Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1914-08-14
The Love Story of
Thomas Jefferson.

| luUllldS JClICl SUu.
He was lean, freckled, sandy
haired lawyer and planter. She
was known as "the girl widow"
And she was only pretty, but
had an enormously rich father.
He was Thomas Jefferson-one
day to become author of the Dec
laration, President of the United
States, Father of Democracy.
She was Martha Shelton, daugh-
ter of Counselor John Wayler
aud widow of Bathurst Shelton.
When they met she was 81 and
Jefferson was 20. That was in
,177O.
Jefferson, like Washington,
had ever an eye for a fine wo-
man." AS a young man he was
forever falling in love and out of
it again. For example, he pro-
posed to Susan Burwell, a Will
liamsburg, (Va.) beauty, whom
he always spoke of as Belinda. u
He asked her to be his wife and
and coupled his proposal with
the remark that he was in mol
great hurry to marry, but that
he would be glad to wed Susan
on his return from an Indefinite
ly long trip to Europe. SheI
angrily rejected this lukewarm
avowal and soon afterward mari
ried another man.
1t was while his oft-battered
heart was healing from this
wound that Jefferson met Martha
Shelton. Theirs was no wllirl-
wind courtship. The wooing
lasted two years, from 1910 tol
1772. He had plenty of rivals,
for Martha was wonderfully att
tractive: nor did her fathers
wealth lessen her charm.
But Jefferson had one great
advantage over all other suitors.
He was musical. They were not.
And Mrs. Shelton was music-I
mad. She had fine voice and
played divinely on the spinet
(the pianos harp-like parent
and she cared little for people
who could not produce melody.
Jefferson had a magnificent voice
and he PLAYED the violin better|
than could any other man in
Virginia. 1t was musical
wooing.
Here is story still told in
Virginia; Two men who were
counting Mrs. Shelton met by
chance in front of her home one
day. Each had come thither to|
ask her to marry him. AS they
mounted the steps of the house
they heard the strains of music
' through the open drawing room
window.
Jefferson and Mrs. Shelton
were singing duet, accompany
ing themselves on the spinet and
the violin. The two callers
listened for few moments, then
glanced at each other in sudden
understanding, turned around
and without word walked away.
They said afterward .they had
realized then and there that none
but acknowledged lovers could
sing together in such matchless
and sympathetic harmony. JEFF
ferson and Mrs. Shelton began
the year of 1872 auspiciously by
marrying on New Years Day.
They were married at the house
Of Martha's father. Jefferson,
in his delight over the occasion,
spent money left and right. He
gave the clergyman a big fee,
overpaid the musicians, tipped
the servants and-ran out of
money before the festivities were
half over and had to borrow
back the fee he had given the
clergyman.
Then the bride and groom set
I; out in a travelling coach for
| Jefferson's $1,000 acre Monticello
plantations. The weather was
bitter cold and a snowstorm was
raging. The snow at last grew
so deep that the coach broke
down. Jefferson and Martha
finished the journey on horse
back. They reached Monticello
at dead of night, worn out hall
frozen.
OF all the plantations 81 negro
slaves not one was present tC
welcome them. Not expecting
their master to return until the
next day. all the servants had re.