Evening star., 1921-10-09

port telegraph wires were on this
house several years ago. relics of the
telegraph lines that ran into Pope'S
Headquarters They may be there
yet. For many years II was the hotel
might rest and eat and when the
Rambler put up there years ago it
was kept by Mrs. Simpson. a good
and hosDitable woman. who lives now
not in Pope's headquarters. but in
mansion in the sky. Jim Dobbins.
Centerville neighborhood, lives there
now.
Just a piece" northwesterly along
the village street the Warrenton pike
turns sharply to the southwest and a
tollgate with watchful keeper stands
there. In the southwest angle of the
village street and the old road stands
the little brown stone church, and the
view there is much the same as it was
during the civil war as shown by one
of Brady's photographs Brady set up
his camera on the west side Of the
Warrenton pike. showed the junction of
the street and pike, the little church and
stories and garret tall with an outside
stone chimney at it's southerly side and
a deep porch extending across the whole
front. 1t was on the east side of the
road and opposite the church. 1t Is
standing today. When the Rambler
was in Centerville last time his vener-
able friend Dick Vowles lived there, but
good old Dick now looks down on this
historic town and its famous fields from
an elevation far higher than the CHM
ney top of the old house. or it may be
that he strolls along the dusty street in
sunshine and in moonlight invisible to
men. Winter Marshall keeps store in
ich Itch oh 70
all the wounded men it could hold after
the first and the second battles of Bull
Run.
THERE are only two men in Gen.
terville today who were there or
in that immediate neighborhood when
the civil war was raging. One is the
Rambler's old acquaintance, Mr.. Mohler.
His initials are c. j. NJ and the in
itials stand for Clarkus Jasper Mohler.
Jasper has not lived in Centervifle all
the time. He goes far away to pastures
new, but he hears the call of the old
home town and comes back. He goes
away again, and the home town calls,
and Jasper's feet once more tread the
dusty street.
The other citizen or townsman of
Centerville who heard the bugles of
Mcdowell, Pope. Tyler, Hunter,
Heintzleman. Sumner, Franklin,
Hooker, Kearney and Stevens. and of
Lee, Beauregard. Jackson. Johnston,
Longstreet, Jubal Early, Kirby Smith
and all the others. and heard the
gunfire of the Bull Run battles and
Chantilly, is Bob Otterback. a spien-
didly preserved young fellow who
lives on the westerly side of the main
street in q yellow house surrounded
by a clean clipped lawn and beds of
bright flowers just beyond George
Turberville's store. Bob's full name
is Robert Vernon Otterback, and he
was born at the fine old Otterback
home called Locust Grove, about
mile from Centerville. His father,
B. D. Otterback, and several genera
tions of Otterbacks are at rest in
the little burial ground at Locust
: / forgot to tell in the proper place
in this story that the frame house
which was Pope's headquarters.
which Mrs. Simpson kept as hotel
and IN wnlcn James DODOlHS lives
now, was owned during the civil war
by Bob Whaley, dead long ago. but
whose kindred are numerous in Vfr-
giriia and: the District.
Stand with me at the point at the
far. end Of the village where the War
renton pike passes under the tollgate
and leads straight as an arrow to
Bull Run. You will see that the viii
lage street continues as road to-
ward the northwest with various
branches that connect with the Little
River turnpike west of Chantilly.
Just a few PAGES along that road
you see three chimneys standing in
the jungle Of paper mulberry trees
and bushes mentioned near the be-
ginning OF this narrative. That was
the famous -Four Chimney House.. It
was a big frame, and from its win
dows and porches one commanded an
enrapturing prospect north and west
The house fell into state of shabbi-
ness and unrepair (if that Is die
tionary .word) thirty years ago.
About ten years ago all the wood,
work had disappeared and four tall
chimneys remained.
That house with its broad outlook
over the fields that were to be smoky
and bloody was the headquarters Of
in July, 1851. I have for
gotten who lived there at the time