Evening star., 1927-02-22

WASHINGTON,
London to all the European capitals.
by way of justifying Great Britain in
making war upon France. In 1863 he
organized the Mississippi Co. to take
the place of the Ohio Co.. which was
one of the casualties Of the war. He
applied for a gra' L, .of .Bo0. 900 acres
OF land, though ht Gid not receive it..
But he made his own investments so
that in the schedule Of his property
attached 10 his will we find western
lands appraised at over S400, ,0oG---
along the Ohio. the Great kanawha in
western Penn. .sylvania. in Kentucky,
and IN the orthwest Territory.
Journey Through West.
Having vision OF what the West
meant in the future prosperity of the
new Republic, Washington in 1884
journeyed out into the wilds. His
diary Of the trip is filled with interes:
and enthusiasm over the, possibilities
or that region. Hubert. who ha g
made study of it, calls him our first
expansionist. the originator of the
Idea of possessing the West through
commercial relations. I'll was a pio.
neer idea. instinct with genius this
author writes, and Washington's ad.
vocacy OF it marks him as the first
commercial American, the first man
typical OF the America that was 10 be.
Due to his investments, he became the
president OF the James River Co and
or the Potomac River Co, organized
nj hA
opening navigation through to the
West To the Potomac Co, which in
VOWED the first interstate commerce
In this country, he de-
voted four years OF service. 1t has
been thought that these negotiations
entered into by Washington led up
almost directly to the calling Of the
convention. They re-
vealed clearly the difficulty under the
OF confederation OF accom-
phshing ANYTHING involving the well
rare or all the States. and showed the
need or a more strongly centralized
government. His ability as
business man was the strong sup
port OF his statesrna nship. It made
his political ideas intensely practical.
-" "Washington's Atlantic Mississippi
waterway plan was never carried out,
But his advocacy OF it. without doubt
nad much to do with preventing a
break In the Union, which threatened
serious consequences. The people of
western North Carolina. now Tennes-
see, shut off from the East by noun
tains, had no outlet to the sea other
than the Mississippi, and Spain, con.
trolling the mouth of this river, levied
heavy tribute on all commerce passing
through 1t. Disappointed at the in.
x1f hA
get concessions from Spain, they, in
1884. established separate State and
started negotiations for an association
with that foreign country. This action
was rescinded after Washington put
forth his waterway plan.
That he should have been respon-
sible In large measure for the opening
OF the West and for calling attention
to the commercial advantages the
country might derive therefrom is by
no means the least of his benefactions
to the Nation. He demonstrated that
those who develop our resources,
whether along agricultural, CONNER
cial and industrial lines or In any
other field Of endeavor, are entitled
to the approval rather than the CEN
sure Of their countrymen.
Had National Mind.
Washington was a builder-a Gre
ator. He had a national mind. He
was constantly warning his country
men OF the danger Of settling prob
lems in accordance with sectional in
terests. His ideas in regard to the
opening Of our Western territory were
thought out primarily for the benefit
Of the Nation. 1t has been said that
he would have been the greatest man
In America had there been no RevO-
utionary War
'He was largely instrumental in Sc.
letting the site for our National Capt.
tai, influenced in no small degree by
his vision of the commercial possibili-
ties of this locality. 1t included his
plan Of the waterway to the West,
through the Potomac, the MOnOnga-
hela and the Ohio rivers. which he
used to speak of as the channel Of
to the extensive and valu.
able trade of a rising empire. He,
Of course, could not foresee the de-
of railway transportation
and the great ocean-gOing vessels, be-
cause of which the seat Of our Gov
srnment became separated from active
contact with commerce and was left
10 develop as the cultural and intel
ectual center of the Nation. Due to
the genius of L'Enfant,' the great en-
yineer. this city from the first has had
! magnificent plan Of development.
Its adoption was due in no small de-
gree to the engineering foresight and
executive ability of Washington. BY
1882 we shall have made much prog
ress toward perfecting the ideal city
planned by him In the closing days Of
The eighteenth century.
Washington had the ability to
translate ideals into the practical af-
fairs Of life. He was interested in
what he believed contributed to the
betterment of everyday existence.
Perhaps because he realized the defici.
ency Of his own early education. he
was solicitous to provide liberal facili-
les for the youth of the future. Be.
cause as a man of affairs he knew the
use Of learning. in an early
message to Congress and in his VIII
ne sought methods for the establish
nent OF national university. Even
IN his farewell address we find this
Promote, then, as an object Of
primary Importance, institutions for
The general diffusion Of knowledge In
as the structure OF gov
srnment gi1es force to public opinion,
It is essential that public opinion
should be enlightened
System Of Education.
"He desired his system of educa-
ton to be thoroughly American and
national. 1t was to sup
port the people in knowledge of
their rights, in the creation of re.
publican spirit and in the maintenance
of the Union.
att was with the same clear vision
hat he looked upon religion. For him
there was little in 1t Of emotionalism.
He placed it on a flrmer, more Sc
cure foundation, and stated the bene-
Ats which would accrue to his country
as the results of faith in spiritual
things. He recognized that religion