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As a fitting climax to the unique celebration which will go down the annals of Fredericksburg as one of the greatest in its history, was a Colonial ball at Hotel Princess Anne. In the early part of the evening the hotel was crowded with a merry throng of guests which almost prohibited dancing for the lack of s.p.a.ce. The lobby, ladies' parlor and ball room were filled to overflowing with handsomely gowned women and men in evening clothes. With an unusually good orchestra from the Marine Post at Quantico supplying the music, the ball was opened by a grand march, led by Governor Westmoreland Davis and Mrs. Judge John T. Goolrick, who wore a handsome evening dress of sapphire blue.
As the evening advanced the crowd of spectators which occupied much of the floor s.p.a.ce, thinned out and more room was available for the dancing couples. About midnight a supply of horns, confetti and streamers were distributed to all present and the dance a.s.sumed a merry cabaret aspect.
The orchestra was full of pep, as were the dancers, and the scene was one of much gaiety and fun. Dancing continued until two o'clock Thursday morning, when lights were out and the gayest day in the long annals of the Picture City between the hills of the Rappahannock, "historic Fredericksburg," became one of her treasured memories; not to be forgotten, but to be kept alive with her traditions by the descendants of the splendid men and women who have made and preserved her history, and caused her to become known to the world.
_Appendix_
Thomas Jefferson in the Virginia Convention of 1776 was the successful patron and aggressive advocate of the resolution for the appointment of a Committee to revise certain laws in order that they might be in accordance with and conform to the changed status and conditions of the State, from a Colony of Great Britain to an independent sovereignty.
This Committee, consisting of Thomas Jefferson, George Mason of Gunston Hall, George Wythe, Edmund Pendleton and Thomas L. Lee, met in the Rising Sun Tavern in Fredericksburg on January 13, 1777, where they inaugurated and formulated bills of great and far reaching import, which were subsequently enacted into laws by the Legislature of Virginia and followed by the other thirteen States of the Confederation.
These four bills were then considered as forming a system by which every fibre of ancient or future aristocracy would be eradicated and a foundation laid for a government truly republican.
To only four of these we make reference--namely--
THE REPEAL OF THE OLD ENGLISH LAWS OF PRIMOGENITURE then the law of the State, by which the eldest son as a matter of law and right became by descent ent.i.tled to property rights and privileges above and beyond all other heirs:--
THE REPEAL OF ALL ENTAIL which would prevent the acc.u.mulation and perpetuation of wealth in select families and preserve the soil of the country for its people, thus promoting an equality of opportunity for the average citizen:--
THE ESTABLISHMENT OF PUBLIC EDUCATION AND OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS FOR ALL CHILDREN--OF COLLEGES TEACHING THE HIGHEST GRADE OF SCIENCE--From this has evolved the present public school system, and Jefferson being saturated with this idea commenced by the establishment of the University of Virginia. A great service performed by this Committee fostered and largely encouraged by Jefferson and Mason was its BILL FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM--which met with more active opposition than did the other three, for it did not become a law until 1785. By it the State received its charter of divorcement from the Church--religion and politics were separated. It provided "that henceforth no man could be compelled to frequent or support any religious wors.h.i.+p place or ministry, but all men should be free to profess and by argument maintain their opinions in matters of religion and the same should in no wise diminish, enlarge or effect their civil capacity."
No elaborate or extended thesis or dissertation on the too apparent merits, virtue, value and importance of these measures, in this brief sketch, is attempted. The purpose really being, with emphasis, to declare without successful contradiction or any possible doubt or dispute _that in the Rising Sun Tavern at Fredericksburg on January 13, 1777_, these all pervading, all important laws of the greatest import were formulated and inaugurated by the Committee referred to.
