Year: 1875

staid there until nine in the morning,yes.
terday; reached Augusta seventeen
miles, at ten, left at six in the afternoon,
and reached my boarding place at seven
and half this evening, rapid, but quite
satisfactory detour.


The civilization and general order of
things is so totally unlike those of New
England, that any judgment based upon
first and cursory impressions, is likely to
contain elements of error, so that [ am in
danger, with my slight opportunities, of
reaching no satisfactory conclusion. [
noticed, for instance, that the country on
the line of this road is almost wholly un.
improved for the first fifty miles from
Charleston, being largely covered with
forest, mostly pines; that swampy dis.
tricts evidently more than worthless be.
cause malarious, occur at very frequent
intervals that at the settlements on the
line a church is great rarity, aud
school house an apparently unknown in
stitution that while in Barnwell county,
on the western end of the line, there is
evidently better soil and more land in
tillage Chiefly cotton), yet the appearance
of unthriit and untidy methods Of farm.
ing and living ID very striking; so in
the near vicinity of Aiken and Augusta,
saw DO appearance of anything like
decent road, and you know this point is
regarded as a test Of civilization since the
days Of the Roman Empire. And yet
am told by many and by some on the
way, during this short trip, that the gen
eral condition of white farmers through
the state was never better than at present.
that they owe less and have more ready
money than formerly, and that they are
saving a surplus which formerly went in
various ways, directly and indirectly to
support the institution, and that on the
other hand the negro in general has not
as yet availed himself of the privileges of
freedom for self.improvement that | saw
in cities, and not rarely there, he is careless
Of education, and is content when his
simplest natural wants are supplied
that thc tables of mortality show three
to one in favor of whites and that these
causes viii operate rapidly to reduce the
black majority (now 30,000), so that the
whites in the course Of nature will very
soon have control. OF another thing l
feel quite sure, confidence based upon
repeated conversations with natives of va.
rious ranks and conditions from an ex-
confederate colonel, surgeon, to the COM
mon man and the business man, that the
great desire now is, for peace and good
government. There is no disposition here
to fight the battle over again no dispo.
sition and no desire to restore slavery ,and
so far as | can see and observe, no dispo.
sition to wrong or oppress the negro.


have been surprised tn hear oil ~
neonle with whom 7 have onnversed SIP
port the idea OF negro suffrage, this with
out single exception. They, however,
all say that there should have been some
qualification applicable to white and
black alike. There is an intense dislike
Of carpet-baggcrs, no doubt The reasons
everywhere given are alike: that
they were almost without exception
thieves, who have raised the state debt
of South Carolina from five to thirty
millions, without anything to show for it,
raising the state expenses to an aggre.
gate of 81 100000 since 1871. They say
all they have asked, and all they now ask
of Grant, is tho appointment of honest
and respectable men. A Connecticut
man and republican was postmaster Of
this city. He was entirely unexception-
able. but the colored Representative
from this district asked his removal and
the appointment of q Massachusetts me-
gro and against the remonstrance Of every
business white man III the city the negro
was appointed, This story | get from
both sides.


Aiken is picturesque and pleasant.
Many pleasant residences are occupied by
northerners, and the Highland Park Hotel,
new and beautifully located house at
the west end Of the town, is all that could
be desired. 1t commands a beautiful
view, has wide piazzas, two stories, and
fireplace in every room in the house, n
triumph of architecture unequaled. The
evening was there was coolish, and
when | went to the room assigned to me,
| found bright pine fire blazing in my
fire. place, while the window commanded
view almost as extended as that from
your west windows, minus the mountain
outline.


A few miles vest of Aiken is large,
finely built cotton mill and village near
by of neat, tasteful white and yellow cot
tages, looking like New England The
mill employs three hundred and fifty hands
and is prosperously conducted, This
is worth more than all the pamphlets and
essays that could be written. 1t is the
concrete thing, and | was gra.ifed to
hear the hearty terms Of admiration it ex.
cited in southern man (youhg) from
Alabama, who saw it for the first time.
"rm glad to see that. That's what We
want" said he So far as can judge
northerners are very cordially and polite>
ly received.


Augusta is exceedingly pleasant, and |
rambled the whole day with great de.
light. The cemetery is as fine as any
ever saw, on the old plan, The shrub.
berry and foliage and flowers are exceed
ing beautiful. | visited the grave, yet
unmarked by any stone, OF my old friend
DR., Wells. A beautiful cypress tree was
casting shadow across the little mound,
and the flowers were blooming all about
it. The air was full of the melody Of
birds and the perfume of flowers, and
> with SO much light and life and beauty
above, death seemed an unreal thing, and
at the most, nothing more than the open
, door to higher life, which seemed there
so beautifully symbolized. Greene street
where G. lived, is beautiful, the handsom-
est ever saw. Temple street in New Ha.
ven dwarfs in comparison. The city, but
for an occasional southernism, looks like


Portland, for instance. 1t shows how


beautiful city may become in the south
i under the newer auspices.