Evening star., 1928-03-20
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM

THE ESTATE OF GEORGE WASH
INGTON, DECEASED. Eugene z.
Prussing: Little, Brown & Co.

Original In conception, substantial In
purpose, admirably balanced and round
ed in projection--Such, 1t seems 10 me,
must by general agreement among lts
readers stand as fair appraisal OF this
study by Eugene Prussing.
leave 1t to you. Is 1t not StriK-
ingly novel plan to offer last Will and
testament" as definite and distinct con-
tribution to a period of national history?
This Is what Mr.. Prussing has done
with the subject in hand. To meet such
significant purpose the instrument
under examination must, to be sure,
represent character and service OF the
highest must connote influence OF a
quality to persist actively far beyond
the limit of any one mans personal
existence. George Washington stands
behind this study, giving full warrant
for the high worth of the authors de-
sign.
Since here is so unusual course of
research, historic or personal, let us
step aside for a minute in order to
look more closely into the general char
acter of any last will and testament.
When a will comes formally into the
open the occasion becomes matter OF
atmosphere rather than one of actual
IdCL. mere IN SOIGIIiLl CcItHlOIIidI, a
ritual of respect toward a presence not
seen. In effect this formal reading of
the will is but continuation of the
funeral Such is the mere outside Of
the matter. For, in its essence, this
document is vibrant with the life of
him who made 1t. 1t is packed with
personal revelation. 1t is an account
ing of true conditions. First, 1t en-
bodies formally and completely the sum
of its makers possessions. often a care
fully guarded secret. 1t is an exact
measure of material success, or the lack
Of It,
Again. this document so carefully
withheld during the lifetime of its
author. is made in the face OF the final
exit, in the consciousness, too, that
when it becomes public he, its author.
will be beyond the reach of blame or
any other sort Of Judgment BY vir-
tue of these two conditions 1t becomes
the frankest Of all personal revelations
OF character. temperament. and habit
OF mind. Fears and distrusts and jeal-
ousies find place in 1t. no less than
gratitude and justice, than love and
friendship and fair dealing Read here
and there as you have the chance. You
will discover that these ultimate docu-
ments are sometimes made the means
of pure repriSal. just az much more
commonly they prove to be instruments
of protection and beneficence. The
point Is that last will and testament"
Is not an article of sheer legal ariditv
with the savors of death upon it. Rather
is 1t thing alive and vibrant with the
personality and character of the one
who made it,
And so Il is here. George Washing
ton himself. benign and wise, walks
these pages devoted TO an exhaustive
study of his will Here you come upon
him. big with the vision of his country
expanded greatly out into the West. an
expansion that he will not see, but
| which. nevertheless. he in this docu-
ment makes the subject of his deep
interest and forward-looking practical
suggestion. Here, again. you find him
standing beside the pressing problems
of his own day, problems toward whose
solution he sets down formal devise
ment and convincing advice. At this
point you see him. with mind and pen
at pause beside the negro-his own
Inegroes-Specifying the terms of their
advancing freedom and expressing the
hope and belief that freedom will be
| the ultimate lot of all negroes In
America. Education. industry, enter
prise. the opening of roads, the develop
ment of the Capital--these and in
Vulnerable other interests considered in
this document come out to meet the
spirit OF the present in vividness of
eHect that counts no intervening years,
that presents none of the implications
OF death and separation and personal
oblivion.
Understand that. vivid as Is this
effect, 1t Is produced by documented
material throughout. The triumph is
that 1t has maintained Justify the
breath OF life even under the exacting
operation of Recommendation.
To the reader OF this book living
here in Washington there are certain
chapters that greatly emphasize the
nearneSs OF Washington himself. This
nappy effect Is due in large part TO
the living quality of Mr., PrlSsing's
work. Here Washington is seen acuuir-
Ing property in the Capital. buying lots
on the river front to stir interest in
that quarter. to encourage others to
buy there" Acting much as the
booster and go-getter OF the present
does, the great man also built two
houses on Capitol Hill right where the
/ passing Government Hotels now are
And exactly like the man OF the hour
he found himself greatly aStoniShed. {"
and no doubt grieved. over bills run
ming so much higher than ne had
thought they could"
There are here, besides, tentative
provisions FOR national university,
with bequests for minor institutions of
learning. Mount Vernon" In its finai
disposition Is subject OF arduous and
! painStaking study. Most revealing and
interesting Is this point. My Land at
Four Mile Run" opens another familiar
waymark OF the Washington holdings.
Certain Maryland farms move into the
action. farms that am going TO hunt
out and visit for back reach into the
vivid reality portrayed here, for the
reminiscent JOY that must wait upon
the adventure. Here Is due notice OF
the possession OF shares I'm different
| companies, notice that reads like points
in the financial page of the daily paper
Shares in the Dismal Swamp Land
Company name~-and in
the Potomac Company" This last Is
the FIRST of It's kind organized in Amer
lea. 1t Is the very company, also, in
name and something OF purpose,
about which we are reading to-
day In the agitation over develop
ing and utilizing the water pow
CT OF Great Fails Sounds very Inn
mediate. doesn't II. Here is careful at
tention 10 the promise and possibilities
of outlying Lands" and the record of
what. Ii anything. has been done in this
direction. These lands reach tn the
Ohio and the Great kanawha Rivers.
proving Washington TO be not only
seer but practical eXpanSiontst as
we'll Indeed, these various accounts
clothed In formal legality Of term and
process. read exactly as similar oper-
atoms of the kind do today By virtue
OF the quality of the central figure in
these transactions and by virtue also
of Mir prliSsine'S work the whole mat
ter becomes a living thing. with history
and biography and business affairs