Four Great Americans: Washington, Franklin, Webster, Lincoln. Baldwin James
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how he wintered at Morristown; how he suffered at Valley Forge; how he fought at Germantown and Monmouth and Yorktown.
There were six years of fighting, of marching here and there, of directing and planning, of struggling in the face of every discouragement.
Eight years passed, and then peace came, for independence had been won, and this our country was made forever free.
On the 2d of November, 1783, Washington bade farewell to his army. On the 23d of December he resigned his commission as commander-in-chief.
There were some who suggested that Washington should make himself king of this country; and indeed this he might have done, so great was the people's love and gratitude.
But the great man spurned such suggestions. He said, "If you have any regard for your country or respect for me, banish those thoughts and never again speak of them."
XIV.—THE FIRST PRESIDENT
Washington was now fifty-two years old.
The country was still in an unsettled condition. True, it was free from English control. But there was no strong government to hold the states together.
Each state was a little country of itself, making its own laws, and having its own selfish aims without much regard for its sister states. People did not think of the United States as one great undivided nation.
And so matters were in bad enough shape, and they grew worse and worse as the months went by.
Wise men saw that unless something should be done to bring about a closer union of the states, they would soon be in no better condition than when ruled by the English king.
And so a great convention was held in Philadelphia to determine what could be done to save the country from ruin. George Washington was chosen to preside over this convention; and no man's words had greater weight than his.
He said, "Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair. The event is in the hand of God."
That convention did a great and wonderful work; for it framed the Constitution by which our country has ever since been governed.
And soon afterwards, in accordance with that Constitution, the people of the country were called upon to elect a President. Who should it be?
Who could it be but Washington?
When the electoral votes were counted, every vote was for George Washington of Virginia.
And so, on the 16th of April, 1789, the great man again bade adieu to Mount Vernon and to private life, and set out for New York. For the city of Washington had not yet been built, and New York was the first capital of our country.
There were no railroads at that time, and so the journey was made in a coach. All along the road the people gathered to see their hero-president and show him their love.
On the 30th of April he was inaugurated at the old Federal Hall in New York.
"Long live George Washington, President of the United States!" shouted the people. Then the cannon roared, the bells rang, and the new government of the United States—the government which we have to-day—began its existence.
Washington was fifty-seven years old at the time of his inauguration.
Perhaps no man was ever called to the doing of more difficult things. The entire government must be built up from the beginning, and all its machinery put into order.
But so well did he meet the expectations of the people, that when his first term was near its close he was again elected President, receiving every electoral vote.
In your histories you will learn of the many difficult tasks which he performed during those years of the nation's infancy. There were new troubles with England, troubles with the Indians, jealousies and disagreements among the lawmakers of the country. But amidst all these trials Washington stood steadfast, wise, cool—conscious that he was right, and strong enough to prevail.
Before the end of his second term, people began to talk about electing him for the third time. They could not think of any other man holding the highest office in the country. They feared that no other man could be safely entrusted with the great responsibilities which he had borne so nobly.
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