The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1871-12-06
The Wife of Washington.

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The Wife of Washington.
There are fine ladies, it is said, a
present, who disdain the homely, hon
cradle duties of house keeping, think
ing it beneath them to attend TO TIN
comfort, happiness and dignity of thei
:, families. If any such there are,
should like to invite them to lcok int
the work room of Mrs. Washington
at Mount Vernon, the apartment il
which the first lady in Virginia, il
Virginia's palmy days, used to spenc
her mornings at work, surrounded by
busy servants. Every great house ii
Virginia had such a room in ole
times, and ladies plumed themselves
upon excelling in the household art:
practiced therein. This particular
work room at Mount Vernon is de-
scribed in old letters of the period
copied and given to the world some
years ago by the late Bishop Meade,
of Virginia.
1t was plain, good sized apartment.
arranged and furnished with a view to
facilitating work. AT one end there
was table for cutting out clothes
upon. At that time, every garment
worn by the slaves had to be cut out
and sewed, either by the ladies of the
mansion house, or under their super
intendence. The greater part of Gen
eral Washington's slaves worked on
plantations several miles distant feom
his home, and were provided for by
| their several overseers but there
were great number of household
servants at Mount Vernon, besides
grooms, gardeners, fishermen and 9TH
ers, for whom the lady of the house
had to think and contrive. At that
broad table sat skillful, nice looking
negro woman, somewhat advanced in
years, with a pair of shears in her
hand, cutting, cutting, cutting, almost
all day and every day, the countless
trowsers, dresses, jackets and shirts,
needed by family of perhaps hun
dred persons. Everything worn by
the General or herself, except their
best outside garments, which were i'm
ported from London, were made in
that room under the eye Of the lady
of the house.
All the commoner fabrics, too, were
homemade. On one side of the room
sat young negro woman spinning
yarn; an another, her mother knit
ting elsewhere, woman doing some
of the finer ironing here 4 woman
winding there a little colored girl
learning to sew. . In the midst Of all
this industry sat Mrs. Washington,
ready to solve difficulties as they arose,
and prompt to set right any operation
that might be going wrong She was
always knitting. From morning till
dinner time-which was two o'clock
her knitting was scarcely out of her
hands. In this work room she usually
received the ladies of heir familiar
acquaintance, when they called in the
morning, but she never laid aside her
knitting. The click Of her needles
was always heard in the pauses of con-
versation.
Her friends were surprised to see
her, after her eight years residence at
the seat of government, instantly re-
sumo her former way of life. They
found her, as of old, in her work-room,
with her servants about her, knitting
and giving directions. One lady, who
visited her after the. Generals retire
ment from the Presidency, gives an
instance of her prudent generosity.
"She points out to me several pairs
of nice-colored stockings and gloves
she had just finished, and presents me
with pair half done, which she begs
1 will finish and wear for her sake"
Thus she contrived, in one and the
same act, to make present and give
a practical lesson in industry. She
was, indeed, a signal example of that
virtue, at time W hen ladies Of wealth
and Importance could scarcely help
practicing it. She used to speak of
the time spent in levees and other GER
emonial duties rs "my lost days"
The chief labor of a mistress of a
house then was in training servants. |
Mrs. Washington. like the other Vir-
ginian ladies, had an eye upon the
families of her slaves-and most of !
them had very large families-and !
when she noticed little girl that SEEM :
ed bright and apt to learn, she would !
nave her come to the work room,
where she would be taught to sew,
md, afterwards, other home arts. In
his way the house was kept supplied
with good cooks, chamber maids,
and nurses. Promising
,irls were regularly brought up, or, as
We may say, apprenticed to the house:
lold trade which they were to spend
heir lives in exercising.
This training of servants was form
rly supposed to be part of the duty
# all misstresses Of great houses,
the servants were white or
lack, bond or free. Ladies did not
hen regard a house, with all its COM
licated business and apparatus, as a
uge clock, which, being wound up
tter breakfast, would run twenty-four
ours without further attention.
faving themselves actually performed
IL the operations Of housekeeping, ,
aving acquired skill in their perform j!
nee, they knew that good servant is
OF born but made; and they we're
illing to take world of trouble in
,rming a servant, in order that by
MI by they might enjoy the ease de-
we'd from skilllull service. 1 must :
L L