Washington’s Farewell to the Army
America was free. It had won its freedom by an heroic struggle. And now
came the task of making a wise use of this freedom. One who had
contemplated the character of the American people, as it had revealed
itself during the preliminaries to the war and during its progress, must
have said to himself: “A circumspect and therefore secure procedure in
the affairs of the new government is to be expected from a people of
such character!” And yet, immediately after the conclusion of peace, the
republic was in great danger. The nucleus of the army consisted of men
who for years had been weaned from the occupations of peace. Congress
had granted them a bonus of several years’ pay, but after that the
prospect remained of their being obliged to return to their former
occupations. This did not suit them. They had had an opportunity of
comparing their position with that of the French soldiers with whom they
had fought side by side. In the French army the officers were in great
part young nobles, to whom the profession of arms was a sort of
charitable institution and haven of refuge. What a contrast between
these gold-embroidered marquises, counts, and cadets and the plainly
dressed officers of the American army. In their outward appearance the
American officers could not even compare with the common French
soldiery, the spruce musketeers and grenadiers of the French line. Thus
the American soldiers, thinking more of their own advantage and position
than of the general good, considering that the soldier would be better
off if the country were ruled by a king, conceived the wish that the
free form of government which had arisen during the war should be set
aside and a monarchical form substituted for it. If this had been the
general demand of the country, there would have been nothing to be said
against it. The discussion as to whether the republican or monarchic
form of government is the better is an idle one. Nations have lived
happily under one as well as the other. The happiness of a people does
not depend on a particular form of government so much as on the respect
for law and on the self-sacrificing devotion of individuals to the
welfare of the State. The wish for a monarchy proceeded only from the
selfish desires of one class. Of course if they wished to carry out
their plan, it was necessary to fix upon some prominent man, and who
else should this be but Washington? A reputable officer, Colonel Lewis
Nicola, was appointed to notify the commander-in-chief of the wishes of
the army. He did this very tactfully in a letter. A constitution with a
king at the head, he said, was the best form of government for America.
Washington was requested to work toward this end, taking at first a more
modest title and later calling himself king.
For many a man in the General’s position this would have been a
temptation impossible to resist. With a consenting nod, the army would
have proclaimed the commander-in-chief king. If the army had made him
king, to be sure, he would then have been obliged to come to their
terms. There is no doubt that had Washington obeyed that voice his fame
would have been sullied for all time. The majority would have been
coerced for the sole purpose of ministering to the selfishness of the
minority. Foundation principles expressing the will of the majority had
already been formulated during the terrible struggle and were sealed
with the heart’s blood of the nation, and in this constitution a crown
had no place. Frankly considered, what was now proposed to Washington
was that he should make himself guilty of treason to the people. The
most zealous fighter against the destruction of constitutional
government was expected to commit this detestable crime.
As the witches had shown Macbeth a golden circlet, so now Washington was
tempted with a sparkling crown. Ah! but he was not a Macbeth. Ambitious
greed held no place in his great and pure soul. “This will I give you,
if you will sin; the greatness of your fortunes shall be worthy of the
greatness of the crime!” Thus, though disguised in innocent form, read
the words of the venomous old serpent of ambition, the liar, the
destroyer of human happiness. Not for a moment did Washington allow
himself to become entangled in the web of temptation. He immediately
sent the following answer to the colonel: “With a mixture of great
surprise and astonishment, I have read with attention the sentiments you
have submitted to my perusal. Be assured, sir, no occurrence in the
course of this war has given me more painful sensations than your
information of there being such ideas existing in the army as you have
expressed, and which I must view with abhorrence and reprehend with
severity. For the present the communication of them will rest in my own
bosom, unless some further agitation of the matter shall make a
disclosure necessary. I am much at a loss to conceive what part of my
conduct could have given encouragement to an address which to me seems
big with the greatest mischiefs that can befall my country. If I am not
deceived in the knowledge of myself, you could not have found a person
to whom your schemes are more disagreeable. At the same time, in justice
to my own feelings, I must add that no man possesses a more serious wish
to see ample justice done to the army than I do; and as far as my power
and influence, in a constitutional way, extend, they shall be employed
to the utmost of my abilities to effect it, should there be any
occasion. Let me conjure you, then, if you have any regard for your
country, concern for yourself or posterity, or respect for me, to banish
these thoughts from your mind and never communicate, as from yourself or
any one else, a sentiment of the like nature.”
In the same spirit he took his farewell of the army in announcing the
declaration of peace. After he had recalled the heroic deeds which they
had done on the battlefield, he paid his tribute to them for the manner
in which they had discarded all narrow provincial prejudices, made up,
as they were, of the greatest variety of elements, and had become a
harmonious body, a patriotic brotherhood. He urged them to maintain in
times of peace the reputation which they had won; that his friends
should not forget that thrift, wisdom, and industry, the virtues of the
citizen in private life, were not less valuable than the brilliant
qualities of courage, endurance, and initiative in war; that officers
and men should live amicably with the other citizens and strive with all
their might to preserve and strengthen the government of the United
States. If this should not be done, the honor and dignity of the nation
would be lost forever.
He took particular leave of his officers at a banquet. Taking his glass
of wine in his hand he said: “With a heart full of love and gratitude, I
now take leave of you, most devoutly wishing that your latter days may
be as prosperous and happy as your former ones have been glorious and
honorable.” After lifting the wine to his lips and drinking a farewell
benediction, he added, while his voice trembled with emotion: “I cannot
come to each of you to take my leave, but shall be obliged if each of
you will come and take me by the hand.” With deep emotion General Knox,
who stood nearest to the General, went to him and held out his trembling
hand. Overcome by his feelings, Washington could not speak a word and
could only embrace the General affectionately. The other officers
followed and not an eye remained dry.
There had been some men in Congress who, considering the ominous
examples in history, had not been free of anxiety lest Washington might
not easily relinquish his powerful position after peace had been won.
They were now reassured. At a solemn session of Congress he laid down
his office. In the address which he gave on this occasion he said, among
other things: “Happy in the confirmation of our independence and
sovereignty and pleased with the opportunity afforded the United States
of becoming a respectable nation, I resign with satisfaction the
appointment I accepted with diffidence; a diffidence in my abilities to
accomplish so arduous a task, which, however, was superseded by a
confidence in the rectitude of our cause, the support of the supreme
power of the Union, and the patronage of Heaven. The successful
termination of the war has verified the most sanguine expectations; and
my gratitude for the interposition of Providence, and the assistance I
have received from my countrymen, increases with every view of the
momentous contest.” In closing he said: “I consider it as an
indispensable duty to close this last act of my official life by
commending the interests of our dearest country to the protection of
Almighty God, and those who have the superintendence of them to His Holy
keeping. Having now finished the work assigned me, I retire from the
great theatre of action, and bidding an affectionate farewell to this
august body, under whose orders I have so long acted, I here offer my
commission and take my leave of all the employments of public life.”
Washington then handed his marshal’s staff to the president. The
president replied to the address, and said, among other things: “Having
defended the standard of liberty in this new world; having taught a
lesson useful to those who inflict and to those who feel oppression, you
retire from the great theatre of action with the blessings of your
fellow citizens. But the glory of your virtues will not terminate with
your military command. It will continue to animate remotest ages. We
join you in commending the interests of our dearest country to the
protection of Almighty God, beseeching Him to dispose the hearts and
minds of its citizens to improve the opportunity afforded them of
becoming a happy and respectable nation!”
Before his departure Washington sent a letter to General Steuben, in
which he cordially acknowledged the debt which America owed to him and
his German countrymen for the effective assistance rendered in the work
of freeing the colonies, and he added that Steuben might consider him a
true friend and be assured that if there should be any opportunity of
giving practical proof of this friendship, he should not fail to do so.
Washington refused any remuneration and accepted only compensation for
the expenses and outlay which he had incurred, presenting an account
which contained the smallest details of his expenses.
Then this great, wise, and good man returned to his country seat at
Mount Vernon to pass the rest of his life in quiet retirement. His
manner of life there is best shown by a letter which he wrote to
Lafayette: “At length I am become a private citizen, free from the
bustle of a camp and the busy scenes of public life. I am solacing
myself with those tranquil enjoyments of which the soldier, who is ever
in pursuit of fame, the statesman, whose watchful days and sleepless
nights are spent in devising schemes to promote the welfare of his own,
perhaps the ruin of other countries, as if this globe was insufficient
for us all, and the courtier, who is always watching the countenance of
his prince, in hopes of catching a gracious smile, can have very little
conception. Envious of none, I am determined to be pleased with all; and
this, my dear friend, being the order of my march, I will move gently
down the stream of life, until I sleep with my fathers.”
Hospitality was one of the principal virtues practised at Mount Vernon.
“A glass of wine and a piece of mutton are always to be had,” wrote
Washington to Lafayette. “Whoever is satisfied with these will always be
welcome; if he expects more he will be disappointed.”
Private persons as well as the government had vainly tried to induce
Washington to accept a reward for his services. A stock company which
had been formed, on Washington’s advice, to make two rivers navigable,
received the approval of Congress for its work. The opportunity was
seized as a new means of rewarding him, for he was responsible for the
drawing up of the well-considered plan. The board of directors
determined to turn over to him 150 shares at 100 pounds sterling each.
The presentation was made in such a way that Washington feared that a
refusal to accept might be construed as a lack of respect. Therefore he
accepted the shares, adding, however, that he intended to use them for
the public welfare. And in his will we read that he set aside that sum
for the building of a university in the central part of the United
States.
[Illustration: _WASHINGTON AS PROPRIETOR_]
Chapter XVI
Last Days
Washington had enjoyed the pleasures of retirement on his estate for
four years when his country again claimed his services for the general
good and he was unanimously elected President of the United States. He
had misgivings as to his ability to fulfil the duties of the highest
office in the government. His success in the military field, he argued,
did not guarantee that he was capable of becoming a wise administrator.
The people, however, thought otherwise. In the countless decrees and
orders which Washington had issued during the long period of the war,
the great statesman had been apparent as well as the great general. And
especially at the moment when the constitution, which had been amended
in the meanwhile, was to receive its first trial, every one felt that no
hand could hold the rudder of State so securely as Washington’s. His
friends urged him to sacrifice his love of private life once more for
his country. He hesitatingly accepted. “To-day,” he writes in his diary
on April 16, 1789, “I bade farewell to private life and domestic
felicity. I am so overwhelmed with care and painful emotion that words
fail me to express it. I have set out on the journey to New York to obey
the call of my country with the best intentions to serve her in every
possible way, but with poor prospect of fulfilling her expectations.”
His journey resembled a triumphal procession. The inhabitants of Trenton
paid him particular honors, in remembrance of his memorable crossing of
the Delaware twelve years previously. Triumphal arches were erected on
the bridge, bearing appropriate inscriptions, and little girls in white
dresses strewed the path which the “choice of the people” was to tread
with flowers. A gayly decorated vessel, guided by thirteen pilots in the
name of the thirteen States, brought him into New York Harbor. The love
of the people touched and encouraged him, but did not suffice to quite
banish the burden of care which the contemplation of all the
difficulties which were awaiting him had laid upon him. It was to be
read in his face and in his whole bearing. He said in his inaugural
address:
“It would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official act my
fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the
Universe, who presides in the councils of nations, and whose
providential aids can supply every human defect that His benediction may
consecrate to the liberties and happiness of the people of the United
States, a government instituted by themselves for these essential
purposes, and may enable every instrument employed in its administration
to execute with success the functions allotted to his charge. In
tendering this homage to the great Author of every public and private
good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments, not less than
my own, nor those of my fellow citizens at large less than either. No
people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which
conducts the affairs of men more than the people of the United States.”
The close says: “There is no truth more thoroughly established than that
there exists in the economy and course of nature an indissoluble union
between virtue and happiness, between duty and advantage, between the
genuine maxims of an honest and magnanimous policy and the solid rewards
of the public prosperity and felicity. Since we ought to be no less
persuaded that the propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on
a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which
Heaven itself has ordained, and since the preservation of the sacred
fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model of government
are justly considered as deeply, perhaps as finally, staked on the
experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people.”
He wrote to his friend Lafayette: “Harmony, honesty, industry, and
temperance are the qualities to make us a great and happy people. This
path to the attainment of the people’s happiness is as plain and
straight as a ray of light.” He would not accept a salary even as
President. He considered it a great boon to be in a position to render
services to the State without remuneration. With grave earnestness he
took up the labors of his position, in order to master the difficulties
that awaited him on all sides. A heavy load of debt was hanging over the
country, commerce and trade needed encouragement, and the frontiers
suffered much from the depredations of Indian tribes. With the outbreak
of the French revolution new difficulties arose. Washington considered
the events in Paris a natural consequence of previous misgovernment, but
in spite of his esteem for certain Frenchmen, he soon felt that the
moral earnestness essential for the attainment of true liberty was
lacking among the masses of the French people. His prophetic soul
already foresaw what the end of the movement would be. He pointed out
the erratic qualities of the French people and the bloody acts of
revenge of which they were guilty and continued: “There certainly are
reefs and sand-bars enough on which the Ship of State may be wrecked,
and in this case a much more disastrous despotism will result from the
movement than that from which the people have suffered before.” Whatever
was sound in the French revolution was brought back by the French who
had fought in America. Unfortunately the sound ideas, as we know, did
not long prevail, and with the reaction came corresponding bestial
degeneration. The fate which overtook King Louis the Sixteenth moved
Washington profoundly; never in his life, those close to him have told
us, had he been so crushed and bowed down as when the news of Louis’
execution was received. The horrors in France had their echoes in
America; clubs were formed which presented the claims of the French
Jacobins. A picture was published by them with the inscription,
“Washington’s Funeral,” in which he was represented standing under the
guillotine; they did not conceal their intention of ignoring the
President and the Constitution. Washington stood firm amidst party
storms, as he had once stood on the Delaware when storm and ice
threatened to destroy his bark. This firmness and the further
development of the bloody drama in France caused the extreme party in
America gradually to lose its influence with the people and finally to
disappear.
Washington was elected President for the second time in 1793. The eight
years of his administration were very prosperous ones. His
interpretation and administration of the Constitution have always been
considered the standard, among the best of his successors, for their
actions. At the end of his second term, when Washington learned that the
people really intended to confer on him for the third time the highest
honor in the land, he begged his fellow citizens to put the rudder of
State into younger hands, and in an official declaration he decisively
declined a reëlection. He also took leave of the nation, at the same
time giving them some golden words of advice: “Of all the dispositions
and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are
indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of
patriotism who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human
happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and citizens. The
mere politician, equally with the pious man, ought to respect and to
cherish them. A volume could not trace all their connections with
private and public felicity. Let it simply be asked, where is the
security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of
religious obligation desert the oaths, which are the instruments of
investigation in courts of justice; let us with caution indulge the
supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever
may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of
peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that
national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.”
In closing he said: “Though, in reviewing the incidents of my
administration, I am unconscious of intentional error, I am,
nevertheless, too sensible of my defects not to think it probable that I
may have committed many errors. Whatever they may be, I fervently
beseech the Almighty to avert or mitigate the evils to which they may
tend. I shall also carry with me the hope that my country will never
cease to view them with indulgence; and that, after forty-five years of
my life dedicated to its service with an upright zeal, the faults of
incompetent abilities will be consigned to oblivion as myself must soon
be to the mansions of rest.”
For a year and a half thereafter he led a life of tranquil happiness on
his estate in the country. On the twelfth of December, 1799, during a
ride, he was overtaken by a storm and took a severe cold. All treatment
was unavailing. His breathing became very painful. He said to the
doctor, with unclouded glance and in a calm voice, “Doctor, I die hard,
but I am not afraid to go. I believed from my first attack that I should
not survive it. My breath cannot last long.” In the evening, at ten
o’clock, he sank to eternal rest.
His death took place December 14, 1799, in his sixty-eighth year. In his
will Washington freed his slaves, providing at the same time for the old
and infirm among them, and setting aside large sums for the founding of
a university and of a free school for poor children.
Chapter XVIII
Blest be His Memory
John Marshall announced the death of Washington in the House of
Representatives in a trembling voice. The emotion with which this news
was received was so profound that the session had to be suspended. In
conformity with his expressed desire, the deceased was buried on the
grounds of his estate, without pomp and without any funeral oration.
Members of the order of Free Masons, whose noble principles he had
always practised during his lifetime, silently cast a shower of white
roses into his grave.
In the House of Representatives the speaker’s chair was hung with black
and the members wore mourning during the remainder of the session. The
above-mentioned John Marshall pronounced a touching eulogy on Washington
and made a proposal which was unanimously seconded. This was that a
committee should be named to consider how best to honor the memory of
Washington, the man who was “first in war, first in peace, and first in
the hearts of his countrymen.”
What was the secret of the mysterious power in Washington which enhanced
all his talents and gave him control over men and events? It was reason
ruling his passions, his modest deference to the judgment of others, his
just consideration of the rights and claims of others, his deliberation
in promises and undertakings, the deep earnestness of his nature, the
respect-compelling firmness of his actions, his strong sense of duty in
carrying out his work, the high regard for the voice of conscience which
he exacted of himself even in his youth. Washington had a horror of
gambling, which he called the source of all vice, the destroyer of
character and health, the child of greed, the brother of injustice, the
father of depravity. He looked upon war only as a means toward peace,
for his sole object was the welfare of the people. His triumphs in war
were in themselves but as dross to him if they had not guaranteed
liberty and the assured development of the prosperity of the country. In
making appointments to positions of trust he never allowed
considerations of friendship or relationship to influence him, and even
his opponents admitted that no man’s sense of justice in this regard was
more unbending than his. How touching it is to note that at every stage
of his glorious career the longing prevailed to return to the
employments of country life, from the field of war to the shade of his
own vine and fig tree on the banks of the Potomac, to escape from the
publicity of official life to the happy domestic circle, to withdraw
into the sweet retirement of an inner life which gave him a happiness of
which the ambitious soldier and the anxious statesman know nothing. The
Christian world can scarcely find, in the life of a public man, another
example of such religious conviction, such humility, and such a deep and
sincere purpose to emulate Christ’s example in justice, charity,
brotherly love, moderation, and equanimity of soul. And it was not only
his admirers who conceded to him the highest attributes of wisdom,
moderation, and justice in intellectual, ethical, and political fields,
but also his opponents and enemies. In examining his life, wherever we
look, the absolute sincerity of the man’s nature is apparent. In every
direction the study of his life gives us the most fruitful incentives
and examples. It teaches a lesson to those who doubt the real power of
virtue. His sterling worth eclipses all false brilliancy and his life
has given us a higher standard in our judgment of the great characters
in history, a standard which had almost been lost during centuries of
despotism. The dazzling events and brilliant deeds in the life of a
Napoleon lowered the standard for a time, but were not able to destroy
it.
Appendix
The following is a chronological statement of the principal events
connected with this narrative:
1732 Birth of Washington.
1748-51 Surveyor.
1751 Adjutant of Virginia troops.
1753 Commander of a military district.
1753-54 Mission to French authorities.
1754 Appointed lieutenant-colonel.
1755 Braddock’s defeat.
1758 Reduction of Fort Duquesne.
1759 Marriage.
1775 Delegate to Continental Congress.
1775 Appointed commander-in-chief.
1776 British evacuate Boston.
1776 American defeat, Long Island.
1777 Victory of Princeton.
1777 Defeat at Germantown.
1778 Drawn battle at Monmouth.
1781 Surrender of Cornwallis.
1783 Resigned his commission.
1787 President of Constitutional Convention.
1789 Elected President of the United States.
1793 Reëlected President of the United States.
1796 Farewell address to the people.
1799 Death.
LIFE STORIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
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