carrying a scalp, come toward the cabin. It was a war-party returning
from a raid.
Big Spoon greeted them heartily, for everybody was welcome at his place.
The Indians built a fire, sat down in a circle, and held a big
celebration. Then they performed a war-dance, while their musicians
played on drums made of pots half full of water, with deerskin stretched
tightly over them.
And as Washington watched their savage antics, he little dreamed how
soon he himself would be fighting with Red Skins.
When his surveying was finished, he returned home to make his report.
Lord Fairfax was delighted with his careful work and fine maps. In fact,
to-day the surveys Washington made when a boy, stand unquestioned; they
are so perfect.
Roughing it in the Shenandoah Valley was not the last of Washington’s
adventures in the Wilderness. He was appointed public surveyor. For the
next three years, he spent a great deal of time in the wilds, with
settlers, frontiersmen, trappers, and Indians.
He grew to be over six feet tall, and remarkably strong and rugged. He
overcame difficulties and faced dangers through pluck and perseverance.
He became a Colonel of a Virginia regiment. He acquired military
training and widened his knowledge of handling all sorts of men.
What he learned about Indian warfare and life in the forests and in the
Wilderness, taught him the caution and knowledge which he showed while
guarding the retreat of what was left of Braddock’s troops.
So his adventures while a boy in the Valley, and his experiences as a
young man roughing it on the frontier, fighting with Indians, carrying
messages through the Wilderness, and serving as a soldier,--all prepared
Washington to become the Liberator of our Country.
WASHINGTON’S MOTHER
Molly Ball of Virginia, Molly Ball with hair like flax and cheeks like
mayblossoms,--as she is described in the fragment of a quaint old
letter,--married Augustine Washington of Virginia, and became the mother
of George Washington.
Washington was like his mother in qualities of character. He had her
strength of will, love of truth, firm purpose, high sense of duty,
dignity, and reverence.
All these noble qualities were strengthened and made practical by her
careful education and discipline.
When he became great, she was quietly proud of him. And when people
spoke warmly of his glory and success, she would say:--
“But, my good sirs, here is too much flattery. Still, George will not
forget the lessons I early taught him. He will not forget himself,
though he is the subject of so much praise.”
When she was informed by special messenger that Cornwallis had
surrendered, she exclaimed:
“Thank God! war will now be ended, and peace, Independence, and
happiness, bless our Country!”
After the surrender of Cornwallis, Washington visited his mother at
Fredericksburg, where she was living in her own little house. She was
about seventy-five years old.
He reached Fredericksburg surrounded by his numerous and brilliant
suite. He dismounted, and sent to inquire when it would be her pleasure
to receive him.
Afoot and alone, he walked to her house. She was by herself, employed in
a household task, when she was told that the victor-chief was waiting at
her door. She bade him welcome by a warm embrace, calling him “George,”
the dear familiar name of his childhood.
She spoke to him of old times and old friends, but of his glory, not one
word.
Meanwhile, in the town of Fredericksburg there was excitement and
rejoicing. The place was crowded with foreign and American officers.
Gentlemen from miles around were hastening into town to congratulate the
conquerors of Yorktown.
The citizens got up a splendid ball in Washington’s honour, to which his
mother was specially invited.
The foreign officers were eager to meet their Chief’s mother. They had
heard of her remarkable character. They expected to see her enter the
ballroom in glittering attire, clad in rich brocades, like the noble
ladies of Europe.
How surprised they were, when, leaning on her son’s arm, she entered
dressed simply. She was dignified and imposing. She received quietly all
the compliments and attentions showered upon her. At an early hour she
wished the company much pleasure, saying that it was time for old folk
to be in bed.
She retired leaning on the arm of her son.
“If such are the matrons in America,” exclaimed the foreign officers,
“well may she boast of illustrious sons!”
_George Washington Parke Custis and Other Sources_
WASHINGTON’S WEDDING DAY
Washington plighted his troth with Martha Dandridge, the charming widow
of Daniel Parke Custis. She was young, pretty, intelligent, and an
heiress.
It was a brilliant wedding party which assembled on a winter day in the
little church near Mrs. Custis’s home. There were gathered the gay,
free-thinking, high-living Governor, gorgeous in scarlet and gold;
British officers, red-coated and gold-laced; and all the neighbouring
gentry in their handsomest clothes.
The bride was attired in silk and satin, laces and brocade, with pearls
on her neck and in her ears. While the bridegroom appeared in blue and
silver trimmed with scarlet, and with gold buckles at his knees and on
his shoes.
After the ceremony, the bride was taken home in a coach and six,
Washington riding beside her, mounted on a splendid horse, and followed
by all the gentlemen of the party.
_Henry Cabot Lodge_ (_Arranged_)
WASHINGTON AND THE CHILDREN
I
There were two joyous little people who went to live with the bride in
her new home at Mount Vernon. They were her two children, Jack Custis,
six years old, and his sister Patsy, just four years old.
Washington gave them little ponies to ride. He bought fashionably
dressed baby dolls for Patsy, silver shoe and knee buckles for Jack, and
for both of them toys, gingerbread-figures, sugar-images, and little
books with coloured pictures in them. He gave them each a Bible bound in
turkey leather with their names printed in gilt letters on the inside
covers.
II
Washington loved all children. He always smiled at them. He was
specially popular with boys.
When he rode in state to Independence Hall in his cream-coloured coach
drawn by six bays, and with postilions and outriders, boys were always
at hand to cheer as he drove by. And when he returned to Mount Vernon,
there were other boys waiting to welcome him. He could always count on
boys, wherever he went, to shout and wave their hats. He used to touch
his own hat to them as politely as if they were veterans on parade.
After his great dinners at Mount Vernon, as soon as the guests were done
eating, he would tell his steward to call in the neighbours’ boys, who
were never far away at such a time. In they would come, crowding around
the table, and make quick work of the cakes, nuts, and raisins the
guests had left.
At twilight, Washington had a habit of pacing up and down the large room
on the first floor with his hands behind him.
One evening, a boy who had never seen him, climbed up to a high open
window to look in at him.
The boy fell and hurt himself. Washington heard him cry, and sent a
servant to see what was the matter.
The servant came back and said, “The boy was trying to get a look at
you, sir.”
“Bring him in,” said Washington.
And when the boy came in, he patted him on the head, saying:--
“You wanted to see General Washington, did you? Well, I am General
Washington.”
But the little fellow shook his head, and replied:--
“No, you are only just a man. I want to see the President.”
Washington laughed, and told him that he was _the President_ and a _man_
for all that. Then he had the servant give him some cakes and nuts, and
sent him away happy.
_Grace Greenwood and Other Sources_ (_Retold_)
THE LITTLE GIRL AND THE RED COATS
When Washington with the Army entered Boston after the British had
evacuated the city, he made the best tavern in town his Headquarters. It
had been the British Headquarters. The tavern-keeper’s little girl was
running about very much interested in all that was going on.
Washington called her to him, and holding her on his knee, asked:--
“Now that you have seen the soldiers on both sides, which do you like
best?”
The little girl hesitated, but like the great Washington himself, she
could not tell a lie, so she said:--
“I like the Red Coats best.”
Washington laughed at her frankness, and said gently:--
“Yes, my dear, the Red Coats do look the best, but it takes the ragged
boys to do the fighting.”
_Wayne Whipple_ (_Retold_)
NELLIE AND LITTLE WASHINGTON
George Washington loved children, and, as he had none of his own, he
adopted two of his wife’s grandchildren, Nellie Custis and George
Washington Parke Custis.
The little boy was known as “Washington.” Nellie was a beautiful child
with smiling black eyes and thick curly brown hair; while her brother
was of very light complexion.
They had good times together at Mount Vernon. There was a delightfully
fearsome pack of hounds in the kennel; French dogs, the gift of
Lafayette, “fierce, big-mouthed, savage.” And there were litters of
beautiful puppies.
The stables were full of horses, fine creatures for pets and
playfellows. Nellie liked to be with the horses, and was constantly
alarming her grandmother as she flashed by the windows or down the
lanes, mounted upon some half-broken colt.
The children loved old Nelson, Washington’s war horse. They used to
climb upon the fence to pat his forehead, as he came racing up to greet
his master.
There were many other animals--gifts to Washington of friends and
admirers.
Among them were Spanish jackasses, Chinese pigs, and Chinese geese.
There was always something going on to interest the children. They might
run down to the river-landing to see what strange fish “Daddy Jack” had
caught; day in and day out, “Daddy Jack” was always fishing there in his
canoe. Or they might go to meet the hunter “carrying his gun and pouch,
his body wrapped with strings of game, his dogs at heel.” They liked to
look at the game, and smooth the thick feathers or soft fur. There were
birds, squirrels, wild turkeys, molly cotton-tails, wily ’possums, and
canvas-back ducks.
Coaches of company, too, were coming and going. State dinners were
cooked and served to nobles and dignitaries.
And when the children ran about the gardens, they saw rare things
growing--“fig-trees, raisins, limes, oranges, large English mulberries,
artichokes.”
Then there were the mills to visit, the smithy, the shops, the fields,
and the negro-quarters, all in company with their dear adopted father,
Washington himself.
But the children and indeed every one looked forward to the evening,
when Washington sat with them. This was the children’s hour, when by the
uncertain twinkle of the home-made candles, they danced and sang their
little songs.
The curled darling of the house was “Master Washington”--George
Washington Parke Custis. Many years later, when Lafayette visited Master
Washington, then grown up, he told how he had first seen him on the
portico of Mount Vernon, a little boy, a very little gentleman, with a
feather in his hat, holding fast to one finger of Washington’s hand,
which finger was so large that the little boy could hardly hold on to
it.
As for Nellie, she wanted to romp and play from morning till night. She
did not like to have her hair dressed with feathers and ribbons. She did
not enjoy her books and music. And she used to cry for hours together,
while her determined grandmother stood guard over her, keeping her at
practice on the beautiful harpsichord, which Washington had given her.
As for Washington, he tried to lighten little Nellie’s tasks, and used
to carry her off for a gallop or brisk outdoor walk.
He was always extremely fond of little girls. He liked other little
girls beside Nellie. He had with him her pretty sister, Elizabeth, when
he sat for one of his portraits. And in the most critical week of his
Presidency, Washington went to the house of one of his cabinet officers,
and played with his little daughters.
_Harriet Taylor Upton_ (_Retold_)
_Many of the stories in this book are from the Life of Washington,
by his adopted son, George Washington Parke Custis._
SEEING THE PRESIDENT
Sometimes, when President Washington went on a journey in his
state-coach, he wanted to travel quietly, without attracting people’s
attention. So he charged his courier, who rode on ahead, to make all
necessary arrangements at inns, but to tell no one but the landlords,
that the President was coming.
Often, however, the news leaked out, and was flashed throughout the
countryside. Trumpets were blown, as the veterans of the War for
Independence gathered to welcome their Chief. Village cannon roared.
Every village and hamlet poured out its folk to greet the man who was
“first in the hearts of his countrymen.”
As for the school children, how eagerly they hurried to get their
lessons, so that as a reward, they might see _General Washington_.
And when at last he did come, how happy the children were to be
presented to him. With delight, they listened to his kind voice, felt
the kindlier touch of his hand, and even climbed on his knee to look up
into his smiling face.
_George Washington Parke Custis_ (_Retold_)
NELSON THE HERO
There was one old horse at Mount Vernon, after the War for Independence,
who was a hero. He was never ridden. He was cared for kindly. He grazed
in a pleasant paddock.
That was Nelson, Washington’s favourite and splendid charger, which he
had ridden on the day of the surrender at Yorktown. He was a light
sorrel, with white face and legs.
Now that he was old, he was petted and cared for. Whenever Washington
made the rounds of his kennels and stables, he stopped at the paddock.
Then the old war-horse would run neighing up to the fence, proud to be
caressed by the hand of his master.
_George Washington Parke Custis_ (_Retold_)
CARING FOR THE GUEST
_Told by the Guest Himself_
I had feasted my imagination, for several days, on the near prospect of
a visit to Mount Vernon, the seat of Washington. No pilgrim ever
approached Mecca with deeper enthusiasm.
The first evening I spent under the wing of his hospitality, we sat a
full hour at table, by ourselves, without the least interruption after
the family had retired.
I was extremely oppressed with a severe cold and excessive coughing,
contracted from the exposure of a harsh winter journey. He pressed me to
use some remedies, but I declined doing so.
As usual, soon after retiring, my cough increased.
When some time had elapsed, the door of my room was gently opened. And,
on drawing back my bed-curtains, to my utter astonishment, I beheld
Washington himself standing at my bedside with a bowl of hot tea in his
hand.
_Elkanah Watson_ (_Condensed_)
THOUGHTFUL OF OTHERS
Once, when Washington was stopping for refreshment at a house in Jersey,
some one told him that a wounded officer was there, who could not bear
the slightest sound.
During the meal, Washington spoke in an undertone, and was careful to
make no noise.
After he had left the table, however, his officers began to talk in loud
voices. Instantly, Washington softly opened the dining-room door,
entered on tip-toe, took a book from the mantelpiece, and stole out of
the room without uttering a word.
His officers took the hint, and were silent.
THE CINCINNATUS OF THE WEST
_A man who’d fought to free the land from woe,
Like me, had left his farm a-soldiering to go;
But having gained his point, he had, like me,
Returned his own potato-ground to see;
But there he couldn’t rest;--with one accord
He’s called to be a kind of--, not a Lord,--
I don’t know what--he’s not a great man, sure,
For poor men love him, just as he was poor!
They love him like a father or a brother!_
_This little verse is from “Darby’s Return,” a play that President
Washington went to see. The moment he entered the theatre the whole
audience rose to its feet and cheered. And when “Darby” said these
lines, the audience stared hard at Washington to see how he would take
them. He looked horribly embarrassed. But when “Darby” quickly added
that he had not seen the “man” at all at all because he was so plainly
dressed that he passed by unnoticed, Washington burst into a hearty
laugh._
In the ancient days of Rome, a terrible enemy threatened the city. There
was no Roman general wise enough to lead the army against the foe. There
was just one plain Roman citizen whom the people trusted. They believed
that he had the wisdom to save them. This was Cincinnatus the
Curly-haired. They sent hasty messengers to bid him come to the aid of
Rome.
The messengers found him tilling his land, for he was a farmer. His feet
were heavy with damp earth and his clothes covered with soil. He
listened to their message, and to the request of the Roman Senate that
he should come at once to the aid of his Country.
He called his wife to bring his toga from their hut. After he had wiped
off the dust and sweat, he put on his toga and went with the messengers.
So he saved Rome.
Thus it was with Washington.
When the call came for him to save his Country, he left his plantation.
So did many farmers and planters; at a moment’s notice they left their
farms and plantations, took up their muskets and answered the call of
their Country. They became officers in Washington’s Army.
After the war, these officers formed a society, called the Society of
the Cincinnati, naming it after the patriotic old Roman farmer.
To it belonged Washington, Hamilton, Lafayette, Kosciuszko, and many
other American and foreign officers, who had served with honour in the
Continental army. To-day their descendants, one representing each
officer, belong to the Society of the Cincinnati.
The French members presented Washington with a magnificent badge of the
Order, studded with about two hundred precious stones--diamonds, rubies,
emeralds, and amethysts.
Washington himself is called:--
“_Yes--one--the first--the last--the best,
The Cincinnatus of the West._”
BROTHER JONATHAN
_I do hereby earnestly recommend it to all ... to meet together for
social prayer to Almighty God ... that He would ... preserve our
precious Rights and Liberties ... and make us a People of his
praise, and blessed of the Lord, as long as the sun and the moon
shall endure._
JONATHAN TRUMBULL,
_to the People of Connecticut, June 18, 1776_
Patriotic and plucky was Connecticut, the State of the Charter Oak. It
had been a liberty-loving Colony from the days when its first settlers,
with their wives, children, household goods, and cattle, came through
the howling Wilderness--literally howling with savage Pequot
Indians--and settled on the banks of the beautiful Connecticut River,
whose name in the Indian language means Long River.
Those brave settlers came into the Wilderness so that they might have
religious and civil Liberty. Almost, their first act was to frame in
1639, a Constitution for their own government. It was the first
Constitution in America to make no mention of allegiance to King or
Great Britain. It breathed the free spirit of American Independence over
a hundred years before the Declaration of Independence.
Is it strange, then, that Jonathan Trumbull, Governor of Connecticut
under King George, should have been a Patriot?
He was more than loyal to American freedom. He was Washington’s friend
and supporter. He supplied Washington with soldiers and ammunition. He
supplied more than half the powder used at Bunker Hill.
There is a tale, that once when Washington was hard put to it for
ammunition, and it looked as though the campaign would fail for lack of
powder and shot, Washington said to his officers, “We must consult
Brother Jonathan.”
Then Washington consulted Governor Trumbull, and got his powder and
shot.
After that, whenever a difficulty arose in the Army, the men would say,
“We must consult Brother Jonathan.” So the saying became a byword.
Later, people nicknamed the United States, “Brother Jonathan,” just as
England is called “John Bull.”
THE BLOODY FOOTPRINTS
It was the terrible winter of 1777. The snow lay thick on the ground,
and the cold was piercing. Through the snow, a detachment of Patriot
troops was wearily plodding toward winter-quarters at Valley Forge.
Half-naked, hungry, and numb with cold, they pushed on.
Presently Washington rode slowly up after them. He was eying the snow
intently through which they had marched. There was something on its
frozen surface, something red that he had tracked for many miles.
Saluting the commanding officer, Washington drew rein.
“How comes it, sir,” he said, “that I have tracked the march of your
troops by the bloodstains of their feet upon the frozen ground? Were
there no shoes in the commissary’s stores, that this sad spectacle is to
be seen along the public highways?”
“Your Excellency may rest assured,” replied the officer, “that this
sight is as painful to my feelings as it can be to yours. But there is
no remedy within our reach. When the shoes were issued, the different
regiments were served in turn. It was our misfortune to be among the
last to be served, and the stores became exhausted before we could
obtain even the smallest supply.”
Washington’s lips compressed, while his chest heaved with the powerful
emotions that were struggling in his bosom. Then turning toward the
troops, with a trembling voice, he exclaimed:--
“Poor fellows!”
Then giving his horse the rein, he rode sadly on.
During this touching interview, every eye had been bent upon him; and as
those two words warm from the heart of their beloved commander and full
of commiseration for their sufferings, reached the soldiers, there burst
gratefully from their lips:--
“God bless your Excellency, your poor soldiers’ friend!”
_George Washington Parke Custis_ (_Arranged_)
AN APPEAL TO GOD
On a cold wintry journey to Valley Forge, Mrs. Washington rode behind
her husband on a pillion. He was on his powerful bay charger, and
accompanied by a single aide-de-camp.
On his arrival at Valley Forge, Washington placed her in the small but
comfortable house of Isaac Potts, a Quaker preacher.
So in all the trials of that Winter at Valley Forge, Washington had the
most earnest sympathies, cheerful spirit, and willing hands of his
loving wife to sustain him and share in his cares.
She provided comforts for the sick soldiers. Every day except Sundays,
the wives of officers, and other women too, assisted her in knitting
socks, patching garments, and making shirts for the poor soldiers.
Every fair day, she might be seen, basket in hand and with a single
attendant, going among the huts and giving comfort to the most needy
sufferers.
On one occasion, she went to the hut of a dying sergeant, whose young
wife was with him. His misery touched the heart of Mrs. Washington, and
after she had given him some food prepared with her own hands, she knelt
down by his straw bed, and prayed earnestly for him and his wife, in her
sweet serious voice.
But it was not only women who prayed in those terrible days at Valley
Forge.
The cold and suffering increased. One day Friend Potts was walking by
the creek not far from his house, when he heard a solemn voice speaking.
He went quietly in its direction, and saw Washington’s horse without a
rider tied to a sapling.
He stole nearer, and saw Washington himself, kneeling in a thicket. He
was on his knees in prayer to God asking Him for help. Tears were on
Washington’s cheeks.
And quietly the Friend stole away. On entering his house, he burst out
weeping. When his wife asked him what was the matter, he said:--
“If there is any one on this earth whom the Lord will listen to, it is
George Washington. And I feel a presentiment that under such a Commander
there can be no doubt of our eventually establishing our Independence,
and that God in His providence has willed it so.”
_Benson J. Lossing_ (_Arranged_)
FRIEND GREENE
_At Eutaw Springs the valiant died;
Their limbs with dust are covered o’er.
Weep on, ye springs, your tearful tide;
How many heroes are no more!_
* * * * *
_Led by thy conquering genius, Greene,
The Britons they compelled to fly;
None distant viewed the fatal plain,
None grieved, in such a cause to die._
_From Eutaw Springs, by_ PHILIP FRENEAU