said the other day with a smile playing over his bland and good-natured features: "When we boys were not in the thick of the fight, or engaged in carrying news and scouting, we were not supine. With no Federals to shoot or watch, we would have fun over an imprompture fox chase, or take possession of some private half-mile track, and stake our best riders and swiftest horses against each other in match races. Our mounts were the best that money could buy, and as they were individual property, we had to replace them in the event of loss, which was generally done by capture from the enemy."

The Green family furnished a generous quota to the Black Horse, and they all distinguished themselves in one way or another. All three of them had figured in the great tournaments for which that section was famous in ante-bellum days, and when called upon to enter the lists which involved life and property, their nerve, zeal, and splendid horsemanship proved them to be not toy knights, but soldiers in the Spartan sense of the word.

When General William H. Payne was promoted, he was succeeded as captain, by Lieutenant Robert Randolph, and Lieutenant A. D. Payne followed Captain Randolph, and was the last captain of the Black Horse. General Payne has frequently been offerred preferment since the war, but has turned his heart away from political life, and is content to follow the quiet pursuits of his profession. He is still in the vigor of manhood, and is the present counsel for the Richmond and Danville system of the Southern Railroad.

Captain A. D. Payne, whose untimely death about two years ago, was deeply lamented in Virginia, had achieved distinction and success as a lawyer, and a brilliant tribute to his memory by the members of the Warrenton bar appears on the minutes of the court.

At the close of the war, when the Black Horse disbanded at Warrenton, General Payne delivered a valedictory to the men from his saddle, which is said, by those who were present, to have been a gem of emotional eloquence.

THREE MEMBERS IN THE HOUSE.

The above brief outline of the history of the famous Black Horse Troop, taken from an article written on the subject by Mr. Raphael S. Payne, is highly interesting to all who have the history of Virginia at heart, and especially in connection with the present session of the General Assembly, when it becomes known that three survi

vors of the gallant Black Horse are at present members of the House of Delegates, namely, Messrs. T. C. Pilcher, of Fauquier; Richard Lewis, of Culpeper, and Charles C. Talliaferro, of Orange.

Mr. Pilcher, one of the five members who have been sent to the House by their constituents three times in succession, is known to every one who has ever come in contact with the General Aesembly, while he has been a member of it. His unswerving Democracy, the honesty of his sterling character, and the courage of his convictions are doubted by no one. While not blesssed with as much literary education as some of his colleagues, he is gifted with a high degree of common sense. His arguments are often drastic, but always to the point, and the brightness of his power of conception naturally makes him one of the most prominent leaders of his party, and his influence is felt as soon as he rises in his seat to give the House his counsel and advice on any measure in which he takes an interest.

RICHARD LEWIS.

Mr. Richard Lewis, the present member of the House of Delegates from Culpeper county, was born in 1838, in the adjoining county of Fauquier, and was actively engaged in farming until the outbreak of the war, when he enlisted in the Black Horse Battalion, going at once to the scene of the John Brown raid. Immediately after the battle of Chancellorsville he was detailed as a scout, acting under the direct orders of Generals J. E. B. Stuart and R. E. Lee. He was repeatedly commended by both commanders for his courage and faithfulness. During the fight in the Wilderness he was severely wounded, but recovered, and was enabled to be at the side of General Stuart at his death.

On one occasion, while scouting along the railroad in the lines of the enemy with another scout, he was suddenly confronted by four Yankee officers, who commanded him to surrender In the fight that followed, two of the officers were killed and one escaped-thanks to the speed of his horse. The remaining officer was severely wounded. On account of this fight, after the war a squad of cavalry was sent to capture Mr. Lewis, but the officer in charge investigated the matter, and after ascertaining that it had been a fair fight, let the matter drop.

On another occasion Mr. Lewis distinguished himself by desperately fighting his way through a detachment of cavalry by which he had been surrounded. In his capacity as a scout he was continually

in the lines of the enemy, passing frequently at night the entire length of the army.

After the war Mr. Lewis married a Culpeper lady, and moved into that county, where he has successfully followed the fortunes of a farmer. In the primary election last fall he was the Democratic nominee for the seat in the House of Delegates.

Colonel J. Catlett Gibson, the former representative of Culpeper county in the House, ran against him as an independent candidate, but was defeated. While Mr. Lewis is not much given to public speaking on account of his modest and retiring disposition, yet he is well known to all connected with the General Assembly as the author of the various military bills that have been introduced in the House during the present session.

CHARLES C. TALIAFERRO.

Mr. Charles C. Taliaferro, the present representative of Orange county in the House of Delegates, was born on January 26, 1842, in Martinsburg, W. Va., where his father, the Rev. Charles C. Taliaferro, was in charge of the parish. His parents died before he was three years old, and he was then taken in charge by his uncle, Dr. Taliaferro, who soon afterwards removed to Orange county, Va., which county has been his home for the greater part of his life. At the breaking out of the civil war he entered the army before he was eighteen years old. On July 1, 1861, he enlisted in the First Company, Richmond Howitzers, but was transferred in October following to the Black Horse Battalion, where he remained for two years. He then joined Co. F, of the Sixth Virginia Cavalry, where he remained until the close of the war. He participated in all the cavalry battles and engagements of the cavalry of the Army of Northern Virginia, such as Brandy Station, Spotsylvania Courthouse, First and Second Manassas, Sharpsburg. He followed General Stuart around McClellan's army and assisted in the burning of all the supplies of the latter at Whitehouse. With two comrades, William Smoot, of Alexandria, and another one by the name of Green, he joined the Seventeenth Virginia Infantry and fought with them at Cold Harbor, Frazier's farm, and Malvern Hill.

After the war Mr. Taliaferro went to Mississippi, where he taught school at Greenville, and from there he removed to Macon, Ga., and in 1870 to Savannah, where he conducted a private school until 1882. In October, 1881, he married a Miss Barclay, of Savannah, and

upon the death of his wife in 1892 he returned to Virginia, to his old homestead in Orange county. His family residence is one of the old homesteads in this country that have been deeded from the crown by George III, and which has never passed from the possession of his family.

Mr. Taliaferro never took an active part in politics until the Cleveland election in 1892. Last fall he entered into a contest with Mr. George Barbour, and during the present session he has made a very efficient and useful member of the House of Delegates. Among the bills of general importance which have been introduced by Mr. Taliaferro is one doing away with the evil of professional jurors in the various courts by allowing persons only to serve one term annually in the different courts. Another one of his bills requires county treasurers to give bonds furnished by security companies. He also is the father of a game law for the counties of Culpeper, Orange, Spotsylvania, Louisa, Stafford and King George, and of a road law for his county.

[From the Richmond Times Feb. 21, 1897.]

RUNNING THE BLOCKADE.

Daring Exploits at Charleston in War Times.

Some Lucky Vessels that made their Way through the Federal Fleets Repeatedly Without Detection.

CHARLESTON, S. C., February 6, 1897.

The blockade of this harbor and the naval manoeuvres off Charleston bar next week, have brought out some interesting reminiscences of the genuine blockade of the sixties.

There are numbers of men surviving, who ran the blockade through the United States fleet, but most of the masters of the vessels are dead.

Among those still to be seen in Charleston are Captains Sim Adkins, A. O. Stone, William F. Adair, F. N. Bonneau, and Edward Morse.

Captain H. S. Lebby, one of the most daring of Charleston's blockade runners, is now in the Sailors' Snug Harbor.

In most instances the vessels were of English build, small, fast, with powerful engines, and of the type known as Clyde steamers. Their color assimilated that of the clouds, or a light lilac, the object being to prevent discovery by Federal cruisers, and it was often the case that it enabled the steamers to avoid and escape pursuit.

The Margaret and Jessie belonged to this category. She was an iron steamer of about 600 tons, and under the name of Douglas had plied regularly between the Isle of Man and Liverpool. Provided with double engines and a powerful frame, there were few vessels of her class, which in smooth water, could show a cleaner pair of heels to others in pursuit.

Her capacity for storing cotton was equal to about 800 bales, and the usual time made between Charleston and Nassau did not exceed on an average forty-four hours.

She was purchased in 1862 by John Fraser & Co., for £20,000, and during eight round trips met with uninterrupted good luck, making money for her owners, and fame for her commander, Captain R. W. Lockwood. The latter was known to be not only one of the best pilots on the coast, but also a brave, dashing, yet judicious commander.

Captain Lockwood's good luck did not follow him after the war. He died about ten years ago, many believe from the effects of the loss of the Clyde steamer Champion, of which he was in command, which was lost on her way from New York to Charleston.

Few of the blockade-runners were fitted with accommodations for passengers. Nevertheless two, three, or a half dozen might generally be found on every incoming and outgoing steamer.

Not infrequently some of these were women. The men were either Confederate agents, business men in speculation, or persons seeking to avoid service in the Confederate army.

The fate of the larger proportion of these vessels may be inferred. Some succumbed to the perils of the deep, some were run ashore and wrecked to avoid capture, some became prizes to the Federal fleet.

Some of the vessels ran into four different ports, and it may be added that a number of them made from six to eighteen voyages. It was rare that a craft was captured on her first voyage, and it could be pretty safely figured that she would make two trips, and this generally paid for her cost and voyage expenses, and left a handsome sum in addition.

Among many daring and successful exploits was that of the steam