New-York tribune., 1870-12-06


mia he gave twopenee worth OF bread to poor won'
and his last act was Of the sane character
The discourse on Washington is n modei OF oon
densation but the woll-balanced character VI i'
ilust1ious subject, ripe in symmetrio" Ni.'"0''
showing none of the eccentrcities Wlcn s'no''''''
mark the career of great men, anords conlpai"-
lively limited theme for analysis anu inus'i ~ S'Vp'
The estimate Of the intellectual character VI ""'i
;rgtor abonnds with nice distinctions, and evi-
dentl aims at an impartial Judgment on its peculiar
qualities.
INTELLECTUAL CHARACTER OF WAsHlN"loN'
L Look az his Intellect ,,-,.
He had not great Rcason-that phnOsophc principe
which seeks the universal law ana the sceAlue lruIs
resting in them ends He was not speculative, put
"A practical man not az all devoted to Ideas lie nau
tendency 60 Science. He did not LOOK aItsr eauSgs
ultimate reasons general laws only after taets ne
was concerned with measures not with principles lie
seldom, ever made phiosophc remark ON 1toer % m Oo
His diary Is fun Of facts II has no aeas mo
hints or studies Of thoughtful character He au mite
curiosity TO learn the great senealaChs nb6sonh III
book His letters contain 10 ideas ana reier 10 no great
principles. a.. ..,. ,o,ror
which rests in Ideal Beauty as It's end There was hte M
Of the ideal element IN him. He takes no nouce OF tc
handsome things In Nature, Art or Llteraie t
her hut reference 10 anything OF the knd IhaI 10 "a
be found in the "Lowand Beauty who 80 chaImsSI S
him in boyhood. He looked az Use NOT az beNuy. m -
some he priced for the dignity ana conSqueIoo ~
gave him. This undeal character IN mark & ns S NJ
without ornament any Of the little wayside De9ncs
gh
road lie seems 10 have had little fOndness for tera
ture as for Science The books he read were pr'Ct, M,
destitute Of the beauty the inspiration, aud the ehaIm
OF letters. In the great mass OF documents Won cal
OF his greatest papers were the work OF ohcr ha1s
The Farewell Address must be adudged 10 Ma3lsoh Mho
made the original draft in 1872 and 10 Haniton' VINO
wrought il over in 1897. Washington wrote out anew
viii his own hand making some alterations II required
four months get ready, so important did washington
deem the occasion. The greater part OF tIS when
MI so manuscript volumes are written by ms Setrctlles
rbo upust
enough which unaltered from his pen to snow us
what power of writing he possessed.
II Is refreshing 60 lind that he sometimes departed
napey and calls the British soldiers Red Coats" and
Gen Putnam "Old Put :" talks of "kicking up somo
dust" making rumpus," of nominating men not TT
of New England and the rascally Tories " scound-
rel from Marblehead-a man Of Property. But IN gen
era his style is plain and busnesske without fancy OF
figure of speech and without wrath. His writings are
grass which grows in the fields they are hay which
is pitched down from the NOW n a barn. -, -,
Ill Washington had great Understanding. He had
that admirable balance Of faculties winch we cali GOOD
Judgment the power OF seeing the most eNp"heht way
OF doing what must 6e @ d9ne guay siG R 1ndcTdnd
ing was not OF wide range hut was limited 10 lew
particulars, al pertaining tOpractlcal affairs
Thus gifted, Washington was not an Originator l
think ne discovered nothing inNenied hojhlnsn war,
i'm politics in agriculture. The "neW pl0w OF my own
invention" came 10 nothing. He soldier nearly lG
years. do not lind that be discovered anything new IN
military affairs. lie sat IN the Virginia Assembly, OF
BurcessCs; delegate 10 the Continental Congress,
and was member of the Federal Convention at the time
when those bodies were busy with the most important
new idea any original view Of affairs proposed
! amy new measure. lie was eight years President,
talent or OF power OF deep insight INTO causes into their
modes Of operation, even into their remote effects
Here be stood the level Of mankind and
deeper further than ordinary men. But he was
good Organizer. Naturally systematic INDUSTRIOUS ana
take orderly shape, and 10 serve the purpose he had
ID view Thus his large farm al Mount Vernon was man.
as wen as was then known to the art Of Agriculture.
In the French and Indian War he took the raw human
| IL nd re u IN
made servCeabe little army. In the War Of the IevO-
luton he did the same thing ona larger scale and WITH
| rude, uudsciplned mass ~ New England yaOr az Cam
bridge in 1775, and IN few months made II quite an
effective army, able TO strike powerful blow. He was
called to do the same many times in that war, and
| almost always accomplished such tasks with cOnsum-
mate skill lie laid out his plans of battle or campaign
with great good sense. But think he had no originality
| in his plans, or in his mode either of arranging his
grounds or Of marsIaing his soldiers He followed the
| Old schemes, and always took abundant counsel. As
attend to- With the help Of the able heads Of Adams,
Jefferson Hamilton, jay, and Others it was successfully
His great talent was that of Administration. He had
for action Which enabled him to manage all things we'll
He was fond OF deta-1o little thing was too minute io
j. and nice economy yet The system OF slavery dld MOI
II what all the are doing. At home he remembered
i the value Of the masters eye.
While absent from Virginia eight years in the army
he had accounts continually rclnittcd from his chie
ovcrseer telling him OF all the minute details Of the pOw
seng Il; lie birth Of cattle and slaves the health Of
D his animal and of his Human stock. Always, once a
week. Washington wrote TO his oyersecr, even in The
a most trOubous times. / think that he never
, failed of this in all the period Of storms, from
. | January, l77C, 20 December 1884 With the same
4 | skin he administered the affairs Of the Lyle mis-
, / cradle Virginia army in the French and indian War
4 and the Greater cares Of the Revolutionary Army
The 10 The facts the more are we aston
ished at the great difficulties he ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF
powder want o guns, want Of clothes, want Of tents
want OF Shoes aud, above all, want OF money, which j,
want of everything We are amazed at the Jealousy OF
Congress the chickering's and petty rvares of little and
mean ambitious Of his military rcnowu, at The cold
CarOnas, OF Georgia, and their indifference even, u
their own success But we me st more amazed at the
high ability With which he administered his humble sup
plies of means aud OF men, and at the grand rcsat lac
brought 70 pass He was not swift thinker he never
fought brilliant campaign, or moro than single bril-
a"dcr that CpsSr thar NAPOLEON or even HANNIBAL Lad
more administrative military skin, save In this that he
eId Of hattie he must think IL all ont beforehand draw
on paper the plan OF movement aud liz the place OF the
troops Hence he skifu in attack, but not equally
able when the assault made upon hH. He had slow
far-sighted Judgment In much time ne prepared and
wrought for much time. He had real military talent
As President he administered the political affairs Of
the Nation with the SKILL the same patience in de-
t tie same comprehensive diligence. man Of judg-
men not OF genius In all important military matters e
required each colonel and officer TO furnish written
port Of what ought to be done compared them all care
fully, and made up his mind after thorough knowledge
Of the facts and careful examination of the opinions
do not lind that Washington had any new ideas about
Government about political affairs. He opposed the
British DespOtism l76s but all NewEngand had gone
that way before him, and he followed after in the train
OF the aDlest ana some nChcSt men III virginia
He favored the nnion of the Colonies; but Franklin had
suggested that In 1874, and Massachusetts in l770 ap
pointed a committee to confer with all the Colonial
Legislatures He attended the Continental Congress in
1774; but Franklin then IN England, had really Orgi-
mated it, He sought for Independence but long before
him. the great souls Of Samuel Adams and Joseph Haw
ley had shown that IL Indispensable, and the fiery
tongue OF Patrick Henry had proclaimed it. think the
! Constitution does not owe a thought 10 him. The
original plan of the details Of the Federal Govern
ment does not seem 20 have come from him, but from
jefferson, Hamilton, Jay. Let us be Teyerent Of
great names, also just WashingtOn's superiority 20
others was not intellectual. lie continually sur
rounded hy aber minds In the Virginia Legislature and
| In the Continental Congress, in the Army aud in the
| Cabinet. Compare him with Franklin, Samuel Adams
John Adams, jefferson, Hamilton, Jay, Madison, with
Greene Pickering, and many more. But he pretended
10 Intellectual greatness and was one OF the most
/ -. In Ill nc liz