The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-02-16


 l It will not be her first visit, for the i weeks every witner on the Shonts estate l at Daphne, Baldwin county, on the east ern shore of Mobile bay.
 Her father. MT. Theodore P. Shonts, purchased one of the old houses at l Daphne some years ago. restored it. built a private pier and boat houses, beautified the extensive park about the house and 1 brought his family down to cruise in 1 southern waters and to pass at least a few weeks of winter amid the Alabama magnolias and oleanders that make this eastern shore one of the loveest in the world.
 MT. Shonts had not then taken so active part in government affairs. This was some years before his appointment as chairman of the canal commission, al- though at the time of his retirement from that position he still owned this estate in Alabama.
 t has now passed into other hands, but all along this low southern coast the estate will long be known as the shonts place.
 
 the old place would probably have never been restored. The house itself Is not l typical of the -pillared houses of the old south and could never have been a fine mansion. In fact 1t was not origi- nally built for a permanent residence. but for a summer home and, and 1t is not especially distinctive in character. i It's chief charm lies in it's worldwide gardens and it's proximity to the bay. The gardens are not in the sense of old fashioned, southern gardens. They are more like a private park with the drive- ways bordered with giant trees and the l terraces ending by white beach con- tinualy washed by the tides. No where on the southern coast are there such trees, such avenues of mag nolias and oleanders. The Spanish moss. characteristic of this coast, clings with it's grey inslstency to the branches of thousand trees.
 The Shonts yacht used to anchor at the foot of long pier almost directly in front of the house, which, however, cannot be seen from the water front It has been several years since l first saw the estate, and which for all it's wild, woodland beauty, struck me as strange as a place of residence because of it's
 isolation, at least for those representa- tive of the northern colonies who have made Florida and other favored sections of the south places of social interest equal to the European rivieras. l was surprised to find on this eastern Gfs r.f AI I1Hsf T houses were falling to decay where only the washings from the sea were heard where fisher folk drifted about in frail little craft colony of winter residents representing the multi-millionaire class of the north.
 The restoration of some of these old houses had been going on gradually. The village folk years ago adapted them selves to the northern invasion. They knew when the winter folk were expected, how many guests they were bringing down and the preparations that were going on in various winter homes. The caretakers at the Shonts resdencs 3 occupied an enyiable position above all others in similar capacities in the water front houses. The preparations there for the arrival of the family began with the old gardeners and ended with great prep arations within the house itself.
 When Mr. Shonts took over the estate it is said that Mrs. Shonts expressed a wish that the trees be preserved. In any system of landscape effects that a mod ern gardener would introduce. The threes were not to be disturbed. he driveways must conform to the trees, and all im- proyements on the estate must be done with an eye towards preserving the centuryold trees, draped with the soft southern moss. So it is due to Mrs Shonts that the trees on this estate have been so carefully guarded.
 Miss Shonts, whose marriage yesterday adds to the list of American heiresses who have made international alliances, was school girl when she lived on this beautiful old estate on the eastern shore ot Mobile bay. She was then devoted to