The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1868-06-03

| Our countrymen, in spite of their supereminent
utlitaanism have had the good taste, from the death
of the Father of his Country, to allow him, without
cayi the benefit of apotheosis Chief Justice Mar
shall, Jared Sparks and Washington Irving with all
the industry of scholarship, with all the ervor of pa
triotism, with exact and critical justice have each
given historic portraits of Washington, like the ori
gnal we believe, the painting of Stuart But, it
seems in the opinion of D. W Pia the character Of
George Washington ' has suffered in the hands of
these standard historians "-they have made him a
God as it were, and placed him so high in the heaV-
ems, that his poor, fond, ignorant countrymen have
deceived themselves into the belief that their idol
had weaknesses. The astute Piatt has even dis
covered, he was born of woman, that Tom. Paine
wrote filthy pamphlet of abuse, that he was once
young and danced and hunted, that he little pas
sionate and aristocratc fond of horses and not
fond of handshaking-nay, even that the great man
once in a while swore terribly" Now, if this ad-
dress of Piat in Ohio, is any evidence as we fear it
is, of any design his part to undertake rev biog
raphy of Gen. Washington, to reveal his human weak
nesses, that the people may love him the more for
them, like Patt hope the just gods will stop the
career of the mad iconocast, and should prefer
they would use thunderbot for the purpose:
REN1N1c1EScEs OF GEORGE WAsHlNeroN.-In an ad
Dress delivered at Delaware; Ohio, February %, Don
Patt said
No man has suffered more in the hands of the STAN
dard historians than George Washington. They have
passed beyond popular understanding and popular
sympathy. He has ceased to be man and become
god. l startled than once when
came unexpectedly upon pamphlet written and pub
shed by Tom Paine, attacking George Washington.
r. Nf fhp n
try by that coarse yet able writer. While rejecting
the summing up of the celebrated nfde, the mere
fact that the great Virginia Colonel could thus be as
sailed by contemporary, awakened the Suspicion that
we did not know George Washington. l investigated
for myself and found that Washington had been born
of woman That he had once been young, and danced
with the girls and rode after the fox. That he was
vain of his person. proud of his horses passionate i'll
his temper and arstocratic in his feelings learned
that he bowed in dignfed manner, with his hands
behind him, to his guests at ievees, ana "nen femol
strated with by Tom Jefferson who suggested band
shaking, he replied: "Shake hands, No sir! should
catch the itch !"
remember being told by my grandfather, old Col.
Piatt, of Boone county Kentucky, who was wounded
at Brandywne, that be happened to be present when
Washington met his army IN full retreat and then the
great commander swore terribly.
In word learned to love the man for his weak
nesses as admired him for his strength. As he ceased
to be impossible, and grew to be human, my heart
went out in sympathy for bis struggles and admiration
for his success.
Mr. Parton also tells the following nice little story
Of the Father of his Country:
"The general and his wife lived happily together
but it is evident that like most heresses she was
little exactng and is highly probable that the great
Washington was sometimes favored with curtain lee
ture The celebrated authoress Mrs. Bremer. relates
that gentleman once slept at Mount Vernon, in the
next room to that occupied by the master and mis-
tress of the mansion, and when all the inmates were
in bed, and the house STILL he overheard through
the thin PARTITION the voice of Mrs. Washington lie
could not but isen and it curtain lecture which
she was giving her lord. He had done something dur
ing the day which she thought ought to have been
done differently and she giving him her opinions
in somewhat animated and decided tones. The great
man listened in silence till she had done, and then,
without remark upon the subject in hand, said:
"' Now, good sleep to you, my dear
1t is plain the General believed that it takes two
to quarrel"