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Show ITHOUGH the pages of Ameri- and sent 'on a perilous jour- LJrMmLm' MS tS chS of Indians lay in hiding. After y made major at the age of 22 and sent on a perilous journey jour-ney of over a thousand miles. He had many narrow escapes es-capes in his journey over mountains, fording streams and through forests where Indians lay in hiding. After "pgagB?TIOUGH the pages of Ameri- S" ft can history are adorned i Cmk - with the names of many ft Wtellw?" g''eat men, none are brighf-1 brighf-1 awiS-lBfa-'1 er and more beautifully 'U vT described in letters of V chased gold than those of 1 Washington and Lincoln, s Students of history are divided in their p judgment which of Kv 0f and through forests where Jl Yy p SIT TMEVTOSV, PyS'A&O B the two men is the greater. But it is not really important that this question be decided. Destiny planned a certain line of work for both men, and they did that work well. Their innate ability is .only partly responsible for their success; suc-cess; it was their unselfishness and desire de-sire to do well whatever they undertook under-took which helped them to succeed where others might have failed. If Lincoln Lin-coln deserves praise because necessity spurred him on to greatness, Washington Washing-ton deserves as much credit because he became great without being driven on by necessity. Destiny demanded a double role of Washington she made trim a soldier and a statesman, and he performed both well. His trials as president were almost as great as those he encountered as commander-in-chief of the army. He was placed at the head of a new form of government, and did not have precedents to guide him in his undertaking. It was his early training train-ing which taught him to think calmly and with judgment. His mind once made up, to act without fear. He was born on the banks of the Potomac Po-tomac river in a farmhouse; though the house was far better than a log cabin, it was not the mansion it is supposed to have been. It was a large, roomy place, with a deep sloping roof and a big outside chimney at either end. He was one of many children. His father was rich in crops and land, though he Iliad little real money. Most Virginia farmers planted tobacco, and when money mon-ey was scarce they traded this product for food and clothing. His early years knew it was to be a long and hard fought war, and a position posi-tion latent with responsibility. responsibili-ty. The struggle was as difficult dif-ficult as he imagined, for many times during the war the soldiers were ready to lay down their arms and go late Moncure D. Conway, "unless he has family treed an ancestor of George Washington." Yet, despite the many clever scholars and antiquarians antiquar-ians of America who have tried their hands at this "sport," it has remained for a fellow of the Royal Historical society of England, Rev. Frederick W. Ragg, to convey to us the latest interesting revelation regarding the ancestry of our first president. Barring those that champion the truly democratic demo-cratic standpoint, less prevalent to-day than it was in 1620, which scorns to connect itself with old world titles and abhors royalty, there remain many liberal souls among us who do not grudge to om who was acknowledged first in war and first in peace a share in the homage accorded the first family of -England. Edward I. was himself a mighty warrior, and firgt in many wars; his prowess was early exercised exer-cised on the Turks, during the last crusade ever embarked on by England's kings, and when the throne became his own he successfully success-fully carried out his project of uniting England, Scotland and Wales. He brought the famous stone of Scone to Westminster abbey, and under him England became a mighty nation. He was a monarch wise and great, even though he had little leaning toward democratic government govern-ment and did not display special fondness for Magna Charter. Edward Longshanks was not an ancestor to be despised by his descendant George, of kingly bearing and equally long legs. That this direct line of descent has not until now been established may seem a bit surprising surpris-ing in view of the exhaustive research, that has been devoted to the Washington ancestry. The reason is, however, not difficult to understand when one reflects that such research has been concerned exclusively with the male line, while this royal blood is introduced into the family by Margaret Butler, who married Laurence Washington in 1588. Mr. Worthlngton Chauncey Ford and others who have made a special study of the Washington Washing-ton pedigree trace the line back to John Washington Wash-ington of Whitfield, five generations back of the aforesaid Laurence and his wife Margaret. These students state that this Margaret Butler was the daughter of William Butler of Tighes, Sussex, but do not follow the Butler pedigree back of this point. Here Mr. Ragg has taken up the quest, and after careful study of old records, tombstones, and entries in church registers reg-isters has proved that William Butler, father of Mrs. Laurence Washington, stands tenth in direct descent from Edward I. Reference to the above genealogical tree just completed by Mr. Ragg, and verified since Its arrival in America by various genealogical experts, ex-perts, who have pronounced it satisfactory, will show conclusively that George Washington Is in the sixteenth generation in direct descent from the monarch in question, and is, therefore, there-fore, the great-great-great-great-great-greai-great-great-great- great-great-great-great- grandson grand-son of Edward I. Plant agenet. home, but his courage never failed him and he pushed on. When ;he sky looked blackest he would plan some campaign to make of defeat a victory. A happy illustration of this was when one Christmas night the soldiers were quite ready to give up and go home. They were camping on the banks of the Delaware. Pointing to the other side, he said: "Our enemy is camping camp-ing there." They were Hessian soldiers, and since it was Christmas night, they were celebrating. cele-brating. It was with difficulty the army crossed, for the night was wild, dark and cold. But in spite of the great blocks of ice on the river, Washington managed to get his army across, and a victory was the result. A more difficult year was spent in Valley Forge. It was a long, cold winter, the soldiers hungry for food, and they did not have enough clothing and blankets to keep themselves warm. Many times they were on the verge of mutineering. It was only by means of his tact and good judgment that he brought harmony into camp and gave the war a successful ending. After leaving the army he went back home and spent much time improving the farm. The Mount Vernon estate gradually became an expensive ex-pensive affair. Here be kept open house, and never a day went by without his receiving callers call-ers and friends. Some of the dinners and levees were often elaborate, and he struggled hard not to appear bored. He had hoped to spend the rest of his life among these pleasant surroundings. He often told his friends: "Let those who wish such things as office be at the head "of things. I do not wish them. All I desire de-sire now is to settle down at Mount Vernon and to enjoy my farm." But after the constitution constitu-tion was ratified and the votes of the electors were opened and counted it was found that everyone had voted for Washington. During his presidency he had many knotty problems, but he met them all with good sense and judgment. judg-ment. Because he played the double role of commander of the army and the first president of this nation equally well he is entitled to the name, the Father of His Country. "END JUSTIFIES THE MEANS." "The end justifies the meais." This motto, from the coat-of-arms of Washington, will no doubt flash into the minds of certain admirers of the father of his country who glance at the genealogical tree, which is England's latest contribution to the oft-debated question of Washington's ancestry. "Let no man fancy he knows sport," said the "cm uu liic in, wiin pieniy or exercise and little schooling. George loved to tramp across the fields, forests and to swim in the streams. His education was gained at a country school where he was taught for three hours a day. Limited as til education was, he was fond of reading, and he had a book into which he copied everything he wished to remember. In this book he put many rules which he himself had formulated. These are only a few of the many: "Labor to keep alive in your breast that little lit-tle spark ot celestial fire called conscience." "Think before you speak." "Whisper not in the company of others." Lawrence, one of the half-brothers, had been sent to England to school, and the parents had planned the same for George, but the father died suddenly, and Mrs. Washington realized she could not afford to send him across the ocean. The boy had spent considerable time on the wharf and talking to seamen had awakened a desire for adventure. These stories sto-ries created a desire to earn a living as a sailor, sail-or, and he suggested it to his mother. Mrs. Washington did not like the idea of having George leave home nor did she approve of his career. He was sent back to school to study surveying. When not studying he was training his company of boys to become soldiers, and he often got very impatient when they made mistakes. mis-takes. Shortly after his brother Lawrence had married mar-ried the daughter of Lord Fairfax a member of this family took a great interest in the boy. He had such a fancy for the lad he put him to surveying a large tract of land in the Shenandoah Shenan-doah valley. Though the work was no easy task, he was so strong and enthusiastic he acquitted himself exceedingly well. He did not go alone a boy, George Fairfax, went as his aid. They rather enjoyed the new experience expe-rience of hunger, cold and facing Indian strategy. strat-egy. In later years George recalled his experience expe-rience of roughing it in the Shenandoah valley val-ley with great pleasure. This work was suddenly sud-denly interrupted by sickness in the family. Lawrence, his half-brother, was ill and the physicians phy-sicians sent him to the West Indies. George went along to keep him company, only to be taken with smallpox. Although Lawrence started for home, he died after his return. This was a great shock to George, for the brothers were exceedingly devoted; but the sting of this loss was partly forgotten by a commission to go to the French who were building forts on English territory. He ""-is his interview with the French commander he started for home. The journey back was worse than going, for the rivers were exceedingly exceed-ingly treacherous. The French governor refused re-fused to heed English commands and continued to build forts, so George Washington was appointed ap-pointed to command soldiers to march against the French in the spring. This was the beginning begin-ning of a war between the French and English, which lasted seven years. Gen. Braddock was sent over from England and George was made a colonel and commanded the Virginia troops. Though Braddock was a capable general, he did not understand the art of fighting the Indians In-dians and refused to heed young Washington's advice. The general was shot in one of these engagements. With this the Redcoats began to run, but Washington tried to call them back. All day he was in the midst of the fight. Four bullets went through his coat and two horses were shot under him. The war at an end, Washington returned home. He was anxious to see his mother, whom he had not seen in some time. Though Mrs. Washington was not a brilliant woman, she had plenty of good judgment and common sense, and was always ready to give her son wise counsel. Proud though she was of her boy's energy and desire to serve his country she was careful not to spoil him by excessive praise. She loved to hear of the hazards of war, but she emphasized the dangers more than her boy's success. Hardships and long-fought campaigns had done much to impair his health, and he went to Williamsburg to consult a physician.' On this trip h met Mrs. Martha Custis, widow of Daniel Parke Custis, one of the wealthiest planters in the colony. They were married some five months later. Very little, is known of her except that she was petite, pretty and exceedingly devoted to her husband. She was very proud of his successes, and used all her energy to make his trials as easy as she could. There are those who attribute Washington's first step upward to his marriage. This is certainly cer-tainly untrue, for he was on the road to success suc-cess when he married her. Whenever Washington Wash-ington went on a long campaign his wife took up headquarters where she might be near him. These winterings gradually became a regular custom. She seldom complained, although she frequently had to put up with inconvenient headqnarters. When Washington was chosen commander-in-chief of the army he did not accept ac-cept the place with great eagerness, for he |