The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-09-11
.IOHNsON'S ISLAND.

.JOHNsON'S ISLAND.
,,he Johnson island Of local fame IS q
little strip OF land IN James River, iy'h ,,
h.4 veen the river and the old Ha X
NH race, now nightly enlarged ana III.
,rovod, ana would be at the foot OF
Eighth Street II that thoroushfare W '.EF'
extended down 70 the race. II y ap-
nroached along Ninth Street, ana was TOT
1 decade or moro occupied BY the Jonn-
son steam forges but for some years
nast has been used for steam power
hou Sc In connection With the electric l1shs
plont. It Is now to DO abandoned, Us inc
Biz power plant at the foot OF IWelheh
Street, deriving It's power from tne gan.
across the James, has been 80 en'afseu
ana amplined that II Will be able 70
furnish ali Of the electric power and l it'
needed by the company.
"Johnson's Island and Browns Is
land" arc frequently COMPOUNDED. Johh-
sons Island IS almost beneath tho FREQ
Bird 20. Browns Island 10 at the foot
Of Seventh Street, and Is connected with
that street by a bridge.
It was Upon the lattor island during the
war of 1se1-e5 that the Confedorates had
an ammunition factory. In 1853 We thil'k
1t was, ono Of the buildings was blown UP
by the accidental explosion Of decorating
powder, with the result that thirty per-
sens, mostly girls and boys, were K'llea'
While many others were horribly burned
1t was q dreadful accident, affecting
many families. but such was the rapo'tS
OF bloody occurrences during that period
that no great notice was taken OF u az
the time, and the event made little impress
sion upon the public mind.
or late years Browns Island has been
raised higher above the water. ana now
contains an important part Of the machin-
cry OF the electric light works. part
which is to continue In use there and not
removed
Long years ago what is now called
Johnson's Island was tho site OF the H Hun
ter Iron Works, and at one time water
power was conveyed to them from tho tho
Basin. That Is. It went from the Basin
to the Franklin paper MILL, and from the
mill to Hunters, and In doing so, II menu
DRY plays no trick upon US, It at one time
was conducted under" Haxnlls mill race,
and came upon the south side, where It
met and turned Hunters mill wheel. Sub
sequently, as we have said. the Johnson
axle works were esta blished there. These
FORCES were operated by steam. Upon the
removal OF Johnson to Manchester the
works came into use for the manufa cture
Of electric power and light. Now they
will do service for other manufactures.
4}.il5f5tz
e Colonel Bryan Is beginning to find that
tho least variation on his part from the
strict letter OF Organism brings him under
tho criticism of some Of the distinguished
statesmen who have heretofore stood by
him through thick and thin. The Hon.
Alexander Troup who edits paper
somewhere up In Connecticut. and who
has been worshippng at the shrine OF
Bryan ever since 1885, Is after the Colo
ners scalp now. and all on account Of
the Ohio Incident Troups rebuke and
excorlat1on OF Bryan for consenting to
tho running Of gold Democrat in Ohio
for tho United States Senate 10 O docu-
mont OF much vigor. However. Colonel
BRYAN has not yet deigned to reply,
but the supposition Is that when he docs
Troup's fur vii! make the air dense and
muggy.
ss&t5s7tS!4 =-==---='----= - FL '5tli -
The Newport News Tinles-Herald re-
rrets that Governor Montague thinks 80
lightly OF the nomination for the vice.
presidency as to say that he does not
want 1t and would not accept It, or words
to that effect. Our esteemed Tidewater
contemporary thinks our Virginia and
southern statesmen arc too modest, and
| It is doing its best to infuse little more
hustling ambition into them. The TIL.
says:
| What we need in the South Is more
| mon who Will take political honors OF
| a national character, We can get enough
to fiji the Jobs OF supervisors, school trus'
! tees. Mayors and town clerks. but wher
it comes to going right up to the White
House they duck and get shy.
: | =-===--==-==
At the fusion conference held in New
York night before last not only wa
Mayor Low renominated but Mr.. Forne'
was named for tho presidency by tn
Board OF Aldermen, and Mr., Grant 70
constable The Herald says that the re
nomination OF Mayor Low Is a challeng
to Tammany to make the fight on TN
old lines and trot out the best men 1t cal
beg, borrow or steal But is Is doubtful
\ IL tho Fourteenth Street politicians vii
a fell spurred to putting forth spe
cial efforts in selecting their chile
standard bearer now" Eg
And yet the independent candidacy o
Dcyery seems to put Tammany's pros
pecs in peril.
INrNt. |c.f HH7 Observation-Disclosures
The Sultan OF Turkey Is said to b.
vigorous and omnverous reader. II
keeps, SO the story goes, no less thai
<,ek... Il poypup snprat a ries cOnStaNtl