The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1897-12-17

''iii va 'ii' W iiiii>N't.t N''!titltttl~ = IL l
Henry Robinson, from Ohio. on on,
side. and James Knight, of New York
on the other. There are few foreign
names: but, strange to say, those ot
women appear on many Of the slabs
Why they are here do not know
There were Belle Bnyds and female
spies III the war. but not - many as all
these. Perhaps soma OF them were
nurses in the hospitals around Wash
ington, wher2 they died of diseases
contracted from the sick and wounded
soldiers: or maybe they were daughters
of the regiment: and few NAV have
been those odd characters who shed
the habiimcnts of their sex. Gonnc,l the
warriors guard. and marched, Amazon
like, to their graves. In either case.
the spirit of hcroiSm was within them.
and they deserve to sleep on Fame 5
eternal camping-ground."
The colored troops, two or three
thousand of them, lie by themselves in
one corner: and, like their white COM
paniOns-n-arms. most of them went to
glory rn Virginia battle-Gelds and
Washin 5ton hospitals. Besides the
Boys in Blue, few hundreds who wore
the Gray are also buried here.
At length, wearicd of intermnable
graves. You turn to the left by some
pathway under the immortal oaks. go
southwark up .and down the gentle
hills. and across two or three little
streams, always with graves on either
nd,-till suddenly an opening in the
trees discloScs Arlington House. just
ahead, looking very much rs it did
when famed for sumptuous hospitality
in its halcyon days ''befo' the wah, as
they say in Virginia. viewed from
Washington, the mansionappcars snow
white amid the surrounding green: but
|
closer inspection shows it to he pale
yellow. 1t was built in the Grccian
style, designed from drawings of the
temple of P;estum, near Naples Its
central portion is 60 feet square, flank
ed on either side with wing 80 feet
square, giving Il frontage OF l4G feet.
This is faced hy a portico - feet deep,
with eight magnificent Doric columns
20 feet high, supporting its pclimcnt.
These figures convey no idea Of the
dignity and aristocratir prctensions OF
the place. or of the air Of snug comfort
and generous good cheer which vet
fingers around the diSmlntlcd home
BY the way, the general impression
that Arlington was owned 10y Robert
f. Lee at the time of the war, and that
it was coniiscatcd because OF his par
ticipancy in tie rebellion. is n mistaken
one. General Lee never owned so
much as a brick in lis walls 1t he
longed to his wife. who inherited it by
direct descent from George Washing
ton ParNe Custis, the adopted son of
our first president. She had only Il
life-intereSt in the estate. and at her
death it would have reverted to Gen
eral Custis Lee, the next in line. The
Lee family occupied it till 1861, when
they went south to east their fortunes
with the contrdrrary. In the follow
Ing year it was taken rs the military
headquarters Of General Mcdowell. Of
the United States army. and WAS Cc-
cupied by the federal forces till 1868.
when it was sold by the government.
under the dirccttaX act. for the sum
o. SO (over-du" taXcs). TIL" money
was t,nl@rcd, again and again, by
| friends OF the Lee and Gus is families.
| bat was refused. Those were trouhlous
| times, when injustice ran riot on both
sides, and the harbaritles we are now
condcmning i'll Cuba we're not alto
! gcLhcr unknown in oar own more en-
! lightencd land. After the war. Mrs
Lee brought suit against the govern
ment for the recovery Of the property.
or rather for its value, as meanwhile