Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-05-07

against the Spanish West Indies. Ad-
mlral Vernon and Gen. Wentworth, under
whom he had served, and with distinction
at the unsuccessful siege of Carthagena,
We're recalled to England, and it is said that
Lawrence would have followed to seek pre-
ferment in the regular British service had
he not loved Anne Fairfax. They became
engaged Their wedding was postponed by
the death of the father of Lawrence and
George Washington, Augustine Washington,
who died of govt of the stomach April u,
1743, at the age of forty-nine years. In
the month of July 1743 Lawrence and
Anne were married at Belvoir and in the
words of Irving, Lawrence now gave up
all thought of foreign service and settled
himself on his estate on the banks of the
Potomac, to which he gave the name of
Mount Vernon in honor of the admiral"
Lawrence Washington, because of his own
merit the antiquity of his family and his
alliances with the FairfaXes, became one of
the prominent men Of the Potomac country.
He was member of the house of bur-
gesses, and adJutant general of his militia
district, with the rank of major. His at
tachment for his younger half-brother,
George. was strong and "a frequent So
Journ with him brought George into familiar
intercourse with the family of his father
in-law, who resided at the beautiful seat
called BelVOir, a few miles below Mount
Vernon and ON the same woody ridge Dor
dering the Potomac. William Fairfax was
a man of liberal education and intrinsic
worth. He had seen much of the world and
varied and adventurous experience OF an
ancient English family in Yorkshire he
had entered the army at the age of twenty
one; had served with honor both in the East
and West Indies; and officiated as governor
of New Providence after having aided in
rescuing il from pirates For some years
past he had resided in Virginia to man
age the immense landed estates of his
cousin, Lord Fairfax, and lived at Belvoir
in the style of an English country gentle
man, surrounded by an intelligent and cul-
tivated family of sons and daughters.
AN intimacy with a family like this, in
which the frankness and simplicity of rural
and cofYnial life united with European
refinement, could not but have beneficial
effect on molding the character and man
ners of a somewhat home-bred school boy.
1t was probably his intercourse with them
and his ambition TO aequit himself well in
their society that set him upon cimpiling
code of morals and manners which still
exists in manuscript in his own handwrit
ing, entitled Rules for Behavior in Com
pany and Conversation
i
In the decade between 1740 and 1850 there
were many gala days and nights at Mount
Vernon and BelvOir. Lawrence Washing
ton and William Fairfax having been sol
diers, were frequently visited by comrades.
II was in this way that George Washington
made the acquaintance of "Adjutant"
MUSE VINO TO instruct George
Washington in the art of war, lent him
treatises on militia tactics, put him through
the manual exercises and gave him some
idea of evolutions in the field 1t was in
this way also that George Washington met
Jacob Van Braam. who gave him lessons
on the broadSword." Van Braam was a
Dutchman by birth, a soldier of fortune of
the Dalgetty order who had been in the
British army, and protesting to be a COM
plete master of fence recruited his slender
purse by giving the Virginia voufb los
sons in the sword exercise"
This martial activity was due TO the APP
proach of the French and Indian war and
followed hard upon the exploration by
Christopher Gist and George Croghan Of
the Ohio country at the instance of the
Ohio company. which was chartered in
1T49 and promoted by John Hamburg of
London Thomas Lee. president of the Vir-
| ginia council; Augustine Washington, Law
renee Washington and other men of note in
| the colony of Virginia and the proprietary
of Maryland. Van Braam went with
Washington as interpreter on the first pub
lie mission of the great American, when
Washington carried a letter from Gov
Dinwiddle to Capt. Joncafre at Venango,