Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1906-08-22
Lexington in Summer as Seen by
DIR. James Il. Smith

LIE afueS IL Sntth
Rev. James P. Smith, D. D.,
editor of the Central Presbyterian,
Richmond, who is spending several
weeks in Lexington this summer,
published the following letter in
mis- paper Last week, descriptive of
his visit here:
Whatever Lexington may be In
other seasons, we are entirely
satisfied with it as summer resort.
| One does not see the throngs of
students and cadets who are crowd
ing tine two institutions in the fall
and winter, nor hear the sound Of
the bugle from the parade ground,
nor the shout from the foot ball
field. But there are other things.
The learned gentlemen of the facul-
ties are not all in Europe or on the
seashore, and there are cheerful
greetings in the halls and libraries;
and the pleasant sounds of uncOunt-
ed children through the beautiful
grounds of the university.
The people of The good town are
at home, and the homes are open,
with many visitors. There is no
postal delivery yet, so each morn
ing you meet on the streets and at
the post office the friends of many
years. On the courthouse steps
you find q select couerie of gentle
men and all affairs are reported
and discussed; less formal dis
cussion of public matters than OBJ
tanned in the old Franklin Society
of the antebellum times. Among
those most widely known are the
venerable DIR. VIM. H. Ruffner,
father of Virginia public schools;
and Attorney-General Anderson,
from the legal contests in Rich
mond; and Hon. II. st. George
Tucker, president of tie James
town Exposition land General Scott
Ship, of the V. M. l.; and Presi-
dent G. H. Denny, of the Univer-
sity.
About q bakers dozen of Pres
byterian ministers have greeted
you this week. Regretting the
absence of the pastor, Mr.Southall.
you find in his place the Rev. F.
G. Railey, lately of Florida, who is
filing the pulpit most acceptably.
Here at home are DR.. d. A.Penick
and DR.. LIB. Turnbull. For few
days we have DR.. Whaling of
Dallas, Texas, the former pastor;
and sojourning for week or TWO
are DR.. Wells of Wilmington, the
Rev. H. T. Graham of Farm
Vile and the Rev. Lee Irwin, of
Radford. Most honOred of all are our
beloved missionaries, the Rev H.
w. Myers of Japan, and the Rev.
J. R. Graham, Jr., of China. Most
any day you may find the Rev. W.
W. Ruff, who is not far from town,
and DR.. w. R. Laird of Danville,
who is a Rockbridge farmer for
his months vacation. And then
come the stalwart elders of Timber
Ridge and Monmouth and Falling
Spring and Oxford, And all this
suggests that to enjoy Lexington
to the fullest measure, one must
be a Presby terian himself, and have
the blue blood of Belfast and Derry,
or of Aberdeen and Perth.
This suggests also that Rock
bridge has a history; story of
brave men, who came into wilder
ness between the great mountains,
and wrested the lard from savages
and wild beasts and felled the
timber and built their first homes
of logs, then built their churches
and their school houses, and opened
the first roads, and fought the
battles of American independence.
This fell the story will be told at
the anniversary of old Timber
Ridge, and the story will grow In
interest and in the pride of all this
people through generations to
come.
Nothing moves you in Lexington
like the tomb of Robert E.Lee, and
the beautiful recumbent statue of
the great commander. You stand
with uncovered head, and the
memories set your breast to heav.
ing, and the heart sends the tears
to the eyes. No other artist will
ever do what Mr.. Valentine has
done. For an unmeasured time,
this will be the shrine to which will
come the sons and daughters of the
Southland. Up in the green
cemetery you uncover again before
the monument where rests under
the shade of the trees the body of
Stonewall Jackson, and around
you are the tombs Of many more,
heroes of war and heroes elso of
peace. There are warriors and
statesmen and scholars and d.
vines, whose names cannot be for
gotten, and good women, mothers,
teachers, authors, who nobly filed
the measure of a Christian wo
mans service of Christ and of the
world.
In whatever way you look over
the town--among the scholastic
buildings, from under the trees,
you have the views and glimpseHof
the loveliest mountain scenes.
Across cultivs ted fields and fair
homesteads to the west stands the
IN Vt NJ