15. John O’Rear, Poet
John H. O’Rear, last of the name to own the Cloverfield plantation in Prince William County, Virginia, was a bachelor. His philosophy is found expressed in his "Day Book" of 1836 wherein he records: "Beauty is a fading flower" and "Beauty will not last". He also records the following literary effort:

The Voice of Her I Love

How sweet at close of silent eve,
The harp’s responsive sound.
How sweet the n.... that n..’.. deceive,
And diede by virtue crowned;
How sweet to sit beneath a tree
In some delightful grove;
But, oh: more soft, more sweet to me
The voice of her I love;
Whenev’er she joins the village train,
To hail the new-born day,
Mellifluent notes compose each strain,
Which zephyrs waft away.
The frowns of fate I calmly bear,
In humble sphere I move,
Content and blessed whenever I hear
The voice of her I love.

John H. O’Rear

Last Revised: 08/01/2002 13:12:00

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