Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1904-02-20

which formerly occupied position OH
the south gable of Washington House,
Great Brington. and which now
stands, after being lost for over Il
century, in the ground. attached to
'The C,dars," on the road leading to
Great Brington, whittier Robert Wash.
ington and his sons removed from Sui
grave in 1906; 1t Is also oil dozen
pieces Of Washington furniture still
extant throughout the county of North,
anton md in the neighhorhoOd of
Sulgrave anu .... 's"'oh
The sun.dial bears unmistakuUl., 49,.
Washington arms-two bars (argenD
and, in chief, three mullats (gulcs)-
carved upon it, with the date 1917 and
the initials II. w. 1t is round slab
hfc6es III plah'GN1tle hrraan and peif9ngth
thick, chamfered on the lower side
The lines, figures and shield are in
cised about one-siXteenth Of an inch
deep, and the holes where the gnomon
was fixed are plainly to be seen. The
centre and sinister mullets Of the
shield are almost obllterated. but were
quite distinct when the relic was re-
covered. Both initials and date make
1t probable that 1t was made Coz n'1
ert Washington, me original occupant
OIL Tic onttage, who died In 1919. 1t
lay face downward for the greater
part Of century In the spot whence
it was recently unearthed.
The gables of Sulgravt Manor still
,~.. IL al,
turesqueness. Below one Of these an
cient gables is the Washington shield,
bearing the date AID. 1910. Time and
the elements have played havoc with
this relic, but enough can still be
made out to show us where the Stars
and Stripes of the Union may have
originated. This particular shield does
not bear the adopted MOTTO of the
family--an appropriate sentence from
the Latin poet Ovid, "Exitus ncta pro-
0at"--but it Is to be seen IN numerous
miniature carvings Of the arms which
adorn the massive masonry of which
the old porch is built. In close prox-
unity to the Shield and little to the
right is the old sun-dial, while higher
up in the centre Of the gable the
quaint arms of the ancient priory are
still to be seen. With successive res
torations and repairs much Of the mn
Client granduer disappeared, but the old
staircase and the grand old banquet
ing-hall, with its huge fireplace mas
sively framed" In oak, wildly be-
speak the splendor of its early history.
and it requires but little stretch of the
Imagination to conjure up one of these
merry scenes Of bygone days when
King Carnival held sway within its
walls.
Washington House, the modest little
Brington cottage in which the family
found home after leaving Sulgrave,
is now occupied by couple of farm
laborers and their respective families
In the employ Of Earl Spencer.
Near to the Washington House Is The
quaint old church, st. Mary's Of Great
Brington, where the father of the two
Virginia emigrants worshiped. 1t is
the oldest among the many ancl, mt
churches for which the county Of
Northampton is celebrated. The in
terror of the church has witnessed
many changes. but to the eye Of the
visitor from the new. young country
across the seas 1t Is full of recollections
and suggestions. To the antiQuary one
of the most interesting features Of the
Interior Of St. Mary's Is the peculiar
construction Of the old wOrme lien
pews and the diversity of the armor-
iql carvings with which they are en-
bellished, the total absence OF the old.
high backed order Of pews being par
ticularly striking. During one of The
many periods Of restoration. which 1t