Washington - A Life Part 3

Do not then, in your contemplation of the marriage state, look for perfect felicity before you consent to wed. Nor conceive, from the fine tales the poets and lovers of old have told us of the transports of mutual love, that heaven has taken its abode on earth. Nor do not deceive yourself in supposing that the only mean[s] by which these are to be obtained is to drink deep of the cup and revel in an ocean of love. Love is a mighty pretty thing, but, like all other delicious things, it is cloying. And when the first transports of the pa.s.sion begin to subside, which it a.s.suredly will do and yield, oftentimes too late, to more sober reflections, it serves to evince that love is too dainty a food to live upon alone alone and ought not to be considered farther than as a necessary ingredient for that matrimonial happiness which results from a combination of causes; none of which are of greater importance than that the object on whom it is placed should possess good sense, good dispositions, and the means of supporting you in the way you have been brought up. and ought not to be considered farther than as a necessary ingredient for that matrimonial happiness which results from a combination of causes; none of which are of greater importance than that the object on whom it is placed should possess good sense, good dispositions, and the means of supporting you in the way you have been brought up.21 Was.h.i.+ngton could never have married a poor woman, but neither could he have tolerated a cold and loveless marriage.

Throughout his life Was.h.i.+ngton was noticeably attracted to women, but his steely willpower and stern discipline likely overmastered any fugitive impulses to stray. Many people observed his gallantry with the ladies. One British officer described how women left his dining room after meals only to be squired right back in by Was.h.i.+ngton. As he recalled, Was.h.i.+ngton introduced "a round of ladies as soon as the cloth was removed by saying he had always a very great esteem for the ladies and therefore drank them in preference to anything else."22 In corresponding with women, Was.h.i.+ngton frequently slipped into a breezily flirtatious tone. When the widow Annis Boudinot Stockton later sent him an ode in his honor, he encouraged her to produce more poetry: "You see, madam, when once the woman has tempted us and we have tasted the forbidden fruit, there is no such thing as checking our appet.i.tes, whatever the consequences may be." In corresponding with women, Was.h.i.+ngton frequently slipped into a breezily flirtatious tone. When the widow Annis Boudinot Stockton later sent him an ode in his honor, he encouraged her to produce more poetry: "You see, madam, when once the woman has tempted us and we have tasted the forbidden fruit, there is no such thing as checking our appet.i.tes, whatever the consequences may be."23 In a century of sterling wits, George Was.h.i.+ngton never stood out for his humor, but he had a bawdy streak and relished hearty, masculine jokes. In the 1920s the puritanical J. P. Morgan, Jr., destroyed some letters by Was.h.i.+ngton that he owned, claiming they were "s.m.u.tty."24 When breeding animals, Was.h.i.+ngton wrote about their couplings with dry, facetious mirth. In the 1780s, after the Spanish king sent him a male donkey nicknamed Royal Gift, he launched an experiment in breeding mules. Was.h.i.+ngton noted drolly that the donkey was at first indifferent to "female allurements" and that when he finally responded, he proceeded with "deliberation and majestic solemnity to the work of procreation." When breeding animals, Was.h.i.+ngton wrote about their couplings with dry, facetious mirth. In the 1780s, after the Spanish king sent him a male donkey nicknamed Royal Gift, he launched an experiment in breeding mules. Was.h.i.+ngton noted drolly that the donkey was at first indifferent to "female allurements" and that when he finally responded, he proceeded with "deliberation and majestic solemnity to the work of procreation."25 At the same time he hoped Royal Gift would catch the democratic spirit in America and "that when he becomes a little better acquainted with republican enjoyments, he will amend his manners and fall into a better and more expeditious mode of doing business." At the same time he hoped Royal Gift would catch the democratic spirit in America and "that when he becomes a little better acquainted with republican enjoyments, he will amend his manners and fall into a better and more expeditious mode of doing business."26 Perhaps the earthiest comment Was.h.i.+ngton ever made about s.e.x occurred when he learned of the marriage of forty-seven-year-old Colonel Joseph Ward. He seemed to find forty-seven a comically advanced age for matrimony. "I am glad to hear that my old acquaintance Colo. Ward is yet under the influence of vigorous pa.s.sions," he told a correspondent. He supposed that Ward, "like a prudent general," had "reviewed his strength, strength, his arms, and ammunition before he got involved in an action. But if these have been neglected . . . let me advise him to make the his arms, and ammunition before he got involved in an action. But if these have been neglected . . . let me advise him to make the first first onset upon his fair del Tobosa [Dulcinea del Toboso, the country girl in onset upon his fair del Tobosa [Dulcinea del Toboso, the country girl in Don Quixote Don Quixote] with vigor that the impression may be deep, if it cannot be lasting or frequently renewed."27 The marriage thrived even though Martha and George lacked children. Many theories have been advanced to explain this barren marriage. Martha may have sustained injury during the birth of Patsy, her final child, making additional births impossible. Some scholars have speculated that George's early bout of smallpox or some other disease left him infertile. We know that George Was.h.i.+ngton didn't think he was sterile, because, in writing once to a nephew, he stated that if Martha died and he remarried, he "probably" wouldn't have children, but only because he would marry a woman suitable to his age-obviously implying that he could have children with a younger woman.28 The historic stress on the childless marriage has obscured the fact that the Was.h.i.+ngtons, far from being lonely, were always surrounded by children. In the early years at Mount Vernon, there were Jacky and Patsy Custis and then, in later years, two of Jacky's children, plus a.s.sorted other young relatives, perhaps numbering a dozen orphaned youngsters in all. This childless couple ran a household teeming with high-spirited children, which may have been their way of filling a perceived void. The historic stress on the childless marriage has obscured the fact that the Was.h.i.+ngtons, far from being lonely, were always surrounded by children. In the early years at Mount Vernon, there were Jacky and Patsy Custis and then, in later years, two of Jacky's children, plus a.s.sorted other young relatives, perhaps numbering a dozen orphaned youngsters in all. This childless couple ran a household teeming with high-spirited children, which may have been their way of filling a perceived void.

Later on Was.h.i.+ngton's childless state helped him to a.s.sume the t.i.tle of Father of His Country. That he wasn't a biological father made it easier for him to be the allegorical father of a nation. It also retired any fears, when he was president, that the nation might revert to a monarchy, because he could have no interest in a hereditary crown. In a draft of his first inaugural address, Was.h.i.+ngton (or his ghost-writer David Humphreys) wrote that "Divine Providence hath not seen fit that my blood should be transmitted or my name perpetuated by the endearing, though sometimes seducing, channel of immediate offspring. I have no child for whom I could wish to make a provision-no family to build in greatness upon my country's ruins."29 Many contemporaries professed to discern heavenly influence in Was.h.i.+ngton's childless state-G.o.d's tacit way of protecting America. As Gouverneur Morris stated in his eulogy for Was.h.i.+ngton, "AMERICANS! he had no child BUT YOU and HE WAS ALL YOUR OWN." Many contemporaries professed to discern heavenly influence in Was.h.i.+ngton's childless state-G.o.d's tacit way of protecting America. As Gouverneur Morris stated in his eulogy for Was.h.i.+ngton, "AMERICANS! he had no child BUT YOU and HE WAS ALL YOUR OWN."30

IN MARRYING MARTHA CUSTIS , George Was.h.i.+ngton inherited the posh commercial connection that Daniel Parke Custis had formed with the top-drawer London firm of Robert Cary and Company. That spring Was.h.i.+ngton sent an authenticated copy of his marriage certificate to this London agent and advised that "for the future please to address all your letters which relate to the affairs of the late Dan[ie]l Parke Custis Esqr. to me."31 Like his previous London representative, Richard Was.h.i.+ngton, Robert Cary and Company were factors who received tobacco s.h.i.+pments from Virginia plantations, sold them at the best possible price, then used the proceeds to purchase wares from fas.h.i.+onable London purveyors. The firm had also collected dividends for Martha from her former husband's stock in the Bank of England. Robert Cary was a larger and more prestigious house than Richard Was.h.i.+ngton, providing further proof of Was.h.i.+ngton's swift ascent. Like his previous London representative, Richard Was.h.i.+ngton, Robert Cary and Company were factors who received tobacco s.h.i.+pments from Virginia plantations, sold them at the best possible price, then used the proceeds to purchase wares from fas.h.i.+onable London purveyors. The firm had also collected dividends for Martha from her former husband's stock in the Bank of England. Robert Cary was a larger and more prestigious house than Richard Was.h.i.+ngton, providing further proof of Was.h.i.+ngton's swift ascent.

Was.h.i.+ngton's relations.h.i.+p with Robert Cary formed an integral part of his quest for refinement. A profligate spender, he promptly placed an order with Cary for a new bedroom set, complete with a four-poster bed, window curtains, a bedspread, and four chairs, all upholstered in matching blue and white fabric to give the "uniformly handsome and genteel" effect he desired.32 From this first order, it was plain that the young couple planned to entertain in high style. They ordered a "fas.h.i.+onable set" of dessert gla.s.ses, special stands for sweetmeats and jellies, and silver knives and forks with ivory handles. In this first lengthy order, there was also an ominous hint of early dental trouble for Was.h.i.+ngton, who ordered from an apothecary on Ludgate Hill six bottles of a special brew concocted to cleanse teeth and cure toothaches. From this first order, it was plain that the young couple planned to entertain in high style. They ordered a "fas.h.i.+onable set" of dessert gla.s.ses, special stands for sweetmeats and jellies, and silver knives and forks with ivory handles. In this first lengthy order, there was also an ominous hint of early dental trouble for Was.h.i.+ngton, who ordered from an apothecary on Ludgate Hill six bottles of a special brew concocted to cleanse teeth and cure toothaches.

In placing orders for goods from London, Was.h.i.+ngton often employed two adjectives that nicely sum up his taste: neat neat and and fas.h.i.+onable fas.h.i.+onable. In the eighteenth century, the word neat neat differed subtly from its usage today. According to differed subtly from its usage today. According to The Oxford English Dictionary, neat The Oxford English Dictionary, neat then meant "characterized by elegance of form without unnecessary embellishment; of agreeable but simple appearance; nicely made or proportioned." In other words, Was.h.i.+ngton preferred things that were stylish but subdued, denoting his worldly status without showily advertising it. Although he never lived to see England (he told one correspondent in 1760 that he "ardently desired" to go), this young provincial yearned to resemble the better cla.s.s of London people. then meant "characterized by elegance of form without unnecessary embellishment; of agreeable but simple appearance; nicely made or proportioned." In other words, Was.h.i.+ngton preferred things that were stylish but subdued, denoting his worldly status without showily advertising it. Although he never lived to see England (he told one correspondent in 1760 that he "ardently desired" to go), this young provincial yearned to resemble the better cla.s.s of London people. 33 33 In a typical order to his London agents, he wrote, "I have no doubt but you will choose a fas.h.i.+onable colored cloth as well as a good one and make it in the best taste." In a typical order to his London agents, he wrote, "I have no doubt but you will choose a fas.h.i.+onable colored cloth as well as a good one and make it in the best taste."34 The Virginia planter trusted blindly to the sartorial judgment of his London tailors. When he ordered "two pair of work[e]d ruffles at a guinea each pair," he added that "if work[e]d ruffles should be out of fas.h.i.+on, send such as are not." The Virginia planter trusted blindly to the sartorial judgment of his London tailors. When he ordered "two pair of work[e]d ruffles at a guinea each pair," he added that "if work[e]d ruffles should be out of fas.h.i.+on, send such as are not."35 After years of a rough soldierly life, Was.h.i.+ngton ordered breeches of black silk and crimson velvet. He was careful, however, to warn against lace or embroidery or anything that might stereotype him as a fop. Many of his clothing orders stressed practicality. When ordering a blue hooded greatcoat, he requested that it be made "of such cloth as will turn [away] a good shower of rain." After years of a rough soldierly life, Was.h.i.+ngton ordered breeches of black silk and crimson velvet. He was careful, however, to warn against lace or embroidery or anything that might stereotype him as a fop. Many of his clothing orders stressed practicality. When ordering a blue hooded greatcoat, he requested that it be made "of such cloth as will turn [away] a good shower of rain."36 Because he constantly sent his measurements to faraway artisans, Was.h.i.+ngton left many precise descriptions of his physique, but his somewhat oddly shaped body made him the bane of his tailors. His wide hips and powerful thighs caused the most trouble. In one of many letters about his ill-fitting clothes, he reproached the tailor in caustic terms: "I desire you to make me a pair of breeches of the same cloth as my former pair, but more accurately fitting. These breeches must be roomy in the seat, the b.u.t.tons firmly sewn on . . . These breeches must be made exactly to these measurements, not to those to which you imagine that they may stretch after a period of use."37 Like her husband, Martha Was.h.i.+ngton went on a buying binge after their marriage and ordered a cornucopia of luxury goods, with George drafting the itemized list to London. She ordered silk stockings, white satin shoes, gold shoe buckles, beaver hats, and later on, purple kid gloves. She must have been proud of her hair, for she dressed it with "2 fine ivory combs" and "2 large tortoisesh.e.l.l combs" as well as gauze caps and "2 pounds of fine perfumed powder."38 Indeed, portraits of Martha Was.h.i.+ngton show that she often ornamented her brown hair with white beads or pearls. Indeed, portraits of Martha Was.h.i.+ngton show that she often ornamented her brown hair with white beads or pearls.

As Colonel Was.h.i.+ngton evolved from regimental commander to tobacco planter, he felt pangs of envy as he watched a succession of British victories in the French and Indian War. Seventeen fifty-nine was the year, in Horace Walpole's words, that British bells were "worn threadbare with ringing of victories."39 For Was.h.i.+ngton, those bells tolled with a somewhat mournful sound. "The scale of fortune in America is turned greatly in our favor and success is become the boon companion of our fortunate generals," he told Richard Was.h.i.+ngton, sounding a bit wistful. For Was.h.i.+ngton, those bells tolled with a somewhat mournful sound. "The scale of fortune in America is turned greatly in our favor and success is become the boon companion of our fortunate generals," he told Richard Was.h.i.+ngton, sounding a bit wistful.40 That Was.h.i.+ngton still identified with the military life and retained some hope of future battlefield glory is evident in his ordering from Robert Cary six busts of great military figures in history: Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Charles XII of Sweden, Frederick II of Prussia, Prince Eugene of Savoy, and the Duke of Marlborough. When his London agents couldn't fill the order, they came up with an alternate proposal to supply busts of writers ranging from Homer to Shakespeare to Milton. For the young planter, these literary heroes didn't quite measure up to famous generals, and he vetoed the suggestion. That Was.h.i.+ngton still identified with the military life and retained some hope of future battlefield glory is evident in his ordering from Robert Cary six busts of great military figures in history: Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Charles XII of Sweden, Frederick II of Prussia, Prince Eugene of Savoy, and the Duke of Marlborough. When his London agents couldn't fill the order, they came up with an alternate proposal to supply busts of writers ranging from Homer to Shakespeare to Milton. For the young planter, these literary heroes didn't quite measure up to famous generals, and he vetoed the suggestion.

As time pa.s.sed, a petulant tone crept into Was.h.i.+ngton's communications to his London factors, and he began to rant about the shoddy, overpriced goods fobbed off on him. The London factors had North American planters at their mercy and exploited the situation, reminding these consumers that, in the last a.n.a.lysis, they were powerless colonials. Was.h.i.+ngton wasn't the only Virginian grandee to feel resentful toward arrogant British merchants. Buying in London was a slow, tedious way to do business, hobbled by endless waits for deliveries. When Was.h.i.+ngton ordered plows from Robert Cary, for example, he found some essential parts missing and bemoaned that the parts already s.h.i.+pped were "entirely useless and lie upon my hands a dead charge."41 Sometimes s.h.i.+pments from London wound up at the wrong river or arrived damaged. Even the wealthiest Virginians were simply captive customers. Sometimes s.h.i.+pments from London wound up at the wrong river or arrived damaged. Even the wealthiest Virginians were simply captive customers.

By nature suspicious of people, Was.h.i.+ngton experienced a keen sense of injustice. He fretted that Robert Cary was padding his bills and charging exorbitant prices. Of one early s.h.i.+pment, he grumbled that the "woollens, linens, nails etc. are mean in quality but not in price, for in this they excel indeed far above any I have ever had."42 By the second year of his marriage, his letters to London dripped with barefaced sarcasm, and he didn't bother to disguise his belief that he was being fleeced, telling Robert Cary that "you may believe me when I tell you that instead of getting things good and fas.h.i.+onable in their several kind, we often have articles sent us that could only have been us[e]d by our forefathers in the days of yore. 'Tis a custom . . . with many shopkeepers and tradesmen in London, when they know goods are bespoke for exportation, to palm sometimes old and sometimes very slight and indifferent goods upon us, taking care at the same time to advance 10, 15, or 20 p[e]rc[en]t upon them." By the second year of his marriage, his letters to London dripped with barefaced sarcasm, and he didn't bother to disguise his belief that he was being fleeced, telling Robert Cary that "you may believe me when I tell you that instead of getting things good and fas.h.i.+onable in their several kind, we often have articles sent us that could only have been us[e]d by our forefathers in the days of yore. 'Tis a custom . . . with many shopkeepers and tradesmen in London, when they know goods are bespoke for exportation, to palm sometimes old and sometimes very slight and indifferent goods upon us, taking care at the same time to advance 10, 15, or 20 p[e]rc[en]t upon them."43 When the London factors blithely advised him to return unsatisfactory goods, Was.h.i.+ngton scoffed that n.o.body could go a full year without the required articles. His dealings with Robert Cary opened yet another chapter of disillusionment with the British whom he had once so admired. When the London factors blithely advised him to return unsatisfactory goods, Was.h.i.+ngton scoffed that n.o.body could go a full year without the required articles. His dealings with Robert Cary opened yet another chapter of disillusionment with the British whom he had once so admired.

One reason that Was.h.i.+ngton and other planters submitted to their London agents was that they offered easy credit unavailable in the colonies. Like many of his affluent neighbors, Was.h.i.+ngton was land rich and cash poor and spent a lifetime scrounging for money. Historians have often pondered the paradox of why rich Virginia planters later formed a hotbed of revolutionary ferment, and the explanation partly lies in their long, sullen dependence upon London factors. Of four million pounds borrowed by colonists by the outset of the American Revolution, half was owed by the prodigal farmers of Tidewater Virginia.44 As they gorged on credit, their luxurious lives rested on a precarious foundation of debt. Virginia borrowers regularly blamed their London factors for this indebtedness rather than examining their own extravagant consumption. In piling up excessive debt, they repeated a vice then rampant among the spendthrift British upper cla.s.s. As they gorged on credit, their luxurious lives rested on a precarious foundation of debt. Virginia borrowers regularly blamed their London factors for this indebtedness rather than examining their own extravagant consumption. In piling up excessive debt, they repeated a vice then rampant among the spendthrift British upper cla.s.s.

Almost immediately Was.h.i.+ngton stumbled into the same quagmire of debt that ensnared many fellow planters. After two years of marriage, he owed a sizable two thousand pounds sterling to Robert Cary. Eager to play the country squire to the hilt, he ordered goods from London with a free hand. In a letter to one of his former officers in April 1763, Was.h.i.+ngton complained of being hopelessly indebted to Robert Cary. In his defense, he pleaded the disorganized state of Mount Vernon when he returned from the war, the need to buy more land and slaves, and the expenses of a large family: "I had provisions of all kinds to buy for the first two or three years and my plantations to stock." Before he knew it, the money he spent on buildings and other things had "swallowed up . . . all the money I got by marriage, nay nay more." more."45 The situation deteriorated sharply the following year. Was.h.i.+ngton was congenitally p.r.i.c.kly about money, and Robert Cary aggravated matters by being too quick to dun him for funds. In August 1764 Was.h.i.+ngton reacted to a call for more money by blaming "mischances rather than misconduct" for the repeated failures of his tobacco crops. He was outraged that Cary would pester him the second he lagged on his payments. "I did not expect that a correspondent so steady and constant as I have proved . . . would be reminded in the instant it was discovered how necessary it was for him to be expeditious in his payments," he complained. Unlike some patrician debtors, Was.h.i.+ngton was uneasy carrying so much debt, reminding his London creditor that "it is but an irksome thing to a free mind to be any ways hampered in debt."46 In subsequent letters to London, Was.h.i.+ngton's fury fairly exploded off the page. When he sent a large s.h.i.+pment of tobacco the following year, he was aghast at the poor prices that Robert Cary fetched for him and accused the firm of securing better deals for other Virginia planters. "That the sales are pitifully low needs no words to demonstrate," he wrote. "And that they are worse than many of my acquaintance upon this river Potomac have got in the outposts . . . is a truth equally as certain." Was.h.i.+ngton bl.u.s.tered that it might be "absolutely necessary for me to change my correspondence unless I experience an alteration for the better." In subsequent letters to London, Was.h.i.+ngton's fury fairly exploded off the page. When he sent a large s.h.i.+pment of tobacco the following year, he was aghast at the poor prices that Robert Cary fetched for him and accused the firm of securing better deals for other Virginia planters. "That the sales are pitifully low needs no words to demonstrate," he wrote. "And that they are worse than many of my acquaintance upon this river Potomac have got in the outposts . . . is a truth equally as certain." Was.h.i.+ngton bl.u.s.tered that it might be "absolutely necessary for me to change my correspondence unless I experience an alteration for the better."47 For the rest of his life, Was.h.i.+ngton was vehement on the subject of debt and frequently lectured relatives about its dangers. Even though he scapegoated creditors for his own debt, it is clear from later letters that he searched his soul long and hard on the subject. Decades later he admonished one nephew that "there is no practice more dangerous than that of borrowing money . . . for when money can be had in this way, repayment is seldom thought of in time . . . Exertions to raise it by dint of industry ceases. It comes easy and is spent freely and many things indulged in that would never be thought of, if to be purchased by the sweat of the brow. In the mean time, the debt is acc.u.mulating like a s...o...b..ll in rolling."48 Was.h.i.+ngton spoke knowingly, as only a reformed sinner can do as he reviews past transgressions. Was.h.i.+ngton spoke knowingly, as only a reformed sinner can do as he reviews past transgressions.

CHAPTER TEN.

A Certain Species of Property.

FOR THE FIRST SIX YEARS OF MARRIAGE, as he devoted mounting resources to growing tobacco, George Was.h.i.+ngton was a hostage to the fortunes of that fickle crop. As noted, he had returned from his military adventures to discover Mount Vernon, under brother Jack's supervision, in a scandalous state of disrepair. While off in the western hinterlands, he found it impossible to monitor business activities at home, which must have been profoundly distressing for someone of his meticulous work habits. As he worked to remedy matters, restocking the plantation and constructing new buildings, he ended up squandering part of Martha's fortune.

Though an inexperienced planter, the enterprising Was.h.i.+ngton was determined to produce high-quality tobacco, and to that end he expanded his acreage and revealed a scientific bent as he dabbled with different varieties. Always receptive to innovation, he pored over agricultural treatises and experimented with oats, wheat, and barley, planted in soil from various corners of his property. Only in retrospect did he perceive the folly of staking his future on tobacco. The soil at Mount Vernon, he duly learned, had "an under stratum of hard clay impervious to water," was.h.i.+ng away the thin topsoil and leaving behind "eyesore gullies."1 It posed insuperable challenges for a novice planter who had to contend with several seasons of drought and heavy rain, which only compounded the runoff problem. Besides poor topography, Was.h.i.+ngton also had to contend with fluctuating tobacco prices-under imperial law, all sales went through England-and he never knew what his crops would fetch until he heard back from London. With hindsight, it is easy to fault his emphasis on tobacco, but the crop was so omnipresent in Virginia that planters paid taxes with it and engaged in an intense rivalry to produce superior leaves. It posed insuperable challenges for a novice planter who had to contend with several seasons of drought and heavy rain, which only compounded the runoff problem. Besides poor topography, Was.h.i.+ngton also had to contend with fluctuating tobacco prices-under imperial law, all sales went through England-and he never knew what his crops would fetch until he heard back from London. With hindsight, it is easy to fault his emphasis on tobacco, but the crop was so omnipresent in Virginia that planters paid taxes with it and engaged in an intense rivalry to produce superior leaves.

In the 1760s Was.h.i.+ngton's letters on his tobacco trade often read like one long jeremiad. He started out with a b.u.mper crop of 147,357 pounds in his first year of marriage, only to be repeatedly victimized by the vagaries of weather. "We have had one of the most severe droughts in these parts that ever was known and without a speedy interposition of providence (in sending us moderate and refres.h.i.+ng rains to mollify and soften the earth), we shall not make one ounce of tobacco this year," he reported to Robert Cary in 1762.2 The next year his wheat crop was attacked by a fungus known as rust, while his Indian corn and tobacco were choked by weeds and gra.s.s sp.a.w.ned by incessant rains. The mediocre quality of his leaves further depressed the price his tobacco drew in London, making it impossible to pare down debt. At melancholy moments Was.h.i.+ngton sounded as if the elements conspired to punish his crops. In August 1765 he noted that the Mount Vernon soil had been parched since May because of drought, while a mere ten miles away the weather was "perfectly seasonable" and his neighbors had "promising crops of corn and tobacco." The next year his wheat crop was attacked by a fungus known as rust, while his Indian corn and tobacco were choked by weeds and gra.s.s sp.a.w.ned by incessant rains. The mediocre quality of his leaves further depressed the price his tobacco drew in London, making it impossible to pare down debt. At melancholy moments Was.h.i.+ngton sounded as if the elements conspired to punish his crops. In August 1765 he noted that the Mount Vernon soil had been parched since May because of drought, while a mere ten miles away the weather was "perfectly seasonable" and his neighbors had "promising crops of corn and tobacco."3 Perhaps the most pernicious aspect of tobacco culture was its labor-intensive nature, making it a natural match with slavery. No aspect of his life would so trouble Was.h.i.+ngton or posterity as his status as a major slave owner. Had he not started with tobacco, he might never have become so enmeshed with a reprehensible system that he learned to loathe. Slaves were ubiquitous in this rich, populous colony, making up 40 percent of Virginia's population. In fact, slavery had acquired such a firm grip on the colony that one minister maintained in 1757 that "to live in Virginia without slaves is morally impossible."4 Was.h.i.+ngton's opposition to slavery took the form of a gradual awakening over many decades. He seldom uttered the word slavery, slavery, as if it grated on his conscience, preferring polite euphemisms such as "servants," "Negroes," "my people," or "my family." Like other slaveholders, the young Was.h.i.+ngton talked about slaves as simply another form of property. He was cold-blooded in specifying instructions for buying slaves, telling one buyer, as if he were purchasing a racehorse, that he wanted his slaves "to be straight-limbed and in every respect strong and likely, with good teeth and good countenances." as if it grated on his conscience, preferring polite euphemisms such as "servants," "Negroes," "my people," or "my family." Like other slaveholders, the young Was.h.i.+ngton talked about slaves as simply another form of property. He was cold-blooded in specifying instructions for buying slaves, telling one buyer, as if he were purchasing a racehorse, that he wanted his slaves "to be straight-limbed and in every respect strong and likely, with good teeth and good countenances."5 He favored adolescent females who could maximize the number of slave children, urging one planter who owed him money to sell some slaves in the fall "when they are fat and l.u.s.ty and must soon fall of[f] unless well fed." He favored adolescent females who could maximize the number of slave children, urging one planter who owed him money to sell some slaves in the fall "when they are fat and l.u.s.ty and must soon fall of[f] unless well fed."6 In this savage world, planters posted slaves as collateral for loans, and Was.h.i.+ngton upbraided one debtor for asking him to rely upon "such hazardous and perishable articles as Negroes, stock, and chattels." In this savage world, planters posted slaves as collateral for loans, and Was.h.i.+ngton upbraided one debtor for asking him to rely upon "such hazardous and perishable articles as Negroes, stock, and chattels."7 With another debtor, he threatened that, without speedy payment, "your Negroes must be immediately exposed to sale for ready money after short notice." In his diary, he often wrote of being "at home all day alone" when he was surrounded by slaves in the mansion and fields. With another debtor, he threatened that, without speedy payment, "your Negroes must be immediately exposed to sale for ready money after short notice." In his diary, he often wrote of being "at home all day alone" when he was surrounded by slaves in the mansion and fields.

However horrifying it seems to later generations, abominable behavior toward dark-skinned people was considered an acceptable way of life. In 1767, when four slaves were executed in Fairfax County for supposedly colluding to poison their overseers, their decapitated heads were posted on chimneys at the local courthouse to act as a grim warning to others. n.o.body protested this patent atrocity. At the same time, slave masters in the eighteenth century seldom rationalized or romanticized slavery as a divinely sanctioned system, as happened before the Civil War. Was.h.i.+ngton, Jefferson, Madison, and other Virginia planters acknowledged the immorality of slavery, while confessing perplexity as to how to abolish it without producing mayhem and financial ruin. When denouncing British behavior on the eve of the American Revolution, Was.h.i.+ngton made clear the degrading nature of the system when he said that, if the colonists tolerated abuses, the British "will make us as tame and abject slaves as the blacks we rule over with such arbitrary sway."8 The black population at Mount Vernon grew apace after Was.h.i.+ngton's marriage as he purchased slaves aggressively to keep pace with his widening economic activities. During the first year of his marriage, he acquired 13 slaves, then another 42 between 1761 and 1773. Since he paid taxes on slaves older than twelve years of age, we know that he personally owned 56 slaves of working age in 1761, 62 in 1762, 78 in 1765, and 87 in 1770.

Whether from humane considerations or merely from regard for property, Was.h.i.+ngton was tireless in his medical treatment of slaves; his diaries are loaded with references to doctors, and even to Was.h.i.+ngton himself, tending sick slaves. During the frosty first winter of his marriage, he grew alarmed by the death of four slaves by late January, three of them dower slaves from the Custis estate. As in the army, whenever trouble struck, Was.h.i.+ngton didn't s.h.i.+rk personal involvement. His direct management style became manifest that spring when smallpox cropped up at his western plantation on Bullskin Creek. At once he hastened off to Frederick County and was startled to find that two slaves, Harry and Kit, had already died, and that everything lay "in the utmost confusion, disorder and backwardness."9 He rushed off to nearby Winchester to secure blankets and medical supplies, summoned a nurse, and instructed his overseer to quarantine slaves with smallpox. By the Revolutionary War, Was.h.i.+ngton made a regular practice of inoculating slaves against smallpox. The standard method was to sc.r.a.pe contaminated matter from the pustules of a victim with a mild case of smallpox, then slip it on a thread under the skin of the inoculated person. This produced a mild case of the disease, which prevented the more virulent form. He rushed off to nearby Winchester to secure blankets and medical supplies, summoned a nurse, and instructed his overseer to quarantine slaves with smallpox. By the Revolutionary War, Was.h.i.+ngton made a regular practice of inoculating slaves against smallpox. The standard method was to sc.r.a.pe contaminated matter from the pustules of a victim with a mild case of smallpox, then slip it on a thread under the skin of the inoculated person. This produced a mild case of the disease, which prevented the more virulent form.

In written agreements with new overseers, Was.h.i.+ngton exhorted them to treat ailing slaves with a modic.u.m of kindness. In 1762 a new overseer, Nelson Kelly, had to agree "that he will take all necessary and proper care of the Negroes committed to his management, treating them with humanity and tenderness when sick."10 There seems little doubt that Was.h.i.+ngton was motivated by human sympathy as well as profit in caring for sick slaves. During his first term as president, he urged his estate manager to have overseers pay special heed to sick slaves, "for I am sorry to observe that the generality of them view these poor creatures in scarcely any other light than they do a draft horse or ox, neglecting them as much when they are unable to work, instead of comforting and nursing them when they lie on a sick-bed." There seems little doubt that Was.h.i.+ngton was motivated by human sympathy as well as profit in caring for sick slaves. During his first term as president, he urged his estate manager to have overseers pay special heed to sick slaves, "for I am sorry to observe that the generality of them view these poor creatures in scarcely any other light than they do a draft horse or ox, neglecting them as much when they are unable to work, instead of comforting and nursing them when they lie on a sick-bed." 11 11 Possibly because of his scrupulous care of sick slaves, Was.h.i.+ngton frequently complained about those who feigned illness. When he thought a slave named Sam was faking illness, he ordered his estate manager to "examine his case . . . but not by the doctor, for he has had doctors enough already of all colors and s.e.xes and to no effect. Laziness is, I believe, his princ.i.p.al ailment." Possibly because of his scrupulous care of sick slaves, Was.h.i.+ngton frequently complained about those who feigned illness. When he thought a slave named Sam was faking illness, he ordered his estate manager to "examine his case . . . but not by the doctor, for he has had doctors enough already of all colors and s.e.xes and to no effect. Laziness is, I believe, his princ.i.p.al ailment."12 Another area of plantation life where Was.h.i.+ngton's behavior was comparatively humane, within the overall context of an inhumane system, was in his studious refusal to break up slave families. Although slave marriages were not sanctioned by law, Was.h.i.+ngton treated them as binding and sacrosanct. In time, he refused to sell slaves if it meant separating families. Slaves who wished to marry slaves from other plantations needed Was.h.i.+ngton's permission, but we have no evidence he ever denied it. That he felt a paternalistic responsibility toward his slaves was shown dramatically in his final years when a slave named f.a.n.n.y was bedridden for a week after being beaten by her husband Ben, a slave on another plantation. Was.h.i.+ngton, livid, forbade Ben to set foot at Mount Vernon on pain of whipping. Four years later f.a.n.n.y married another slave.13 When Was.h.i.+ngton contemplated selling off slaves during the Revolution, he expressed reluctance to do so, then told his manager that "if these poor wretches are to be held in a state of slavery, I do not see that a change of masters will render it more irksome, provided husband and wife and parents and children are not separated from each other, which is not my intention to do." When Was.h.i.+ngton contemplated selling off slaves during the Revolution, he expressed reluctance to do so, then told his manager that "if these poor wretches are to be held in a state of slavery, I do not see that a change of masters will render it more irksome, provided husband and wife and parents and children are not separated from each other, which is not my intention to do."14 Although he stopped buying slaves in 1772, his slave population swelled from natural increase so that he owned 135 able-bodied slaves when tapped to head the Continental Army. Ironically, his growing scruples about slavery and his refusal to break up families by selling them off saddled him with a fast-growing slave community. Although he stopped buying slaves in 1772, his slave population swelled from natural increase so that he owned 135 able-bodied slaves when tapped to head the Continental Army. Ironically, his growing scruples about slavery and his refusal to break up families by selling them off saddled him with a fast-growing slave community.

Thanks to pioneering research at Mount Vernon in recent years, we have obtained a much more vivid sense of slave life there. The very design of the estate made it arduous for slaves to maintain families. Mount Vernon came to consist of five farms: the Mansion House Farm (what tourists think of today as Mount Vernon) and four satellite farms: Dogue Run, Muddy Hole, Union, and River. Many Mansion House slaves were either household servants, dressed in brightly colored livery of scarlet coats and white waistcoats, or highly skilled artisans; these last were overwhelmingly male, while the four distant farms held mostly field hands who, contrary to stereotype, were largely female. This s.e.xual division meant that only a little more than a third of Was.h.i.+ngton's slaves enjoyed the luxury of living with their spouses and children. Since the slaves worked a grueling six-day week, from sunup to sundown, they had to tramp long distances on Sat.u.r.day evening or Sunday to visit their far-flung families.15 It speaks volumes about the strength and tenacity of slave families that two-thirds of the adults remained married despite such overwhelming obstacles. It speaks volumes about the strength and tenacity of slave families that two-thirds of the adults remained married despite such overwhelming obstacles.

We know that Mary Was.h.i.+ngton was tightfisted in treating slaves; one neighbor remembered her as "more given to housewifery, and to keeping their servants at their proper business and in their proper places than to any unnecessary forms of etiquette."16 Thomas Jefferson thought that Was.h.i.+ngton had inherited that autocratic style. "From his childhood, [Was.h.i.+ngton] always ruled and ruled severely," Jefferson was later quoted as saying. "He was first brought up to govern slaves, he then governed an army, then a nation." Thomas Jefferson thought that Was.h.i.+ngton had inherited that autocratic style. "From his childhood, [Was.h.i.+ngton] always ruled and ruled severely," Jefferson was later quoted as saying. "He was first brought up to govern slaves, he then governed an army, then a nation."17 For the most part, Was.h.i.+ngton dealt with slaves through overseers whom he prodded to "be constantly with your people . . . There is no other sure way of getting work well done and quietly by negroes, for when an overlooker's back is turned, the most of them will slight their work or be idle altogether." For the most part, Was.h.i.+ngton dealt with slaves through overseers whom he prodded to "be constantly with your people . . . There is no other sure way of getting work well done and quietly by negroes, for when an overlooker's back is turned, the most of them will slight their work or be idle altogether."18 Under Virginia law, slaveholders could freely abuse or even murder their slaves in punis.h.i.+ng misbehavior and still avoid legal repercussions. Was.h.i.+ngton believed that whipping slaves was counterproductive and tried to restrain such brutality. As he lectured one estate manager, it "oftentimes is easier to effect [change] by watch-fulness and admonition than by severity and certainly must be more agreeable to every feeling mind in the practice of them."19 Overseers were required to issue warnings to wayward slaves before flogging them. In theory, they couldn't apply the lash to slaves unless they first secured written permission from Was.h.i.+ngton, but due to his extended absences from Mount Vernon, the rule wasn't always obeyed. "General Was.h.i.+ngton has forbidden the use of the whip on his blacks," a French visitor to Mount Vernon later averred, "but unfortunately his example has been little emulated." Overseers were required to issue warnings to wayward slaves before flogging them. In theory, they couldn't apply the lash to slaves unless they first secured written permission from Was.h.i.+ngton, but due to his extended absences from Mount Vernon, the rule wasn't always obeyed. "General Was.h.i.+ngton has forbidden the use of the whip on his blacks," a French visitor to Mount Vernon later averred, "but unfortunately his example has been little emulated."20 He wanted his overseers to be strict, not cruel. Whether on the plantation, in the army, or in government, he stressed the need to inspire respect rather than affection in subordinates, a common thread running through his vastly disparate managerial activities. He wanted his overseers to be strict, not cruel. Whether on the plantation, in the army, or in government, he stressed the need to inspire respect rather than affection in subordinates, a common thread running through his vastly disparate managerial activities.

Was.h.i.+ngton insisted that overseers track slaves closely during workdays that could stretch up to sixteen hours in summertime. He constantly reprimanded them for being drunk, lazy, or inattentive to their duties. Often feeling burdened by the expense and difficulty of dealing with white overseers, he turned to slave overseers, and at one point blacks supervised three of his five farms.

Was.h.i.+ngton prided himself on being firm but fair-minded, leading his adopted granddaughter to say later, "He was a generous and n.o.ble master and [the slaves] feared and loved him."21 His presidential secretary, Tobias Lear, said of Mount Vernon, "The negroes are not treated as blacks in general are in this country. They are clothed and fed as well as any laboring people whatever and they are not subject to the lash of a domineering overseer- His presidential secretary, Tobias Lear, said of Mount Vernon, "The negroes are not treated as blacks in general are in this country. They are clothed and fed as well as any laboring people whatever and they are not subject to the lash of a domineering overseer-but they are still slaves."22 Several observers noted that Was.h.i.+ngton, with perfect self-control in public, could flare up with servants in private. During his presidency the wife of the British amba.s.sador remarked that Was.h.i.+ngton "acquired a uniform command over his pa.s.sions on public occasions, but in private and particularly with his servants, its violence sometimes broke out." Several observers noted that Was.h.i.+ngton, with perfect self-control in public, could flare up with servants in private. During his presidency the wife of the British amba.s.sador remarked that Was.h.i.+ngton "acquired a uniform command over his pa.s.sions on public occasions, but in private and particularly with his servants, its violence sometimes broke out."23 One cabinet secretary talked of Was.h.i.+ngton's reputation for "warm pa.s.sion and stern severity" with his servants. One cabinet secretary talked of Was.h.i.+ngton's reputation for "warm pa.s.sion and stern severity" with his servants.24 Another observer was taken aback by how gruffly the tactful president addressed his slaves, "as differently as if he had been quite another man or had been in anger." Another observer was taken aback by how gruffly the tactful president addressed his slaves, "as differently as if he had been quite another man or had been in anger."25 Still another Mount Vernon guest noted how exquisitely attuned the slaves were to the master's moods: "His servants seemed to watch his eye, and to antic.i.p.ate his every wish; hence, a look was equivalent to a command." Still another Mount Vernon guest noted how exquisitely attuned the slaves were to the master's moods: "His servants seemed to watch his eye, and to antic.i.p.ate his every wish; hence, a look was equivalent to a command."26 It should be said that if Was.h.i.+ngton displayed an irritable style with his slaves, he could also be short-tempered with his military and political subordinates. It should be said that if Was.h.i.+ngton displayed an irritable style with his slaves, he could also be short-tempered with his military and political subordinates.

Slavery presented special challenges to a hypercritical personality like Was.h.i.+ngton, for the slaves had no earthly reason to strive for the perfection he wanted. However illogical it might seem, he expected them to share his work ethic and was perturbed when they didn't follow his industrious example. Feeling ent.i.tled to extract the maximum amount of work from slaves, he advised one overseer that "every laborer (male or female)" should do "as much in the 24 hours as their strength, without endangering their health or const.i.tution, will allow of."27 Not surprisingly, his letters contain frequent references to slaves whom he saw as indolent or p.r.o.ne to theft, and he never regarded such behavior as rational responses to bondage. Reproaching his slave carpenters, he said, "There is not to be found so idle a set of rascals." Not surprisingly, his letters contain frequent references to slaves whom he saw as indolent or p.r.o.ne to theft, and he never regarded such behavior as rational responses to bondage. Reproaching his slave carpenters, he said, "There is not to be found so idle a set of rascals."28 Of a slave named Betty who worked as a spinner in the mansion, he complained that "a more lazy, deceitful and impudent hussy is not to be found in the United States." Of a slave named Betty who worked as a spinner in the mansion, he complained that "a more lazy, deceitful and impudent hussy is not to be found in the United States."29 He talked caustically about malingering slaves as if they were salaried workers who had failed to earn their wages-a blind spot he never entirely lost. He talked caustically about malingering slaves as if they were salaried workers who had failed to earn their wages-a blind spot he never entirely lost.

Fond of system and efficiency, Was.h.i.+ngton was stymied by his slaves' inability to meet his high standards. Once in February 1760 he was dismayed to find that four slave carpenters had jointly hewn only 120 feet of poplar logs that day. Like a modern efficiency expert, he sat down, consulted his watch, and clocked them in a time-and-motion study. The master's presence instantly stimulated the slaves to quadruple quadruple their output to 125 feet of timber apiece. Once he had solved the motivational mystery, Was.h.i.+ngton wondered about the material being used. "It is to be observed here that this hewing and sawing likewise was of poplar," he wrote in his diary. "What may be the difference therefore between the working of this wood and [an]other some future observations must make known." their output to 125 feet of timber apiece. Once he had solved the motivational mystery, Was.h.i.+ngton wondered about the material being used. "It is to be observed here that this hewing and sawing likewise was of poplar," he wrote in his diary. "What may be the difference therefore between the working of this wood and [an]other some future observations must make known."30 It is easy to see how the methodical Was.h.i.+ngton, with his excellent business mind, would have found infuriating an economic system that naturally discouraged hard work. It is easy to see how the methodical Was.h.i.+ngton, with his excellent business mind, would have found infuriating an economic system that naturally discouraged hard work.

Male slaves at the Mansion House enjoyed accommodations superior to those of slaves at the outlying farms. They likely had better quarters because they were often trained artisans and lived within eyeshot of family members and visitors. At a later period many inhabited a large brick building with glazed windows that was divided into four rooms and fitted out like an army barrack, with bunks lining the walls. In the four remote farms, slaves were jammed into small, one-room log cabins, crafted flimsily from sticks cemented with mud. A Polish n.o.bleman who admired Was.h.i.+ngton was taken aback by these squalid hovels. "We entered one of the huts of the blacks, for one cannot call them by the name of houses. They are more miserable than the most miserable of the cottages of our peasants. The husband and wife sleep on a mean pallet, the children on the ground; [there is] a very bad fireplace, some utensils for cooking, but in the middle of this poverty, some cups and a teapot."31 Each slave received one set of new clothes per annum-a woolen jacket, a pair of breeches, two s.h.i.+rts, a pair of stockings, and a pair of shoes-often made from a coa.r.s.e brown linen called osnaburg. Slave women received an annual petticoat and smock. Some slaves also had Sunday outfits of dark coats with white vests and white breeches. Every day the slaves received approximately one quart of Indian cornmeal, and every month twenty salted herrings, which sounds like a terribly meager ration. "It is not my wish or desire that my Negro[e]s should have an ounce of meal more, nor less, than is sufficient to feed them plentifully," Was.h.i.+ngton told his estate manager.32 Recent archaeological work at Mount Vernon has revealed that the slave diet was not entirely bleak. On Sundays Was.h.i.+ngton allowed slaves to borrow his large nets, or "seines," to fish in the Potomac. At least one elderly slave named Father Jack kept a canoe on the river and supplied fish to others. Archaeologists have identified bones from sixteen types of fish in the cellar of the main slave residence. Was.h.i.+ngton also distributed to the slaves meat left over from his table, innards of hogs slaughtered on the estate, surplus fish from his fishery, and b.u.t.termilk left after the milk was churned. Recent archaeological work at Mount Vernon has revealed that the slave diet was not entirely bleak. On Sundays Was.h.i.+ngton allowed slaves to borrow his large nets, or "seines," to fish in the Potomac. At least one elderly slave named Father Jack kept a canoe on the river and supplied fish to others. Archaeologists have identified bones from sixteen types of fish in the cellar of the main slave residence. Was.h.i.+ngton also distributed to the slaves meat left over from his table, innards of hogs slaughtered on the estate, surplus fish from his fishery, and b.u.t.termilk left after the milk was churned.

The most intriguing archaeological find has been the discovery of lead shot and gun flints, showing that Was.h.i.+ngton allowed selected slaves to keep firearms and hunt wild game in the woods. The remains of fifty-eight animal species have been identified in the slave cellar. The slaves could either eat the game or sell it to the master's table. Was.h.i.+ngton's adopted grandson remembered how a slave named Tom Davis hunted duck on the Potomac with his Newfoundland dog and brought down with his musket "as many of those delicious birds as would supply the larder for a week."33 This made up part of a strictly limited market economy at Mount Vernon in which Was.h.i.+ngton allowed slaves to till their own garden plots, keep poultry, and sell eggs, chicken, fruits, and vegetables. On Sunday mornings he even permitted them to travel with pa.s.ses to nearby Alexandria and peddle their wares in the open marketplace. This freedom of movement enabled Was.h.i.+ngton's slaves to meet and marry slaves on other plantations. This made up part of a strictly limited market economy at Mount Vernon in which Was.h.i.+ngton allowed slaves to till their own garden plots, keep poultry, and sell eggs, chicken, fruits, and vegetables. On Sunday mornings he even permitted them to travel with pa.s.ses to nearby Alexandria and peddle their wares in the open marketplace. This freedom of movement enabled Was.h.i.+ngton's slaves to meet and marry slaves on other plantations.

That the slaves at Mount Vernon could move about without supervision runs counter to the common view of slavery as a system enforced only by the daily terror of whips and shackles. Like other major planters, Was.h.i.+ngton owned more slaves than his overseers could effectively monitor, and so the only way to control a captive population was to convince them that runaways would be severely punished. Virginia had perfected a system of terror for capturing fugitive slaves. Under a 1748 law, a master could seek out two justices of the peace and have them issue a proclamation against runaways. To give the slaves fair warning, the proclamation had to be posted on church doors throughout the county. If the slave still didn't surrender, the law said that "it shall be lawful for any person . . . to kill and destroy such slaves by any ways or means, without accusation or impeachment of any crime for the same."34 If Was.h.i.+ngton, with few exceptions, avoided inflicting harm on captured runaways, he showed notable zeal in hunting them down, and the problem consumed considerable time. The scholar Philip Morgan has computed that Was.h.i.+ngton had forty-seven runaway slaves over the years, or 7 percent of the total population.35 A year after his marriage Was.h.i.+ngton pursued a runaway named Boson and wound up paying a ten-s.h.i.+lling bounty to a slave from another plantation who recaptured him. Many slaves who fled were favorites of George and Martha Was.h.i.+ngton, who invariably reacted with a sense of shock and betrayal. In his diary for 1761, Was.h.i.+ngton recorded deep concern for the fate of a slave named Cupid, who had recently arrived from Africa, scarcely spoke English, and had contracted pleurisy. The master made a point of dropping in to inquire after Cupid's health and in one diary entry wrote anxiously that "when I went to bed, I thought [Cupid] within a few hours of breathing his last." A year after his marriage Was.h.i.+ngton pursued a runaway named Boson and wound up paying a ten-s.h.i.+lling bounty to a slave from another plantation who recaptured him. Many slaves who fled were favorites of George and Martha Was.h.i.+ngton, who invariably reacted with a sense of shock and betrayal. In his diary for 1761, Was.h.i.+ngton recorded deep concern for the fate of a slave named Cupid, who had recently arrived from Africa, scarcely spoke English, and had contracted pleurisy. The master made a point of dropping in to inquire after Cupid's health and in one diary entry wrote anxiously that "when I went to bed, I thought [Cupid] within a few hours of breathing his last."36 Notwithstanding this special care, Cupid subsequently ran away with three other slaves named Peros, Jack, and Neptune. On August 11, 1761, Was.h.i.+ngton placed a fugitive slave advertis.e.m.e.nt in the Notwithstanding this special care, Cupid subsequently ran away with three other slaves named Peros, Jack, and Neptune. On August 11, 1761, Was.h.i.+ngton placed a fugitive slave advertis.e.m.e.nt in the Maryland Gazette, Maryland Gazette, noting that they had escaped "without the least suspicion, provocation, or difference with anybody, or the least angry word or abuse from their overseers." noting that they had escaped "without the least suspicion, provocation, or difference with anybody, or the least angry word or abuse from their overseers."37 Was.h.i.+ngton's description of the four slaves showed that he didn't see them as an indistinguishable ma.s.s but as a collection of distinct individuals. Of Peros he said that he was thirty-five to forty years old, had a "yellowish complex[ion] with a very full round face and full black beard," and wore "a dark colored cloth coat, a white linen waistcoat, white breeches and white stockings."38 He added that the runaway slave spoke decent English, had shed much of his African dialect, and was "esteemed a sensible, judicious Negro." He added that the runaway slave spoke decent English, had shed much of his African dialect, and was "esteemed a sensible, judicious Negro."39 Of Cupid, Was.h.i.+ngton noted that "the skin of his face is coa.r.s.e and inclined to be pimply." Of Cupid, Was.h.i.+ngton noted that "the skin of his face is coa.r.s.e and inclined to be pimply."40 Two of the slaves showed recent African ancestry, having been scarified by their tribes. Jack had "cuts down each cheek bearing his country marks," while Neptune had "his teeth straggling and filed sharp." Two of the slaves showed recent African ancestry, having been scarified by their tribes. Jack had "cuts down each cheek bearing his country marks," while Neptune had "his teeth straggling and filed sharp."41 Was.h.i.+ngton offered a forty-s.h.i.+lling reward for the recovery of all four men. Was.h.i.+ngton offered a forty-s.h.i.+lling reward for the recovery of all four men.

Unless they proved repeat offenders, Was.h.i.+ngton usually forgave runaways who were brought back to Mount Vernon. He accepted the return of the "sensible, judicious" Peros without reprisals, only to have him flee again in 1770. In general, Was.h.i.+ngton didn't have the stomach for the more odious forms of punishment. On occasion, however, he resorted to the grisly penalty of selling refractory slaves in the Caribbean, where they faced hard labor and almost certain death as they toiled in sweltering sugarcane brakes. In July 1766 Was.h.i.+ngton meted out this unspeakable fate to a "healthy, strong" young slave named Tom whom he described as "both a rogue and runaway."42 He a.s.signed him to Captain Josiah Thompson, whose schooner He a.s.signed him to Captain Josiah Thompson, whose schooner Swift Swift was sailing for St. Kitts. Was.h.i.+ngton told the skipper to keep Tom handcuffed until they got to sea and that if he was "kept clean and trimmed up a little when offered to sale," he might reap a good price. was sailing for St. Kitts. Was.h.i.+ngton told the skipper to keep Tom handcuffed until they got to sea and that if he was "kept clean and trimmed up a little when offered to sale," he might reap a good price.43 From the proceeds, Was.h.i.+ngton hoped to receive one hogshead of mola.s.ses and one of rum, along with a barrel of limes and a pot of tamarinds. On at least two other occasions, Was.h.i.+ngton exported recalcitrant slaves to the Caribbean and brandished the threat of doing so to intimidate others. From the proceeds, Was.h.i.+ngton hoped to receive one hogshead of mola.s.ses and one of rum, along with a barrel of limes and a pot of tamarinds. On at least two other occasions, Was.h.i.+ngton exported recalcitrant slaves to the Caribbean and brandished the threat of doing so to intimidate others.

In colonial Virginia the property of debtors, including slaves, was often sold at tavern lotteries, amid a jovial, high-spirited atmosphere, as a way of making partial repayment to creditors. In December 1769 Was.h.i.+ngton cosponsored a lottery in Williamsburg for the estate of one Bernard Moore, who had defaulted on a large loan from the Custis estate. For ten pounds, a sporting investor could purchase a chance to win parcels of Moore's land or some fifty-five slaves divided into thirty-nine lots. The most desirable male slaves were sold with their families intact, while other slave families were broken up indiscriminately. It is hard to imagine anything that more starkly contradicted Was.h.i.+ngton's stated policy of preserving slave families than raffling them off in this public manner. With some justice, Henry Wiencek has written that Was.h.i.+ngton "reached a moral nadir" with the Bernard Moore lottery.44 The editors of Was.h.i.+ngton's papers have noted that in the 1760s he "frequently bought tickets for lotteries," although the Bernard Moore case seems to be the only one in which he acted as an organizer. The editors of Was.h.i.+ngton's papers have noted that in the 1760s he "frequently bought tickets for lotteries," although the Bernard Moore case seems to be the only one in which he acted as an organizer.45 Fortunately, such notorious cases were the exception. George and Martha Was.h.i.+ngton worked in close proximity with their slaves and knew many of them individually. That George Was.h.i.+ngton acknowledged the humanity of some slaves is seen in his remarkably affectionate, long-standing relations.h.i.+p with his manservant William Lee. At a slave auction in 1768, Was.h.i.+ngton paid top dollar to a Mrs. Mary Lee of Westmoreland County for two mulatto brothers, William and Frank Lee, and then groomed William (also called Billy or Will) as his personal servant. A dark-skinned mulatto, Billy Lee was a short, compact, powerfully built young man with a gift for gab, a rich fund of anecdotes, and a wealth of opinions. A real dare-devil as a horseman, he shadowed Was.h.i.+ngton in every major activity of his life and was an indispensable a.s.set during the foxhunting season. Billy Lee combined in his person the job of Was.h.i.+ngton's valet, butler, and waiter. Whether Was.h.i.+ngton was trotting off to the House of Burgesses, the Continental Congress, or Valley Forge, Lee was the trusted aide in attendance. A New England visitor noted h