Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-03-13
COMFY O,LANUs' EPIsTLE.

From the Brooklyn Eagle.l l.s
DEAR EAGLE: ri have just got over cele-
brating Washington's birthday. see you
celebrated it by not issuing any fourth
edition Yesterday. AS a mark OF respect
the sacrifice of your fourth edition was a
tribute that would no doubt have been
gratifying to WashingtOnsif he had lived
to see to it. If he had lived till yesterday
he would have been hundred and thirty
five years old. just think of that. 1t is
about the age of the oldest 1nhaoltant.
Washin2tOn was great man. He was
first in war, first In peace, and first in the
hearts of his country men, and belonged to
one of the first families OF Virginia. he
was likewise the Father of his Country. If
he was alive now don't think he would
feel proud of his offspring. Had he still
continued toreside up to this time at Mount
Vernon he would not be eligible to seat
in Congress. That lovely patriot, Thad.
Stevens, would consign him to martial law
and disfranchisement. The soil on which
he was corn and on which his bones rest is
NO longer the land OF the free, but crushed
and dismembered Virginia wears more
calling chains than those which fell from
her Limbs when the last foreign foe
Welded at Yorktown. Pennsylvania. where
rebellion first disturbed the peace of the
Young Republic, has spawned forth an
arch malignant, lineal descendant OF the
whisky riOters whom Washington crushed,
n0bled as the birthplace of Washington.
Of course you have heard OF the little
dog aud the dead lion.
What are the glories of the past COM
pared with the glOries of the present? Or
the great men of the Revolution, since
greater have arisen, who know SO much
more about government and the funda-
mental principles of republicaDism? II
Washington lived in this generation he
couldn't have been a great man. One of
the earliest traits in his character was in-
ability to tell a lie. That alone would have
ruined his political prospects. AS gen.
eral he swOulon,ts have done either. He
didn't believe in smarching on the enemy's
works" sufficiently to have insured his re-
tentiOn in command of the Army of the
Potonac.a He never expressed an inten-
tiOn of fighting it out all the summer on
any particular line. 1t took him seven
wears to crush the British Lion; we did up
a more extensive war business in four
years, killed five times as many men, and
spent fifty times as much money. / am
afraid Washington was slow. Then we
don't hear of anybody making fortunes by
army contracts tor beet and shoddy in his
day. A Republican administration never
could have tolerated such acommander-in-
chief. Then his farewell address would
have been fatal to his reputation. The
principles he enunciated would have.
shocked the Radical press, and he would
have been denounced as Copperhead. He
was; open TO suspicion of free trade pro-
clivities because he affiliated with a Boston
party who refused to pay the duty on tea.
Consequently the Tribune would have been
down on him. e1--...i
Some men were born too soon, some too
late. Washington was born about the
right time People didn't know so much
in his day. Or at least they didn't send
such wise men to Congress. People were
iaf1 wi nn6Qr (nnSti-
tutiolrthen, entertaining very foolish re-
sDect for the Constitution without the
amendments. Washington paid visit
once to Brooklyn with his army. He put
ut1 at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, the name of
which has been changed TO Washington's
Headquarters. The accommodations were
not first class, but the PierrepOnt House
was not built at that time. aud the board
ing houses down town were all full. Wash
ington would haYe stayed longer in Brook
lyI only the British and Hessians came in
from Flatbush in such large numbers that
he got disgusted, and after trying to drive
them out he moved over to New York one
foggy morning, and subsequently retired
to his farm in n eW jersey, where he passed
q very hard winter. He distinguished him.
self by crossing the Delaware, when there
was great deal of ice in the river, though
he didn't take any ladies with him, as Cap
tain Duncan did. While in Jersey, Wash
ineton got mp surprise party, and called
upon Hessian family in Trenton. The
Hessians were much surprised, and quite
taken by the undertaking.. This shows
that Washington was open to the social
amenities of life.
There are several anecdotes of Washing
ton extant. One of which is about Brit
ish sentinel who was on picket duty one
nigh wIIeIir ne saw q man--a tall man,
rmI,, by. This British sentinel-who was
strictly LOYAL to his Government, thought
ne would shoot the tall man. AS the |
idea occurred to him he raised his gun to
carry it ont. Just before he pulled the |
trioSer the British sentinel altered his mind |
and didn't shoot. This, tall man who
WASN'T shot was Washington. He never |
knew it until somebody told of it after |
wards. Such wasthe greatness of his mind. |
There is one other anecdote ofWashing-
ton never before published, but was relat-
ed privately to me by, his nurse, Joyce |
Heth, when he was in Barnum's Museum.
father made little George a |
Christmas present of nice little plum tree
which he had bought at hardware store
In Richmond. Little George, who was OF
an inouiring5 turn of mind, wante d TO find
mt where the plums came from, so he took /
! fovorfte hatchet that the hired girl used
n cbon {yindlfng wood with and chopped
m the tree. 1t took theedge of the hatchet
nd hacked it like q buck saw so that1t
uouldn,t split fine kindling wood. sWhOi
|, - done thie?', said old Mr.. Washington
boxing around for hickory switch to I
sT1 -lerr. s,rf-t tyy.5s ds1nGh 10 n 90