Oldal 124 [124]
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street, hardly preparing one for the exquisite beauty of the rear.
A large columned porch extended across the entire back of the
house, and from this porch marvelous mosaics of beauty were
glimpsed through the great trees, whose spreading branches swept
the lawn; in the distance the peaceful river, beyond the fields bathed
in sunshine. |
Like the paternal home, terraces edged with box broke the
steep descent to the river, while at the foot of each terrace blos¬
somed the peonies and roses, the columbines, and sweet william.
A fernery flourished in a shady corner, and here masses of lily of
the valley sent their fragrance out on the summer air. A broad
graveled path, bordered on either side by masses of shrubs and
evergreens, led down to the summer-house, smothered in roses.
Many distinguished men were entertained in this home, notably
LaFayette, when he visited Richmond in 1824. Edmund Ran¬
dolph, aide-de-camp to General Washington, Secretary of State,
and Governor of Virginia, was also a frequent caller at this house.
It was here, that after visiting his wife’s grave, as was his daily
custom, he was stricken with paralysis, though his death did not
occur until three years later. It is an interesting coincidence that
Edmund Randolph Williams, fifth in descent from Edmund Ran¬
_ dolph, should have married the fifth in descent from Dr. Adams.
In later years, this house was much in the public mind, on ac¬
count of its being the home of Miss Van Lew, a noted Federal
spy during the period of the Confederacy. A secret passage way
led from the house to the river, and this Miss Van Lew is said to
have used in aiding Federal prisoners to escape. Nothing remains
of this once lovely home. Down at the very bottom of the grounds
we found a few fragments of the old brick wall, which at one time
had encircled the entire place.
THE CARRINGTON HOUSE
Facing Libby Hill, and with an uninterrupted view of the sur¬
rounding country, stood the residence of Colonel George Mayo
[75]