Washington, the man of action . bedone on the place, for much thathe had begun during his formeryears of peace had to be done again,and he had elaborate plans for fur-ther beautifying and cultivating theestate. Into this happy labor hethrew himself heart and soul, super-intending every detail personally andoften remaining in the saddle prac-tically all day. He could not devotehis whole time to this congenial oc-cupation, however, for he was forcedto write or dictate an enormous 321 WASHINGTON number of letters each day to stemthe flood of correspondence whichpoured in upon him. Moreover,visito
Washington, the man of action . bedone on the place, for much thathe had begun during his formeryears of peace had to be done again,and he had elaborate plans for fur-ther beautifying and cultivating theestate. Into this happy labor hethrew himself heart and soul, super-intending every detail personally andoften remaining in the saddle prac-tically all day. He could not devotehis whole time to this congenial oc-cupation, however, for he was forcedto write or dictate an enormous 321 WASHINGTON number of letters each day to stemthe flood of correspondence whichpoured in upon him. Moreover,visitors continued to throng thehouse, and the presence of severalpermanent guests, including hisadopted grandchild, Nellie Custis,and young George Washington La-fayette, the Generals son, served todivert his attention. The companyof the young people added greatlyto his pleasure, but the strangerswho called to procure his autograph,to paint his portrait, to presentbooks, poems and music which hadbeen dedicated to him, and to ask 322. WASHINGTON his opinion on all sorts of questions,were a trial to his patience and astrain on his hospitality. Never-theless, they were all received withcourtesy and the home life wenthappily on until April, 1798, whennews suddenly arrived from Francethat the American envoys to thatcountry had been treated with in-sult and that the country must pre-pare for war. How thoroughly thepeople were united was well demon-strated by their instant responseto the call. The organizing of aformidable army was promptly be-gun, and Washington was given 327 WASHINGTON supreme command, with the rankof Lieutenant-General, but no warresulted, for France quickly madethe proper disclaimers of intentionto offend. Still the emergency tookthe master of Mount Vernon furtheraway from his hearthstone than hehad ever expected to be, and for afew months the quiet routine of hislife was interrupted. As soon asthe war clouds passed, however, heresumed his farming duties, and inApril, 1
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