The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-06-16

home in clonweli Castle, and was set up to receive court as lady, the re- membraflce that at the same hour my mother and the children were gathered around the table, and my chair, the one which my sainted father had occu- pied. was vacant. so oppressed me that I stole away to more retired apart ment. where. after time they sought and found me sleeping in large arm chair. like an overgrown baby. l thought then, and often since. of the significance of the Apostles of Our Blessed Lord, sleeping for sorrow as the time drew nigh when the Master would leave them." Well, SO be it, Loch Lynn, and its rock-crowned sum- mits. and purple heather are all passed by now, like as to when one goes on a long journey. and beareth away in memory only. beautiful impressions of the landscape.
 ''The rank of John Lewis was that of an Esquire, and he inherited hand some estate. which he greatly increased by energy and skiilful management, and became the Jesse of contiguous property to the estate of Lord Ston- mithgaion. The owner of these es- tates of Stonmithgaion and Dunderry was a nobieman of profligate habits and ungovernable passions, and seeing the prosperity of his Jesse, and repent ing the contract he had made, attempt ed with the aid of a hired band of ruff fans to take forcibie possession of the premises. With them he surrounded the Castle md called upon John Lewis to evacuate the place immediately, which demand was indignantly refused. The desperate Lord commenced the af- fray by dischafging his firearms into lgttlin0 ha inua1td hrnfhn 70 of John Lewis, and injuring his wite. Upon this the enraged husband and brother. rushed out. followed by his faithful hand of retainers, and soon dispersed the assailants, though not until Lord Stonmithgaion and nIs stew ard perished by the hand of John Lew is. His friends advised him to leave the country. rendered :.ecessary by the high position of his late antagonist aud the cesperate character of surviving assailants. He therefore after ,.rdW ..,ss up a detailed statement of the affair. which he placed in the hands of his friend. Lord Finnegal, embarked with his family on board vessel bound for America. accompanied by thirty of his faithful tenentry. The emigrant3 landed on the shore of Virginia and fixed their residence in the unbroken forest of Augusta County, few miles below the site of Staunton, and upon the banks of the river Lewis, whicn bears his naire. When the true cir cumstances were made known, His Majesty. King George, sent to John Lewis full and free pardon, and also generous patents of lard, still extant, granting to him large portion of the fair domain of Western Virginia. For many years after the settlement of Ft. Lc wis great amtty existed between the Indians and white settlers, whose num- bers increased apace until they became a formidable colony. It was then the Jealousy of the red man became aroused. and a war broke put, which for cool and desperate courage on the part of the white men, opposed by fe- rocity and cunning on the part of the indians was never equalled. When the red clover was first planted in Virginia by John Lewis 1t was reported by the | Indian prophets that the blood of the red men slain by the Lewises and their | followers had dyed the trefoil it's san guine hue. John Lewis was then well stricken in years but his sons were well qualified to fill his place. His young est son Charles ySas the hero of many gallant exploits which are still told by the descendants of border riflemen. On one occasion he was captured by the | AnuiduS NAlAG Oi a AuAAbAlS CACOl oiOhS and after aving travelled 200 miles with his arms pinioned, and goaded by the knives of his merciless captors, ef- fected his escape. While walking along the bank of a precipice he suddenly by strong muscular exertion, burst the cords which bound him and plunged l down into the bed of a mountain stream. The savages hesitated not to | follow. and in a race of several hun dred yards when leaping a fallen tree he fell prostrate among a thick growth | of weeds. The Indians sprung over | the tree where he lay concealed and with devout thankfulness he saw them | disappear in the recesses of the forest. When he thought of rising from his uneasy bed a new enemy appeared in the shape of an enormous rattelesnake which had thrown itself into deadly coll within few inches of his face. A contraction of the eyellds, the reiaxa- I tion of a muscle and the venomous rep tile would have sprung upon him. In this terrible situation he lay for sev- eral minutes when his deathIike ap- pearance doubtless so impressed the horrible creature that he slowly crawl ed away over his body. During this war an attack was made upon the set clement of Fort Lewis. at the time when the whole force was off on ac- tive duty. So great was the surprise