Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-04-02

ness. as he had explored the country
upon the occasion of his visit to Vir-
ginia in 162s-so after recognizing the
unpromising condition OF, his projected
colony at Avalon. Newfoundland"
Father White wrote:
On the plains and in the open fields there is
a great abundance Of grass. but the country Is
for the most part thickly wooded. There are
great many hickory trees and oaks 80 straight
and tall that beams. sixty feet long and two
sRpress A trees also grow to height Of eighty
feet before they have any branches and three
trees to feed silk " worms. fhere are aider ash
and chestnut, trees. as large as those which
equaling those which Iibanus boasts of.
Why should I speak o: the pine. laurel. FIR,
besides which yield balsam and fragrant gums?
Trees useful in every way. for building, ship
sHdns for making a Tne
woods moreover passnble. not filled with
thorns or underground. but arranged by nature
to man. There fruitful vines. from
which wine can be made. and grape as large
oily. The inhabitants call these mesamines.
There are cherries as big as damsons and goose
plums. Mulberries, chestnuts and walnuts, are
so plentiful that they are used in various ways
for food.
settled and otherwise interesting sec
ton lay in those two minor civil di-
visions of the county of Prince Georges
called Pauldings district and Mellwood
district Following the well Travelled
road from Richie to Forestville. one
soon mounts to the high and generally
level land which constitutes the topo-
graphic backbone of the country. Much
of the region is divided into small
sight of house. and usually a num-
Der of them are in view. Some are
so closely distributed along the road
and in the abutting fields that one is
prompted to ask the name Of the set
Element Once when the Rambler
asked the question the answer was:
1T Is just a place and hasn't got any
After two or two and a half
miles you come to the northerly fringe
of Forestville. The road branches to
the right and the left, both branches
little further along the
Washington and Marlboro pike Once
that was a very hard road to travel;
a few years ago it was a poor road,
but now it is one of the fine and mod
ern automobile roads of the country
around Washington.
point where the road from Richie
branches. stands little church. Morn
ing service was in progress and the
music of many voices singing hymns
came to the Rambler Around the
church are many graves, number of
them. perhaps. much the greater num-
Der of them, unmarked. On the tombs
were carved many of the familiar
names of county families and the Ram
bier jotted down these:
Alvira. wife of Maj. Alger. died March 1s.
1853; Zala Martin. died January 2. 1858; chill.
dren Of H. Z. and L. NJ. Nichols. 1857; Almira
r.. wife Of Edward H. Nye: died 1890; Edward
Jennie HsrGn 1895 Ann ssTns s 1872
Charles Hardin. died 1913. aged seventy years;
Eliza Warner died 1851; Noah Smith died 1909,
1894: Elizabeth, Ringen. wife of Frederick Ring
en-. 1875: Lucy l.. Rollins. wife of r. II. Roi-
Inns, 1904.
Down the right branch of the road
the Rambler saw another church with
an acre of tombs around it and a score
of automobiles and several horses and
buggies parked and hitched about 1t.
But the Rambler. taking the left fork,
soon entered the main pike and con-
tlnusd on his his way Half a mile east
frame building. on the front of which a
black sign lettered in gold tells this:
Forest Lodge. No. Al. /. o. o. F. Miz-
pah tRebecca), No. So, 1913" In a field
from last summer and which no doubt
will be a rallying place for chivalry
and beauty this summer. Close at hand
is blacksmith shop. surrounded with a
clutter of wheels without wagon bodies
and of wagon bodies without wheels.
There a dirt road strikes off to the
left and along it the Rambler headed.
1t must have been about two miles
along this road that the Rambler came
to the brow of a gentle hill and of the
road stood the house for which the
traveller was looking. Its walls were
white. partly of brick covered with
cement, and partly Of timber. Four
white chimneys rose above the high
roof which sloped down in front to the
top of the first story, and which had
longer though not so steep slope at
the rear. a lane of naples, recently
cut back, led to the house. and few
yards in the rear Of the house stood
ranks of upright tombstones with two
tall old cedars standing guard over
them.
The house and estate bear the name
Dunblane. The name is compounded of
the Scottish words dun meaning hill,
and Blame" after the saint of that name
who in the seventh century erected a