George Washington Author:Worthington Chauncey Ford Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II escence. Youth ARLY in his career, Lawrence wished George to go to sea, and offered to give him the necessary recommendations. The suggestion... more » found favor with the young man, but the mother was opposed to his going, first making a faint show of acqui- " I am afraid Mrs. Washington will not keep up to her first resolution," wrote Robert Jackson, in September, 1746. " She seems to intimate a dislike to George's going to Sea and says several Persons have told her it 's a very bad Scheme. She offers several trifling objections such as fond and unthinking mothers naturally suggest, and I find that one word against his going has more weight than ten for it. Col? Fairfax seems desirous he should go, and desired me to acquaint you with Mrs. Washington's sentiments. I intend shortly to take an opportunity to talk with her and will let you know her result." In spite of all persuasion the mother's fears could not be laid aside, and they received strong confirmation when the cruelties and sufferings of a sailor's life were set forth to her. The midshipman'swarrant was returned, and the boy returned to his studies. Where Washington went to school has never been positively ascertained. His half-brothers had been sent to England to be educated; but the early death of his father cut off any expectation of a like voyage for George. There were but few schools in Virginia at this time, although the colonial laws sought to provide a system of schools open to all its inhabitants. The plan was much greater than the performance ; and even at the best, the academies, colleges, and schools were but different grades of inefficiency, inadequate instruments to perform the task set before them. As much the same condition of paralysis infected the English colleges, it need not excite wond...« less