El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-02-17

son Of a widow Of slender means, and
one Of six children by his fathers
pectatiOn then that his rich half
brother, Lawrence would leave him a
fortune, and that ne would die the
wealthiest citizen in all America
All of which goes to show that
prudent parents are liable to make
mistakes in choosing their sOns-in-
law. AS for poor George, he remained
constant to his lady love for some
years, and even addressed to her Ger
tain original poems Zone Of which still
preserve ed among MS collected papers,
in the Library of Congress) begins;
Oh, We gods, why should my poor re-
sistless heart stand to oppose thy
might and pOWer2
1t was dreadful poetry, but who is
there that viii not forgive the worst
Of amOrOus verse to a lover under 2O2
Love IS Rejected.
The records seem 10 show that It
was in 1851 that Georges first proposal
OF marriage was rejected. He was then
19 years old A year later in a letter
addressed to the girls father, he asks
for a reversal of the ''cruel sentence, ~
but. though Mr.. FauntlerOy's reply is
not extant, it was evidently unfavor-
Young Washington at that time
physically speaking, was fine spec1-
men OF early American manhood He
stood two inches over six feet in his
stockings. As friendly contempOr-
airy describes him, he had "Well-de-
veloped muscles. large bones and joints,
and wide shoulders. His nose was
large and straight His chin was firm,
and his hair, worn in queue, was
dark brown. His mouth, large and
firmly closed, from time TO time dis
closed a few defective teeth
Between the dates Of his first and
second proposals for 'beauteOus
Betsy's" hand, he had made q voyage
to Barbados with his invalid brother
Lawrence, and there had caught the
s@h u
looks to some extent for the rest Of
his life
Tradition, which is unwritten history.
declares that the @Lowland Beauty
married Thomas Adams for his wealth
and that she lived to regret her mis-
take. Years afterward $50 the same
authority avers,) when, after the
triumph at Yorktown, Washington
ing at the head OF his troops past her
residence, he looked up, and. espying
her on the balcony raised his sword in
salute. She tainted
Probably Not True.
Very likely there is not a word Of
truth in the story Tradition IS usual
" q liar But, soon after his second
refusal by Betsy's father, he became
much interested in a young woman
named Mary Carey, a connection and at
the time house guest Of lord Fairfax
His lOrdshiD owned an estate Of some
5000, 600 acres in Virginia, granted TO
him by the British crown, and George,
being employed 10 make a survey and
maps Of II, became, as a friend of the
family, temporarily member thereof
Receiving encOurage ment from the
girl he made bold TO ask her father,
Col Wilson Carey, for her hand, but
was haughtily dismissed with a re-
minoer that Mary was accustomed 70
ride in her own coach and was no fit
mate for a penniless person like Mr.
Washington, who, though his lineage
was unexceptiOnable, possessed neither
riches nor prospects
Is Defeated By Wealthy SuitOr.
Georges successful rival in this in
stance was a man OF large wealth
named Edward tAmbler, who owned an
extensive property not far from James
town, Va In later years he and his
wife were often entertained as guests
at Mount Vernon, q most friendly init
macy (as proved by entries In Wash
ington's own diary subsisting between
There will always be dispute as to
the treatment which the immortal
George received at the hands Of an
Phinipse, and whose father, an Eng
hshman Of considerable fortune, owned
a fine estate near West Point, on the
banks OF the Hudson river. His house
considered patatial in those days, still
stands, and, known as the Phillipse
mansion, is regarded as an historic
landmark In after days the widow OF
Aaron Burr, a FrenchwOman, who had
been Nine Jumel bought the property
and lived there until nsr death.
Mary Phillipse, at the time when
Washington first met her. in 1856, was
a very handsome young woman. 26
years Old-that IS TO say. two years
older than George. She was already
engaged to be married TO Capt Roger
Morris, former companion in arms Of
WashingtOn's who, like himself, had
been an aid to Gen Braddock during
the latter's disastrous campaign. Ac-
cording to one story. however, she en-
couraged Georges attentions. only to
inform him. after his interest was seri-
ously engaged. that she was promised
TO another
. It may be said by way of parenthesis
that the PhilIipses ardently espoused
the royalist cause in the revolution,
and Capt. Morris fought on the British
side. During that struggle the Phil