Evening star., 1933-12-30


that OF protection. The settlers had
heard of the Indian massacre which
had nearly wiped out the Virginia Col
ony. Leonard Calvert shortly wrote to
his brother: I'VE have seated ourselves
within one-half mile of the river, within
palisade of 120 yards square, with four
f1anks." DR.. Andrews, who is the au-
thor of several works on general United
States history and History of Mary
land, Province and State" does not sac
rlflce accuracy of fact and chronology
either to popular love of the traditional
and legendary or to the general demand
OF readers for drama and color in their
history. In connection with his par
ticular subject, he would have little eX-
cuSe for doing so, for the actual facts
of the founding of Maryland and the
early days of the settlement are so ro-
mantle as to need no embroidery. The
extensive references used in the prepa-
ration OF the work are listed, under
chapters, at the end.
CAVERNS OF VIRGINIA. BY William
M. McGill. Richmond: State Com
mission on Conservation and De-
velopment
Every boy loves cave and so do
many adults. Virginia is a tempting
playground for children, old and young,
with its many caVernS, where brigandS
might lie in wait, but do not, and
where treasure might be buried, but is
not, In place of brigands are pillars
and minarets and pendentives Of sculp-
tured stone; in place Of treasure are
secret underground streams, which come
out of the earth under your feet, plunge
q ri
to pursue mysterious journey. These
hidden streams have been the archi-
tects and the eXcavators of the caverns,
some of which extend for miles, with
uneXplored corridors and passages lead
ing 10 other sights not yet seen by
human eye" DR.. McGill. assistant
State geologist. relates the geologic, his
tory of the Appalachian Valley and
tells how the many Virginia caverns
developed - the Crystal,
Dixie, Endless, Giant, Grand, Luray,
Massanutten. Shenandoah and Virginia
Caverns. There are also, he tells us,
many undeveloped caves.
The development of limestone cav
erns with travertine adornments has
been in two stages-a primary stage Of
erosion and a secondary stage of re-
plenishment by deposits. The caverns
of Virginia are not as large as those of
some other States, but they excel in the
variety and beauty of their formations.
These are described in detail and the
descriptions are aided by handsome il
lustrationS. Primitive man has left
his traces in the Virginia caves, as well
as in the famous caves of the Old
World. In 1873 portions of a human
skeleton, identified as that of an In
clan girl, were found in Luray Cav
erns shortly after their discovery. An
Indian grave was reported by an eX-
plorer of Kaiser's Cave. near Luray. and
moccaSin tracks have been found
thinly encrusted in lime. The value Of
this volume to scientists and students
is increased by a number of tables
giving geologic data and sketch maps
showing the location and environs of
the caves.
THE OLD FARMERS ALMANACK.
Calculated on New and Improved
Plan for the Year of Our Lord 1884.
Number 142. Established by Robert
B. Thomas. Boston: Carroll J.
Swan.
This latest number of an old and
quaint publication has an Introductory
greeting to the people of New England
by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Its frontispiece is reproduction OF
Mrs. Coolidge's favorite photograph of
former President Coolidge, New Eng
lands Most Beloved Citizen" Much
could be written about the contents of
this interesting almanac, which is so
much more than an almanac. There
are words of wisdom for gardeners,
hunters, fishermen, housewives and
ordinary citizens, as well as farmers.
There are recipes, riddles and their
answers, fish and game laws, lists of
colleges and schools, poetry, anecdotes
and pleasantries, postal rates. automo-
bile regulations. historical dates, New
radio stations in New England. seed
tables and, of course, astronomical cal
culations and weather forecasts, In
New England the "Old Farmers Alma
mack" is not merely a publication; 1t
is an institution. A new year can
hardly begin until it is published. Since
it was founded by Robert Thomas it
has had five owners. The cover de-
sign, elaborate with Its tiny pictures OF
carries the portrait of Thomas. inclosed
in a scroll frame, on the opposite side
of the page from a similar one of Ben
jamin Franklin The present owner is
Col. Carroll Swan. Prof. George l..
Kittredge of Harvard found the num-
bers of the "Almanack" so rich in New
England lore that he wrote a book
about it, THE Old Farmer and His
Almanac" now out of print.
SUNNY MEADOWS. BY Thomas
Dreier. Boston: The Stratford Co.
A New Hampshire farm is the in
spiration of this collection OF brief
essays. The author writes from sat-
uration of contentment and quiet Joy
which permits envy of no man on ac-
count of the eXcitements of more
adventurous life. He says Of the mo-
tives of his wife and himself in going
to the ni+1 IN hesrt Is no ,t5as hatred
matter of fact, have been good to us.
Some lovable friends live in them. Men
who provide most of our income also
conduct their businesses in them. We
have come to the country simply be-
cause we want life that can be lived
on a farm and nowhere else" The
farm life is not too quiet. One morn
ing at daylight two men in a parked
car are taken into custody in front
Of their house by the game warden, who
finds short trout in their possession.
Mr. Dreier and his wife attend a coun-
try auction and buy . collection Of
chairs, tables, . chest, tools, carriage
lamps and miscellaneou truck-"more
real fun than we ever got from the
same amount spent for theater tickets"
Most of the joys are quiet ones-plaht-
ing fruit trees, climbs up the 2,250-foot
mountain which is part Of the farm,
shifting" country odors, trimming trees,
gardening, entertaining guests who do
not want too much entertaining Mr..
Dreier bought long, white farm house.
over $50 years old, and remodeled it
without spelling. He tells stories about
the barn, the corn crib, the chicken
house, the ice house, the sap house, the
cider mill and Lake Winnepesaukee
and the Ossipee Mountains, which
r. r-~t cf the farms delightful