pre-
Carious living from the so cent an
acre land.
High Development.
Showing the traits of their anCes-
ters, Dr. Bulgin stated that in this
people. the descendants of best of for
eign ancestry, is to be found a high
development of the valuable human
qualities of wit, humor, pathos, states
manship and respect for law. Matri
mony also be included as a charaCc-
teristic trait of the mOuntaineer, for,
said the speaker I'VE learned to love
III RI
big families"
The poor white trash, on the other
hand, is largely renegade French Cath
Ole blood, intermingled with the
negro and Indian races.
The mountaineers, Dr. Bulgin eX-
planned, were the first abolitiOnists,
and were the first also to defeat Tarle-
Ton during the Revolutionary war,
battling with fiintlocks, pitchfOrks, and
any other weapons they could lay
hands on.
The Appalachian mountain district OF
the south includes p counties in
North Carolina, 10 in Tennessee, seven
in Alabama, and smaller sections OF
South Carolina, Kentucky West Viz
ginia. Virginia and Georgia
Produced Heroes
From their ranks also came the man
who drafted the MeCklenburg cOnstitu-
ton. the forerunner and the model for
the United States constitution, and
from a town only II miles from Dr..
Bulgin's home came Alvin York, one of
the greatest hero of the World war.
Many modern writer's also have
found their greatest inspiration in the
mountains of the south. said Dr.. But
gin Harold Bell Wright gets much
of his material there, the story Of the
Shepherd of the Hills" being drawn
from life. the "Shepherd" being an
Episcopal minister of Chicago. who
had given up his honors and lived in
The mountain valley to eXpiate his
sons wrong doing just as recOunted
in the book.
Other writer's. whose characters are
to be found in real life in this coun-
fry are John Fox. Jr., Gene Stratton
Porter and Emma Payne Erskine.
That the mOunt2ineers are humOr-
Gus and able 10 make their own fun
was a strong point emphasized by DR..
Bulsin. who COnvulsed the audience
with tales of some of the pranks play
ed by himself and his companions dur
ing their bOyhOOd days. The recita-
ton of trick played by himself on a
ram OF MS ldInel = ldQnLln& the ram
to chase him and then lodging on the
bank of a pool so that the ram would
fall into the stream. the unsuccessful
attempt of his father to try the same
trick. with the disastrous COnse
quences; and the explanation OF the
meaning OF the phrase, hog KILN
time" were especially amusing to the
audience.
ResourcefuI PeopIe
Extreme poverty only served to
bring out the resOurcetulness OF this
people. Dr.. Bulgin reported. Dyes for
their clothing were made Of butter
nuts. walnuts and onion hulls Meat
is killed and preserved for winter use
and practically all food articles eN
cept salt are produced at home. Flour
is ground from their grain at Local
mills.
Even wagons were home made dur
ny Dr. Bulgin's bOyhOod He told OF
coing into the woods at - years Of
age. with only negro boy to help
driving yoke Of oxen, and coming
out. three days later with finished
wagon. Wheels were SaWn out
of sections of tree trunks, chest
nut logs rived for boards for the box
and a tar kiln made by building fire
under a pile OF pine knots, covered
with NIB and the whole sealed all
light. The stream of tar was Caugh
in d bucket and used to grease the
wheels.
Anecdotes Of the achievements Of