The watchman and southron. (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, September 06, 1905, Image 7
SOUTHERN FOREST INDUSTRIES.
Ginseng. Holly and the Mistletoe
Found in Abundance.
In the Southern forests the "special
. ists" make quite an army. Writing of
these in the Springfield Republican,
Ella Gill Sedgwick says:
There are thousands of sturdy peo?
ple known as the holly and mistletoe
hunters, and whose source of subsist?
ence in the winter is dependent on
their feats of climbing tall trees to
saw off the brown protuberances from
tHrhich the* mistletoe springs, and in
vading the rocky ravines in a search
for the holly. Another industry is the
collecting and preparing of * roots and |
herbs for sale. We are assured that
every "yarb" will keep some disease
away, but the queer little root known
as ginseng is prized above all other.
Evidently there would be very little
use for patent medicines if we be?
lieved all that has been told us of this
plant and its wonderful healing pow?
ers.
At one time there was no sale for
- it outside of the mountains, and then
there came a demand for it from
China, where for thousands of years
the mysterious root has been used by
the Chinese as a panacea for all ills.
They make tea of it, use it in their
^food, mix it in their soup, and use it
Rn every available way. Then, too, it
is greatly valued for its supposed
power of combating fatigue and old
age.
According to their belief one need
not search for the "fountain of
youth,'* for this root restores youth,
pit is said that the Canadian Jesuits,
?first began tb ship the roots of the
American species t?*China, It was so
highly prized and the demand for the
American rpot became so great that
the price went up to S 5 a pound, and
that set the- highlanders to searching
"for the mysterious little root The
natural home of "sang," as it is called
in local parlance, is in the wilds of the
forests. As one old sang-digger said
of it: "Hit's wild as a rattlesnake and
kain't be tamed. When you dig hit
^np that settles hit, Mo?ght jist as
well dry hit and send hit to Chiny.
No use foolin' away time to plant hit,
for sang won't grow 'cept in the
woods."
In the mountains of the South civ?
ilization has not been pushed forward
at a very rapid rate, and the prim?
eval forest, still holds sway, and here
where the wild root grows we find the
sang-digger pursuing his novel call
in in the shadow of the deep cliffs,
wandering through pathless stretches
of forests* or in the deep gorges of
the great Appalachian chain. The
?only equipment necessary for the
sang-digger is the sang hoe, which is
a stout staff some four feet long, iron
shod and sharpened into the likeness
of a minature spade. With this he
pries up the long root. Then he gen?
erally carries along, thrown over his
Jslhroulders, a bag, or "poke," as it ?s
called in these Southern mountains.
These are the necessities-yes, and
something else-a good supply of to?
bacco, for one who knows the moun?
taineer cannot imagine a sang-digger
sitting down before his camp fire
without his plug of tobacco, or his
pipe niling the air with clouds of
smoke, while the women have the in?
evitable snuff and snuff stick. Under
the shadow of the mountain is the lit?
tle "shack" or log cabin which he
|calls home. It generally consists of
one room with a big fireplace, two
doors opposite each other, one always
open. It is often without windows,
while the furniture is scarcely worthy
the name. When the sang-digger has
collected enough roots he hitches up
^ his ancient mule team and transports
' it over the rough mountain road's to
tke nearest town or settlement, where
he "swaps" it off for coffee, sugar,
snuff and tobacco.
The genseng root is a low, peren?
nial, herbaceous plant allied to the
parsley family. The leaf resembles
that of the horse chestnut. A stalk
} rises in the center of the leaf stems
.with a pretty tassel of flowers, pea
green in color These turn to bright red
seed pods in the autumn. But it is
not the leaves, flowers or stalk about
l^which cluster the mountaineer le?
gends, but the root. They say it is
like the human fonn, and one who is
imaginative can sometimes trace a re
semb*-.nce. This fancied likeness to
the human form has obtained for the
plant the Chinese title of "Jin-chen"
feand the Indian one of "Garan-tignen,"
* "?both of which, strangely enough, are
-said to signify "like a man." The
^forked specimens are believed to be
:the most powerful, and so are prized
:above all others, and bring a fabul
. *ous price in the Chinese market,
j
When civilization took its West?
ward way a century ago it skipped
-this region. The visitor to the sang
country will find in its ways and cus?
toms a chapter of the last century
brought down into the 20th. It is
still the land of spinning wheels,
feather beds, patchwork "kivers" and
fireplaces. Out of the line of travel,
day in and day out no one ever comes
in sight, and by force of their isolation
they have been wrapped up in a "Rip
nran Winkle sleep." We find among
these mountaineers ' a thoroughly
unique and original set of traditions.
They believe in "hants," and "ghosts"
and "luck sperrits," and some of their
queerest superstitions are connected
with ginseng.
They will solemnly aver that if this
root is pulled up in the evening, when
the new moon is shining, it will give
forth a sort of moaning cry? and if
one looks closely he will discover
traces of blood in the earth from
which it has been torn. In this re?
spect sang lore is identical with the
legend, of the mandrake of Europe,
whose uncomfortable habit of
"shrieking" when it is torn from the
earth is attested to by some of the
old poets of the Elizabethan period.
They believe too, that bad luck will
follow the one who gathers sang for a
living, so that notwithstanding the
high price paid for it, there are many
who cannot be tempted to meddle
with the strange root. Not all the
superstitions of the mountains are
confined to this root. The mountain
eer plants, and sows and reaps in the
moon, which is supposed to exert an
influence over almost everything. If
you plant a patch of corn in the "light
of the moon" it will grow much
higher than if a similar patch were
planted in the "dark of the moen."
To plant sage will bring seven years
of trouble, and many would not plant
a cedar tree, for when it grows large
; enough it will cast its., shadow over
your grave. Even for one adept in
folklore it would be a difficult matter
to trace the source from which these
superstitions and traditions originated,
but doubtless many of them are de?
rived from Celtic ancestors.
A Very Patient Waiter.
Bishop Ellison Capers, in an ad
I dress at Columbia, S. C.^raised the
virtue of patience.
"We may have industry," he said,
j "sobriety, ambition-all the virtues
that make for success; and yet with?
out patience we will accomplish noth?
ing.
"A young man was overheard on a
street corner the other night re?
proaching a young girl. That young
man was patient. He had so highly
developed this excellent quality that I
shall not be surprised some day to see
him a millionaire, a college president,
or even ? bishop.
"The young man said, as the young
girl drew near him, on the corner:
" 'What a time you have kept me
waiting.'
The girl tossed her head.
" 'It is. only 7 o'clock,' she said, 'and
I didn't promise to be here until quar?
ter of.
"The young man smiled a calm, and
patient smile.
" 'Ah, yes,' he said, 'but you have
mistaken the day. I have been wait?
ing for you since last evening.' "
WOMEN OF NORWAY.
One if the curious features of the
movement for independence from
Sweden in Norway is the active, per?
sistent and Intelligent agitation by the
women of Norway. There is not, of
course, any vote for the Norwegian
women, but there seems to be an in?
tense and quite general desire for it,
and the agitation in favor of separa?
tion has probably been taken up so
vigorously and systematically in order
to establish a claim for participation
in the management of the new order
of things.
Among the documents with which
not only Norway and Sweden) but j
many foreign countries were
flooded during the discussion of the
action of Norway, those published by
the women's organization were nota?
ble for their earnestness and the care
and skill with which they were pre?
pared. It is generally conceded that
the standard of education as well as
that of social conduct .is very high
among Norwegians of either sex, and
the movement for "equal rights for
women" has not there been associated
with extreme notions.
The result of the referendum or
plebiscite which was taken, was so
nearly unanimous that the women of
Norway may feel entirely satisfied
with the effect of their influence so far
as it was necessary to exert it.
CASTOR IA
For Infants and Children.
The Kind You Haye Always Bought
Signature of
Can You Eat?
*J. B. Taylor, a prominent mer?
chant of Chriesman, Tex., says: "I
could not eat because of a weak
stomach. I lost all strength and ran
down in weight. All that money
could do was done, but ali hope of
recovery vanished. Hearing of some
wonderful cures effected by use of
Kodoi Dyspepsia Cure, I concluded
to try it. The first bottle benefitted
me, and after taking four bottles, 1
am fully restored to my usual
strength, weight and health." Kodol
Dyspetria Cure digests what you
eat and cures. Sold by all druggists.
ANSEL AND THE DISPENSARY.
I have received many inquiries as to
my views of the liquor question in
South Carolina, and the best way of
dealing with that all-absorbing ques?
tion, dispensary or no dispensary, and
I take this means of stating my posi?
tion.
In the first place. I am opposed to
the system of a State dispensary. I
once thought it was the bet solution
of the liquor question, because I
thought it would minimize and de?
crease the sale of liquors in this
State, but when we consider that more
than three million dollars' worth of
whiskey has. been sold by the vari?
ous dispensaries of the State the past
year, my hopes have been disap?
pointed, and it appears to me that
some other method should be
adopted.
In the second place, I am in favor
of local county option, as between
prohibition and county dispensaries;
that is, I am in favor of any county in
the State voting upon the question as
to whether they wish prohibition for
that county, or whether they wish
county dispensaries. If a majority of
the qualified voters of the county de?
sire prohibition for that particular
county, then I am one who believes
that they should have it, and I further
believe that the good people of such
county will see to it that the prohibi?
tion law is enforced.
If the vote of any county should be
in favor of the sale of liquor in that
particular county, then I favor a law
providing for a county "dispensary,
with a board of control of three mem?
bers, to be appointed by the governor
of the State, which county board
shall have control of the purchase of
liquors for the county dispensaries,
the appointment of dispensers, fixing
their salaries, etc.; all sales to be
made under the rules and regulations
of the present dispensary law, with
such other and further restrictions as
may be thought wise by the legisla?
ture.
I am opposed to beer dispensaries,
as I think^that beer when sold at all
should be sold in the regular county
dispensaries.
I favor a stringent law against the
unlawful sale of liquor. My experi?
ence of twelve years as one of the
solicitors of this State has convinced
me that, whatever system may be
adopted, that unlawful sales will be
made by some. It is, therefore, nec?
essary that stringent laws should be
passed to punish the "blind tiger,''
tho-je who sell unlawfully.
Make it the duty of all sheriffs,
deputy sheriffs, magistrates, consta?
bles, policemen and town marshals to
see that the law against the unlawful
sale of liquor is rigidly enforced in
their counties, cities and towns, and it
might be well to give them half of the
fines that are collected from those
convicted through the agency of such
officers of the offense of unlawful
sales, transportation or making of
whiskey.
The county boards of control should
be required to make a report to the
presiding judge at each term of the
court of general sessions for their
respective counties, showing the pur?
chases made, the amount of sales by
the county dispensaries, and of all
their acts as such county board of
control, and should be liable criminal?
ly for any violation of the law, rules
and regulations of the dispensary.
I am opposed to the high license
system! it is too near the old bar room
system, and would not decrease the
salt*, of liquor, whatever the restric?
tions might be, but would increase
them. The man who pays the high
license would want to make all the
profit he could, and hence, the more
sales the more profits.
Personally I would like to see no
liquor sold in this State as a beverage,
but it is a condition which confronts
us, and the question is how best to
deal with that condition. There is
no law that can be passed that will
keep some people from drinking
liquor, still I believe it to be the duty
of the State to pass such laws as will
minimize the use of liquor as much as
possible.
This is a brief outline of my views
upon the liquor question.
Martin F. Ansel.
Greenville, S. C., Aug. 25, 1S05.
S. M. Wolfe, of Anderson, has been
elected sueprintendent of the Pickens
graded schools to succeed W. E.
Dendy, who resigned to accept the
presidency of Douglasville Col?
lege, near Atlanta.
Does This Apply io You?
Are you tired all over ? All run down ?
Kow many thousands of people are in
this condition ! Not sick enough to go to
bed, and so they just drag around as long
I as they are abie to be on their feet.
? There's nothing particular the matter
with them. Nevertheless they have no
' appetite. They grow paler and thinner
every day. The whole system is in very
bad condition. It is while in such a
state that people catch the most dreadful
diseases, because they are not strong
enough to resist the germs. If you have
the "checkered " feeliiig<Vscribe<l alx>ve,
the different medicine. "Checkers," will
make you new all over. Sold by all
dealers at $1.00 per bottle, or write ns
for free sample to-day, sure. Checkers
Medicine Co., VTinston-Salem, N. C
NIAGARA.
(For The Daily Item.)
Ay, turn those foaming: floods away,
Far from their well-known bed,
Xor ever let its crown of spray
Be seen above that head.
In a?es past, ere human eye
Beheld it "neath these airs
It echoed from the boundless sky
The music of the spheres.
Ay, let them go! let nothing stay,
Save just one tinkling fall
To show the grandeur of that day
When gold was not our all.
Though many a heart has leaped to
hear
That solemn roaring voice,
No more those floods shall dance in
air
Or in that leap rejoice.
And shall the dreary moon sometime
Where bright Niagara's stream
Once thundered in a voice sublime,
On desert headlands gleam?
What though those rocky heights
shall be
. The lizard's lonely haunt?
It matters not-the world shall see
'Tis only gold we want.
Oh! is there none to stay the hand,
That makes our conscience bleed?
Must those bared rocks forever stand
A monument to greed?
Or shall we idly stand and see
These ravages take place,
And let it of its grandeur be
A dumb, forgotten trace.
B.
GREAT GROWTH.
The total amount o? telephone line
of the Bell system throughout the
United States, according to C. J. H.
Woodbury, averages three and twenty
nine hundredths miles for each tele?
phone iviMruinent, arid, excluding the
long distance lines, 55 per cent of the
wire is underground. When a person
calls another telephone, the average
line placed at his disposal is six and
fifty-eight hundredth miles. Truly, it
is cheaper to talk than to travel. Thi
long distance wires interlace the
whole system into a unity from the
Atlantic to the western side of the
Mississipr-i Valley, where the short
gap of 140 miles which now exists will
be closed in the immediate future to
connect with the similar system of
lines binding together the various
c'ties of the Pacific slope.
This growth of the lines of the sys?
tem is the result of a purpose to ex?
tend the use of the telephone to every
town, no matter how small, through?
out the United States; and in all of
the cities and towns to put a tele?
phone, at the most reasonable rates,
within easy and immediate reach of
evf-ry person whose income is suf?
ficient to permit him to ride on street
cars. The extent to which this policy
has been put into actual construction
is indicated by the. fact that, while
the last census gives a record of
10,602 incorporated cities, towns, vil?
lages and boroughs in the United
States, there is telephone communica?
tion to 26,128 different settlements.
Best for Children.
?Mothers, be careful of the health
of your children. Look out for
coughs, colds, croup and whooping
cough. Stop them in time-One
Minute Cough Cure is the best rem?
edy. Harmless and pleasant. Con?
tains no opiates. Sold by all drug?
gists.
Mr. Ansel wants to let the coun?
ties run" it. Not long ago it was an?
nounced that Mr. Ansel was wholly on
the water wagon. He wants to limit
the option of the counties to prohibi?
tion or dispensary. Why he should
deny those who would allow the in?
dividual to handle his own liquor and
keep the State and the public out of
it altogether, the right to exercise
their own free will we cannot see. We
think, however, that if Mr. Ansel has
changed from the prohibition to mod?
ified dispensary it means something
for the dispensary.-Florence Times.
/"Didn't I hear my wife refer to yon as
the human mince pie V" s^CjH? curious
"Yes," answered*<iar!^SrriusBaSo
"Is that a compliment ?" \ \
"Not exactly. SH? means tjjVi^l
never agree wjp*^*body. ''-^rv^shing
?4tip?t-TJseem to l^T/little better,
<*oc>or, hut IVjJW sjbJrtoi breath.
Doctor-Just|h^e patience, sir, and
we'll stop that altogether.
Like Finding Money.
?Finding health is like finding
money-so think those who are sick.
I When you have a cough, cold, sore
throat or chest irritation, better act
promptly like W. C. Barber, ot San?
dy Level, Va. He says: "I had a 1
terrible chest trouble, caused by j
smoko and coal dust on my lungs J
but, after finding no relief in other j
remedies. I was cured by Dr. King's
New Discovery for consumption, j
coughs and colds." Greatest sale of j
.any cough or lung medicine in the .
world. At all druggists; 50c. and I
SI; guaranteed. Trial bottle free. j
I Proverb I
Mn He that lives jM
I upon hope will 8
II But he that Bf
I Uneeda m
I Biscuit I
I ?5* I
B NOTIONAL BISCUIT COMPANY I |
/JlA Don't forget Mm -
W[ / Graham Crackers \ Wi ";f
yj I Butter Thin Bisco!! 1 /M i
H \ Social Tea Biscuit I B J
------?
THREE JURORS CURED
Of Cholera Morbus With One Small
Bottle of Chamberlain's Colic,
Cholera and Diarrhoea Remedy.
?Mr. G. W. Fowler, of Hightower, j
Ala., relates an experience he had
while serving on a petit jury in a I
murder case at Edwardsville, county
seat of Clebourne county, Ala. He
says: "While there I ate some fresh
meat and it gave me cholera mor?
bus in a very severe form. I was
never more sick in my life and sent
to the drug store for a certain chol?
era mixture, but the druggist sent
me a bottle of Chamberlain's Colic,
Cholera and Diarrhoea Remedy in?
stead, saying that he had what I sent
for, but that this medicine was so
much better he would rather send it
to me in the fix I was in. I took one
dose of it and was better in five min?
utes. The second dose cured me en?
tirely. Two fellow-jurors were
afflicted in the same manner and one
small bottle cured the three of us.
For sale by all druggists.
Cured of Lame Back After Fifteen
In the court of common pleas,
Charleston, Elizabeth Lyon, the ad?
ministratrix of the estate of Joseph
Lyon, filed a suit for thirty thous?
and dollars against the South?
ern Railway. . Lyon was killed by a
switch engine in the Charleston yards
last May, and the suit is brought al?
leging the negligence of the road as
the cause of the man's death. This is
the second large suit recently brought
against the Southern Railway for acci?
dents in the yard, the first having
been entered by Engineer Churchill
recently for $35,000.
FOLEY'S
KIDNEY CURE
WILL CURE YOU
of any case of Kidney or
Bladder disease that is not
beyond the reach of medi?
cine. Take it at once. Do
not risk having Bright's Dis?
ease or Diabetes. There is
nothing gained by delay.
50c. and $1.00 Bottles.
REFUSE SUBSTITUTES.
Got Off Cheap.
*He may well think he has got
off cheap who, after having con?
tracted constipation or indigestion^
is still able to perfectly restore his;
health. Nothing will do this but
Dr. Kiiig's New Life Pills. A" quick;
r i casant and certain cure for head?
ache, constipation, etc. 25c. at all
druggists, guaranteed.
Losses of the War.
Days of the war. 56?
Russian casualties. 210,000
Japanese casualties_ 160,000
Cost to Japan....$1,125,000,000.
Cost to Russia_. ... 1,500,000,000
Russian war loans_ 670,000,000
Japan war loans. 659,000,000
Russian naval loss. 150,000,000?
Japan's naval loss. 20,000,000*
Russian ships lost .... 64
Jap ships lost . 5>
Jap land victories .... 15
JUST
ONE
WORD that word Is
Tutt's,
it refers to Dr. Tutt's Liver Pills and
MEANS HEALTH.
Are you constipated?
Troubled with Indigestion?
Sick headache?
Virtigo?
Bilious?
Insomnia?
\N Y of these symptoms and many others.
. n d ic a te inaction of the LIVER.
TToxx *N"eecaL
utfsPills
Take No Substitute?
FOLETS??ONET^
atop? tlx* couj?K and Heals lox&ga
f^CHICHESTER'S ENGLISH
EKNYR0YAL PILLS
D . Original and Only Genuine.
. _/*fc>t?Sv8AFE. Alwa^riliaMe Ladle*, a? Pmcrlrt
for CHICHKSTJEK'S ENGLISH
ia KEI> and ??old metallic boxev araled
with h.o# rihbon. Take no other. Refta**
I>a*jrerona *>uh?t!tut!on? and Imita?
tion*. Buy o! jour Prussia, tr - a : -te. ia
?*ni(.a f.^r Farttculnna. TeMlmoniala
an.i "Relief for Ladle*." .<.. .--f r re?
turn Mail. 10.?MM? i..tu??->v.v? S--?.Nj
Haitian tWa r>~ - . \.,
Land Surveying
I will give prompt attention to all oalls
for survey i mi. platting, terracing bill sides
draining bottoms, drawing Mortgages
Titles. Probating, ?c.
BANKS H. BOYKIN, D. S.,
Oct 19-o Catchall, S. C.