Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1907-11-13
TRIP DOWN THE HISTORIC JAMES
Its Shores are Scenes of Many Bloody
c3nflictS Of Two Great Wars.

ing. the careless neglect and proverty,
where once was plenty. | failed to OBJ
serve siae Franklin axiom: *fie who
by the pillow would thrive, must either
hojl or drive. The Virginian has
soandoned the country life. Occasion
ally we noted good home, good culti-
walton. and were informed man from
the north came and purchased the worm
out homestead and builded anew.
1t is time of peanut and sweet pota-
to gathering, which are turned from
the soil by pillow with one mule power.
We were enjoyably entertained in Pet
ersburg at the palatial home of the
widow of the late General Malone, and
e'jnyed hospitality and good southern
cooking seldom my lot to be favored.
Our itinery now leads us dowr the
James river to Old Point. thente over
the roads to Norfolk. On board the
day boat Pocahontas, we go down the
river past places of the greatest histor-
c interest. Surviving massacre by In
dians, the James river country became
the seat of a civilization that looked
back ON a proud line of forbears. The
tempest of warfare swept across this
pleasant river of romance for four
years and left desolation. History now
unrolls her time stained scroll of three
centuries. We pass the Drewey bluff,
where Confederate guns stopped the
further advancement of the Union gun
boats and kept them back four years.
We pass Malvern hill, where Mcclellan
ended his penisular campaign, battle
fought by division commanders, and for
savagery, for utter disregard of human
life, the desperate attempt by the Con
federates to distroy McClellan's army
finds but few parallels in modern war
fare. We pass Harrison landing, where
the Potomac army retreated and there
ended in failure the campaign against
Richmond in 1862 Truly a sorrowful
history is written here. We pass scenes
of mighty conflicts that divided the ma
ton With Gettysburg ON the right,
Antietam, South Mountain. Balls Bluff,
Bull Run, GAINESVILLE, Rappahannock,
Fredericksburg, Slaughter Mountain, the
Shenandoah campaigns, Chansellor
vile, Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Cold
Harbor, Cams Mill, Savage Station,
Seven Pines, Fair Oaks, with Grants
campaign against Richmond and Pet
ersburg to Appomattox on the left a
stretch of more than three hundred miles
there is scarcely foot of ground that
does not mark a place of deadly con
flict or a burial of some unknown. 1t
tells of seventy-two thousand Union
dead; it tells of more than two hundred
thousand Union soldiers wounded, and
nearly as many Confederates human
sacrifices for constitutional liberty.
Now we look ashore and are passing
the home of the head of the Randolph
family. one of the distinguished Of the
Virginians. Here also was the home oi
General Pick EFT; now are passing the
Shirley place and home of Light Horse
Harry zee. Now we land at Bermuda
Hundred leave some freight and mail.
This place takes It's name from the one
hundred people who survived the wreck
of the expedition of 1908, while enter
ing the eapes. A furious s.ornIs drove
them TO sea and wrecked them on the
Bermuda Islands without provisions,
except furnished by the sea and forest.
They cut cedar trees built boat fas-
tened together with wooden pins and
calked with mud. set sail for the capes,
passed up tho road, entered the James
and landed one hundred from Bermuda,
whence its name. For shipwreek trials,
suffering with hunger, these wave
tossed one hundred suffered more than
has said that Shakespeare founded his
Tempest on this incident, but it does
not read so.
We pass Berkly and Westover. two
grand old colonial estates. Rerkly is
the noted place of the first President
Harrison, and still owned by the
Harrison family. Arnold came here
and remained few days on his trip to
ID IL
on the way to bis doom at Yorktown;
Lafayette and Stuben were here. the
Union and Confederate armies occupied
the old plantation at dfIerept times,
and it still stands, an illustration of the
colonial type two hundred years ago.
A fishing station is past, then we
land at Charles City Court House. the
home of the Tyler family, where Grants
army crossed on pontoous A landing
is made at an old rickety pier. Back
in shady grove of oaks is the Bran
don home. once celebrated for hospital,
ity. The whistle blows and we learn
we are nearing Clearmont, an old
twelve thousand acre plantation around
which. before the war, was centcreG
the chivalry of the James. Nov fish
ermen draw the sein, pack fish, and tbc
old time glory is but remembrance.
James Island is now before us. The
steamer ties for an half hour TO visit
the old site Of the first settlement.
Tbe colonial danes are trying to pre-
rye the place, around which is much Of
interest to our history. A cross marks
the place where Rev. Robt. Hunt, with
a sail fastened to trees, stood when he
landed and offered prayers of thanks
for the preservation. Another marker
designates the site Of the first house
of Burgess, 1919, who enacted ordi-
nanees as cruel as Torq Iemada, and
called il liberty. The colonists died
from miasma and nostalg,n ir large
nun. bers, while Indians took tier por
tions. The places Of the dead were
filled with new arrivals; and later wo-
men were brought here, says a chron-
icler Of that time: sold for tobacco,
and took their place in the cookery and
cultivation Of tobacco Gentlemen of
wealth came. bought large plantations,
raised tobacco, sent IL to FL lgiand,
brought back brick to build large aone...
Tobacco was raised on all plantations,
while the people suffered for food. This
historic old city was on the ragged edge
for many years, till Bacon rebeled and
burned the old town. Between the
numbering Of the colOnists on one side
anI the Indians on the other, James
town for three-fourths Of century
passed through trials seldom expert
enced. The British destroyed the build
ings in l77G, and the Union troops
burned the houses in 1862.