The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-06-13
AN HISTORIC SUBURB.
SUCH IS GEORGETOWN TO THE Ma
TIONA' CAPITAL.

Was a Thriving Village Before
Washington Was BOrn-A Visit to
Mrs. SOuthvOrth, the Novelist
How She Wrote Her Charming
Stories.
Washington. June 1O.-In the beginning
was Georgetown. Before Washington
thought of being, Georgetown was a
young lady in long dresses, coquetting
gaily in the best society Of the young re-
public. Now she Is only a shabby suburb
Of Washington-an aged poor relation"
decidedly down at the heel. Having aris-
en- so early in the morning of the century,
she naturally grew tired and sleepy long
long ago, and the village that once tripped
so smartly up and down the hills has been
sitting still, with folded hands these many
years The dear old girl has a right to her
dolce far niente, for she celebrated her
one hundred and forty-ffth birthday last
winter This is her story, in part: In the
year 1851 the Legislature of the province
Of Maryland authorized certain commits
sioners to erect town in what was then
frederick county, at the head of navlga-
ton on the Potomac, to be formed from
the purchase of sixty acres of land above
the mouth of Rock creek and to be named
Georgetown-for in those days the Mary
landers were loyal enough to King George
II. The commissioners accordingly chose
the site; but the owners of the land re-
fused to sell, hanging off for a higher
price, as land owners to this day have an
inconvenient habit of doing. However, the
ground was assessed and taken, and the
sum of $50 pounds sterling left for the
evicted owners to accept or reject, as they
saw fit; and on Feb. q, 1852, the laying
out of the future Georgetown into streets
and lots was completed. At that time
George Washington was a STRIPPING of 10
years; but only three years later his mill
tary reputation was established in the
unfortunate Fort Duquesne affair. Napo-
leon Bonaparte was not born yet, and La
fayette was baby King George III was
then Prince George and only IA years DID,
but when he died in 1920 he had lived long
enough to see his thirteen American col
onies organized into a powerful nation and
the village on the Potomac, which had
been named in honor of his father city
of 5000 souls. The last time Lafayette
visited the United States-after the great
Frenchman had taken part in two revo-
lutions and seen his own king lose his
head and the English king his richest ter
ritories-he put up in the fiourishng city
of Georgetown, en- route to the tomb of his
friend and fellow soldier at Mount Yer
non. When Georgetown was young it
was a common thing 10 hear in her streets
the pious ejaculation God bless King
George The loyalty of her citizens was
proved in the French and Indian wars,
wherein the western counties of Mary
land and Virginia suffered severely. In
1772 the town was In great 1utter Of
excitement for some British ship sailed
almost up to her doors with regiments of
regulators" aboard, under command OF
Gen. Braddock, come to fight the French
and Indians; and not many months later
came the dismal news of the failure of
the expedition, and how all the gallant
soldiers with whom the Georgetown maids
had danced and f1irted would have been
completely annihlated but for the discre-
ton Of young Col George Washington of
Virginia. Again, in 1853, the town was
giving up to rejoicing, bells were rung and
banners waved because of the victory at
Quebec. But not a great while after that
one might have noticed that the people
were less warm in their expressions of
regard for young George III than they
had been for his father. The Boston mas
sacre and the Boston 'tea party and
the burning of the peggy Stewart" with
her cargo of tea, at Annapolis, set men
to thinking-to wondering how long duty
required them to submit to such an un-
reasonable mother; and when the time for
rebellion came Georgetown furnished her
fun quota of men and stores to the armies
of Washing ton and Lee. At the close of
the revolution she found herself, with
population of about 1900, in a state, 70
stead of the province of Maryland. On
the S0th of March, 1871, there emanated
from Georgetown a proclamation by Pres
ident Washington, in conformity with an
act of congress of the previous year 10
eating the permanent seat of government
of the United States in the District of
Columbia-thus giving birth to the city
of Washington and allowing the people
of Georgetown Md, to subscribe them
selves for the first time as of George
town, d. c."
The present population OF this suburb
of Washington is reckoned at 1900. Street
cars (electric), crossing the dividing Rock
creek by several bridges, bring Its re-
hottest parts within few minutes of the
white house and the capitol. Though It's
shabby business portion, swarming with
idle negroes looks much like other Vir-
ginia and Maryland towns gone to seed.
the old Georgetownians consider them
selves the creme de Ia creme of the aris-
tocracy of the country, and look down
with lofty scorn upon the mongrel society
Of the rest of District of Columbia.
There is still a great deal Of wealth In the
town, but more broken down gentllty.
It's picturesque nights" are dotted with
handsome villas; its Oak Hin cemetery
in which rest the remains of many cele-
britles, including the authors of ''Home,
Sweet Home" and THE Star Spangled
Banner" is among the finest in the world /;
its great university. under the care of
the fathers OF the Society OF Jesus, is the
Oldest Roman Catholic college In the
country, and its Convent OF the Visitation,
founded in 1859. has educated more girls
than any other school and counted among
its religieuses the daughters of many
prominent families.
The object Of my visit to Georgetown
this morning was to call upon Mrs. Emma
ID. r. n. Southworth, the well known nov
elist, and probably the most prolific writer
of books America has produced. She owns
a brown painted wooden cottage on the
nights. overlooking the Potomac and Vir-
glnia hills, In what used to be a beautiful
situation, before the new power house of
the electric railway was set close up I'M
der her front door and grading had cut
off the premises In the rear. The railway
company, by the way, tried TO buy the
Southworth place, and offered It's owner
he