Evening star., 1918-06-02
The Rambler Writes of Old Families Living Near ForestviDe Va


Lowe Alfred Lay, father Of DR.. Alfred
Lay. and Of Duke Lay. who lives on the
ancestral Lay place He talked Of Pier.
coy Smith. an EngiishmAn who came to
Seneca road. and whose daughter. Ma
Jenkins. lives ON tho tract now.
He knew Jim Jackson. who slew
Col. Ellsworth for pulling down q
Confederate flag from the Marshall
House in Alexandria, and he also
knew old Bob Jackson. a brother OF
Jim. Jackson. who owned the place
which DR.. Lay owns today. He spoke
happily and in a dreamy. thinking
out-ioud fashion of that other Jim
Jackson who was Bob's son and who
is at rest in the cemetery of Union
Chapel. close to the Alexandria and
Leesburg turnpike near Ash Grove.
He knew Tennally Swink. big and
prosperous farmer. a brother to Will
liam Swink who set the old mill go>
Ing on Scott's run which the RAM
Another of the big landholders in
that country in other days was
Thomas Peacock, whose land lay
along Dimcult run and whose house
is still standing on a hill above the
electric railway trestle over the run.
a little this side of Elkins The name
of this man is kept fresh in the
station of the Great Falls electric
line where 1t crosses his farm Is
called Peacock. No doubt nearly all
Washingtonians who leave the cars
there think of Peacock as a fanciful
place-name instead OF one of historic
John is a Fairfax county farmer and
lives on part Of the old Peacock
lands.
The old blacksmith called up many
memories of Col. George West Cum
rell. who lived near Ash Grove. aAd
the colonels sons. John. Richard.
Charles. Albert. Lander. Arthur and
Georgetown pike q few hundred
yards west Of the blacksmith shop
where Daniel David Cornweu has
his pretty homo and runs saw
mill.
The Rambler asked Tom Trammell
about the famous fox hunters OF early
days. and he said that Jim Jackson.
the son of Bob. and Greenbury Grimes
were about the best of the lot. and
there was a man named Tom Sullivan.
who would come over from Montgom-
cry county. Md. and hunt with them.
bringing with him the best pack OF
hounds that was known in that part
of Virginia. The lawful fence in those
days was a stake and rider fence OF
twelve rails. but he did not recall
that any of the horses he shod could
take that kind Of jump: All the
farms were not inclosed by lawful
fences. many Of them having brush
OF stone fences. Mr.. Trammell had a
fine memory for the old taverns that
stood along the pike. He remembered
John Lasher's tavern. at Great Falls:
Ransome Mains tavern. at Spring.
vale, and Henry Bixler's tavern. at
Dranesville. He could also recall
many of the old-time preachers. and
the names Of Barney Sanders and
Rev. Mr.. Hoblitzell. rhey were good
men and good preachers. and they
went a-foot in all weathers IL they
didn't have horse" he said.
The conversation turning on an
cient taverns and old preachers. the
Rambler touched spring in the old
blacksmith's mind and he let himself
out with great earnestness. He said
that the cause of the upset of SO many
of the old families was whisky! whis-
ky! whisky! THE sons of the rich
men wouldn't work. but they would
drink" and he gave the Rambler a
long list of the sons of men OF prop
erty who dissipateo their wealth and
died poor because of whisky. This
blacksmith. seventy-three years old
and who has been shoeing horses in
Fairfax county nearly all those years.
is one of the most determined pro-
hibitionists in that county, and. of
course. that means also one Of the
most determined prohibitionists in the
United States.