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Philipse did not understand him. And she did not. Mary Philipse, like most foolish girls, was attracted by appearance rather than the intelligence. She had an opportunity to be the first lady in the land, the wife of the great man; the wife of the first president of the United States; but she threw the chance away, for the charms of a society man. As soon as Washington was gone, she called on her friend and confidant, Anne Montreville. Anne informed her of her coming marriage, and then asked her opinion of the Virginia general.

"I don't know. He seems to be a great, terrible man; but he is so awkward, so green, his hands and feet so large that he will never be a society

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"God grant he may not," answered the sensible Anne. "His country needs his services." "He don't begin to be so gallant as Captain Morris. "

"Yet there is no more comparison between General Washington and Captain Morris than between Alexander the Great and the king's jester.'

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Her words had little or no effect on Mary, who continued to receive the addresses of the accomplished Captain Morris.

Washington's mission to General Shirley in Boston was entirely satisfactory as to the question of rank. A written order from the commander-in

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chief determined that Dagworthy was entitled to the rank of a provincial captain only and, of course, must, on all occasions, give precedence to Washington, as a provincial field officer; but Washington was disappointed in another matter. It had long been his dream to have himself and his officers put upon the regular establishment, with commissions from the king, a dream never realized. He was forced to remain only a militia officer, with no higher authority than a colonial governor's commission could give, subjected to all the mortifying questions of rank and etiquette when serving in company with regular troops.

From General Shirley, he learned that the main objects of the ensuing campaign would be the reduction of Fort Niagara, so as to cut off the communication between Canada and Louisiana; the capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point, as a measure of safety for New York; the besieging of Fort Du Quesne, and the menacing of Quebec by a body of troops, which were to advance by the

Kennebec River.

The official career of General Shirley was nearing an end. He was soon after recalled to England and superseded, as has been stated, by the incompetent aristocrat, the Earl of Loudon and his equally incompetent lieutenant, Abercrombie, who, abandoning all the brilliant schemes planned by

Shirley, devoted their attention to billeting the regulars on the citizens of Albany and New York.

Washington's stay of ten days in Boston was pleasant. He received the most hospitable attentions from the polite and intelligent society of the place; but he had a two-fold desire to return to New York. He wished to be at the wedding of his friend Noah Stevens, and, above all other things, he wished to renew his acquaintance with Mary Philipse. He returned as he had come, on horseback, and was just in time for the wedding. On the eve of the wedding, Noah took the general aside and asked:

“Are you going to return to Virginia?"

"I am, and at once, colonel, for I have received some letters of a very alarming nature in regard to the frontier. Those people must have protection."

"I am greatly exercised at present about the poor Acadian whom we met in the snow. I feel that he has suffered by the unrighteous act of our people, and I am determined to find his bride-elect, if I can, and restore her to him. If one more powerful than I should at this moment tear Anne from my arms, I might appreciate his misery. I will help him find her."

Washington, whose heart was tender as a woman's, answered:

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Then he carefully asked:

Have you observed Miss Philipse during my absence?"

"I have seen her, frequently."

"Alone?"

Sometimes alone, frequently in company with Captain Morris."

"Colonel Stevens, she is an accomplished and refined lady."

“Truly she is, general; but she is more apt to be caught by the butterfly glitter of appearances than by the sterling worth of a man.

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The last sentence was easily interpreted by Washington. Though a covert compliment to himself, he was not a little uneasy at the part referring to the inability of Miss Philipse to realize "sterling worth" when placed alongside the “butterfly glitter of appearances.

He lingered three weeks in New York, when urgent appeals came from Virginia. Duty was calling him, and he could not tarry. On the day he left, he saw Miss Philipse. He stated that urgent business called him to the frontier, and, after assuring Miss Philipse of the lasting impression she had made on him, concluded with a proposal. Miss Philipse blushed and gave an evasive answer, so he was compelled to leave with the matter unsettled, yet with room for hope.

In the latter part of March, Washington was at Williamsburg, attending the opening of the legislature of Virginia, eager to promote measures for the protection of the frontier and the capture of Fort Du Quesne, which was the leading object of his ambition. While thus engaged, he received a letter from Noah Stevens informing him that Captain Morris had laid siege in earnest to Miss Philipse, asking him to hurry back to assert his own claims.

"A woman so fickle that once out of sight is out of mind is not worth the winning," thought Washington and gave his whole attention to the business in hand.

While Washington was on the frontier, at the post of Winchester, with but a handful of men, unaided by the general assembly, defending helpless mothers and babes from the fury of the savage, Mary Philipse was married to Captain Morris. She was lost to him; but Mary's loss was far the greatest, for she lost distinction and renown. She who might have had her name written in history as the choice of the man who founded the greatest republic on earth is to-day unknown.

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