davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20
AN ORIGINAL sPELLER.

That NJ spelled like gentleman ls re
--esied r., these letters II the vast govern
-7sert collection. Thus he wrote eN-
7-svs eence'' ''vInder. -'larteu (for
LATIN. etc But his education vas finished
ONLY a. Z little village school in FredsTicks-
burg. whence ne departed Z poor gram
marian. although z fair hand at arithmetic
isis grammar. however, he improved in
later life until he had mastered an ele-
sance OF style His penmanship, always
Uniform. graceful and distinct followed
closely rre stereotyped copies in The
Young Mans Companion which ne
studie6 indust-lously and which contained
instruction n e great variety CT subjects.
from carpentry 10 etiquette, and from
ciphering 70 doctoring.
Bur throughout MS life Washington read
bur little and what books he did peruse
were chiefly on agriculture and military
science 4 complete catalogue of his
MIRA. printed this winter for the first
time. reveals. however. that he hao an ex-
tensive collection Of books Books Of hc-
ZION are. however very few and far be
tween. ana YOU could almost count them
or vou- 7rger~''tSn BIAS +'Peregrin
Pickle ''Gulliver.'' Humphrey CIinker.''
Don Quizote" and feW Others. There
ere feU volumes Of miscella laneous verse
and the remainder q the hundreds Of vol
Urnes are ESSAYS or works ~ the fnfo-nIa-
1i7e class f5e had the American Ency-
olopssdIa. Shsmheaud's and Johnsou's die
tonsries. snd there are no ond OF text
books on gardening and farming In his
diaries n never mentioned reading
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20
If He Enlists in the Navy at Seventeen. and Is a
Warrant Officer at Forty-seven. He Can
Retire $50 a Month for Life.

filter coprersmith blacksmith or boiler
maker. as gunner. sn electrician. as a
fireman, IS a musicisn or as baker
And, unlike conditions on the land, he will
he sent to school hy his employers, ali the
While under pay, and given every facility
10 enable him ia improv" IN his work. abll-
ity and character Aud after he has risen
as high as he can Uncle Sam lets him re
tire At about forty-seveu To fifty years of
age. even though he hasn't succeeded ia
getting into the commissioned officer class
by that time. life income Of as high as
$50 month.
At the same time that one or several OF
these lines of work are being mastered. the
government fosters fencing and boxing
matches. concerts on the ship every night
and morning, dancing. minstrel shows by
the crews own troupe, use OF the boats
belonging 10 the WaTships for sailing or
fishing. football. baseball boat racing
furnishing everything necessary 10 sna bic
the bluejackets to enjoy themselves one
fourth of the crew gets shore leave daily
after afternoon drill, and may remain away
till the following morning. and on Wednes-
day. Saturday and Sunday afternoons they
may go earlier
How 10 enlist for Iifework of this sort
Is best shown by quoting from one of the
pamphlets issued by the Bureau of NaVi-
cation; IT you arc between the ages OF
seven1een and thirty-fve wears, and have
q height Of feet . inches to feet .
inches and weigh ll5 to l76 pounds with
chest measurement Of a3 TO 8sa. inches
write letter 10 the Bureau of Navigation.
Navy Department. Washington. stating
that you wish to enlist in the navy, and
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20

y cir freedom To emancipate them during
her life would though earnestly wished by
me, be attended with such iusuperable diff
fcultes on account of their nJe-mt1ture
by marrag 90 with the dover negroes as TO
ea cite the most painful sensations, if not
disa grees BILE consequences 10 the latter,
while both descriptions arc in the occu-
pancy of the same proprietors: II not being
in my power. under the tenure by which
the dover negroes are held TO manunit
them And, whereas. among those who Will
receive their freedom according to this de-
yise there may be some. who from old
age or bodily inf1rmities. and others. no,
on account of their infancy, will be able
10 support themselves, il is my will and
desire that all. Who come under the frst
and second description. shall pc comfort
ably clothed and fed by my heirs while
they live and that such of the latter de-
sCription as have no parents living, or, II
living. are unable or unwilling TO provide
for them. shall be bound by the court until
they shall arrive at the age OF twenty-five
years. and. in cases where no record can
he produced whereby their ages can be
ascertained the judgment of the court upon
its own view of the subject shall be ade
quate and final.
i ne negroes. tnuS Douno.' are pN lncI
masters and mistress. to be taught TO read
and write and TO be brought up TO some
useful occupation. agreeably 10 the laws
of the CommonWealth of Virginia, provtd-
ing for the support OF orphan and other
poor children. And I do hereby ex
pressly forbid the sale transports ton
out of said commonwealth. OF any slave
I may die possessed of. under any pretense
I Ilo =
edly and most solemnly enjoin it upon my
executors hereafter named, or the SUR
Vivors of them. to see this clause respect
ing slaves, and every part thereof, he re
ligiousIy fulfilled at the -epoch-at which il
is directed to take place. WITHOUT evasion,
neglect or delay after the crops. which
may then be on the ground are harvested.
particularly as is respects the aged and in
firm; seeing that a regular and permanent
fund De established for their support,
long as there are subjects requiring it.
not trusting to the uncertain provision 10
be made by individuals"
The interest of the Father OF his Country
in education is indicated by the contents OF
several paragraphs OF his will He gave
$4,000 in bank stock to the trustees of the
Academy of Alexandria for the education
of orphan children and the children Of
poor and INDECENT persons He also made
provision for university in q beduest Of
nifty shares of stock In the Potomac Com
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20
PROVIDED FOR TRIBUNAL.

His lastly ended with these words ::
In the construction Of which II Cllis will
and testament, will n. readily perceived.
that no professional character has been
consulted. or has had any agency in the
draft; and that although It has occupied
many Of my leisure hours TO digest, and TO
thror IL into its present form, II may. not
vithstanding. appear rude and incorrect,
but having endeavore 70 be plain and ex-
plicit In all devtses. even at the expense
Of prulixity. perhaps OF tautology. I nope
and trust that no disputes will arise con
cerning them. But il. contrary 10 expec-
tation the case should be otherwis. from
the want OF legal expressions or the usual
technical terrps, or because too much or TOO
little has been said OF any Of the devises
to be consonant with law my will and di-
rection, expressly is. that all dispute df
u happily any should arise shall be de
ctdAd. by three inpa rtial and intelligent
men. known for their probity and good un-
derstsnding. two TO be chosen BY the dis
putants. each having the choice of one and
the third by those two which three men.
thus chosen shall. unfettered by lau or
legal constructions, declare their sense OF
the testator's intention; and such decision
is. to all intents and purposes to be as
binding the parties as If it had been
given in the Supreme Court OF the United
States
Such is the original manner in which this
early: and great American citizen disposed
Of an estate valued az approximately $500
600; an estate which undoubtedly made him
one of the richest Americans of his time
and, according to som.. put him in the
Morgan class OF his period.
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20
b. z. "a Jennings
CHAPTER NIX.

CHAPTER NIX
Tn. glare snd glitter Of brass bands and
soIdierz have unbounded attraction for tho
average fuIlhIoo6ed boy. but add 70 this
the fascination Of The sea and navy life,
visiting the ports OF the world, the envy
of all their acquaintances on land. with
good living good pay and certain advance
rnent. and YOU have condition that should
be even more appealing.
Just this life is open TO every boy OF
seventeen. and. practically as well theo-
reticaliy, ne can keep going on up as far 2s
he likes. and al the same time will have
the advantage OF the best kind of direc-
ton and good home; for Uncle Sans
Navy Department is a veritable father TO
his blEejacket children
These sound like strong assertions. par
tcuarly in view OF occasional criticisms
that are made. but TO quote one of the
government statements, in nearly al in
stances these reports we're circulated By
men VINO have been discharged for had
conduct who have been punished by the
department on account OF bad behavior
and have left the navy for the navy's
good
Anyhow, by starting oUt your boy as &
man-o'- -warsman. no matter what particu-
lar bent he may have, he viii find mere tho
education and training, and pay all the
while. that viii develop him into fhe high
est possible efficiency he has ID MIN He can
work up q seaman as 4 clerk etenog-
rspner snd ryoofF prT1er- IN rusTJtra work
as tailor, steward OF a coax Is a car
penteI, nachlaist, plumber, painter ship
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20

II s572os ~ including s2a. ass 20 found
in the iron chest" and exclusive of the
slaves But exclusive of this and. Of his
oife-s estate the general when he died.
was worth $500. GOO which means that in
his DAY he ranked financially as Nan-'
derhfIt or Gould ranks to-day. And the
Widow Custis when she vas married 70
him. had 4 fortune Of 500. ZOO which was
augmented by $50. 600 upon the death of
Pstsr Curtis, fourteen years later.
Tho father Of his country was ever
ladies man" Indeed. one Of his bios
raphers goes SO far ss to say that he
vas very much more at ease with women
than with men He was not ashamed TO
he caught ''ron1ping- with the girls at
school. ana when sixteen he became fas-
Clnated with Mary Cary. at Lord Fair
fax's. but. in letters praising her. COM
plains that being in company with her
revives my former passion for your low
land beauty" The identity Of TINS low
land beauty who had warmed tho heart
Of the couutrv's father when he was only
a lad. remains still 4 mystery. He Cou-
pied iovelorn verse with mysterious mi
riaIs in his journal
Then he Was in love with BESSIE Faun-
tleroy who passed "a cruel sentence" upon
him when he vas nineteen. But from the
time he returned from the wars. a Young
hero. in his early tWenties, women be-
gan 70 court him. And whom he was
tventy-four Mary Philipse had the honor
of refusing The slender Young man who
had she but known twas 10 he the first
gentleman Of America. Two years later
he was courting Martha cambridge Gus
it's the rich widow. whom one biographer
sums NJ rs petite overfond. hot tenn
pered obstinate and q poor speller." He
Was almost twenty-seven when he married
her and she was nine months his senior.
He seems TO have been always true to her.
the only tangible evidences Of his infdeli-
ties having been proved to be Tory forg-
cries
Washington sight failed during the Rev
olution. and he first put on glasses al forty
five. By fifty he was quite gray. by fifty
five quite deaf. and by siXty-three had lost
his last tooth His last illness was con
tracted at sixty-seven. while riding about
Mount Vernon in winter storm, from
which he contracted diphtheria- First, an
overseer came and bled him of half pint
of blood. Then the dctors came and bled
him to death: and his last words. addressed
TO them. were: You had better not take
any more trouble about me but let me go
of quietly"
JOHN ELFRETH WATKINS.
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20

warrant orfcer at an annual salary Of
H.Sn1 to s2.4oh. From here. opportunity is
given to advance through the various
ranks of commissioned officer 1t ls not
easy 10 get into the higher grades: but TO
a boy of ambition and the necessary
ability this is possible; the navy has sew
eral high officers who have advanced from
the ranks.
There arc numerous opportunities for
the msn-o'-warsman to get extra pay. ON
re-entisttng tan enlistment is for ,our
years. he gets an increase OF & 30 4
month. and Of $ 30 a month for each sub
sequent enlistment This Is increased
stfn further by 81 10 month IF h. re-
eniists within four months OF his date Of
discharge. in which case he gets = touus
of four months pay. Each medal for good
conduct lie receives carries with il a adj
ditlon of s. cents 10 his monthly SALARY
When detailed coxswain OF a launch n.
gets - month extra. When. qualified as
submarine man nc gets 81 day I'D tn
sio month for every day served under
water ~7sc;E ne is in charge Of store
rooms, or Is messman TO the crew or
gun captain, there is an increase of e
month. When serving gun pointer
he gets s. To $40. month extrae As navy
~ ION sl1 10 40 month extra:
and ships tailors receive so month
above their rating
Cnder the present Law man-o'-warsman.
II physically disqualified, MAY retire on
haf-pay at the end of twenty years, and
may voluntarily retire at the end OF thirty
wears service on three fourths pay, If h.
mas not reached the grade of warrant Of
hcer he slso gets sl5 70 month dditional
In lieu Of rstions. clothing. etc. Thus your
boN, f he eniists at the age of seventeen
ana reaches the grade Of warrant offcer
can leave the service, rs the time he is
rortv-seven With an income Of $50
month for life
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20

Courses of instruction in schools are pro-
vided for all those taking up special trades
such as electricity. yedpanry, music hos
pttal work tie ,artificer's school. sea gun
merry. mechanics, etc.
The daily life of the man-o -varsmeu
begins with turning out at 5:3a o clock IN
the morning. tying up their har1raocks and
having coffee or cocoa with bread or hard
tack. and smoking for half an hour Then
the men wash their own. clothes At $50
all bluejsckets clean the ship from, end %
end ana sft"r washing themselves. have
breakfast at 30 o'clock. From s:3e 20 q:Sn
the, vessel is prepared for inspection. and
then there is drill for two hours with an
intermission Of fifteen minutes From II 80
to f:5o is the dinner. Then. from so TO ;
O'Clock Is devoted TO instruction after
winch the bluejacket is on his own time
except for twenty minutes AT calisthcnics
Supper is served at $50 and AT 30 he must
make up his hammock. Nine o'clock is
the retiring hour. unless there is concert
or some other entertainment on board ship
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20
FOR NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

rs,,o,csd nv ..these impressions. SO fully
diIated" he bequeathed in perpetully 1ho
fftv shares which he held In the fotonnac
company towards the endowment OF UNI
yerstv. TO be estab ablished within The hnllts
or the District of Columbia. under the aus
pIces of the general government II thaI
government should incline 70 extend los
tering hand toward II
There ire many universities in the nited
States to-day but none of them has pene-
hted by this particular Request of thIs
public spirited citizen and early American
,,tirar1hrnpfet The Washington and Lee
University still profits from his gift Of one
hundred shares in the James River COM
rany- made 70 the Liberty Hail AcadeTn[-
WasF7fneton's kindliness OF heart is indI-
Gated by the number OF d-bts he wiped OUT
in his will That he vas not opposed 10
the principle involved in lotteries IS indl-
Gated in his testanlentary disposition OF
some land in Richmond and the neishbor-
hood Drawn In partnership with nine
others. all in the lottery OF the deceased
William Byrd.
Friendship played a part in his life
which was recognized in gifts Of the gold
headed cane left me by Dr franklin in MS
WILL other gold headed canes, "spyElasses
which constituted part of my eduipase
during the late war" "tambour secre-
tarv," the circular chair, an appendase
Of my study" my large shaving and dress
ing table and MY telescope. 20 various
friends and relatives. To General de La
fayette he gave "a pair OF fneE wrought
steel pistols taken from, the enemy IN the
Revolutionary War Upon his nepneVs ne
bestowed swords accompanied with an in
junction NOT TO unsheath them for the pur-
pose Of shedding blood, except It be for self
defence or in defence OF their country and
its rights: and IN the Ia stter case. 70 keep
them unsheathed and prefer falling with
them in their hands to the REIMBURSEMENT
thereof
Then Washington having gone through
these specific d.vises rith explanations fcr
the more corr-~t understanding Of the
meaning aud design Of them proceeded 70
the distribution Of the more important
part" Of his estate He divided his real
estate consisting OF land, mills. distilleries
and other appurtenances, in q very careful
friends and after declaring that 1t is my
express desire that my corpse may be In,
TERED in a private manner. without parade
or funeral oration. closed by naming the
executors Of his will in = lastly, in which
Washington recognizes his prolixity-
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20

the bureau Will Immediately write YOU
giving YOU the address of the recruiting
station nearest YOU, and this recruiting
station Will examine you physically and
accept or reject YOU. The government pays
your expenses from point Of enlistment 10
training station o. ship but does not pay
your expenses to the recruiting Office.
The only mental requirement. is that the
applicant Re bic 10 read ami write the
English language
The recruit is first sent to the training
school at Newport r. l.. where he re-
ceives without charge a complete outfit Of
ClOt hing valued al $50 and is then ready
for instruction in drills and manual o.
arms: in taking care OF his clothing and
hammock tthe navy man bed); how to
swim. TO box the compass TO heaVe the
lead, to make knots splice ropes. coil down
gear. to make bitches and bowiines. 10
sail and boats; how to take care of
rife and revolver and TO shoot etc. If he
is industrious he may he promoted to he
apprentice petty officer while he Is still
al training school. at increase Of from
81 To g 30 month. His pay al the start
is 81 ~ q month. After four months al
the school he has opportunity TO take
animation for ordinary seaman. at so %
month,
To summarize the further promotions,
after A year ordinary seaman ny
passing examination he is promoted
es seaman at s26 20 month, then is
once eligible to the position Of third class
al Sh % to S4i a month; one year more
and ne is eligible for first class petty Of
ficer al s49 80 TO $50 A month. and in one
more year for chief petty oficer at S'7 a
month, which appointment in stu another
year. or by the time he is only twenty-five.
is made permanent and irrevocahls except
by court martial a chief petty of1cer
who has been IN the navy eight Gears rs
aua!!fed for prometlon TO lhe rank OF
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20
He TOOK ON FLESH.

When Ini-tr-o1le he describes himself 70
MS tailor as six feet high and proportion
sbiN ulade-lf ANYTHING rather slender than
-hicF Tor z person q that height, with
v-ettv long arms and thighs By the time
le was ffty-one his weight mad increased
- o1a- or 3 pounds ,1ver what nc carried al
me riT1e of his marriage.
He Was Pockmarked in addition 10 hsv-
lnE defective teeth His attack OF the
awful disease which marked him for life
MAS contracted a. the age OF nineteen,
z,hile with ms invalid brother in Barbados
When fsfrv-ee,-en IN the wear Of his first
inauguration. Senator Macisy. describing
ms as ne really is said he was or IN
<=N~eptionsble make hUr lax appearance.
and complained max his frame would
seem 10 want filing IT thar his complex
ler res ',rsaIe-nav. almost CadaveroUs' -
anG rhat his voice va -hoioT and lndls
1inc-. owing. IS 7 believe, TO artificial
1eerh before ms upper Jaw. which ccCa-
sions fsrress-
That pcrtraTtGre has failed 70 show Us
the real Washington i he opinion ~ sev-
.~s1 writers who studied him after he be
carre President and who lanented that
there a-e few portraits which resemble
him" that his face had an expression
~hich no painter had suCceeoeo n tax
ing and that 10 picture accurately -e-
seuhies him IN the minute traits ~ his
l1e-son Fe writes OF himself that while
POSING for the Peale portrait he N7as II
grave and sulleu mood ana part Of the
tine asleep And when Stuart vas paint
fne nc most famous of his portraits he
ssr with his ltps padded out with cotton 70
hide defects caused by the bad At Of his
H1- <e
sor better teeth. q hippouatus tusk.
which ~ wore while sitting cor 2 miniature
b. Sha-pless which was regarded BY many
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20

would rave been the nerNeS' i'io'i
The savage tribes
Washington was a porn epeculator' Al
Mount Vernon he was constantly engaged
II, land deals and during the Revolution
he tried TO get = share in a prfvateeriTlg
enterprise He was also an enthusiastic
patron of the raf7es and lotteries which
were fsshionsbles in his day.
From the tirre that lie was IN his twen-
ties until he was VOL advanced in his six
ties he made repeated entries on his ac-
counts OF sums ranging upward 10 go in
vested in lottery tickets. When thirty-four
he made f1s on IS thus invested. He put
up Il in a ram. for 4 necklace. Il shillings
fcr 4 cnanoe on The Encyclopaedia Britain
nica" and ne entered other raffles for
glasses. coach. pair of silver buckles,
q watch. gun. etc. He was also fond Of
gaming. and one entry in his diary stated
that he was at home all day over cards.
hut his diary records his largest gain as
IS However. he once lost 20 4 shillines
and pence The record shows that he
was generally unluckv at cards.
He was fond of billiards. horse racing and
fox hunting Indeed. from boyhood he was
passionately fond OF horses Jefferson
called him the best horseman of his age.
He subscribed generously 10 the races. and
ran. his horses al them. He would 60 to
Annapolis or even far q Philadelphia
10 attend the races. And ne rode 10 the
bounds until sixty-two. when he fell off
and sprained his hack He went ''ducking
for teals. srrigtails and malIards along the
Potomac marshes. and at other times he
went a ora SEinS for sturgeon" or angling
for other of the fnny tribes. He also at
I, ...lod eek fights when the chance offered
New-York tribune., 1910-02-20
A FAR FAMED WILL
Ul4SHTNGTON'S GIFTS
TO M4NT FRIENDS.
Testament CoCers @3 Pages
-Bequest for University
Nerer SO applied.

Washington will. the restoration Of
which has just been completed al the
courthouse in Fairfax. Va, where it is fled
a part Of the public records is an in
'terestinE sideliEht on the human qualities
of its author. It is written with my own
hand. and every page thereof subscribed
with my name according TO the decIara-
ton of the first paragraph. Each OF the
tventy-three pages Of the original manu-
script hears his name at the bottom.
The fallibilty OF the first man is indi-
Gated in the dating of the document, which
he wrote was. this ninth day of July. in
the year one thousand seven hundred and
ninety. and of the Independence OF the
United States the twenty-fourth' OF
course, this statement does not hang to-
gether The testator omitted the word
nine after ninety
AS the length OF the testament indicates.
il is full Of details concerning which General
Washington was almost most punctilious.
He gives full and explicit directions how
each item OF his estate shall be handled
He provides for all his debts of which"
he interpolates, there are but few and
none of magnitude" He first remembers
his dearly beloved wife Martha Wash
ington.' and includes in his bequest to her
his household and kitchen furniture of
every sort and kind, with the liquors and
groceries which may be on hand at the
time Of my deCease."
The thoughtfulness of George Washing
ton for those dependent upon him is illus
trated in the second item. This is the
noted section disposing OF his slaves In
il he carefully explains his reasons for
his testamentary action regarding them
Upon the decease of my wife" he wrote
lit is my viii and desire that all the slaves
whom I hold in my own right shall receive