Show nature and fortune never made A better man ft TIL in C 9 liw ONE of the recent biographers of washington has given us so just and true a picture of the alie man as that drawn by jefferson more than a century ago 1 I think I 1 1 kne knew W general washington intimately and thoroughly he said ills his mind was great and powerful without being 0 of the very first order his penetration strong though not so acute as that of a newton bacon or locke ind and a as far na as he saw no judgment was ever sounder it was slow in operation being little aided by invention or im clyl antion but sure in conclusion nonce hence the common remark of his oni ce cers rs of the advantage he derived from councils of war where hearing all su suggestions he selected whatever was best bes 1 1 H he e ws was incapable incapable of fear meeting personal dangers with the calmest unconcern perhaps the strongest feature in his character was prudence never neve r a acting c ting until every circumstance every consideration ans maturely manurel ma hearing all suggestions he selected whatever was wa best weighed refraining if he be saw a doubt but when once decided going through with his purpose whatever obstacles opposed lie ile was indeed in every sense of the words a wise a good and a great man ills his temper was naturally irritable and high toned but reflection and resolution had bad obtained a firm and habitual over it ills heart was not cot warm in its affections but he exactly calculated every mans value and gave him a solid esteem proportioned to it it may truly be said that never did nature and fortune combine more perfectly to make a great man and to place him in the same constellation with whatever worthies have merited from man everlasting remembrance after all has been said it was gt on s character which was supremely grent great which was responsible for the gren greatness ot of his achievements in the revolution it was the trust in washington which held together a faltering and discouraged people which tided the country over the darkest hours which was responsible for the eventful victory after peace had been won it was this trust in washington which made it possible for a disunited people to attain enduring strength and unity there have been greater generals than washington greater statesmen there has been no greater character when the writings of his detractors have passed into obscurity his memory will remain what it has always been a sacred legacy to the american people FAMILY george mother was waa mary ball said to have been a lineal descendant from john ball medie medieval v al champion of the rights of man her mother was mary montague who as the widow johnson was married to colonel joseph ball her grandfather was colonel william ball who emigrated to virginia in 1650 and settled in lancaster county george father was augustine washington the grandson of lawence washington and the great grandson of john washington who came from england about 1650 and settled in westmorland westmoreland county virginia the english ancestry has been traced back bach through laurentia washington father of lawrence several generations to the sulgrave branch of the family lord cornwallis army disorderly on surrender dei at the surrender of lord cornwallis his british soldiers presented a brilliant cou contrast to the americans corn had ordered that a new uniform be issued to lo each man and that in marching out of the spacious field at yorktown each company conduct itself in strictest order even to the humiliating mil milia lating ting end when the arms were to be grounded doctor thatcher a surgeon in army who gave fi a complete account of the surrender in his journal wrote of that october 19 1781 but in their line of march we remarked a disorderly and conduct their step was irregular and their ranks frequently broken but it was in the last act of the drama that the spirit and pride of the british soldiers were put to the severest test here their mortification could not be concealed some of the platoon officers appeared to be exceedingly chagrined when giving the word ground arms and I 1 am wit ness that they performed that duty in a very like manner and that many of the soldiers manifested a sullen temper throwing their arms on the pile with violence as if determined ter mined to render them useless this irregularity was checked by order of general lincoln the latter had been delegated by washington as the american in charge of the capitulation the americans doctor thatcher related though not all in uniform nor their dress so neat yet exhibited an erect soldiery air and every countenance beamed with satisfaction and joy washington memorial national carillon M the photo shows the star spangled banner national peace chimes known as the washington memorial national carillon first large american carillon made in america by american bell makers on the extreme right is the latest addition to the shrine being installed |