The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-18
GUARD AT BEAUv0IR.
NORTHERN MAN WATCHES OVER
JEFF DAVIs's TREASURES.

ent Aspect OF the Home Where the
President of the Late Confederacy
spent His Latter Years.
Special Correspondence of the Chicago
Record.
Beauvoir. Miss.-Fred De Long, a James
vile (wis.) man, has an interesting oe-
cupation here. He has charge of the las,
home Of jefferson Davis and is performing
his duties under the direction OF The
widow of the former President of The Con-
federacy.
Beauvoir, tie once beautiful villa Wash
ed by the waters OF the Gulf is now duh
and deserted. 1t was 10 this home that
Mr.. Davis came almost from the doors of
Fortress Monroe, and here, with his wife
and daughter Winnie, he quietly worked
away his life, although his death occurred
in New Orleans. Here was his workshop,
in which, after the war, all that he wrote
of the great conflict in which he was the
most prominent figure on the Southern
side was written, and the evidence of the
wonderful amount of work which, with
the aid of his daughter, he perform
ed is here hidden away in this great man
the keys.
A superb Present.
Beauvor comprising sixteen separate
buildings and 1900 acres of land, former
ly belonged to a Louisiana planter named
Brown, who hailed from the Big Black
River country. At the close of the war
and at the beginning of the reconstruc-
ton era Brown had died, and chis widow,
fearful that the property would be con-
fiscated, sold Ii all to Mrs. Sarah Dorsey
for the consideration of $500 cash.
Mrs. Dorsey later on willed the entire
property to the once President of the
Confederacy, who, setting his face to-
ward his old home, found naught of home
to receive him. Ali of his Mississippi
Plantations were devastated by the rev.
ages of war He accepted Mrs. Dorsey 5
offer. and here, hidden away from The
world, he spent the remainder of his life.
The stately mansion which formed the
dwelling of the Davis family is a one
story structure, with great columns sup
porting a canopy covering a gallery SIX.
teen feet wide and seventy feet long. Al
each end of the main building is q small
structure, one being a guest room and the
other was used by Mr.. Davis and his
daughter as an office or library in which
the thousands of pages of manuscript
were turned out by the tireless worker
historian.
Nothing but bare floors and wells now
meet the gaze OF the intruder The books
Which filed the rough pine board shelves,
which reach from floor to ceiling, the up
rer portion being reached by gallery OF
crude construction, are now the property
Of the Howard Memorial of Richmond.
In the main room of the building stood
a massive desk where the defeated leader
vas accustomed to write, shaking the ink
from his pen on the wooden floor, where
the stains are seen to-day.
Miss Davis Apartments.
In this building is still to be seen abund-
ant evidence of the presence of a woman.
Miss Davis occupied apartments of her
own, in which her own books were shelv-
ed. In little alcove over a fireplace she
painted on the wa. two pretty little views
of the Blue Ridge mountains.
All of the furniture of the different
rooms has been devioed among different
members or close relatives of the Davis
family. Half hidden away among q lot
of rubbish, however are two large tin
biscuit boxes. Inside of them are packed
awey countless rolls of manuscript. some
in typewriting and some in &tle handwrit.
ing of Mr.. Davis and his daughter. Much
of the typewriter matter has been cor
rected by the hand of the Confederate
chieftan.
There remains in the apartments occu-
pied by Mr.. and Mrs. Davis queer con-
trivance of the old slave days. Under the
building, which is perched up on brit k
piers ten feet high. is a capacious wine
cellar, which now contains something over
100 dozen empty bottles of all kinds The
door 10 this cellar was and is row con-
nected by wire with a bell in one of the
chambers occupied by Mr.. Davis This
door could not be opened without ring ne
the bell. This was used as a check On
the thirsty darkies as well as other Dos
sible marauders.
In the basement is still to be found the
boat owned by Winnie Davis, which she
named the Barbashela In this boat she
is said to have met with an accident, in
which the boat was blown over and her
self, with two companions, thrown into the
Gulf. Miss Davis, being the taller of the
three, was able 90 touch bottom, and so,
standing, deity righted the boat, all be-
ing saved from drowning.
Several dilapidated equipages which were
used by all of the Davis family remain
on the place and these Mr.. De Long uses
to carry people back and forth from the
railroad stations. Hundreds of people
from the North who come down here TO
spend the winter months visit this relic of
plantation days, Mrs. Davis having SAGE
toned the opening of the place to visitors
Beauvoir, with its spacious grounds. rail-
road station and postoffice, including old
Dad King, the postmaster, may soon
have a new owner. Mrs. Davis, who is
seen about the place only occasionally, has
offered it for sale TO the Confederate Vet
Grams Labor Association, which is con-
sidering the project of furnishing a home
and small farms to Confederate veterans
still able to work. A committee of the
association has examined The place and
recommended its purchase for the purpose.
The Daughters of the Confederacy are also
considering a proposition TO buy the prop