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MEMOIRS
OF
€\)t JHntjjer unit t#if>
OF
WASHINGTON
MARGARET C. CONK LING
AUTHOR OF HARPERS' TRANSLATION OF c; FLORIAN'S HISTORY OF THE MOORS OF SPAIN ; " " ISABEL, OR TRIALS OF THE HEART J " &C, &C.
I
Of differing themes the veering song was mix'd.
" To teach us how divine a thing A woman may be made."
AUBURN
DERBY, MILLER, & CO
1850.
<.?1^
!-
■tr
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year of our Lord 1849, by
DERBY, MILLER & CO.,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Northern District of
New- York.
KNAPP AND PECS, PRINTERS, AUBDRM.
TO
MRS. WILLIAM H. SEWARD,
AND
IN TOKEN OF HIGH REGARD,
THIS VOLUME IS VERY RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED.
Thanks for the picture of thy daily life— Thy bright example, Daughter, Mother, Wife ! The watchful care that cheers thy sire's decline, As a lone shaft's long shielded by a vine, A gentle, holy lesson, graven deep, Thy daughter, cherished in her heart, will keep ; Thy couch of suffering she'll bend above, And sooth thee, ever, with devoted love. Constant to thee, thy sons will crown thy days AYith reverence, heart-felt blessings, fondest praise! And he , still proving thee truest of friends, The homage of whose faith on thee attends, "Wherever tossed 'rnid life's tumultuouB jar, E'er turn to thee, his fixed, his guiding star, And in thy smile benign, confiding seek The peace, the happiness, thy prayers bespeak!— When thou in Heaven dost fold thy spirit.wing, Around thy name will sweetest memories cling,
VI DEDICATION.
Soft as the balmy breath of fragrance cast On earthly bowers, where Peri's wing has pass'd, Or radiance ling'ring round the glowing West, When day serene has gently sunk to rest !
Long may Columbia's Daughters thus portray The lofty Yirtue of her earlier day ! — And may the blessings of thy heart and hearth Change but for those of bright, empyreal birth !
M. January 1st, 1850.
MEMOIR
OF
Lifs is not lost, from which is brought Endless renown ,
SrsNCSK.
Virtue, on no aid extraneous bent. Is to hersell, her own bright ornament
Tasso,
INTRODUCTION.
Here Woman reigns ; the mother, daughter, wife,— Strews with fresh flowers the narrow way of life ; In the clear heaven of her delightful eye, An angel guard of loves and graces lie ; Around her knees domestic duties meet, And fireside pleasures gamhol at her feet.
Montgomery.
The artist who would embody the sublime ideal which has long engrossed his spiritual contemplation — the idol of his ceaseless adoration, the imaginary im- personation of his most exalted conceptions of the Beautiful — again and again shrinks dismayed, despair- ing from the impossible achievement he would fain essay. Thus does the biographer, — whose best quali- fication for the task too partial friendship has assigned her, is profound reverence for the theme, — approach the awe-inspiring subject of the following Memoir.
The life of woman, almost in proportion as it is true to the loftiest impulses and purest principles by which she can be actuated, presents comparatively few inci- dents claiming circumstantial record or remembrance.
Though the wife, or the mother of one who fills a large space in the world's eye, it is still, usually, hers to dwell only within the quiet precincts of do- mestic retirement.
1*
X INTRODUCTION.
The Hero, like a majestic river, that bears the wealth of cities on its ample waters, and diffuses benefits to thousand s, speeds onward in his high career, his steps resounding in the ears of listening nations ; while the mother, from whom, perchance, he derived the intellec- tual power that impels and sustains this lofty course, still, like a life-giving fountain whose sweet, bright wa- ters diffuse beauty, and health, and happiness, lingers ever in the shade, revered in the protecting sanctity of Home.
The world may never know, may never seek, the gushing waters of the secluded fountain. But beside its peace-breathing murmurs, the worn and weary wan- derer,— fame-pilgrim though he be, seeks repose ; returning once more, and yet once more, to imbibe its benign aud soothing influences. In the quiet haunt it loves, dwell gentle spirits who minister to the wayfarer, and watch, with ceaseless care, over the sequestered purity and loveliness, which it is their precious charge forever to preserve, in inexhaustible and unsullied per- fection.
As flow the crystal waters of a hallowed well-spring, glided on the life of Mary Washington ; thus serene, and pure, and secluded, thus genial and beneficent, and blessed !
CONTENTS OF THE LIFE
OF
MARY WASHINGTON
Introduction.
CHAPTER I.
Mrs. "Washington's Birth— Descent— Family Name— Education— Marriage — The Death of her Husband — Her Age when that Event occurred — State of Mrs. Washington's pecuniary Affairs — The Recollections of her son George, respecting his Father — His Testimony to the Influ- ence of his Mother— Mrs. Washington's Practical Abilities called into requisition — Her system of Domestic Discipline — Her good sense in conducting the Early Education of her children— Mrs. Washington a Christian Matron.
CHAPTER II.
The History of Mrs. Washington associated with that of her son George — His early efforts at Self-Maintenance— His initiatory Military Ad- ventures a source of Anxiety to his Mother— The Deaths of Mrs. Wash- ington's two eldest sons— Letter addressed by Col. Washington to his Mother, after the Battle of the Monongahela— His Illness — Ap- pointment to the Chief Command of the Virginia Troops— Letter to Mrs. Washington upon this subject — Her clear-sighted discernment of the practical Objections to this Post— No Minute Details respecting this portion of Mrs. Washington's Life.
XII CONTENTS.
CHAPTER III.
The Commencement of the Revolution— Washington's Appointment as Commander-in-Chief of the American Army— Mrs. Washington's pi- ous Resignation— Her Removal from her country-seat to Frederics- fcurg, in Virginia— Bids adieu to her Son— Her Remedy for Mental Anxiety — Her practical Knowledge now peculiarly available to Herself and Others— Mrs. Washington's active Habits— Daily Practice of Dri- ving out to her Farm — Her prompt Discipline in respect to her Subor- dinates— Anecdote — Constantly receives the Visits and Attentions of her Children and Grand-Children— Mrs. Washington's Interest in Public Affairs— Her confidence in the ultimate Triumph of Right— Her Reception of the news of the successful Passage of the Delaware — Expression of her fervent gratitude to Heaven, when informed of the Surrender of the British Army at Yorktown — The Commander in - Chief hastens to the Presence of his Mother— Mrs. Washington's Bear- ing and Conversation on this Occasion.
CHAPTER IV.
Washington's Public Welcome at Fredericsburg— Preparations for a Ball— Mrs. Washington specially Invited— Accepts the Invitation, attended by her Son — Her Reception by the Company — Her Dress, Manners and Appearance on this public occasion — Astonishment of the Foreign Officers present — Characteristic Remark of Mrs. Washing- ton, upon Retiring — The Commander in-Chief dances his last min- uet.
CHAPTER V.
[rs. Washington's Children desire her to reside with them — She prefers a separate Establishment — The affectionate Devotion of her Children and Friends — Continues her habits of diligent Exertion and Industry — Declines the Assistance of her Son -in -Law in the Management of her Affairs — Receives a Visit from the Marquis de La Fayette — Mrs. Wash- ington's celebrated Remark respecting her son George — The dignified na- ture of her Sentiments in relation to him — The Influence she always maintained over his mind — Washington's unalterable Reverence for his Mother — His implicit Obedience to her — Mrs. Washington's De- votional Habits— Her single mental Infirmity — Personal Appearanc* of Mrs. Washington.
CONTENTS. XIII
CHAPTER VI.
President Washington takes a final Leave of his Mother, hefore assuming his new duties — Mr?. "Washington's impaired Health — Her last Illness and Death— Letter from Washington to his Sister in relation to the Death of his Mother.
CHAPTER VII.
General Summary of the Character of Mrs. Washington.
CHAPTER viii.
Place of Mrs. Washington's Interment — Monument to her Memory — Laying of the Corner-Stone by the President of the United States- Extracts from his Eulogy — Lines written for this Occasion, by Mrs. Sigourney — Description of the Monument.
THE MOTHER OF WASHINGTON.
CHAPTER, I.
The name of Mary — how the heart Thrills at the sound of that sweet name The holiest thoughts it may impart, Or wake the soul to deeds of fame !
J. W. M.
Well ordered home, man's best delight to make, And with submissive wisdom, modest skill,
To raise the virtues
Thompson.
Mrs. Mary Washington was born towards the con- clusion of the year 1706. Little is known of her an- cestors, except that she inherited an unimpeachable name. We are informed that she was descended from a highly respectable family of English colonists, named Ball, who originally established themselves on the banks of the Potomac.
It is to be lamented that no records of the youth, or early womanhood of this illustrious lady have been preserved.
16 MEMOIR OP
We are, therefore, in ignorance of the education and domestic influences by which her remarkable character was developed and matured.
But, judging from the rare combination of mental and moral qualities which we find exhibited in the brief history of her later life, we may suppose her home- education to have been particularly practical and judi- cious ; such, indeed, was almost the only instruction received by women in this country, at a much later pe- riod than that to which we refer.
To the abiding effect of early maternal training, Mrs. Washington must have been, at least in some degree, indebted, for her habits of unusual industry, economy, and regularity, as well as for the excellent constitution, that gave vigor and practical usefulness to the opera- tions of a naturally powerful intellect. To the inefface- able impressions of infant years, we may also ascribe the moral elevation and the exalted piety associated with her noble mind.
We are unable to ascertain the precise time qf Mrs. Washington's marriage ; but we are accurately informed of the date of the melancholy event by which the entire charge of her young family devolved upon their wid- owed mother.
This memorable incident occurred in the Spring of 1743,* when Mrs. Washington had scarcely more than attained the completion of her thirty-seventh year.
The premature death of her husband, left Mrs. Washington, with very limited pecuniary resources, to
•April 12, 1743.
MARY WASHINGTON. 17
the sole control and guidance of several children. We are told that her son George was but twelve years of age, at the time of his father's death, and that he re- tained little remembrance of his deceased parent. The pleasing recollection of his personal appearance, and of his paternal tenderness formed the only inheritance of memory in after years ; while his emphatic testimony reverted invariably to his mother as the source of his usefulness and success.
It was now that the extraordinary characteristics of Mrs. Washington began most strikingly to be exhibited.
Gifted with great firmness and constancy of purpose, as well as with a clear judgement, and remarkable men- tal independence, her self-reliance was rapidly strength- ened, and soon rendered habitual by circumstances so peculiarly demanding its exercise, as those in which duty imperatively summoned her to act.
Her thorough knowledge of practical life enabled Mrs. Washington to superintend all matters relating to the affairs of her household, and, in a good degree, to supply, by her own indefatigable industry and ingenu- ity, whatever was necessary to the welfare and comfort of her family. Order, regularity and occupation reigned supreme in her little world of home.
She exacted implicit obedience from her children, and she tempered maternal tenderness with strict disci- pline ; but we are told by one* who, as the companion
♦Laurence Washington, Esq., of Chotank, who thus described his dis- tinguished relative : " I was often there with George, his playmate, school- mate, and young man's companion. Of the mother I was more afraid than of my own parents ; she awed me in the midst of her kindness, for
18 MEMOIR OF
of her son, occasionally shared her care and hospitality, that she was "indeed truly kind."
In that genuine and judicious kindness lies the se- cret of the power always maintained by this venerated mother over the minds of her offspring. If she assumed the right to direct the actions of others, her daily life exhibited such powers of self-control and self-denial as convinced her children, by more irresistable evideuce than words could possibly convey, of the justice and disinterestedness by which she was habitually actuated.
That she rendered their home, simple, nay even humble, though it might be, endearing to her children, is proved in some degree, by the frequency and pleas- ure with which, as we gather from much incidental testi- mony, the happy band that once rejoiced in the com- fort and security of her well-ordered abode, in after years revisited the maternal roof. Indeed, we are ex- pressly informed, upon the best authority, that an in- terdiction of the innocent amusements and relaxations, a taste for which is so natural to the young, formed no part of the system of juvenile training practiced with such preeminent success by Mrs. Washington.
She never rendered necessary restraint and discipline needlessly distasteful or repulsive by ascetic sternness or harsh compulsion. The power that sometimes gently coerced the subjects of her guidance was a moral sua- sion far more effective and beneficial than influences such as those can ever exert.
she was indeed truly kiud, and even now, when time has whitened my locks, and I am the grandfather of a second generation, I could not be- hold that majestic woman without feelings it is impossible to describe."
MARY WASHINGTON. 19
Of all the mental qualities of this celebrated woman, perhaps none was more constantly illustrated in her life than her native good sense, the practical effects of which were infinitely more useful and precious to her children than she could possibly have rendered volumes of theo- retical precept, however philosophical and profound.
To her possession of this unpretending, but invaluable characteristic, emphatically, her illustrious son was in- debted for the education that formed the basis of his greatness.
This it was that taught the great Washington those habits of application, industry, and regularity that were of such essential service to him, alike in the camp and in the cabinet, and which so- materially contributed to render his character a perfect model, bequeathed to suc- cessive ages.
Thia it was, that, by inculcating and enforcing ha- bitual temperance, exercise, and activity, strengthened and developed the wonderful physical powers that were rivalled only by the indomitable will and stupendous wisdom of her son.
To his mother Washington owed the high value he attached to " the only possession of which all men are prodigal, and of which all men should be covetous:" and from her early instructions he imbibed that love of truth for which he was remarkable, and which is so pleasingly and forcibly illustrated in some of the favo- rite anecdotes of our childhood.*
* Our juvenile readers can scarcely fail to be faniilliar with the stories of "The Little Hat .net," and of "The Sorrel Colt," almost the only authentic
20 MEMOIR OF
Trained to unvarying respect for the truths of revealed religion, in which she was herself a firm believer, and rigidly regardful of the dictates of an enlightened con- science, her gifted son was indebted to Mrs. Washing- ton for his quick moral sense, and the unflinching ad- hesion to principle that so strongly marked every act of his public and private life.
The noble friend and pupil of Washington, and others among her numerous panegyrists, have likened the mo- ther of the " Hero " to a Spartan matron. . With due deference to the high source whence the comparison emanated, it seems scarcely just to her who was its sub- ject. Her life reminds us rather, of those celebrated women whose names are recorded with grateful affection and respect by St. Paul, in his Epistles, — those heroic, self-sacrificing friends and champions of early Christian- ity, and its devoted advocates, who were " succorers of many," who scorned not to " bestow much labor " upon the temporal necessities of the Apostle and his fellow- martyrs, and who even " laid down their own necks" for them ! Mrs. Washington was a Christian Matron, who derived her ideas of parental authority and govern- ment from the same Book, wherein she sought her own rules of life j and she was as much superior to a Spartan mother, as are the inspired principles of our blessed re- ligion to the heathen teachings which exalted mere physical courage above the highest virtues of humanity !
anecdotes of the childhood of the great American hero, and which also incidentally illustrate more than one of his youthful habits.
CHAPTER II.
'T is the Divinity that stirs -within us !
Addison.
Must such minds be nourish'd in the wild,
Deep in the upturned forests, midst the roar
Of cataracts, where nursing Nature smiled t
On infant Washington ? Has earth no more
Such seed within her breast and Europe no such shore ?
Byson.
We are unable to present our readers with any par- ticulars of the life of Mrs. Washington, for several years previous to the American Revolution, except such as are gleaned from the published accounts of those troubled times, as associated with the history of her son.
The incipient workings of the mighty spirit destined to achievements that should move the world, influ- enced the youthful Washington, when only fourteen years of age, to form plans for his independent maintenance.
He had actually taken the necessary steps prelimina- ry to entering the English Navy, when the disapproval of his mother prevented the accomplishment of his de- sign. Who shall say that the decisive interposition of
22 MEMOIR OF
his only parent did not save from a life of limited use- fulness and comparative obscurity, the embryo soldier and statesman.
A few years later, when he had reached early man- hood, and the young Virginian commenced his initia- tory military career, in the service of his native State, we sympathize in the maternal anxiety awakened at once for his personal safety and for his success in arms.
About this time* occurred, successively, the deaths of Mrs. Washington's two eldest sons, the younger of whom was soon followed to the grave by his only child.
We leave our readers to imagine the influence of this rapid and mournful diminution of her family cir- cle upon the wounded affections of Mrs. Washington, and hasten to speak of other, though scarcely less pain- ful subjects.
The only letters addressed to his mother, included in the published collection of Gen. Washington's Cor- respondence, were written during the French War, in the earliest stages of which, as our readers will remem- ber, he acted as Adjutant of the northern division of Virginia militia, and as Aid-de-Camp to General Brad- dock. The first of these epistles was penned, just af- ter the memorable and disastrous battle of the Monon- gahela, at which, nothing but the unconquerable de- termination, that not even severe illness could subdue, enabled the author to be present ; and where, if he
*We are unable to fix the date of these melancholy incidents, but they occurred before the commencement of George Washington's military ■il'o, and of course, previous to the year 1775.
MARY WASHINGTON. 23
won some of his proudest laurels, he was perhaps ex- posed to greater personal danger than during any subsequent part of his ■military career.
Distressing as are the details it contains, we include this letter in our Memoir, entire ; not only as one of the two communications, to which we have alluded, but to assist the reader in forming a more correct idea than words of ours could convey, of the dignified, and con- fidential intercourse that was uninterruptedly main- tained between these distinguished correspondents.
" To Mrs. Mary Washington, near Fredericsburg.
"Fort Cumberland, 18 July, 1755. '* Honored Madam :
" As I doubt not but you have heard of our defeat, and, perhaps, had it represented in a worse light, if possible, than it deserves, I have taken this earliest op- portunity, to give you some account of the engagement as it happened, within ten miles of the French Fort, on Wednesday, the 9th instant.
" We marched to that place, without any considerable loss, having only now and then a straggler picked up by the French and scouting Indians. When we came there, we were attacked by a party of French and In- dians, whose number, I am persuaded, did not exceed three hundred men ; while ours consisted of about one thousand three hundred well-armed troops, chiefly reg- ular soldiers, who were struck with such a panic, that they behaved with more cowardice than it is possible to
24 MEMOIR OF
conceive. The officers behaved gallantly, in order to encourage their men, for which they suffered greatly, there being near 69 killed and wounded — a large por- tion of the number we had.
" The Virginia troops showed a good deal of bravery, and were nearly all killed : for I believe, out of three companies that were there, scarcely thirty men are left alive. Capt. Peyrouny, and all his officers, clown to a corporal were killed. Capt. Poison had nearly as hard a fate, for only one of his was left. In short the dastardly behavior of those they call regulars, ex- posed all others that were inclined to do their duty, to almost certain death ; and at last, in despite of all the efforts of the officers to the contrary, they ran, as sheep pursued by dogs, and it was impossible to rally them.
u The General was wounded, of which he died three days after. Sir Peter Halkes was killed in the field, where died many other brave officers. I luckily es- caped without a wound, though I had four bullets through my coat, and two horses shot under me. Cap- tains Orme and Morris, two of the aids-de-camp, were wounded early in the engagement, which rendered the duty harder upon me, a3 I was the only one then left to distribute the General's orders, which I was scarcely able to do, as I was not half recovered from a violent illness, that had confined me to my bed, and a waggon for ten days. I am still in a weak and feeble condi- tion, which induces me to halt here two or three days, in the hope of recovering a little strength, to enable
MARY WASHINGTON. 25
me to proceed homewards* ; from whence I fear I shall not be able to stir till towards September ; so that I shall not have the pleasure of seeing you, till then, unless it be in Fairfax. Please to give my love to Mr. Lewis and my sister ; and compliments to Mr. Jackson, and all other friends that inquire after me ; I am most honored Madam,
Your most dutiful son."}*"
We learn from other sources of information, that the indisposition of which the writer so briefly speaks, in this epistle, was sufficiently serious to endanger his life. Nor can we believe his own intimation to have conveyed the first knowledge of this distressing intelli- gence to his mother. She had, however, the consola- tion to be, at the same time, informed of all that she could hope or even desire, in relation to his personal prowess and military skill. J
The remaining letter was written in anticipation of an event which occurred, soon after the Battle of the Mo- nongahela — the appointment of Col. Washington to the chief command of the Virginia forces. His commis- sion bears the same date as that of the letter, though the author, as will be seen, was, as yet, uninformed of his promotion.
*Col. W. had already resided some time upon his patrimonial estate of Mount Vernon.
t Sparks' Life of Washington.
Jit need scarcely be said that this was the celebrated engagement in ■which Col. Washington gained so much honor, and the disastrous result of which was nearly averted by his daring courage, as it also might have been by his ready discernment and sagacious tactics, had Gen. Braddock been guided by his advice in the incipient stages of the contact.
2
26 MEMOIR OF
" To Mrs. Mary Washington.
"Mount Vernon, 14 August, 1755. "Honored Madam :
" If it is in my power to avoid going to the Ohio again I shall, but if the command is pressed upon me, by the general voice of the country, and offered upon such terms as cannot he objected against, it would re- flect dishonor upon me to refuse it And that, I am sure, ought to give you greater uneasiness than my go- ing in an honorable command. Upon no other terms will I accept of it. At present, I have no proposals made to me, nor have I any advice of such an inten- tion, except from private hands.
I am, &c"*
Our readers will not fail to remark the almost depre- catory tone that characterizes this epistle ; nor the def- erence it indicates to the wishes and opinions of the parent to whom it was addressed. It was apparently written in reply to a previous communication from his Mother in relation to the same subject.
e gather from incidental evidence that many prac- tical objections to the acceptance of the post of Com- mander-in-Chief of the Virginian Frontier Army, ex- isted at this juncture ; and we may infer that the sa> gacious and far-seeing maternal eye discerned these dif- ficulties, and that Mrs. Washington counselled her son to avoid responsibilities, that existing and uncontrolla- ble circumstances might easily render not only devoid
ixks' L;fe of Washington.
MARY WASHINGTON. 27
of honor or advantage, but personally unfortunate and injurious.
Thus did this gifted woman, by claims the most ir- resistible, mature and perpetuate an influence and au- thority, that remained undiminished and undisputed, when her son had attained the pinnacle of earthly fame.
Before dismissing this portion of our narrative, we cannot refrain from expressing our deep regret at an almost entire want of material for those minute details, which, when they relate to incidents of personal his- tory, serve so much better than mere description to il- lustrate character and exhibit the peculiar and individ- ualizing traits which alone can deepen and fill up, so to speak, the faint outline presented in the delinea- tions of the general historian,
CHAPTER III.
He shall not dread Misfortune's angry mien,
Nor feebly sink beneath her tempest rude,
Whose soul hath learn'd, through many a trying scene,
To smile at fate, and suffer unsubdued.
Metastasio.
To solemnize this day, the glorious sun Stays in his course, and plays the alchemist ; Turning, with splendor of his precious eye, The meagre, cloddy earth to glittering gold : The yearly course, that brings this day about, Shall never see it but a holy day !
Shakspeare.
The events of the disordered times immediately pre- ceding the Eevolution, were now rapidly developing. Following each other in startling and fateful succes- sion, and finally resulting in the ever-memorable De- claration of Independence, Mrs. Washington suddenly beheld her son elevated to to a position surrounded by dangers the most imminent, and comprehending re- sponsibilities the most solemn and portentious that can devolve upon human agency.
Resting her fears, her aspirations, and her faith, upon that Support which could alone sustain the spirit of so affectionate and so discerning a parent, amid tri-
MARY WASHINGTON. 29
als thus peculiar and severe, we see this heroic woman resigning herself with the same tranquil submission, and the same unaffected cheerfulness, by which her life had hitherto been distinguished, to the decrees of an over-ruling and inscrutable Destiny.
Before his departure from his native State, to as- sume the command of the patriots assembled at Cam- bridge, the Commander-in-Chief, ever mindful of his Mother's comfort and happiness, even when most bur- dened by public cares and obligations, assisted in ef- fecting her removal from her country residence in its vicinity, to Fredericksburg.
Mrs. "Washington was remunerated for thus renounc- ing a home hallowed by many tender and time-honored associations, the peaceful asylum of her youthful fam- ily in the days of her early bereavement, the scene of their innocent sports, their juvenile education, and of her own strenuous exertions and self-sacrificing devo- tion during so many years of her life, by being placed in much nearer proximity to her friends and relatives, and in a position more secure from danger, than any precaution could have rendered an isolated, rural abode.
Bestowing on him the more than a2gis-shield of her blessing and her prayers, Mrs. "Washington bade adieu to her son, for a period, the duration and events of which, no mortal vision could even faintly discern.
Lono- familiar with the most effectual means of es-
o
cape from the dominion of too-anxious thought, she hastened, after this painful parting, to busy herself with
30 MEMOIR OF
the arrangement and care of her new home, and sought in active usefulness and industry, not only the solace of her own " private griefs" and apprehensions, but the high pleasure that springs from the consciousness of doing good.
Ever possessed of far too much genuine self-respect and enlightenment to regard the necessity of homely toil as degrading or unfortunate, her practical ingenu- ity and personal efforts now supplied, in a good degree, the many deficiencies and deprivations arising from the pressing exigiences of the times, and materially assisted, not only in providing for the wants of her own house- hold, but in furnishing the means of that liberal char- ity which she had always exercised, notwithstanding her limited resources, and which was not remitted when in- creasing occasion had arisen for its continuance.
Though long past the meridian of life, her equanim- ity, her healthful habits, and the sytematic uniformity of her daily existence, still gave Mrs. Washington the physical power essential for carrying into effect her plans of self-dependence and benevolent usefulness.
It was, at this time, her almost daily custom, seated in an old-fashioned, open chaise, to visit her little farm in the vicinity of the town, and while there, to drive about the fields giving directions and personally super- intending their execution.
Mrs. Washington is said to have required from those about her a prompt and literal obedience, some- what resembling that demanded by proper military sub-
MARY WASHINGTON. 31
ordination ; a habit doubtless arising, in somo degree, from a consciousness of the mental power that enabled her rightly to judge and wisely to direct.
On one occasion, as we are told, she reproved an agent, who, relying upon his own judgment, had dis- obeyed her orders, saying, " I command you, — there is nothing left for you but to obey !"
Thus, while occupied in her favorite pursuits, and preserved from all sense of loneliness by the frequent and interesting visits of her children and grand-chil- dren, who were invariably most assiduous and affec- tionate in their endeavors to contribute to her happi- ness, several years rolled away.
Nor, as may well be supposed, did Mrs. Washing- ton, in the meanwhile, look with an unobservant orun- sympathizing eye, upon the changing and momen aspect or public affairs. Her residence in Freu burg enabled her early to obtain the most important in- telligence of the day, and we may believe the respect- ful attention of her son, speedily and constantly sup- plied her with information denied to those possessing less claim upon his confidence and regard.
If not always as sanguine of the ultimate triumph of the American arms, as more youthful and ardent of the Revolutionary contest, she watched the pre of national affairs, with patient and tranquil expecta- tion. Frequently raising her thoughtful gaze from the painful contemplation of her country's struggles, to- wards the Omnipotent Friend who aids the sacred cause of Liberty and Right, she gained a firm and
32 MEMOIR OF
hopeful constancy that shielded her noble spirit, alike from unfounded enthusiasm, and desponding distrust ; and that rendered her an example, worthy of all honor, to those mothers, who, like herself, had resigned their sons to their country, in the hour of her greatest need.
"When the glorious and heart-warming intelligence of the successful passage of the Delaware,* by Washington and his brave companions in arms, was communicated to his Mother, by the numerous friends who hastened to rejoice with, and to felicitate her upon so auspicious and important an occurrence, she re- ceived the tidings with placid self-possession, and ex- pressed her pleasure at the brightening prospects of hor native land.
But in relation to such portions of the despatches of her visitors as contained eulogistic allusions to her Son, she simply remarked, that " George appeared to have deserved well of his country for such signal ser- vices," and added : — ■
" But, my good Sirs, here is too much flattery! — still, George will not forget the lessons I have taught him — he will not forget himself, though he is the sub- ject of so much praise."
And when, after the lapse of long, dark years of national gloom and suffering, Mrs. Washington was, at last, informedy of the crowning event of the great con-
*Dec. 1776.
fTo whose thoughtful care Mrs. W. owed the Express previously des- patched to her with this grateful news, may easily be surmised.
MARY WASHINGTON. 33
flicfc — the surrender of Lord Cornwallis, she raised her hands with profound reverence and gratitude to- wards Heaven and fervently exclaimed, " Thank Grod ! — war will now be ended, and peace, indepen- dence and happiness bless our country !"
An interval of nearly seven perilous and adven- turous years had passed, when Mrs. Washington en- joyed the happiness again to behold her victor-crowned and illustrious son.
Upon the return of the combined armies from York- town, the Commander-in-Chief repaired immediately to Fredericsburg, attended by a numerous and? splen- did suite, composed of the most distinguished Euro- pean and American officers who had shared his pro- tracted toils and his final triumph.
No sooner had Washington dismounted than he sent a messenger to apprize his Mother of his arri- val, with a request to be informed when it would be her pleasure to receive him.
Then, dismissing for a time the attributes and attend- ants of greatness, he repaired unaccompanied and on foot, to the modest mansion where his venerable parent awaited his coming.
Mrs. Washington was alone and occupied in some ordinary domestic avocation, when the gladdening intel- ligence of her Son's approaching visit was communica- ted to her.
She met him on the threshhold with a cordial em- brace, her face beaming with unmingled pleasure, and welcomed him by the endearing and well-remembered
2*
34 MEMOIR OP
appellation associated with the pleasing memories of early years.
The quick eye of maternal tenderness readily dis- cerned the furrowed traces of the ceaseless and wearing responsibilities that had for years been the burden of his thoughts, and in the unforgotten tones and with the simple affectionateness of other days, Mrs. Washing- ton immediately and earnestly adverted to the sub- ject of her son's health.
At length, turning the conversation to scenes and themes hallowed to each by the most cherished remem- brances, these deeply attached and happily re-united relatives talked long of mutual friends and former times. But to the peerless fame of the Commander-in- Chief of the Armies of America, there was not the most remote allusion !
Yet, as the immortal Savior of his Country gazed upon the beloved and expressive countenance turned approvingly and affectionately upon him, his happiness was unalloyed and exalted as earth can bestow.
CHAPTER IV.
And blessed was her presence there- Each heart, expanding, grew more gay ; Yet something loftier still than fear, Kept men's familiar looks away '.
Schiller.
The unexpected arrival of Washington and his Suite, created the most enthusiastic delight among the citizens of Fredericsburg.
Not only the inhabitants of the town, but numbers of gentlemen from its vicinity, hastened to welcome the deliverers of their country with every demonstration of respect and hospitality : happiness irradiated every face, and all were soon engrossed by eager preparations for festive pleasure.
It was determined to celebrate the joyful occasion by a splendid Ball.
Mrs. Washington received a special invitation. Sho answered, that " although her dancing days were pretty well over, she should feel happy in contribu- ting to the general festivity."
The company assembled at a much earlier hour than modern fashion would sanction. Gay belles and dig- nified matrons graced the occasion arrayed in rich laces and bright brocades, — the well-preserved relics of scenes when neither national misfortune nor private ca- lamity forbade their use.
86 MEMOIR OF
Numerous foreign officers were present, in the bril- liant uniforms of their respective corps, glittering with the dazzling insignia of royal favor and successful cour- age.
Thither came veteran heroes, the blessed and hon- ored of after times, whose war-scathed visages bespoke the unflinching bravery and persevering devotion with which they had served their country through long years of hardship and danger.
There, too, now swayed only by the light breath of pleasure, waved in billowy folds, the dear-won banners of the " tented field." Music poured its spirit-stirring strains upon the soldier's ear, not to summon him to deeds of arms, but, by its gentler influences, to inspire the chivalrous gallantly that well became the hour, — the gleesome jest, the merry laugh,
" Xods, and becks, and wreathed smiles !" But despite the soul-soothing charm of music, the fascinations of female loveliness, and the flattering de- votion of the gallant brave, all was eager suspense and expectation, until there entered, unannounced and un- attended, the Mother of Washington leaning on the arm of her Son.
Hushed was each noisy tone, subdued each whis- pered word, as with quiet dignity and unaffected grace they slowly advanced.
Nature had stamped upon the brow of both, the un- mistakable signet of nobility, and
" The vision and the faculty divine "
MARY WASHINGTON. 37
spoke in the imposing countenance of each, and di- rected every movement of the majestic pair.
All hastened to approach this august presence ; the European officers to be presented to the parent of their beloved Commander, and old friends, neighbors and acquaintances to tender the compliments and congrat- ulations appropriate to the occasion.
Mrs. Washington received these peculiar demon- strations of respect and friendship, with perfect self- possession and unassuming courtesy. She wore the simple, but becoming and appropriate costume of the Virginia ladies of the olden time, and even
'' The cynosure of beauty's sheen"
was, for a time forgotten, while all eyes and all hearts were irresistibly attracted by the winning address and unpretending appearance of the venerable lady.
The European strangers gazed long in wondering amazement, upon this sublime and touching spectacle. Accustomed to the meretricious display of European courts, they regarded with astonishment her unadorned attire, and the mingled simplicity and majesty for which the language and manners of the Mother of "Washington were so remarkable.
They spoke of women renowned in classic lore : — the names of the celebrated Yoluminia, and of the no- ble mother of the Gracchi, broke involuntarily from their lips ; and they spontaneously rendered the trib- ute of admiration and reverence at the shrine of native Dignity and real Worth.
38 MEMOIR OF
Having, for sometime, regarded with serene benigni- ty, the brilliant and festive scene, which she had so amiably consented to honor by her presence, Mrs. Washington expressed the cordial hope that the hap- piness of all might continue undiminished until the hour of general separation should arrive, and quietly ad- ding, that " it was time for old people to be at home," retired as she had entered, leaning on the arm of the C ommander-in-Chief .
Perhaps it will interest some of our lady readers to know that the immortal Washington danced on this oc- casion for the last time j — in the stately minuet, so well adapted to the advantageous display of his grace- ful air, and elegant and imposing form. He is also de- scribed as having been inspired with great cheerfulness and animation, while thus momentarily courting the serial graces. The French gentlemen who participa- ted in the pleasures of the evening, protested that Paris itself could boast nothing more perfect than the dancing of the fair and the gallant Americans assem- bled at this celebrated Ball.
CHAPTER V.
Her house Was ordered well ; her children taught the way Of life — who, rising up in honor, called Her blest.
# # # * #
In virtue fair, Adorned with modesty, and matron grace Unspeakable, and love— her face was like The light, most welcome to the eye of man.
Polloe.
Re-established at Mount Vernon, it was the earnest desire of Washington that his Mother should thence- forth reside under his roof.
He had frequently before, urged the same request, and his sister, Mrs. Lewis,* who was always most assid- uous in fulfilling the duties imposed by nature and af- fection, had repeatedly endeavored to persuade her aged parent to live apart from her no longer.
But the venerable matron, notwithstanding the affec- tionate entreaties of her children, continued to conduct a separate establishment, with the same indefatigable industry and judicious management which she had ear- lier exhibited. She still obeyed —
" The breezy call of incense-breathing morn"
*Mrs. Fletcher Lewis, of Fredericsburg, the only sister of Washington , whom she so closely resembled, that when she was arrayed in his usual head-dress, her features were un distinguishable from his.
40 MEMOIR OF
with as much alacrity as of yore, and still gave her at- tention to the most minute details of domestic affairs.
In this tranquil retreat she long continued to receive the frequent and fondly-respectful visits of her many old and attached friends as well as of her children* and her children's children, blest in her happy and honored age, by the soothing consciousness of a vir- tuous and well spent life.
To the urgent and oft-repeated requests of her chil- dren, that she would make with them the home of her age, Mrs. Washington replied : —
"I thank you for your dutiful and affectionate of- fers, but my wants are few in this life, and I feel per- fectly competent to take care of myself."
And when her son-in-law, Col. Lewis, proposed to her to assume the general superintendence of her af- fairs, she resolutely answered —
"Do you, Fielding, keep my books in order, for your eye-sight is better than mine, but leave the exec- utive management to me."
Previous to his departure for France, after the termination of the Revolutionary War, the Mar-
* We find many proofs, in the published Correspondence of Wash- ington, of the affectionate devotion with which he paid this tribute of respect to his mother. Thus, he assigns his absence on a visit to her, as a reason for not previously replying to a letter from the Secretary of Congress ; and afterwards again, in a letter to Major Gen. Knox, he offers the same explanation of a similar delay. When his mother was ill, we perceive that he pleads this honorable errand, without reserve, as, presenting claims superior to any public obligation. In an epistle written towards the close of the year 17S8,wefind allusions to a pro- longed sojourn under the maternal roof, &c, &c.
MARY WASHINGTON. 41
quis de La Fayette visited Fredericsburg, expressly for the purpose of making his personal adieus to the Mother of his beloved hero-friend and that he might solemnly invoke her blessing.
This amiable visitor, who had frequently before en- joyed the happiness of conversing with her, repaired to the unobtrusive abode of Mrs. Washington, accom- panied by one of her grand-sons.
As they approached the house, they observed an aged lady working in the adjoining garden. The ma- terials composing her dress were of home-manufacture, and she wore over her time-silvered hair, a plain straw bonnet.
"There, Sir," said the younger gentleman, "is my grandmother."
Mrs. Washington received her distinguished guest, with great cordiality and with her usual frank simplic- ity of address.
" Ah, Marquis !" she exclaimed, "you see an old woman ; — but come, I can make you welcome to my poor dwelling, without the parade of changing my dress."
The conversation of this interesting group soon turned, as was most natural, upon the brightening pros- pects of the young Republic.
The Marquis spoke of the deep interest he cherished in all that related to the prosperity of the land of his adoption, and poured forth the fond and glowing encomiums of a full heart at each allusion to his former Chief, — his friend, his Mentor, his " hero."
42 MEMOIR OF
To the praises thus enthusiastically lavished upon her son, by the noble Frenchman, his hostess only re- plied, " I am not surprised at what George has done, for he ivas always a good boy."
Thus did the true greatness of this extraordinary woman often manifest itself. It was her pleasure fre- quently to revert to the early days of her august Son, and to express her approbation of his dutiful and upright conduct ; but she never appeared in the slightest de- gree elated by the honors that were showered " thick and fast" upon his glorious name.
With unaffected piety, she referred each and every occurrence of life to the Great First Cause, and when the notes of jububnt praise swelled high, even above the din of battle and the waitings of a nation's de- spair, it was her earnest maternal aspiration that the "good boy" of her early care, might never "forget himself!"
Mrs. Washington was always remarkable for that unequivocal proof of superiority, the powerful influ- ence she exerted over the minds of others.
Her ideas of the respect due to her as a parent, re- mained unchanged either by the lapse of time, or by the development of mighty events, with which her won- derful Son was so closely identified. Ever his trusted counsellor and friend, to her he was always the same
MARY WASHINGTON. 43
in relative position.* To her he owed his existence ; lo her the early discipline of his extraordinary intellect, and of his high moral nature ; and to her he was indebted for the sage advice and prudent guidance of maturer years.
Nor did her son manifes t the slightest dissent from this sentiment. We are informed by onef well entr- tled to be regarded as unquestionable authority, that " to the last moments of his venerable parent he yielded to her will the most implicit obedience and felt for her person and character the highest respect and the most enthusiastic attachment."
Perhaps the life of this celebrated lady afforded no more convincing proof of the genuine nobleness of her character, than was evinced hy the constancy with which she maintained the peculiar sentiments and prin- ciples of her youth. We may believe that a mind less perfectly balanced, would have rendered, at least, an unconscious homage to the power of circumstances
* This peculiarity forcibly reminds us of an expressive incident in the life of the mother of the Buonapartes— Madame Mere. On one occasion, when the Emperor Napoleon gave audience to the several members of his family, while walking in one of the galleries of the Tuilleries, among his other relatives, his mother advanced towards him. The Emperor extended his hand to her to kiss, as he had done when his brothers and sisters ap- proached him, " No !" said she, "you are the King, the Emperor of all the rest, but you are my son /" We leave our readers to draw the con- trast irresistibly suggested by this anecdote, between the Republican Statesman and the Emperor of all the French.
t G. W. P. Custis, Esq., the grand-son of Mrs. Martha Washington, to whose interesting " Recollections'' we are indebted for most of the par- ticulars relative to the life of Mrs. W., now in the possession of the liter- ary public.
44 MEMOIR OF
so novel and so imposing as those in which she was placed.
It was Mrs. Washington's habit, during the latter years of her life, to repair daily to a secluded spot near her dwelling, formed by overhanging rocks and trees. There, isolated from worldly thoughts and objects, she sought in devout prayer and meditation, most appro- priate preparation for the great change which she was admonished by her advanced age, might nearly await her.
But one of the many weaknesses that usually char- acterize humanity, was manifested by this heroic wo- man. Upon the approach of a thunder-storm she in- variably retired to her own apartment and remained there until calmness was restored to the elements. This almost constitutional timidity, was occasioned by a singularly distressing incident of her youth — the in- stant death, from the effects of lightning, of a young friend, who was, at the moment when the accident oc- curred, sitting close beside her.
The appearance of Mrs. Washington is said to have been pleasing. Her countenance was agreeable and highly expressive, and her person well proportioned and of average height.
CHAPTER VI.
She goes unto the Rock sublime Where halts above the Eternal Sea, the shuddering Child of time ! ,
Schiller.
Before Washington's departure for the seat of government, to assume the duties of President of the United States, he went to Fredericsburg to pay his parting respects to his aged Mother.
Mrs. Washington's health had now become so infirm as to impress her with the conviction that she beheld for the last time, the crowning blessing of her declining age.
Forgetting all else in the same mournful belief, the calm self-possession that no calamity had for years been able to shake, yielded to the claims of nature, and, overpowered by painful emotion, the mighty chieftain wept long, with bowed head, over the wasted form of his revered and much-loved parent.
Sustained, even in this trying hour, by her native strength of mind, the heroic Mother fervently invoked the blessing of Heaven upon her sorrowing Son, and solemnly bestowing her own, bade him pursue the path in which public duty summoned him to depart.
Mrs. Washington retained unimpaired possession of
46 MEMOIR OF
her mental faculties to her latest moments, but during the last three years of her life, her physical powers were much diminished by the effects of the distressing malady with which she was long afflicted.
This painful disease* terminated her earthly exis- tence in her eighty-third year. Her death occurred on the 25th of August, 1789. She had been forty-six years a widow.
The last hours of this incomparable woman were accompanied by a tranquility and resignation most un- like the usual death-bed attendants of the world's scathed devotees.
An extract from a letter written by Washing- ton to his sister soon after the decease of their moth- er, will best illustrate the methodical calmness with which she made a final adjustment of her temporal af- fairs. Our readers will also, thus become possessed of the minutest information in relation to the concluding scenes of Mrs. Washington's life, that persevering re- search has enabled us to discover.
" To Mrs. Betty Lewis.
" New York, 13th September, 1789. 1 ' My Dear Sister : —
******
" Awful and affecting as the death of a parent is, there is consolation in knowing that Heaven has
* Cancer in the breast.
MARY WASHINGTON. 47
spared ours to an age beyond which few attain, and fa- vored her with the full enjoyment of her faculties and as much bodily strength as usually falls to the lot of fourscore. Under these considerations, and a hope that she is translated to a happier place, it is the duty of her relatives to yield due submision to the decrees of the Creator. When I was last at Fredericsburg, I took a final leave of my mother, never expecting to see her more.
" It will be impossible for me at this distance, and circumstanced as I am, to give the smallest attention to the execution of her will ; nor indeed is much re- quired, if, as she directs, no security should be giv- en, or appraisement made of her estate ; but that the same should be allotted to the devisees with as little trouble and delay as may be. How far this is legal I know not. Mr. Merced can, and I have no doubt would, advise you if asked, which I wish you to do. If the ceremony of inventorying, appraising, &c, can be dispensed with, all the rest, as the will declares that few or no debts are owing, can be done with very little trouble. Every person may, in that case, immediately receive what is specifically devised.
Were it not that the specific legacies, which are giv- en to me by the will, are meant and ought to be con- sidered and received as mementoes of paternal affec- tion, in the last solemn act of life, I should not be de- sirous of receiving or removing them ; but in this point of view, I set a value on them much beyond their in- trinsic worth."
48
MEMOIR OF
We are, of course, indebted to Mr. Sparks' Life of Washington for the communication from which this ex- tract is derived. We also give Mrs. Washington's age, at the time of her death, as stated by Mr. S., though it is sometimes represented to have been still more ad- vanced.
CHAPTER VII.
w There sounds not to the trump of Fame, The echo of a noble name !"
As well might we assimilate the airy graces of a modern belle, arrayed in the ample costume of the present day, with the undraped proportions and severe beauty of an antique statue, as to compare the life and character of the Mother or Washington with those of the women of our own times, — or adjudge her at- tire, character and manners by the arbitrary rules of fashionable conventionalism !
Hers was a character that might stand forth in its natural majesty, unrelieved by the " aids and applian- ces "of adventitious circumstance ; and the grateful reverence which we instinctively accord her can only be inspired by transcendant worth.
Those who best know her inestimable qualities, ear- nestly strive to impress us with the conviction that she was gifted with attributes adapting her in a most extra- ordinary degree to the immortal part assigned her in the drama of human existence. Yet the stern virtues that served to mould a future Hero, were attempered by womanly tenderness and sympathy ; and we associate them in our remembranco with the practical kindness
3
50 MEMOIR OF
and unostentatious habits that equally marked her daily life.
The philosophy so forcibly illustrated in the history of Mary Washington is not that of Plato, of Socrates, or of Zeno, but that of Christ !
Her equanimity, was not the result of constitutional insensibility, nor yet of a debasing stoicism, but of the dominant influence of immutable Religious Principle, forever supreme, alike over the weaknesses of natuie and the promptings of worldly ambition.
The life and character of this illustrious matron, in some points of general resemblance, remind us of those of the self-devoted Scottish Covenanters of old : like them, she regarded with indifference, if not with con- tempt, the inconvenient requisitions of ceremony and the unscrupulous exactions of corrupting fashion ; like them she sought to obtain from the Bible alone her in- variable rule of life ; and like them, she worshipped God surrounded by the majestic companionship of na- ture,
" Not 'neath the domes, where crumbling arch and
column Attest the feebleness of mortal hand ; But in that fane, most catholic and solemn
Which God has plann'd !"
Her Name and her Fame are the priceless inherit- ance, not of her native country alone, but of every land that boasts a knowledge of the glorious achievements of the immortal Champion of Liberty !
MARY WASHINGTON. 51
Her name will be revered, and her memory cherished when those of mighty empires and world-renowned sovereigns shall have sunk forever into the whirlpool of Oblivion : unsullied, unobscured by the supremacy of power and the lapse of ages, they will beam forth resplendent in the sanctified lustre of Moral Gran- deur.
At the feet of the proud daughter of the Ptolomies, the conquerers of the world laid down their crowns, yet Clio, faithful to the truth, withholds the meed of honor from the coward soul that could not brave adver- sity. The history of Christina, the royal Swedish wan- derer, scarce serves, at best, to "point a moral" and awakens no more exalted sentiment than one of pity- ing regret. Maria Theresa, despite her maoy and ex- alted excellencies, sacrificed some of woman's first, best duties on the altar of ambition. And who will demand either love or veneration for the memory of England's greatest Queen, renowned as much for her most unfeminine faults, as for her boasted masculine virtues.
Imagination may pall in the contemplation of mere charms of person, — even though unrivalled, — when as- osciated with the moral cowardice of the famous Egyp- tian Queen j we may regard profound erudition with- out respect, when allied with the undisciplined in- stincts and uncontrolled passions of the celebrated daughter of the Great Gustavus ; or hear with in- difference, tributes to the religious enthusiasm and
52 MEMOIR OF
regal heroism of the Empress-King* ; or turn with unsympathizing dislike from the haughty, indomitable, relentless Elizabeth ; but when shall the daughters of Columbia be weary of imbibing the benign and hal- lowed influences inseparably associated with the pure and sacred name of Mary Washington ?
The combined qualities of her consistent, elevated conscience-illuminated character, constitute a 'perfect whole, that most beautifully and strikingly illustrates alike the Woman and the Christian, in the highest and most comprehensive sense of those expressive words.
Enshrined in the Sanctuary of Home, her sublime example is the peerless boast of her country ; and it shall but brighten as it recedes with revolving years.
Radiant in the zenith of Columbia's Heaven, beams the star of her fame, fixed and enduring as
" the cerulean arch we see, Majestic in its own simplicity!"
* ,: Behold our King !;' was the enthusiastic exclamation of the brave Hungarians, at the most touching and sublime moment of the life of this great sovereign.
CHAPTER VIII
" There are deeds which should not pass away, And names that must not wither, though the earth Forgets her empires with a just decay, The enslavers and the enslaved, their death and hirth.
The remains of Mrs. Washington were interred at Fredericsburg, in Virginia, where she so long resided, and where she remained till the time of her death.
For many years after her decease, her place of sep- ulchre was undistinguished by any mark of public re- spect ; but more recently a tasteful and splendid mon- ument has been erected to the memory of Mrs. Washington, under the direction of a Committee rep- resenting the citizens of her native State.*
The ceremony of laying the corner-stone of this highly appropriate mausoleum, was performed by An- drew Jackson, who was at the time President of the United States, and who was, therefore, very properly
* In preparing these pages for the press, the author, having not the slightest reason to suspect their accuracy, assumed as facts the state- ments in relation to this Public Monument contained in "Knapp's Fe- male Biography." Truth, however, compels her, most reluctantly, to admit that, after the M. S. was delivered to the Publisher, a newspaper article, purporting to be written at Fredericsburg, met her eye, in which it was asserted that this mausoleum has not yet been completed, and that it, at present, exhibits painful indications of neglect and decay.
54 MEMOIR OF
invited by the Monumental Committee to assume that honorary task.
This interesting celebration occurred on the seventh of May, 1833.
General Jackson went from the seat of government to Fredericsburg, attended by the several members of the National Cabinet and by a numerous concourse of highly respectable citizens and strangers. The in- habitants of Fredericsburg, also united in great num- bers, with this imposing assemblage ; and the whole scene was characterized by the most cordial and respect- ful interest, and by deep pathos and solemnity.
The President distinguished the occasion by an ele- gant eulogistic Address, from which we present our readers with a few paragraphs.
*****
" We are assembled, fellow-citizens, to witness and assist in an interesting ceremony. More than a cen- tury has passed away since she to whom this tribute of respect is about to be paid, entered upon the active scenes of life. A century fertile in wonderful events, and of distinguished men who have participated in them. Of these events our country has furnished her full share ; and of these distinguished men, she has produced a Washington ! If he was " first in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen," we may say, without the imputation of national vanity, that if not the first, he was in the very first rank of those, too few indeed, upon whose career mankind can look back without regret and whose memory and ex-
MARY WASHINGTON. 55
ample will furnish themes of eulogy for the patriot, wherever free institutions are honored and maintained. His was no false glory, deriving its lustre from the glare of splendid and destructive actions, commencing in professions of attachment to his country, and termi- nating in the subversion of her freedom. Far differ- ent is the radiance which surrounds his name and fame. It shines mildly and equally, and guides the philanthropist and citizen in the path of duty ; and it will guide them long after those false lights which have attracted too much attention, shall have been ex- tinguished in darkness.
" In the grave before us, lie the remains of his Moth- er. Long has it been unmarked by any monumental tablet, but not unhonored. You have undertaken the pious duty of erecting a column to her memory, and of inscribing upon it. the simple but affecting words " Mary, the Mother of AVashington." No eulogy could be higher and it appeals to the heart of every American.
" These memorials of affection and gratitude, are con- secrated by the practice of all ages and nations. They are tributes of respect to the dead, but they convey practical lessons of virtue and wisdom to the living. The mother and son are beyond the reach of human applause ; but the bright example of paternal and fil- ial excellence, which their conduct furnishes cannot but produce the most salutary effects upon our country- men. Let their example be before us, from the first
56 MEMOIR OF
lesson -which is taught the child, till the mothers du- ties yield to the course of preparation and action -which nature prescribes for him.
*****
" Tradition says, that the character of Washington was strengthened, if not formed, by the care and pre- cepts of his mother. She was remarkable for the vigor of her intellect and the firmness of her resolution. *****
" In tracing the few recollections which can be gath- ered, of her principles and conduct, it is impossible to avoid the conviction, that these were closely interwo- ven with the destiny of her son. The great points of his character are before the world. He who runs may read them in his whole career, as a citizen, a soldier, a magistrate. He possessed unerring judgment, if that term can be applied to human nature ; great probity of purpose, high moral principles, perfect self-possession, untiring application, an enquiring mind, seeking infor- mation from every quarter, and arriving at its conclu- sions with a full knowledge of the subject ; and he added to these an inflexibility of resolution, which nothing could change but a conviction of error. Look back at the life and conduct of his mother, and at her domes- tic government, as they have this day been delineated by the chairman of the Monumental Committee, and as they were known to her cotemporaries, and have been described by them, and they will be found admi- rably adapted to form and develope, the elements of such a character. The power of greatness was there ;
MARY WASHINGTON. 57
but had it not been guided and directed by maternal solicitude and judgment, its possessor, instead of pre- senting to the world, examples of virtue, patriotism and wisdom, which will be precious in all succeeding ages, might have added to the number of those master- spirits, whose fame rests upon the faculties they have abused, and the injuries they have committed. *****
" Fellow-citizens, at your request, and in your name, I now deposit this plate in the spot destined for it ; and when the American pilgrim, shall, in after ages, come up to this high and holy place, and lay his hand upon this sacred column, may he recall the virtues of her, who sleeps beneath, and depart with his affections pu- rified, and his piety strengthened, while he invokes blessings upon the Mother of Washington."
The following impressive lines were prepared for this interesting ceremonial, by our gifted countrywo- man, Mrs. L. H. Sigourney :
" Long hast thou slept unnoted. Nature stole In her soft ministry, around thy bed, And spread her vernal coverings, violet-gemnvd, And pearl'd with dews. She bade bright Summer bring Gifts of frankincense, with sweet song of birds. And Autumn cast his yellow coronet Down at thy feet, and stormy Winter speak Hoarsely of man's neglect. But now we come To do thee homage, Mother of our Chief, Fit homage, such as honoreth him who pays ! Methinks we see thee, as in olden time, Simple in garb— majestic and serene —
3*
68 MEMOIR OF
Unaw'd by " pomp and circumstance" — in truth Inflexible— and with Spartan zeal Repressing vice, and making foily grave. Thou didst not deem it woman's part to waste Life in inglorious sloth, to sport awhile Amid the flowers, or on the summer wave, Then fket like the ephemeron away, Building no temple in her children's hearts, Save to the vanity and pride of life "Which she had worshipp'd.
" Of the might that cloth'd The {: Pater Patrias"— of the deeds that won A nation's liberty, and earth's applause, Making Mount Vernon's tomb a Mecca haunt — For patriot and for sage, while time shall last, What part was thine, what thanks to thee are due, Who mid his elements of being wrought With no uncertain aim — nursing the germs Of godlike virtue in his infant mind, We knoio not, — heaven can tell .'
" Rise, noble pile ! And show a race unborn, who rests below— And say to mothers, what a holy charge Is theirs — with what a kingly power their love Might rule the fountains of the new-born mind — Warn them to wake at early dawn, and sow Good seed before the world doth sow its tares, Nor in their toil decline— that angel bands May put the sickle in, and reap for God, And gather to his garner.
"Ye who stand With thrilling breast and kindling cheek this morn , Viewing the tribute that Virginia pays
MARY WASHINGTON. 59
To the blest Mother of her glorious Chief;
Ye, whose last thought upon your nightly couch,
Whose first, at waking, is, your cradled son,
What though no dazzling hope aspires to rear
A second Washington, or leave your name,
Wrought out in marble, with your country's tears
Of deathless gratitude, — yet may ye raise
A monument above the stars, a soul
Led by your teachings, and your prayers, to God."
The exquisite taste and perfect keeping, exhibited in this mausoleum, render it one of the most elegant works of art, of which our country boasts. The form is pyramidal ; and the height of the obelisk, forty-five feet. The shaft is adorned by a colossal bust of the immortal Washington, and surmounted by the Ameri- can Eagle, sustaining a civic crown above the heroic head.
Language can scarcely afford, a more irresistibly touching illustration of the moral sublime, than is contained in the brief sentence inscribed upon this hal- lowed tomb : —
MARY
THE MOTHER OF
WASHINGTON.
MEMOIR
OF
Emirm w&3M@TF©a
A Perfect Woman, nobly planned, To warn, to comfort, and command; And yet a spirit, still and bright, With something of an Angel's light !
Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, Is our destined end or way ; Butto act that each to-morrow ; Finds us farther than to-day.
Wordsworth.
Longfellow.
CONTENTS OF THE LIFE
OF
MARTHA WASHINGTON.
CHAPTER I.
The Subject of our Memoir, a Belle, in her early years, in the Capitol of Virginia — Her Disposition and Appearance — Maiden Name — Place and Date of her Birth— Descent— Education— Mental Endowments— Her early Matrimonial Engagement — Opposition of Col. Custis' Father — The Marriage of Miss Dandriclge— Removal to the Plantation of her Husband — Name and Situation of the Residence of Col. Custis— Char- acter and Hospitality of Col. Custis— Mrs. Custis an American Matron — Becomes a Mother — Her Domestic Happiness — Tbo Death of her Eldest Son— Death of Col. Custis— Anecdote— Strength of mind dis- played by Mrs. Custis— Her Two remaining Children— Her Religious Principle— Business Abilities of Mrs. Custis— Active Attention to her Children.
CHAPTER II.
Mrs. Custis a beautiful and fascinating widow— The White House again the Seat of Hospitality— Mrs. Custis, for some time not tempted to Re- Marry— Meets Col. Washington — His undisguised Admiration of the fair Widow— Their Engagement — The War-Steed and Servant of the Soldier the victims of Cupid's arts— Prepara' ions for the Wedding— The Distinguished Character of the Assemblage— The " Pride, Pomp and Circumstance" of the Occasion.
64 CONTENTS.
CHAPTER III.
Date of the Marriage of Col. and Mrs. Washington — They Remove from the White Honse to Mount Temon — Origin of the Name of Washing- ton's Plantation — Washington's desire to render his Home worthy of i'-s Mistress— Memoranda of Articles ordered from London — Peculiar Characteristics of Domestic Life in the Colonies— Mrs. Washington as- sumes her new Duties — Washington relieves her from the Charge of her Pecuniary Affairs— Mrs. Washington conducts the Education of her Children — Again the Wife of a Virginia Planter — Mrs. Washington oc- casionally leaves Home — Her Charities — Her Pleasure as her Daughter advances towards Womanhood— The Death of Miss Custis— Grief of the Family — Date of Miss Custis' Death — Signs of approaching War- Washington leaves Home to attend the First Congress.
CHAPTER IV.
Mrs. Washington does not accompany her Husband to Philadelphia — Washington is appointed Commander-in-Chief of the American Ar- my—This Intelligence first Communicated to Mrs. Washington in a Letter from her Husband — The Letter — Mrs. Washington determines to Repair to the Seat of War— She is invited to a Public Ball— Annoy- ing Proof of Popular Disaffection — Mrs. Washington's Accomodations at Cambridge — Her Piety and Serenity of Mind — She gains the Re- gards of all about her, and the Appellation of " Lady Washington" — She takes Leave of her Husband and Returns to Mount Vernon — Mrs. Washington establishes a Domestic System suited to the Times — Her Success in Domestic Manufactures — Mrs. Washington's Pecul- iar interest in Public Affairs— Her Indignation at the Treachery medi- tated towards the Commander-in-Chief, and her Delight when in- formed of the Successful Passage of the Delaware.
CHAPTER V.
Washington goes into Winter Quarters — Mrs. Washington Joins him in the Camp — Her Husband's care and attention during her Yearly Jour- neys— Mrs. Washington travels in her own carriage, attended by a Military Escort — The Example of Mrs. Washington generally follow- ed by the Wives of the principal Officers of the Arm}'— Mrs. Washing- ton the Favorite of the Army— Anecdote— The Cheerfulness and Equa-
CONTENTS. 65
nimityof Mrs. Washington, while residing in the Camp— Her Society highly valued by the Commander-in-Chief— Anecdote— Mrs. Washing- ton Devotes herself to the'care of the Sick and Suffering— She forma many agreeable Friendships— Her Correspondence at this time — Extract from a Letter— Mrs. Washington's intimate Assoc iationwith the Heroes of the Revolution.
CHAPTER VI.
Mrs. Washington's return to Mount Yernon, in the Spring of 1777— Re- assumes the personal Charge of Family Affairs— Supplies the place of her Husband at Home— Ready to return to Camp in the Autumn — The Army at Valley Forge — Passage from one of Mrs. Washington's Letters — Christian Faith and Fortitude of Mrs. Washington — Spring brings cheering tidings from France— Active Movements in the Camp —Mrs. Washington again repairs to her home— Mrs. Washington's Winter at Yalley Forge a type of many successive seasons — The Loca- tion of Head-Quarters — The Marquis de Chastelleus the Guest of Gen. and Mrs. Washington, in the Camp — Extract — Mrs. Washington neglected by the Philadelphia Ladies— She is Hospitably Received else- where— Mrs. Washington visits Mrs. Barry, of New Jersey — A Ball given in honor of her arrival— The Equipage, Attendants and Dress of Mrs. Washington at this time — The Commander-in-Chief Dances at the Ball — The Anniversary of the National Alliance with France cele- brated by a Ball, at which Mrs. Washington is present — The Respect en - tertained for Mrs. Washington in Europe — Reported Present from the Queen of France— The Marriage of Mrs. Washington's Son, Col. Cus- tis — Her Daughter-in-Law Presides at Mount Yernon — Repeated Ill- ness of the Commander-in-Chief— Mrs. Washington's Health im- paired—She is Inoculated for the small-pox — Mrs. Washington's Ap- pearance at this Period of her Life— Grand Children claim the care and affection of Mrs. Washington — Her Occupation and Amusements — Prospect of Peace— Mrs. Washington's Anticipations of Domestic Felicity — She is summoned to the Death-Bed of her Son — Particulars respecting Col. Custis' Public Career, Illness and Death — Washington's Grief on this Occasion — His Sympathy with Mrs. Washington.
CHAPTER VII.
Date of Col. Custis' Death — Mrs. Washington Devotes herself more en- tirely to the Charge of her Grand Children — She Remains at Moun
68 CONTENTS.
Vernon— Her Hospitality and Benevolence— Her Husband returns to Mount Vernon— Passage from one of Washington's Letters, to the Marchioness de La Fayette— Proposed Enlargement and Improvement of the Mansion and Grounds of Mount Vernon— The Manifold Occupa- tions of Mrs. Washington— Her Industry, Method, Domestic Disci- pline, Personal Neatness, Courtesy and Conversation at Table, Reg- ular Devotional Exercises— Mrs. Washington a Lady of the "Old School" — Complimentary Testimony of the Marquis de Chastelleux — The Grand-Children of Mrs. Washington the Favorites of Mount Vernon— Numerous Visitors at Mount Vernon— Mrs. C. Maccauley Graham— The Marquis de La Fayette the Guest of Gen. and Mrs. Washington— He returns to Mount Vernon before leaving the Coun- try—Proofs of the continued Friendship cherished by the Distin- guished Military Companions of the Commander-in-Chief— Her Hus- band continually Associates Mrs. Washington with himself in his Cor- respondence with his Friends — Few present traces of Mrs. Washing- ton's Letters— Illustrative Extract— Devotion of Gen. and Mrs. Wash- ington to the Practical Duties of their Station— Their Self- Denial-Order for Plate countermanded — Donation to a Literary Institution — Mr2 . Washington's pleasure at the Adoption of the Federal Constitution by her Native State — Public Rejoicings in the City of Alexandria — Mrs . Washington Patriotism and Philanthropy.
CHAPTER VIII.
Election of Washington to the Presidency — Mrs. Washington's reluc- tance to leave Home — Letter from Mrs. Washington to a Female Friend — Journey from Mount Vernon to the City of New York — The Bridge at Trenton and the Inaugeration — Mrs. Washington in High Station — Propriety of State and Ceremony in the Presidential Establishment — Mrs. Washington's domestic Arrangements— Her Levees— The Leveed and Dinners of the President— State Dress of the President— Particu- lar Ceremonies of the National Fete days— Distinguishing Attention paid to Mrs. Montgomery and to Mrs. Green— Respect paid to the Sab- bath by President and Mrs. Washington— The Revolutionary Sol- diers always welcomed to the Presidential Mansion— Mr?. Washington receives the Attention due to her exalted Position with proper Self-Re- spect—She never Converses in Public upon Political Subjects— Mrs. Washington passes a portion of each Summer at Mount Vernon — Still Regardful of the Interest and Improvement of her Grand Children- Preparations for the final Departure of President and Mrs. Wash* ington from the Seat of Government — Leave-takings, and Eestowment ot Tokens of Remembrance and Regard.
CONTENTS. 67
CHAPTER IX.
Mrs. Washington returns permanently to Mount Yernon— Pleasing Re- sults of former Improvements there— The Domestic Happiness of Mrs. Washington and her Family — Sudden Illness of Washington — The overwhelming grief of Mrs. Washington — The Death of the Fath- er of his Country — Mrs. AYashington leaves, never to Return, the Apartments she had occupied with her Husband — The Grief of a Na- tion— The Remains of Washington, yielded to the Government — Mrs. Washington's confident Hope in the Eternal Felicity of her Husband — Her deep grief and Christian Fortitude— Mrs. Washington continues her former attention to the active Duties of Life — In her 69th year — The Health of Mrs. Washington is undermined— She Becomes Seri- ously 111 — She is Conscious of her approaching Dissolution — The Death - Bed of Mrs. Washington— She calmly Expires— Date of Mrs. Wash* ington's Death — Her Place of Sepulture.
THE WIFE OF WASHINGTON.
CHAPTER I.
Grace was in all her steps, heaven in her eye, In every gesture, dignity and love !
Pope.
Our youthful summer oft we see Dance by on wings of game and glee, Whilst the dark storm resumes its rage.
# # * * *
And such a lot, my theme, was thine, When thou, of late, wert doom'd to twine, — Just when the bridal wreath was by, — The cypress with the myrtle tie.
Scott.
The Illustrious Subject of the following Memoir, is first presented to our attention in the interesting po- sition of a youthful belle at the Court of the stately representative of British power and rule, within the limits of the proud, aristocratical and wealthy " Old Dominion."
The charms of an agreeable person and a lovely face, enhanced by the superior fascination of winning manners and an amiable disposition, combined to ren- der this fair representative of an ancient race, one of
70 MEMOIR OF
the most admired and beloved of the many living flow- ers ass3rabled during the season of fashion, to grace the Colonial Court of Governor Dinwiddie.
Martha Dandridge was born in the County of New Kent, in the Colony of Virginia, in May, 1732. The long line of ancestors from whom she was descend- ed, was originally represented in the Colony by the Rev. Orlando Jones, a Welsh gentleman, who early established himself on the banks of the Potomac.
Miss Dandridge possessed only such artificial accom- plishments as the system of domestic instruction, then the sole means of female education in her native land, enabled her to acquire. But she was, happily, endow- ed by nature, with infinitely more essential qualifica- tions for usefulness and happiness than these could supply — self-respect, good sense, a quick perception of propriety, and a ready power of self adaptation to the exigencies and necessities of practical life.
Though the celebrity early acquired, and the distin- guished associations as early commenced by Miss Dan- dridge, were perpetuated through the accumulated years of a long and varied life, her career in the dazzling realms of fashion, was destined to be as evanescent as it was brilliant and agreeable.
Won by the almost resistless power of a deep and discriminating attachment, — that most exquisitely- delicate and expressive of compliments, — at the age of seventeen, before adulation and her unusual success
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 71
de societe had alloyed the ingenuous simplicity, or di- minished the buoyant enthusiasm of her noble nature,
" in the lustre of her youth, she gave
Her hand, with her heart in it to," —
one of her numerous admirers, Col. Daniel Parker Custis, a son of the Hon. John Custis of Arlington.
Throughout her eventful life, it was the happy fate of this distinguished lady to be the object of warm and disinterested affection ; and this characteristic of her history was eminently illustrated by the at- tachment of Col Custis, who, in opposition to the more ambitious matrimonial designs of his father, — himself a King's Counsellor, and desirous of public honors for his son,— preferred the young and lovely Miss Dandridge to all the allurements of political distinc- tion and unbounded wealth.
The consent of the reluctant and ambitious King's Counsellor yielded, at last, to the firmness and ardor of manly constancy, Col. Custis triumphantly bore away his fair prize, to his plantation in her native County of Kent.
The residence of Col. Custis was situated on the shore of the Pamunkey Ptiver, and was known by the now peculiarly significant appellation of the " Yihite House."
Col. Custis was a highly prosperous planter and a pleasing impersonation of the Virginia gentleman of the olden time. Possessed of sterling integrity and eminently gifted with the refined and elevated senti- ments so agreeably illustrated by the peculiar incidents
72 MEMOIR OF
connected with bis matrimonial engagement, he was, also, endowed by nature with a heart as generously lib- eral as his purse was ample and overflowing. Living in times when hospitality was not only practised as a duty and a virtue, but regarded as affording some of the most innocent and delightful gratifications of do- mestic life, his bountiful board was habitually spread, like those of the feudal lords of other days and other lands, not alone for numerous vassals and dependants but in preparation for the cordial welcome equally await- ing the passing stranger and the expected friend.
The obligations and responsibilities appertaining to the mistress of so extensive an establishment as that of the " White House," however agreeable in their nature, were necessarily, by no means either nominal or light. But she who had voluntarily and ' ■ nothing loth," so early exchanged her youthful pleasures and her maiden freedom for the cares and duties of an Amer- ican Matron, readily and cheerfully assimilated her- self to her new position.
And when the more interesting and important avo- cations of a mother were added to those of the wife of a Virginia country gentleman, the home in which Mrs. Custis presided continued to illustrate the judi- cious system of household arrangement, the wise econ- omy, order and regularity for which she was through life so remarkable.
To the friends whom she had known and loved in her girlhood, and who still continued to evince undi- minished their former interest and regard, time only
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 73
added nearer ties and more endearing associations, and
" The wife, the mother, dearer than the bride,"
the sweet-home virtues long went hand in hand with Health, Peace and Content, the lovely graces of the fireside !
Thus, for some time, the halcyon days of the domes- tic felicity of Mrs. Custis glided uninterruptedly on.
But never does earthly happiness continue unal- loyed ! Death entered, and desolated this Eden of Delight !
The first victim of the destroyer was the hope and joy of his parents, — their eldest child, — whose unusual mental developments gave only too delusive and fleet- ing promise of the future.
Soon after this melancholy event, Col. Custus (his malady incurably heightened by the effects of over- whelming grief for the loss of his son,) sunk, prema- turely, into the grave, when he had scarcely attained the prime of manhood !
With the painfully-touching proof of extraordinary sensibility afforded by the mournful cause of his early death, family tradition unites an anecdote illustrative of another prominent trait in the interesting character of Col. Custis: — " It is related of this amiable gen- tleman," says his brief biographer and immediate de- scendant, " that, when on his death-bed, he sent for a tenant, to whom, in settling an account, he was due one shilling. The tenant begged that the Colonel,
4
74 MEMOIR 0¥
who had ever been most kind to his tenantry, would not trouble himself at all about such a trifle, as he, the tenant, had forgotten it long ago. " But I have not," rejoined the just and conscientious landlord, and bid- ding his creditor take up the coin, which had been purposely placed on his pillow, exclaimed, " Now my accounts are all closed with this world !" and shortly after expired.
Thus suddenly deprived, not only of the child whose existence had first awakened in her bosom the holy love and the lofty aspirations of a mother, but, of the friend and counsellor whose changeless affection had made the sunshine of her life, and upon whom she had so implicitly relied for effective aid in the fulfil- ment of her solemn and momentous maternal duties, Mrs. Custis did not weakly abandon herself to useless lamentation, or helpless despair. Two children still survived to claim her care and affection ; and, after the first burst of impassioned and overpowering sorrow, — seeking strength for the effort where alone it could be found, in the promised aid of a chastening but merci- ful Redeemer, — she nerved herself for conscientious and persevering attention to duties and interests so painfully augmented and so mournfully and deeply im- portant.
Col. Custis gave the highest proof that the roman- tic attachment and well-founded respect of early days remained undiminished through the lapse of years, by leaving to his widow the exclusive .management and
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 75
disposition, not only of her own pecuniary interests, but of those of his children.
How triumphantly Mrs. Custis proved her ability for the task thus delegated to her, will be best told in the words of the same authority to which we have before referred. — " Independently of extensive and valuable landed estates, the Colonel left thirty thousand pounds sterling in money, with half that amount to his only daughter Martha. * * * *
" Mrs. Custis, as sole executrix, managed the ex- tensive landed and pecuniary concerns of the estates with surprising ability, making loans on mortgage, of moneys, and, through her stewards and agents, con- ducting the sales or exportation of the crops to the best possible advantage."
If not as lightly and blissfully as of old, still peacefully and hopefully, time passed with the wid- owed mother, while engaged in these needful occupa- tions, and in the most affectionate devotion to the edu- cation and happiness of her children, whom it was her sedulous endeavor to inspire with a wish to emu- late the virtues of their father ;-r- thus rendering just homage to his memory, and worthily entitling them to the splendid worldly endowments and to the honor- able name which were alike their proud inheritance.
CHAPTER II.
0, young Lochinvar is come out of the West, Through all the wide Border his steed was the best ; And save his good broadsword, he weapons had none. He rode all unarm'd and he rode all alone. So faithful in love, and so dauntless in war, There never was knight like the young Lochinvar !
Scott.
Beautiful, gifted with great fascination of manner, extremely wealthy, youthful and
" Without any control, but the sweet one of grace- fulness," it is not surprising, — the usual period of mourning and seclusion passed, — that the hand of Mrs. Custis was sought by many and ardent suitors.
The " White House" became again the chosen abode of refined and graceful hospitality, and its fair and gentle mistress once more assumed her place in the elegant and distinguished circle, to the attractions of which her presence had formerly made so agreeably an addition.
But though participating with subdued cheerfulness in the rational enjoyments of social life, and extend- ing equal courtesy to all who came within the sphere of her magic influence ; yet a taste, refined it might be, even to fastidiousness, by prolonged and intimate association with one of the most amiable and honora-
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 77
ble of men, was not easily satisfied. Nor would the heart that had been so entirely his, through many happy years of wedded love, readily yielded itself to the keeping of another.
" Oft she rejects, but never once offends !"
Content in her singular freedom from authoritative restraint, conscious of her ability to conduct, unaided, her own business affairs and those of her children, — young, lovely, admired, respected, — why should she exchange her felicitous independence for a protection, in her peculiar circumstances little better than nominal perchance, or, at least, for many reasons, undesirable and unnecessary? The well-remembered virtues of his father would be the best guide of her son, and her ceaseless assiduity would obtain both for him and for his sister, every advantage that unlimited pecuniary resources and the most affectionate interest could uni- tedly secure. Why, then, either for their benefit, or for her own happiness, should their mother renounce her present name ?
Governed by these numerous, weighty, and seem- ingly-conclusive reasons, the beautiful widow remained immovably relentless, while each enamored lover pressed, in turn, his glowing and disinterested suit ! Eloquence did not shake her resolution, manly beauty and intelligence, polished manners, high honor, — all were vain to ruffle the " waveless calm" of the unre- sponding heart, in whose peaceful depths lay enshrined — the treasures of memory !
At length, by accident, there crossed her path, one,
78 MEMOIR OF
whose Star of Fame was already far in the ascendant in his native State ; a patriotic and distinguished citi- zen-soldier, who could tell
" of most disastrous chances Of moving accidents by flood and field, Of hair-breadth 'scapes i' the imminent deadly
breach, Of being taken by the insolent foe !"*
His conversation, his manners, his appearance, com- bined to prove this interesting stranger no common mortal, no ordinary wooer ! Nature had stamped up- on his powerful frame and majestic countenance an unmistakeable impress of the mental power that dwelt within, and sealed his august brow, with
" The stamp of Fate and fiat of a God !"
Again and again the fascinated soldier sought the presence of the enchanting widow. Again and again he spontaneously acknowledged the winning power of her lithe and graceful form, her bright, expressive face and the far more potent magic of her suave and be nignant manners, her noble and disciplined intellect And he, the victor-crowned, — now himself subdued — awaited his fate at the hand of the resistless charmer
* Our readers will consider the application ot this last line as scarce ly involving a poetic license, when they recollect the fact recorded in the annexed passage : —
Lieutenant Col. Washington, " being joined soon after by the residue of the regiment, and a few other troops, making an aggregate of some- what less than four hundred men, they erected a small stockade fort ; here he was attacked "by twelve hundred French and Indians, and after a biave resistance from ten in the morning until night, he capitulated."
National Portrait Gallery.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 79
What wonder, then, that the lofty resolve to pre- serve unchanged her womanly liberty, which was erst the high prerogative of Mrs. Custis, should, gradu- ally, "melt into thin air," like the scrolled snow- wreath, beneath the ardent gaze of advancing Phoe- bus !
The favorite charger of the Hero of the Mononga- hela, and his faithful Bishop* in obedience to the high behest of their noble master, now often traced with him, the familiar way that conducted to the hospitable " White House." Long and often did the impatient war-steed await his time -unheeding rider; long and often did the assiduous attendant marvel at a fbrget- fulness of commands that on other occasions, some- times anticipated even his prompt and exact punctu- ality.
And now, all was in elegant and tasteful prepa- ration in the " White House," for the elaborate and splendid celebration of the approaching bridal.
Aristocratic magnates of the " Old Dominion" stately matrons and dignified statesmen, the young, the beautiful, the brave, were assembled in honor of nuptials so signally auspicious, so brilliant and so felic* itous.
"Much hath the biographerf heard of that mar- riage, from gray-haired domestics, who waited at the board where love made the feast and Washington was
* Each bequeathed hiin by the dying Braddock on the ill-starred field of his last battle.
t We borrow the expressive language of the interesting annalist to whose authority we before referred.
SO MEMOIR OF
the guest. And rare and high was the revelry, at that palmy period of Virginia's festal age ; for many were gathered at that marriage, of the good, the great, the gifted and the gay, while Virginia, with joyous accla- mation, hailed in her youthful hero a prosperous and happy bridegroom."
Imagination will Letter picture the pomp and splen- dor of this interesting scene than any description of ours. Thus will our readers satisfactorily behold the fairest of Virginia's fair daughters, arrayed in the su- perb brocades, the costly laces, and sparkling jewels that the old World alone could then supply ; gallant cavaliers, in the elaborate and elegant costume of the time ; the brilliant apartments ; the bountiful board, glittering with massive plate, and loaded with sub- stantial viands, rich wines and delicate conserves. Thus aided they may listen to the gay conversation, the merry song, the whispered words, the blithesome laugh, the flashing wit, the inspiring music, each well befitting the occasion ; and watch
" the docile footstep to the heave of that
[sweet measure, As music wafts the form aloft at its melodious
[pleasure,
Now breaking through the woven chain of the
[entangled dance !"
The same magic power will most successfully por- tray the grace, the loveliness, the tearful smiles, the glowing cheek of the Bride, when warm words and softened looks bespoke the cordial aspirations for her
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 81
future happiness that swelled the hearts of her friends ; and the animated countenance, the majestic mein, the undisguised rapture of the triumphant and love- crowned Soldier.
4*
CHAPTER III.
For still where the firm * * * *
And the stern, in sweet marriage is blent with the meek, Rings the concord harmonious, both tender and strong ;
******* The heart to the heart flows in one, love delighted !
Schiller.
* * Woe to thy dream of delight ;
In darkness dissolves the gay frost-work of bliss ;
Where now is the picture that Fancy touch'd bright ?
W. W. DlMOND.
Butlo ! a Congress ! What, that hallow'd name Which freed the Atlantic ?
BrRON.
Soon after their union, which occurred, it is be- lieved, about the year 1759, Col. and Mrs. Wash- ington removed from the " White House" to Mount Vernon, which continued, thenceforth, to be the per- manent family residence.*
*Mount Vernon is in Fairfax Co., Virginia. It is pleasantly situated on the south bank of the Potomac, nine miles below Alexandria and fif- teen miles from Washington. It may interest some of our readers to ham the origin of the name of a spot now possessing so much celebri- cy. George Washington inherited this residence from his eldest brother, Lawrence, who 'held a Captain's commission in the Provincial troops,
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 83
The mansion then bearing this name, was much smaller than it afterwards became. It consisted only of the centre of the present building, with but four rooms on the first floor. Its owner had resided there for some years previous to his marriage, but Mount Yernon was now, for the first time graced by the pres- ence of a mistress.
We find many proofs, in his published papers and Correspondence, of the efforts made by Col. Wash- ington to augment the comforts and multiply the em- bellishments of his home, after it received the fair and gentle inmate, whose happiness was, thenceforth, to be his peculiar care.
Nor was his attention confined to matters appertain- ing merely to daily convenience, or general improve- ment,— it extended to all that could lend attractive- ness to home-life, for the enjoyments of which the in- habitants of Mount Vernon, mutually posssessed an ardent love.
The following Memoranda of articles to be or- dered from Europe, the originals of which were found by Mr. Sparks among Washington's papers, in his own hand-writing, will serve as passing in- dications of the refined and elegant taste that di- rected everything within the precincts of the new abode of Mrs. Washington : —
employed in the celebrated attack against Carthagena, under Admiral Vernon* On his return . he settled on his patrimonial estate; which through respect to his Admiral, he called Mount Vernon." This gen- tleman died not long afterwards, leaving one daughter, who did not reach mature years. The brother next in succession also dying young, Col, (then Major) Washington succeeded to the inheritance.
84 MEMOIR OF
*' Directions for the Busts. — One of Alexander the Great; another of Julius Cassar; another of Charles XII of Sweden ; and a fourth of the King of Prussia."*
"N. B. These are not to exceed fifteen inches in height nor ten in width."
"2 other Busts, of Prince Eugene and the Duke of Marlborough, somewhat smaller."
" 2 Wild Beasts, not to exceed twelve inches in height, nor eighteen in length."
" Sundry small ornaments for chimney-piece."
We also find Col. Washington seeking, by importa- tions from France and England, to adorn his planta- tion with the graceful drapery of the blue hills of the " sunny South" and with the far-famed verdure of ru- ral Albion.
Our readers must bear in mind that, at the period to which our narrative refers, the various domestic arrangements, of which we have, very briefly, endeav- ored to convey an idea, were comparatively unusual in the American Colonies ; and that not only all articles of luxury, but a considerable proportion of the essen- tials of household convenience and daily comfort, were imported from Europe. It will thus be perceived, that what would now scarcely be regarded in the light
* How little did the writer imagine, when penning this order, that not many years later, his walls would be adorned by a portrait ot the Great Frederick, sent him by that Monarch and accompanied by the memorable words -" From the oldest General in Europe, to the greatest General in the world!"
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 85
m
of luxurious indulgences were then within the reach only of the most wealthy. Even the clothing of his servants, and the ordinary implements of agriculture, as well as most articles of food, not the produce of his own plantation, were ordered by Col. Washington from his English agents.*
"We may believe that the efficient aid of Miis Wash- ington was not wanting in the regulation and adorn- ment of the new home to which she found herself transferred.
We perceive, from the details of his "Life" that Col. Washington almost immediately assumed the pe- cuniary responsibilities and duties devolving upon him in consequence of his marriage. We find in his let- ters to his agents abroad, frequent references to the business affairs of Mrs. Washington and her children, each characterized by his usual precision, regularity and conscientiousness.
But though thus relieved from the irksome and uncongenial employments incident to her previous mode of life, Mrs. Washington, doubtless, found suffi- cient occupation in the agreeable avocations involving the health happiness and education of her children ;
* We append a somewhat amusing List of articles imported from England about this time by Col. W., which was gleaned, for the enter- tainment of the curious in such matters, from the voluminous " Memo- randa" published by the indisputable authority to which we have before referred. By its perusal the reader may, perhaps, gain some inci. dental information respecting the dress and domestic habits of Mrs. Washington, at this period of her history, together with various indica- tions of the degree of luxury and refinement characteristic of the system of life then prevalent among the more wealthy of the Virginia Planters.
See Note A.
86 MEMOIR OP
and in a general superintenclance of the affairs of her household, together with the many social obligations appertaining to her position.
The present situation of Mrs. Washington closely resembled that to which she was accustomed during her former marriage. She was now, as she had previ- ously been, the wife of a prosperous, enterprising Virginia Planter. For though still, ^ "Bearing his blushing honors thick upon him," Col. Washington for many successive years, took no other part in public affairs than occasionally to act as a local magistrate, or as a Representative in the Pro- vincial Legislature.
Honored and beloved at home, Mrs. Washington continued still, as ever before, to receive the affec- tionate and respectful regards of a large circle of attached and admiring friends.
She occasionally accompanied her husband in his various journeys, and in his visits to Williamsburg — the scene of her early entrance into society and of some of the pleasing associations of later years, But most of her time, as well as that of Col Washington, was passed at their beloved Mount Vernon, in the midst of congenial pleasures, occupations and duties.
While alluding to the different sources of happiness enjoyed at this time by the estimable Subject of our Memoir, we should not omit particularly to mention the pure and exalted gratification springing from her enlightened and systematic charity and from her con-
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 87
scientious attention to those dependents immediately relying upon her care for health and comfort.
Thus did this illustrious lady long glide serenely and happily down the stream of time.
As Miss Custis, the only daughter of Mrs. Wash- ington, advanced towards womanhood, the tender maternal assiduity that so earnestly sought her improve- ment in all that could tend to promote her happiness and usefulness in after life, was, if possible, still more devoted in its manifestations.
And when, at last, the child of so many hopes, the favored recipient of such accumulated care and ten- derness, became the intelligent companion of the mother to whose guidance she owed so much, words are inadequate to express that mother's pride and joy.
But Mrs. Washington was destined again to behold the cup of happiness pass, scarce tasted, from her lips.
Miss Custis had no sooner attained maturity than she was snatched forever from the presence of her earthly friends.
Who shall tell the sorrow of the bereaved and grief- stricken mother; the passionate lamentation of the young brother who, hand in hand with this one gentle sister, had grown in health and beauty through so many happy years of genial and loving companion- ship ; or the deep sadness of the almost paternal guar- dian beneath whose fostering care her youthful mind had so pleasingly developed ?
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The melancholy event that thus, suddenly, robbed Mount Vernon of one of its brightest and most cher- ished ornaments, occurred in the year 1770.
Subsequent to this sad incident, for several succes- sive years, nothing demanding particular notice arose to vary the usual routine of Mrs. Washington's exis- tence.
The tender sympathy that calms and soothes the wounded heart, beyond all else that earth can give, united with the dictates of religion to soften regrets which they could not remove, and
" Time, that wears out the trace of deepest sorrow,"
witnessed a gradual diminution of the pervading and poignant grief that long shadowed the spirit of this mourning mother.
At length, the distant murmurs of the approaching storm that served to render more dear the sanctity and the delights of home, reached ears all unwilling to receive the dreadful tidings they conveyed. Near, and yet more near, advanced the threatening clouds till even the most incredulous were compelled to fear its fast-coming fury.
Mrs. Washington was first fully awakened to a fore- boding sense of the changes that awaited her, when her husband, obeying the summons of patriotism, has- tened from home to join in the momentous public delib- erations, upon the results of which hung consequences of so much present and prospective importance. Then, indeed, she became only too surely convinced
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 89
that the master-spirit had departed from the home-par- adise, within which, for seventeen successive years, there had so seldom entered the sin and suffering that make the alloy of all human happiness !
CHAPTER IV.
Hark ! forth from the abyss, a voice proceeds , A long, low, distant murmur of dread sound, Such as arises when a Nation bleeds With some deep and immedicable wound.
Byf.ox
Employ'd she employs ;
Locks the chest and the wardrobe, with lavender smelling,
And the hum of the spindle goes quick through the dwelling ;
And she hoards in the presses, well polished and full,
The snow of the linen, the shine of the wool ;
Blends the sweet with the good, an from care and endeavor
Rests never !
Schiller,
While duty measures the regard it owes With scrupulous precision and nice justice, Love never reasons, but profusely gives, GiTes, like a a thoughtless prodigal, its all, And trembles then, lest it has done too little.
More.
When Col. Washington left Mount Vernon to at- tend the meet in o- of the first Congress at Philadel- phia, Mrs. Washington remained at home, partici- pating, though at a distance, the interest and anxiety
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 91
with which he discharged the various and pecul- iarly responsible duties which the Soldier of America was directly summoned to assume ; and watching with engrossing eagerness, for his reports of the highly interesting proceedings and delibera- tions of the solemn assemblage with which he was associated.
When, after more than nine months of separation and solicitude, she was informed of her husband's ap- pointment as Commander-in-Chief of the American Army, and that " the war had actually begun" which must summon him to immediate action, the mingled nature of her emotions may be easily conceived.
The first intelligence of this event was communica- ted to Mrs. Washington in the following Letter, which possesses the more interest as it is the only one of th« many addressed to her from the same source, that has descended to us.*
" Philadelphia, 18 June, 1775. 11 My Dearest :
" I am now set down to write to you on a subject, which fills me with inexpressible concern, and this concern is greatly aggravated and increased, when I reflect upon the uneasiness I know it will give you.
* It is known that Mrs. Washington, previously to her death, destroyed these precious testimonials of affection and confidence — unwilling it may be supposed, to allow other eyes than her own to trace the cherished records.
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It has been determined in Congress, that the whole army raised for the defence of the American cause shall be put under my care, and that it is necessary for me to proceed immediately to Boston to take upon me the command of it.
" You may believe me, my dear Patsy, when I as- sure you, in the most solemn manner, that, so far from seeking this appointment, I have used every en- deavor in my power to avoid it, not only from my un- willingness to part with you and the family, but from a consciousness of its being a trust too great for my capacity, and that I should enjoy more real happiness in one month with you at home, than I have the most distant prospect of find in g abroad, if my stay were to be seven times seven years. But as it has been a kind of destiny, that has thrown me upon this service, I shall hope that my undertaking it is designed to an- swer some good purpose. You might, and I suppose did perceive, from the tenor of my letters, that I was apprehensive I could not avoid this appointment, as I did not pretend to intimate when I should return. That was the case. It was utterly out of my power to refuse this appointment, without exposing my char- acter to such censures, as would have reflected dis- honor upon myself, and given pain to my friends. This, I am sure could not, and ought not to be pleas- ing to you, and must have lessened me considerably in my own esteem. I shall rely, therefore, confi- dently on that Providence, which has heretofore pre- served and been bountiful to me, not doubting but
MARTHA. WASHINGTON. 93
that I shall return safe to you in the fall. I shall feel no pain from the toil or the danger of the campaign ; my unhappiness will flow from the uneasines I know you will feel from being left alone. I therefore beg that you will summon your whole fortitude, and pass your time as agreeably as possible. Nothing will give me so much sincere satisfaction as to hear this, and to hear it from your own pen. My earnest and ardent desire is, that you would pursue any plan that is most likely to produce content, and a tolerable de- gree of tranquility ; as it must add greatly to my un- easy feelings to hear that you are dissatisfied or com- plaining at what I really could not avoid.
" As life is always uncertain, and common prudence dictates to every man the necessity of settling his tem- poral concerns, while it is in his power, and while the mind is calm and undisturbed, I have, since I came to this place, (for I had no time to do it before I left home) got Colonel Pendleton to draft a will for me, by the directions I gave him, which will I now en- close. The provision made for you in case of my death will, I hope, be agreeable.
" I shall add nothing more, as I have several letters to write, but to desire that you will remember me to your friends, and to assure you that I am, with the most unfeigned regard, my dear Patsy, Your affectionate
Geokge Washington."*
* Sparks* Weitusgs of Washington.
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The contents of this letter, -will, far more effectually than any comments of ours, convey to our readers a just conception of the considerate and affectionate re- spect always paid by the illustrious pater -patri.^ te the wishes, feelings and comfort of the celebrated Sub- ject of our Memoir.
Though there is no allusion in this Epistle to the possibility of Mrs. Washington's accompanying the Commander-in-Chief in his journey to Cambridge, nor to the prospect of even a brief re-union after this their first protracted separation, yet it was subse- quently determined that they should, temporarily at least, be relieved from the mutual pain of absence, as will be explained by the following passage from a let- ter addressed by Washington to his brother.
" Camp at Cambridge, \ 13 October, 1775. ]"
Dear Brother :
"I am obliged to you for your advice to my wife, and for your intention of visiting her. Seeing no great prospect of returning to my family and friends this winter, I have sent an invitation to Mrs. Wash- ington to come to me, although I fear the season is too far advanced to admit this with any tolerable degree of convenience, especially if she should, when my letters get home, be in New Kent, as I believe the case will
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 95
be. I have laid before her a statement of the difficul- ties, however, which must attend the journey, and left it to her own choice."*
There is no reference in this Letter to any appre- hension, on the part of her husband, of clanger to Mrs. Washington, should she remain at Mount Ver- non, but fears for her safety were entertained by many of her friends, as we learn from the subjoined extract from Sparks' " Writings of Washington :" —
"As the General could not leave the army, he had re- quested Mrs. Washington to pass the winter with him at Cambridge. It seems, that some persons thought her in danger at Mount Vernon, which stands on the bank of the Potomac IUver, and is accessible to armed ships of the largest size. Lund Washington had written to to the General; — "Many people have made a stir about Mrs. Washington's continuing at Mount Ver- non, but I cannot think there is any danger. The thought, I believe, originated in Alexandria ; from thence it got to Londoun, and I am told the peo- ple of Londoun talk of sending a guard to con- duct her up to Berkeley, with some of their princi- pal men to persuade her to leave this place and aecept their offer. Mr. John Augustine Washington wrote, pressing her to leave Mount Vernon. She does not believe herself in danger. Lord Dunmore will hardly himself venture up this river ; nor do I believe he will send on that errand. Surely, her old acquaint-
* Sparks' " Writings of Washington."
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ance, the attorney, who, with his family, is on board his ship, would prevent his doing an act of that kind. You may depend I will be watchful, and upon the least alarm persuade her to remove.' "
In accordance with the wishes of her husband, Mrs. Washington hastened to make preparations for joining him at Cambridge for the winter.
Upon her arrival at Philadelphia, on her way to the scene of her new duties, she was met and escorted into the city by Col- Hancock and other offi- cers and the " Light Infantry of the Second Battalion, and the company of Light Horse, &c."
In addition to these public demonstrations of respect, Mrs. Washington was welcomed by every proof of individual regard and personal affection on the part of her numerous friends. She immediately received an invitation to attend a public Ball which was in contemplation, and which it was hoped the Ladies of the Commander in Chief, and of Col Han- cock would honor with their presence.
Mrs. Washington was fated thus early in her new career, to realize that Persecution, like his twin-compeer, "loves a shining mark," and that, during the commotion of public feeling which was already beginning to surge and swell, she must pre- pare to meet the popular tumult, manifestations of which would, thenceforth, occasionally reach even to her.
Before the evening appointed for the intended fete arrived, fears were entertained that the anticipated
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 97
festivities would be disagreeably interrupted and tliat the tranquility of the city might be seriously disturbed by an occurrence, under ordinary circumstances so unimportant to the populace.
Accordingly, there was a numerous meeting of the most respectable citizens, at Philosophic Hall, " for the purpose of considering the propriety of allowing the ball to be given." — After much serious delibera- tion it was finally concluded that no such entertain- ment should take place, either then, or " in future, while these troublesome times continued."
This meeting resulted in the appointment of a com- mittee whose duty it should be to desire the managers of the intended Ball to relinquish their design, and, also, to wait upon Mrs. Washington with the request that she would decline any participation in the affair.
It was understood that Mrs. Washington readily as- sented to the wishes of the gentlemen who called on her on this occasion, assured them of the entire accordance of her feelings with their own in relation to the matter, and politely expressed her acknowledge- ments for the kind attention that had secured her against embarrassment and annoyance.*
After enjoying the society of her friends for a few days and, at the same time refreshing herself with needful rest from the fatigue of her already long and labori- ous journey, Mrs. Washington left Philadelphia, f on
" For the quaint version of this singular illustration of popular feel- ing given in "Christopher Marshall's Diary of 1775," see Note B., of the Appendix.
|27 November, 1773.
5
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her way to New England, " attended by the Troop of Horse, two companies of Light Infantry, &c, &c."
The anxious and affectionate care with which, despite his engrossing public duties, the Commander- in-Chief endeavored to secure the safety and comfort of Mrs. Washington during her journey to the Ameri- can Camp is proved by the frequent references to the subject contained in his letters. Thus, in a letter to his Military Secretary, Joseph Reed, Esq., we find the following passage, under date of the 20th of No- vember : —
"I thank you for your frequent allusions to Mrs. Washington. I expect that she will be in Philadelphia about the time this letter may reach you, on her way hither. As she and her conductor, who I suppose will be Mr. Custis, her son, are perfect strangers to the road, the stages, and the proper place to cross Hudson's River, by all means avoiding New-York, I shall be much obliged by your particular instructions and advice to her. I imagine, as the roads are bad, and the weather cold, her stages must be short, especially as I presume her horses will be fatigued ; as when they get to Philadelphia, they will have per- formed a journey of at least four hundred and fifty miles, my express having found her among her friends, near Williamsburgh, one hundred and fifty miles be* low our house/'
Mrs. Washington reached Cambridge in safety on the 11th of December, having accomplished the jour- ney from Philadelphia in about fifteen days. She
31 UlTIIA WASHINGTON. 99
was soon comfortably established in the elegant man- sion of one of the wealthy Tory families who deserted their residences upon the approach of the Continental Army. The American officers, generally, took pos- session of these luxurious abodes, thus — and then only during the continuance of the War, — ' ' faring sumptu- ously every day."
After Mrs. Washington's arrival in the American Camp, the punctilious courtesy of the Commander-in- Chief dictated the following expression of his sense cf grateful obligation to the many friends whose kind at- tentions she had elicited during her journey.
To Joseph Reed, Esq.,
Camp, December 25th, 1775.
Dear Sir :
I am so much indebted for the civilities shown Mrs. Washington on her journey hither, that I hardly know how to go about to acknowledge them. Some of the enclosed (all of which I beg the favor of you to put into the post-office,) are directed to that end. I shall be obliged to you for presenting my thanks to the commanding officers of the two battalions of Phil- adelphia, for the honors done her and me, as also to any others equally entitled. I very sincerely offer
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you the compliments of the season, and wish you, Mrs. Reed, and your fireside, the happy return of a great many of them; being, dear Sir, Your most obedient and
Affectionate humble servant,
GrEORGE WASHINGTON."*
It would of course, be irrelevant to our subject, as well as a work of supererrogation to attempt a detailed account of the memorable siege and eventual evacua- tion of Boston.
Mrs. Washington, while participating in the harras- sing embarrassments that, almost directly upon the as- sumption of his new position, began to demand the sym- pathy she always exhibited in whatever affected either the interest or happiness of her husband, was now called upon to illustrate in relation to him, as she had ever done in every personal trial and affliction, her. firm reliance upon the beneficent superintendent of overruling Wisdom and Goodness. Even in this early stage of his eventful military career, her habitual cheerfulness and practical abilities, served in many in- stances, essentially to aid and encourage the Comman- der-in-Chief.
The agreeable and estimable qualities of the wife of the American Hero soon won for her the love and vene- ration of her husband's companions in arms, and her universal popularity among them, occasioned her re- ceiving the appellation of " Lady Wasltington" the
*"Life and Correspondence of President Reed."
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 101
well-known title by which she was always afterwards distinguished in the American Army.
With the departure of the British Fleet from the Harbor of Boston,* Mrs Washington prepared to re- turn to her long-deserted home, — the portentious as- pect of military affairs warning her of the impractica- bility of remaining with the Commander-in-Chief during the season of actual hostilities.
In addition to her parting from her husband, this af- fectionate mother was, also, necessitated to nerve herself for a separation from her son, who was already pledged to share the military fortunes of his beloved step-father. For usefulness and honor she had reared him to man- hood, and to her country she now resigned this last lin- gering scion of maternal hope and joy.f
Mrs. Washington sought the security and seclusion of Mount Vernon, not to indulge in vain repinings at her separation from its master and from her only child, nor to yield herself up to the unworthy dominion of useless fears for their personal safety and well-being ; but to find in active and needful occupation, and in care for the happiness of others, the best guarantee af- forded by circumstances, for the preservation of her mental serenity.
■« 17 March, 1775.
t Whether or not Mr. Custis was already one of the military family, stricfefy speaking, of the Commander-in-Chief we have not the means of determining ; hut we know him together with Mrs. Custis, to have accom- panied his mother to Cambridge, to have been at the siege of Boston, and to have continued with Washington throughout the War, though he probably did not, in consequence ot his youth, thus early receive the ap- pointment of Aid-de-Oamp to the General-in-Chief.
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That knowledge of practical life, and that singular facility for adapting herself to avocations unusual to her sex, which she had exhibited during her widow- hood were now again called into exercise by the pecul- iar situation in which Mrs. Washington found herself placed. She immediately established a domestic sys- tem thoroughly adapted to the exigencies of the times, and eminently calculated as an example most benefi- cially to influence others. Her dress, — always remark- able for its simplicity, — was soon composed almost en- tirely of home-made materials, as was the clothing of her numerous domestics.
We have her own authority for the fact that 1 ' she had a great deal of domestic cloth made in her house," and that " sixteen spinning-wheels were kept in constant operation" at Mount Vernon. On one occasion, when conversing with some friends upon this and similar topics, she gave the best proof of her success in domestic manufactures by the ex- hibition of two of her own dresses, which were com- posed of cotton striped with silk, and entirely home- made. The silk stripes in the fabric were woven from " the ravellincrs of brown silk stockings and old crim- son damask chair-covers !"
Momentarily to anticipate in our narrative ; — when Washington arrived at New- York to assume his duties as first President of the United States, he was attired in a complete suit of home-spun cloth.
By the judicious and admirable simplicity and econ- omy she systematically practiced, this exemplary Rev-
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 103
olulionary matron secured the means, not only of per- sonal and domestic comfort, convenience, and indepen- dence, but of the benevolent diffusion of more generally extended benefit.
It must not be supposed, however, that these house- hold avocations and duties were sufficient to engross or content one whose interest in the progress of pub- lic events was so painfully augmented by her in- timate connection with the master-spirit upon whose wisdom and guidance hung the destiny of his country.
Mrs. Washington was, doubtless, kept well and promptly advised not only of the momentous events that followed each other in such rapid and startling succession during the ever-memorable year succeeding the siege of Boston, but of the individual adventures and personal feelings and apprehensions of her hus- band. The asseverations and fears expressed in the following sentences were, probably, often repeated in "Washington's frequent letters to this sympathizing re- cipient of his confidence : — " I am wearied to death with the retrogacle motion of things, and I solemnly protest that a pecuniary reward of twenty thousand pounds would not induce me to undergo what I do."* " In a word, if every nerve is not strained to recruit the new army with all possible expedition, the game is nearly itp."1[
* Washington to his Brother, 19th Nov. 1776— Sparks' " Writings op Washington."
t Washington to Brother, 18 Dec. 1776—" Life and Correspondence op President Reed."
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Only a wife as devoted as Mrs. Washington, can ful- ly appreciate her emotions of indignation and abhor- rence when made acquainted with the happily-discov- ered treachery that aimed at the personal safety of the American Commander-in-Chief and the success of which would have dealt a death-blow to the prosperity of the American Cause. Only such an one can real- ize the pride and pleasure that swelled in her heart when informed of the glorious Passage of the Dela- ware, and of the encouraging success of which that skillful manoeuvre was the immediate precursor ; or paint the harrowing anxiety with which she awaited further intelligence respecting the movements of the little Continental Army ; and her delight when certain of the temporary cessation of active hostilities and of the consequent safety of those most dear to her. But why attempt to particularize among incidents, each of which was necessarily invested with such vital impor- tance for this tender Mother, this sympathizing Wife, this patriotic American Matron !
CHAPTER V.
To paint that being to a grovelling mind Were like portraying pictures to the blind. 'Twas needful e'en infectiously to feel Her temper's fond and firm and gladsome zeal, To share existence with her, and to gain Sparks from her love's electrifying chain, Of that pure pride, which lessening to her breast Life's ills, gave all its joys a treble zest, Before the mind completely understood That mighty truth— how happy are the good !
Campbell.
When the American Commander-in-Chief, after the ten months of incessant exertion, fatigue and respon- sibility that succeeded their parting, immediately sub- sequent to the evacuation of Boston, had finally con- ducted his worn and weary Army into Winter Quar- ters, at Morristown, in New Jersey,* Mrs. Washing- ton, anxious for his health and comfort, as well as for those of her son, lost no time in repairing thither to join him in the Camp for the remainder of the season.
It became, thenceforth, during the continuance of the War of the Revolution, Mrs. Washington's habitual practice to pass her winters at the Head-Quarters of the American Army. It was, consequently, her wont to say, in after life, that " she had heard the first cannon
*Jan. 1777.
5*
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at the opening and the last at the closing of all the campaigns of the Revolution !"
Many passages in the private Letters of Washing- ton express his affectionate interest on the subject of Mrs. Washington's long and hazardous journeys at the inclement season of the year when they were, ne- cessarily, undertaken. We find him writing to ask ad- vice as to the best means of promoting her safety and comfort, or requesting assistance in effecting her transit from Mount Vernon to him, and again, expressing his thanks for the many civilities extended to her on such occasions by friends whose personal and patriotic de- votion, no considerations of policy or prudence could vary or diminish.
Mrs. Washington's journeys to the American Camp were always performed in her own carriage and at- tended by her own servants. It was, also, the inva- riable practice of the Commander-in-Chief, to dispatch one of his Aids-de-Camp to escort her from Mount Vernon to his Winter quarters.* We infer, that on some of these occasions, at least, he adopted the addi- tional precaution to dispatch a band of soldiers, the more effectually to insure her protection, as we are told that in one instance, when travelling, Mrs. Washing- ton's chariot was attended by ten dragoons, and that, at another time, her departure from Philadelphia was accompanied by two military companies.
* As one of the Military Family of Washington, we may suppose that a duty, for many reasons so peculiarly agreeable to him, was, at least oc- casionally, delegated to Col. Custis.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 107
The example of the wife of the ximerican General- in-Chief, in passing the winters with her husband in his Camp quarters, was generally imitated by the wives of the principal Officers of the Continental Army; and her arrival soon came to be regarded as a signal for the assemblage of the fair ministering spirits whose presence lent a charm even to hardship and danger.
The following anecdote, for which, as well as for some other details, we are indebted to the elegant and highly entertaining volumes of Mrs. Ellet, will serve to illustrate the unwearying and affectionate zeal with which Mrs. Washington was herself befriended by those towards whom she was so ready to exhibit the most substantial proofs of regard and interest : —
" There were but two frame-houses in the settle- ment" (where Washington had established his Winter quarters) "and neither had a finished upper story. The General was contented with his rough dwelling, but wished to prepare for his wife a more retired and comfortable apartment. He sent for the young me- chanic, who was himself many years afterwards the narrator of the incident, and desired him and one of his fellow-apprentices to fit up a room in the upper story for the accommodation of Lady Washington through the winter. She herself arrived before the work was commenced. " She came," says the mili- tary carpenter, "into the place — a portly-looking, agreeable woman of forty-five, and said to us : ' Now, young men, I care for nothing but comfort here ; and should like you to fit me up a beaufet on one side of the
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room, and some shelves and places for hanging clothes on the other.' We went to work with all our might. Every morning about eleven, Mrs. Washington came up stairs with a glass of spirits for each of us ; and after she and the General had dined, we were called down to eat at their table. We worked very hard, nailing smooth boards over the rough and worm eaten planks, and stopping the crevices in the walls made by time and hard usage. We then consulted together how we could smoothe the uneven floor and take out, or cover over some of the huge black knots. We studied to do every thing to please so pleasant a lady, and to make some return in our humble way, for the kindness of the General. On the fourth day, when Mrs. Washington came up to see how we were getting along, we had finished the work, made the shelves, put up the pegs in the wall, built the beaufet and converted the rough garret into a comfortable apartment. As she stood looking round, I said, ' Madam, we have endeavored to do the best we could ; I hope we have suited you.' She replied, smiling, ' I am astonished ! your work would do honor to an old master, and you are mere lads. I am not only satisfied, but highly gratified by what you have done for my comfort.' "
Those who had the happiness to be able to speak and write from personal knowledge, bore the most unequivocal and emphatic testimony to the benign influence diffused through the Camp by the welcome presence of " Lady Washington." Her cheerfulness and equanimity were happily and habitually displayed,
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 109
even in the most trying circumstances, and exerted over the minds of all who were so fortunate as to share her friendship, or participate in her benevolent cares, the most beneficial effect.
11 And to know her well
Prolona'd, exalted, bound, enchantment's spell ;
For with affections warm, intense, refined,
She mix'd such calm and holy strength of mind,
That, like heaven's image in the smiling brook,
Celestial peace was pictured in her look.
Her's was the brow, in trials unperplex'd,
That cheered the sad, and tranquilized the vex'd ;
She studied not the meanest to eclipse,
And yet the wisest listened to her lips." —
She submitted with the utmost patience to personal privation and hardship, and did the honors of her homely camp abode with all the grace and urbanity that had formerly distinguished the mistress of the White House and of Mount Vernon. Her unwa- vering religious faith and her perpetual serenity and good-humor not only contributed materially to the general good, but were of great service to her hus- band individually. The Commander-in-Chief, both by word and action gave ample proof that the habits of military life were far from diminishing his affection for the companion of more genial hours, or his just appre- ciation of the advantages arising to himself from her society. As an illustration in point, some of our rea- ders will recollect, that, when on one occasion while this courageous woman and her fair companions still re-
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mained in their martial homes, and there was a sudden apprehension that " the enemy" were rapidly approach- ing, Washington resisted the proposition made by his military friends, to send the ladies away, under an escort ; — saying, " The presence of our wives will the better encourage us to a brave defence !"
" Lady Washington's" time and attention during each of the many seasons of her residence with the Army — apart from the dearer duties and obligations arising out of her re-unions with her husband and son — were chiefly devoted to the humane purpose of bene- fiting and relieving the suffering soldiers. She visited the sick, ministered to their wants, and poured that sympathy which is the " oil of joy" into their despon- ding hearts. She is described by those who witnessed and partook her efforts, as having been unwavering in her zeal and earnestness in this, her noble and womanly purpose. No danger delayed, no difficulty or hard- ship prevented the fulfilment of these benevolent duties. — Blessings and prayers followed the departure of this beneficent spirit from among the recipients of her kindness and bounty, and the most heartfelt joy hailed her return !
Nor were the winters thus passed by this estimable wife and mother wholly wanting in other sources of merely personal enjoyment than those arising from her constant association with the objects of her deep- est affections. She became closely and confiden- tially connected with the noble and heroic women, who, like herself, were pledged to the service of their
MARTHA WASHINGTON. Ill
country — those private defenders of the Cause of Liberty, whose dearest interests, whose highest hopes, whose all, in short, of earthly happiness was involved in the issue of passing events.
The friendships thus fostered by propinquity and ce- mented by strong congeniality of sentiment and inter- est, as well as by the bond of common danger and suffering, in addition to the present sympathy and en- joyment to which they gave rise, were among the most cherished pleasures of Mrs. Washington's subsequent life.
When separated from these valued friends by the vicissitudes of the active campaigns, in which, during each season the nearest relatives of all were equally engaged and endangered, it was the solace and gratifi- cation of each, by a constant correspondence, not only to maintain their mutual remembrance and affection, but to uphold and encourage each other in the Good Cause, by a more zealous esprit du corps than ever cemented the secret compact of
il a band of brothers joined !"*
It is to be much regretted that only detached frag- ments of Mrs. Washington's correspondence have been preserved to the present day. The following extract from an epistle addressed by her to a female friend,
* Our fair readers must not suppose that " Lady Washington," or any other lady of her day, enjoyed during the Eevolution, the adyantages of a regular, safe, systematic Post-Office arrangement. This was far enough from being the case. Not unfrequently the Commander-in-Chief, in ad-
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will serve to indicate the spirit by which she was habit- ually actuated in similar circumstances : —
" It gives me unspeakable pleasure to hear that General Burgoyne and his army are in safe quarters in your State. Would bountiful Providence aim a like blow at General Howe, the measure of my happiness would be complete I"
In addition to much pleasing intercourse with her own sex, it was the good-fortune of this patriot wife to enjoy the friendship and society of her husband's most distinguished military companions. It was her high privilege to share in their councils, and imbibe their exalted sentiments, to participate in their self- denial, their zeal, their enthusiasm and their courage ! There were Steuben, Rochanibeau, La Fayette, Kos- ciusko, and a host of heroes "to the manor born," — Knox, and Green, and Putnam, and Moultrie, and Hamilton, and many others, of less note, perchance, but lofty and glorious spirits all, amidst whom, as one enshrined by yet higher purpose and yet more august intellect,
" in shape and gesture proudly eminent, Stood like a tower"
dition to his other multitudinous avocations, acted as Post Master Gen- eral for his female friends and their lords or lovers.— But, in spite of chance accidents, difficulties and delays, the active minds that were roused to such high tension by the powerful stimulus of the times, found passing relief and amusement in this agreeable mode of inter- changing sentiment, feelings, and more particular intelligence in relation to matters and occurrences generally and individually interesting.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 113
the beloved and illustrious pater patri^ with whom it was her pride and happiness to be united by ties so tender, so endearing and so blessed !
Thus, then, though surrrounded by discomfort, subjected to trials, sorrows and sufferings, called to witness and to partake apprehensions, cares and re- sponsibilities, in their results at once the most engros- sing and the most important, it was to those portions of her existence which were passed in the Camp of the heroic Army of the Bevolution, to which Mrs. Washing- ton could, in after years, revert ; as having afforded some of the happiest hours of herKfe ! — hours of enjoy- ment so pure, so exalted, so spiritual, that there was " less of earth in them than Heaven !"
CHAPTER VI
The field of freedom, faction, fame and blood : Here a proud people's passions were exhaled, From the first hour of empire in the bud.
Byrox.
If the consciousness of perpetual endeavor to advance our
race be not alone happier than the life of ease, let us see what this vaun- ted ease really is. Tell me, is it not another name for ennui? This state of quiescence, this objectless, dreamless torpor, this transition du lit a la table, de la table au lit; what more dreary and monotonous exis- tence can you devise ? Is it pleasure in this inglorious existence to think that you are serving pleasure? Is it freedom to be the slave ot self?
Pilgrims of theRuine.
We resume our somewhat interrupted narrative of the events of Mrs. Washington's life, with that of her return to Mount Vernon, in the Spring of 1777, after her first thorough initiation into the hardships, privations and sufferings of the American Camp, during the winter passed by her in the log hut that constituted her abode at Morristown.
This interval of leisure for home duties and avoca- tions, was, much of it, passed, like that of the previ- ous season, in arrangements for the well-being of the relatives and domestics dependent upon her care and guidance.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 115
We gather from the private Correspondence of AVashington, that he maintained, throughout his pro- tracted absence from home, the general supervision and direction of affairs relative to his plantation ; but it will readily be supposed that the still and judgment displayed by this eminently-practical woman, when she was but little more than twenty years of age, in the exclusive management of a large landed estate, were now of most essential service in promoting the proper management of all out-of-door matters, as well as of those of a merely household character. The gloomy aspect of public affairs rendered the prospect of her husband's ability to resume the personal care of his private affairs more and more remote and uncertain, and Mrs. Washington was, consequently, impressed with the necessity of so regulating her family arrangements as to supply, in a degree, at least, the place of their absent master to those employed in his service, or de- pendent upon his bounty.
When winter approached, this heroic and de- voted wife was prepared again to return to the com- panionship of her husband, and to re-assume the in- teresting and benevolent offices she had previously ap- propriated to herself.
This was, as our readers will remember, the terrible winter of 1777-78, which witnessed the frightful suf- ferings of our Army at Valley Forge, where, " while the foe were luxuriating in the comfortable quarters of a populous and luxurious city, the Americans were
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sheltered in huts of their own fabrication and fre- quently suffering the extremity of want."*
The following brief passage from one of Mrs. Washington's letters, written at this time, contains a passing description of her camp accommodations : — " The General's apartment is very small; he has had a log cabin built to dine in, which has made our quar- ters more tolerable than they were at first."
Thus, then, did this high-souled and self-sacrificing woman voluntarily exchange the ease, the comfort and the security of her home, for inconvenience, privation and danger, that she might the better sympathize with, and minister to her husband ; who, oppressed by con- flicting duties, difficulties and trials, and, at the same time, a mark for the shafts of public animadversion and private intrigue, could turn trustingly to the faithful and tender friend who was ever ready to share his cares, his anxieties and his toils.
True to the faith and fortitude of a Christian, side by side with her heroic husband did she stem alike the tide of popular ^discontent and the tumultuous commo- tion more immediately surrounding her in the Camp. Unappalled by the disaffection, persecution, mortality and despair by which she was environed, she was con- tent to endure all, — brave all, save separation from the cherished objects of her warmest affections.
* Valley Forge is six miles above Norristown, in Pennsylvania, on the west side of the Schuylkill river. It is a deep, rugged hollow, at the mouth of Valley Creek, from which, and from an ancient forge once es- tablished there, it takes its name. On the mountain sides of this wild spot, Washington fixed the Camp of the Americau Army during the Winter of 1777-78.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 117
Calm, cheerful, hopeful, her presence and her exam- ple shed light and blessing even upon the deepest gloom and the most fearful horrors !
The last ensanguined record of this ever-memorable winter was at length traced upon the Page of Time !
Well has it been said, that, in the moral, as in the physical world, the darkest' hour precedes that of dawning light. The calumnies by which the Com- mander-in-chief had been so ruthlessly assailed, only served to elicit the strongest proofs of public confi- dence and individual attachment. The cruel depriva- tions and sufferings of the Patriot Soldiers were now materially relieved. Eager preparation and active discipline took the place of discontent and despond- ency. And bright-eyed May, the fairy-footed daugh- ter of the year, was a welcome harbinger of the inspi- ring intelligence that France had publicly recognized the Independence of the American Republic, and that her efficient aid would now assist the struggling cause of Liberty !
The following paragraph from the pen of an enthu- siastic letter-writer* graphically portrays the encour- aging aspect of affairs in the Republican Camp after the reception of the soul-cheering news of our National Alliance with the Land of La Fayette : — "We have nothing here but rejoicing; every one looks happy and seems proud of the share he has had in humbling the pride of Britain, and of establishing the name of America as a nation."
*Lady Catherine Alexander, writing from Valley Forge to a friend.
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Sir Henry Clinton's evacuation of Philadelphia was the signal for the breaking up of the American Camp at Valley Forge.
Mrs. Washington once more returned to the scene of her long-interrupted domestic felicity, again to encounter the suspense, the forebodings, the alterna- ting hopes and fears, that must, inevitably, fall to the lot of one watching at a distance from the scene of action, the changeful indications of the political hori- zon, and far separated from those who rendered both her home and her country doubly dear to her heart.
Our brief and imperfect description of the most prominent characteristics of the Winter passed at Val- ley Forge by the illustrious Subject of our narrative, will serve, in its general features, as a type of those of many succeding years.
The Head-Quarters of the Commander-in-Chief were for several seasons established on the banks of the Hudson, or in its vicinity, more or less near to New York, as circumstances permitted. And Mrs. Washington continued, throughout the war, to make each year a long and hazardous journey ere she could rejoin her husband and son, and, as often, voluntarily to encounter many consecutive months of fatigue, exposure and deprivation.
The sprightly sketch* that follows, not only posses- ses much interest from its furnishing the outline of a day passed by the writer, the Marquis de Chastellux,
* AVe are indebted to Mrs. Ellet for this extract,— she herself quotes it from a M. S. Letter.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 119
as the guest of Gen. and Mrs. Washington, in their military home ; hut also, serves, incidentally, to illus- trate the ingenious results to which hospitality and necessity unitedly brought the domestic resources of camp-life, under the practical superintendence of "Lady Washington." It is possible that the dwel- ling here described is the same referred to in a previ- ous chapter, as having undergone some improvements and repairs, for the better accommodation of its fair and gentle mistress : —
11 The Head-Quarters at Newburh consist of a sin- gle house, built in the Dutch fashion, and neither large nor commodious. The largest room in it, which General Washington has converted into his dining- room, is tolerably spacious, but it has seven doors and only one window. The chimney is against the wall ; so that there is, in fact, but one vent for the smoke, and the fire is in the room itself. I found the com- pany assembled in a small room, which served as a parlor. At nine, supper was served, and when bed-time came I found that the chamber to which the General conducted me was the very parlor spoken of, wherein he had made them place a camp-bed. We assembled at breakfast the next morning at ten, during which interval my bed was folded up ; and my chamber became the sitting room for the whole afternoon ; for American manners do not admit of a bed in the room in which company is received, especially where there are women. The smallness of the house, and the inconvenience to which I saw that General and Mrs.
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Washington had put themselves to receive me, made me apprehensive lest M. Rochambeau might arrive on the same day. The day I remained at head quarters was passed either at table or in conversation."*
As we have before intimated, the wife of the Amer- ican General in Chief, though individually so unoffen- ding, was occasionally the subject of manifestations of the height to which party animosity rose in those troubled times.
In one of her annual removals from Mount Vernon, at the conclusion of the active campaign, Mrs. Wash- ington's usual visit at Philadelphia was marked by great coldness on the part of the ladies resident there, many of whom forebore to call upon her during her stay in the city.f
But in agreeable contrast to treatment like this, was the cordial hospitality with which this patriotic wife was very frequently greeted in the course of her yearly pilgrimages, by those devoted friends of the Revolutionary cause at whose several residences she was temporarily entertained.
We are told by a graceful annalist, that, on one occasion when the Head Quarters of the Republican Commander in Chief were, for a short time established
* It may be new to some of our readers that the house designated in this description is still standing entire at Newburgh. It is plainly dis- cernable from the deck of a steamer upon the Hudson and may be thus seen by the passing traveller. Long may this classic spot be sacred from the approach of the Destroyer !
t This indication of popular feeling probably grew out of the opposi- tion made by the Philadelphians to Washington's going into winter quarters during the inclement winter of '?7-'?8.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 121
at the hospitable mansion of Mrs. Barry, in New Jer* sey, a Ball was given by the hostess to signalize the arrival of the wife of her illustrious guest. When the well known chariot of " Lady Washington," with her coachman and postillion in their neat white and scarlet liveries arrived at her door, and Mrs. Barry saw a female alight, dressed in a simple u russet gown" with a " white handkerchief neatly folded over her neck," she was surprised to perceive the Hero- Chief advance to receive her, and to learn that this unostentatious stranger was none other than " Lady Washington !" The first salutations over (so runs the history) the General proceeded to make enqui- ries respecting the well-being of his favorite carriage- horses, and concluded the pleasures of the day, by treading — for the first time in a very long while — a minuet at the Ball!
This, at that time, a very frequent and favorite mode of celebrating a joyful occasion was also adopted on the Anniversary of the National Alliance with France.
" The entertainment was given in the Camp near Middlebrook. On this festive occasion Mrs. Wash- ington, Mrs. Greene and Mrs. Knox, and the wives of several officers were present ; and a circle of brilliants, the least of which, was more valuable than the stone which the King of Portugal received from his Bra- zilian possessions. The ladies and gentleman from a large circle around the camp, attended the celebra- tion. It was opened by a discharge of cannon : and 6
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dinner was served in a building used for an academy. There was dancing in the evening, and a grand dis- play of fire-works. The Ball was opened by General Washington. As this was a festival given by men who had not enriched themselves by the war, the illu- minations were on a cheap scale, being entirely of their own manufacture ; the seats were adorned with no ar- morial blazonry, but were the work of native and rather unskillful artizans. Instead of knights of dif- ferent orders, such as pageants like the Mischianza could boast, there were but hardy soldiers ; happy, however, in the consciousness that they had contribu- ted to bring about the auspicious event they had met to celebrate."*
If sometimes subjected to unmerited neglect in her own country, indications were not wanting of the respect and regard entertained for Mrs. Washington abroad. Some ladies who came from New York to the American Camp, at one time, when it was fixed near that city, reported that a vessel which had been captured and brought into port, had on board a pres- ent from the Queen of France to Mrs. Washington, which was designed to manifest her interest in that la- dy, and to serve as " an elegant testimonial of her ap- probation of the General's conduct." The Marquis de La Fayette was requested by Washington to make enquiries, through the Marchioness, at Versailles, re- specting this somewhat interesting matter, but we are
•Remembrancer, Vol. VI.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 123
unable to gratify our readers by relating the result of the investigation.
Scenes and incidents like these, occasionally re- lieved, for a brief space, the weight of care and solici- tude that, despite her apparent cheerfulness and tran- quility, long rested upon the mind of this magnanimous and patriotic American Matron.
Mrs. Washington's mental firmness and constancy of purpose, were, more than once during the struggle of the Revolution, severely tested by the illness of her husband, who, taxed both in body and mind beyond the power of human endurance, was on several occa- sions constrained to resign himself wholly to her gen- tle and efficacious ministrations.
Occurrences and alarms similar to those which form the subject of the following Letter, not unfre- quently united with her apprehensions respecting the health of her husband to disturb the mental quietude of this exemplary wife : —
" Trenton, April 11th, 1781. " Dear Sir :—
" I was told a few days ago by a man who had made his escape from New York, after having been thirteen months a prisoner with the enemy, that I might depend upon it there were four parties out to take or assassinate General Washington, your Excellency, me, and a fourth person, whose name he did not hear, or
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had forgot. As I frequently receive accounts of this kind of expedition against myself, which sometimes prove true and sometimes otherwise, I paid no great attention to the man's report. I yesterday received a letter from General Washington, dated the 8th instant, in which there is this paragraph : — ' Intelligence has been sent me by a gentleman living near the enemy's lines, and who has an opportunity of knowing what passes among them, that four parties had been sent out with orders to take or assassinate your Excellency, Governor Clinton, me, and a fourth person, name not known.'
" It seems therefore, highly probable that the gentle- man whose name my informant did not remember, was Governor Clinton, and the gentleman whose name was not transmitted to General Washington, is your Excellency.
" This confirmation of my intelligence gives the mat- ter so serious an aspect that I think it my duty to ad- vise your Excellency of what has come to my knowl- edge, that you may take such precautions on the occa- sion as appear to you necessary. I have the honor to be, with the greatest esteem,
Dear Sir, your Excellency's
Most humble, &c, W. Livingston."*
In addition to trials thus peculiarly severe, Mrs. Washington's own health was, not unfrequently, seri-
*From Gov. Livingston to President Reed.— "Life and Correspon- dence of President Reed,'' Vol. 2, 337.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 125
ously impaired by the hardships of her mode of life in the camp. She had, during one winter, the fortitude to submit to the imperative ordeal of being inocula- ted for the small pox, — the popular course in the then imperfect state of medical science — rathar than to se- cure safety in distance from the immediate scene of the ravages of that appalling malady.
The personal appearance of Mrs. Washington, at this meridian period of her life, is thus described by one of her friends : — " She is about forty, or five and forty, rather plump, but fresh and of an agreeable countenance."
Time rolled on. The diligent industry of the mis- tress of Mount Vernon, the society of her daughter- in-law* and of the little prattlers who now began to claim her care and affection, together with her exten- sive correspondence and the never-ceasing duties of hospitality, combined to beguile the tedium of her an- nual separations from her almost idolized " chief;" and her winters continued to pass as they had invaria- bly done since the commencement of the Revolution.
Faint streakings of the morning light destined to break into the effulgence of an all-glorious day, be- gan at length to cheer the friends and defenders of Lib- erty, and the self-sacrificing Wife of the immortal
*The marriage of Colonel Custis occurred previous to, or about the time of the commencement of the Revolution, as we learn from Mr. Sparks, that her daughter-in-law accompanied Mrs. Washington to Cam- bridge in 1775. Though we may not enter the sacred precincts of pri- vate life in search of details respecting this event, none will question th« interest with which it was invested for so affectionate a mother as Mrs. Washington.
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Soldier of America rejoiced, with noble exultation, in the anticipated consummation of a Nation's free- dom, achieved by him ! Visions of domestic felicity once more delighted her mental gaze — visions of a blissful re-union with each member of her now scat- tered family, at home, in their beloved Mount Vernon, not one link wanting in the golden circlet of love, each face radiant with happiness, each heart overflowing with gratitude and affection !
" Joy quickens her pulse, all her hardships seem o'er* And the voices of lov'd ones reply to her call !"
Alas, for the vanity of all human expectations ! An impenetrable pall was fated suddenly to shroud from her eagerly-expectant eyes alike the triumphant success of her husband, and the dawning glory of her country.
What were all earthly honors and triumphs to a mother abruptly summoned to attend the last hours of her only remaining child ! — the pride and joy of her tender and loving heart, stricken down, — not victor- crowned and dying for his country on the field of fame, — but the victim of insidious disease !
Colonel Custis had, from the commencement of the Revolutionary struggle, attached himself to the for- tunes of his country and participated, as one of the Aids-de-Camp of his step-father, in the dangers, efforts and trials of that eventful contest. While engaged in his military duties during the siege of Yorktown, he was attacked by the malignant fever then raging in
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 127
the British camp, and, after enjoying the high satisfac- tion of beholding the surrender of Lord Cornwallis, was immediately removed, under the superintending care of a kind and valued family friend, Dr. Craik, the Chief of the American Medical staff, to Eltham, in New Kent.
Thither, when informed of his alarming condition, Mrs. Washington flew on the wings of tortured affec- tion.
For the victorious American Chief, too, the cup of joyful thanksgiving was deeply tinctured with bitterness. — " Providence left him childless that he might be the father of his country ,"* but he was strongly attached to this his almostrson, so long and so affectionately associated with him in the closest per- sonal and official relations. He was no sooner aware of the increasing illness of Colonel Custis, than he "privately left the camp before Yorktown, while it yet rang with the shouts of victory, and, attended by a single officer, rode with all speed to Eltham."
Day was dawning upon the dimmed eyes of the ag- onized watchers by the bedside of the expiring sufferer, when Dr. Craik was requested to attend the Com- mander-in-Chief, who had just arrived.
Washington inquired whether there was any reason to hope for Colonel Custis' recovery. When the phy- sician sadly intimated that all was nearly over, the sorrowing pater patrice, retiring to a solitary apart-
* This exquisite atticism appeared originally in the form of a toast giv- en at a public dinner, but the writer is not so fortunate as to know tho name of its felicitous author.
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ment threw himself upon a couch, overpowered by the most painful emotion.
When death had concluded the vigil of the anguish- stricken parent, her sympathizing husband sought her presence ; and these tender friends long mingled their grief together, ere the General-in-Chief, — nerving him- self to imperative effort and calmness, — returned to the world that claimed him, leaving the childless mother alone with her God !
CHAPTER VII.
In Duty's active round each day is past,
As if she thought each day might prove her last :
Her labors for devotion best prepare,
And meek Devotion smooths the brow of care.
Morb.
Where is the smile unfeign'd, the jovial welcome,
Which cheer'd the sad, beguil'd the pilgrim's pain,
And made Dependency forget its bonds ?
Where is the ancient, hospitable hall,
Whose vaulted roof once rung with harmless mirth,
Where every passing stranger was a guest,
And every guest a friend ?
More.
After the death of her son, which was, as we have seen, co-eval with the virtual termination of the War of the Revolution,* the cares and affections of Mrs. Washington, were centered more continuously than they had been for many previous years at Mount Ver- non, which was now the home of her widowed daugh- ter-in-law and her four little grand-children, who be- came, thenceforth, the objects of her especial attention and solicitude.
♦Oct., 1781.
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It was now the chief delight and blessing of her bereaved and affectionate heart to
" hear the gladsome sound
Of infant voices sweet, The gush of fairy laughter, Or the tread of tiny feet."
In addition to the dear and interesting companions who were added permanently to the members of her household, Mrs. Washington continued, as she had hitherto done, when at Mount Vernon during the warmer months of the year, to gather around her those other family friends and connections who had long partaken her hospitality. Sorrow had never the effect to render her selfish ; nor did she now forget what was due in this respect to her husband, as well as to her own personal obligations and attachments. But she was, of course, altogether disinclined to participate in the public rejoicings and festivities in which the Ee- publican Commander-in-Chief, was compelled by his public station to take part.
It was not until after the formal conclusion of the Treaty of Peace in 1783, that the multiplied domes- tic occupations and responsibilities so long resting upon Mrs. Washington, were again shared by her husband.
His public duties resigned at last, and the pain of the pathetic and sublime scene of his final parting with his beloved companions in arms encountered and passed, Mrs. Washington proceeded as far as Anapo-
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 131
lis' to meet the retiring Cincinnatus, and they returned together to the peaceful retreat from which so many revolving years, and so many momentous occurrences had separated its illustrious master.
It was on the eve of the great Jubilee of Christen- dom, that Washington, " an older man," — to use his own expressive words, — "by nine years than when he left them," once more crossed his ownthresh- hold, and, beside his own hearth-stone, hailed the wel- come joys of Home ! " The scene is at length closed," said the august Father of his Country, " I feel my- self eased of a load of public care, and hope to spend the remainder of my days in cultivating the affections of good men and in the practice of domestic vir- tues!"
We leave our readers to imagine the glad enthusi- asm that expressed the general delight of relatives, friends and dependents, at the long-looked-for arrival of this grand epoch in the family history of the in- mates of Mount Vernon ; and the more quiet, but not therefore, less heartfelt enjoyment and gratitude of Mrs. Washington, on that happy Christmas Day, when a double zest was lent, each to the other, by the com- bined pleasures of gratified affection and fervent de- votion.— The soul of a religious being, when thus blessed, must ever
" take Devotion's wing ;
And, like the bird that hails the sun, Far soar towards Heaven I"
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This sincere and devout Christian had too long and too unceasingly been accustomed to bear both her joys and griefs to the Cross of the Redeemer, not now to unite
" the cup of thanksgiving with her sorrowful
[tears !"
The following pleasing sketch* of the mode of life contemplated with cordial anticipations of gratification by the Hero of America, upon his return to Mount Vernon, will also, serve as a correct portraiture of the tastes and wishes of his amiable home-companion : —
" At length, my dear Marquis, I am become a pri- vate citizen on the banks of the Potomac ; and under the shadow of my own vine and fig-tree, 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 coun- tries, 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. I have not only retired from all public employments, but I am retiring within myself, and shall be able to view the solitary walk, and tread the paths of private life with a heart-
* Extracted from a Letter -written by Washington to La Fayette, Feb 1, 1784.— Sparks' •'• Writings of Washington," Vol. IX, 17.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 133
felt satisfaction. 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."
Once thoroughly re-established in the beloved home of their earlier, and happy years, Gen. and Mrs. Wash- ington assiduously turned their attention to the enlarge- ment of the family mansion, which still retained its original size, and to the further improvement and adornment of the adjoining grounds and gardens, all of which soon gave token of the taste, skill and indus- try of both.*
Apart from these agreeable incidental employments Mrs. Washington found ample occupation in the charge of a large household, which was constantly augmented by the addition of numerous guests.
The following Letter furnishes pleasing proof of the thoughtful and sympathizing kindness with which her ever-considerate husband sought to relieve the mis- tress of Mount Yernon, at least in part, from the onerous labors of housekeeping : —
" Mount Vernon, 7th Sept., 1785. " Sir :—
As no person can judge better of the qualifications necessary to constitute a good housekeeper, or house-
* At this time the approach to this celebrated residence was through three successive miles of uninterupted forest.
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hold steward, than yourself, for a family which has a good deal of company, and wishes to entertain them in a plain, but genteel style, I take the liberty of ask- ing you, if there is any such one within your reach, whom you think could be induced to come to me on reasonable wases. I would rather have a man than a woman, but either will do, if they can be recommended for their honesty, sobriety, and knowledge of their profession ; which, in one word, is to relieve Mrs. Washington from the drudgery of ordering, and seeing the table properly covered, and things economically used, &c, &c."
Despite the assistance she received from others, however, Mrs. Washington's employments and duties were many and important ; and it was only by habit- ually systematising all her arrangements and occupa- tions that she was enabled to accomplish a personal superintendence of the various engagements of each successive day.
Continuing to rise, invariably, with the sun, as had always been her habit, she industriously devoted several hours to her domestic affairs, thus securing lei- sure for social enjoyments and for attention to other avocations without the neglect of household duties.
In the well-regulated mind of this disciplined and exemplary woman, each detail of daily life and habit found suitable attention. This was true even with reference to the exquisite neatness of her dress, which though always entirely simple, was regarded as a model of refinement and propriety by her female friends.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 135
Carrying her keys at her side and making frequent visits to the various apartments connected with the elaborate arrangements of the table and its " aids and appliances," the spotless purity of her attire always remained unsullied by her active participation in the mysteries of each and all.
The direction and government of her servants, too, illustrated both the judgment and kindness of this admirable mistress. Prompt, regular and industrious herself, she required like characteristics in those about her ; but she tempered wholesome restraint by benev- olent and sympathizing interest in whatever related to their collective or individual good ; and, in addition to its many other attractions, the home of Mrs. Wash- ington was celebrated for the superior excellence of its domestics.
It is recorded of this devout Christian, that never during her life, whether in prosperity or in adversity, did she omit that daily self-communion and self-exam- ination and those private devotional exercises, which would best prepare her for the self-control and self- denial by which she was, for more than half a cen- tury, so eminently distinguished. It was her habit to retire to her own apartment every morning after break- fast, there to devote an hour to solitary prayer and meditation.
Prominent among the multitudinous occupations of Mrs. Washington, were those connected with the varying but incessant requisitions of hospitality. She had always been remarked for the ease and elegance
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of her manners, and long practice in the graceful courtesies of the table had served to perfect her conversational powers ; so that when again resuming these agreeable duties with her present advantages of place and position, she conducted the ceremonies of her ample and bountiful board with peculiar affability and self-possession, and led the conversation with sin- gular felicity to subjects most congenial to the tastes and familiar to the minds of all. Each varying theme was invested with attractiveness by her amiability and good-sense ; each guest seemed the object of her especial care and attention. And as her husband was habitually taciturn and abstracted, this happy tact and this gentle womanly politeness were particularly appropriate and necessary on the part of the hostess of Mount Vernon.
It will readily be supposed that retirement and soli- tude were unknown to the inmates of the Home of Washington.
It was the pleasure of the now rusticated American Commander-in-Chief and of "Lady Washington" to repay with grateful interest, those tokens of friendship and politeness which had been exhibited towards them when both were, in some degree, the tests of unaf- fected and disinterested respect and regard.
Her valued female friends, — the heroic compeers of " Lady Washington" through long, dark years of struggle and suffering, — renewed their intercourse with her under auspices most pleasing to all parties. The venerated members of the first Congress ; the illus-
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 137
trious and time-honored Cincinnati; Washington's beloved companions in arms, — the faithful, though humble veterans of the well-fought fields of the Revo- lution ; old friends and new ; relations, connections and acquaintances, all " came trooping" to this shrine of Patriotism and Worth.
No distinguished foreigner who visited the new Land of Freedom, thought his tour complete without its including a pilgrimage to the home of the illustri- ous modern Cincinnatus. Many sought counsel and aid at his hands in the prosecution of objects of busi- ness, pleasure or philanthropy. Illustrative of this fact, there may be found among Washington's pub- lished Letters together with many others of a similar nature, several addressed about this time to the cele- brated Catharine Maccauley Graham ; who, during a prolonged visit at Mount Vernon, endeavored to secure the interest of her host in her benevolent, though somewhat Utopian schemes of usefulness, and with whom he politely continned, subsequently, for some time to correspond.
But among the numerous guests who, during this period of Mrs. Washington's life, claimed the hospi- talities of Mount Vernon, there were few whose arri- val was anticipated with more pleasure, or whose wel- come was more heart-felt, than that of the Marquis de La Fayette. There was, at one time, a hope enter- tained by his American friends that this celebrated Champion of Liberty would be accompanied by the Marchioness in his visit to this country soon after the
138 MEMOIR OF
termination of the War in which he had borne so con- spicuous a part. With this distinguished lady, Wash- ington long maintained the most cordial and pleasing correspondence, upon that, and kindred topics. Noth- ing could surpass the affectionate veneration with which both these amiable foreigners regarded their beloved " Hero." Their eldest son and daughter bore, severally, the names of Washington and of his native State ; and they long cherished the hope that he would, eventually, he enabled to fulfil a half-prom- ise to visit France with Mrs. Washington. The suc- ceeding passage from one of Washington's Letters to Madame de La Fayette will furnish the reasons that were deemed sufficient to prevent the gratification of this hospitable wish, and exemplify the cordiality with which the Marchioness was invited to Mount Vernon. 1 ' Mrs. Washington is highly honored by your par- ticipations, and feels very sensibly the force of your polite invitation to Paris ; but she is too far advanced in life, and too much interested in the care of her lit- tle progeny to cross the Atlantic. This, my dear Marchioness, (indulge the freedom,) is not the case with you. You have youth (and if you should not incline to bring your children, can leave them with all the advantages of education,) and must have a curi- osity to see the country, young, rude and uncultivated as it is, for the liberties of which your husband has fought, bled and acquired much glory, where every body admires, every body loves him. Come, then, let me entreat you, and call my cottage your
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 139
home j for your own doors do not open to you with more readiness than mine would. You will see the plain manner in which we live, and meet with rustic civility, and you shall taste the simplicity of rural life. It will diversify the scene, and may give a higher relish for the gayeties of the court, when you return to Versailles. In these wishes, and in most respectful compliments, Mrs. Washington joins me. With sentiments of strong attachment, and very great regard, I have the honor to be, madam, &c."*
In the mean while La Fayette returned, tempora- rily to the country of his adoption, though without the Marchioness ; and upon his arrival hastened directly to the presence of his dearest American friends. He passed a long-remembered fortnight of such happiness as rarely falls to the lot of mortals with his almost parental host and hostess at Mount Yernon, before commencing his general tour to the North, and returned again for another week of delightful inter- course with them, before his departure for his native land.
Nor was it by those alone who were so fortunate as to be able personally to pay their respects to Mrs. Wash- ington, that she was gratefully and affectionately remem- bered long after she ceased to spend a portion of each year in intimate association with the martial compan-
* For some highly interesting Letters in which this subject is alluded to as well as for a strongly characteristic and most pleasing Epistle ad- dressed by Washington to the little Virginia de La Fayette, our readers are referred to Mr. Sparks' invaluable collection of the " Private Letters" of that great man.
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ions of the Republican Commander-in-Chief. Thus, we find proofs of the kindly recollections ever cher- ished for her by the Count cle Eochambeau; and records of the complimentary and oft-recurring mes- sages of regard exchanged with him through her hus- band. So too, with Gen. Knox and innumerable oth- ers of their mutual friends.
"We frequently discover traces of the prolonged con- tinuance of much pleasing and friendly epistolary intercourse not only with these gentlemen but with the ladies of their several families — of an interchange of the most cordial invitations, messages, &c, &c. In- deed the " Miscellaneous Correspondence" of Wash- ington abounds with these incidental testimonials to the high appreciation entertained by her friends of the many and exalted excellencies of this celebrated lady, as well as with unequivocal manifestations of the unchanging interest and affection with which her hus- band constantly associated her with himself in all the various enjoyments and courtesies of social and domes- tic life.*
But agreeable and engrossing; as were the engage- ments and enjoyments we have attempted faintly to delineate, they were far from occupying the attention of either Mrs. Washington or her husband to the ex- clusion of more important moral obligations.
* We are constrained to refer to the Letters of Washington for proofs and illustrations of our statements in.relation to this interesting subject, because little of the correspondence of Mrs. Washington is extant, or at least, attainable for publication.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 141
After the nine years of Washington's unbroken absence and of the very frequent and protracted de- partures of Mrs. Washington from home, and in the un- settled state of all private as well as public affairs, it is not remarkable that both should deem it important, for the sake of those dependent upon them, if not for their own personal advantage, that strict order and method should be instituted in all matters appertaining to individual and household expenditure. But what- ever necessity arose for curtailment in the pecuniary arrangements of this truly conscientious and estimable pair, was made to fall, not upon their benevolent and charitable resources, but upon their powers of self-de- nial in matters of luxurious indulgence or personal convenience. Thus, though Washington at one time uncompromisingly countermanded an order for sil- ver plate previously given, through the Marquis de La Fayette to his Parisian agents, when he thought, upon a farther investigation of his affairs, that he could not conveniently meet the necessary expense and con- tinue his other outlays, he, about the same time, gave the sum of £1000 to the Academy at Alexandria, and made the most kind and generous provision for an un- fortunate connection who sought his aid !
To obligations like these, and to objects and designs of a similar nature, all considerations of less moral im- portance were systematically and habitually made sub- servient. United in the most faithful, cheerful and en- lightened regard for the requisitions of philanthropy, the necessities of dependents and the promptings of
142 MEMOIR OP
beneficence, these congenial and exalted spirits found more genuine gratification in the unobtrusive charities that marked their mutual career, than all the pomp and luxury of a regal establishment could have yielded them.
Meanwhile the progress of National events — so im- portant, so intersting to all — engaged a share of the at- tention of one long and intimately connected with the most prominent actors in the affairs of her coun- try.
Mrs. Washington partook her husband's high pleas- ure in the early adoption of the Federal Constitution by her native State ; and, though now seldom tempted to leave home, probably participated with him in the public festivities by which their friends in the city of Alexandria were the first, to celebrate an occurrence so gratifying to the Patriot of Mount Vernon ; who thus briefly alludes to the expressive rejoicings elicited by the occasion, in a letter written immediately after his return home : — " The citizens of Alexandria when convened constituted the first public company in Amer- ica which had the pleasure of pouring a libation to the prosperity of the ten States that had actually adopted the General Government."*
Mrs. Washington was too true-hearted a daughter of the " Old Dominion," and too enlightened in her patriotism and philanthropy, not greatly to rejoice in the gradual development of the auspicious events by which the general good, not of her native country alone,
♦Letter to C. C. Pinkney, Esq., Mount Vernon, June 28, 3788.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 143
but of the whole civilized world, was destined to be so essentially and enduringly promoted.
Though now considerably past fifty years of age, and becoming somewhat portly in person, Mrs. Wash- ington's rational, healthful habits and the ceaseless in- fluence of the principles by which her life was habit- ually regulated, enabled her still to exhibit undimin- ished her characteristic activity, usefulness and cheer- fulness. As a wife, a parent, a mistress, a hostess, and a friend she was equally admirable, and a happy combination of the best qualities of each and all ! In short, Mrs. Washington was at this time, in manner, appearance, and character, the pleasing and graceful representative of a class of which the model is now, unfortunately lost — a Lady of the Olden Time! " She appeared to me," recorded an admiring visitor* who was, in the absence of her husband, the guest of Mrs. Washington during the period to which our nar- rative at present relates, " one of the best women in the world, and beloved by all about her. She *
* * * was surrounded by her grand-chil- dren and Mrs. Custis, her son's widow."
The fairy forms and playful sports of the youthful inmates alluded to in this brief but expressive eulo- gium, were long the admiration of every visitor at Mount Vernon, as they were the pride and delight of its amiable mistress, whose judicious advice and assis- tance materially aided their mother in conducting their education. Deeply impressed with the impor-
*The Marquis de Chastellux.
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tance of this grateful task, Mrs. Washington regular- ly devoted much time and attention to these favored recipients of her love and care, and her husband formally adopted one of the three little daughters of Mrs. Custis as his own.
With this general and imperfect description of the peaceful and congenial pleasures and employments of a delightful and fleeting portion of the existence of our heroine, — a period replete with exemplifications of the happy fate we have before ascribed to her, that of being ever surrounded by a glowing halo of affection, — we release our readers from further attention to this portion of our subject.
CHAPTER VIII.
Must I thus leave thee, Paradise ? Thus leave Thee, native soil, these happy walks and shades Fit haunt of gods?
Miltcx.
The World is with me, and its many cares,
Its woes — its wants — the anxious hopes and fears
That wait on all terrestrial affairs —
The shades of former and of future years —
Foreboding fancies, and prophetic tears,
Quelling a spirit that was once elate.
Hood.
Tiie time too soon arrived when his ever sacred duty to his country compelled the illustrious Farmer of Mount Vernon to peril his mental and domestic peace, as he had formerly done his "life, his fortune, and his sacred honor," by leaving the delightful retreat in which he had earnestly hoped to secure future exemp- tion from the burdensome public duties to which he had devoted so large a portion of his past life.
Mrs. Washington's reluctance to leave, for gayer and more ceremonious scenes, the quiet pleasures and congenial pursuits from which she derived so much gratification, as well as her sentiments in relation to other equally interesting subjects, will be most satis-
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factorily learned from a Letter addressed by her, soon after her arrival at the Seat of Government, to an old and confidential friend : —
Mrs. "Washington to Mrs. Warren.
"Your very friendly letter of last month has af- forded me much more satisfaction, than all the formal compliments and empty ceremonies of mere etiquette could possibly have done. I am not apt to forget the feelings which have been inspired by my former society with good acquaintances, nor to be insensible to their expressions of gratitude to the President ; for you know me well enough to do me the justice to believe, that I am fond only of what comes from the heart. Under a conviction that the demonstrations of respect and affection to him originate in that source, I cannot deny, that I have taken some interest and pleasure in them. The difficulties which presented themselves to view upon his first entering upon the Presidency, seem thus to be in some measure surmounted. It is ow- in2; to the kindness of our numerous friends in all quarters, that my new and unwished-for situation is not indeed a burden to me. When I was much younger, I should probably have enjoyed the innocent gayeties of life as much as most persons of my age ; but I had long since placed all the prospects of my future worldly happiness in the still enjoyments of the fire- side at Mount Vernon.
" I little thought when the war was finished, that
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 147
any circumstances could possibly happen, which would call the G-eneral into public life again. I had antici- pated, that from that moment we should be suffered to grow old together in solitude and tranquility. That was the first aud dearest wish of my heart. I will not, however, contemplate with too much regret, disap- pointments, that were inevitable, though his feelings and my own were in perfect unison with respect to our prediliction for private life, yet I cannot blame him for having acted according to his ideas of duty in obey- ing the voice of his country. The consciousness of having attempted to do all the good in his power, and the pleasure of finding his fellow-citizens so well satisfied with the disinterestedness of his conduct, will doubtless be some compensation for the great sacrifices which I know he has made. Indeed, on his journey from Mount Vernon to this place, in his late tour through the Eastern States, by every public and every private information which has come to him, I am persuaded he has experienced nothing to make him repent his hav- ing acted from what he conceives to be a sense of in- dispensible duty. On the contrary, all his sensibility has been awakened in receiving such repeated and une- quivocal proofs of sincere regard from his country- men.
" With respect to myself, I sometimes think the arrangement is not quite as it ought to have been, that I, who had much rather be at home, should occupy a place, with which a great many younger and gayer women would be extremely pleased. As my grand-
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MEMOIR OP
children and domestic connections make up a great portion of the felicity which I looked for in this world, I shall hardly be able to find any substitute, that will indemnify me for the loss of such endearing society. I do not say this because I feel dissatisfied with my present station, for everybody and everything conspire to make me as contented as possible in it ; yet I have learned too much of the vanity of human affairs to ex- pect felicity from the scenes of public life. I am still determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situa- tion I may be ; for I have also learned from experi- ence, that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions, and not on our circum- stances. We carry the seeds of the one or the other about with us in our minds, wherever we go.
I have two of my grand-children with me, who en- joy advantages in point of education, and who, I trust, by the goodness of Providence, will be a great blessing to me. My other two grand-children are with their mother in Virginia." — New York, December 26th, 1789.*
The subjoined passage from Mrs. Warren's reply to this highly engaging and expressive communication, truly indicates, as she herself intimates, the feelings of the numerous friends of the wife of the first Presi- dent : —
" Your observation may be true, that many younger and gayer ladies consider your situation as enviable ; yet I know not one, who, by general consent, would be
* Published by Mr. Sparks from the Original M. S.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 149
more likely to obtain the suffrages of the sex, even were they to canvass at election, for this elevated sta- tion, than the lady who now holds the first rank in the United States."
Our readers will not have failed to remark the unos- tentatious allusion contained in Mrs. Washington's Letter to the scenes and adventures of the journey of the President elect from Mount Vernon to New York j* and all will remember the peculiar incidents of that triumphal progress — unrivalled as it is in the lives of the Kings and Conquerors of the World !
Every generous heart will beat in unison with the delightful emotions that must have glowed in the bo- som of the Patriot Wife while witnessing the sponta- neous manifestations of enthusiastic gratitude and rev- erence with which the immortal Savior of his Coun- try was everywhere hailed, from the time of his de- parture from home to the auspicious hour of his im- posing and august inauguration. The glorious ceremo- nial at the Bridge of Trenton has no parallel in all history for its deep pathos and moral sublimity. It drew tears even from eyes ' ' unused to the melting mood" — those of the imperturable "Defender of the
*Some of our readers may have forgotten that the first organization of the Federal Government, (April, 1789) took place at New York. Phil- adelphia was afterwards the seat of the General Government It was not until the year 1791 that the present location was selected by^WASH- ington, to whom that duty was formally delegated by his countrymen. Thus, then, Mrs Washington passed the first year of the Presidency of her husband at New York, the second at Philadelphia, and the remain- ing six at the present National Capitol.
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Mothers" and "Protector of the Daughters" of Amer- ica.
Words poorly avail to tell the pure aud exalted hap- piness of the Wife of Washington, when partici- pating with him in joys so little alloyed by the dross of earth ! In pleasures like these she received a high remuneration for the sacrifice of personal tastes and wishes involved in her chanere of residence and
o
position.
We behold this estimable, exemplary and gifted woman assuming the obligations and responsibilities of her novel and exalted station, with the same ease and grace, the same self-possession and serenity, the same ready self-adaptation and feminine tact that had clis tinguished her in every previous phase of her varied and eventful career.
When deciding, for the first time, upon the exter- nal manifestations, so to speak, of public order and system, the authority of law and the reality of Na- tional Independence, policy and propriety equally de- manded that the visible tokens of each should be suffi- ciently imposing to impress the popular mind and ex- act respect from all observers. Hence the prominence given to the mere insignia and appendages of power.
In accordance with this judicious design, the Man- sion of the First President of the new Republic was furnished with stately elegance, and the daily routine of its arrangements was conducted with much more elaborate observance of the requisitions of courtly eti-
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 151
quette than is now required either by popular taste or political necessity.*
The Levees of Mrs. AVasliington were held on Fri- day evening of each week ; those of the President on each Tuesday, from three to four o'clocli. The " Con- gressional dinners" occurred on Thursday.
The company, on the occasion of Mrs. Washing- ton's Levees, assembled at an early hour and usually retired at a little past ten.f The Ladies were seated and the President was accustomed to address some ap- propriate remarks to each, in turn, as he passed round
* The principal servants connected with the Presidential establishment wore the family livery — white with red collars and cuffs. The chariot in which President Washington performed his celebrated tour through the United States, was also white. This was probably the color cf the car- riage in which Mrs. Washington made visits of ceremony in New York and Philadelphia. The horses of the President were noted for their great beauty and value. Those used by Mrs. Washington were bays. The chief domestics of the household were a steward, housekeeper, por- ter, coachman and cook. The former and latter were personages dii tin- guished by family tradition. Francis, the steward, wore, -when in his official post at the sideboard, during the state dinners, silk small clothes, white silk stockings, and his hair elaborately dressed and powdered ! It was the pride and business of his life to contribute his full share towards sustaining the dignity and consequence of the family he had the lienor to serve, through the most ostentatious display permitted by the n - iug supervision of his methodical and judicious master. Hercules, the colored cook, was one of the most finished and renowned dandies of the age in which he nourished, as well as a highly accomplished adept in 'he mysteries of the important art he so long and so diligently practiced.
t The author remembers to have somewhere read, (though upon what authority the statement was based, she cannot now recall) that, as the usual hour of separation drew near, the expre;sive air cf "Home, sweet Home," not unfrequently saluted the ears of the assemblage; arc1, that Mrs. Washington was wont sometimes quietly to remark that the Gen- eral retired at half past ten !
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the circle. At these drawing-rooms Mrs. Robert Mor- ris always occupied the seat at the right hand of the Lady of the Mansion.
We have no means of describing the dress worn by Mrs. Washington during her receptions; but we know that the etiquette of the day required that all gentlemen who attended the drawing-rooms of the Na- tional Chief Magistrate should appear in full dress ; and we infer that there was not less ceremony observed by both ladies and gentlemen at the Levees of Mrs. Washington. The costume of the President at his own Levees, (and probably at those of Mrs. Washing- ton also,) was black velvet, with a dress sword, a chapeau de bras adorned with a cockade and fringed with short black feathers, knee and shoe buckles, and orange colored gloves ; his hair, of course, powdered, and " gathered behind in a silk bag." There were no seats in the apartment where the President stood, with his Secretaries and other attendants, to recieve his guests, on these State Days. Visitors advanced in succession, paid their respects to the Head of the Pie- public and were addressed by him in return ; but the President offered his hand to no one.
At all the dinners given by the Republican Chief Magistrate, the venerable Robert Morris, took prece- dence of every other guest, invariably conducted Mrs. Washington and sat at her right hand.
" On the great National festivals of the Fourth of July and Twenty-second of February, the sages of the Revolutionary Congress and the officers of the
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 153
Revolutionary Army renewed their acquaintance with Mrs. Washington ; many and kindly greetings took place, with many a recollection of the days of trial. The Cincinnati, after paying their respects to their Chief, were seen to file off towards the parlor, where " Lady Washington" was in waiting to receive them, and where Wayne, and Mifflin, and Dickenson, and Stewart, and Moylan, and Hartley, and a host of vet- erans, were cordially welcomed as old friends, and where many an interesting reminiscence was called up, of the head-quarters and the "times of the Revolu- tion."
On the National fete days, the commencement of the Levee was announced by the firing of a salute from a pair of twelve pounders, stationed not far dis- tant from the Presidential Mansion; and the ex-Com- mander-in-Chief paid his former companions in arms the compliment to wear the old Continental uniform.
It was customary for the gentlemen officially con- nected with the family of the President to receive the ladies who came to pay their respects to Mrs. Wash- ington, and attend them from their carriages to her presence ; but Washington himself performed that service when the venerated widows of the beloved and lamented Greene and Montgomery called at the Pres- idential Mansion.
Visitors were not received either by the President or Mrs. Washington on the Sabbath. They habitually attended divine service during the day and in the eve- ning her husband read from the Bible, or some other
7*
154 MEMOIR OP
devotional book, to Mrs. Washington in her own apart- ment.
" There was one description of visitors, however, to be fonnd about the first President's Mansion on all days. The old soldiers repaired, as they said, to head quarters, just to inquire after the health of his Ex- cellency and Lady Washington. They knew his Ex- cellency was, of course, much engaged; but they would like to see the good lacly. One had been a soldier of the Life Guard ; another had been on duty when the British threatened to surprise the head-quar- ters ; a third had witnessed that terrible fellow, Corn- wallis, surrender his sword ; each one had some touch- ing appeal, with which he introduced himself to the peaceful head-quarters of the presidoliad. All were 41 kindly bid to stay," were conducted to the steward's apartments, and refreshments set before them ; and, after receiving some little token from the lady, with her best wishes for the health and happiness of an old soldier, they went their ways, while blessings upon their revered Commander and the good Lady Wash- ington, were uttered by many a war-worn veteran of the Revolution."*
In her new and interesting position as the wife of the first President of the American Republic, Mrs. Washington continued to be distinguished by the quiet
* Perhaps some of our readers may be disposed to ascribe puerUitij to the minuteness of our details in relation to the peculiarities of Mrs. Washington's present mode of life. The author hopes, nevertheless, to afford passing entertainment to others whose taste for antiquarian re- search may be, perhaps, in some degree gratified.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 155
good breeding, dignified simplicity, self-possession and equanimity for which she had long been remark- able. She received the respect, the compliments and the honors rendered to her high station without the assumption of undue self-importance, and without the affectation of inappropriate humility. She presided at her elegant and bountiful table with the same cour- teous ease and kindly affability that formerly shed an almost inimitable charm over the hospitalities of Mount Vernon ; and continued, as before, to lead the conversation on such occasions, to subjects suited to the innocent conviviality of the hour.*
Her beloved grand-children continued to engage the affections and enjoy the society and attention of Mrs. Washington, not only when she was comparatively at leisure in the retirement of Mount Vernon, but when residing at the seat of Government and involved in the formal routine of public life. The eldest of this little band were now rapidly becoming interesting so- cial companions for the paternal guide to whom they were so much indebted.
* Mrs. Washington possessed too much natural good-sense and too clear a perception of propriety to converse publicly upon subjects in- volving her husband's political interests or official policy. Foreign em- bassadors and strangers frequently attempted to draw her into a discus- sion of political topics ; but it was her invariable practice to waive all dis- course of this nature But, though it had never during her long public
career been the habit of Mrs. W. to give open expression to her political sentiments, no want of independence withheld their manifestation when circumstances required their promulgation. In the year 1780 an Address was published in the Philadelphia newspapers, entitled " The Sentiments of an American Woman" which was attributed to her! and which was publicly read in the Churches throughout Virginia.
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This disinterested friend did not, however avail her- self of the opportunities afforded by her exalted posi- tion to secure either personal aggrandizement, or the exclusive benefit of her own family. The daughters of her old and well-remembered Revolutionary compan- ions shared with her grand-children in the high social advantages it was now in her power to afford them ; and all to whom she was bound by the cherished ties of former years, received the most convincing proofs of the perpetuity of a friendship that was ever equally thoughtful, active and sincere, whether engendered by the clinging tendencies of a youthful heart, fos- tered amid the snow-thatched hovels of Valley Forge, enshrined beneath the hospitable roof of Mount Ver- non, or lending interest, grace and warmth to the stately courtesies of the National Capitol !
During each year of the double Presidential term of office, Mrs. Washington returned, for at least a portion of the summer, to Mount Vernon. Indeed the health of her husband, impaired by his too arduous labors, soon imperatively required that temporary ex- emption from bodily fatigue and mental exertion, which he could there alone secure, as well as the watchful care she could so judiciously and affectionately be- stow.
There is no record of Mrs. Washington's having ac- companied the President in his journey to New En cr- land, during the year following that of his election to the Chief Magistracy ; nor of her being the compan- ion of his long and well-known tour in the year 1791.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 157
We, therefore, infer that she preferred the repose and seclusion which she could best enjoy in her favorite retreat, surrounded by household companions who might almost be said to impersonate the Penates of Mount Vernon.
Devoted to the varied and important duties of her high station, eight successive years sped away in pleas- ures and occupations, which, if not those most congenial to the conjugal, maternal and domestic tastes and affec- tions of this eminent American Matron, were yet crowned by the grateful consciousness of usefulness and the high approbation of that mental guide to the test of whose scrutinizing arbitration she was wont to submit each thought, word and action of her life.
The final departure of President and Mrs. "Wash- ington from the place and power through which they had acquired so much personal honor, and conferred such lasting benefit upon their country, was distin- guished by every manifestation of national and indi- vidual reverence and gratitude.
All mourned the retirement of the great and good Father of his Country from the immediate supervision to which all might so safely and implicitly trust ; and the love and blessings of a nation followed both Mrs. Washington and its honored Chief to the well-earned tranquility of private life.
Many were the tender farewells of those who were to be forever officially separated, and many the parting tokens of remembrance and affection long preserved as the sacred mementoes of those patriarchal days.
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Mrs. Washington's part in these touching aclieux will be characteristically illustrated by the following pleasing anecdote, for which we are obliged to a gentle- man who personally received it from the most authentic source : —
" On leaving the Seat of Government after the in- auguration of his successor, Washington presented to all his principal officers some token of regard. When Mrs. Oliver Wolcott, the wife of one of these gentle- men and the particular friend and correspondent of Miss Custis, called ' to take leave,' Mrs. Washington asked if she did not wish a memorial of the General. ' Yes,' replied Mrs. Wolcott, ' I should like a lock of his hair.' Mrs. Washington instantly took her scissors, and with a happy smile, cut a large lock from her husband's head, added to it one from her own, and presented them to her fair friend."
CHAPTER IX.
And a vision of happiness steals through her rest —
Dimoxd-
Oase, then, the funeral strain !— Lament no more, "Whom, rife for fate, 'twere impious to deplore ! He died the death of glory. Cease to mourn. And cries of grief to songs of triumph turn'. Ah, no ! — Awhile, ere reason's voice o'erpowers The fond regret that weeps a loss like ours,
Yet, yet awhile, the natural tear may flow, Nor cold reflection chide the chastening woe !
Scott.
Yes, there is pain in this Most passionate longing to o'erreach the clay— This exile-thirst, which stronger grows each day To take the morning-wings and flee away To realms of future bliss.
Mks. E. J. Eames.
Relieved, at last, from the irksomeness of elabo- rate ceremony and the time-engrossing duties of a public station, the illustrious Subject of our Memoir returned permanently; in the Spring of 1797, to the earnestly-coveted and peaceful enjoyments of the
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home from which she had so often and so long been exiled.
Never had that home seemed so worthy to be graced by the continued presence of its gentle and admirable mistress. The walks, the gardens, the grounds, the venerable mansion, all gave most pleasing token of the refined taste and careful supervision of the beneficent spirits who shed everywhere around them so benign an influence.
But, though the effects of their previous efforts were so plainly cliscernable, General and Mrs. Wash- ington entered, with much zeal and interest, upon pro- jects for the further improvement and embellishment of the intended asylum of their declining years.
And now these faithful votaries of nature, these un- affected lovers of all the thousand nameless joys that constitute the sacred charm of Home, contemplated with exquisite pleasure the calm vista through which they could at last trace their mutual pathway along the vale of time. A temperate enjoyment of the lux- uries afforded by affluence, the affectionate reverence of dependents and relations, the exalted pleasures of friendship, the heavenly delights of benevolence, the joys of conjugal love — all these sources of happiness were theirs !
" And memory stood side-wise, half covered -with
[flowers, Displaying each rose, but secreting its thorn,"
while recalling the many varying incidents of long
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 161
years of higb. duty and successful effort, of well-re- warded self-sacrifice and eventual triumph !
Such were the natural and appropriate rewards that crowned a life so useful, so virtuous, so exalted as that which it has been our desire to sketch in these brief pages! Unfettered by the " irons of circumstance," through each changing scene of her eventful career, Mrs. Washington had been faithful to the dictates of a noble nature, disciplined and controlled by Christian principle. Yielding to no selfish, effeminate love of the dolce far niente of existence, nor yet to the in- sidious promptings of worldly ambition, but ever " true to the kindred points of Heaven and Home" she had passed unfalteringly on, scathed neither by the fierce lightnings of adversity, nor the dazzling splen- dors of place and power. The wordless eloquence ex- pressed by the serene majesty of her life, commends it- self to our hearts with far more resistless pathos than all the eulogies panegyrists could pronounce, or poet's pen ; and we turn from the contemplation of her char- acter with mingled emotions of admiration, affection and humility !
Felicity such as now blessed the venerable mistress of Mount Vernon partook too little of the usual attri- butes of human happiness to be perpetuated on earth. Two years after his final resignation of the cares of state, the immortal Washington was suddenly sum- moned to possess, in the revealed Presence of Deity,
" Through boundless Space and countless Time," the immutable bliss of a "just man made perfect" !
162 MEMOIR OF
Mrs. Washington never for a moment left the apart- ment of her husband during the brief and severe ill- ness that terminated his existence. Kneeling by his bed side, she bowed her throbbing brow upon the sa- cred Records of those Holy Promises and Consola- tions that could alone sustain her spirit in this the hour of her most agonizing trial.
"The last effort of the expiring Washington was worthy of the Roman fame of his life and character. He raised himself up, and casting a look of benignity on all around him, as if to thank them for their kindly attentions, he composed his limbs, closed his eyes, and folding his arms upon his bosom, the Fath- er of his Country expired, gently as though an infant died !" " Favored of Heaven, he 'departed without exhibiting the weakness of humanity ; magnanimous in death, the darkness of the grave could not obscure his brightness !"
Fate had now dealt the last deadly blow to the earthly happiness of Mrs. Yvrashiugton ! Her chil- dren, their father, the faithful, affectionate, symp- athizing friend and counsellor, with whom, through unnumbered years, she had stood side by side in many and grievous trials, dangers and sorrows, — all were gone ! The desolate survivor stood like a lone sentinel upon a deserted battle-field, regarding in mute despair the fatal destruction of hope, and love, and joy !
" She sheds no tears, her grief's too highly wrought : 'Tis speechless agony !"
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 1G3
Long did the heart-stricken mourner linger amid the familiar objects that, like the faces of old friends, eve- rywhere met her sorrowful eyes, and in the beloved presence of all that was mortal of the august Chris- tian Philosopher, to whose memory the apartment where he reposed would be forever consecrated. Yield- ing at last to the entreaties of affection, she turned along, soul-harrowing gaze upon the placid features of the mighty dead, and then departing from these hal- lowed precincts, never more returned to a spot replete with associations at once sorrowful and inviolate !
The shock occasioned by the- intelligence of the death of Washington "fell upon the country with the unexpected suddenness of an earthquake ; dismay and affliction suspended all business ; all ages and clas- ses united in demonstrations of respect and affection."
" By an arrangement with the Government, Mrs. Washington yielded the remains of the Chief to the prayers of the nation, as expressed through its repre- sentatives in Congress, conditioinng that, at her de- cease, her own remains should accompany those of her husband to the Capital. The earthly relics of the great Pater Patrije were then consigned to the Fam- ily Tomb within the grounds of Mount Vernon, there to await the final disposition of his country."*
" When the burst of grief which followed the death of the Pater Patrice had a little subsided, visits of condolence to the bereaved lady were made by the first personages of the land. The President of the
-National Portrait Gallery.
164 MEMOIR OF
United States, with many other distinguished individ- uals, repaired to Mount Vernon, while letters, ad- dresses, funeral orations, and all the tokens of sorrow and respect, loaded the mails from every quarter of the country, offering the sublime tribute of a nation's mourning for a nation's benefactor."*
But grateful and consolatory as were these sponta- neous manifestations of reverential regard for the memory of her illustrious husband, Mrs. Washington possessed a far higher and dearer source of confidence in his eternal happiness than any earthly fiat could be- stow, in her inward and assured conviction that he had ever sought the same "fountain of living waters," from which she had herself drunk deep of heavenly hope and joy If
Mrs. Washington now looked eagerly and intently forward to the termination of that journey in which she had been preceded by all who were most dear to her. Devoutly resting her wounded spirit upon the soothing conviction that those from whom she was here separated would then be forever restored to her, she stregthened herself to tread on in the weary way of life, with mournful but unshaken confidence in the blessed truth that " all things work together for good"
* National Portrait Gallery.
t We present our readers with a communication upon this highly in- teresting subject, addressed, at his request, to Mr Sparks, by the adopted daughter of Washington, Miss Custis, who was twenty years an inmate of the family of her kind protector. Any attempt to abr'dge these agreeably-written paragraphs must, necessarily, diminish the pleasing simplicity and frankness that lend additional interest to the details they contain.— See Note C. of the Appendix.
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 165
in the orderings of the Great Disposer of Events. Hers was not the callousness of indifference or insen- sibility, the obtuseness of a benighted stoicism, or the lightness of a shallow intellect ; but the uncloubting constancy of a Christian, whose faith in Him who
" givetk, with paternal care,
Howe'er unjustly we complain, To each their necessary share,
Of joy and sorrow, health and pain,"
no mortal suffering could disturb, no sublunary occur- rence destroy !
But neither her changeless grief, nor her deep in- terest in the concerns of a future state of existence, were regarded by this exemplary and self-sacrificing Christian as entitling her to exemption from vigilant attention to the requisitions of actual and practical life. The many cares assumed by the helpful, judi- cious, kindly friend who had formerly shared her toils and duties, now rested solely upon her. Yet though Mrs. Washington was in her sixty-ninth year, she still conducted the various affairs of her extensive establishment with her previous diligence, regularity and skill, and discharged the numerous obligations of the hostess of Mount Vernon, with wonted dignity and urbanity. More grave, more silent, she might be ; but no duty was forgotten or omitted in relation to do- mestic arrangements, no courtesy neglected towards
166 MEMOIR OF
the innumerable votaries who sought, in sorrowing pil- grimage, Columbia's more than Mecca-shrine.
" Light grief is fond of state and courts compassion,
But there's a dignity in cureless sorrow
A sullen grandeur which disdains complaint !"
Yet, despite this outward composure, this habitual self-control, this hospitable amenity, her lusterless and abstracted eye, and the one glowing spot in her else blanched and faded cheek, betrayed only too plainly the ceaseless struggle of that noble spirit !
" She lived — for life may long be borne Ere sorrow break its chain !"
But what was earth, what was life, to this bereaved and heart-stricken mourner !
Thus passed two long years for the worn and weary earth-wanderer ; and then her sudden and serious ill- ness spread consternation to the outermost circle of the many loving and sympathizing hearts that ever envi- roned her.
Dr. Craik, the old and highly-esteemed physician of the family, well aware of the insidious mental foe that had but too surely undermined the strength of his patient, scarce spoke of hope to the sorrowing house- hold, and Mrs. Washington was herself aware of her approaching dissolution.
Dying as she had lived, mindful of duty to the last, the expiring Christian summoned the several members of her family to attend her death-bed, and addressed to her grand-children, particularly, the most solemn
MARTHA WASHINGTON. 167
and impressive words of exhortation and advice. She bore the most unequivocal and triumphant testimony to her unwavering reliance upon the hopes and assuran- ces of the Religion that had been the guide and sup- port of her long and varied life, and with that ap- propriate and pathetic farewell this celebrated Amer- ican Matron tranquilly rendered back her earthly ex- istence to Him from whom it was received.
The death of Mks. Washington occurred in the year 1801, and during the seventy-first year of her age.
Her remains, in accordance with her desire, were enclosed in a leaden coffin and placed beside those of Washington in the family tomb at Blount Vernon.
APPENDIX
TO
EMtBlfm W&MW1f®EL
APPENDIX
TO
MEMOIR OF MARTHA WASHINGTON.
NOTE A.
Mr. Sparks gives us the original List, as found among Washington's papers. For explanatory partic- ulars, see Sparks' Life of Washington, Vol. II. 329. We, of course, copy exactly, from Mr. S.
" A Salmon-colored Tabby of the enclosed pattern, with satin flowers, to be made in a sack and coat. One Cap, Handerchief, Tucker, and Ruffles to be made of Brussels lace, or point, proper to wear with the above negligee, to cost £20. One piece Bag Hol- land at 6s, (a yard.) 2 fine flowered Lawn Aprons. 2 double Handkerchiefs. 1 pair woman's white Silk Hose. 6 pairs fine Cotton do. 4 pairs Thread do. 1 pair black, and 1 pair white Satin Shoes, of the smallest 5s. 4 pairs Calamanco, do. 1 fashkmable Hat, or Bonnet. 6 pairs woman's best Kid Gloves. 8 pairs ditto mits. 1-2 dozen Knots and Breast Knots. 1 doz. round Silk laces. 1 black Mask.
172 APPENDIX.
1 doz. most fashionable Pocket Handkerchiefs. 2 pairs neat, small scissors. 1 lb. sewing silk, shaded. 4 pieces binding Tape. 6 m. Minikin Pins. 1 m. Hair ditto. 6 lbs. perfumed Powder. 3 lbs. best Scotch SnufF. 3 lbs. best violette Strasburg. 8 lbs. Starch. 2 lbs. powdered Blue. 2 oz. Coventry Thread, one of which to be very fine. 1 piece nar- row white satin Ribbon, pearl edge. 1 case .of Pick- les, to consist of Anchovies, Capers, Olives, Salad Oil, and 1 bottle India Mangoes. 1 large Cheshire Cheese. 4 lbs. Green Tea. 10 groce best corks. 25 lbs. best jar Raisins. 25 lbs. Almonds, in the shell. 1 hogshead best Porter. 10 loaves double and 10 single refined sugar. ***** 12 lbs. best Mustard. 2 doz. Jack's playing Cards.
***** 1 1-2 doz. Bell glasses for Gar- den. 2 more Chair Bottoms, such as were written for in a former invoice. 1 more Windsor Curtain and Cornice. 100 lbs. White Biscuit. 3 gallons of Rhenish in bottles."
There then follows a long enumeration of articles, evidently designed for the use and comfort of the slaves upon the estate ; among which we observe " 350 yds. Kendall Cotton/' "100 Dutch Blankets," &c;, &c, together with numerous Garden, Carpenter's and Farming tools, and articles of Cutlery and Iron-ware, sufficient to supply a colony preparing to populate a desert island of considerable size !
Among the medicines ordered (and the list seems to us to include the whole Materia Medica /) we light
APPENDIX.
173
upon the agreeable items of "Pearl Barley" and "Sago" "5 lbs. White Sugar Candy," "10 lbs. Brown do," " 1 lb. Barley Sugar."
After this follows an array of the names of medi- cines to be used in Farriery ; and the whole is conclu- ded by the following —
Invoice op Sundries to be shipped by Robert Ga- ry and Company, for the use of Master John and Miss Patty Custis, each to be charged to their own accounts, but both consigned to George Washington, Potomac River.
For Master Custis, 6 years old.
1 piece Irish Holland, at 4s.
2 yards fine Cambric at 10s.
6 Pocket Handkerchiefs, small and
fine. 6 pairs Gloves ; 2 Laced Hats.
2 pieces India Nankeen.
fi pairs fine thread Stockings. 4 pairs coarser do. 4 pairs worsted do. 4 pairs strong Shoes; 4 pairs Pumps. 1 summer suit of clothes ; to be made of something light and thin.
3 fine Ivory Combs ; 2 Horn do., and
2 Brushes. 1 piece black Hair Ribbon. 1 pair handsome Silver Shoe and
Knee Buckles. 10s. worth of Toys. 6 little books for children beginning
to read. 1 oz. 8d. Thread ; 1 oz. 12d. do. 1 oz. ys. do; ; 1 oz. 3s. do. i lb. whited brown Thread. 1 light duffel Cloak with silver frogs.
For Miss Costis; 4 years old.
8 yards fine printed Linen at 3s. 6d.
1 piece Irish Holland at 4s.
2 ells fine Holland at 10s. 8 pairs kid Mits ; 4 pairs gloves. 2 pairs silk shoes.
pairs Calemanco do. ; 4 pairs leath- er Pumps.
6 pairs fine thread Stockings,
4 pairs worsted do.
ij piece flowered Dimity.
2 yards fine Cambric at 10s.
2 Caps, 2 pairs Ruffles, 2 Tuckers, Bibs and Aprons, if fashionable.
2 Fans ; 2 Masks ; 2 Bonnets.
2m. large Pins ; 2m. short whites ; 2m. Minikins ; 1 Cloth Cloak.
1 stiffened Coat of Fashionable Silk, made to pack-thread stays.
6 yards Ribbon ; 2 Necklaces.
1 pair Silver Sleeve Buttons, with stones.
1 fashionable-dressed baby 10s ; and other Toys 10s. •
0 Pocket Handkerchiefs.
NOTE B.
" November 24tli. — After dinner, as I had heard some threats thrown out, that if the ball assembled this night, as it was proposed, they presumed that the New Tavern would cut but a poor figure to-morrow morning, these fears of some commotion's being made that would be very disagreeable at this melancholy time, in disturbing the peace of the City, I concluded if possible, to prevent, in order to which I went to Col. Hancock's lodgings, and finding he was not come from Congress, and the time grew short, being three o'clock, I walked up to the State House, in expecta- tion of meeting him. That failing, I requested the door-keeper to call Samuel Adams, which he accord- ingly did, and he came. I then informed him of the account received of a ball, that was to be held this evening, and where, and that Mrs. Washington and Col. Hancock's wife were to be present, and as such meetings appeared to be contrary to the Eighth Re- solve of Congress, I therefore requested he would give my respects to Col. Hancock, desire him to wait on Lady Washington to request her not to attend or go this evening. This he promised. Thence I went and met the Committee at Philosophic Hall, which was large and respectable, being called together for
APPENDIX. 175
this only purpose to consider the propriety of this meeting or ball's being held this evening in this city, at the New Tavern, where after due and mature con- sideration, it was then concluded, there being but one dissenting voice, (Sharp Delany,) that there should be no such meeting held, not only this evening, but in future, while these troublesome times continued, and a Committee was appointed, immediately to go and in- form the directors of this meeting not to proceed any further in this affair, and also to wait upon Lady Wash- ington, expressing this Committee's great regard and affection to her, requesting her to accept of their grate- ful acknowledgments and respect, due to her on ac- count of her near connection with our worthy and brave General, now exposed in the field of battle in defense of our rights and liberties, and request and desire her not to grace that company, to which we are informed, she has an invitation this evening &c, &c. Came home near six. After I drank coffee, I went clown to Samuel Adams' lodgings, where was Col. Dyer. Spent some time pleasantly, until Col. Harri- son came to rebuke Samuel Adams for using his influ- ence for the stopping of this entertainment which he declared was legal, just and laudable. Many argu- ments were used by all present to convince him of the impropriety at this time, but all to no effect ; so as he came out of humor, he so returned, to appearance.
" November 25th. — At half past eleven, went to the Committee Room at the Coffee House ; came away near two. At this time, Major Bayard, one of the
176 APPENDIX.
four gentlemen appointed to wait on Lady Washington reported that they had acted agreeably to directions, that the lady received them with great politeness, thanked the Committee for their kind care and regard in giving such timely notice, requesting her best com- pliments to be returned to them for their care and re- gard, and to assure them that their sentiments on this occasion, were perfectly agreeable to her own-"
X
NOTE C.
After some particulars in relation to the several churches in the vicinity of Mount Yernon, the fair writer, gives us the following interesting details re- specting Washington and family : —
" We attended the Church at Alexandria, when the weather and roads permitted a ride of ten miles. In New- York and Philadelphia he never omitted attend- ance at church in the morning, unless detained by in- disposition. The afternoon was spent in his own room at home ; the evening with his family and without company. Sometimes an old and intimate friend called to see us for an hour or two ; but visiting and visitors were prohibited for that day. No one in church attended to the services with more reverential respect. My grand-mother, who was eminently pious, never deviated from her usual habits. She always knelt. The General, as was then the custom, stood during the devotional parts of the service. On com- munion Sundays he left the church with me, after the blessing, and returned home, and we sent the carriage back for my grand-mother.
" It was his custom to retire to his library at 9 or 10 o'clock, where he remained an hour before he went
178 APPENDIX.
to his chamber. He always rose before the sun, and remained in his library until called to breakfast. I never witnessed his private devotions, I never enquired about them. I should have thought it the greatest heresy to doubt his firm belief in Christianity. His life, his writings, prove that he was a Christian. He was not one of those who act, or pray, ' that they maybe seen of men.' He communed with his God in secret.
11 My mother resided two years at Mount Vernon, after her marriage with John Park Custis, the only son of Mrs. Washington. I have heard her say that General Washington always received the sacrament with my grand-mother before the Revolution. When my aunt, Miss Custis, died suddenly at Mount Ver- non, before they could realize the event, he knelt by her and prayed most fervently, most affectingly for her recovery. Of this I was assured by Judge Washington's mother, and other witnesses.
" He was a silent, thoughtful man. He spoke lit- tle generally ; never of himself. I never heard him relate a single act of his life during the war. I have often seen him perfectly abstracted, his lips moving, but no sound was perceptible. I have often made him laugh most heartily from sympathy with my joyous and extravagant spirits. I was, probably, one of the last persons on earth to whom he would have addressed se- rious conversation, particularly when he knew that I had the most perfect model of female excellence ever with me as my monitress, who acted the part of a ten-
APPENDIX. 179
der and devoted parent, loving me only as a mother can love, and never extenuating or approving in me what she disapproved in others. She never omitted her private devotions, or her public duties ; and she and her husband were so perfectly united and happy that he must have been a Christian. She had no doubts, no fears, for him. After forty years of devoted affection and uninterrupted happiness, she resigned him with- out a murmur into the arms of his Savior and his Grod, with the assured hope of his eternal felicity."
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The Life of Major General Zachary Taylor. By H. Montgomery. Another and still another " illustrated" Life of the great American (would that he had as many lives as the publishers give him,) the Amer- ican whom Carlyle would recognise as "a hero" worthy of his pen's most eloquent recognition ; the man of doty in an age of Self! An American in every thing; in valor, in strong muscular sense; in sim- plicity and directness and cordiality of feeling ; an American in every thing save in devotion to our new political God of Expediency.
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186 DERBY, MILLER & CO.'s PUBLICATIONS.
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Among those men of iron tread, As rung ' Old Fritz' in Europe's battles, When thus his host Great Frederick led."
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A Memorial of Christ's messengers in Heathen Lands, dedicated to Dr. Judson, 8 engravings ; 12 mo. muslin, gilt back — now ready. $1 00
We have seen no book of late which upon a hasty examination we could more cheerfully and confidently recommend. The history of the labors of Missionaries in foreign lands has always been one of unsur- passed interest to a great class of every community, by whom such en- terprizes are conducted, and in no similar work have we seen this his- tory more ably and truthfully set forth, than in the one before us. — Buf- falo Commercial Advertiser.
Here is a volume of about 400 pages, neatly printed, and illustrated . made up of the most interesting matter from the pens of the first writers. Such a work cannot fail to interest. What a glorious band have cast aside the heart-clinging ties of home, country and friends and borne the peaceful emblem of Christianity to the darkest climes. Bloody rites have ceased, the funeral flame is extinguished, the crushing car has ceased to roll, and mental and moral darkness has given away before the silent labors of the missionary. The records of such a history cannot but interest, revealing as they do, some of the sublimest features in the character of man — sacrifices and toils and triumphs, before which the brightest achievements of earth dwindle into folly. — Cayuga Chief.
DERBY, MILLER & CO.'s PUBLICATIONS .189
THE WESLEY OFFERING,
A record of true Methodism, in one 16rno. vol. uni- form with " Judson Offering," by Rev. W. H. Pearne. (In preparation,) SO, 75
THE TEMPERANCE AMULET,
An Offering for the Sons and Daughters of Tem- perance throughout the world, by Thurlow Weed Brown, 1 vol. 12mo. (In preparation,) 1,00
THE ODD FELLOW'S AMULET,
The Principles of Odd Fellowship defined, the ob- jections to the Order answered, and its advantages maintained, with an address to the public, the la- dies, and the order, by Rev. D. W. Bristol, Pastor of the M. E. Church, Auburn. 250 pages, 12mo., with 4 beautiful steel illustrations, cloth gilt, 10th edition, $1,00
INDIAN CAPTIVITIES,
Or Life in the Wigwam, being true narratives of Captives who have been carried away by the Indi- ans from the frontier settlements of the U. S., from the earliest period to the present time : by Samuel G-. Drake — 12mo. muslin. Now ready, 1,25
190 DERBY, MILLER & CO.'s PUBLICATIONS*
THE NEW CLERK'S ASSISTANT :
Or every man his own Lawyer ; a book of practi- cal forms, containing numerous precedents and forms for ordinary business transactions, with New Con- stitution, by J. S. Jenkins, 3d edition revised, large octavo, law sheep.
%* Nearly 13,000 copies of the above work have been sold — it is highly recommended by our Appeal and Supreme Judges as the sefest and surest law-guide for every man.
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