services. Refusing gifts, he was glad to guide the benefaction of a
grateful State to educate the children of his fallen braves in the
institution at Lexington which yet bears his name. Without any of the
blemishes that mark the tyrant, he appealed so loftily to the virtuous
elements in man, that he almost created the qualities which his country
needed to exercise; and yet he was so magnanimous and forbearing to the
weaknesses of others, that he often obliterated the vices of which he
feared the consequences. But his virtue was more than this. It was of
that daring, intrepid kind that, seizing principle with a giant's grasp,
assumes responsibility at any hazard, suffers sacrifice without pretense
of martyrdom, bears calumny without reply, imposes superior will and
understanding on all around it, capitulates to no unworthy triumph, but
must carry all things at the point of clear and blameless conscience.
Scorning all manner of meanness and cowardice, his bursts of wrath at
their exhibition heighten our admiration for the noble passions which
were kindled by the aspirations and exigencies of virtue.
Invested with the powers of a Dictator, the country bestowing them felt
no distrust of his integrity; he, receiving them, gave assurance that,
as the sword was the last support of Liberty, so it should be the first
thing laid aside when Liberty was won. And keeping the faith in all
things, he left mankind bewildered with the splendid problem whether to
admire him most for what he was or what he would not be. Over and above
all his virtues was the matchless manhood of personal honor to which
Confidence gave in safety the key of every treasure on which Temptation
dared not smile, on which Suspicion never cast a frown. And why prolong
the catalogue? "If you are presented with medals of Cæsar, of Trajan,
or Alexander, on examining their features you are still led to ask what
was their stature and the forms of their persons; but if you discover in
a heap of ruins the head or the limb of an antique Apollo, be not
curious about the other parts, but rest assured that they were all
conformable to those of a god."
* * * * *
"Rome to America" is the eloquent inscription on one stone of your
colossal shaft--taken from the ancient Temple of Peace that once stood
hard by the Palace of the Cæsars. Uprisen from the sea of Revolution,
fabricated from the ruins of bartered bastiles, and dismantled palaces
of unrighteous, unhallowed power, stood forth now the Republic of
republics, the Nation of nations, the Constitution of constitutions, to
which all lands and times and tongues had contributed of their wisdom,
and the priestess of Liberty was in her holy temple.
When Marathon had been fought and Greece kept free, each of the
victorious generals voted himself to be first in honor, but all agreed
that Miltiades was second. When the most memorable struggle for the
rights of human nature of which time holds record was thus happily
concluded in the muniment of their preservation, whoever else was
second, unanimous acclaim declared that Washington was first. Nor in
that struggle alone does he stand foremost. In the name of the people of
the United States, their President, their Senators, their
Representatives, and their Judges do crown to-day with the grandest
crown that veneration has ever lifted to the brow of Glory, him whom
Virginia gave to America, whom America had given to the world and to the
ages, and whom mankind with universal suffrage has proclaimed the
foremost of the founders of empire in the first degree of greatness;
whom Liberty herself has anointed as the first citizen in the great
Republic of Humanity.
Encompassed by the inviolate seas, stands to-day the American Republic,
which he founded--a freer Greater Britain--uplifted above the powers and
principalities of the earth, even as his monument is uplifted over roof
and dome and spire of the multitudinous city.
Long live the Republic of Washington! Respected by mankind, beloved of
all its sons, long may it be the asylum of the poor and oppressed of all
lands and religions--long may it be the citadel of that Liberty which
writes beneath the eagle's folded wings, "We will sell to no man, we
will deny to no man, right and justice."
Long live the United States of America! Filled with the free,
magnanimous spirit, crowned by the wisdom, blessed by the moderation,
hovered over by the angel of Washington's example, may they be ever
worthy in all things to be defended by the blood of the brave, who know
the rights of man and shrink not from their assertion; may they be each
a column, and all together, under the Constitution, a perpetual Temple
of Peace, unshadowed by a Cæsar's palace, at whose altar may freely
commune all who seek the union of liberty and brotherhood.
Long live our country! Oh, long through the undying ages may it stand
far removed in fact as in space from the Old World's feuds and follies;
alone in its grandeur and its glory, itself the immortal monument of him
whom Providence commissioned to teach man the power of truth and to
prove to the nations that their redeemer liveth.
* * * * *
THE CHARACTER OF WASHINGTON
BY HENRY CABOT LODGE
For many years I have studied minutely the career of Washington, and
with every step the greatness of the man has grown upon me; for analysis
has failed to discover the act of his life which, under the conditions
of the time, I could unhestitatingly pronounce to have been an error.
Such has been my experience, and, although my deductions may be wrong,
they at least have been carefully and slowly made. I see in Washington a
great soldier, who fought a trying war to a successful end impossible
without him; a great statesman, who did more than any other man to lay
the foundations of a republic which has endured in prosperity for more
than a century. I find in him a marvelous judgment which was never at
fault, a penetrating vision which beheld the future of America when it
was dim to other eyes, a great intellectual force, a will of iron, an
unyielding grasp of facts, and an unequaled strength of patriotic
purpose. I see in him, too, a pure and high-minded gentleman of
dauntless courage and stainless honor, simple and stately of manner,
kind and generous of heart. Such he was in truth. The historian and the
biographer may fail to do him justice, but the instinct of mankind will
not fail. The real hero needs not books to give him worshipers. George
Washington will always receive the love and reverence of men, because
they see embodied in him the noblest possibilities of humanity.
IX
ANECDOTES AND STORIES
ANECDOTES OF WASHINGTON
Washington's relations with children are most interesting. He always
wrote of them as the "little ones."
Through his life he adopted or assumed the expenses of nine of the
children of his "kith and kin."
Dumas says that he arrived at Providence with Washington at night. "The
whole population had assembled from the suburbs; we were surrounded by a
crowd of children carrying torches, all were eager to approach the
person of him whom they called their father, and pressed so closely
around us that they hindered us from proceeding. General Washington was
much affected, stopped a few moments, and, pressing my hand, said, 'We
may be beaten by the English, it is the chance of war; but behold an
army which they can never conquer.'"
* * * * *
In journeying through New England, Washington spent a night in a private
house where all payment was refused. Writing to his host he said: "Being
informed that you have given my name to one of your sons, and called
another after Mrs. Washington's family, and being, moreover, very much
pleased with the modest and innocent looks of your two daughters, Patty
and Polly, I do for these reasons send each of these girls a piece of
chintz; and to Patty, who bears the name of Mrs. Washington, and who
waited upon us more than Polly did, I send five guineas with which she
may buy herself any little ornament, or she may dispose of them in any
manner more agreeable to herself. As I do not give these things with a
view to have it talked of, or even its being known, the less there is
said about the matter the better you will please me; but, that I may be
sure the chintz and money have got safe to hand, let Patty, who I dare
say is equal to it, write me a line informing me thereof, directed to
the President of the United States at New York."
* * * * *
Once the General was engaged in earnest consultation with Colonel
Pickering until after night had fairly set in. Washington prepared to
stay with the colonel over night, provided he had a spare blanket and
straw. "Oh yes," said Primus, who was appealed to, "plenty of straw and
blankets, plenty."
Two humble beds were spread side by side in the tent and the officers
laid themselves down, while Primus seemed to be busy with duties that
required his attention before he himself could sleep. He worked, or
appeared to work, until the breathing of the prostrate gentlemen
satisfied him that they were sleeping, and then seating himself upon a
box, he leaned his head upon his hands to obtain such repose as he
could.
In the middle of the night Washington awoke. He looked about and
descried the negro. He gazed at him awhile and then spoke.
"Primus," said he, "Primus!" Primus started up and rubbed his eyes.
"What, General?" said he. Washington rose up in his bed. "Primus," said
he, "what do you mean by saying that you had straw and blankets enough?
Here you have given up your blankets and straw to me, that I may sleep
comfortably, while you are obliged to sit through the night." "It's
nothing, General," said Primus! "It's nothing! I'm well enough! Don't
trouble yourself about me, General, but go to sleep again. No matter
about me, I sleep very good!" "But it is matter, it is matter," said
Washington. "I cannot do it, Primus. If either is to sit up, I will. But
I think there is no need of either sitting up. The blanket is wide
enough for two. Come and lie down with me."
"Oh no, General!" said Primus, starting and protesting against the
proposition. "No, let me sit here." "I say come and lie down here!" said
Washington. "There is room for both; I insist upon it."
He threw open the blanket as he spoke, and moved to one side of the
straw. Primus professes to have been exceedingly shocked at the idea of
lying under the same covering with the commander-in-chief, but his tone
was so resolute and determined that he could not hesitate. He prepared
himself therefore and laid himself down by Washington; on the same straw
under the same blanket, the General and the negro servant slept until
morning.
* * * * *
An anecdote characteristic of Washington is related by Professor
McVickar, in his narrative of "The Life of Dr. Bard," who attended
Washington during a severe illness in 1789.
It was a case of anthrax (carbuncle) so malignant as for several
days to threaten mortification. During this period Dr. Bard never
quitted him. On one occasion being left alone with him, General
Washington, looking steadily in his face, desired his candid
opinion as to the probable termination of his disease, adding with
that placid firmness which marked his address, "Do not flatter me
with vain hopes, I'm not afraid to die, and therefore can bear the
worst." Dr. Bard's answer, though it expressed hope, acknowledged
his apprehensions.
The President replied: "Whether to-night or twenty years hence,
makes no difference; I know that I am in the hands of a good
Providence."
* * * * *
George Washington to his nephew, Bushrod Washington:
Remember, that it is not the mere study of the Law, but to become
eminent in the profession of it, which is to yield honor and
profit.
The first was your choice, let the second be your ambition; that
the company in which you will improve most, will be least expensive
to you; and yet I am not such a stoic as to suppose that you will,
or think it right that you should always be in company with
senators and philosophers; but of the young and the juvenile kind
let me advise you to be choice. It is easy to make acquaintances,
but very difficult to shake them off, however irksome and
unprofitable they are found, after we have once committed ourselves
to them.
* * * * *
While absent from Mount Vernon Washington wrote to his manager:
Although it is last mentioned, it is foremost in my thoughts to
desire you will be particularly attentive to my negroes in their
sickness, and to order every overseer positively to be so likewise;
for I am sorry to observe that the generality of them view these
poor creatures in scarcely any other light than they do a draught
horse or an ox, neglecting them as much when they are unable to
work instead of comforting and nursing them when they lie in a sick
bed.
* * * * *
A part of each day was always set apart for meditation and devotion; nor
this in time of peace only, for we are told that one day while the
Americans were encamped at Valley Forge, the owner of the house occupied
by the General, a Quaker, strolled up the creek, and when not far from
his mill, heard a solemn voice. He walked quietly in the direction of it
and saw Washington's horse tied to a sapling. In a thicket near by was
the chief, upon his knees in prayer, his cheeks suffused with tears.
* * * * *
During the Revolutionary War, General Washington's army was reduced at
one time to great straits, and the people were greatly dispirited. One
of them who left his home with an anxious heart one day, as he was
passing the edge of a wood near the camp, heard the sound of a voice. He
stopped to listen, and looking between the trunks of the large trees he
saw General Washington engaged in prayer. He passed quietly on, that he
might not disturb him; and on returning home, told his family, "America
will prevail," and then related what he had heard and seen.
* * * * *
THE ABUSE OF WASHINGTON
BY THOMAS WENTWORTH HIGGINSON
On the last day in office Washington wrote to Knox comparing himself to
"the weary traveler who sees a resting-place, and is bending his body to
lean thereon. To be suffered to do this in peace," he added, "is too
much to be endured by some." Accordingly on that very day a Philadelphia
newspaper dismissed him with a final tirade, worth remembering by all
who think that political virulence is on the increase:
"Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes
have seen thy salvation" was the exclamation of a man who saw a
flood of blessedness breaking in upon mankind. If ever there was a
time that allowed this exclamation to be repeated, that time is the
present. The man who is the source of all our country's misery is
this day reduced to the rank of his fellow-citizens, and has no
longer the power to multiply the woes of these United States. Now
more than ever is the time to rejoice. Every heart which feels for
the liberty, and the happiness of the people must now beat with
rapture at the thought that this day the name of Washington ceases
to give currency to injustice and to legalize corruption.... When
we look back upon the eight years of Washington's administration,
it strikes us with astonishment that one man could thus poison the
principles of republicanism among our enlightened people, and carry
his designs against the public liberty so far as to endanger its
very existence. Yet such is the fact, and if this is apparent to
all, this day they should form a jubilee in the United States.
* * * * *
PROVIDENTIAL EVENTS IN THE LIFE OF WASHINGTON
BY IRVING ALLEN
From _The Independent_
At this season of the anniversary of Washington's birth, it seems
especially appropriate to recall certain singular circumstances in the
life of the greatest of Americans--events remarkable in themselves in
whatever light they may be viewed; whether, in accordance with the
tenets of modern Spiritism and, to a certain extent, in harmony with the
doctrines of Swedenborg and his followers in human affairs of departed
spirits; or if, on the other hand, we adopt the simple teachings of the
Sacred Scriptures, and acknowledge the truth with men and their
affairs.
Authentic history records no less than six marvelous instances in which
the life of Washington was saved under circumstances seemingly little
less than miraculous. The first of these wonderful escapes from
impending peril occurred during the period of Washington's sole recorded
absence from the American continent--when he accompanied his brother
Lawrence, then fatally ill with consumption, to the Barbadoes.
_Smallpox_
They sailed in September of 1751, George being then in the twentieth
year of his age. Before the brothers had been a fortnight in the island
the younger, the future hero of the Revolution, was attacked with
smallpox in its "natural" and virulent form. This disease was not then
the fangless monster with which we are familiar, but was terrific in its
assaults and almost invariably fatal; yet Washington recovered in
something less than three weeks, and retained through his life but
slight marks of the malady.
One of General Washington's biographers well says, in reference to this
incident, in the life of the first President, that, "it may well be
doubted whether in any of his battles he was in equal danger. If the
disease entered an army, it was a foe more to be dreaded than embattled
hosts.... But it belongs to that class of diseases of which, by a
mysterious law of our nature, our frames are, generally speaking,
susceptible but once.... Thus it came to pass, that, in the morning of
his days, Washington became (humanly speaking) safe from all future
danger from this formidable disease."
The reader of American history will remember that the smallpox appeared
among the British troops in Boston in the fall of 1775; that it ravaged
our army in Canada in the following spring; that it prevailed the same
year at Ticonderoga, and in 1777 at Morristown. Regarding this last
occasion of its appearance, Washington said, in a letter to Governor
Henry, of Virginia, where vaccination was not permitted:
You will pardon my observation on smallpox because I know it is
more destructive to the army than the enemies' sword and because I
shudder whenever I reflect upon the difficulties of keeping it out.
This was the tremendous peril from which Washington was comparatively
safe after his twentieth year. "If," says a very eminent writer, "to
refer this to an overruling Providence be a superstition, I desire to be
accounted superstitious."
_The Journey to Venango_, 1753
The next imminent danger to which Washington was exposed, and from which
his escape was well-nigh miraculous, was on the occasion of his historic
expedition to the headquarters of the French Governor at Venango, in
1753. The journey itself, in the winter season, of five or six hundred
miles through an unsettled country, most of it constantly traveled by
natives at enmity with the English, was one continued story of danger
and escape. It was but two years after this trip of Washington's to
Venango that English soldiers--surrendered prisoners of war--were
tortured to death by the savage natives within sight of Fort Duquesne.
On his return from the fulfillment of his mission, Washington traversed
the forest with a single companion and an Indian guide. Just at
nightfall, on one of the days of their perilous journey, their savage
attendant suddenly turned, and at a distance of but fifteen paces fired
on Washington, happily without evil result.
After this alarming experience the two companions pursued their way
alone, footsore and weary, through the woods, with the sure knowledge
that the savages were on their trail. Reaching the Alleghany River on a
night of December, they found it encumbered with drifting ice, and only
to be crossed by means of a raft which, with only "one poor hatchet,"
cost them an entire day's labor to construct. When crossing the river,
Washington, while using the setting pole, was thrown violently into the
water at a depth of ten feet, and saved his life by grasping a log. They
spent the night, in their frozen clothing, on a little island on which,
had they been forced to stay till sunrise, they would, beyond question,
have fallen into the hands of the Indians; but the intense cold which
froze the feet of Washington's companion, also sealed the river and
enabled them to escape on the ice.
_Another Mission_
The year following the mission to Venango (1754) Colonel Washington was
sent in command of a small force in the same direction; but by reason of
the greatly superior strength of the enemy, the expedition resulted in a
calamitous retreat. By a singular coincidence, the compulsory evacuation
of the English stronghold--"Fort Necessity," as it was called--occurred
on the _Fourth of July_, 1754--a date afterward made forever glorious in
great measure by the inestimable services of the young commander of this
earlier and ill-fated military expedition. But such were the ability,
energy, and power evinced by its youthful commander, that the disaster
resulted in his own greatly enhanced reputation as a born leader of men.
_Braddock and Washington_
In the following year (1755) a gigantic effort was made by England to
recover lost ground, and to repair the military misadventures of 1754.
The history of Braddock's disastrous expedition is familiar to every
schoolboy in the land. At this period, Colonel Washington had retired
from the army in disgust at the unjust regulations which gave undue
preference to officers holding commissions from the Crown over abler
men--some of them their seniors of the same rank--in the service of the
provinces. He was, however, at length induced--in great measure from
motives of the purest patriotism, and partly, no doubt, from his strong
leaning toward a military career--to accept a position on the staff of
the commanding General, Braddock, a soldier of courage and large
experience, but, as events afterward proved, a haughty, self-willed, and
passionate man.
During the passage of Braddock's forces through the Alleghany Mountains,
Washington was attacked by so violent and alarming a sickness that its
result was for a time extremely uncertain; on his partial recovery the
General caused him to move with the heavy artillery and baggage. In this
position Washington remained two weeks, returning to the General's
headquarters on the eighth of July, the day preceding the fatal battle
of the Monongahela.
On the morning of this day--forever and sadly memorable in American
annals--Washington mounted his horse, weak and worn by sickness, but
strong in hope and courage. These are his own words uttered in other and
better days:
The most beautiful spectacle I had ever beheld was the display of
the British troops on that eventful morning.... The sun gleamed
from their burnished arms, the river flowed tranquilly on their
right, and the deep forest overshadowed them with solemn grandeur
on the left.
_Braddock's Defeat_
It is needless to repeat here the tale of that day of defeat and
slaughter. Historians have recorded its events, and poets have sung its
story. Throughout the action Washington was in the thickest of the
fight. "I expected every moment to see him fall," wrote Dr. Craik, his
physician and friend. It was during this disastrous battle that
Washington escaped perhaps the most imminent peril of his life. In
company with Dr. Craik, in the year 1770, he descended the Ohio River on
a journey of observation to the Great Kanawha, and it was there that an
incident occurred, which is thus described by Irving:
Here Washington was visited by an old sachem, who approached him
with great reverence and addressed him through Nicholson, the
interpreter. He had come, he said, a great distance to see him. On
further discourse, the sachem made known that he was one of the
warriors in the service of the French, who lay in ambush on the
banks of the Monongahela, and wrought such havoc to Braddock's
army. He declared that he and his young men had singled out
Washington, as he made himself conspicuous riding about the field
of battle with the General's orders, and fired at him repeatedly,
but without success; whence they concluded that he was under the
protection of the Great Spirit, that he had a charmed life, and
could not be slain in battle.
Washington himself wrote thus to his brother:
By all the powerful dispensations of Providence, I have been
protected beyond all human probability and expectations; for I had
four bullets through my coat and two horses shot under me; yet I
escaped unhurt, although death was leveling my companions on every
side.
His marvelous preservation was the subject of general remark; Mr.
Davies, later President of Princeton College, used these words in an
address a few weeks after the Braddock defeat:
That heroic youth, Colonel Washington, whom I cannot but hope
Providence has hitherto preserved in so signal a manner for some
important service to his country.
_Escape from a Marriage_