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MtMTUjKLLO,II atflaUtll DM»J «lt;. Ik* Oik *1Ourrwpondapr. ollb* N. Y, WbrM.Muntiuetlo is—^ and—should be—~aa fit*-miliar and as honored a name in Ameri can eara^s ia Mount Vernon or tiie Hermitage. HBm haw scant reapcct has been shown to either of the homes of the writer ot the Beclaration—tbit where ho lived, that in which ho how lies i I visited it not long since, just betore the pimsage of the appropriation of $5,000 tor the erection of a monument dyeftlu) neglected grave, and found the tomb levelled with the earth, the,stone above if defaced beyond recognition and the dilapidated liomo-Bteaa in the possession of a tramp.Moutlcelio, to which President Jefferson retired at the conclusion of his second, term, is on the summit of a hill hear CfiarlotievUle, Albemarle, county, Vs., “tho very seat from which, lifted above the world’s turmoil, one who has exhausted what it can bestow of eminence might look down, withdraw from its personal troubles; bat contemplating at leisure tho d istaut - jbimation ot the scene,!” On the spire oi ths Blue ltidge, whose varying outlines strctcheteway till they ate lost to the sight, with a sylvan scene of uo'sur-passed loveliness in the vale .below, the .'quiet Rtvanna. meandering through rich helds on one side, the pleasant village - tiottcd -thtrotbnr,-while thtr^porttcoca and fa domesf ol the^universiry rise in tlie cITi-tauce behig'd, it overlooked, ,. aaya Mr. Godwin, “a combinatiou'of natural pic-tures that are rarely found in one spot.” “The sky above,” says another writer, Is not more shifting than the scene you may have before you. IttakeffVnew a3pccl at almost every moment, and bewitches you with-a perpetual novelty.”Monticollo two generations ago was more ttiatv-a manBign—it was a community. -The 14,000 acres - of the es t ate we re carefully tided by a small army of laborers. Jt was Jefferson’s boast that his Carriage and the tools with - which it was made were alike manufactured upon -the estate. Tho house was spacious, richly furniBf.ed and commodious, with ap extensive and rich library, in which, seated in a low. Spanish chair;.the. Sage of Monticollo ^‘held forth to his visitors in .an almost endless flow of fine discourse.” There is a .graphic picture of him given by a writer ^who saw him at eighty-one, representing him as “dressed no .longer in the red breeches which were once famous as his favorite and ratherhaddrewy little pavilion asever donu m the cheerful dr __________of the Forest, and thus the Idug hours of the winter night fled away like' minutes, winged with laughter, merriment and song.That waa 106 years ago. Bridegroom and bride , now repose iu^ the grveyard, iii a thick'‘growth of woods a F^w hundred yards to the right of tho road* that leads up to MonticeUo, an unfrequqnted slopo of the mountain. There are iome thirty graves here, partly inclosed- by.a brick wall 100 feet square and 10 feet high, with old and rusty.iron gatu wide enough, though seemingly Ibtoiim With rust, to admit a carriage on the north and west sides. On.tbe aoiRhTITdo the entire wall has been toppled over by some storm, and lies level in its courses of brick wUh.the gjonnd. Within the en-closure eyery thing at the time of my viait waa tho veriest picture of desolation and decay.With the exception of two or three marble slabs.whi ;h mark the .graves of some of the decendents1 of the JelTorson amdlv who were buried as late as leiT years ago, there are not one thWTVSS' Hot broken and defaced, half covered with weeds and earth or out of its place. Weeds and atones and bricks covers] one-half of the ground and looked £9 if (hoy had been undisturbed for a generation. Ob the weEt walF the “ Virginia creepers’by a sanguine waist-coat hia attachment to that republican color; In gray Shorts, small silver knee-buckles, gray woollen stockings, black slippers, a blue body-coat, surmounted .by a gray spencer. Lie was tall, and though lithe and decidedly graceful and agile, long and ill-liinbed. Yet his figure was “command-iagirnd -striking',—though bad,—and his: face moat antimated and agreeable, though remarkably ugly.” Hia leg had never been conscious of a calf, bat he walked well and swiftly and within lightness, and springiness of tread ruch as few youngmeruhave.. Ho .mounted bio horse ...without assistance and rode sonic ten miles n day) dismounting at a fence breast-bigh he would leap over it, only placing his band on the topmost rail.Of Jeffcrson iih bg ty)ptiar.ed.eixty.throo ytrK before, when he waa a. student as Wiltinmaburg, Va., John Eaton'CookeTiaa give.n a dbcr-iptioti as interesting. __Ho as. sbvb Mr. Cooko. tnl~ - - -“ His complexion was bub burned, his hair of-asrndy red, and .hia ayes gihy, flecked with hazel—add indication generally of intellect. * * * Ho dressedsomewhat after the inahion of a beau, in flowered waiscoat, a silk coat, stockings confined at tho kneo by fancifully worked garters, and need'powder, carried bis fine, lace hot beneath his arm, bowed tow, paid gallant compliments to the fair sex, and. danced at every assembly.” He waa a hard student, working fifteen hours-a day. andJWtts an excel tent performer on. tho violin. “Of “Oseian’s” poetry,then just given to tho literary world, he raved;’ ho intonted studying Gaelic so as to read this greatest of bards in tho original. Ho was desperately in lovo with RebeccaHarwell, his “Belinda, a daughter of Lewis Burwell ot White Marsh, loft anorphan at ten, and no less distinguished of character. Ho wrote to a Iriend that he had-tliought of11 tho cleverest plan of life,” that could bo imagined. “Von exchange your lands for Edgehilt,ho said, “or I mine for.FairBed’s; you mary H. P., I sftRtry B. B., join and get a polo-ch«irand a pair ot keen horses, practice the law in thename courts and drive about to all tinf dances in the. country together. Arcadian plan, but not to be carried out, for a later letter aays: “With regard to the scheme which I proposed to you some time since I am sorry to’ tell it in totally frustrated By MissR. B’s marriage wkh Jacqulin Ambler which the peo-ple here tell me they daily erpect —Wei 1, thc- bor~d~tiieB8-hcr.—T aftyi Mr. Ambler was treasurer, of Virginia; hie brothor Edward married Miss Cary, who tradition asserts, had also, jilited a future president—Washington, to-wit.Belinda had been married many years when her old admirer, then approaching 30, met Martha Skelton of The Forest, Charles Gity, daughter of Mr, John Way lea,' an eminent lawyer. At the age of 1? she had married in I860 Mr. Bath.sagAt 32 the-widow waa “a little above the medium height, slender, but elegantly formed,” with a fair compk-xion, delicately tinted; large hazel 'eyes, full of life and feeling; luxuriant hair of a rich, soft auburn; she rode and danced with elegant ease, sang and played very sweetly,. bad excellent sense, admirable cultivation, a warm heart and a latgo ‘fortune. With Mrs. Skcltcn Jeflerson foil in love. »-SflJliad two rivals, and one historian recorfsTmr rboy ATibhdo n ed “the field to him when one night fwhen prdbablv bach -.-'had cbmo resolved to put ‘hia fortune to , the $o*:ch) they metpn tho doostop and heaxd within Jefferson’s viol in and song, ipkaing tho lady in aplaintivo voice ew^Ycar’s.day, 18.7,3, Jefferson and rj,married, and soon after they set .ontiedio, which the groom had build-in 1769,-Just before the his patrimonial home of i they advanced towards the »nlt;TVlvlast they had to leave the coach and take to. horses. At Blenheim, Col. Carters estate, whero they slopped to rest, they found no one but an overseer, and leaving it at sunset they resolutely faced toward* MonticeUo, eight miles distant, aloDg-a mountain pathway three ' feet deep with ■now. Bays Mf. Cooke:“ It was’ lato when they arrived, and a eh c*r\ess reception awaited them, or Tathor there yras.no reception at all.- The fires were all out, tho servant* had gone to bed and the place was dark and' silent as the. grave.. Conducting hls'wlfsio the -little pavilion, which was the only part of the house hnbilablu at the time, Jeffer-LTson proceeded to kindle.thb fire and do |rt]- ton ors. On a shelf behind somecovered, and tbit formed tho^n* the bridegroom and the bride. jN being annoyed or discomfited by ti ception, however,’it only served topic of jcst-and laughter. The-lady was as lighthearted as a bir.-‘‘Eteyjo* want to ■» the in*ide of-old was HR solution, rflaiwit wilt cwr you twenty-five cents.'’sent bet clear voice ringing throujjh tlie iu the qheerfuT drawing roomwere struggling to grow out of the place before (hey put on their scarlet tints of the autmn, and within tho bloom of a Binglo bush of Bglantine only relieved the scene of flelapidation which plet yoa at every footstep. There is but one monu ment in the mclosure, that of Teffersou, whose grave was dug by hiB old .bb iy-serveat, Wcirmley, in the place which Jefferson had selected.. It is located olote to the north wall equi-distant from its sides. It is. a cokree. granite obelisk about 9 feet high on Mjbase.fi feet Bqnare and marks the nead orthe grave. There not any inch of it that has not been chipped and broken by the hand of tho vandal. The edges of tha shaft haye been chipped from base to apex till the corners present the appearance of a: rough, unhewn stone. “The legendary tablets, of the past-have- been-utterly obtttearatocbbj-the defacement of the inscription, with the single exception of the words in small letters at the base. ,rTbo. full epitaph which Mr. Jefferson wrote,--and 'a- rough pen-and-ink sketch of a monument for himself, were found in ■ private drawer a few days after his d^oth,. It was to be. an obelisk of granite, cigflii feet high, and to bear .(and subse queut]'y^dia i7flif}_tlre fol^ lowing inscription:“Here -was buried Thomas, Jefferson, Autnor of the Declaration'-of- 'American Independence; of tho Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, aud_F*ther of thq..:UniYArmty—of-^Virginia.” 'The -Sn-scription-for tho base was to be: “Born April 3, O. 8.1743; Diod ’’Hia wishes were carried out, thoJdfok in the last lino being filled with “July 4, 1899. ' Alf tliiit is visible of the inscrin-inscriplion.to-day are the lines; “Rom April 3_ O, B. 1743. Died July 4. 183(J.V{There is ho trace whatever of-thcr-gravebn Jhe lower side oTHiii' mdiumeht.'In 1851 this grave and it* slab ol white marble were visible .with the ..slniple _iii-. Bcription: “Martlia Jcflfefson, Bofh in 17G8 O. B. Tntermanied with Thooias Jeffomon January 1, 177^.. Torn from'“ltftn by death September1 U, 1782. ThiB monu-rnent.pf love is inscribed. On tho other or upper side cf the obelisk the slab covering the grave of Jefferson’a oldest daughter is . partly legible. What is miaaing is inserted in parentheses: “Mar(th'a Jefferson Randolph), eldestSept. 17; f Intermarried withThomas Mann Itandhlpb, Fob. 23, 1790. Died Oct. 10, 1838. She possessed astrong and.cnltivated-^r-mild and gegtle - - ■ ‘ Vjf-ahc-.temper; warm,affectionate and ,se! rificing in all her duties. Tliis is a slight mark of the lovo bofno by her son Thoirt, as Jefferson ItandplpSJ’ Mr, Randolph died but two years ago. In 1873 lie presided ever the Democratic convention held in Ohio. . . ,In his last ‘days Jefferson! wrote. to Madison: “Take care ot mo whep, dead, and bo assured I shat! leave with ybu my last affections.’1 -Although his biographer intimates that this probably referred to tho defence of a part of his political record imeverthclieag-appeals in its--fullest sense to tho American people to save from further dpsoctftion that-which;for CongrevB to place a new monument r hia-grave—unless it^devimw-wimaLmoans to protect iL It ^will be located in an elmotj l^p Ira) lien feu place, whereit can be’defadid quite as ripidly Its the present one was by those .who neither revere tho memory nor respect tho grave of Jefferson. ...In passing from, the old buriaL place on the mountain side the visitor suddenly emerges from the forests and finds himself on tho summit, wilh a view in ail di-reetioM-but-the—one-he-riiad—jnst-oome-jnfrom, of surpassing-beauty. It has- beenso often described by travelers that it need not be fully detailed Here. The eye sweeps froip fortj^o fiftv mile* over the valleys beneath,y; in “this vast eea of ver dure” the ripples and shadows dance over the luxuriant fields of grain to the limit of the i^ilon. The level tit’ the horizon on the south ia ln-okeh by Willia mountain;-forty^miles' distant; Mr.—Jefferson iised to say if the 'country ofFluvanna was a Taka anti Wiffii mountain a volcano his scenery wonld bo perfect. Bot there are very few grander prospects tfym this so easy of access and fojflne luplim^t^. .Om a very, level placs , of two. or threeacres on the very summit stand* the honae, halt embdwered in trees: On the »outh asapproach' ft tho brokenwindow* and :ked walls give it lh« rook br'coTH-you ccockepleto ruiD, bnt In front and rear the. spacious porticoes qre in a fair state of pre-*eryalion, aud‘ the building, otherwise ■f.a* an appearaac of shibby splendor. It is a long brick structure surmounted by a dome, with the srehitwstUral devices peculiar to Jefferson.' The only sign ef LI fa about the place, wu a ragged and grovelling old man—* veritable tramp in appearance—-who rocked himself in the warm sun in a.cbair .on the-portico. It was hard to believe that this Coded and threadbare penoa had taken powewionj of the place many year* ago, mad eked out subsistence hj clupving. the university’ students and such other visitors os rarely; came up from CbuwJotteville on admission, to the hoqse. . In.tia long pending litigation of the property no one Luis 'had'- any control of if; and tnl*'man ha* simply e*-rwwrelff-stood in a lofty square hall, the main or aantriti rddmwthe-buildlnk,yi oah side which iwas x iwustndej frpfc Twhich,' bid man qtiaiatiy said. “Jefferson used to make speeches to hi* guests.” It was evidently inteded for musicians, as this hall and one above it under the ddme of the house-were used for bsll-iooma There was nothing in the room but a ‘flolcting ladder in TscorpcrwMt siockovei the'^oor,'both of which-beldngef to Jef-fersop, a^.i^apdotier of some ]at-the cwltro of tho irk ‘of t^o c^liag. Jhe;fiea - stucqo-.flooawaelai^in blocS* of whitecherry,Jaud is in excellent condition. This roomWened by sliding gloss doors of decided tMdern, Joolc on the sgpii-octagonal south--erp joolt on eastrpoftic, disyo^dVop-, the, right |s.e; jKtni-oetagbnal‘tea-room and Two coiu-modious guest-rooms and a dining-room^ Avery handsome marble slab had recently Imen stol^from this room; -On the left was Mr. Randolph’s room and that of Jefferson, oni beyond, extending the whole width of. the .house,. library. Tho latter opened On thB cottscr-, vatory, which is in rums, -petite upper; UoGra-are-tlie-l»edroeins,-witb:-alco¥es-4h: i achrfiatliiadied^-ouhup-iBto-alb-cooooiv^ able shapes by the irregular form of the’ house. They are reached by a little, narrow stairway it^ a dork recess, built with shlrp.' -ingle* at every few steps and almost Ihftccafcsible to a stout person. 8o poor-a^stairway in a -house utherwiseX commodious was one of the in any “architectural freaka which Jefferson displayed in building this bouse and tho University ^of Virginia. The dome is a large, airy: jjingri Japartpieut, kgown as “the ladies' drawing, room, or .bkll-roosn, (if octagon shapX with a wine cloBet attached. In one of the bedrooms the gig. which Jefferson is. said to hare used is stowed away, 'Above, os below, not a piece of furniture is to 1» seen. Tho blank walnut doors are in ‘excellent condition and are ssif-closing, and, seif-fastening when opened. Ttnjgrounds about are neglected and with depay visible at every turn. There is said to be a reasonable prospect that the tide will soon bo quieted and tho estate, reyert to the hands ot those who will restore and protect it.
Newspaper Details
Sioux County Independent
Calliope, Iowa, US
Wed, Sep 11, 1878
Page 3
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Anonymous
USA 21 Oct 2024
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Sioux County Independent
