by all. His personal part in the matter should be satisfactory as proof of the truth of his statement.
In 1867 the supervision of the aqueduct was transferred back to the War Department from the Department of the Interior. On February 16, 1909, President Roosevelt ordered the name of Jefferson Davis restored to the Cabin John Bridge by the War Department. Four days later, February 20, 1909, the Secretary of War, General Luke E. Wright, repeated this order to his chief of engineers. On May 14, 1909, the last letter—S—of Mr. Davis' name was carved. The entire face of the tablet was "resurfaced," without removing it from its position, and the original inscription, including the name of Jefferson Davis, recarved.
For many of the above facts, I am indebted to an article in the '"Records of the Columbia Historical Society," by Mr. William T. S. Curtis, vol. 2, 1899, page 293, published in Washington, D. C. This article is full of interesting and most instructive information. It is greatly enhanced by a liberal number of handsome illustrations of the progressive stages of the construction of the bridge.
Richmond is selected as the city of publication, because Jefferson Davis was occupying his official residence, as President of the Confederate States, in this city in 1862, when his name was erased from the bridge.
At no time did any ceremony attend the work of restoration. But thousands went to watch the single stone-cutter at work, and to listen quietly while his ringing blows sang out the glad news. Among them were young girls from Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina and other States. Some of them begged to be allowed to climb the scaffold, and the good-natured stone-cutter allowed it. When one would designate the exact bit of stone she wanted, he would chisel the tiny chip into her uplifted hand, to be carried away a treasure.
When the restoration was completed, it passed silently into the records of a great nation.
Mrs. J. Enders Robinson,
