Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1860-06-16

last, not III lie Tat around the sepulchefs
Of those who have not lived except in the
memory and heart for half century,
Their devotedness to good and great men
has no end nor bounds. What encourage
ment for young men to be good and wise
and great
Half an hour has passed and still not a
voice has been heard around the tomb
Yes, one voice. sob escapes from the ten
| der breast of a woman. She has read Of
Washington and his mother, Of Martha
| Washington, oflittle George with his batch
eft, and the recollections while here at the
tombs OF those patterns of humanity have
caused her breast to heaye and roll as the
ocean in storm; no cure but sobs and
tears. But the tempest is stayed by that
voice and the tears which roll from those
eyes that have just seen all that is lawful TO
behold Of little George and the great Wash
ington. That young man, her noble hus-
b nd, said, ''Mary, come along" They
started for that old mansion where Wash
ington dyelt and died, and we followed
along.
An hour Of allotted time remained, whicl
we spent in and around the patriotic hea
! quarters. John A. Washington, the for
mer proprietor and present tenant, was alb
sent. He is about to remove to anothe
country estate in Rockingham County, Va
all the furniture and relicts Of Washington
being boxed and packed up, We got to sec
nothing except that field spy glass, but wer,
not allowed to look through it. No favor-
were allowed US, except such as we usurped
as trespassels. ! am unable for want o.
space to describe the very extensive build
ings. About twenty Of Washington's
buildings remain; many Others are rotted
and gone. The barn is Of brick, and is The
only building Of imperishable MATERIAL
The dwelling is noble old structure, Of
/ squared timber, 70 feet by 40; IN the front
are high columns, at the west corners, of boil
ends, 80 feet distant from the mansion, arr
other dwellings, for laborers and servants
/ these conneetw the mansion by roofedpass
ways. Still others are connected in a sim
| liar way with those last described, SO that
a sort of amphitheatre is incoscd; the area,
being a seni-circle and containing about an
acre, was once fitted up for training horses.
The posts encircling about half an acre re-
main standing. A nuuibcr Of good dwell
ings are near by and are still inhabited BY
the blacks. Then there are stables, car
riagc houses, cribs, pens, stalls, Observable
ries, ice houses, offices, &c, showing that
Washington did things on larger scale
than ever conceived Of, larger than any
farmer since his day, except perhaps jacob
Strawn Of Illinois.
Curiosity attracted our attention to sew
eral colored children, boys and girls. A
number Of us gathered round them, inelud.
ing some ladies. They were interesting
children and Of more than expected intelli-
gence. They are the slaves Of John a.
Washington, children Of slave ancestors
owned by The ancestors Of John A., but not
of George Washington, who emancipated
! Ill his slaves. These children ia bonds al
the home of Washington viii be removed
to the Rockingham estate Each Of ON
company handed tho children a dime, ma
king oyer 5000. A slave mother ushere-
us through such rooms as were not marked
private, and guided Us round among the
buildings, answering all our questions quite
iutelligently. For her we made ZIP a purse
of$l,oo. For an old negro, 50 years Of
age, slave all his life and now a beggal
from house to house, according to his word
the same being coroborated BY the engin-
Ger on Our boat, we made up quite a purse
and gave him. | am not sure we did risihi
in all this, but humanity and goodness O
intention must be blamed if We erred.
Ny pencil and mental laboratory being
in fair running ORDER GOULD write for q
month Of my visit to Mt. Vernon. The
whole is panorama before me and fixed
there never to be erased. | have said
nothing Of the mansions in ruins and de-
serted along the Potomac and about
Georgetown and Alexandria, nothing ofdo-
serted faims-God knows why deserted
nothing Of the manners and customs and
wherein they differ from Webster and the
west, nothing Of this almost Italian climate
nor the soft, mild atmosphere, nothing q
the physical causes Of things. All consid-
cred | would not give up Wisconsin, fol
considerable boot--would scarcely give up
the cold, bracing, salubrious climate Of Wis
consin for this dirt and mud-not by vast
deal would L exchange neighbors and peo-