Cameron County press. (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, February 18, 1909, Page 2, Image 2
2 CAMERON COUNTY PRESS. H. H. MULLIN. Editor. Published Every Thursday. TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION, ter year IJ 00 * paid In advance l i>o ADVERTISING RATES: Advert!seinents arc published at the rale .it )no dollar per square for one insertion and lifty otnta per square for each subsequent insertion. Rateß i'V the year, or for sii or three month*. »re low and uniform, and will be furnished oo application. Legnl and Official Advertising per square, three times or less, each subsequent inser tion £0 cents per square. Local notices 10 cents per line for one tnser sertlon; 5 cents per line for each subsequent «on«ecutive Insertion. Obituary notices over flvn lines. 10 cents per line. Simple announcements of births, mar riages ami deiiths will he inserted free. Business cards, five lines or less. 45 per year, over tlve lines, at the regular rates of adver tising. No local Inserted for less than 75 cents per Issua. JOB PRINTING. The Job department of the Piifsp iscomplet# and affords facilities for doing tho best class of work. PAKTICL'LAH ATTENTION PAID TO I>AW PHINTING. No paper will be discontinued until arrear ages are paid, except at the optiou of tho pub lisher. Papers sent out of the county must be paid tor in advance. Telltale Footprints of Old. A man never knows when lie is cov ering up his tracks; lie never knows how lons they will stay covered or who will get on his trail, says the Bal timore Sun. Up in Canada, where they are digging for the new Toronto water works, the diggers found in the blue clay 70 feet below the water line the footprints of a gentleman who had tramped around that way some years ago; The geologists disagree as to the exact time, some holding that the freshness of the footprints indicates that it was only 50,000 years ago, while •others believe that the toe-nail prints indicate that it has been about 100,000 years since the gentleman passed that way. Not that this slight discrepancy matters to the gentleman or to us; for nobody had to sit on the fence there and wait for him 50,000 years, even if he did happen to be late. . Sir Robert Hart, for many years in spector general of Chinese customs, lias made a striking suggestion as to the i>ossib!e future of China. The world has long wondered what would happen if that great country of 400,- 000,000 people should awake to its full power and stand up like a giant among nations. Sir Robert's idea is reassur ing. The Chinaman is a lover of peace. China would turn round to tho rest of the world and say, "Gentlemen, there must be 110 more fighting." The strongest nation would become a bene ficent policeman, keeping us little fel lows in order. Sir Robert says that it is a curious statement, but not so un reasonable as it seems to those who do not know China. What boy born during the current year will be the Abraham Lincoln or the Charles Darwin of the century? Both Darwin and Lincoln were born on February 12, 1800. The same year saw the birth of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Kdgar Allan Poe, Alfred Ten nyson, Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, to say nothing of scores of men famous in other branches of learning. Few people will have had the cour age to sit down 13 at a table for the greetings of a new year. Hut five and-fifty years ago Lord Roberts was one of 13 who sat, down to dinner on New Year's day at Peshawar. Eleven years later—though most of tlieni had been through the Indian mutiny and a half of them had been wounded— they were all alive. And Lord Rob erts is still very much alive. Minnesota is the banner state in the matter of female labor, statistics show ing that every third girl in the slate bet ween the ages of 16 and 20 is a wage-earner, while in Minneapolis and St. Paul every second girl works for hire. The woman question up there seems to have been solved by putting the woman to work. Tests made by the Swedish naval authorities lead them to declare that a rifle bullet which will go through a five-inch piece of wood will not go through thru' inches of pasteboard. Why not pasteboard navies, then, and reduced appropriations ? Down in Sharon, Pa., a preacher re cently announced that he hoped all the ladies of tho congregation except the elderly ones would remove their hats. It is needless to say that, one minute after his request was made not a lady in the church had nor hat on. A Cleveland judge has ruled that a young girl has a perfect right to sit on her sweetheart's knee. This seems fair enough, but can't a man even ask her to get off when his foot's asleep? You frequently encounter the chap who dwells upon the great things that he would do if he had the money. But the really great thing, from the com mercial viewpoint, is to get the money. Mr. Rockefeller has a new joke. Be sides his native geniality he is bound to keep up his reputation as a member of the American Humorists' associa tion. Petrified remains of whales have been found on bill tops in California. When whales were younger they may have been good climbers. ION ■ UF& INC IDCN 13 j 'SIT T&E/VTOA/, &ySV\£,CJ <3> ?•*=£>-__ o HOUGH the pages of Ameri can history are adorned with tho names of many great men, none are bright er and moie beautifully described in letters of chased gold than those of Washington and Lincoln. jar Students ot history are divided In their judgment which of tho two men is the greater. But it is not really important that this question be decided. Destiny planned a certain line of work for both men, and they did that work well. Their innate ability is only partly responsible for their suc cess; it was their unselfishness and de sire to do well whatever they under took which helped them lo succeed where others might have failed. If Lin coln deserves praise because necessity spurred him onto greatness, Washing lon deserves as much credit because he became great without being driven on by necessity. Destiny demanded a double role of Washington—she made him a soldier and a statesman, and he performed both well. His trials as president were almost as great as those he encountered as commander-in-chief of the army. He was placed at the head of a new form of government, and did not have precedents to guide him in his undertaking. It was his early train ing which taught him to think calmly and with judgment. Ilis mind once made up, to act without fear. He was born on the banks of the Po tomac river in a farmhouse; though the house was far better than a log cabin, it was not the mansion it is supposed to have been. It was a large, roomy place, with a deep sloping roof and a big outside chimney at either end. He was one of many children. His father was rich in crops and land, though he had little real money. Most Virginia farmers planted tobacco, and when mon ey was scarce they traded this product for food and clothing. His early years were spent on the farm, with plenty of "xercise and little schooling. George loved to tramp across the fields, forests and to swim in the streams. His education was gained at a country school where he was taught for three hours a day. Limited as his education was, ho was fond of reading, and he had a book into which he copied everything he wished to remember. In this book lie put many rules which ho himself had formulated. These are only a few of the many: "Labor to keep alive in your breast that lit ilo spark ot celestial fire called conscience." "Think before you speak." "Whisper not in the company of others." Lawrence, one of the half-brothers, had been sent to England to school, and the parents had planned the same for George, but the father died suddenly, and Mrs. Washington realized she could not afford to send him across the ocean. The boy had spent considerable time on the wharf and talking to seamen had awakened a desire for adventure. These sto ries created a desire to earn a living as a sail or, and he suggested it to his mother. Mrs. Washington did not like the idea of having George leave home nor did she approve of his career. He was sent back to school to study surveying. When not studying he was training his company of boys to become soldiers, and he often got very impatient when they made mis takes. Shortly after his brother Lawrence had mar ried the daughter of Lord Fairfax a member of this family took a great interest in the boy. He had such a fancy for the lad he put him to surveying a large tract of land in the Shenan doah valley. Though the work was no easy task, he was so strong and enthusiastic he acquitted himself exceedingly well. He did not go alone —a boy, George Fairfax, went as his aid. They rather enjoyed the now expe rience of hunger, cold and facing Indian strat egy. In later years George recalled his expe rience of roughing it in the Shenandoah val ley with great pleasure. This work was sud denly interrupted by sickness in the family. Lawrence, his lialf-brothor, was ill and the phy sicians sent him to the West Indies. George went along to keep him company, only to bo takan with smallpox. Although Lawrence started for home, he died after his return. This was a great shock to George, for the brothers were exceedingly devoted; but tho sting of this loss was partly forgotten by a commission togo to the French who were building forts k;i English territory.' !£e w&* CAMERON COUNTY PRESS, THURSDAY FEBRUARY 18, 1909 made major at the age of 22 and sent on a perilous jour ney of over a thousand miles. He had many narrow es capes in his journey over mountains, fording streams and through forests where Indians lay in hiding. After his interview with the French commander he started for home. The journey back was worse than going, for the rivers were exceed ingly treacherous. The French governor re fused to heed English commands and continued to build forts, so George Washington was ap pointed to command soldiers to march against the French in the spring. This was tho begin ning of a war between the French and English, which lasted seven years. Gen. Braddock was sent over from England and George was made a colonel and commanded the Virginia troops. Though Braddock was a capable general, ho did not understand the art of fighting tho In dians and refused to heed young Washington's advice. The general was shot in one of these engagements. With this the Redcoats began to run, but Washington tried to call them back. All day he was in the midst of the fight. Four bullets went through his coat and two horses were shot under him. The war at an end, Washington returned home. He was anxious to see his mother, whom ho had not seen in some time. Though Mrs. Washington was not a brilliant woman, she had plenty of good Judgment and common sense, and was always ready to give her son wis* counsel. Proud though she was of her boy * energy and desire to serve his country she was careful not to spoil him by excessive praise. She loved to hear of the hazards of war, but she emphasized the dangers more than her boy's success. Hardships and long-fought campaigns had done much to impair his health, and he went to Williamsburg t« consult a physician. On this trip he met Mrs. Martha Custis, widow of Daniel Parke Custis, one of the wealthiest planters in the colony. They were married some five months later. Very little is known of her except that she was petite, pretty and exceedingly devoted to her husbsad. She was vary proud of his successes, and used all her energy to make his trials as easy as she could. There are those who attribute Washington's first step upward to his marriage. This is cer tainly untrue, for be was on the road to suc cess when he married her. Whenever Wash ington went on a long campaign his wife took up headquarters where she might be near him. These winterings gradually became a regular custom. She seldom complained, although she frequently had to put up with inconvenient headquarters. When Washington was chosen commander-in-chief of the army he did not ac cept the place with great eagerness, for he knew it was to be a long and hard fought war, and a posi tion latent with responsibili ty. The struggle was as dif ficult as he imagined, for many times during the war the soldiers were ready to lay down their arms and go home, but his courage never failed him and he pushed on. When the sky looked blackest ho would plan some campaign to make of defeat a victory. A happy illustration of this was when one Christmas night tho soldiers wore quite ready to give lip and go home. They were camping on the banks of the Delaware. Pointing to the other side, ho said: "Our enemy is camp ing there." They were Hessian soldiers, and since it was Christmas night, they were cele brating. It was with difficulty the army crossed, for the night was wild, dark and cold. But in spite of the great blocks of ice on the river, Washington managed to get his army across, and a victory was the result. A more difficult year was spent in Valley Forge. It was a long, cold winter, tho soldiers hungry for food, and they did not have enough clothing and blankets to keep themselves warm. Many times they were on the verge of mutineering. It was only by means of his tact and good judgment that he brought harmony into camp and gave tho war a successful ending. After leaving the army he went back homo and spent much time improving the farm. The Mount Vernon estate gradually became an ex pensive affair. Here he kept open house, and never a day went by without his receiving call ers and friends. Some of the dinners and levees were often elaborate, and he struggled hard not to appear bored, lie had hoped to spend the rest of his life among these pleasant surroundings. Ho often told his friends: "Let those wlio wish such things as office be at the head of things. I do not wish them. All I do sire now is to settle down at Mount Vernon and to enjoy my farm." But after the constitu tion was ratified and the votes of the electors were opened and counted it was found that everyone had voted for Washington. During his presidency he had many knotty problems, but he met them all with good sense and judg ment. Because lie played tho double role of commander of the army and the first president of this nation equally well he is entitled to the name, the Father of His Country. "END JUSTIFIES THE MEANS." "The end justifies the means." This motto, from the cont-of-arms of Washington, will no doubt flash into the minds of certain admirers of the father of his country who glance at the genealogical tree, which is England's latest contribution to tho oft-debated question of Washington's ancestry. "Let no man fancy he knows sport," said the late Moncure D. Conway, "unless he has family treed an ancestor of George Washington." Yet, despite the many clever scholars and antiquar ians of America who have tried their hands at this "sport," it has remained for a fellow of tho Royal Historical society of England, Rev. Frederick W. Ragg, to convey to us the latest interesting revelation regarding the ancestry of our first president. Barring those that champion the truly demo cratic standpoint, less prevalent to-day than it was in 1620, which scorns to connect itself with old world titles and abhors royalty, there remain many liberal souls among us who do not grudge to one who was acknowledged first in war and first in peace a share in the homage accorded the first family of England. Edward I.was himself a mighty warrior, and first in many wars; his prowess was early e«cer> cised on the Turks, during the last crusade ever embarked on by England's kings, and when the throne became his own he success fully carried e«t his project of uniting England, Scotland and Wales. He brought the famous stone of Scone to Westminster abbey, and under him England became a mighty nation. He was a monarch wise and groat, even though he had little leaning toward democratic govern ment and did not display special fondness for Magna Charter. Edward Longslianks was not an ancestor to he despised by his descendant George, of kingly bearing and equally long legs. That this direct line of descent has not until now been established may seem a bit surpris ing in view of the exhaustive research that has been devoted to the Washington ancestry. The reason is, however, not difficult to understand when one reflects that such research has been concerned exclusively with the male line, whilo this royal blood is introduced into the family by Margaret Butler, who married Laurence. Washington in 15SS. Mr. Worthington Cliauncey Ford and otherr who have made a special study of the Washing ton pedigree trace the line back to John Wash ington of Whitfield, five generations back ol tho aforesaid Laurence and his wife Margaret These students state that this Margaret Butlei was the daughter of William Butler of Tighes. Sussex, but do not follow the Butler pedigree back of this point. Here Mr. Ragg has taken up the quest, and after careful study of old records, tombstones, and entries in church reg isters has proved that William Butler, father of Mrs. Laurence Washington, stands tenth in direct descent from Edward I. Reference to the above genealogical tree just completed by Mr. Ragg, and verified since its arrival in America by various genealogical ex ports, who have pronounced it satisfactory, will show conclusively that George Washington is in tiio sixteenth generation in direct descent from the monarch in question, and is, there fore, the great-great-great-great-great-great great-great-great- great-great-great-great- graud' son of Edward I. Plantagenet.