davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20
MA5Hn1 TOTS HA1sDwRITnydA1sD SIlfIATuRE
TlADE AID DI5TnIcTbYTHE 5TOEAIl0r
OF HIS WILL

sa special fireproof burglar-pro steel
case, which will be made specially for the
purpose, under the supervision Of the gov
eminent officials.
The dissemination of the knowledge
that Waslin2ton'S will is on view at
Fairfax Court House has, of late years,
made this quaint Virginia hamlet almost
as much of Il mecca as Mount Vernon
for admirers of the revolutionary hero.
The county seat of the county wherein
Washington lived and died has many
picturesque landmarks, not the least in
teresting of which is the old courthouse
in which Washingtons will was probated
and which presents today the same APP
pearance that it did on that historic day
more, than century ago. The will is
not kept in the courthouse, hut in the
office of the clerk of the court which
occupies separate building. Within a
few steps of the courthouse is the old
clerks office, where the will reposed for
many years after it was brought back
from Richmond after the civil war Some
dozen years ago the will was removed to
the new brick building erected for the
use of the clerk of the court, and here it
has been ever since and here the work of
restoration was carried on.
The will OF Washington, for the pres
ervation of which timely measures have
Just been taken, is a most interesting
concerned. and is rendered all the more
remarka BILE by the fact that it was pre-
pared by George Washington without
any legal assistance. This lengthy docu-
ment opens:
Il, George Washington, of Mount Yer
non. citizen of the United States and
lately President of the same, do make.
ordain and declare this instrument which
is written with my own hand and every
page thereof subscribed with my name to
be my last will and testament"
Provision for his wife is made in the
second paragraph of the will, which opens
as follows:
ITO my beloved wife. Martha Wash
inston. i give and bequeath the use and
benefit of my whole estate, real and per-
sonal, for the term of her natural life
except such parts thereof as are specifi-
cally disposed Of Then occurs that often
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

quoted sentence: Upon the deccase of my
wife ii is my will and desire that all tire
slaves which hold in my own right shall
receive their freedom The sum of $1,000
set aside for the esta blishment of
free school for orphans III the town of
Alexandria. Va, and some shares Of stock
We're bequeathed toward the endowment
of a university to be established within
the limits of the District OF Columbia
always a cherished project OF Washing
ton.
A considerable portion OF the will IS
devoted To descriptions OF town lots and
country property. which the father of
his country beaueaths to his nephews AMI
other blood relatives or relatives by mar
riage. Gold-headed canes are bequeathed
to several persons and other personal
friends are given mementoes, such as
spy glasses, chairs, shaving and dressin.
table, Bibles. etc. To Gen. Lafayette "a
pair of finely wrought steel pistols taken
from the enemy in the revolutionary
war
Portions OF the Mount Vernon estate
We're bequeather to his nephew, Bushrod
Washington, and to other heirs. especially
his grandchildren Eleanor Parke Gusts
Lewis and GEORGE Washington Parke Gus
It's. 1t is directed that certain portions o.
Washingtons very extensive holdings OF
land shall be disposed Of and the proceeds
apportioned among the host Of relatives,
but the executors are specifically charg-
ed mot to be precipitate in disposing OF
the landed property, if from temporary
causes the sale thereof should be dun.
Finally the will provides for the CON
struction OF a new family vault at Mount
Vernon in which may be entombed the
remains of Washington and his near rela-
tives and stipulates, 1T is my expressed
desire that my corpse shall be inferred
in a private manner without parade or
funeral Grafton" Appended to the bill
proper is a lengthy detailed schedule or
all of Washington's property. There Is =
separate valuation for each item and the
total shows that he died possessed Of a
fortune of S539,0O0. being the wealthiest
American citizen OF his day.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

The Transsiberian railroad the Russians
are pouring In immigrants at the rate
Of ten thousand per day. down to this
very tip of the Malay peninsula within
Eighty miles OF the equator. where new
y ads are making. railroads building and
titles are rising into being. l have told
sou how the Chinese are preparing for
a constitutional government and how the
japanese have overthrown the old courts
d corruption Of Korea and are there in
sttuting schools and civilized ways.
D. ar that similar work has begun in the
french Chinese possessions: and also in
sian,, where Bangkok. the capital. is
,ow a live, up-to-date city with electric
ishts. street railroads. telephones. news
,a pers and schools.
Away down here at the south end OF
Asia the western invasion has been
,oing on for some years. 1t began In
Singapore and Penang. the two chief
titles of the Straits Settlements be
on ying to England. Founded more than
, generation before the birth of Chicago.
hey were for long time trade out
sosts only. They are now going forward
D. teiegraphic speed, and the Malay
peninsula is moving with them. That
country, which. beginning with Burma
ind Siam, extends southwark to Singa-
sore. was until lately in a state of savage
.uo1s hold, consolidated the tribes. and
.uo's the Malay states under their pro-
GrE on. Since then roads have been cut
trough the jungles. and the peninsula
IFS thousands OF miles of highways bet
or than those OF the Philippines. and
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

the wharves. and see how the freight
Is managed In one of the biggest ports
of the orient. The laborers are of every
shade of black, yellow and brown. There
are hundreds of Chinese whose cream
colored skins have been turned to Old
gold by the tropical sun. They wear
iittle more than breechcloths around
Their waists. and carry great loads upon
their bare shoulders. They load and I'M
load the coal, and do the heaviest work
of all kinds. Here is a ship taking on
iuel. A platform has been built from
It's deck to the wharf 1t is an inclined
roadway. with an angle of forty-tive d.
grees; but up and down it, as busy as
ants. the yellow laborers trot They
work in tWOs, each couple carrying Il
great bag of coal. slung to pole which
rests on their shoulder. There are nifty
thousand tons 'of coal in those ware
houses at the back and ship can be
loaded in two hours. That coal comes
from England, and it has Travelled over
5000 miles to the Strait of Malacca.
Among the other workmen are Killings.
as black as coal and straight pine
trees. 1t is they who drive the bullock
carts from wharf TO wharf. or back into
with long hair on their chests and limbs
and straight black hair cooled around
their heads. They have regular features.
and their lips are as thin and their fore
heads as high as our own They dress
in white cotton a single sheet of which
forms a whole suit. There are hundreds
of their race in the city. They are noted
for their thrift. and many of them are
bankers, who have thousands to lend,
although their daily dress costs less than
one dollar, and they sit half naked
on the boxes in which their money, is
kept
The cart that man is driving is pulled
by two bumped cattle like the sacred
bullocks of India. The animals are as
white as snow and as clean lmbed as
Jerseys. They walk Ike aristocrats. and
were they in Holy Benares. on the banks
OF the Ganges. they would be fed daily
upon rosebuds and garlands of flowers.
Down here the god Mammon rules, and.
yoked to great carts. they drag the bales
Of cotton. bricks of tin and bundles Of
rattan over the roads.
y.Oing on into the city, we see strange
characters at every turn Each street is
= spectacular extravaganza, composed OF
every tribe and strange costume. We
pass Malays In velvet caps, short Jackets
ana gay-figured sarongs. tie latter "A
strip of prIgnt-colored cotton which falls
from the waist to the feet, and is fastened
at the top in knot. The Malays walk
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

y through timely action, is nothing less
than the last will and testament of
George Washington. The agitation in be-
half of preservative and protective
measures for this precious document has
oeen going on quietly for some months
past, The practical undertaking, how
ever. looking TO the safeguarding for all
line of this unique example of Washing
IONS penmanship has been a product of
only the past few weeks, and when this
meets the eyes of the reader will be on
ne eve of completion.
The present labor of love in tribute to
he memory of our first President has
been something of much greater scope
than the mere provision of suitable
permanent resting place for the most
significant of his private papers. mat
would have been a comparatively simple
natter. Unfortunately. however, the Will
had first TO be restored" In the course
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20
Frank c. Carpenter Writes of the New Movements in Malaysia

equal to the best roads of Java. You
can ride for days in an automobile
through these federated Malay states,
and not have enough bumps to stir up
your liver. Within the past year or SO
railroads have been projected. and tho
chief centers are now connected by rail-
with the ports. About 400 miles OF track
have already been laid. and there are
25o0 miles of telegraph in operation.
Instead of the barbarous rule of the Ma
Jay sultans. the people now nave the
British to administer their laws. Crime
is decreasing: there are courts OF all
kinds, and fiTst-class police force. The
government has established hospitals
throughout the peninsula, and 1t is de-
veloping all sorts of industries.
In Perak irrigation works have been Dug
and rubber plantations are now growing in
the several states. The trees are planted
at 200 to the acre, and there are already
about 10.O00.0o in bearing. The tin and
gold deposits are being exploited, ana
the tin output is now worth more than
S.OOG0,O00 per year. All this Is the work
of less than a generation, and the in
crease of today is more rapid than ever.
The advance made at the Straits Set
Elements themselves is surprising. These
little British possessions. consisting of tho
two islands of Singapore and Penang and
Il small strip of the mainland. now rank
among the richest parts of the world.
Penang Is not much bigger than the Dis
trict of Columbia. and Singapore a little
more than double as large. Nevertheless,
the two have a revenue of more than
six million gold dollars. and a foreign
trade greater than that of many a ma
tion of Europe. 1t was almost four hundred
millions last year. and its imports now
amount to two hundred million dollars
per annum. The total tonnage of the
colony. including the various ports. sur
passes that of any one great port OF
the world. and Singapore itself ranks
fifth among the trade ports. Here in
the east 1t is only surpassed by Hong
kong. something like nine or ten thou
sand vessels coming in and going out of
its harbor every year.
l wish / could take you to the wharvcs
of Singapore and show you this great
warehouse of south Asia. The port Is
free, and il has become distributing
center for the countries about. II is
1.44o miles from Hongkong. 5000 miles
from London. and only two or three
days fronl Java. Borneo and others Of
tile Duteh East Indies. Sumatra is in
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

plain view from where I am writing,
bangkok, Siam, is only four days away,
and Burma is just around the corner.
This island lies midway in the Straits
OF Maiacca. 1t is the chief stopping
place between the Pacific and Indian
oceans, and it is just half way between
China and India. 1t is the gateway OF
the east. where the shaved heads of tie
celestials and the turbans of the Hin
dus bump against one another. 10 the
north and east all is Monsolian, to the
vest and northwest everything Indian.
l came to Singapore from Hongkong
We skirted French China, went by the
Gulf of Siam and then coasted the Malay
peninsula. whose rafm trees could be
seen quiverfHg in the hot breeze. We
passed wooded islands and entered into
sapphire sea surrounded by green
archipelago, at the back of which Singa-
pore lay like a picture before us 1t was
afternoon and heavy black clouds hung
over the palms. The mighty steamers
coming in and going out left trails OF
the storm broke and a peal of thunder
gave US a royal salute. Then the air
cleared and We could see Singapore rising
almost straight up from the water.
Big business blocks extend along the
shore for mile or more The city has
about five miles of docks and the harbor
Is one OF the busiest OF the world. The
wharves are SO built that ships can steam
right up to them, and scores were at
anchor discharging or taking on cargo.
My ship was one of the P. and O. Line,
and We had to go to the upper end OF
the city before we came to the pier. We
passed vessels going out on their way
to Australia, great liners coming in from
Ceylon and royal Dutch packet vessel
bound for Borneo, the Celebes and New
Guinea.
As we neared our anchorage we could
see the Chinese coolies working on the
new docks. Tens of millions of dollars
have already been spent to improve the
facilities for handling cargo. and the
government is now laying out millions
more. Within the past two years 1t has
entered upon a scheme Of expansion which
comprises about forty million gold dol
lars. and the work of carrying this out
Is now under way. Included In IL L. a
dock for repairing vessels which will take
in ships almost nine hundred feet long
and accommodate the largest steamer
afioat.
But come with me for a walk along
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

A CTION Has Lately Been
"A Taken to Restore George
Washington's Last Will and
Testament - Document Now
Rests in Fairfax County
(Va.) Courthouse, Where 1t
Has Been for Many Years
Government Took Hand in
Restoration and Will Looks
Like 1t Had Just Been
Written Peculiar Kind
of Surgery Was Needed to
Repair Valuable Document
Will Shows That Washing
ton Was Richest Man of His
Time, Having Over Half
Million Dollars in Property.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

with swagger, and they invariably
smoke cigarettes. They too lazy to
work, and the most of them live from
hand to mouth.
We see Indian Mohammedans in
turpans of white, red and yellow They
wear gowns which reach to their feet.
There are tall Sikh policemen i'll uniforms
with turbans Of red. Persians in white
broidered with gold. There are short
haired Slamese, as brown as tobacco;
shaved headed lIindus, as black as your
boots, and willy Cingalese peddlers, with
their long black hair done up in IA knot
Just back o. the crown, and half-moon
childs comb to keep it in order.
There are Brahmns i'll iinrikishas.
hauled by yellow coolies clad in short
tight trunks of blue paper muslin and
little palm hats which end in cone
low legs trot along inside the shafts.
There are also Parsees with tall hats
which look for all the world like in
verted coal scuttles, and with long coats
there are Javanese with gay-colored
tied around their heads,
who wear skirts of lightning-streaked
cottons.
There are also whites from all parts of
Europe. They wear great helmets. which
extend far out behind and suits of white
linen or cotton. They are English.
French. German, Italian and Spanish.
with now and then an American tourist
or trader. Altogether the crowd is as
cosmopolitan as any you will find in the
world Singapore has about 100000 in
habitants. and of these only 5000 are
Europeans. The rest are Asiatics, and
the bulk are Chinese, Malays and East
Indians. There are hundreds of Japanese,
a few Arabs and numerous Jews. The
colony is governed by the English, with
a small garrison and police force of about
:. 200 men. 1t. is well governed. too. and
life and property are quite as safe here
as in New York or London.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

ington for this repairing. Such removal
was, however, found to be impossible.
and for time there was talk of asking
the Virginia state legislature to pass an
act allowing the document to be tenn
porarily removed from the state for this
specific purpose In the meantime, how
ever, Librarian Putnam and Gaillard
Hunt. chief of the division of manuscripts
OF the Library of Congress, had been APP
pealed TO. Americas greatest library is
a center for all activities connected with
the rejuvenatiQn of historic documents.
books, papers and drawings, and the Ii
brary constantly maintains a staff of eX
perts skilled in this intricate work.
When the situation with regard to the
Washington will had been gone into it
was finally arranged that the library
Berwick, to Fairfax Court House and
have him carry on the restorative work
there. This was done, and the outcome
Is as satisfactory as though the work
had been done in the well equipped plant
up under the roof of the worlds most
beautiful building. There were many
handicaps. however, not the least of
which was found in the necessity for
TRANSPORTING to Fairfax heavy press
and other paraphernalia The manuscript
1ngton and Fairfax while the work was
In progress. The success of the restora-
tive work on the Washington will was
largely due to the aid afforded bv a
number of blank sheets of paper made
especially for George Washir gton and
Watermarked with his name. When the
government officials inspected the torn
and tattered will they at once realized
that an inordinate amount of piecing and
patching would be necessary, and they
We're In quandary where to obtain
material that would match the original
After a long search, however, there was
discovered in secondhand book store
in this city number of blank sheets
or the writing paper which George Wash
ington had manufactured especially for
his personal use, and with this material
In hand the effective grating of the
new tissue not only became a simpler
matter. out the exact original appearance
OF the will was preserved
The art of manuscript surgery, which
has been SO strikingly exampitied in the
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

o V + r y NJ ENT
officials at the
National Capital,
acting just in the
nick of time, have
been enabled to
save to the cOun-
try one of It's
most interesting
relics. The me
mento which has
thus been pre-
.eryed to pOSter-
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

me that they can beat a European in any
business deal
the federated Malay states the Chinese
have been going there in great numbers
They are crowding out the Malay and
this is SO with the natives of all the islands
In TINS part OF the east. On the Malay
peninsula and in the Straits Settlements
there are now more than LOCO 900
Chinese. There arc 3.O0O.No in Formosa
and 100000 in Siam. There are large
numbers in Burmah. and something like
f1.no0 in the Dutch East Indies They
are rapidly going into Sumatra and
nearly every settlement in Borneo has its
Chinese colony. Hongkong is practically
a Chinese city, and the same will be the
case with Manila if we allow them TO
come.
The Chinese of these far-away islands
are different from orr laundryrnen OF the
United States They have rich men among
them, who spend money like water. Many
have magnificent homes, and their
wives are Respondent I'm diamonds and
pearls and in bracelets and ankIets
of gold. | saw party of celestials at the
steamer as | landed. 1t comprised four
women whose ears spark led with dia-
monds and whose long silk gowns were
buttoned at the front with brooches of
diamonds and pearls, while on their bare
ankles. above their loose slippers, were
great bands of pure gold.
see Chinese riding in automo-
biles. Some have carriages with coach
men and footmen in livery. They wear
silk gowns and felt hats and lie back or
their cushions smoking their cigars. as
their brown Malay coachmen drive them
about. ] see them in the billiard rooms
and on the cricket grounds and now and
then l pass one flying over the roads
on an American bicycle. his silk gown
floating in the breeze. The biggest stores
of Singapore are owned by them, and
they are the cashiers and accountants
Of the principal banks.
Our former Chinese minister. WI Ting
fang, came from this part of the world.
His father was Cantonese merchant
and his mother a Hakka. Both were
Christians, and they were living at Singa-
pore when Wa Ting-fang began his ca
reer as interpreter in the Hongkong police
courts and later on went to England.
where he studied law and was admitted
to the bar. Upon his return he was taken
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

of more than century of wear and
tear-and some rather rough handling
for 80 fragile an object-H had come into
deplorable condition. Consequently the
most important part OF the current
project has been the regeneration OF this
document, which had so far fallen into
decay that il seemed about To be lost to
the country forever. The granting of a
new lease of life 70 George Washington's
most notable literary production was
made possible b.: Il miracle of manuscript
surgery and document restoration
Persons who are at all conversant with
the care with which Uncle Sam fosters
and safeguards all the important state
and private papers of historical value
that are in his keeping may naturally in
quire how it has come about that SO
priceless a trophy as the will of Wash
rngton should have been allowed to fall
into decay. The explanation is found in
the fact that this will is not and never
has been i'm the possession of the federal
government. 1t was filed for probate i'll
the year 1900 at the county seat of the
county in Virginia where Washington re-
sided. and i'll that state Ii has remained
ever since. During much of the century
or more it had not the best of care. and
the circumstance that il was carried
about more or less from place to place
including trip to Richmond during the
civil WdT-SeTNtu tO emphasize the raw
ages of time OH the immortal instrument
The worst fate of all befeiI the will in
more recent years through an error OF
Judgment on the part of its custodians,
VINO were, however, acting with the best
OF intentions. AS result of the han
ding of the will, the pinning together of
the twenty-three pages and the wear
along the line of the creases in which it
had been folded, IL came about in due
course that almost every one of the
sheets was completely severed through
the middle and along the line of greatest
dimension. The persons in charge of the
will realized in a vague way that some
thing ought to be done, and they finally
hit Upon the scheme of sewing together
the severed section of each sheet. Now,
the loving hands that performed this task
not only took large stitches. but in
effort to effectually reunite the fragments
made the stitches especially numerous
in the vicinity of Washington's signature
and other important parts of the docu-
ment. To riddle the precious sheets with
needle holes was, of course. bad enough,
but the sequel was even more serious,
for with handling the bindings cut their
way through the paper, and the result
was a number of great gaping wounds
that gave the will the appearance of be-
ing literally in tatterS.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-20

WRITE today OF
the aw akening of
Malaysia. | have
already described
how this whoie
A static continent is
throbbing with the
invasion of our
new civilization.
The movement ex-
tends from the
SHOWS Of ths
north, where over