The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1895-10-02

The third capital of the Colony and
of the Commonwealth was
RICHMOND.
On entering it or looking upon 1t from
the highlands of Manchester, across the
James, one recalls the lines of Mrs.
Hemans:
"Rome, Rome, thou art no more
AS thou hast been.
On thy seven hills of gore
Thou reignedst queen"
Like Rome, Richmond is built upon
seven hills, and she is indeed queen
of cities-picturesque, interesting and
charming. Unlike the previous cap
itals, it is not rich in Colonial and Rev
dictionary annals. In the days when
every considerable settlement had its
battles with the Indians, it is curious
that it should be the scene of but two.
In the Revolutionary period, the traitor
Arnold attacked and captured it, in
1881, when undefended except by
handful of militia. After burning the
warehouses and public buildings 1T
had then been the capital two years
his force decamped after INDUCING in
drunken orgies, harassed by the
militia. The place then contained
about 300 houses. AT the breaking out
of the Rebellion, it had a population of
about 10000. To day a population of
$4,000 is claimed mot unreasonably,
as by the census of 1890 it had 81 1888
people and has been rapidly growing
since. On my first visit to it, thirty
years ago, it was a sadly stricken town,
as the Confederates had burned about
third of the city upon its evacuation
all the business portion. Main street,
then burned, now has fine business
blocks and is the center of the whole
sale trade, while Broad street, parallel
to it, is given up to the retail trade. 1t
really is broad street, as its name i'm
plies.
CAPITOL PARK
is but slightly changed since the war.
The descendants of the same squirrels
play among its trees and gambol over
the grass, tame and playful as kittens.
Crawford's colossal equestrian statue
of Washington is still there, and is now
completed by the addition of life-size
bronze statues Of George Mason,
Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Nelson,
John Marshall, Andrew Lewis and Pat
rick Henry-Virginians all-around the
ical figures in bronze representative of
colonial and revolutionary battles. A
marble statue of Henry Clay adorns an
-Mceable work of art, however, is life
OF pto Off pf tnn Ua1l To- b.
son. The inscription reads as follows:
Presented by English Gentlemen as trib-
ute Of admiration for the Soldier and Patriot
THOMAS j. JACKSON,
and gratefully accepted by Virginia in the
name of the Southern People.
DONE A. d. 1876, 80
in the hundredth year Of the Commonwes TN
Look! there is Jackson standing like a
stonewall"
THE CAPITOL
has been repaired, but is unchanged In
any essential particular. l we'll remern-
Der that on my first visit marveled at
the huge iron stove in one corner Of
the central hall, which then did its
level best to warm the senators and
burgesses,-it seemed years behind the
times to heat such a building in that
way. 1t has now been removed from
the scene of its former uselessness and
has retired upon its aurels, and steam
radiators now supply caloric; but a
niche has been cut in the wall, and
there the old stove stands, a relic of
byegone days. The furniture of the
chambers of the senate and house of
burgesses is of plain, solid mahogany
rather clumsy and ugly of itself, but
possessing rare interest from the fact
that in those chairs have sat many and
many an intellectual giant, when the
Old Dominion bred giants instead of
pygmies. In them, too, sat the men,
bers of the Confederate congress, them
selves men of no mean talent,
ST. JOHNS CHURCH,
nm the eastern suburbs of the city, still
stands. The church has been added
to, but the original portion is intact.
1t is of historic interest as the place
where Patrick Henry made the speech,
acclaimed "many time and oft by
Vermont schoolboys, containing the
words, "Give me liberty, or give me
DEATH" The pulpit is the same from
which he spoke, and it has queer
sounding-board behind it and extend
ing over the top.
FOREST HILLS PARK.
Richmond is ambitious to have 6
park which shall be to that city what
Central Park is to New York. To say
that it is incomplete is to put it mildly
1t is easily reached by street cars BY
going through Manchester, on the south
side OF the river, almost opposite holly
wood Cemetery, and is to-day merely 9
sort Of battle-ground, with various at
fractions for children, among them ar
alleged merry-go round" The day
was there it wouldn't go round withou
considerable persuasion on the part o.
four stalwart men; and as for its being
"merry," it squeaked wofully ant
''grated harsh thunder"
HOLLYWOOD CEMETERY.
Strolling through Hollywood Gene