Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-02-22

view OF the Blush b1ShopS re1uSaI ana
its consequences, but John Adams. then
minister at The Hague. became the means
Of securing from the Danish church an
offer to ordain Americans according to
its rites.
However, the English parliament re-
Tented In 1874 and by virtue Of the ena-
bling act Of that year Weems was or
dained a deacon by the Bishop of Ches-
ter. acting for the Bishop of London. and
was admitted to the priesthood by the
Archbishop OF Canterbury one week
later. For the next eight years he was
an active rector, first at All Hallows
parish and then Of Westminster parish.
both in Anne Arundel county. Nd"
Parson Weems was married in 1895 to
Fanny Dwell. daughter Of Col. Jesse
Ewell Of Belle-Air. Part of the time he
lived at Dumiries and at other times at
BeiIe-Air. between Mount Vernon and
Dumfries. Weems was an active man
with a tender conscience He liberated
to support himself and family with the
proceeds from q small rectorship he be-
gan to travel with a team and wagon,
selling books. 1ecturing and preaching.
He went up and down the country from
Pennsylvania to Georgia. visiting the
towns and going far back into the wilder
ness to preach and to sell Bibles-or to
give them away when he found sinners
too poor to pay for them.
weems in this day would be called a
man OF broad religious opinion. He was
tolerant beyond the period in which he
lived. He would preach in any pulpit
opened to him. DR.. C1aggett, whom the
Rambler believes to have become Bishop
Claggett, wrote that Il have regard
for Weems; his zeal and his attention to
the duties Of his sacred Office merit es-
TEEN, but in proportion as this zeal and
diligence are applied to the Methodist
interest It weakens u.s. 1t is clear from
this that Weems had been preaching in
Methodist churches.
Bishop Meade, in his "Old Churches
and Families of Virginia. wrote of
weems: HE was of very enlarged char
ity in all respects. Though calling him
self an Episcopaltan minister. he knew
no distinction of churches" And that was
not written as compliment to Weems.
Weems preached once in Bishop Meade
pulpit, and created a scandal which had
not abated when Bishop Meade wrote his
memoirs IN 1857. by saying that II the
ghosts Of Tom Paine and other noted In
fdels could return to earth they would
be shocked to hear the falsehoods told on
them. This was monstrous thing for a
Virginia minister to say. in or out Of the
pulpit In the life Of Parson Weems. Any
charity toward an infidel was out Of
place.
Weems' biography Of Washington passed
through forty editions. He wrote. 700.
the lives of William Penn. BENJAMIN
Franklin and Francis Marion. He wrote
a great deal on the subject of temper
ance, not then a popular subject, and
Col Robert Tansill, who married a grand
daughter Of Weems. claimed him to have
been the father OF the temperance move
ment in America. Although Weems long
made his headquarters at Belle-Air. he
did not como legally in possession of the
property until the death of Mrs. Jesse
Ewel in 1923. Parson Weens died on his
travels, passing away in Beaufort, S. c..
in May, 1925, and in the following winter
his remains were brought by sailing boat
to Dumfries Va. and then by hearse to
Belle-Air. where they rest today. His
wife long survived him, and she lies I'M
der the cedars by his side. but only the
memories of the old people in that vicin-
ity enable the stranger to know their
graves.
So these are some of the interesting
names that cluster around Belle-Air-the