Wheeling times and advertiser. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1839-1849, 1840-10-08
From the Albany Duly Aduertiser.

ouiSn puZcltc brings US the
following eloquent letter from the last Of
the LIFE GUARDS OF GENERAL
w ASHlNGTON. Let the freemen OF A
merica heed the honest warning Of this
venerable patriot. Let all who are able
to mis- for the wal adopt the advice Of
this aged veteran and enrol themselves as
the Lite Guards OF the Country:
10 the DESCENDANTS # Revolutionary Soldiers.
An old sodIer Of the Continental Army
asks Tor the last time TO speak 20 his coun-
tryuen. During the suffering service
of the Revolution, | was in sixteen en-
gagements, and was one OF the little band
who volunteered under Sullivan to destroy
''the six nations of Indians" | was one
Of that small company selected as the Life
Guards Of George Washington-but two
of us arc now living. | was at the tough
siege OF Yorktown, at Valley Forge, Mon
mouth, and in thirteen other hard battles,
and saw Cornwalli. surrender To our old
General. My service ceased only with
the war. After all this hardship and sui.
fering, in the street whe.. ] 20 out in my
old age TO see the happiness | have help
ed 10 give you, am pointed at as a Brit
IsH ToRY-ycs, a BRTrIsu Tory. nave
said nothing when ] have bccn told ST..
but have silently thought that my old
General would never nave picked out n
Tory 10 form one Of his Life Guard, nor
would a Tory have suffered what | nave
suffered for you. This abuse has been
shamefully heaped upon one OF your old
soldiers because he is what he was when
the war broke out. and what Washington
told US we must always be when he shook
hands with us as We al were going home.
| was n Wing in the Revolution, have
been one ever since. and am one now
As a Wing | enlisted for the whole war.
was in favor with the other wings OF
Thomas Jefferson, ven with the party
Tor James Madison, was in favor of the
last war, and 10 be consistent in my last
vote, mus, give it to Harrison He is q
brave man, and was never known wher-
ever he has been 10 take a penny from his
%seighbor or the Government that was not
fairly his. We have trod over the same
ground fighting for liberty. Ills father
The was one of Hs in the Revolu;ioni signs
ed our independence roll, and then VT all
went out together to fight for il, an We
proved il was true.
1t appears 10 me that this cannot oe the
same government that our soldiers help d
- ~ ihSNO' ~ GuA SB SiO We IOuRui
10 have u Government as different from
any in Europe as ne could make it,
Well, we lone il, and until lately things
have all gone on smoothly and Europe
was beginning TO get ashamed of the way
she made slaves of her subjects by max
ing them work and toll for seven cents a
day with a standing army over them to
force them to it.. But our President now
tells the people that things have gone
wrong since the Old War and that there
are twenty three miserable governments
in Europe where the Kings wear crowns,
the rich purple, and the poor people rags,
that We must fashion after them il we
want TO be happy and prosperous? We
had English laws here once and they were
the best in Europe, but we couldn't stand
then and we put them under our feet
We used to work for a mere nothing then,
and we cannot do it again. Working for
a few cents u day may do for slaves but
not for freemen whose liberty cost more
blood than liberty ever cost before: why
The very first thing that started the Old
War Standing Army the King kept quar-.
tered on us: we told him we wanted no
soldiers over us in time of peace, but he
refused to mind us and ] saw Lord Corn
wallis surrender up a part Of them to hon.
est George Washington. Our President
now proposes 10 nave Il standing force
what for?-Beware.
Jefferson never asked for armed men to
r~e-elect him or elevate his successor.
Madison asked for them only in the time
Of the late war, and warned the people
when he left his Office to be careful about
keeping soldiers in time OF peace. Our
streets are filled with idle men who were
active laborers once, when employment
was to be had. The men Of enterprise
who once employed them nave been ruin.
ed by the government. And now these
honest but unemployed laborers are told
by the Government that when they 90 10
work again they must 90 ii for a few
cents a day-that labor must be as cheap
here as it is among the slaves Of Cuba or
the a oil Europe. Ambition and ig
norance on the part of our Government
have shut up our shops and stores, scut-
tied our ships, filled our streets with idle.
ness and bankruptcy, and given no en-.
enlargement TO the farmer as he looks at
his grain. Are not these things so? You
know they arc, and ] have no motive in
saying what may be false i am TOO far
advanced for office or any thing else but
death-lt will soon be here. My little
pension, ] thank you for il, will so9n stop
and 60 home with the rest Of the Life
Guards. There is but one remedy only
for the safety Of the country I served
Put other men TO stand at tho tiller abe
round the cables, and you will soon nd
back OF The old Constitutional track, Gen
Harrison is honest, he never deceived YOU
and he never lost u battle, and the People
wont let him lose this. Accept my adj.
vice and you all have my blessing myl
advice is that all Of you become the Life |
Guards Of the country, and my blessing
is hat your old age may have less fears
for liberty than mine.
BENJAMIN EATON.
eft~ iuo surUiDiag LIFE Guard, oJ Gen Wa.h.