The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-01-04

| .tlliCl~O Il1bNnP.I
TnE HOME or JOHN RANDOLPH, OF po.Soyr
Passing recently from Richmond, Va, ia
the Cult, over the banvile railroad. I on.
tered country new To me- Eight old cnun-
ties Of the Old Dominion welc threaded NV
This road, and it was one of the great inner
lines Of communication Of the late Contedc.
yacy. Occupying the same relation To il on
The east OF the A!lcghanies that the East Vir-
@inia and Tennessee road did on the west.
BY the Dasvillc road Davis and the Confede-
rate Government fed. barely escaping, by
four hours, Stoncman'S raiders from over
the mountains. | passed Amelia Court
house. where Lees army rendczyouScd, and
were detained 10 forage for supplies. while
Sheridan and Meade cut them of ahead at Je-
| tersNlir, and near by Ewclrs corps surrcn-
| dcrcd.
! The country was very beautiful in the late
| tall. with the trees nearly leatlcSS, SO that
| the landscapes were exposed and, where
We entered the valleys OF the Staunton and
| dan, saw richer country than upon the
clay hilsideS Of tidal Firginia--long bot.
toms, tnnnci->hapcd. widening around the
woody hills. and juicy look, rs of marsh.
fowl and rank vegetation, in the strong, soil.
like air. The houses Sat upon lofty capes
| and points OF hills, sometimes old brick man
SionS surrounded hy rGcro-QuarterS, and
again merely large leg st!r.vtures, and all ir
more nr less decay. ThV ). Gods would have
seemed dense ut any oi.y. zine Of the year
i hut III the plains IlerI au.aU cattle and wild
pigs, &nd tobacco-lou>ts were set up in close
proximity, giving lock Hy YopulousnesS tc
the region 10 which itNts u0t entitled. This
i he great tobarvo-la,iu ot he scaboard still
for Il hundred milo along &c second rcrrac,
oil irginia and tE> taro.i.l.,a.
NElGuBoRNoob TAIE .yGvT RANDOLPH.
"Yondcr is the house OF John Randolph
OF Roanoke" said al engineer Of the rail
road, who sat Ill my side. Wood Bouldin
of the Virginia Court oi Appeals, lives there
now. He l. no k:H to Randolph that know
t Of. Rouldn's father. To.n, succeeded Ran
,lolph in Congress. and d:li oI paralysis il
lis seat, aS he rose 10 &nauti!c1 Randolph:
death ia 1884. Ir,, sin. Til, i, Randolph's
country. and Patrick Hc;ry died here also
The land i worth about So III acre"
. looked up and SAW on Il high hilltop
amongst large torc.t trees, AID backed by
dense and extensive woods. the hermit
r like hGnc of this celebrated od,ity and hui
, ! man riddle Tie place had been altered 10y
It's later pruprirlorS, but there still remained
The small clnlnp ui negro quarters, AND
the two wooden houses separated from
each othcr-unc "t los, the other clapboard
Il ed where, IN sort OF savage lawn, the
great stakeholder had passed SO many years
. Il was hardly more than Indian comfort aS il
-ccmed-low buildings, ouly one story and
s;tlrct high, with few and small windows
ard OH one a low log porch. How different
arc the ideas Of comfort III different ages
what American statesman now would live
iik, Randolph for his land: And yet he
mrrilcd the respect Of widely different types
OF men. The Quaker poet Of New England
.Iu@ OF him with mistaken ideas Of the ge
n.laphy:
There. wlc:c with living ear and eye
IT.. heard loioluac's Rowing.
Ana through his tall, guCcslral trees
, saw lr1GIniI'S sunset glowing.
NJ -r,">. still looking 10 ! he west.
i:,ur.,rh i!rr dark wood shadow.
| :, II h" >tiii would scr III" sun
- Siuk down Oh wave ana meadow.
The second line ought to he, He heart
= the Staunlen'S flowing" il it meant 10 de
: note his rcSling-pIice. for Randolph's ashe
: still rest mere, in the midst OF the forest neal
his log cabins 4 tree by the grave, and for
mcrly also an unmarked stone. lie was thu
l., last OF his race.
:, THE MAN REVIVED.
d A | looked upon this lonesome autumn
: Virginia scene, and the deliberate and warn
! Jug poem OF Whittier came 10 my mind
; with lis too truthful ending,
q omore than all thy dead rcuown.
Were now one hero living,
I cMIt:tyorcd 10 believe what manner o
min might this have been, who i'm our day
would re al inpoSsibility in public lite
i'or nearly thirty Years he was in Congress
Like Ihaddcus Stevens, who possessed some
Of his power OF >corn, he was Il bachelor
For Years he was chairman OF the Committee
| OF Ways and Means. and Jefferson habitual!N
: consulted linn. Ecnton--a cold. digniliet
criticisms that for thirty years he was the
political meteor Of Congress, and often lht
planetary plague. and. as the scollrger o
pretcn>ion, mcaGness, vice, and dema
=, go"uery. the hcnelactcr OF the House.
- And on that hilltop he lies, like the In
dams Of whose blood he boosted amongs
the naked trccs--a man without monu
ment, lis he never created any institution o.
; public measure. Might he arise and lool
, around his country now, it would seem Il
> deserve less Of his terrible eXcoriatiou fort,
!, wears ago: " poverty staiketh through tin
= land while we are engaged in political meta
:, physics, and, amidst our filth and vermin
like the Spanish and Portuguese, look dow
n with contempt on other nations. We hug
70 our lousy cloaks around us, take anothe
u chaw Of tubbacker,' float the room will
| nastineSs or ruin the CRATE and flre-irons
where they happen not to be nasty, and tr,
' conclusions upon constitutional points. Poo
>, = old Virginia! Poor old Virginia."
s RANDoLPR's NEiGHBoR, HENRY.
= How is this called Roanoke" said Il
. the aifahle engineer, being on the Stain
l. ton :"
G well, there is little creek, believe
h called Roanoke, winding through Randolph
o Old estate. At any rate, this is i'll the genera
II valley OF the Roanoke, and Roanoke is th'
: name Of the railroad station, two miles from
: tile old fellows abode. He was born at Cav
t sons, IN estate near City Point, just before
the Revolutionary War. Ills youth wa
spent ut MattoaX, another estate, this side O
: Petersburg, and he also lived at Bizarre, s
third estatc-all Of which were destroyed
by fire. He often came here to shoot ant
: stop a while, but he moved here after 1910
: when Bizarre burned up. He never bull
Z anything extensive down here"
''Was he rielf'
, .'Oh, yes one Of the largest SHAREHOLDERS
in Virginia He left three hundred ane
eighteen slaves and one hundred and eighty
: horses, and he had some OF the best racing
stock i'll the country"
Have any more recent great men come
from about here?"
"Yes, sir. Tom Bocock and General JOt
Johnston.'
; rArc you much acquainted around here?'
Putty toi'bul well
"Wlat do the people Of this day think O.
Randolph"
..The old people remember him as naughty