The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1894-11-17
OLD COLONIAL HOMES.
SOME or THE historic MANSIONS
STILL INTACT.
Gups,ou Hall, the seat of tho Masons, I'm
Good Rspair-Raios of the Fair
fax House.

from a mile TO three miles from the water
Is opening up the country WonderIuiiy
rlch In historic interest IL VIII not De
long before the trolley Will whisk passeh"
gers further on, passing Woodlawn, tor
forty years the home Of Nellie Gurus, the
old FonlcK Church, familiar TO every
been built at the II stance and largely az
the cost Of George Washington, LORD
OF Gunston Hall. The old church was
built IN az from plans furnished Dy
Washington and the LANDED gentry
within an area Of ten miles from us yes
try. The church was built OF oricks
brought from England and the timbers IN
IL were all hewn from adjacent forests.
The Pohick Church still stands In almost
rs good repair as tt was century ago.
Ii IS five miles from Mount Vernon to
The southwark and three miles from the
Potomac RIVER. The new railway WIN
PASS IN sight Of the church, ana me Iat.
Ter will be- enc OF the points OF interest
About a mile from the Pohick Church
and between that and the river theIS
stands one of the greatest historic HAN ldn-
sions OF the Virginia colony period. Iheie
are these mansions In virginia WIG.
every schOoboy has heard ana read dooHt
and which every patriOtlc America" IT,
al some period OF his life to VISIT fIsl
Is Mo8nt Vernon. the Mecca OF 49,
citizen VINO Teyers the name OF aSdu'i,33
ton. Second is Monticello, the i ina6rn5e
cent mountain<op retreat oil lhV'i'a.
JefIerson. and last. but by no means least
Gunston Hall, the home or IeoIbe |'raia5Iit'
the frend. adviser, counsellor anu P ~
zeal tutor Of both Washington ana JeIse I
son and one OF the most remafhapIe l it
OF his time. History has hdrdiy peciI yu 10
TO George Mason, for at the pesiliiiH,s vi
the revolutionary period ne was ~ n -
and shoulders above any OF ms contC YIN
pOTaries in formulating ana auNoc INC
The doctrines which eventually touhue e.
preston In the immortal declaration oI ~, ~,
dependence. But he was very Iellitns
man and better loved the secluslOn OF ms
magnificent home than the honoIs ana
cares OF public Office He therefore de-
Tives his chief title 10 fame as the
friend and political conndant and tutor Oh
those YOUNGER men whose names were
destined TO become immortal.
yLvp FROM cRoMwEILs HATE.
The George Mason, who built Gunston
Hall ana occupied II with us CIV IeIlltc
acres FOR more than mar Cth ho S;,aorge
the firth i'm descent from mo feoISe
Mason who sought refuge from .tne hat
of Cromwell in Virginia IN 1901. ~ ,he
frst George Mason was member 81, 0l L wy
Rrltish parliament in Che time OF ChdIles
l., and afteiw ward commanded reg I"i tho
under Charles IL. and fousht at Ine
battle OF Worchester. lie neu 10 W.,
Cinia in disguise, and almost GeI't a.
SefOre WashirgtCn's birth he founded tle
Mason family in the Old DomnlOm'
The George Mason. of Gunston hSdi.
vas born in 1126. lie was SIX years oi9eL
than Washington. seventeen years oIu.I
than Jefferson and more than twenty
veaTs older than James Monroe, another
of his political pupils. lie was the li,.i
mate friend of them all ana they o wioT
ali the early statesmen of that perlou
were frequent and honored guests al
Gnston Hail. ~ ,,ao,,
was especially intimate. While the name
NJ Jefferson is inseparably connected
with the declaration OF independence
Is an historical fact that very mucu Vi
that famous document owes It's llspl ie,
ha NtTaiuidn of iTunStOn
Hall Indeed most of the biographies OF
jefferson admit that the ilrst rough ui AZ
Of the declaration was prepared III !le
library at GunstOn Han and that the
elder statesman was actually the au-
thor of many OF its fervid arrangements
of old George.
AUTHOR OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS
But George Mason's greatest fame,
in Virginia at least, attaches 10 MN as
the author of the famous "8ill of rights
and the Constitution of Virginia. Pre-
Vious to this he had gained much renOWh
by his rebellious spirit against tle
crown. which found expression in power
full arralmments of the Brltlsh polICS
toward the colonies. In 1169 he drafted
the ARTICLES of association against me
importation Of British goods, when the
Burgesses signed in a body after tnel
row with Lord Botcourt. In lU6 ne was
elected TO represent his country IN the
convention of that year ana II WIS
then that he drew up the famous blli
Of flights" which the convention adopted
with a preamble prepared by JEFFERSON.
Mason sat afterWard IN the asSSIlpIH
and supported all Of Jefferson reform
bills such ar cutting of entails the aDol-
ishment of primogeniture and the over
throw of church establishment. lie also
advocated the bill forbdding the further
importation Of slaves in lIlS ana ten
wears afterward sat in the Virginia con
Vention to accept or reject the federal
Constitution. which, by the way ne was
largely instrumental in drawing up
,h.,,rb ar,ba Of the Federal
Convention George Mason was elected
one of the first two United states Send-
tors from Virginia, but he declined the
honor, through Discrimination TO leave ms
estate. The last years of his life were
made wretched by continuous ana Niru-
lent attacks of the govt which when
one now regards the luxury OF ms Iuiai
life neednot be wondered at. George
Mason died in 1892, at the age OF sixty
six.
The great Virginian never reached his
true position in history or attained the
fame his great talents and capacity en-
title him to. For one reason, he sought 10
political advancement, but the chief
reason, perhaps was his attitude upon the
The name of Mason is now extinct in
that family The last surviving son OF
George Mason was John Mason VINO
lived at Analostan Island, opposite
GEORGETOWN. He was the father OF James
Murray Mason who for many years was
United States senator from Virginia, who
IBuItu WIN pliutll III NlO ldIllOu9 llt4lN
affair, and who was afterward confeder
ate commissioner In England. His sis
ter. John Masons daughter, married
Commander sydney Smith Lee, United
States navy, brother of General Robert
e. Lee and that couple were the parents
of the present General FitZhugh Lee,
OF Virginia. Another Daughter, the old
est married Samuel Cooper, formerly
Acknowledgement Of the United States army
but afterward In the confederate service.
IL seems strange TO be whirled along
Of ttnNr In a.gYf. ~ flH
historic intere Next to Mount Vernon,
mark Of the region. The Gunston estate
IS the second estate south of Mount Yer
non, the first being the ruins Of BelvOir,
the colonial home or the FarfaXes
Gunston was formerly known as the
meek" 30 called because its chief acreage
was on a headland that makes out into
the Potomac and around which the river
sweeps In n good deal more than a half
circle.
WHERE GEORGE MASON LIVED.
The old mansion, which Is still as wei
preserved as that at Mount Vernon,
stands back from the river on a bold
blum which overlooks the Neck and
commands magnificent view OF the
broad, winding river. The 1909 acres Of
the old estate were long ago divided
and subdivided into farms, now mostly
owned and TILED by northern settlers,
The chief interest, therefore, attaches 20
the house. This was built by George
Mason in 1879. II heavy walls were
built of bricks brought from England as
ballast in the old tobacco ships, ana they
stand to-day a striking monument TO
.AtA FOL md lfr,asa oglt no