The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1860-02-23

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verse cast him down. In the cAse he felt that be had
merely been an instrument In the aivancement Of good
Gmss and more powerful than hs winds ana waves Of
adverse fortune, would IN Hs own good ue tak1 care
Of Hs own cause He was, therefore, prone Vi hope
He aecuetomed himself 70 look out from the present III
70 tAe future good Confidence In nnal triumph was
aam s,wsys present with him-s calm ana sedse put
through unbroken forests with e yelh Of the savAges
ringing in his ears in hb rude entrenchments at
Of French and Indians and far away kom home
and sacoor; at Braddocks defeat, when carnage
strewed he aeld and when his horse had been twice
shot rom under him, and the balls from the enemy's
guns had four times pierced his garments that gloomy
Christmas night, while struggling across the Delaware
drifs towards Trenton at this very battle Of Prince
tom while under the guns Of the enemy and enveloped
the smoke Of their fire. in his cheerless winter quarters at
Valley Forge, his men pershng with cold and hunger,
country discouraged at the saddening prospect that
the fate of the country hung suspended on single fight
whatever his situation or his circumstances, his calm un
daunied eye looked away TO the future, and modesty
hoped that saw In It's bosom ultimate, and complete,
and grand, and transcendent triumph. This same strong
sense Of duty gave him great control his feelings
nns = have gss ss.n psp ~ s
iiancy which ds.zles and captiyases, % he was free
which will not be quiet, and cannot be restrain.
ed. But his emotional nature, though very strong,
Also 6uD)eCted 70 c0ntr0l Inc world accustomed
to look with indulgence, If not with favor, upon I'm
pusive and ardent temperament. With many, impulse
is honesty, and self control 10 selfish calculation. But
such ethical and social rules all ct fault In regard TO
Warrington. He was naturally man Of high passions,
but be- sought very s;. ssu;cc,esSy 70 govern them Ho
with another might have been selfish calculation, was,
with him, earnest thought for the good Of his country
and that which the world thought unfeeng sternness
vaters that occasionally appears for short time in the
eky, and then disappears perhaps forever whose dis
tance and orbit astronomers unable TO ascertain his
qualities were 30 rare and bis virtues 90 uncommon that
they not underst cd and appreciated by the world
at large. His peculiar skin In Indian warfare brought
upon him the reproach Of British General who gave
his life forfeit for his His we'll timed delays
and mastery inactivity caused him TO be called reproach
fully, the American Fabius, by men whose ceaseess
ruin. In the war Of the Revolution we had peculiar
difficulties TO encounter. We had sparse popu
aton scattered over wide extent OF territory and hav
ing unity Of feeling In relation TO the Revolution
ITSELF which brought on more for the violation Of alb
stract right than for any felt oppression. There were
large number q anti Revotionists Money and forces
were both scarce and there common government
to collect the one or enlist the other but all was depend
ent the action Of the individual States who, though
contending against common enemy, had yet great feel
ing Of individuality and jealousy among themselves Some
coming as they did from dieren States there was much
rivalry and bad feeling. Here hen discord among
the people, Jealousy between the States; rivalry among
the officers; want Of and money to carry on the
war; and executive head to direct and control opera
TONS To overcome these difficulties peculiar qualities
in the commander in chief were requisite clear sound
judgment and firm will; ability to undergo hardshlps,
and sympathy with the sulerings Of Others economy in
the Of means, and skill In preserving well as in
T needed Of dy
to command confidence, and great patience and faith
to enable him 70 sustain reverses bear up under gloomy
prospects, and serenely bde the time for effective
blow. These the very qualities which Washington
had in 80 eminent degree. more brilliant would
have hazarded more, and that we could not afford.
of
the army and OF the nation, and one OF weaker faith
would himself have given up the contest in despair.
we'll drilled Roman legions Napoleon fought more spIen
did battles but his c0nscrptions Of and levies OF
money were almost boundlees With raw recruits, badly
clothed badly fed badly paid and often changing; with
nsubordinate officers plotting his overthrow, and Con-
gress giving very often but feeble ad amid desolAted
%ch circansances Il required washington 70 achieve
the glorious result Of the american Revolution But the
browning act Of glory in this connection remained to be
done. With laurel crowned and condding army at his
back with the praises Of grateful nation ringing In his
ear; when the existing form OF government had al
we have fred bis heart. and glory beckoned hm on to
those higher reaches Of power which most men 30
much desire s to attain he n0Sy went forward and sur
Nations looked on in wonder those who doubted the n
tegrty Of mankind and felt sure that he aimed at the
imperial purple were struck dumb with astonshment
The star Of bis military pales now before the
clearer, and purer and brighter light Of his moral
hercism The name Of Annapolis s married to that OF
character of Washington has become consecrated for
in the heart OF every true patriot Few military
heroes have the qualities requisite for true satesmanshp
but the fame which he acquired 10 the field and the cha
racter and qualities he thus developed enabled him. bet
than all Others 10 naugurate experiment OF civil
government II doubts were entertained about the
constitution 1t was something In its favor that he had
been President of the Convention which framed It, and
that he gave his assent II jealous OF the
power lodged in the central Executive head It aided
reconcile them when they reflected that the power thus
given in the hands Of one OF much moderation
and true patriotism II spirit Of lawleesuess at any
time broke forth, 1t was already half subdued when
buked by who had triumphed often, but
more sienally than when he triumphed over him
SELF When sectional spirit began TO break forth (and Il
sometimes did, at that early day. It at the head
Of affairs who had made every section OF the Union
the witness Of his trials his exerons aud bis DANGERS
zeps but also the first Of American patriots Whatever
wisdom could devise, or 1rmness execute, clemency
might confidently be expected of him AS the military
career OF Washington had its trials its hardshps and ts
office not unattended with many anxeties and difficult
ties. In putting the new machinery into notion there
at once question about ceremonials The hatred TO
arisocracy great that It looked with suspicion
even upon those simple forms which are almost ingepa
BILE from political and even social organic aton The In
dams our frontier created disturbances which
necessary TO quel and An insurrectionary movement
in one Of the States, growing out Of our excise
laws, though quickly suppressed, gave real trouble
the sdvssrs of thy
President, In relation TO tho finance and currency
questions continued during many years Of his admins
tration. And ultimately the relative relations of
try towards England ami France created great bitterness
Of party feeling in which the administration involved
and which the honored head of that administration did
not entirely escape. Throughout ALL however, Washing
ton by his great weight Of character. his sound, clear
Judgment and bis manifest dsinerestedness managed 70
TO retain the confidence and regard Of the country In ALL
he manifested the same devotion to duty and the same
modest reliance overriding Providence, which he 30
much displayed in bis military career Here, again. ss
drew from public position. Had Washington never lived,
what would have been the result OF Revolutionary
sruepeP Had he died Immediately after the close Of the
war what would have been the fate Of governmental
experiment. These are specuIatons which IL will never
be allowed in this life to solve As, in the case
we cannot say that the struggle would not ultimately have
ended trumphantly, So In the other we do not know
that our present form Of government would have
been successfully established. For myself, doubt
the latter proposition fully as much the former Uuder
another man. first President the fury Of party strife
would have been far greater and sectional dscord much
stronger. nsurrectonary movements would have been
more numerous and dcVlt OF suppression and foreign
jealousy bold and effective. Though the ship Of
State may have ultimately made the port 1t s certain
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