Evening star., 1919-04-20

the popular OemanQ TOT I'M
portant and influential ancestors, the
Rambler from time to time resur-
rected from stale and moldy records
names OF large shareholders in Mary
land and Virginia. Sometimes he
would recall those Of one, and then
Of another county. Sometimes he
would bring back to the light OF the
world and the publicity of print the
names of men and women who owned
slaves and who lived and died long
ago in the old Maryland counties of
Charles, Prince Georges and st.
Manys and the newer county OF
Montgomery, and also has he given
aid and comfort to descendants Of
persons who dwelt in the Virginia
counties of Prince william. Fairfax
and Loudoun before the United
States became free and independent
or who lived in these fair parts of
the world soon after the United States
had Joined the family Of nations-a
family which has its Jars and dis
agreements, as is the way of all
families.
names Of shareholders. the Rambler
has often been oppressed by feel
ing that he was. doing an injustice to
very large number Of old citizens
wAo were Just as worthy of honor
able mention in these narratives. He
means those who were not large
Shareholders and great landowners.
He was induced to follow that course
by the knowledge that while the de-
mand for rich ancestors is very
active, the market for ancestors
without those evidences OF wealth
and station. land and slaves, was
dull. He felt that 1t might be en-
barrassing to descendants to confront
them with ancestors who were not
rfoa. and he also believed that it
might be embarrassing to many
worthy and honorable ancestors to
confront them with descendants
whose foolish pride has led them to
misrepreesnt their forbears.
X
Readers OF these rambles will prob
'~~'S e"NSactohu hoW uiSCOuCcTtlUS IL
would be to the Rambler to call up
the ghost Of some intelligent and per-
fectly respectable but landless an
cestor and then have his descendant
say: Take him away! ] disown him!
He Is no ancestor of mine! refuse to
recognize him as my great-great-
grandfather! He is an impostor ghost
nh n In nh ir1n
My grandfather's grandfather owned
10000 acres granted to him under
royal patent by King Charles /, and he
owned a thousand slaves. He always
carried a jewei-hilted sword and
gold snuffbox. wore a velvet cloak.
embroidered waistcoat, lace-ruff1ed
Guns. silk stockings and silver buc-
klss on his gartcrs and his shoes. 1
can prove this by portrait of him
which hangs in my drawing room. 1t ,
ID none Of your business IL that por-
trait was painted 200 years after my
great-great- grandfather died and by
an artist who never saw him, and It is
Also none Of your business how much
1t cost me to have that fake por-
trait painted. That Is the portrait of
my ancestor! There. you see, is the
ceat-of-arms Of fsny family!
again 1t il none Of your business
how much it cost me to have some
sharper In heraldry do that job. Here,
also, 10 my family tree. Though the
man who set 1t out and trimmed 1t up
did not know anything about my
family. and did not take the trouble
to md out anything about my an
csstors. he was an expert in family
trees. This ancestor whom you bring
before me 10 evidently a highly i'm
proper person and IL absolutely unit
Tor the position Of my ancestor. He
seems to have been q man who chop
ped down timber to make a clearing
; and grubbed and plowed up the land
to raise . crop. His hands are hard
and his feet are big. Why. sir, he is
actually clad In homespun, and in
stead Of taking snuff from a gold box
he bites into a twist OF home cured
tobacco, chews 1t and spits in the fire.
place! Great Caesar. Rambler, what a
low and impertinent writer you are
TO bring such an impossible person
into your pages and present him to
the people Of Washington as nv an