Miller School of Albemarle - Blue Ridge Blast Yearbook (Charlottesville, VA)

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,Q-f VISIONS I 've walleedwith thee along the level sands, And gazed far ont where oceanys waste expands To lose itself in clonds of crinzson light, PVhile near ns fall the crested breakers white. The evening breezes play with thy dark hair, Thy wondrous eyes fill nie with love's despair, Then twilight gleanzs inelt softly into night, And darkness hides the vision front onr sight. I 've wandered with thee throngh the shady dell, Wliere tiny brooks with innrinnrons innsic fell, Lnlling the flowers to droop their tender heads, And softly slnnzber in their niossy beds. A dreaniy indnence steals into niy niood Front ont the solenzn silence of the wood, Soothing with niildest tonch iny heart's nnrest And bnrning passion hid within niy breast. Q I 've stood with thee npon the nionntain peak, One in onr thoizghts, we needed not to speale. Gazed down into the valleys fdr below, Watched eagles lightly circling to and fro,' Drnnlc in with ra-ptnre all the beanteons scene, Beneath onr feet a waving sea of green, Then followed with the eye front crest to crest The soft blne billows rolling toward the west. One vision yet I wonld with thee behold, Vlfhich to niy heart wonld yield a bliss nntold,' For other earthly scenes conld not compare, Nor fnrnish to ine vision half so fair. 'Tis this, dear heart, that fondest hope inspires And fills ine now with passiorn's warni desires To feel the ruddy glow, with thee alone, Before a cheerfnl hearth which is onr own. T7 W

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duties devolved by the said Clause upon him, and is hereby authorized to receive the com- pensation thereby provided. The County Court of Albemarle County is authorized and required, sitting in term, to discharge, by orders entered in a record book, to be kept by the Clerk of said Court specially for that purpose, all the duties devolved, and exercise all the powers conferred by said twenty-fifth Clause upon the County Court of said County. The charges and expenses attending the establishment and support of the said school, including the purchase of land Cshould any be purchasedj, the erection of the buildings, the feeding, clothing, and education of the pupils, the charges for medical attendance upon them, and everything incident to and connected with the school, shall, when examined, allowed and certified by the said County Court of Albemarle, and approved by the Board of Education, be paid by the said Board of Education out of the income and profits of the trust fund cre- ated by the twenty-fifth Clause of said will. The record book aforesaid shall be provided from the fund, and the Clerk of said Court shall receive for keeping the same, the same fees allowed by law for orders in the order book of said Court, to be paid out of the fund as other claims are provided to be paid. And the District School Trustees of the respective school districts of said county shall select and' designate, subject to approval by the County Court,as provided for in said twenty-fifth clause of said will, as pupils of said School, those described in the said clause' and required by the testator to be so elected. Clause V of Act approved February 24272, 1874, jirsl paragraph. Clause V. The funds, stocks, securities and investments belonging to the Miller Fund, shall be kept and preserved by the Board of Education in the same manner with those belonging to the literary fund of the Commonwealth, but shall be kept scrupulously separate from all other funds, and be sacredly and forever devoted to the uses and purposes of the said Manual Labor School, and the accounting officers of the Commonwealth in whose custody the same, or any part thereof may be, and the securities in their official bonds, shall be liable for the preservation thereof, in like manner as for the property of the literary fund. Additrort to Clause IV of Act approved February 24th, 1874, and re-erzacted by Act approved April zd, 1874, approved February 19th, 1884. And for the duties imposed upon the said County Court, and for the services required to be rendered by the judge thereof, every such judge shall receive compensation, in addition to his regular salary, and the amount of such compensation shall be Hxed by the said Board of Education for each year, commencing with the date of approval of the said original Act, and shall be paid by such board out of said income and profits in the manner provided for the payment of other claims as a part of the expenses necessary for the execution of the trust, but the sum shall never in any case exceed the sum of three hundred dollars per annum. 1 7 Q I6 il

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Nicholas Nlurrell Page HE name of Nicholas Page is so closely associated with the history of Miller School that there can be no more appropriate time or place than this to give the leading facts in his life and pay a due and fitting tribute to 1115 memory. I I Nicholas Murrell Pagerwas born near Greenfield, Nelson County, Virginia, November 2d, 1810. In 1814 the family moved to Adair County, Kentucky. In 1827 Nicholas returned to his native town and in the early thirties went into busi- ness. A few years later, however, he moved to Batesville, Virginia, and there, with his uncle, lno. H. Rodes, began the mercantile business, which was con- tinued until the outbreak of the Civil VVar. It was while keeping store at Bates- ville that he became acquainted with Samuel Miller. Mr. Miller had located his mother and sister on a farm which is now a part of the Miller School property, and Mr. Page furnished them supplies from his store. At the end of each year, Mr. Page sent in his bill, or presented it in person to Mr. Miller in Lynchburg. Mr. Page was constantly consulted as to all improvements and additions to be made to Mrs. Miller's house and farm. The business relations thus begun between the two men ripened into a lasting friendship. In 1859 Mr. Miller made his will, naming Samuel M. McCorkle, Nicholas M. Page and Chiswell Dabney as executors. Cf these, only Mr. Page survived Mr. Miller. -Upon the death of Samuel Miller, Mr. Page went to Lynchburg to enter upon the delicate and intricate duties of settling the estate. He found every- thing in utter confusion, valuable papers were scattered here and there, parties were preparing to contest the will, and serious legal difficulties on all sides, owing to the status of the courts in the Reconstruction period. He temporarily saved the estate by transferring the probation of the Miller will from Lynchburg to Richmond. New obstacles presenting themselves, he employed as counsel the late Judge Wm. J. Robertson, the late john F. Slaughter, and the Hon. Robert T. Craighill. After a great legal battle, running through five years, a compromise was effected, the suits against the estate were dismissed, and Executor Page was able, after all legacies and court and lawyers' fees had been paid, to turn over to the Board of Trustees for the establishment and perpetual support of the Miller Manual Labor School of Albemarle more than SI,OO0,000. After this great and lasting work had been finished, Mr. Page returned to Batesville and engaged in farming, which he continued until near the end of his 18 0 Aga 'i 791. l ..