OCR Text |
Show Tender Notes Burned by Mrs. Washington j After George Washington's death his widow bunted every letter that sh-had sh-had received from him, with the exception ex-ception of three or four thut t-soiiwd apparently by accident. No one has ever elucidated the rmv tlve behind this letter burning episode. Martha Washington know at the tin.e. Indeed, the whole w.Tld knew, that Go.. rue Washington was a star of the first magnitude In the field of history nnd that every s.-rap of his wr!U:u would be treasured and pKmed. Did she r t l that his letters to Iut wore so sacred In their intimacy that posterity pos-terity had no right to ro.:d them? But there ure other tenable hypotheses. hypo-theses. She was antidemocratic and nntlmiMir to uti t-xtrcn.e degree. '" .birring her as surroundo.l by su.'h limitations of perspective, cue may i readily conceive that her motive nin I have been simply one of aristocratic ) seclusion. i In di-MriYl.'g his tetters she rffVc tuuiiy eiT.i. i-d herself, for she liv -d ' I only In his reflected light. But th-.it ' may have been what she wanted. The i highest fen ii of pride is a disdainful ' humility. The Nation. ! l |