The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1927-09-08

IiiC Cii|H " PlSJuu4Ce OplIlOu
against the English anil the least
pleasant feature of the narrative was
that it had his signature to attest it's
truth. He was, by his c-Ya state
ment, the assassin of an cheer on
peaceful mission to him, protected by
a flag of truce.
When Dinwiddie had the French re-
ply refusing to get out of the Ohio
company grant and claiming posses
sion by right of discovery and by the
burial of claim plates, some of which
have been dug up in our own times,
he set to work to throw them out. To
validate it's grant the Ohio company
was required to build fort and settle
one hundred families in the territory.
While Washington was carrying the
message to St. Pierre, Dinwiddie had
sent out a party of carpenters under
a guard and with William Trent in
charge to build a stockade at the
forks. Washington passed them go
ing out as he was coming in. It was
certainty that they would be driven
out by the French unless supported,
and Dinwiddie tried for Colonial CO.
operation with Virginia in sending an
army west. Inasmuch as the posses
sion by the Ohio company was an as
sumption of Pennsylvania lands by
Virginia, there was not much enthu-
siasm in that direction, even against
a common enemy.
Dinwiddie gave the command to
Col. Joshua Fry, professor of mathe-
MATES at William and Mary College.
| Washington was commissioned lieu
tenant-colonel and raised two compan-
les Of volunteers at Alexandria, about
$50 men, and went to Wills Greek,
Cumberland, Nd, the jump-off for
the wilderness, in April, 1854. He was
now % years old and, as events prov
ed, he was to have entire responsible
ity for warfare with French soldiers
in time of peace between France and
Great Britain.
At Wills Creek, Washington took
advice as to procedure. Reinforce
ments came to him, but so ale0 az The
news from the Forks that the French
had dropped down the Allegheny
river with large force in boats, had
taken the fort and were sending the
carpenters and their guards back over
the wilderness trail.
The expedition which had been in
tended to hold a position already ac-
quired against an attack upon it by
the French now was in the quite diff
ferent position of being required to
march against French soldiers in pos
session and throw them out. In one
case the French would be making war
in peace time; in the other the Eng
lish would be.
Washington, nevertheless, decided
to go on. He had two swivel guns
which would need widening of the
trail blazed by the Delaware Nema-
colin and Travelled by Washington and
Gist the year before, the trail which
later was Braddock's road and is now
the National Road.
Washington had with him an an
noyance in a company of British reg
ulars from South Carolina under Cap
tain Mckay who, with a royal COM
mission, declined to receive any order
from aforementioned with a col
ony commission, and his men refused
to do any road making, which irritat-
ed the Woodworking Colonial soldiers
almost to INSTRUMENTATION.
Colonel Fry, hurrying to get to his
command, fell from his horse at Wills
Creek and was killed. Washington
had all the responsibility, although he
did not want it, saying that he was in
experienced. The regular army cap
tain did as he pleased. The Colonial
officers wanted to go home. The en-
listed men wanted rum to carry them
through their hard work and the wad-
ing of streams, and the number of the
enemy was reported to be overwhelm-
ing.
Even if it were the future Washing
ton, at %, the task was great. The de-
cision was to push ahead over the
mountains and through the wilderness
and build a fort at Redstone Creek,
near the present Brownsville, Pa, and
hold it until supplies and more men
could be sent in.
The Colonials, with the company of
British regulars, penetrated to a spot
between the present Stone House and
Pennington on the National Road, be-
yond Grantsville. There was some
rolling meadow land, and there Wash
ington decided to build a fort to fall
back on if the French appeared in ov-
empowering numbers. 1t is conceded
that in his inexperience he selected a
bad place, and that his men would
have been better in the brush than in
closed in any stockade.
The monument which is by the road
side now calls attention to the fort
site, which is 300 yards distant and
is itself marked by tablet. On down
the road is Braddock's grave and mon
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