Evening star., 1924-09-07

tends from the I'eilliss an"
avenue bridge over the East
ern Branch to Bowen Road.
| suppose you know this. but
/ il is not safe to take anything Tor
granted. There are readers as Wen
as writer's who do not know as
much as il is believed they know
| The dire ction of the avenue is south-
east and the distance from the
| bridge to Bowen road is one mile
and a half. One mile from the bridge
smooth and hard gravel and clay
| road leads south and joins Bowen
road about a quarter of mile west
| of a fork, the south branch Of which
leads to Suitland. and the north
branch leads to Marlboro.
The road which turns south from
| Pennsylvania avenue has been named
| Branch avenue. not thihk, because
| it branches from the avenue. but be-
cause. roughly paralt Hing it on the
west side, is deep ravine with
wooded slopes, and on through this
rayine flows brook or branch.
| When you come to the junction OF
! Branch avenue and Bowen road. You
reach the crest of a long and IRE GU
| lar ridge about 800 feet above. tide,
| which slopes north and west 10 tne
| Eastern Branch and the Potomac, and
whose south and east slope is one OF
| the escarpments of slants of the
valley of OXon Run. At the road
! junction are clusters Of new houses.
| and although there are nelds ana
woods along Bowen road. there are
many frame houses in gardens
| When you reach the road junction
| you will if YOU turn to the right or
| west and walk about 200 yards. see
on the left an old lane between two
ragged rows of cedars. Once ther"
| was a regular row of cedars on each
| side Of the lane, but accidents happen
| In the best regulated rows OF trees,
and many of the cedars that lald
| their shade and dropped their blue
fruits on this lane have passed away.
| These ctdars are old. but along
| trees that were older when they
! died than the trees now there
! 1t is plain that this is a very old
| cedar lane, and we go on with
this story. | will give you basis
for estimating it's age.
| When a cedar tree fell out of line q
| hard maple was planted and the lane
| is lined with cedars and naples, the
NAPLES being from 40 to so or 20 years
old. That is an estimate made with
out counting the rings OF annual
growth and no guarantee as to its
! accuracy goes with it.
| Two or three cherry trees have
grown to maturity in the lines Of &C.
dars and naples, and although prob
ably commendable trees in their way.
they are too young to be given much
space i'll this story.
| :; x < =
BETWEEN the tree lines and the
- wheelway Of the lane are many
small wild things that grow in the
country about Washin ngton-golden
/ CT sol Al he "A
sticktight, boneset. partridge pea
chick Weed, wild carrot and the like
But a few hours before the Rambler
got there a vandal with scythe car
ried on a cleanup campaign and cut
them down. They will grow again
The wheelway of the lane is grave
bedded in clay, and there are three
gray-yellow traces or paths. two made
by wheels and the middle track Worr
by horse The wheel traces are
without weeds, but the middle patti
is growing up with path-rush ant
that plantain often called Ensiisi
: plantain, and which many countr!
folk know as rib-grass. The hors'
that kept the middle path hard ant
weedless does not travel it now, ant
the two wheel tracks are kept clea1
of weeds by an automobile.
! Follow this lane about 80 yard
from the main road, and the whee
tracks make circle in grove.
was a driveway" to large franz
house which stood in the grove. =
house is there now but it is only
part of that which was there man.
| wears ago One part of the hous'
! after another came to such decrepi
tude that it was taken down, or fel
, down, until the part which stand
| and is preserved in comiortapl'
. state of upkeep has, / think, fou
rooms. whereas | have been told th'
house at one time had Il rooms. I'M
pleasant people vho live there no"
and who moved out from the cit!
about two years ago spoke We'll o
the old house, and assured me ina
the roof does not leak.
= For about 35 years, from 1So9 u
about 1891, this was the home AM
farm of Stephen Mitchell Golden "h'
!. by various Improvements mace II VI,
Of the handsome and comfortaol'
places of the Eastern Branch couh
try; and though some OF my north
west friends may doubt me ah'
threaten to cancel thelr SUBSTITUTE
: tn The Sunday star, / assure you
Miss or Madam. that SO years ago I
country place that was one OF th'
? handsome places of the EASTER
Branch country was one of the hand
| some places of the District OF 20
: lumbia. There are handsome places
over there now, but many or the oie
J, pIaces have become seedy. ana yo'
know that some of the old places II
the northwest now look poor ant
shabby beside their new ara cost!
: neighbors.
,SaI, Stenhen Golden bought thi:
5 nronerty from Rein Arnold in 1859
r Paz;n Arnold bought it from hi:
: father-in-law. Henry Talbert, in 1888
, Henry Talbert bought it from Viii
liam Sidebotham in 1919. SidebothaH
bought it from William Crawford il
1919.
the deeds. I have not gone farthe
back than Crawford's sale of the lant
s to Sidebotham in 1873, but 1T wa
then called Perry's farm, and l nav
) not carried this inquiry back u
: Perry; but if my half million reader
r demand it, and if 1,700 of them viii
, write letters to the editor te!llns MN
I that the "rambles" are not the wors
, feature of The Sunday Star, I will
: track this piece of land back to tn
t coming of Columbus or the Northm er
NV friends, George Newton. Jir
t Recker. Bill Donnelly. Will F'ishe
and Charlie Fits, have told me that
tff the Rambler's readers require !,
= we will get the records of this trac
i back to the pliocene, or even the mio
! Gene, nay to the eoceEe age. end a
t any rate, to the time when bronto
. sauri used it as a pasture.
50 + 4 !: *
: CTEPHEN NJ. GOLDEN came t
y Washington between 1855 an
,1S5s. He is not in the 1865 director,
d and the directories for 1856 and 1S5
D,,I>l