Part 10

=72. The Winter at Valley Forge.= After the battle at Brandywine Creek the British slowly made their way to Philadelphia. Washington took post for the winter at Valley Forge, on the Schuylkill River, twenty miles northwest of Philadelphia. There, in the deep woods among the hills, and in log huts built by their own hands, the American forces passed a winter so full of suffering that it makes one shudder to read the story.

[Sidenote: =What the soldiers suffered for independence=]

When the army marched into Valley Forge, "their route could be traced on the snow by the blood that oozed from their bare, frost-bitten feet." Washington wrote to Congress that nearly three thousand of his men were "barefoot or otherwise naked."

A part of the army had no bread for three days, and for two days no meat. Hundreds had no beds, and gladly slept on piles of straw. Others had no blankets, and sat up nights before the fire to keep from freezing. Many sickened and died. But in Philadelphia the well-fed British soldiers had a gay season, with balls and banquets.

[Sidenote: =Steuben helps drill the men=]

Washington grieved over the suffering of his men, but never lost heart. All the long winter through, with the aid of General Steuben, a noble German officer, he drilled his men. In the spring when the British started back to New York, he gave them such a bayonet charge at Monmouth, New Jersey (1778), they were glad to escape that night, instead of stopping to rest and bury their dead.

=73. The Crowning Victory at Yorktown.= For the next three years the British army remained in New York, not daring to come out and attack Washington.

[Sidenote: =Good news from Lafayette=]

Finally, in the summer of 1781, General Lafayette, who had now recovered from his wound, and had fought with the Americans at Monmouth, was sent to Virginia by Washington to watch the British army there. Lafayette sent Washington word that Cornwallis had come up from the Carolinas, and had taken post at Yorktown. After receiving more soldiers, Lafayette followed Cornwallis to Yorktown and stationed his army near that place. Washington also got word that a large French war fleet was coming to the coast of Virginia to aid the Americans. This fleet had been sent to aid the Americans by the King of France. Washington also had six thousand fine French troops under the command of General Rochambeau. This aid had been secured through the influence of Lafayette, who had visited his home in France in 1779.

[Sidenote: =Washington again outwits Cornwallis=]

Washington now saw his chance. He ordered Lafayette to watch Cornwallis while he himself took two thousand ragged Continentals and four thousand French troops in bright uniforms, and slipped away from New York. He was almost in Philadelphia before the British or his own soldiers could guess where he was going.

At Yorktown, Washington and his army found both Lafayette and the French fleet keeping watch. Day and night the siege went on amid the roar of cannon. When all was ready, then came the wild charge of the Americans and the French in the face of British cannon and over British breastworks. The outer works were won, and Cornwallis saw that he must surrender. Seven thousand of the king's troops marched out and gave up their arms.

[Sidenote: =Cornwallis surrenders=]

The victory at Yorktown made all Americans happy, and they rang bells, fired cannon, built bonfires, and praised Washington and Lafayette. But England was now tired of war, and many of her great men declared in favor of peace, which was soon made, in 1783.

[Sidenote: =A touching scene=]

=74. Washington Bids Farewell to his Officers and to Congress.= Washington bade farewell to his brave soldiers, with whom he had fought so long. The parting with his officers in Fraunces' Tavern, New York, was a touching scene. With tears in his eyes, and with a voice full of tenderness, he embraced each one as he bade him good-by. It was like the parting of a father from his sons.

[Sidenote: =A noble act=]

Washington now journeyed to Annapolis, Maryland, where Congress was then held, to give back the authority of commander in chief which Congress had bestowed on him eight years before. How unselfish had been the conduct of Washington in refusing pay for his services! How noble was the act of giving up his power over an army which idolized him, and which he might have used to make himself king! But he did not think of these things as he hastened to his beautiful Mount Vernon to enjoy Christmas time once more with his loved ones.

[Sidenote: =How the war had changed things=]

[Sidenote: =Many people visit Washington=]

But what a change had come to Virginia! Eight years before George III was king over all the Thirteen Colonies, and Virginia was ruled by one of his governors. Now the people were ruling themselves, and had elected one of Washington's neighbors, Benjamin Harrison, to be their governor. He missed some old friends. Some had died on the field of battle; others, like Lord Fairfax, had gone back to England, where they could be ruled by George III. Soon visitors began to come--old soldiers, beloved generals, and great statesmen from America, as well as distinguished people from Europe. They all wanted the honor of visiting the man who had led the American armies to victory, but who, again, was only a Virginia planter.

=75. Lafayette Visits Washington.= The year after peace was made Lafayette came back to America to visit General Washington. There were great times at Mount Vernon. Washington, Lafayette, and other noble men sat around the table and there told stories of their struggles and of their triumphs.

Lafayette visited many other places and received a warm welcome wherever he went; he had taken active part in many battles of the Revolution; his blood had flowed for the American cause. At Monmouth he had saved the Americans from retreat by sending for Washington. He had had an important part in the crowning victory at Yorktown. The Americans loved and admired him, and did all in their power to show their gratitude. Many years after, on another visit to America, Congress voted him two hundred thousand dollars and twenty-four thousand acres of land as a reward for his great services.

[Sidenote: =Another call to duty=]

=76. Washington Elected First President.= The American people would not let Washington long enjoy Mount Vernon, for when they met to make a new constitution, or plan of government, he was chairman of the meeting, and when that government was to go into operation they would have no other man for their first president than George Washington.

[Sidenote: =A triumphal procession from Mount Vernon to New York=]

In 1789 he once more bade Mount Vernon and his aged mother good-by, and began the journey to New York, which was at that time the capital of the new nation. What a journey! It was almost one continual procession and celebration! At every town and roadside the people came to show their love for Washington, whom they rightly called the "Father of his Country." School children scattered flowers in his way and beautiful young women sang patriotic songs as he passed under decorated arches. When he reached New York Harbor the bay was white with the sails of many nations. Crowds thronged the streets, cannon boomed, and flags were thrown to the breeze to welcome him.

[Sidenote: =Washington takes the oath as first president=]

On April 30, 1789, standing on the balcony of Federal Hall in Wall Street, Washington took the oath of office, and pledged himself to govern the people according to the Constitution they had just made. He reverently bent and kissed the Bible, and became the first President of the United States. From the street, from doors and windows, and from the housetops, the people cried out: "Long live George Washington, President of the United States!"

His new office was almost as hard a task as the Revolution had been. He was now in charge of the affairs of the country. He had to see to it that laws were made to protect the rights of every one. Then he had to see that these laws were carried out. He could not guide himself by what another president had done, for there had been none before him.

But Washington directed the new ship of state so that it suffered no harm. When it looked as though we should have another war with England, he wisely preserved peace. So well were the people satisfied that they made him president a second time. When they offered him the office for a third term he refused. Thousands gathered to see him leave the capital. As he gave them his final farewell, tears rolled down his cheeks, and men cried like children.

[Sidenote: =Death in 1799=]

He was glad to get back to Mount Vernon, for he had grown old and weary in serving his country. He spent his remaining years among the scenes he loved so well. There he died in 1799, mourned as a father by the whole people.

SUGGESTIONS INTENDED TO HELP THE PUPIL

=The Leading Facts.= _1._ Washington was born on the Potomac, spent his early days on the Rappahannock, and went to school at Fredericksburg. _2._ He learned many things outside of school, such as horseback riding, fox hunting, and how to find his way in the deep forests. _3._ He became a surveyor in the Shenandoah for Lord Fairfax. _4._ Governor Dinwiddie sent Washington to order the French to leave the Ohio. _5._ Washington joined Braddock's campaign against the French, and in the battle tried to save the army. _6._ Washington married young Mrs. Martha Custis, and was elected to the House of Burgesses. _7._ Heard Patrick Henry's fiery speech, went to first Continental Congress, and the second Congress made him commander over the Continental army. _8._ Washington drove the British out of Boston, outwitted them around New York, retreated across the Jerseys, and then beat them at Trenton and Princeton, _9._ He fought at Brandywine, suffered at Valley Forge, penned the British up in New York, and finally captured Cornwallis at Yorktown. _10._ Washington gave up his command and retired to Mount Vernon, but was called to be the first president of the new republic.

=Study Questions.= _1._ Who was Washington's father and where did he meet Washington's mother? _2._ What was a plantation and why so large? _3._ What things did Washington love to do besides study? _4._ Why did George make a good captain? _5._ Picture the yearly ship from London at Mount Vernon. _6._ Who was Lord Fairfax and what did he engage Washington to do? _7._ What did Washington do at Greenway Court? _8._ Why was Washington chosen for the mission to the French, and what was the result? _9._ What were the preliminary events before the great war? _10._ Picture Braddock's defeat. _11._ How old was Washington when he first visited Boston? _12._ How did he become so rich? _13._ What news did Washington bring back to Mount Vernon in 1765? _14._ Who went to Congress with George Washington, and how did a member speak of him? _15._ What did he learn at Congress? _16._ Picture the scene in the second Congress. _17._ Describe the trip to Boston. _18._ What task did he set before himself, and how did he accomplish it? _19._ How did Washington outwit Howe? _20._ Who was Nathan Hale? _21._ What discouraged the Americans? _22._ Picture the surprise and capture of the Hessians. _23._ How did Washington outwit Cornwallis? _24._ What effect did these victories have? _25._ What sort of a time did the soldiers spend at Valley Forge? _26._ Who was Steuben, and what did he do? _27._ How did Lafayette aid Washington? _28._ Picture the surrounding and capture of Cornwallis. _29._ What changes had the war made in Virginia? _30._ In what way did Congress honor Lafayette? _31._ Picture Washington's journey to New York.

=Suggested Readings.= WASHINGTON: Cooke, _Stories of the Old Dominion_, 94-139; Blaisdell and Ball, _Hero Stories from American History_, 62-76, 123-155; Hart, _Camps and Firesides of the Revolution_, 239-255, 261-266, 307-309; Glascock, _Stories of Columbia_, 101-113; Baldwin, _Four Great Americans_, 9-68; Hart, _How our Grandfathers Lived_, 45-47; Mabie, _Heroes Every Child Should Know_, 274-288; Hawthorne, _Grandfather's Chair_, 186-191; Magell, _Stories from Virginia History_, 56-78, 79-94; Brooks, _True Story of Lafayette_; Wister, _The Seven Ages of Washington_; Mace, _George Washington: A Virginia Cavalier_.

THE MAN WHO HELPED WIN INDEPENDENCE BY WINNING THE HEARTS OF FRENCHMEN FOR AMERICA

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, THE WISEST AMERICAN OF HIS TIME

[Sidenote: =Born in colonial times=]

=77. Benjamin Franklin, the Boy Printer.= When Franklin was born in Boston (1706) there were men still living who had seen John Winthrop, the first governor of Massachusetts, and Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island.

[Sidenote: =The scholar of the family=]

Franklin's father was a poor but hard-working man. He made soap and candles. Benjamin's nine brothers had learned trades, but his parents had decided that he should be the "scholar of the family." At eight he went to school to prepare for college and was soon at the head of his class.

[Sidenote: =Put to work=]

But it was hard to feed and clothe a family of seventeen, and Benjamin was sent to another school where he could fit himself for business. But he did poorly in arithmetic, and at ten was taken out of school and put to work with his father.

[Sidenote: =Longs for the sea=]

In the port of Boston Franklin saw the ships and sailors of all nations, and longed to go to sea, but his father took him to visit the shops, where he saw men busy at work with all kinds of tools. Although Benjamin liked to work with tools, he liked to read better, and spent all his little earnings in buying books. He borrowed books when he could not buy them.

[Sidenote: =How he improved his language=]

Finally Franklin's parents decided that since he loved books so well he might be a printer, and put him to learn the trade with an older brother. Benjamin was to serve his brother for his board and clothes until he was twenty-one. He worked hard at his trade, and read more books than before. He improved his own language by writing out in his own words what he had read, and then comparing his account with the author's.

He now offered to take half the money that his board cost, and board himself. His brother agreed to this plan, and Benjamin saved money and bought more books.

[Sidenote: =Writes for his brother's paper=]

He longed to write something for his brother's paper. He did so, and put it at night under the door, but he did not dare sign his name to what he had written. His brother showed it to his friends. They praised it, and it was printed. It was fun for Benjamin to hear people guessing that the writer must be some great man in Boston. Franklin wrote several other articles, and called them the "Dogood Papers," but his brother was angry when he learned who wrote them.

[Sidenote: =Leaves home=]

Franklin was now only seventeen, but because of his brother's cruelty he sold his books and took a boat for New York without saying good-by to his parents. He afterwards said that leaving home in this way was a great mistake.

[Sidenote: =From New York to Philadelphia=]

No one in New York wanted a printer, so young Franklin took a boat for Perth-Amboy, New Jersey, on his way to Philadelphia. His ship was caught in a storm, and the passengers were wet and hungry when they landed.

Franklin set out on foot across the state for Burlington. For nearly three days he walked in the rain along muddy roads, looking so rough people thought he was a runaway servant. He was tired and homesick. But he took boat again, and reached Philadelphia on Sunday morning, landing at the foot of Market Street.

[Sidenote: =His sorry plight=]

He was so hungry, he thought more of something to eat than of dressing up for Sunday. He was in a sorry plight. With his pockets stuffed with soiled shirts and stockings, and a roll of bread under each arm and one in his hand, Franklin walked up Market Street, and passed the home of his future wife, Deborah Reed. No wonder she laughed at him. She would have laughed more if some one had said: "There goes a boy who will some day become your husband and the greatest man in Philadelphia."

[Sidenote: =Good books and good company=]

Franklin found work in a printing office, saved his money, and bought books to study. He got acquainted with other young people who also loved books, and he often spent his evenings with them.

[Sidenote: =A call from the governor=]

To the surprise of Franklin and his brother printers, one day Sir William Keith, the governor of Pennsylvania, called at the shop to see Franklin. Governors did not then pay much attention to poor printers. The governor, who was dissatisfied with Philadelphia printers, promised to send him to England to buy a printing press.

[Sidenote: =Returns home before going to London=]

Franklin, with the governor's letter in his pocket, hastened back to Boston in order to get his father's help to go to London. How happy were parents, brothers, and sisters to see the long-absent son and brother! But his father could give him no aid, and the young printer returned to Philadelphia. The governor, however, promised to pay his expenses, and Benjamin took ship for England.

The governor had not even given him letters of introduction, to say nothing of money, and Franklin found himself a stranger in one of the largest cities in the world.

[Sidenote: =In a London printing office=]

He did not whine or spend his time grumbling, but went bravely to work in a printing office. He set a good example to his beer-drinking comrades by drinking only water and proving he was stronger and able to do more work and do it better than any of them.

[Sidenote: =Returns to Philadelphia and marries=]

The next year a Philadelphia merchant persuaded Franklin to return to America to become his clerk. But in a few years he went to work again at his old trade as printer, and in a short time became the editor of the _Pennsylvania Gazette_.

Franklin had already married Miss Reed, the young lady who had laughed at him for making a show of himself on his first day in Philadelphia.

[Sidenote: =Founds three great institutions=]

=78. A Rising Young Man.= He was now a rising young man in the old Quaker city. From year to year he did many things to help others. He started a circulating library, the first in America, out of which has grown the Philadelphia Public Library. He founded a school which has become the great University of Pennsylvania, and a society, called the American Philosophical Society, which still holds important meetings.

[Sidenote: =Invents a stove=]

[Sidenote: =Forms the first fire department=]

Franklin improved the heating of houses by inventing the "Franklin stove," but refused to take out a patent and thus make himself rich at other people's expense. He also formed the first "fire department" in any American town.

[Sidenote: =Poor Richard's sayings=]

Who has not heard of _Poor Richard's Almanac_? Franklin printed it, and the people liked it so well that he sometimes printed ten thousand copies. Here are a few of the quaint and true sayings: "A word to the wise is enough." "God helps those who help themselves."

"Early to bed and early to rise, Makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."

[Sidenote: =Economy is the road to wealth=]

Franklin and his young wife kept these rules faithfully. She worked in the printing office as well as in the house. They hired no servants: Their furniture, dress, and food were plain. He ate his breakfast of bread and milk out of a wooden bowl with a pewter spoon. Mrs. Franklin surprised him one day by giving him a china bowl and a silver spoon. She said her husband deserved such things as well as other men.

[Sidenote: =Elected to office=]

The people of Philadelphia admired Benjamin Franklin more and more. At the age of thirty he was chosen clerk of the Assembly of Pennsylvania, and afterward was elected a lawmaker in the Assembly. Every year for ten years his neighbors elected him to help make the laws of the colony.

[Sidenote: =Deputy postmaster-general=]

In a few years Franklin was made deputy postmaster-general for all the colonies by the king. He surprised the people by declaring that the mail should be carried from Philadelphia to Boston every week! He was postmaster-general for more than twenty years.

[Sidenote: =Franklin plans a union of the colonies=]

In 1754 Franklin was sent by the colony of Pennsylvania to Albany, New York, to meet men from other colonies to make a treaty with the Iroquois, and to plan a union of the Thirteen Colonies. While George Washington was still a surveyor, before Wolfe captured Quebec, and when Patrick Henry was yet a boy, Franklin wrote out a plan of union which pointed the way toward that greater Union, the United States of America.

[Sidenote: =Fame begins to come=]

Franklin was now becoming famous outside of Pennsylvania. Yale College honored him with the degree of Master of Arts. The old University of Cambridge, England, gave him the same degree.

All the wise men in England and France were excited by news of an experiment made by Benjamin Franklin. He had made electricity by using glass tubes, and he had seen the lightning flash in the storm cloud. He decided to prove, if he could, that lightning and electricity are the same. No one had yet done this.

[Sidenote: =Proves that lightning and electricity are the same=]

He made a kite out of silk, to which he fastened a small iron rod. Then he tied a hempen string to the kite and the rod. To the lower end of the string he tied a silken cord to protect his hand from the electricity. On the string he tied a key.

One day when the storm clouds came rolling up, Franklin sent his kite high up among them, while he waited. Soon the loose fibers on the hempen string moved. Franklin placed his knuckles close to the key, and sparks came flying at his hand.

[Sidenote: =More honors=]

When the news of this experiment was published some very wise men smiled; others said it was a trick. The great universities of Oxford and Edinburgh, however, gave him the doctor's degree, and societies of wise men in England, France, and Spain elected him a member. He was now the most famous American.

[Sidenote: =Sent to England to defend the colonies=]