The Washington times., 1915-09-26

their horses. It is said General Grant
and General Lee stood upon this stone
after they had signed the terms Of sur
render and walked to ed the front Mt, of tbene tne
is no one at Appomattox who knows
whether this Is fact.
Entrance to the Mclean house site is
made through real fence leading into
hs once erpsed psrt o. tba the vstor
lows a distant path to the right and
comes upon an iron tablet. the inscrip-
ton upon which Is This tablet marks
the site of the house owned and occu-
pied by Wilmer Mclean IN which a
agreed upon the terms Of surrender OF
the Army of Northern Virginia. on the
afternoon Of Sunday. April 9, 1885. The
house was taken down in 1893 with
view to its removal and re-erection
In thicket between this tablet and
the fence stand three large piles Of
material. all that 10 left of the Nc
Lean house. Two Of these piles are COM
the house. The wood is water-logged.
moss,covered. and SO soft arj decom-
posed that q finger will make an i'm
preston In It. The steps are intact
and lie upon one Of the piles. The lum-
structed lies rotting on another pile.
with weeds: vines and underbrush al
most obscurinE 1t from view.
Pile of Crumbling Brick.
The third pile 10 composed Of crumb-
have practically disintergrated. All the
blocks are coated with q greenish
accumulation due to dampness and the
great amount of foliage in the vicinity.
At the right Of the tablet stands the
0ld ahisu1o tee hOnaa and n the
rear the little weaving house. These
structures and the tablet are the only
reminders Of Mclean House.
the hf sos s M H9usss f. Sne %he
Quoted a tavern on the road. It was
eold to Wilmer Mclean, and shortly
after the war was bought by Myron e.
Dunlap. Of Wa Wsshineton sS The II cd, latter
b. Poor, an. attorney living at Appa:.
mattox. In 1892 Colonel Poor consulted
the owner about moving the house to
the Chicago Exposition. where a NUM-
taken. including the John Brown house
to have demurred to the tearing down
Of the house. but when informed that
for fre and was miles beyond any zone
Of fire protection. he consented:
Through some miscarriage Of Colonel
Poors plans. no one seems able TO ex-
Dlaln WnaC HAppcHcus kuC ihotOii"L
never removed from the site Of the
building after the structure was torn
down.
the most historic buildings In tn,
world.
Saw Leaders That Day.
Across the road from the site Of the
Mclean House lives r. H. Browning
who was a boy during the civil war
and who was in the yard of the house
at the time Of the surrender. He
vividly recalls the events of "surrendel
day." April 9. 1865. and remembers both
General Grant and General Lee. and the
other officers who gathered there to
sign tho terms.
Browning is the Keeper Of the Nc
Lean House site. He says he has great
difficulty in preventing negroes from
build fires with. On several occasions
| he has resorted to shotgun methods tc
| drive off the black miscreants.
Browning shows visitors over the site
Of the building and sells photograph,
the surrender. He receives as his pa,
as keeper" the use Of the old McLear
House lawn as cornfeld and the side
and back yard as general garden
Of the shame Of letting the old house
"A few yards beyond the McLear
House site stands the originai Raint nt
on rollers. The structure is n, diiapi
while across the fork Of the road. hid
den by weeds. underbrush. and trees
mattox court house. which was visited
by Union soldiers before and after th'
surrender. and which was burned t.
the ground many years ago. A shor
distance from ON the the court our house ,rb rum
also tottering. The roof is badly di
! lapidated and ripped open In severa
places, the bricks are decomposing ant
disintegrating. the iron bars are ben
and .rusted. while the woodwork Il
crumbling.
Hotel Once Famous.
Opposite the Raine tavern and olt
courthouse site. stands the origina
Appomattox Hotel. This also is in {
sad state Of disrepair. as is the olt
brick kitchen in the yard where tn
sumptuovs and epicurean meals 70
which the hostelry was famous wer
prepared. Appomattox Hotel was tn
scene Of innumerable gay balls. ger
mans, and hops. Just before and afte
the surrender it was used as head
quarters for several generals. and tn
soldiers who have written Of Appo
mattox all speak Of their stay in tn
hostelry.
Continuing along the road the visito
sees on his right two iron posts. on
of them pointing the way to the sur
render lines, and the other markin
the spot where were established tn
Headquarters of the Fifth Army Corp
on April 3. This is one OF the mos
historic spots at Appomattox, for
was the Fifth Corps which sounde
the death knell of the Confederacy
Surrounded on all sides. outnun
bered by five to one, and pursued
General Grant with the Second an
Sixth Corps, General Lee ordere
Gen. ]. B. Gordon and Gen. Fitzhug
Lee, gallant cavalry leaders. to brus
aside the federal cavalry on the bro'
Of a hill so that the Confederate arm
might resume its march toward Lynch
burg where supplies were waiting fo
the famished warriors in gray. tn
attack was made and the Feders
cavalry opened on either side like
curtain. The Fifth Corps and Twenty
fourth Corps. commanded by Gen, +
o. c. Ord. rushed through the openin
afforded by the Federal cavalry whic
had screened it, and delivered furiou
:, fire on Gordon and Fitzhugh Lee
cavalry. These generals reported
General Lee that the Confederate
were completely surrounded, and e,