Evening Star Newspaper, April 10, 1932, Page 71

ok as the BEEN BY IRA L. SMITH. HE deep darkness that settled over the Potomac River on the evening of September 10, 1855, enshrouded one of the strangest events ever to take place upon the banks of that his- toric stream. A small group of persons came to an old wharf. They approached with great solemnity, moving almost like spectral beings as they descended the steepness of ground neighboring the river. Upon arrival at the wharf, one man stepped forward from the group. Summoning the strength of his 35-year-old body, he threw a farge iron key as far into the waters of the river as he could. Then, silently as it had come, the rather eerie delegation retraced its oourse and went over the top of the tall bank. More than 20 years after this happened a small boy was digging his toes into sand near the old wharf, seeking to turn up the small museels which there embedded themselves. So doing, he uncovered a key which seemed to him of presposterous size. He and his play- mates took the heavily rusted piece of iron to his home, four or five miles up the river from Mount Vernon. The key was placed among the famfly archives. That was done late in the decade which began with the year 1870. A few days ago the key, now looking greatly like an antiquity, was carried from the house where it has remained during almost six dec- ades to the mansion of Mount Vernon, from which the delegation that moved in darkness down a hill had set foot in 1855. - Looking at the relic of other days, Harrison Howell Dodge, who had been superintendent of the historic estate since 1885, recalled the key-throwing incident as it had been described to him many years ago. “Members of the Washington family and friends of the family came to Mount Vernon in September, 1855, to attend the funeral of Jane C. Washington, wife of John Augustine Washington, the grand-nephew of George Washington,” Mr. Dodge said, the while he moved the key from one hand to the other. “Some of them came by boat from Alexan- dria aboard the steamer Thomas Collyer, in accordance with arrangemenés which had been made public in the Alexandria Gazette. Others journeyed from considerable distances over roads which permitted little more than leisure- ly travel. As they congregated at Mount Vernon they formed quite a large group, which included Mrs. Washington’s eldest son, John Augustine Washington, last private owner of Mount Vernon, and Richard B. Washington, a younger son. “The services were held and Mrs. Washing- ton’s remains were placed within the vault which forms a portion of George Washington’s tomb. In that place more than 15 members of the Washington family previously had come to their final rest. “In keeping with the custom of the time, and also because facilities for travel were not en- tirely of the best, virtually all who attended the services remained at the estate and spent the night there. “During the evening one of the Washingtons brought something of a climax to the group’s conversings with this question: “ ‘Which one in our family will be the next to be laid at rest in the tomb?’ ““There will be no one else; the tomb is filled,’ an elder member of the family declared.” With that fact developed, the gathering reached the conclusion that the inner door of the tomb should be sealed, never again to be opened. It then was suggested that lots be drawn to determine who should dispose of the key, according to the account received by Mr. Dodge, who knew Richard B. Washington in the days which prefaced the custodianship of Mount Vernon he now holds. “The lot fell to Richard Washington,” Mr. Dodge continued, in the telling of the story. “Then it was decided the key should be thrown into the Potomac River, with the key- hole in the iron door of the vault later to be sealed. “Richard Washington, desiring that the re- sponsibility of making away with the key be shared, suggested a committee of members of the family accompany him. The committee was selected. FOU Dug Out of the Sand on the Potomac River Bank by a Small Boy’s Toes, More Than Sixty Years Ago, the Story of This Discovery Now Is Told for the First Time and May Be a Sequel to the Strange Event of September 10, 1855. “The key then was carried to the tomb. It was inserted for the last time in the lock, this being done so all present might be assured it was, in reality, the proper key. “This done, the committee, headed by Mr. Washington, withdrew from the tomb and started toward the river, moving slowly through the darkness. Upon the arrival at the old wharf, Mr. Washington stepped forward and threw the key into the stream. “With the solemn duty fulfilled, the return to the mansion house was made, all present being completely satisfied that the tomb of the Wash- lnctomhodbeenopenedformemtumemd convinced the key never again would come to light.” OUR years after this happened, Stacey H. Snowden, a young man who had left his New Jersey home to seek fortune elsewhere, bought a portion of the original Mount Vernon estates from Charles A. Washington, grand- nephew of George Washington. The purchase included the old Wellington House, about four miles up the giver from the Mount Vernon mansion, which George Washington had pro- vided for the use of his secretary, Col. Tobias Lear. In the Wellington House and, later, in two other structures built om neighboring acres, Mr. Snowden spent many years and became well established in the region. His son, Pred C. Snowden, enjoyed many of his boyhood days on the sandy bank of the river below his home. With other youngsters who lived in the vicinity, he engaged in fine frolics on the beach, some of which covered quite a lot of distance. On many occasions their rambles carried them down the river as far as the old Mount Vernon wharf. It was during the course of one of these play-times that young Snowden found the key fact, which influenced the family to exercise such care in the custody of it. A few days ago Mrs. Snowden granted per- mission for the key to be taken to Mount Ver- non for inspection by Mr. Dodge, whose long tour of duty as superintendent of the na- tional shrine marks him as an authority on a wide range of matters relating to Washing- ton’s -home. This is the reconstructed wharf at Mount Vernon from which the key to the inner door of Washington’s tomb was pitched into the Potomac River, on the evening of September 10, 1855. The key is about eight inches long. Long immersion in the water is seen to have had most of its effect upon the large circle which forms the handle. That portion of the key is very thin, measuring little more than an eighth of an inch in diametefr, rusty coating and all. This is in contrast with other sectioms, which for one reason or another are much thicker. f ‘The head of the key gives distinct evidence of having been subjected to heavy blows. It seems quite possible that members of the com- which supervised the key-throwing back in 1855 may have intentfonally damaged the key to provide themselves with additional as- surance it never again would ‘be used, even if it were retrieved from the waters to which their dictate the Washington family were placed new tomb in 1837. And so, as matters stand, the passage of five more years will mark the rounding of a down upon the severely-moulded sarcophagi containing the mortal remains of the first President and his wife. And, in three years, eight decades will have elapsed since the com- mittee of silent persons took every precaution to provide certainty the iron door had been opened for the last time. Games Keep You Th z'nb'ng HE next time you have your thinking-cap on play the A B C's and the Store Ana- grams. They're both great games for thinkers, To play the A B C’s get a picture on which a number of objects can be seen. Your oppo- nent takes first turn and tries to name an object in it which begins with the letter “A.” If he can't do it and you can, one point is scored against him. Then you take first turn with the letter “B” and try the same thing. If he names one beginning with “B” and you fail, one point is scored against you. Go through the alphabet in the same way, and the one who has the lowest score when you're through wins. There may be a few letters for which you can’t name an object, but if you pay close attention and think real hard you’ll come out ahead almost every time. Store Anagrams makes you think a little faster, and for that reason some like it even better than the A B C's. Twenty-six pieces of paper about an inch square are used, with a letter of the alphabet printed plainly on each. The slips of paper are kept together, printed side down, in front of one of the players. One of the stips is selected and laid on the table so that the letter is easily seen by every- one. As soon as the players see it, they try to name something which is sold in a store and which begins with the same letter. If you are playing grocery store anagrams and the letter “P” is turned up, someone calls out “pepper,” and someone else “peaches,” but the one who spoke first wins the point. He is awarded the slip, and another is selected. The game ends when all the letters have been played. The winner is the one who has the most slips whan the game is over.