Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/20

 12 MOUNT VERNON mansion is beautifully situated on a swelling height crowned with trees and commanding a fine view up and down the Potomac. The house is of wood, two stories high and 96 ft. long, with a lofty portico extending along the whole front. On the ground floor are six rooms, none large except the dining room. The library and Washington's bedroom remain as they were at the time of his death, and con- tain many articles of great interest. In front of the house sloping to the river is a lawn of five or six acres. About 300 yards S. of the mansion, on a hillside in full view of the river, is the old family vault, where the body of Washington was first laid and remained till 1830, when it was removed to a new vault at no great distance on the edge of a deep wooded dell. Mount Vernon mansion was built by George Washington's elder brother Lawrence, who settled there in 1743, and named the estate in honor of Admiral Vernon, under whom he had served in the West Indies. George Washington added wings to the mansion, and greatly enlarged and embellished the estate, which was his home from boyhood till his death. He bequeathed it to Bushrod Washington, from whom it passed to his nephew John A. Wash- ington. By him the mansion and 200 acres of land were sold in 1858 for $200,000 to the " Ladies 1 Mount Vernon Association," who de- sign to hold it in perpetuity as a place of pub- lic resort and pilgrimage. MOUNT VERNON. I. A city and the capital of Knox co., Ohio, on the N. bank of Ver- non river, and on the Cleveland, Mt. Vernon, and Columbus railroad, and the Lake Erie di- vision of the Baltimore and Ohio line, 40 m. N. N. E. of Columbus; pop. in 1870, 4,876. It is well and compactly built on gently as- cending ground, is lighted with gas, and has many handsome residences. It is surrounded by a fertile and well cultivated country, and has considerable trade. The river affords good wa- ter power. The city contains two iron founde- ries, a woollen factory, two flouring mills, two saw mills, two national banks, graded public schools, including a high school, two weekly newspapers, and eleven churches. It was laid out in 1805. II. A town and the capital of Posey co., Indiana, on a bend of the Ohio river, in the S. W. corner of the state, and on the St. Louis and Southeastern railroad, 160 m. S. W. of Indianapolis; pop. in 1870, 2,880. It stands on a bluff commanding a view of the river, and has an active trade. It contains two banks, two flouring mills, two saw mills, a foundery, a planing mill, and oth- er manufactories, several schools, two weekly newspapers, and seven churches. MOURNING, an outward manifestation of grief, particularly on occasions of death. Every na- tion has some conventional form of mourn- ing. The ancient Hebrews tore their gar- ments, dishevelled their hair, threw dust or ashes on the head, and abstained from wash- ing. During the time of mourning they sat on MOURNING the ground, and went bareheaded and bare- 'ooted. The usual period of mourning was seven days, but for Moses and Aaron they mourned a month. On public occasions pro- iessional mourning women were employed. The modern Jews preserve to some extent the customs of their forefathers, such as sitting on the ground, and making an incision in some Dart of their clothing to symbolize the old y lamentation and wailing is still observed near the site of the temple. The rending of clothes was observed by the Egyptians, who also sprinkled their heads with dust and ashes, struck their breasts, allowed their hair to grow and their dress to hang neglected, went un- washed, and abstained from wine and other delicacies. The women ran crying through ihe streets with disordered hair and exposed bosoms. The Lycians regarded grief as un- manly, and had a law compelling men when they went into mourning to put on female gar- ments. The Syrians wept for their dead seve- ral days in solitary places. The Persians rent their garments with wailing, and cut off their hair. The last was customary also among the Scythians. The Greeks withdrew into retire- ment, cut off their hair, put on black, or in some states, as Argos, white garments, rolled themselves in the dust or mire, threw ashes on their heads, tore their clothes, never appeared in public without a veil, lacerated -their faces, and frequently uttered the exclamation, I, L When a popular general died, the whole army cut off their hair and the manes of their horses. In Athens the duration of mourning was about 30 days ; in Sparta it was 11 days. The Ro- man forms of mourning did not differ greatly from the Grecian. In the time of the republic the color of the mourning dress was black for both sexes, and it always continued so for men ; but during the reign of Augustus a white veil was worn by women, and subsequently a com- plete costume of white became their conven- tional token of sorrow. Ornaments for the person were laid aside, and the men let their hair and beards grow long. The extreme dura- tion of mourning by men was ten months, by women a year, but this period was abridged by the occurrence of any auspicious event, such as the birth of a child, the happening of any piece of good fortune to the family, cer- tain religious feasts, or the consecration of a temple. The period of public mourning for the death of a great person or for a public disaster was fixed by special decree. At such times the forum, baths, shops, temples, schools of exercise, and other places of concourse were closed, the senators put aside the lati- clave, the consuls sat on a lower seat than usual, and the magistrates appeared without their badges of office. On private occasions the mourning was done almost wholly by the women ; the men wore black only for a few days, and the domestic ceremonies in honor of the deceased terminated on the ninth day
 * earing of garments. In Jerusalem a week-