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through his influence did he keep for himself or his family. Notwithstanding his efforts, the colony had hardly yet begun to prosper. Except in the Moravian settlements, where indigo was raised and 10,000 pounds of silk were produced annually, but little attention was paid to agriculture. The settlers complained of a clause in their charter which prohibited slavery, and the trustees at length found it expedient to disregard the regulations on this subject. Slave labor became common, and agriculture began to flourish. In 1752, the trustees resigned their charter to the king. The liberties of the people were extended; and, when the cession of Florida to the English rendered the frontier secure, nothing remained to interfere with the prosperity of Georgia.

CHAPTER XXVIII.

KING GEORGE'S WAR, 1744 To 1748.

228. As the new world increased in population, it became evident that the conflicting claims of France and England would have to be settled by force of arms. No boundary line had yet been drawn between their possessions on the north or west. The English based their claim chiefly on the Indian titles which they had purchased. To secure such further rights to the soil as the Indians retained, commissioners from Virginia and Maryland, with the governor of Pennsylvania, met the Iroquois chiefs in 1744; and bought, for £200 in gold and a like amount in goods, their title to "all lands that are or by his majesty's appointment shall be within the colony of Virginia".

ny? What were produced in the Moravian settlements? What is said of agriculture in other parts of the colony? Of what did the settlers complain? What did the trustees find it expedient to do? After this, what is said of the agricultural interests of the colony? What took place in 1752 ?

228. What difficulties arose between the French and English? On what did the English base their claim? How did they seek to strengthen it? How did the French

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1744]

LOUISBURG ATTACKED.

STGEORGES
BAY

46° N.Lat Port Hood

Catherinelin

CAPE

Carb

GrEntrance

LABRAS

DOP

North

cape

y Harb

SIDNEY

River

Salmon

Miray Bay

Loran

CAPE

BRETON

LOUISBURG

barus

Bay

The French viewed this movement with distrust, and lost no time in commencing hostilities. An English garrison at Can'-so, on the eastern point of Nova Scotia, was captured, and eighty prisoners were conveyed to Louisburg, one of the chief strongholds of the French in the new world. These men were afterwards allowed to return to Boston, and the information they gave respecting the fortifications of Louisburg led the legislature of Massachusetts to undertake an expedition against that post. An army of 3,800 men was raised, and placed under the command of Sir William Pep'per-ell. This force consisted of a strange medley. Hunters, farmers, mechanics, and clergymen, formed into line by the side of well-trained veterans.

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CAPE BRETON AND THE ADJACENT PARTS OF NOVA SCOTIA,

General Pepperell's force soon reached Louisburg, and commenced operations by attacking a battery of thirty guns. on the shore. It was speedily carried. The enemy had spiked the cannon to render them useless to their assailants; but a North-amp'-ton gunsmith drilled out the touch-holes,

view this movement? What English post did they attack? [See Map.-Where is Capo Canso? What bay is north of it? What bays does Canso Strait connect? What gulf nearly divides Cape Breton? Where is Louisburg? What bay is near it?] What became of the prisoners taken at Canso? What did their statements lead the legislature of Massachusetts to do? Describe the force that was raised. How was the place de

and they were soon playing upon their former masters. The efforts of the New Englanders were next directed against the fort, which well deserved its reputation for strength. Its massive walls were forty feet thick at the base and about twenty-five feet high. They were surrounded by a deep ditch, eighty feet in width, and were defended by nearly 200 cannon and a garrison of 1,600 men. six weeks, the French surrendered.

After a siege of about

229. The news of this victory was received at Boston with public rejoicings. The people felt proud of having struck so important a blow without the aid of the mother country. They even proposed to follow up their success with an invasion of Canada; but the British Ministry, unwilling to encourage the military power of the colonies, would not cooperate with them, and the scheme was abandoned. The treaty of Aix la Chapelle [ax lah sha-pel'] put an end to the war in 1748. According to its provisions, Louisburg was restored to the French, and the brave men of New England were thus deprived of the fruits of their valor.

CHAPTER XXIX.

COMMENCEMENT OF WASHINGTON'S CAREER.

230. THE peace of Aix la Chapelle left the opposing claims of France and England in the new world still unsettled. While the states of Europe were discussing the terms of this treaty, the boy who was to decide many of the questions it involved, and to fix the destiny of America, was surveying wild lands and running boundary lines in the woods of Virginia. This boy was George Washington.

231. Washington was born at Pope's Creek, West-more'

fended? How long did the garrison hold out? 229. How was the news of this victory received at Boston? What did the colonists propose to do? Why did not the British Ministry favor the scheme? What treaty put an end to the war? When? By its provisions, what disposition was made of Louisburg?

230. What is said of the peace of Aix la Chapelle? Where was Washington born?

1732]

HIS PARENTAGE AND YOUTH.

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land County, Virginia, on the 11th of February (the 22d ac cording to the New Style*), 1732. He sprung from an ancient family, whose original name was Wes'-syng-ton. Several of his ancestors were prominent at different periods of English history, and his great-grandfather, who emigrated to America in 1657, had led the forces of Virginia against the Indians. His father, Augustine Washington, died when he was eleven years old; his mother lived to see him the head of a nation. She was a woman of extraordinary powers, and to her wise and high-toned instructions her distinguished son owed much of that intellectual and moral excellence which has immortalized his name.

At school, the young George was a general favorite. He is described as having an expressive face, a rich complexion, a clear blue eye, a winning smile, and an erect, athletic figure. His mind was as vigorous as his frame; and in all sports and exercises, as well as the mimic military manœuvres which the young mountaineers made a part of their education, he was an acknowledged leader. So, in his studies he was surpassed by none. Books, containing his sums and exercises, still preserved, show that care and precision were even at this early period marked traits of his character.

At sixteen, Washington was a proficient in geometry and trigonometry. Surveying he had practically applied in the

* Washington was born on the 11th of February. His birthday is celebrated on the 22d, because the date has been reduced to the New Style of chronology. To correct an error occasioned by the imperfect calendar then prevalent, and make the months correspond with the seasons, the British Parliament, in 1752, retrenched eleven days in September, ordering that the 3d of that month should pass for the 14th. Historians, in giving the dates of events prior to that time, have in some cases, as in that of Washington's birthday, conformed them to the New Style.

When? [See Note.-What is meant by Old and New Style?] What is said of Washington's family? What have we already learned about his great-grandfather? How old was Washington when his father died? What is said of his mother? How was the young George regarded at school? In what terms is he described? What are stil! preserved? At sixteen, in what was Washington a proficient? Where had he prac

grounds about his school-house. He was familiar even with its more difficult problems, and made his calculations with ease and accuracy. About this time, his brother Lawrence invited him to his estate on the Potomac, called "Mount Vernon," in memory of the English admiral of

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that name. Here George became acquainted with Lord Fairfax, an extensive land proprietor, who employed him to survey a large tract on the south branch of the Potomac. The opportunity thus afforded of perfecting himself in the art was not neglected. In this romantic region, the luxuriance of nature yielded him abundant food for admiration, while the wild beast that crossed his path, and the wandering savage, with his proud paint and girdle of scalps, proved the depth of the solitude. A little straw, or a heap of dry leaves, by the camp-fire, was his bed at night. He was "himself his own cook, having no spit but a forked stick, no plate but a large chip".

232. In 1749, a company, which included Lawrence and Augustine Washington among its members, obtained from the English crown a grant of 500,000 acres on the Ohio. It was called the Ohio Company, and its objects were to trade with the Indians, and settle the country west of the Alleghanies. But in this the French had a voice. The valley of the Ohio had already been visited by their agents, who had

tised surveying? What invitation was extended to him about this time? With whom did he become acquainted? How did Lord Fairfax employ him? Describe the region in which he was thus engaged. 232. In 1749, what company was formed? For what did they obtain a grant? What were their objects? Who had a voice in this

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