Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-08-02

Rev. William Maftit. a large ana OLD erlch
house surrounded by large acreage OF
fruitful lands. Like nearly all olden coun-
3. try homes, this place bears its own name.
and that name is Salona-
1t was 10 this home that Mrs. Madison
is said to have carried Stuart's portrait of
George Washington. which she cut from
its frame in the White House. the original
of the Declaration of Independence and q
box of historic papers belonging to the
State Department. On the evening of the
fatefuI 24th of August Mrs. Madison was
Joined at Salona by President Madison
and various members of his cabinet and
other important men. including Charles
Carroll of Bellevue, Gen. Mason of Ana
lostan Island, Gen. Ringgoid and, no
,loubt others whose names have not been
preserved in connection with this event.
Salona was the object of rambie. If
YOU cross the Chain bridge. which is an
ron-truss bridge on stone piers, but winch
preserves the name OF four-chain sus-
pension bridge. which, about twenty years
before the civil war, was constructed at
Little Falls in place of several earlier
wooden bridges which had been washed
away, you arrive at gorge in the Poto-
mac palisades through which Pimmit run
enters the river. A few rods beyond the
Virginia end of the bridge you are con-
fronted by parting OF the road. One
course and rushing waters of Pinlmit run
and following a broad vale between close
~ wooded hills, climbs to the highland
and energies on an extensive and cleared
plateau at the ruins Of Fort Ethan Allen.
which was one of the important civil war
= defenses of the Chain bridge and an inn
portant link in the Gordon of Washington's
civil war Notifications. The road to the
left is not the road to take if you are to
visit Salona.
At this parting of the ways a shadowy
road points directly ahead, high hills ris-
ing on the right and the deep and beauti-
full gorge of Pimmit run on the left. This
road also climbs a long steep grade and
comes upon the highlands at the ruins Of
Fort Marcy, another of the Chain bridge
defenses. The road which you have fol-
lowed since leaving the bridge is a part of
the Leesburg and Georgetown pike. which,
after a good many miles of rough going,
joins the Leesburg and Alexandria turn
pike at Dranesville. something like fifteen
miles this side of Leesburg. The Leesburg
and Georgetown pike has long been IA
nous as one Of the worst roads in the
older settled section of the United States,
sharing that distinction with the Warren
ton turnpike from Centerville to Gaines
ville which crosses Cub run, Bull run and
the historic fields Of the first and second
battles of Manassas, and with the Tele-
graph road from Dumfries. on Quantico
creek, through Chappawamsic swamp to
Falmouth on the Rappahannock, by way
of Stafford Court House.
But this section of the old Leesburg
and Georgetown pike from the Chain
bridge to a point about three miles
west has been made over within the
last two or. three years into one OF the
fine automobile roads of the country. This
Improvement was brought about by yo-
seph Letter, the pike leading to his
upper Potomac river property. The
old pike after it leaves Langley again
lapses into rough road, and where II
passes Prospect Hill descends into the
valley of Scott Run. climbs out again
NJ the farm of Jackson, who shot Col.
Ellsworth at Alexandria, and then dips
dogn through the Difficult Run region
and. coming. out of the wilderness,
where it crosses the electric railroad
near Great Falls. islstil1 entitled to the
distinction of being the worst road in
the United States.
After YOU pass the piled-up ruins OF
Fort Marcy you travel through coun-
try of great beauty, and at this season
of full and bounteous crops. You pass
several frame houses. including the
waggaman house and the CAN'T house.
which were standing there before the
civil war made that section very dam
gerous ground. You will pass several
ample and handsome properties, and
after about two and half or three
miles you arrive at a cluster of frreg-
ularly built houses, some quite old ana
some prematurely old. The settlement
is called Langley. The Rambler could
not learn why the place is called Lang
ley. The reasonable guess In such In
stances would be that man by that
name many years ago kept tavern or
a store or a blacksmith shop at that
point. A lady who has lived@there for
a long time told the Rambler that she
believed the Mackall tract, the estate
of Benjamin Mackall was called Lang