The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-23
sOME THINGS WASHINGTON EN-
DJpED.

ID
/, Throughout the length and breadth of
the land The memory of Washington was
honored yesterday. Nowhere, 1t Is safe
to say, was there a word uttered that
| indicated that THE Father of His Coun-
try" was not first in the hearts OF the
American people. But it was not always
so. During his life Washington had some
very bitter enemies. He was attacked
IN the public prints of his day more DIT
terly and yenomously than any puohc
man in public life to-day is attacked In
one paper, as pointed out by writer IN
the Philadelphia Times, he was called a
murderer. II was charged that in one OF
the battles of his early life he shot an
officer who was carrying flag of truce,
and that he had acknowledged the act
of assassination. 1t was of course proved
that there was no foundation for the
charge. The paper making the charge
was the Aurora of Philadelphia.
In a New York paper, the Journal. 1t
was charged, in an article signed "A Calm
Observer" that he was thief. The
basis of this charge was that he had
overdrawn his account, and that he owed
the treasury more than $1,000. Another
writer in the same paper charged him
with hypocrisy, and still another found
fault with him for putting on the airs OF
an aristocrat and declared that he wanted
to be made king. An opposition paper re-
ferred TO him as THE Stepfather of His
Country" and said 1t was nonsense TO
talk of the wisdom of the great com
mander Washington, and the great phil
osopher, Franklin, because Washington
was a fool from nature and Franklin was
a fool from age"
The Aurora of Philadelphia openly re-
joiced when Washington's second term
dame to an end, and declared that the last
day of mis- term as President ought to be
a jubilee in the United States" because
he had carried his designs against public
liberty so far as 20 put in jeopardy its
very existence"
There was much opposition to the rati-
hcation of the jay treaty-a treaty with
Great Britain. While the question of its
| ratification was pending John Randolph
"of Roanoke" ct a dinner, proposed a
toast, George Washington-may he be
lduiltb, pul StGlIS quiNhIg tldl lAiOsC
present although Washington's enemies
were not willing to go quite SO far, added,
"If he signs jays treaty" In this form
the toast met with uproarious approval.
The hostility to Washington was not
confined TO a few people. 1t was during
his second presidential term that Con-
gress deliberately put itself officially on
record as refusing to celebrate his birth
day, although it had been its custom TO
! celebrate it. When he refused a third
term it was declared openly by his enc
mics that he did so because he knew he
| could not be elected again.
A public man who is extensively carica-
| tured, maligned, slandered and charged
| with all sorts of crimes may be a bad
man, but it does not follow from what
his enemies say of him in the public prints
or in speeches and conversations that he
| is. Some of the purest men who have
| figured in public life have been the VIC
| Tins of all sorts of outrageous charges
| The truth is certain to be recognized soon
er or later. The whole world honors the
memory of Washington. Nobody thinks
of the ISLANDERS which were uttered against
him, and those who uttered them are as
utterly forgotten as if they had never
| lived.