Later, a Samuel Selden married Mary Thompson Mason (she of the wooden-heeled shoes and hoop petticoat), famous for her beauty, as was her mother before her. The second wife of Samuel Selden was Ann Mercer. Many of the descendants of these women inherited great beauty. Even a little drop of their blood suffices to endow many a Virginia woman of to-day. At "Cleve," on the Rappahannock, lived Charles Carter, and thither "Light-horse Harry" Lee went for his sweet wife Anne. Charles Carter's father, Robert, the mighty man of Lancaster,--"King" Carter,--died in the year George Washington was born. He had built Christ Church, where Mary Washington was possibly baptized, for her father lived near the church. King Carter owned 300,000 acres of land, 1000 slaves, £10,000 in money. The cattle on a thousand hills were his. He left many children, all of whom he was able to enrich, and many of whom distinguished themselves in things better than riches. [Illustration: "Light-horse Harry" Lee.] "Cleve," with its octagon front, is still in good preservation, and is a fine example of the early Georgian manor-house, having been built early in the eighteenth century. An excellent portrait of its builder, Charles Carter, looks down to-day upon his descendants who still own and live in the mansion. [Illustration: Governor Spotswood.] Four miles below Mary Washington's home was "Newpost," the ancestral home of John Spotswood, a son of Governor Spotswood. His two sons, Alexander and John, were destined to serve in the Revolutionary War, one as a general, the other a captain, and to mingle the Spotswood with the Washington blood by marriage with one of Mary Washington's granddaughters. They came honestly by their dash and spirit through the Spotswoods. It appears that the _Virginia Gazette_ of 1737 lent its columns to an article against Governor Spotswood, written by a Colonel Edwin Conway, upbraiding the governor for delaying to turn over the arms intended for Brunswick County. The article was entitled, "A Hint to discover a few of Colonel Spotswood's Proceedings." A few days after its appearance the _Gazette_ printed the following:-- "AN HINT FOR A HINT "MR. PARKS, "I have learnt in my Book, so far as to be able to read plain English, when printed in your Papers, and finding in one of them my Papa's name often mentioned by a scolding man called Edwin Conway, I asked my Papa whether he did not design to answer him. But he replied: 'No child, this is a better Contest for you that are a school Boy, for it will not become me to answer every Fool in his Folly, as the lesson you learned the other day of the Lion and the Ass may teach you.' This Hint being given me, I copied out the said Lesson and now send you the same for my answer to Mr. Conway's Hint from "Sir, your Humble Servant "John Spotswood." * * * * * "FEB. 10. A LION AND AN ASS