The First Proclamation for Public Thanksgiving—Pennsylvania Whiskey Rebellion—John Marshall and the Supreme Court—Religious Liberty—The Monroe Doctrine—Seven Presidents—Clarke Saves the Great Northwest—The Northwest Explored—Louisiana Purchase—Texas Acquired—Mexico Adds to Our Territory—The Oceans Measured, Sounded and Mapped—The Ladies’ Memorial Association—The Mary Washington Monument, &c.
The First Proclamation for Public Thanksgiving—Pennsylvania Whiskey Rebellion—John Marshall and the Supreme Court—Religious Liberty—The Monroe Doctrine—Seven Presidents—Clarke Saves the Great Northwest—The Northwest Explored—Louisiana Purchase—Texas Acquired—Mexico Adds to Our Territory—The Oceans Measured, Sounded and Mapped—The Ladies’ Memorial Association—The Mary Washington Monument, &c.
This chapter is taken up with a continuation and conclusion of the subjects of the last two chapters—that is, a brief reference to what has been accomplished for the country by the giant minds, and through the dangerous and daring exploits of the men who lived in Fredericksburg and within a radius of seventy-five miles of Fredericksburg; therefore no farther introduction to the chapter is necessary.
FIRST THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION.
It was Richard Henry Lee, of Westmoreland county, a Virginian, styled the Cicero of America, who wrote the first proclamation for public thanksgiving in this country. Congress, with the government, had moved from Lancaster, in Pennsylvania, where it had gone for safety, to York, in the same State, then containing about 1,500 inhabitants. At that time the chief cities in the country were in the hands of the enemy, except Richmond and Savannah, and the American army—again defeated at Germantown—retreating before a victorious enemy. Congress had been in session for nine months in York in the years 1777 and 1778, and while there heard the news of the surrender of Burgoyne, adopted the Articles of Confederation, received the news from Benjamin Franklin at Paris of the decision of the French government to aid the Americans in their struggle for liberty, and issued the first national thanksgiving proclamation.
The President of Congress appointed Richard Henry Lee, ofVirginia, with Samuel Adams, of Massachusetts, and Gen. Roberdeau, of Pennsylvania, to draft the proclamation. It was written by Mr. Lee, and for its beauty and comprehensiveness, and being the first paper of the kind ever prepared and issued by authority in this country, it will, we are sure, be regarded with interest and veneration. It is as follows:
“For inasmuch as it is the indispensable duty of all men to adore the superintending providence of Almighty God, to acknowledge, with gratitude, their obligations for benefits received, and to implore such further blessings as they stand in need of; and it having pleased him, in his abundant mercy, not only to continue to us the many blessings of his common providence, but also to smile upon us in the prosecution of just and necessary war, for the defence and establishment of our rights and liberties; particularly that he has been pleased, in so great a measure, to prosper the means used for the support of our troops and to crown our arms with signal success.“It is, therefore, recommended to the legislatures, or executives, powers of these United States, to set apart Thursday, the 18th of December next, for solemn thanksgiving and praise; that with one heart and one voice the people of this country may express their grateful reverence, and consecrate themselves to the service of their divine benefactor, and that together, with their sincere acknowledgments, they may join in a penitent confession of their manifold sins, whereby they had forfeited every favor, and their humble and earnest supplication may be that it may please God, through the merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of remembrance; that it may please him graciously to shower his blessings on the government of these States, respectively, and to prosper the public council of the whole United States; to inspire our commanders, both by land and sea, and all under them, with that wisdom and fortitude which may render them fit instruments, under the providence of Almighty God, to secure for these United States the greatest of all blessings—independence and peace; that it may please him to prosper the trade and manufactures of the people, and the labor of the husbandman, that our land may yield its increase; to protect schools and seminaries of learning, so necessaryfor cultivating the principles of true liberty, virtue and piety, under his nurturing hand, and to prosper the means of religion for the promotion and enlargement of the kingdom which consists of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.“It is further recommended that all servile labor and such recreation as at other times innocent may be unbecoming the purpose of this appointment on so solemn an occasion.”
“For inasmuch as it is the indispensable duty of all men to adore the superintending providence of Almighty God, to acknowledge, with gratitude, their obligations for benefits received, and to implore such further blessings as they stand in need of; and it having pleased him, in his abundant mercy, not only to continue to us the many blessings of his common providence, but also to smile upon us in the prosecution of just and necessary war, for the defence and establishment of our rights and liberties; particularly that he has been pleased, in so great a measure, to prosper the means used for the support of our troops and to crown our arms with signal success.
“It is, therefore, recommended to the legislatures, or executives, powers of these United States, to set apart Thursday, the 18th of December next, for solemn thanksgiving and praise; that with one heart and one voice the people of this country may express their grateful reverence, and consecrate themselves to the service of their divine benefactor, and that together, with their sincere acknowledgments, they may join in a penitent confession of their manifold sins, whereby they had forfeited every favor, and their humble and earnest supplication may be that it may please God, through the merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of remembrance; that it may please him graciously to shower his blessings on the government of these States, respectively, and to prosper the public council of the whole United States; to inspire our commanders, both by land and sea, and all under them, with that wisdom and fortitude which may render them fit instruments, under the providence of Almighty God, to secure for these United States the greatest of all blessings—independence and peace; that it may please him to prosper the trade and manufactures of the people, and the labor of the husbandman, that our land may yield its increase; to protect schools and seminaries of learning, so necessaryfor cultivating the principles of true liberty, virtue and piety, under his nurturing hand, and to prosper the means of religion for the promotion and enlargement of the kingdom which consists of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.
“It is further recommended that all servile labor and such recreation as at other times innocent may be unbecoming the purpose of this appointment on so solemn an occasion.”
This historic document was adopted by Congress on the 30th of October, 1777, and sent to the governors of the respective States on the 1st of November by the President of the Congress, Henry Lawrens, of South Carolina, who had just been elected to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of John Hancock, of Massachusetts.
THE WHISKEY REBELLION.
It was Henry Lee, of Westmoreland county, a Virginian, known through the war for independence as “Light Horse Harry,” who, in 1792, crushed out the Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania and restored order to the four counties in rebellion. He was at the time Governor of Virginia, and was in command of 15,000 troops, raised by special requisition of President Washington from the States of Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey. It was this Henry Lee who delivered the funeral oration in Congress on Washington, in which he used those words which will last in history as long as the memory of Washington shall be revered, “He was first in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen.”
CHIEF JUSTICE MARSHALL AND SUPREME COURT.
It was John Marshall, of Fauquier county, a Virginian, who, by his great ability and firmness of character, brought the Supreme Court up from a tribunal of little importance and consequence to one of great dignity and to one equal in power and importance with the executive and legislative branches of the government. He did more—he established not only the fact that the Supreme Court was the proper tribunal to declare what was and what was not law, under the Constitution, but it was to set limits to the powers and prerogatives of the chief executive himself.
In an address on the Supreme Court by Justice Brown in 1896, he said: “The Constitution had been adopted by the vote of the thirteen States of the Union, but its construction was a work scarcely less important than its original creation. With a large liberty of choice, guided by no precedents, and generally unhampered by his colleagues upon the bench, the great Chief Justice (Marshall) determined what was law by what he thought it ought to be, evolved from his own experience of the defects of the Articles of Confederation and from an innate consciousness of what the country required, a theory of construction which time has vindicated and the popular sentiment of succeeding generations has approved. In the case of Marbury against Madison, which arose at his very first term, he declared the judicial power to extend to the annulment of an act of Congress in conflict with the Constitution, a doctrine peculiar to this country, but so commending itself to the common sense of justice as to have been incorporated in the jurisprudence of every State in the Union. The lack of this check upon the action of the Legislature has wrecked the constitution of many a foreign State, and it is safe to say that our own would not have long survived a contrary decision. Had Marshall rendered no other service to the country, this of itself would have been sufficient to entitle him to its gratitude.” And Judge A. W. Wallace, writing of Justice Marshall, said: “By his canons of construction he fortified the foundations of the Constitution and builded thereon the jurisprudence of the United States—whose opinions, nearly a century old, stand, like a great sea-wall, breasting every billow of political frenzy that has threatened to engulf the safety, permanence and perpetuity of our institutions.”
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY.
It was Thomas Jefferson, of Albemarle county, a Virginian, who wrote the act of the General Assembly of Virginia, passed on the 26th day of December, 1785, establishing religious liberty in Virginia, which has been adopted, or a law of similar import, by every State in the United States, and made a part of the Constitution of the United States, by the first amendment made to that instrument.It is one of the grandest achievements of Mr. Jefferson, and stamps him as a patriot who could and did rise superior to his environments and surroundings, and even his predilections and life-long attachments, and secure to the people, by a law which he expressed the hope would never be repealed, their rights in matters of conscience as to religion and the worship of their God. It has permeated this whole country, and its influence is felt more or less throughout Christendom, and as a little leaven will leaven the whole lump, so its influence is still at work and time only can tell what it shall accomplish.
The act was written in Fredericksburg, and, omitting the long preamble, which is written in Mr. Jefferson’s best and most vigorous style, is as follows: “That no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be inforced, restrained, molested or burthened, in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge or affect their civil capacities.”
THE MONROE DOCTRINE.
It was James Monroe, a native of Westmoreland county, but for years a citizen of Fredericksburg, a Virginian, who announced the American principle, known as the “Monroe Doctrine” that declared that no foreign power should acquire territory on this continent, which has been the guiding principle of the United States government since its enunciation, and which has been the safeguard to all the governments of this hemisphere.
The Monroe doctrine and the causes that called it forth, are succinctly stated in volume 10 of the “Messages and Papers of the Presidents,” and are as follows: “After the overthrow of Napoleon, France, Russia, Prussia and Austria formed the so-called Holy Alliance in September, 1815, for the suppression of revolutions within each other’s dominions and for perpetuating peace. The Spanish colonies in America having revolted, it was rumoredthat this alliance contemplated their subjugation, although the United States had acknowledged their independence. George Canning, English Secretary of State, proposed that England and America unite to oppose such intervention. On consultation with Jefferson, Madison, John Quincy Adams and Calhoun, Monroe, in his annual message to Congress in 1823, embodied the conclusions of these deliberations in what has since been known as the Monroe Doctrine. Referring to the threatened intervention of the powers, the message declares: ‘We owe it, therefore, to candor and to the amicable relations existing between the United States and those powers to declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety. With the existing colonies or dependencies of any European power we have not interfered and shall not interfere. But with the governments who have declared their independence and maintained it, and whose independence we have, on great consideration and on just principles, acknowledged, we could not view any interposition for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling in any other manner their destiny, by any European power in any other light than as the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States.’”
ESTABLISHED THE YOUNG REPUBLIC.
And furthermore: Not only did Fredericksburg and vicinity furnish the leader of the American armies to victory and independence, and the leading spirit in the navy; not only did they furnish the author of the Declaration of Independence and the Father of the Constitution, but they furnished the Presidents of the United States for thirty-two years of the most trying and difficult part of the history of the Republic,—it being the formative period of an experiment,—except the four years of John Adams’s administration, during which but little, if any, progress was made. Washington was the first President, serving eight years; Jefferson succeeding Adams, who served eight years; then Madison eight years, followed by James Monroe for eight years, thus making the thirty-two years. Besides these four Presidents, Virginia furnished three others,who lived or were born within the circle of seventy-five miles of Fredericksburg, namely, Wm. Henry Harrison, John Tyler and Zachary Taylor. It is rather remarkable that both Harrison and Tyler should have been born in Charles City county, Virginia, elected on the same ticket, Harrison, who had moved to Ohio, as President, and Tyler as Vice-President, the death of the former just one month after his inauguration, elevating Tyler to the Presidency. President Taylor was born in Orange county.
THE GREAT NORTHWEST RECLAIMED.
It was George Rodgers Clarke,[85]of Albemarle county, a Virginian and a Fredericksburg man, by the authority of Virginia’s Governor, Patrick Henry, with volunteers from Virginia and Kentucky, explored and conquered the great Northwest Territory. This territory belonged to Virginia under original grant in her charter, but the British at this time held it, established strong posts there and encouraged the Indians to make war on the white settlements. The Continental Congress could spare no troops to reclaim this territory, though appealed to by Virginia to do so. For this dangerous task Geo. R. Clarke proffered his services, which were accepted by the Governor. Enlisting volunteers, he marched into that region, and by real ability, rare skill, heroic courage and patience in bearing every hardship and privation, captured Forts Kaskaskia and Vincennes and other posts, and floated the flag of Virginia over the whole of the Northwest Territory, it being designated Illinois county, Virginia.
This campaign cleared that entire country of the British, and secured to Virginia a clear title to that vast territory, out of which the States of Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan and a part of Minnesota were afterwards carved, and which Virginia gave to the Union as a free-will offering, the most imperial gift that State or nation ever laid on the altar of country.[86]
R., F. & P. Railroad Company’s Iron Bridge over the Rappahannock River.(Seepage 328)
Senator Daniel W. Voorhees, of Indiana, in his defence of Cook, at Charlestown, now West Virginia, in 1859, one of the John Brown raiders, said in his opening remarks:
“The very soil on which I live, in my western home, was once owned by this venerable Commonwealth, as much as the soil on which I now stand. Her laws there once prevailed, and all her institutions were there established as they are here. Not only my own State of Indiana, but also four other great States in the Northwest, stand as enduring and lofty monuments of Virginia’s magnanimity and princely liberality. Her donation to the general government made them sovereign States; and since God gave the fruitful land of Canaan to Moses and Israel, such a gift of present or future empire has never been made to any people.”
THE WEST EXPLORED.
It was Meriwether Lewis, of Albemarle, and Wm. Clarke,[87]of Fredericksburg, both Virginians, who explored that great stretch of country from the Mississippi river to the Pacific ocean, and made it less difficult for John C. Fremont, who afterwards explored the same territory and received the proud appellation of the “Great Path Finder,” which appellation rightly belonged to Lewis and Clarke.
THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE.
It was Thomas Jefferson, of Albemarle county, a Virginian, who, while President of the United States, made the “Louisiana Purchase,” which brought to the possession of the United States more than one million square miles of territory. This immense territory belonged to the French government. It embraced the present States of Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Indian Territory, North and South Dakota, Montana, and parts of Kansas, Minnesota, Wyoming and Colorado. The price paid was $11,250,000 in money and the assumption by the government of debts due our citizens by France, amounting to $3,750,000, making in all $15,000,000.
The purchase of this vast territory was bitterly opposed,—as all acquisitions of territory by the United States have been—especially in New England, where they threatened to secede from the Union, if it was consummated, and the legislation of Massachusetts passed and sent to the President and Speaker of the House a resolution to the effect that they would consider the adding of the Louisiana territory, to the domain of the United States, just cause for exercising their right of secession.[88]
THE FLORIDA PURCHASE.
It was James Monroe, of Fredericksburg, a Virginian, who purchased Florida from the Spanish government for $5,000,000, a land of “Fruits and Flowers,” and a favorite health resort for winter tourists from all parts of the country. Its Spanish name Pascua Florida, translated, means Flowery Easter, which indicates that in Florida the flower season is perpetual.
ACQUISITION OF TEXAS.
It was Sam Houston, of Rockbridge county, a Virginian, who wrested the great State of Texas from Mexico and afterwards ceded it to the United States, John Tyler, of Charles City county, a Virginian, signing the bills for its admission three days before his presidential term ended. By this acquisition the government added to its possessions territory sufficient, it is said, to furnish comfortable homes for the present population of the United States, which would then be less crowded than many of the States of Europe.
THE MEXICAN WAR.
It was Gen. Winfield Scott, of Dinwiddie county, a Virginian, and Gen. Zachary Taylor (Rough and Ready), of Orange county, also a Virginian, who subdued Mexico, by which there were added to the territory of the United States the great States of California, Arizona and New Mexico.
And thus it will be seen, that all of the territory acquired by the United States Government, from the union of the colonies for thecommon defence to the purchase of Alaska, except the Gadsden purchase, was secured through Virginians, who were born and raised, and many of them at the time lived, in or near Fredericksburg.
COMMODORE F. M. MAURY.
It was Matthew Fontaine Maury, of Spotsylvania county, and later a resident of Fredericksburg, a Virginian, who marked out the tracks of speed and safety for mariners of every clime over the ocean’s bosom, and showed the beds on the bottom of the seas, where the cable lines now safely lie, of whom all the officers of the maritime nations came to learn, on whom kings and emperors bestowed orders, medals and decorations, and of whom the great Humboldt said he had created a new science.[89]
The following paper, on this great man’s life, character and achievements, to whom the world is so greatly indebted, was prepared by Rev. J. S. Dill, D. D., then a resident of this place, and pastor of the Baptist church, for this volume:
“On the 14th of January, 1806, only ten miles from the city of Fredericksburg, in the county of Spotsylvania, was born Matthew Fontaine Maury. He came of goodly stock, for there mingled in his nature, in equal parts, the sturdy religious life of the French Huguenots and the gallantry of the English Cavalier. On his mother’s side he belonged to the Minor family, of Virginia, while his name testifies that his paternal ancestors were among those who, from the persecutions of France, stretched their arms to the New World.“When Maury was five years old, his parents emigrated to Tennessee and settled near the present town of Franklin. Thus, in the primeval forests of Tennessee, far away from the ocean’s tuneful chant, there grew up the lad, who was to become ‘The Pathfinder of the Seas.’“The early educational advantages of young Maury were but scant. An accident, disqualifying him for farm service, gave him his best opportunity at an academy, and this he did not fail to use.Maury looked to the army for a profession, but his parents denied him. When, without their knowledge, he then secured his appointment to the navy, they again objected, and he left home without his father’s blessing. In 1825, an inland lad of nineteen years, Maury was assigned to duty as a midshipman on the Brandywine. It became evident that he had resolved to master his profession, and his promotion was rapid. In 1831 he was appointed master of the sloop of war Falmouth, which was ordered to Pacific waters. Diligently he sought information as to the best track for his vessel. Finding no reliable chart for his guidance, he realized the need of such help and his mind began at once to grapple with that problem, the solution of which afterwards immortalized him.”
“On the 14th of January, 1806, only ten miles from the city of Fredericksburg, in the county of Spotsylvania, was born Matthew Fontaine Maury. He came of goodly stock, for there mingled in his nature, in equal parts, the sturdy religious life of the French Huguenots and the gallantry of the English Cavalier. On his mother’s side he belonged to the Minor family, of Virginia, while his name testifies that his paternal ancestors were among those who, from the persecutions of France, stretched their arms to the New World.
“When Maury was five years old, his parents emigrated to Tennessee and settled near the present town of Franklin. Thus, in the primeval forests of Tennessee, far away from the ocean’s tuneful chant, there grew up the lad, who was to become ‘The Pathfinder of the Seas.’
“The early educational advantages of young Maury were but scant. An accident, disqualifying him for farm service, gave him his best opportunity at an academy, and this he did not fail to use.Maury looked to the army for a profession, but his parents denied him. When, without their knowledge, he then secured his appointment to the navy, they again objected, and he left home without his father’s blessing. In 1825, an inland lad of nineteen years, Maury was assigned to duty as a midshipman on the Brandywine. It became evident that he had resolved to master his profession, and his promotion was rapid. In 1831 he was appointed master of the sloop of war Falmouth, which was ordered to Pacific waters. Diligently he sought information as to the best track for his vessel. Finding no reliable chart for his guidance, he realized the need of such help and his mind began at once to grapple with that problem, the solution of which afterwards immortalized him.”
WONDERFUL WORKS ON NAVIGATION.
“At home for a time in 1834, he was married to Miss Ann Herndon, of Fredericksburg, and from this time on we find much of his family life woven into the history of our city. On Charlotte street, between Princess Ann and Prince Edward, still stands the house[90]where he lived and his children were born. At this time he published his first book—a ‘Treatise on Navigation’—which for many years, even after the Civil war, was made a text book in the naval academy at Annapolis. His pen now became active in newspaper articles that startled the country, and there even arose a sentiment to elevate him to the portfolio of Secretary of the Navy.
“In the fall of 1839, by the upsetting of the stage in which he was travelling, his knee was severely fractured. But this untoward accident, under the guiding hand of God, put him into the very position in which he was to perform his life-work. His lame leg being unseaworthy, he was placed in charge of the ‘Depot of Charts and Instruments,’ at Washington. Here he grasped his great opportunity. Here, at the capital of the nation, he wrought for twenty years, and these two decades, from 1841 to 1861, mark the high tide of his service to the world.
“At Washington Maury found the vast accumulation of the ‘log books’ of the United States warships, stored away as mererubbish. This he utilized as valuable data. He also set in operation plans for still more complete and accurate collections of all kinds of hydrographic and meteorologic observations. With all this before him, with pains-taking toil, he prepared his wonderful ‘charts and sailing directions.’ His work took ultimate form in a series of six ‘charts’ and eight large folio volumes of ‘sailing directions,’ and these comprehended all waters, in every clime, where fly the white sails of civilized commerce.
“The charts exhibit, with wonderful accuracy, the winds and currents, their force and direction, at different seasons, the temperature of the surface waters, the calm belts and trade winds, the rains and the storms. The eight volumes of ‘sailing directions,’ are brim full of the most valuable nautical information, and are perfect treasures to the intelligent seaman. This effected a revolution in the art of navigation. The practical result was that the most difficult of all sea voyages—that from New York to San Francisco, around Cape Horn—has been shortened by forty days; and it has been estimated, that in shortening the time and lessening the dangers of sea voyages, there has been a saving to the world’s commerce of not less than $40,000,000 annually.
“In writing about these sea routes he has mapped out, Maury has this to say: ‘So to shape the course on voyages as to make the most of winds and currents at sea, is the perfection of the navigator’s art. How the winds blow and the currents flow along this route or that, is no longer matter of opinion or speculation. The wind and the weather, daily encountered by hundreds, who have sailed the same voyage before him, have been tabulated for the mariner; nay, his path has been literally blazed for him on the sea; mile posts have been set upon the waves, and finger-boards planted and time-tables furnished for the trackless waste.’
“The simple ‘Depot of Charts and Instruments,’ over which Maury was placed, soon became the ‘National Observatory,’ with this man of genius as its superintendent. The vast work was international and, in 1853, brought about the great Brussels conference. On his return from this conference, ladened with honors, Maury stood before the world as the founder of the twin sciencesof hydrography and meteorology. No less a man than Alexander von Humboldt declared him the founder of a new science.”
FOUNDER OF WEATHER BUREAU.
“The limits of this sketch forbid more than a bare mention of the many other directions in which the genius of this wonderful man blessed the world. The great Atlantic cable, that flashes the news from continent to continent, is one of the radiant sparks that flew from his anvil as he wrought. Cyrus Field declared, at its completion, ‘Maury furnished the brains, England gave the money, I did the work.’ He established the river gauges of the Mississippi and the daily observations that give our best knowledge of that great river. He established the great circle routes for ocean steamship travel, and the ‘steam laws’ now used in ocean travel are his. He applied his system of meteorology to land as well as sea, and outlined the work of the ‘signal service’ and ‘weather bureau’ of to-day.
“The ‘National Observatory,’ under Maury, comprehended in all essential particulars what now is divided into no less than four departments at Washington. In 1855 Maury published his popular work ‘The Physical Geography of the Sea and its Meteorology.’ The work has passed through twenty editions, and has found its way into the languages of Continental Europe. It is the very poetry of his great science, analyzing and tabulating millions of observations of the sea—its currents and its climates, its winds and rains and storms, its myriads of animal life, and marvellous formations of shore-lines and bottoms—he found his way to the heart of nature and laid before us, like an open book, her majestic laws. And never did scientific man touch nature in more devout spirit. In all he saw the handiwork of God. Investigations into the broad-spreading circle of phenomena, connected with the winds of heaven and the waves of the sea, never failed to lift his mind to the Creator. As he pondered these things, he heard a voice in every wave that chipped its hand, he felt a pressure in every breeze that blew, he knelt and worshipped God.”
STOOD WITH THE SOUTH.
“The life of Maury fell on times when there were at work other currents than those of sea and river. Political passions blew to a gale and the nation drifted to Civil war. His supreme sense of duty, and loyalty to his own State, was the current that bore him away from Washington and stranded him in the final wreck of the Southern Confederacy. In those unhappy times no man sacrificed more than Maury. He not only resigned his high position at Washington, but turned his back upon tempting offers from Russia and France, in order to suffer affliction with his own people. In the Civil war he rendered most valuable service by introducing submarine torpedo warfare, and inventing a sure method of explosion by electricity. Much of his time was spent in England purchasing navy supplies and perfecting inventions in navy warfare.
“After the war, Maury turned to Mexico and joined his fortunes to the Emperor Maximilian; but the tragic end of this friend and patron, again left him stranded. When, in 1868, the enactment of a general amnesty removed his political disabilities, Maury accepted the Chair of Meteorology in the Virginia Military Institute, and there spent the closing years of his life. He greatly rejoiced in this return to old friends and scenes, and addressed himself with ardor to congenial pursuits. But a constitution, not the strongest, gave way to the storms of the last years. The middle of October, 1872, on his return from a fatiguing lecture tour, as he crossed his threshold he said ‘I am come home to die.’ For four long months he lay weak and suffering. The end came on the 1st of February. 1873. A heavenly breeze bore him to the anchorage beyond the sea, and the trusting child of nature rested with his God.
“Than Matthew Fontaine Maury no American has received higher honors from foreign countries. Orders of Knighthood were bestowed upon him by the Emperor of Russia, King of Denmark, King of Portugal, King of Belgium, and the Emperor of France; while Prussia, Austria, Sweden, Holland, Sardinia, Bremen and France, struck gold medals in his honor The Pope sent him a full set of all the medals struck during his pontificate; Maximiliandecorated him with ‘The Cross of Our Lady Guadaloupe;’ while Germany bestowed upon him the great ‘Cosmos Medal,’ struck in honor of Von Humboldt. It is the only duplicate of that medal in existence. He became corresponding member of more literary and scientific circles, and received more honorary diplomas, at home and abroad, than any other man known to history.
“Our own National Government has failed to honor his memory by appropriate memorial, yet his name is so woven with his great science that it must live. The Hon. Mellin Chamberlain, late Librarian of Congress, in calm judicial tone, has declared, ‘I do not suppose there is the least doubt that Maury was the greatest man America has ever produced.’
“A bill to honor Commodore Maury, with an appropriate monument, lies mouldering in the archives of Congress. It will some day see the light. During the last years of Maury’s life the smoke of a great conflict gathered about him and hid his face from the National Government; but the smoke is fast lifting, and the healthy breezes of a great national fraternity will soon blow it far away. Then his nation will look upon his face and see the clear outlines of his character—then will he take his own proper place in America’s galaxy of the great.”
THE LADIES’ MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION.
It was in Fredericksburg, and by the ladies of Fredericksburg, Virginians, that the first memorial association was organized and chartered for looking after the dead soldiers, for providing them a final resting place in some convenient cemetery laid out for the purpose, and strewing their graves with the first flowers of spring as the years pass by. This was their second care after their return to their homes at the close of the Civil war, their first being their own homes, which were almost in ruins; and since the organization of that memorial association no season of flowers has passed that these graves have not been piously remembered.
MARY WASHINGTON MONUMENT.
It was the ladies of Fredericksburg, Virginians, who inaugurated the move, and carried it on to complete success, to raise a monumentto a woman, the tallest and most imposing of its kind that is to be found on this continent. It towers over fifty feet high, the shaft is solid granite, and it marks the grave of the greatest of American women—Mary, the mother of Washington. It is true, that after the work was commenced, the plans laid, and some money raised, the ladies were assisted by the National Mary Washington Monument Association, which did good service, but even that association, brought into being through the local association at Fredericksburg, was made more active and efficient by the energy and persistence of the pioneers in the movement. That monument is grand and beautiful, and reaches high into the heavens, and while it marks the last resting place of that sainted woman, it reflects great honor upon all the ladies who assisted in its erection.
Commodore Matthew Fontaine Maury,the “Path Finder of the Seas.”(Seepage 315)
These are some of the things in which Virginians took the lead and which were accomplished by them. There may be omissions of noble acts and brave deeds that might have been mentioned of whose existence we are in ignorance, but these we have mentioned will suffice to show that they were the leading spirits in throwing off the British yoke of oppression, in uniting the colonies for common defence, in proclaiming to the world our grievances and declaring for freedom, in waging a long and bloody war and securing independence, in forming and conducting the government from its infancy through its experimental period, in extending its territorial limits and in contributing to its national greatness. If for all this—if for what has been achieved by their ancestors in field and forum, on land and sea, an honest pride should well up in the breast of the Virginians of the living present, that should find expression in words, where is the individual that can rise up and charge them with vain boasting?
Fredericksburg at Present—The Health of the City—Its Financial Solidity—Its Commercial Prosperity—Its Lines of Transportation—Its Water Power—Its Official Calendar—List of Mayors, &c.
Fredericksburg at Present—The Health of the City—Its Financial Solidity—Its Commercial Prosperity—Its Lines of Transportation—Its Water Power—Its Official Calendar—List of Mayors, &c.
We now come to the closing words of the history of our venerable city, and what we shall add in closing will be of Fredericksburg as it is at present, without going into tiresome details, but before proceeding with that interesting topic we must turn aside to mention some useful and honored organizations of the ladies of the town, which failed to receive attention in a former chapter, after which our subject. “Fredericksburg at Present,” will be resumed.
DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION.[91]
The Betty Washington Lewis Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, was organized in 1899 at the Exchange Hotel. Several prominent members of the National Society were present and explained the scope and work of the association. Mrs. Wm. Key Howard, of Kenmore, was appointed regent, by Mrs. Hugh N. Page, State regent, and twelve charter members were obtained. At the end of the first year Mrs. Howard resigned, and, in February, 1900, at a meeting at Kenmore, once the home of the sister of Washington, whose name the chapter adopted, Mrs. John T. Goolrick was elected regent; Mrs. H. M. D. Martin, vice-regent; Mrs. B. C. Chancellor, registrar; Mrs. V. S. F. Doggett, treasurer; Miss Sallie N. Gravatt, secretary, and Mrs. V. M. Fleming, historian. In addition to these officers the following charter members were present: Mrs. Marion Maria Mason Daniel, Mrs. Kate Tichenor Dill, Mrs. C. R. Howard, Mrs. Florence C. Richards, Mrs. Lettie M. Spencer and Mrs. Florence F. Weir.
In the preliminary work of organization, which was undertaken by Mrs. John T. Goolrick, one of her warmest supporters was Mrs.Martin. She actively interested herself in the cause, her house was always open for meetings and through her several members were added to the chapter. The work of Mrs. V. S. F. Doggett was valuable and effective, and to the time of her death her zeal and interest were unabated. Mrs. Lucilla S. Bradley, a “real daughter,” and Mrs. Maria Jefferson Carr Mason, a great granddaughter of Thomas Jefferson, were honorary members.
This chapter has aided many worthy causes outside and inside of the society, both local and foreign. Colonial balls and other entertainments have, at different intervals, been given, among the handsomest being a reception at Kenmore, where an address on John Paul Jones was delivered by Capt. S. J. Quinn, before a large and appreciative audience.
In 1904 the State Conference was entertained by the Fredericksburg Chapter, and the guests were unstinted in their praises of the hospitality accorded them here. The chapter is at present as vital a force as when organized, and prepared to use opportunities when found to do work along historical and helpful lines. The officers elected at a recent meeting are Mrs. John T. Goolrick, regent; Mrs. W. H. Richards, vice-regent; Mrs. B. C. Chancellor, registrar; Mrs. H. M. Eckenrode, treasurer, and Miss Sallie N. Gravatt, secretary.
DAUGHTERS OF THE CONFEDERACY.
The Daughters of the Confederacy was organized on the 28th of February, 1896, with the following officers: Mrs. Joseph Nicholas Barney, president; Mrs. J. Horace Lacy, vice-president; Mrs. Vivian M. Fleming, secretary, and Miss Sallie Nelson Gravatt, treasurer, and an executive committee of fourteen ex-Confederates. The chapter rapidly grew in numbers and at one time had upon the roll nearly two hundred names. This society has been quite active since its organization and has done much good in the way of helping destitute veterans, looking after and administering to the sick and burying the dead. It has been the channel of distributing the Confederate crosses, and if any cross has been bestowed upon the unworthy, it was because of the ability of the unworthy to obtain vouchers from genuine Confederates. This chapter has done agood work in looking after the remains of Confederate soldiers, when found upon the battle-fields or elsewhere, and having them interred in the Confederate cemetery. One of the praiseworthy acts of the society, a few years ago, was to disinter the remains of the brave Gen. Abner Perrin, killed at the “Bloody Angle” while gallantly leading his brigade, and buried on the Hicks farm near the courthouse, and Lieut. Wm. H. Richardson, of Alabama, killed at the same time, and buried by the General, and to place them side by side in the Confederate cemetery. And yet there is other work for these self-sacrificing ladies to do. By annual elections Mrs. Barney has remained at the head of the chapter and is the present presiding officer, with Miss Sallie M. Lacy as secretary, who is an active support to the president.
ASSOCIATION FOR THE PRESERVATION OF VIRGINIA ANTIQUITIES.[92]
The Fredericksburg Branch of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities is a small but active band. They have acquired the Mary Washington House and “Rising Sun Tavern.” The “Tavern” has been recently repaired, but retains in all respects its original style of architecture. Both buildings are furnished in “ye olden style,” and are centers of great interest to visitors. The officers of this branch are Mrs. Vivian M. Fleming, directress; Miss Rebecca C. Mander, secretary, and Mrs. Charles Wallace, treasurer.
THE CITY MISSION.
The City Mission was organized on the 14th of March, 1901, mainly through the efforts of Rev. W. D. Smith, rector of St. George’s church, and Mrs. J. B. Ficklen. It has been quite an active society and much good has resulted from its labors. The main object of the society is to afford relief to the destitute of the town, especially the sick, and as it is composed altogether of benevolent and kind hearted ladies, we know, from this and their splendid labors in the past, that their mission will be well performed. They do more than look after the sick. These ladies gather up secondhand clothing from those who can spare it and sell the same at acheap rate to those able to purchase and give to the destitute. The society is composed of ladies from all religious denominations, and the city is laid out in districts, each of which is placed in charge of three ladies, to whom applications for assistance by parties living therein are referred. By this method impositions are rare and needy persons are not overlooked. The present officers of the society are Mrs. J. B. Ficklen, president; Mrs. B. B. Montgomery and Miss Jennie Hurkamp vice-presidents; Miss Rebecca C. Mander, secretary; Miss Annie Myer, treasurer, and Mrs. Isaac Hirsh, purchasing agent.
THE FREDERICKSBURG TEACHERS’ ASSOCIATION.[93]
The faculty of the public schools of Fredericksburg met and organized the Fredericksburg Teachers’ Association in September, 1906. The officers elected at that meeting were as follows: Miss Kate James Mander, president; Miss Clarice Crittenden Davis, vice-president; Miss Jennie M. Goolrick, secretary, and Miss Maggie L. Honey, treasurer. The president of the School Board, Mr. A. B. Bowering, after the teachers were organized, was requested to outline a plan for a library, which he did, and the teachers commenced the work. After obstacles and delays, by solicitation, and dessert sales, a sufficient amount of money was raised to commence the purchase of books, and quite a nice collection of the best publications was secured. Since that additions have been made as the means of the association would justify, and now the library is an institution formed on a solid basis. It is popular with the children, and from it they derive much pleasure and instruction. The present officers are Miss Kate James Mander, president; Miss Mary Page Waller, vice-president; Miss Agnes P. Roach, secretary, and Miss Maggie L. Honey, treasurer.
FREDERICKSBURG AT PRESENT.
Fredericksburg is a healthy town—a true Virginia city—almost free from the fevers and diseases that visit other cities of the coast or even of tidewater. It is beautifully situated on the west bankof the Rappahannock river, at the head of tidewater, where its inhabitants escape the malaria of the lowlands and the fevers peculiar to the mountains. Therefore, when we compare the death rate of Fredericksburg, which is made every month by Dr. J. N. Barney, our health officer, with that of other neighboring cities, we find it quite favorable to our town.
PURE WATER SUPPLY.
Our main source of water supply, the Rappahannock river, has no city or town of any size above us, and for that reason the water is almost free from foreign substances, and as pure as are the mountain springs from which it flows. The analysis of this water, which has often been made in the years gone by, and repeatedly in the past few years, shows ninety-eight per cent., which probably more nearly approaches absolute purity than any other stream of its size in the country. Besides this aid to health, the sanitary condition of the town is carefully looked after by the Board of Health, and everything that threatens the introduction of disease is at once removed or reduced to a healthy condition. In addition to this, as a convenience for the citizens, and an aid to health conditions, the main part of the city has been sewered within the past four years, and laterals are in course of construction to reach those portions of the town not now sewered. With these aids to health and our lynx-eyed Board of Health, who are always on the alert, we may hope for and confidently expect, as we now have, an unusually healthy city.
FINANCIAL CONDITION OF THE CITY.
The financial condition of Fredericksburg is good, and her credit is undoubted. It is true that the debt of the city is large, but for every bond issued there is something substantial standing for it, except nearly $120,000 of ante-bellum bonds, issued by our forefathers in an honest and earnest endeavor to secure for our people improvements of a permanent and profitable character. But the improvements proved worthless to the town. Those who voted for them have passed over the river of death, leaving this indebtedness as a legacy to their descendants, and we take great pleasure inproviding for it. The other bonds were issued for improvements the town needed and was compelled to have. They are all in use at present, successfully operated, and are valued far in advance of the price paid for them by the city, and it is only a question of private or corporation ownership, as to whether it was a wise policy for the city to erect and operate them. The City Council thinks it acted for the best interests of the town and the people back it up in that opinion. Nearly all of the bonds issued by the city bear four per cent., were sold at or above par and purchased mostly by our own citizens. This, it would appear, is a strong indication that our financial affairs are in a satisfactory condition.
PRESENT COMMERCIAL CONDITION.
The commercial prosperity of the town is probably far in advance of what it ever was before. We have now about one hundred and fifteen wholesale and retail stores, each one doing a thriving business. In these stores the customer will be able to find any article of merchandise he may need and at as low price as he could find it in the larger cities. In the last few years there has been a spirit of improvement in business houses, and at present there are to be found store-houses that would be a credit to a city of larger pretentions. So changed is the business portion of Main street by reason of this enlargement and ornamentation that citizens of the town have often had to inquire for the places they wished to visit. In addition to this, our manufactures have increased and are still increasing, and in them hundreds of persons find employment at living wages. Among the manufacturing institutions may be mentioned two large flouring mills, one woolen mill, one pants factory, one silk mill, two sumac mills, three excelsior mills, one mattress factory, two pickle factories, one canning factory, one shoe factory, one shirt factory, one spoke factory and six repair shops. The assessed taxable value of property in town is, personal property $703,782, real estate $1,676,133, making a total of $2,379,915. Besides this, our several banks, in their periodical statements, made to the Government, show largely over a million dollars on deposit, subject to individual checks. In view of these facts truly it maybe said that Fredericksburg is in a prosperous commercial condition and is rapidly adding to that prosperity.
LINES OF TRANSPORTATION.
The lines of transportation running to and from Fredericksburg are sufficient for all the requirements of the town, both as to freight and passenger travel, yet our citizens would not object to the construction of another road, starting at some deep water point on the coast, crossing the Rappahannock river at this place and connecting north of us with the great trunk lines, traversing this extensive country in all directions. But for this important improvement we must patiently wait.
The great line of travel and traffic through Fredericksburg, north and south, at present, is the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac railroad. This road is probably one of the best conducted roads in the country and seldom has an accident. Not until a few years ago did it share its track with any other road, but now three or more companies are running their cars over this line and the carrying business is immense. This large increase in business necessitated a double track of the entire line—from Richmond to Washington—which was done with great rapidity. The present service on this road that passes through town is nine passenger trains north and ten south each twenty-four hours. In addition to this, the increase in freight has also increased the number of freight trains, and so we now have fifty to pass through in a day and night, and yet it is more than probable that this large number will soon be further increased. This road has a new iron bridge spanning the Rappahannock river at this point.
The Piedmont, Fredericksburg and Potomac railroad—Narrow Gauge—runs daily from Fredericksburg to Orange, a distance of forty miles. It connects Fredericksburg and intermediate points, with that great trunk line, the Southern, at that point, which is an accommodation to the travelling public along its entire line. Although a narrow gauge road, it does quite a large business and it has been rumored that it may be extended beyond the mountains some day, in which event it will become a line of greater importance than at present.
The Office of the Fredericksburg Water Power Company.(Seepage 330)
“Marye Mansion,” Gen. Longstreet’s headquarters at Battle of Fredericksburg,December 13, 1862; now the residence of Capt. M. B. Rowe.(Seepage 91)
The former citizen, who went out from us even a few years ago, on his return to his old home now, would find, among other changes, that the Weems Line of steamers from Fredericksburg to Baltimore, had transferred its business to another company, and the old familiar name of Weems, of more than a half century standing, whose line was so intimately interwoven with all the interests of Fredericksburg, was a name of the past. But he would also find a line—The Maryland, Delaware and Virginia railroad, not that their steam boats run upon railroad tracks—had taken its place, and, by its splendid steamers, so well adapted to the river trade, had brought us into rapid and easy communication with Norfolk and Baltimore, by the Rappahannock river and Chesapeake bay, and thence with the whole busy world beyond.
A SPLENDID WATER POWER.
Some one writing of our water-power some years ago said: “The water-power of the Rappahannock river at Fredericksburg, made available by the erection of a magnificent dam, has been harnessed for work to some extent, but not yet to its full capacity.” That this is true is a pity, but that it will not long be true is a blessing. The old dam, which gave us only five thousand horse-power, is rapidly yielding to the touch of time, and already another is in course of construction that will be more substantial and give us more power than the present dam gives at its best. A gentleman, well informed as to the plans of the present company, says: “The dam now in process of construction will be built just below the present dam and will be of reinforced concrete. It will be about twenty-two feet above the present water level below the old dam, and will husband the entire plan of the river; or rather, will render the entire plan available for power purposes, but will not, strictly speaking, husband the entire plan, because the pond behind the dam will be rather limited in capacity owing to the closeness of the hills on either side of the river and the abrupt fall of the stream. This dam will afford about eight thousand horse-power, utilized in the city, and at a power-house of the company to be built near the silk mill, but to the east of the main Falmouth road.Just above Taylor’s quarry it is planned to build another dam seventy-six feet high, or about one hundred and thirty-eight feet above the sea, with quite a large pond or storage reservoir behind it, reaching up the river some ten miles or more. And then above this reach, and at or about the junction of the two rivers, the large dam, about eighty-four feet high, or two hundred and twenty-two feet above sea level, will complete the development so far as the Fredericksburg Power Company is concerned. This last level reaches to about Germanna. The whole contemplated scheme will yield about thirty thousand horse-power.” This will be such an enormous increase of power over what we now have that we cannot realize it. But the question is, what is to be done with this immense power? Shall it be used in Fredericksburg or transmitted to neighboring cities to increase their facilities for manufactures? Capitalists and manufacturers must answer this question.
It will thus be seen that Fredericksburg, with its quiet ways and want of bustling activity, is a manufacturing center of considerable importance, and lying, as it does, on the line of travel from north to south, there is no good reason, as we have intimated, why it may not be a manufacturing center of much greater importance.
It is true that those who estimate a place solely by the number of industrial enterprises which it encourages, or the amount of traffic which comes to it, would not rank Fredericksburg as highly as some of the more busy or bustling towns of other parts of the country, but those who recognize other agencies besides water wheels and steam engines, and other earthly products, besides dry goods, groceries and general merchandise, will find much here to admire and interest them.
It is also true that with the manufacturing facilities that we possess we would gladly see them greatly enlarged and more fully developed, also new ones erected and operated, but with this accomplished we would not forget that there are better fabrics than those that are manufactured by mechanical appliances. With a climate unsurpassed, an immunity from epidemics, a situation enviable because of its surroundings, water as pure as ever came from mountain springs, with all the advantages as we have before saidof tidewater, without its malaria, with all the benefits of the mountains, without the mountain fevers, together with a refined and elevated society—if these, with the additions of home virtues and home joys, be regarded as valuable in life, then Fredericksburg must rank much higher than many a place that has more outward show of prosperity.
The pursuit of gain and the exacting cares of business have not engaged altogether the thoughts and attentions of our people, to the exclusion of those things which tend to thepleasure,comfortandhealthof the community, and to its intellectual development. For the benefit of the first mentioned of these classes, Hurkamp Park has been located, Washington Avenue and the National Boulevard have been laid out, completed and adorned, and the Free Bridge has been constructed, while “Lovers’ Lane” remains the same that it was in the century past.
For those who would derive comfort from inhaling the pure, fresh air of the morning or evening in a drive, on horse-back or on a bicycle, can find on the avenue and boulevard beautifully graded drives, and a variety of scenes which are ever pleasing to the eye, while the beautiful sun risings and settings, and the deep blue sky above rival in grandeur and sublimity those of far-off Italy.
For those who would spend the twilight hours in a pleasant walk with her who “claims his thoughts by day and dreams by night,” in search of health the Free Bridge and the enchanting walks beyond are equal to the far-famed “Lovers’ Lane,” which in olden times was so attractive, even enchanting, as it is now, to the belles and beaux, where words were spoken and vows made that led to unions of hands and hearts that nothing earthly could weaken or sever.
For those whose tastes and inclinations lead them to intellectual enjoyment, the Library and Reading Room, located in the north wing of the Courthouse and the Wallace Library, soon to be in operation, afford excellent facilities. The Library at the Courthouse is furnished with splendid books—historical, biographical, religious and miscellaneous, and the number is added to as the funds at the command of the association will allow. It is conducted by the ladies of the town, who are always ready to give, toiland even sacrifice to benefit, elevate and make more useful the masses of the people.
All of these advantages belong to Fredericksburg, with many others that we have probably inadvertently omitted, that make it one of the most desirable residential cities in the country; and we can readily agree with Captain John Smith, the great explorer, “that Heaven and earth never agreed better to frame a place for man’s habitation,” than the beautiful valley of the Rappahannock, and Fredericksburg is located on the most beautiful, picturesque and healthy spot of that far-famed valley.
And yet, with all these advantages, pointing out Fredericksburg as a most desirable place for her educational, industrial, commercial and residential advantages, its prosperity is not what it should be; but with a full development of all her varied facilities which we trust will be done in the near future and which can be done if our people will work harmoniously, we may hope for more prosperous days; for
“Reason’s whole pleasure—all the joys of sense—Lie in three words—Health,PeaceandCompetence.”
HUSTINGS COURT.
Hon. John T. Goolrick,Judge.
Hon. Granville R. Swift,Commonwealth’s Attorney.
A. Bacon Yates,Clerk.
John Scott Berry,Deputy Clerk.
J. Conway Chichester,City Sergeant.
Baylor S. Pates,Deputy City Sergeant.
MUNICIPAL OFFICERS.
H. Lewis Wallace,Mayor.
Robert T. Knox,Treasurer.
A. B. Bowering,Commissioner of Revenue.
A. P. Rowe,City Tax Collector.
E. H. Randall,City Surveyor.
MAGISTRATES.
Upper Ward—S. J. Quinn,S. E. Eastburn,R. E. Bozel.
Lower Ward—A. G. Billingsly.
CITY COUNCIL.
William. E. Bradley,President.
A. Mason Garner,Vice-President.
Samuel E. Eastburn,Clerk.
Upper Ward—Wm. E. Bradley, Harry B. Lane, Josiah P. Rowe, Joseph M. Goldsmith, John C. Melville, Clarance R. Howard.
Lower Ward—A. Mason Garner, W. S. Embrey, Jr., Henry Warden, J. W. Masters, F. L. W. Green, Arthur Brown.
Council Committees.
On Finance—Harry B. Lane, John C. Melville, Wm. E. Bradley.
On Public Property—Wm. E. Bradley, A. Mason Garner, J. W. Masters.
On Water Works—Josiah P. Rowe, Harry B. Lane. A. Mason Garner.
On Streets—W. S. Embrey, Jr., J. M. Goldsmith, C. R. Howard.
On Light—John C. Melville, J. W. Masters, Harry B. Lane.
On Almshouse—A. Mason Garner, Wm. E. Bradley, Josiah P. Rowe.
On Public Interest—Joseph M. Goldsmith. C. R. Howard. Henry Warden.
On Ordinances—Clarance R. Howard, W. S. Embrey, Jr., F. L. W. Green.
On Auditing—Authur Brown, F. L. W. Green, John C. Melville.
On Health and Police—John W. Masters, Henry Warden, Arthur Brown.
On Schools—Henry Warden, Josiah P. Rowe, J. M. Goldsmith.
On Fire Department—F. L. W. Green, Arthur Brown, W. S. Embrey, Jr.
SUPERINTENDENTS OF DEPARTMENTS.
S. J. Quinn,Superintendent City Water Works.
B. F. Bullock,Superintendent City Gas Works.
Wm. Key Howard,Superintendent City Electric Light.
John W. Ball,Superintendent Almshouse.
Samuel Fitzhugh,Clerk of Market.
POLICE DEPARTMENT.
Upper Ward—Wallace N. Tansill,J. A. Stone.
Lower Ward—John H. Robinson,Wm. R. Hall.
Special Police—Charles A. Gore.
CITY REGISTRARS.
Lower Ward—J. Fred. Brown.
Upper Ward—John J. Berrey.
PUBLIC FREE SCHOOL BOARD.
A. B. Bowering,President.
S. J. Quinn,Clerk.
B. P. Willis,Superintendent.
Upper District—Isaac Hirsh, W. L. Brannan, J. R. Rawlings.
Lower District—A. B. Bowering, W. H. Hurkamp, Geo. Freeman, Jr.
BOARD OF HEALTH.
Mayor H. Lewis Wallace.
Dr. J. N. Barney,Secretary and Health Officer.
Dr. William Jeffries Chewning.
A. Bacon Yates.
CITY CORONER.
Dr. Andrew C. Doggett.