Newspapers / The Roxboro Courier (Roxboro, … / Aug. 14, 1901, edition 1 / Page 1
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BIT. MITGHEIj, QUr Correspondent Tells Interest- ingly of a Trip to this High Peak. for about two months' I have been in Yancey County- near the foot of the Black Mountains.-More than once, whenclimbing -some lofty peak, I have thought of "writ incrto my friends at home tut have refrained from doing so, re alizing tnat 1 can - n no W2L? do justice to a view "thus ''obtained. t a few days nence i, naa; the . ! ifMV11 Of ' ATI- - "Ti4-1i ' The Monarch of the East", and if my friends will bear with me for a few minutes I should like to tell them something-of my trip. Mt. Mitchel is a spur of the Black, and is the highest .peak east of the Mississippi river its al titude being 6,711 feet ;. It ' is named in honor of Prof. . Mitchel, who, for many years -was a mem ber of our State University faculty I .and who first explored its summit and ascertained its altitude. . This gentleman lost his life while on one of his exploring expeditions, ; and his body was laid . to rest on f the summit of the mountain. His grave has been marked by a hand- some monument which is the first thing the eyes fall upon on reach ing the top. ',... On the morning of the first of Aug. a party of us packed our saddle bags and grips with some Substan tial eatables, and started out for the peak'.' as it, is always - called here. We rode four, milesup -rtie beautiful little stream Cane River, to the foot of the mountains, arriv ing here at about ten... o'clock. JMore beginning - the ascent : we sent back some of our horses, keep ing only one mule and . one horse to carry us up. , We . loaded these with our baggage, besides we ladies took it turn about, ' first one and then another riding. . ' The air was as pure, as cool, and as invigorating as . only mountain air can be, and we had no , thought of growing tired when the ascent was first begun. P myself was quite sure that I was going to walk the entire distance. You will not be surprised that I changed my mind when I tell you to gain the top, meant five . miles of almost straight up hill. I am proud of.the fact, however that I walked four miles out of the. five,; more; than any other ladv of bur . nartv. and was the first to reacti the summit. tor the first mile the ascent was very gradual, and , we .began, to think climbing Mitchell, wasn't ucn a task after all. Here near the base, the trees are of various kinds, the poplar"'' being -: the largest species. . These grow to dn enormous size. ,One we saw measuring thirty-three feet in di- ameter. is the largest a tree m our J State. We stood for a while by this giant of the forest, feeling, very small and insignificant ; .as ' we fought of the ages through; which it had stood fighting the .'-winds with its great arms' and oerhaos after we have lived and died it will still be 'standing; . there-Wtut ' be warring successfully t&$l .away stqnns that must sweepove;r i ? it, We grew dizzy, gazing "up itq broad sides and turned1 awajr aV;:& at its majestic proportions, " " A ; ' As wegb higher the ascent' is ttuch steeper, tmt'we forget to be tired in the contemplation of J the things.about us. f . - The forest all of the wav is so dense as to form a canopy over our - heads through which the sun rarely, ever penetrates. - . This condition is peculiarly favor able to - the . ernwtVi nf 4 fern,anditis said!that the" moss growing here is'the most beautiful in the world. There are a. great many varieties and -vve are constant ly loading ourselves "with small bunches only to throw them aside a few minutes later when we have found a variety, which we are sure is more beautiful than "any we have yet--.-seen It --.crows over v pvprv imaginable thing.: - ' It spreads itself over the ground as a carpet for our feet;' it covers the somber trunks of trees, making them delightful to our '.eyes; it cushions fallen logs with plush fit for a:king,. and it converts rocks into downy. beds of ease. If Jacob's pillar was so' softened; we do not wonder that he dreamed of angels. Our party, being in no hurry often stopped to avail themselves" of the many tempting resting places na- ture has thus formed for the weary j traveller.; v ' : We found, a delightful spot in which to eat our lunch and we were all hungry enough' to ; make this part of our trip particularly en joyable. - After eatings we had- a draught of water that ' made our teeth ache with; coldl -but which proved as refreshing as only; moun- taircaeSrf ; We "wereill eager to, resume ; our j ourney so did not tarry very long for dinner. L I The ascent now is very steep. The forest trees are less varied, and we rarely, ever see any trees but the balsam-pine, whicjic ladens the air with a : delightful:- perfume: These grow very tall and straight and are so ihick.it seems ? as 4 if. it would be v impossible for. anything to; make ; 'its way through them. These trees are of considerable size where we first find them, but as we go higher they, are much ; smaller until on the summit their growth is very" much .stunted , . In about a quarter of a mile from the summit wje. come ' to what v is known,as 1 'the ; ball ground' ' . It is a rolling plain covered with'lohg grass, and is entirely without trees, or shrubbery of any kind. This is our first opportunity . of obtaining anmnpbstructed view of !the mouh- tain, and we halt here a few , min utes eettinc: a foretaste. , of r the grandness that awaits us up ahead. . ylh a very . short time we reach the summit and one glance .around j us dispels all thoughts of , fatigue: Cer tainly : . . ' Distance lends enchantment to .theview, ' J"'. V'- And clothes the mountain in its ' ; azure hue." , , , We can't . realize' . that the vast territory stretched out before . us is the; . common x ; everyday-world which we have just left. . Although it is three o'clock Pr M. of an August day the air here .re minds; one . of ' early jfrpst;-.'-So ,we pull ' our ". j ackets around us , and settle down around the monument, which is oh the highest point, ; and begin,to drink in the scene ; around US . 1 . . ' - , 4 Through ,the mipttbward '.' the Vest the Greit Chicly. l.Icuntcins loom up like So many . dark clouds, and stretched out between them and us lie, what seems to 7 us, hundreds of" hills 1 decreasing in altitude as they near us Rooking north I we peer as far over into Virginia as our eyes . will 1 allow us; we turn eastward and trace the line v of "-the Blue Ridge Blue in truth through the mist of . the 'summer evening., But our eyes , grow weary gazing at such distance, ? nd y we sopn k be gin to turn our; attention to .scenes nearer at hand., Some ,of the. la- ' . . . -" . - .:- dies of our party are tiredand are quite content to rest, but I. have forgotten that there is such 'a senT sation, and in i company with a friend begin to explore the grounds abbut us. To gain the top of some huge boulder,; we scramble through thickets,' which look as if U they were too dense even for a: cat, to make its . way through We get scratched and tear our clothes but do not mind at all, it ' only embol dening us to try another. . We : go in quest of water, and find itv pure and cold, dripping from crevices in a large rock, : then gathering itself in a pool 'beneath. . Having re- freshed ourselves; we rove; around la while longer, trying as ,we , said, to find a rattle snake and a bear, but; without haying succeeded in ,. . .1 j.. .... j - i- this quest, .we go back to the sum mit and j oin the rest of the party. it has now grown late and we seat ourselves around the i monu- menluto watch the'sun-set. I grow disgusted at the thought of trying to giyfe. you --.any iidea .of the v- beauty and granduer of -this scene, v Great white ciouas noat; away aown-on the mountains below usrand the ,. ...... . . ... t . courses of rivers may be traced by the long lines of white fog; the distant mountains are scarcely dis cernible.throuhv:the mist that en velopST them. ' The sunr a great ball of glowing fir;, is just sinking into this gray sea," inverting it in- to one of roseate hue. Our party gradually grows silent : and we al most hold our breath; as the sun begins to sink out of sight behind tne aistant . . mountains, lown, downit sinks until ontyr a . small rim isnseen Now. it has entirely vanished. We look for a . moment longer,: then for the, first time re alizing that the air is cold, we but ton up our jackets, rise to our feet; and slowly and quietly , wend our way to the tent that has been pre: pared.' This is a rude, struct ure of balsam boughs thrown -up over some stakes! But it keeps off the, cool wind besides "'delighting us with its fragrance. - We eat .our supper, and then a .few of us. go back to the .summit to. watch the moon rise; But., we have -tarried too long. over bur evening meal. The,inoon is already trailing the mountain tops, with its silver light.. Surely there, is ' nothing more grand, more sublime than the scene before us. The dark balsam p ines tdss their restless arms, . and sigh, and moan, and whisper he luri glare of several camp-fires, : bring into strong relief some great trou bles; dark figures'flit around these fires and remindt us of phantoms from another world; above all, the moon rises with all her splendor, Iccnyertin; the distant mountain tops into a fairy land enveloped in cilvcry mist. But the moon has nor weaned the chilly night winds and vro r r4 cocn v;illirj to : :!t the i - ' v. shelter of our tent, and the warmth of our camp-fire; Some of -the party, wrap themselves in blankets and soon : fall asleep but It, for one am not so inclined. Ail night we sit .around the : blazing fire, watch ing the weird1 shadows thrown by, the waving ? pines, . and laUghirig and jokingin real camp style. A bout ay we were startled by the scream of a panther only about thirty yards off . r ' . 'We.felt a-little., streaked aS. the. mournful sound resounded through the, forests, but it left us unmole st ed, wending its way out across , the ridge' screaming a defiantly : all . the while. : Just about dawn we return ed . to 1 the r summit to - watch the sun. ; rise. ',- It: came up ; just as it "went down,' 'kf great ball of glowing fire, driving away-. , the cold gray mist and cheering 5 us all by its warm7 rays. . Most of us were feeling pretty tired and "sleepy - and were not so anxious to hunt .bears and snakes' as we were the night previous. Afjter eating" our .break fast, we 'feel 'very ' much : refreshed however, and, when told" that, we must begin the descent we - arei all sorry. - We started down about half past seven, and two of us walk ed six and one half miles before mounting a ,hbrse. I then ' rode horse back,. to my ; boarding' place; a distance', of . 1 thirteen .'miles. At home I should have been complete ly broken down , here .t where one gains renewedTstrength with v every breath of ;this vinvigoratingY.air A I was jiist tired. That.night I fell asleedaming'd Mitchel, and hoping that ; I might sometime again have the rare)leas ure of taking such a trip : Shaffer 1 Has 60,000 Men Out;' Pittsburg, Aug.;- lS.-rThe str gle f or ; mastery ' between : m&nuf ac turers and men in! the steohdustry is now fairly launched, aud on the first show of 8treagtb advantage is with the former. iTbe genftral strike order issued by President Shaffer, of the amalgamated Association, has so far been obeyed by only about 14,000 men, according to the best , figures obtainable here. The first two pre-i iiminarycall8 were answered: by a bout 45.000 men: so that ; the total number no wout is in the neighbor- nooa or t)U,uuy. 1 ' 1 m a 1 a t -e ' . Grand Carnival. - 'Richmond, Va., , is r preparing another reccrdibreakinff: week of fun for bervisitors. This will be ttie 1 All preparations are -ona. magni tude1 that prove the affsertiou of the Association that the Grand Carnival Pree , Street Pair, . and Electrical Fete of 1901 be greater - than " eyrv given in the Southeast before. Shows will be plenty, .parades will be daily 20v bands, military, fraternal day, and 10,000 Rights4 arching Broad street, with electric fountains at in- tervals tre a. few; of the many won ders offered during this irWeek of . - . i . - . ' -r- ... Wonder8.f, ''-"..V... .:..- - : A Man, and Boy Drqwii . , HicVoryrj: Aug. 12.--7hile au fomnfinor -fn r eave .tha -env.- llr. John Garrison, of Pinsyille, and his : v n i T-r - ' T7cr0,droried in tin pond. " at tho E. h. Cuford Oott- ill, a; fer mil:3 frcri n:ro, r.DC it o ocl A Good Pair af Greczboro. premium list of the Central Carolina Fair. "Which will be held at Oreasboro 1 dn Oct. 3th todlth A large quan- ; ity of valuable premiums are ofEred . for all kinds ot exhibits, as well a3 many cash prizes. The parses for the trial of speed aggregate $2,850- 00. The management has annouced that nothing hut clean and legiti- uiatc , xautug win uc anuncu, tuts -., . ....,.....;... 1 ..... . . ..... ,. ..... , insnring genuine sport. Arrange ments' have been made for a . cum- bei :of f ree attractions, and it is said : that 1 - the "midway" will eclipse anything of the kind ever sen , in North -.Carolina ' .- ; ; The fair is backed by a strong compaiayana tne unitea puolic sen timent - of thef community, and . is already prbhounced f aA success.. Every thing is being done for the . inatruction, amusement and comfort of the thousands of vicitors .'who' are expected ,to attend.; Ali rail roads will give reduced rates " , . J J Mr.' K. S. Petty, the Secretary, -will . gladly , answer - any inquires . concerning the fair- ' . ' V Pass: : Is the place to buy your -staple1 and heavy Groceries, on Main street one door North of Pi Dneef warehouse opposite the T?fpf1p TTofpL 1 . I shall make a" specialty of M Such as .Hay; ; Corn, ;;Meal, ftfnn ftfnflF. "Rrflnti Oats 9eed ' Oas, etc. ; Get my prices on . Berore you buy for I can makeit to your advantage. y Everything guaranteed to be " ex aqtly "as represented. Give me a call. - ; ' ; V. i 1. OXBORO. N, t p. I beg to announce to the public that I have just opened up a new stock of goods at Push,"N. C.y and most respectfully; ask or a portion of your patro- , nage. - Prices ' as ; low as "the lowest and all goods guaran teed to be as represented. - j received ' a: large lot . of Pants whichVwe can sell you for less . than manufacturers price ; Give us a call. ; J. l! TIMBERLAKE. - . . ... - Readeland Academy, - .Mt. Tirzah, N. C " U firsVchiga school for boys and girls.. '-' Prepares for college. Book-keeping, Music. . Experienced Teachers arid thorough Not a cheap-john scbcol but rat:c Trery.lovr. .. . , ; : ni-j.-u tJ r :k. - "f" t-r L andcre enrrounded by chnctim Pall region opens September 2nd. Ccad fcr circabr to , . V A. 2 VTEBB, A.-B.t Viir.t FEED STTJEE FLQIER hiirm9v
The Roxboro Courier (Roxboro, N.C.)
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Aug. 14, 1901, edition 1
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