Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-08-21

| virginia ana west Virginia, one Of
them Culpeper, and another Clarke
| County with its GreenWay Court, the
home Of Lord Fairfax, where there re
| mains the stone office building from
which his land grants were issued.
George Washington lived at Green
way Court while making surveys for
Lord Fairfax and, though vet in his
teens. did such satisfactory work that
ms employer procured his appoint
ment as public surveyor, which gave
| official authority to his surveys
In the Summer of l749, in his eight.
zenith year, Washington went to the
! new County of Culpcper to make a
| survey, the report of which is eXtant,
! but before acting he appeared in the
| local court in whose minutes is this
/ entry dated July 20, 1919: George
! Washington, gentleman, produced a
commission from the President of
! William and Mary College appointing
| him surveyor of this county which
| was received; and thereupon took the
usual oaths to his Ma jestys person
| and government. and took and sub
Scrlbed the abluratiOn oath and test
ana then took the oath Of surveyor
according to law" The survey which
he then made is signed. -. G. On. >"
meaning Surveyor of Culpeper County.
The Virginia county court system
was a remarkable institution, and its
records furnish historians much of
their best material. This is true of
the records of Culpeper County, from
which might he painted a picture of
local men and events at any given
time of the past. In such a picture
there would be the figures of almost
numberlcss leading citizens.
x
4 VERY noted lawyer and orator
who at the outset Of his career
was identified with Culpeper was VIII
liam Writ. In 1872. at the age of 90,
while the young surveyor" was still
alive, Writ was admitted to practice
III the Culpeper court, and there tried
his first case with, he tells us, as much
apprehension and emharra Ssment as
lesser men have experienced. 1t was
then the custom for lawyer to regu-
larly attend the courts in several
counties, and Writ, with brilliant tai
ents and an engaging personality. be
came the friend of jefferson, Madison
and Monroe, whose homes were in
nearby counties. by President Monroe
he was appointed Attorney General Of
the United States. and being continued
in that position by President Adams,
held the office longer than has any
other man.
The court records disclose something
of the activities and influence of law
yer%. natives Of the county, who We're
in the public service in the earlier
DAYS John s. Barbour, 81. was
elected in 1922 to the House OF Repre-
sentatives. and was chairman of the
convention which nominated Franklin
Pierce for the presidency. His son.
of the same name in the time closer TO
us. served in both the House and the
Senate. The Strother family likewise
furnished to the House father and
son. George f. Strother, elected as |
Democrat in 1916. and James F. |
Strother, elected as Wing in 1850. |
Another member Of the House was |
John Strother Pendleton. elected In |
1914. Not q native. but a resident OF |
Culpeper, was William Smith, famil' |
iarly called Extra Billy" who had a
most varied and picturesque career. |
He was born in King George County, |
but entered on the practice OF his pro- |
fession in Culpeper County. He was |
seated in the House in 1912 after a |
successful contest with another who
had been awarded the certificate. |
Very soon he was chosen for three /
years as Governor of Virginia, and I
after filling that Office moved to Cali
fornia and at once became president |