hut away from the rest of the world by mountain barriers, and still
more hopelessly by the haughty caste spirit of the slave-holding
monarchs, who disdain to have anything to do with them except to seek
their votes.

These people are not really poor. Most of them own farms of three or
four hundred acres; and the soil, if properly tilled, would be quite
productive. Their plowing is done in the most primitive manner. A
single horse attached to a little shovel plow simply tears the sod a
little, enough so the weeds spring up luxuriantly, and the women and
children must work hard in the hot sun to destroy them, while the
lord of the home saddles his horse and rides to town, to sit on store
boxes and tell low stories. This people, especially the male portion,
seem to have a natural distaste for labor. They would be aristocratic
if they could. In days of slavery they had their household servants,
and tried to imitate the more wealthy slave-owners by living in
idleness, and they still look upon labor as degrading.

They make no effort to get themselves homes. The large majority live
in log cabins, with no windows. The doors stand open winter and
summer. The women in cool weather always sit with a little shawl
around them and a sunbonnet on.

There are generally two rooms to each house, usually with a chimney
or open hall between them, so you have to go out of doors to pass
from one to the other. In the kitchen (which also serves as
dining-room) is a large fireplace and a cook stove, if they are the
happy possessors of one.

The other is the sitting and sleeping-room. You will often see three
beds and one or two trundle-beds in a single room. Here the whole
family and all the visitors sleep. We have sought to rest with
thirteen of us in a room, perhaps 15 by 20 feet, and not a window in
it and the doors shut. Fortunately the large-mouthed fireplace gave a
pittance of ventilation. No carpets are used, and furniture is very
limited. I believe nine-tenths of the people could put all their
goods on a couple of loads and be ready to move at an hour's notice.

Families are large, numbering twelve, fifteen or even nineteen
children. Girls marry young, and seem to be entirely satisfied with
their condition. You seldom hear a desire expressed for anything they
don't possess. Give them a box of snuff and a stick to chew it with
and you never hear a murmur escape their lips. Tobacco is
indispensable. Old and young, male and female,