The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-01-08
Mr.. Wise's Omissions and Errors.

/ read with great interest and pleasure
the address Of Mr.. John S. Wise before
the Congr, gational Club. of New York.
which was published in The Times Of the
18th Of December The whole subject OF
the early settlement aid population of
Virginia is treated in a very interesting
and attractive manner, highly instruc-
tive to those who wish to know where
their forefathers came from. and the
different characteristics of the different
colonists are stated very clearly, intelli-
gently and accurately.
The only class that he seems to have
overlooked and omitted is the Scotch
merchants, who came from Glasgow and
Edinbmg in considerable numbers about
the middle Of the last century. and were
extensively engaged In the tobacco trade
at different points on James river, also
on the Rappahannock and Appomattox.
Osborne's. in Chesterfield county, seven
miles below Richmond, was one of those
points; Dumfries. In Prince William
county which was then shipping port.
but now deserted village" vas an
other; Falmouth. in Stafford county Top
poslte fredericksburg was another. Basil
Gordon, the elder was one Of the Scotch
merchants, who amassed large fortune
in the tobacco trade at Falmouth. Later
on, and after Richmond became the centre
VI al tAltlSlNt lODdttO lIdue, the GcOlCn
merchants came in there and controlled
to large extent the foreign and domestic
trade of Richmond and the interior towns.
Their descendants are now found amongst
tho best people in Richmond, the Stuarts,
the Caskies, the Cunninghams, the
Haxalls, the Warwicks. the Walkers. be-
sides many others whose names do not
occur to me.
The Scotch merchants may be said to
for their integrity and high sense of mer-
camille honor. They were without ex-
ception intelligent, well educated OF thor
Ough business habits, and models Of
superior penmanship and bookkeeping,
SO exact and particular that the error Of
a penny Qheir books were all kept In
pounds, shillirgs and pence was not al
loved to remain uncorrected; their idea
being that when there was an erro' of
a penny, there might be OF a pound, and
so 1t must be looked up and corrected. One
Of them is said to have put these words
on the opening pages of his ledgers: God
bless this book, and make IT ana me
honest" Another is said TO have always
required Of young men VINO applied for
situation with him 10 make their appli-
cations in writing. ana If there was a sim
gle word nisspelt, or an ungrammatical
expression, the application was rejected.
have been told that this was very COM
mon with the Scotch merchants.
II may be added, that they all became
wealthy as wealth was then estimated,
but they did not make haste 10 be rich"
70 become millionaires. as some merchants
and others do nowadays, though per-
haps by more doubtful methods OF bust
ness than We're pursued by the Scotch
merchants.
IL was Scotch merchant who set
tied at Osbornes In 1880 and made a
handsome fortune in the tobacco trade,
and removed TO Prince Edward county
about 1870, and who donated the land
200 acres) on which Hampden-Sidney
College was built and now stands.
The present writer is one of his lineal
descendants.
There IS Just one other matter connected
with Mr.. Wise's address which / think
worthy of being roticed as a mistake,
which is the more noteworthy because
of the general accuracy of his statements.
This mistake consists I'm his confounding
(GeneraD Andrew Lewis. the great In
dian fighter, the hero Of Point Pleasant"
whose commanding figure is on the Wash
instOn monument N Richmond. with
Meriwether Lewis who went with VII
liam Clarke on their famous expedition
20 the head waters Of the Columbia river
in the year 1903. Menwether Lewis was
born in the county OF Albemarle In 1774
0he year that the battle OF Point Pleas
ant was fought, and was the private
secretary OF MIR. Jefferson during his first
presidential term. See Harris historical
Sketches Of Virginia, page III, where IL is
said that he was the son wealthy
farmer. He was probably Of English or
Welsh lineage-certainly not descendant
of John Lewis. who came from Ireland
d AuguSta county I'm l720 with his five
sons Andrew, William, Thomas, Charles
and Samuel. Andrew died In the year
1881, and was buried on his own farm I'm
Botetourt now Roanoke county, about
mile east of the town Of Salem. His
grave is well marked and there is now
a petition before the Congress OF the
United States for an appropriation TO
erect suitable monument 10 GiJ memory.
Some OF his descendants are now living
in Roanoke county. l.. JOHNSTON.
Salem, Va.