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Lafayette, the Friend of Washington. 
 
 AN ADDRESS 
 
 DELIVERED IN 
 
 MEMORIAL HALL, 
 
 FRIDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 22, 1884, 
 
 BY 
 
 MARSHALL S. SNOW, 
 
 IN COMMEMOKATION OF 
 
 THE ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY-SECOND ANNIVERSARY OF THE 
 
 BIRTH OF GEORGE WASHINGTON AND THE THIRTY-FIRST 
 
 BIRTHDAY OF WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY. 
 
 ST. LOUIS: 
 NIXON-JONES PRINTING CO. 
 

 A 
 
" Let us now praise famous men, and our fathers that begat us. 
 
 " Such as did bear rule in their kingdoms, men renowned for their 
 power, giving counsel by their understanding, and declaring prophecies. 
 
 " Leaders of the people by their counsels, and by their knowledge 
 of learning meet for the people, wise and eloquent in their instructions : 
 
 "All these were honored in their generations, and were the glory of 
 their times. 
 
 •'There be of them that have left a name behind them, that their 
 praises might be reported. 
 
 " But these were merciful men, whose righteousness hath not been for- 
 gotten. 
 
 " Their seed shall remain forever, and their glory shall not be blotted 
 out. 
 
 "Their bodies ^re buried in peace; but their name liveth forever- 
 more. 
 
 " The people will tell of their wisdom, and the congregation will show 
 forth their praise." 
 
 Ecclesiasticus — Chapter xliv. 
 
 As we study the history of the great struggle which we 
 call the American Revolution, among all the names which 
 won for themselves in that conflict the regard and honor of 
 more than one Continent, two stand out far more boldly and 
 clearly than any others. I need not say that these are the 
 names of Washington and Lafayette. From our childhood 
 the one is almost as familiar to us as the other. To whatever 
 just criticism Lafayette exposed himself during the trying 
 times of the French Revolution, however, we may regard 
 his participation in the political affairs of France after 
 Napoleon, however much we may be influenced by the 
 sneers of Carlyle, who regarded the famous Frenchman as a 
 prig, of his character and his conduct in this country there 
 can be but one opinion. But, after all, the most of us do 
 
 (3) 
 
4 LAB^AYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 not bei^in to understand, simply for want of investigation, 
 the close relations which existed between the gallant Mar- 
 quis and the commander-in-chief of the American army. I 
 am sure, then, that it will not be considered out of place 
 upon this day, when we commemorate the one hundred and 
 fifty-second anniversary of the birth of George Washington, 
 and the thirty-first birthday of Washington University, to 
 say something of the value of Lafayette to our country and 
 its leader in those days of trial, to speak of the friendship 
 existing between two noble souls, and to show to the young 
 who may be within the sound of my voice an example of 
 rare devotion to duty, of generous response to every noble 
 impulse. 
 
 In the summer of 17 76, in the city of Metz, then a French 
 town, a number of French officers were dining at the house 
 of the commandant. The Duke of Gloucester, brother of 
 the King of England, was the guest of the evening. As 
 the Duke had just received despatches from England their 
 contents became the topic of conversation about the table. 
 News from Eno-land then meant news from the English colo- 
 nies in America. The Duke gave to the interested group 
 about the table the story, as it was known to him, of the 
 declaration of independence of the refractory colonies ; of 
 the sturdy resistance with which all the efforts of the English 
 armies to crush this rebellion had been met ; of the deter- 
 mination in England to take yet stronger and surer meas- 
 ures against the so-called United States. 
 
 Among the guests was a youth of nineteen years, a rela- 
 tive of the host. He was impetuous, ardent, a lover of 
 liberty, full of romantic and chivalrous thoughts. The 
 particulars of this story of struggle were new to him, and 
 no one listened as eagerly as he, or asked as many questions 
 that he might thoroughly inform himself as to all the de- 
 tails. From his boyhood he had been a lover of freedom, 
 and the idea of a people fighting for that blessing, and fight- 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 9 
 
 ing, too, with the traditional enemy of France, strongly 
 influenced his imagination. Even from the story of the 
 Duke of Gloucester he satisfied himself that the cause was 
 just and noble, and before he had risen from the table he had 
 formed the plan of going to that young nation, so bravely 
 struggling for independence, and doing all that his wealth, 
 his influence, his personal service could do to help their 
 holy cause. "When I first learned the subject of this 
 quarrel," he wrote years afterwards, " my heart espoused 
 warml}^ the cause of liberty, and I thought of nothing but 
 of adding also the aid of my banner." He went to Paris 
 at once and made inquiries. To two young friends, the 
 Count Segur and Viscount DeNoailles, he made the propo- 
 sition that they should join in an expedition in aid of this 
 enterprise which he had so much at heart. They, too, 
 were eager and enthusiastic, but dependent as they were 
 upon their families, they could not go against the wishes of 
 their parents. Our young hero, the Marquis de Lafayette, 
 was more fortunate. His property was in his own hands, 
 and his income was nearly two hundred thousand livres. 
 Not discouraged by the difiiculty of securing associates 
 among his friends, he went to Count Broglie, a man of 
 rank and influence at the court. The Count could not give 
 him the least encouragement. He promised to keep his 
 secret, but said to him : — "I have seen your uncle die in 
 the wars of Italy ; I witnessed your father's death at the 
 battle of Minden ; and I will not be accessary to the ruin 
 of the only remaining branch of the family." 
 
 The ministry of France were then divided on the subject . 
 of American affairs. The position of neutrality was the 
 preference of M. Turgot. " Let us leave the msurgents," 
 said he, " at full liberty to make their purchases in our 
 ports and to provide themselves by the way of trade with 
 the munitio'ns, and even the money, of which they have 
 need. A refusal to sell to them would be a departure from 
 neutrality. But it would be a departure, likewise, to fur- 
 
6 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 nish them with secret aid in money, and this step, which it 
 would be difficult to conceal, would excite just complaints 
 on the part of the English." The question of what was to 
 be the position of France in this struggle against the En- 
 glish arms had just been put directly to the King and his 
 ministers by Silas Deane, the American ambassador, or 
 commissioner, who with Benjamin Franklin had been sent 
 to France to see what could be done towards securinof aid. 
 The instructions of the United States Congress had been to 
 *' correspond with friends in England, Ireland, and other 
 parts of the world," and Deane's representations putting 
 in the strongest terras the determination of the rebels to 
 to earn their independence, had much to do with the final 
 decision of the ministry to do just what Turgot advised not 
 to do; — to send supplies of money, secretly, at once. 
 Beaumarchais, the versatile author of Le Mariage^ de 
 Figaro, a restless and passionate partisan of the American 
 cause, was made the agent of the French government. 
 January 10th, 177(5, a million francs were sent to him for 
 American use, and in two months the same sum was entrusted 
 to him in the name of the King of Spain. Beaumarchais' in- 
 structions were " to found a great commercial house and to 
 draw into it the money of private individuals ; the first out- 
 lay being now provided, we shall have no further hand in it, 
 the affair would compromise the government too much in 
 the eyes of the English." So through a house of the style 
 of Rodrigo Hortcdez and Co. the first installment of more 
 than three millions was forwarded to the Americans. But 
 all this, invaluable as was the aid to the Americans, was 
 done in secret. It was the aim of Deane and Frankhn, 
 both of whoifi were at Paris, to secure the open and undis- 
 guised adherence of the government of France to the cause 
 of the rebels. They knew that a treaty of alliance was 
 worth more than money and men. Such a treaty, however, 
 would be entirely contrary to the well-known sentiments and 
 monarchical principles of Louis XVI. His chief minister, 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 7 
 
 Turgot, was moderate and prudent. M. De Vergen- 
 nes, the minister for foreign affairs, was anxious to pre- 
 serve an apparent neutrality. Josepli II., of Austria, 
 Emperor of Germany, brother-in-law of the King of France* 
 had just been in Paris. He, too, was importuned to declare 
 in favor of the American, insui^gents, as they were called. 
 " It is my trade to be a royalist ; " was the reply of his im- 
 perial majesty. At the bottom of his heart Louis XVI., of 
 France, was of the same mind, but with that indecision so 
 characteristic of his whole life, and which was to cost him 
 his head a few years later, he hesitated and waited. Many 
 gentlemen asked his permission to serve in the American 
 army, but to none was the permission given. Some went 
 by stealth, and were never heard of in France again. The 
 policy of the government was so plainly declared in favor 
 of inaction that no hope of any alliance seemed left the 
 commissioners. 
 
 Such was the situation when Lafayette, disappointed in 
 his hopes of government encouragement, unable, indeed, to 
 obtain permission to. leave the country alone and sail to 
 America, had an interview with Commissioner Deane. This 
 interview, even, was hard to manage without suspicion, so 
 surrounded was Deane by spies of the British Ambassador, 
 and so fearful was Lafayette of giving offence to his own 
 government. But by means of this interview and by the 
 subsequent intervention of friends it was agreed that the 
 Marquis de Lafayette should join the American service and 
 receive from Congress the rank of Major-General. A ves- 
 sel was to be sent secretly, that it might not be intercepted 
 by the French Government, with arms and other supplies 
 for the American army, and in this he was to sail. Against 
 the military appointment Lafayette in vain protested. He 
 declared that all he wanted was to serve as a volunteer under 
 Washington ; he yielded only after the urgent solicitation of 
 the few friends who had been consulted, and of Silas Deane, 
 the commissioner. Preparations were rapidly making for 
 
8 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 departure, when most discouraging news came from the 
 United States; — the news of the evacuation of New York, 
 the loss of Fort Washington, the retreat across New Jersey ; 
 news of nothing but disaster. Less than three thousand 
 Americans remained in arms ; and these were closely pur- 
 sued by General Howe. The friends of America in France 
 were in despair. Ail thought of fitting out a ship and send- 
 ing munitions of war had to be abandoned. The friends of 
 the young Marquis urged him strongly to give up the 
 scheme. But to this enthusiastic French youth of only 
 nineteen years such discouraging prospects, instead of 
 seeming reason for being disheartened, only added to the 
 ardor with which he pursued his aim. Mr. Deane himself 
 had thought it only right to tell him how hopeless was the 
 accomplishment of his design. To him Lafayette went and 
 said: — " Until now, sir, you have only seen my ardor in 
 your cause, and that may not prove at present wholly useless. 
 I shall purchase a ship to carry out your officers ; we must 
 feel confidence in the future, and it is especially in the 
 hour of danger that I wish to share your fortune." In 
 these noble words we have a perfect illustration of the 
 spirit in which the Marquis de Lafayette and other French- 
 men, less able, but equally honorable, entered upon this 
 important business. Thus wiiile General Washington, re- 
 duced to a body of fighting men numbering less than 3,000, 
 was still hopeful of the common cause, three thousand miles 
 across the ocean the same sentiments were animating; the 
 heart of a youth destined soon to be the intimate friend, the 
 trusted adviser, the sharer in all the vicissitudes of the Re- 
 volution, and to carry back at last to his own land those 
 principles of liberty and equality which were the founda- 
 tions of our struggle. To understand fully the meaning of 
 such a course on the part of the Marquis de Lafayette we 
 must recall his position in his own country, which made his 
 prospects of a life of ease and enjoyment so certain. En- 
 rolled at fifteen in the mousquetaires of the King, he was one 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FKIEXD OF AVASHINGTOX. 9 
 
 of a company of young gentlemen whose families had held 
 titles of nobility for at least four generations, each of whom 
 had the rank of an officer in the French army. Young and 
 independent, the master of a large fortune, at the age of 
 sixteen he had married a lovely girl, who became a noble 
 woman, the daughter of the wealthy Duke D'Ayen. To no 
 one was the opportunity of a brilliant career at the court 
 more widely open. Louis XVI., a youth of about the age , 
 of Lafayette, virtuous, popular and powerful, was on the 
 throne so long disgraced by his grandfather's licentiousness 
 and inefficiency. The golden age seemed to have returned. 
 By the side of the King was the young Queen, Marie An- 
 toinette, beautiful and accomplished, her life as yet darkened 
 by no shadow of coming calamities. Around her had 
 assembled all that was splendid and noble and lovely in 
 France. Daughter of an Empress, sister of an Emperor, 
 wife of a King, the child of pomp and ostentatious display, 
 pleasure, flattery and festivals were the delight of the Aus- 
 trian Princess. Within this charmed circle was Lafayette. 
 He did not flatter, but by some strange caprice the youno- 
 Queen justly distinguished him by her favorable notice. 
 Thus he could have acquired uncontrolled ascendancy at 
 court. But then began to flourish that germ of patriotic 
 virtue by whose finest fruits his riper years were enriched. 
 Then, even, may we see combined in him that magnanimity 
 beyond his age and profession, that philosophy and that 
 valor which have always adorned the name of Lafayette. 
 Turning from the enervating and distasteful dissipations of 
 a splendid but frivolous court, his ardent spirit aspired to 
 the noblest undertakings. He was willing to leave a youno- 
 wife whom he passionately loved, a family that cherished 
 him fondly, a brilliant court, shining with all the attractions 
 and all the luxuries of life, and to seek in a strange and dis- 
 tant land a thousand privations, fatigues, dangers, and even 
 death, not from love of adventure, not from restlessness of 
 mind, not from instability or frivolity of soul, but because 
 
10 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEXD OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 his heart was eager with the love of glory won in the cause 
 of liberty, and moved with ardor to the execution of 
 generous designs. AVe can understand, then, his impa- 
 tience at the delays and obstructions which he met at every 
 turn at the beginning of his enterprise. At last after many 
 vexatious delays Lafayette was able to steal away from 
 France in his own ship, and escaping dangers of the sea 
 and of English cruisers to land upon the coast of Georgia. 
 To his voung and high-minded wife he wrote most interest- 
 ing letters, telling of his voyage and of his impressions of 
 this far-away country. Young as she was, devotedly at- 
 tached to her husband, and fearing for him many unknown 
 dangers, after the first natural feeling of astonishment and 
 apprehension, she gave him all the encouragement of her 
 full approval and her undying affection. She was not at 
 the port from which he sailed to say farewell, but she wrote 
 to him a letter, which, said Lafayette, " was an angelic let- 
 ter." He tells us that if she had given him the least hint 
 to return to her he " would have repented of his design and 
 would have gone back to her." But with stout heart he 
 endured the painful separation, and solaced the hours of 
 loneliness by writing long and loving letters. " My dearest 
 love," he always begins them. They are ever bright and 
 cheery when all around him is full of gloom and despondency. 
 On the 19th of June he writes from Charleston: — "I will 
 now tell you about the country and its inhabitants. They 
 are as agreeable as my enthusiasm had painted them. Sim- 
 plicity of manners, kindness, love of country and liberty, 
 and a delightful equality everywhere prevail. The wealthiest 
 man and the poorest man are on a level ; and* although 
 there some large fortunes, I challenge any one to discover 
 the slio;htest difference between the manners of these two 
 classes towards each other. * * * j ^m now in the 
 city where everything is very much after the English 
 fashion, except that there is more simplicity, equality, cor- 
 diality, and courtesy here than in England. * * * The 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 11 
 
 American women are very pretty, simple in their manners, 
 and exhibit a neatness which is everywhere even more 
 studiously cultivated than in England. * * * As to 
 my own reception, it has been most agreeable in every 
 quarter; and to have come with me secures the most flat- 
 tering welcome. I have just passed five hours at a grand 
 dinner, given in honor of me, by an individual of this city. 
 We drank healths and tried to talk English. I beo;in to 
 speak it a little. * * * Considering the pleasant life I 
 lead in this country, my sympathy with the people, which 
 makes me feel as much at ease in their society as if I had 
 known them for twenty years, the similarity of their mode 
 of thinking and my own, and my love of liberty and glory, 
 one might suppose that I am very happy. But j^ou are not 
 with me ; my friends are not with me ; and there is no 
 happiness for me away from you and them. * * * 
 Embrace tenderly our children. The father of these poor 
 children is a rover, but a good and honest man at heart, a 
 good father, who loves his family dearly, and a good hus- 
 band who loves his wife with all his heart. * * * Xhe 
 night is far advanced and the heat is dreadful. I am de- 
 voured by insects : so you see the best countries have their 
 disadvantages . Adieu . ' ' 
 
 Soon he began his journey to Philadelphia, a ride of 
 nearly 900 miles on horseback, through the two Carolinas, 
 Virginia, Maryland and Delaware. On this journey he 
 studied the language and customs of the inhabitants; he 
 noticed many products of the soil that were new to him ; he 
 saw vast forests and great rivers which combined to give 
 the country through which he passed an appearance of 
 youth and majesty. 
 
 After his skillful manoeuvres at Trenton and Princeton, 
 Washington had gone into camp at Middlebrook. The 
 English, whose first hopes had been so disappointed, deter- 
 mined to make the next campaign a decisive one. Pro- 
 clamations and savages already heralded the reproach of 
 
12 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 Burgoyne and his army of 10,000. Saint Clair abandoned 
 Ticonderoga to save the only corps around which the militia 
 could rally. Congress then sent Gates with his regulars to 
 take the place of these militia, and did all that could be 
 done to support him. The great English army of 18,000 
 men sailed from New York, and the two Howes were unit- 
 ing their forces for a secret enterprise; Rhode Island was 
 occupied by the enemy. General Clinton had remained at 
 New York and was preparing for an expedition. Learning 
 of all these movements, Washington, leaving Putnam on 
 the north, crossed the Delaware and encamped with 11,000 
 men, the most of whom were fresh recruits, within reach of 
 Philadelphia. It w^as just at this time that Lafayette 
 arrived in America. The time was one of great importance 
 to the common cause, but a peculiarly unfortunate one for 
 the presentation of the claims of foreigners to rank and 
 command. Many of the Frenchmen who had entered the 
 army had disgusted by their pretentious conduct those whom 
 they should have tried to conciliate. The boldness of some 
 of these adventurers, the not unnatural jealousy of the army, 
 strong national prejudices, made it hard for the proper 
 distinction to be made between honest zeal and private 
 ambition, or talents and worthlessness. A band of French- 
 men, relying upon the promises made by Mr. Deane, 
 besieged the Congress until the rule of not listening to any 
 stranger had to be adopted. Lafayette was received coldly, 
 and was told that there was but little hope that his request 
 to be assigned to duty could be granted. At length he sent 
 to Congress this communication: "After the sacrifices I 
 have made, I have a right to exact two favors; one is, to 
 serve at my own expense, the other is, to serve at first as a 
 volunteer." This was a style of petition to which Congress 
 was little accustomed. A more careful inquiry was made 
 into his credentials, and on the 31st of July, 1777, the fol- 
 lowing resolution was adopted: " Seeing that the Marquis 
 de Lafayette, on account of his great zeal in the cause of 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 13 
 
 liberty in which the United States are engaged, has quitted 
 his family and his country, and has come to offer his ser- 
 vices to the United States, without demanding either pay or 
 private indemnity, and that he desires to expose his life in 
 our cause, resolved, that his services be accepted, and that 
 on account of his zeal, illustrious family and connections, he 
 shall have the rank and commission of major-general in the 
 army of the United States." 
 
 Washington and Lafayette first met at a dinner given by 
 a member of Congress. Lafayette tells us in his memoirs 
 that not for a moment did he hesitate as to which of the 
 distinguished men present was the commander under whom 
 he wished to serve ; his majestic figure and deportment left 
 no room for doubt, and his noble affability of manner added 
 to the impression made by his first appearance. We have 
 good reason to think that Washington did not like France ; 
 that he did not share the hopes which some of his fellow- 
 countrymen based upon the aid of that country. He thought 
 but little of the crowd of volunteers who came to enroll 
 themselves in the American army and be loaded with favors 
 by the Congress. " No bond but interest attaches these 
 men to America." He would say, " and as for France, she 
 only lets us get our munitions from her because of the 
 benefit her own commerce derives from it." Washino-ton 
 was prudent, reserved, and proud, and looked for the salva- 
 tion of America to America herself. He had not foreseen, 
 nor, perhaps, could a temperament like his understand, the 
 enthusiasm, the generous and unreflecting ardor which so 
 easily possesses the Frenchman, and which was just then 
 turned to the United States. The very first of these men 
 to win the affection and esteem of General Washinston was 
 the Marquis de Lafayette. As they were about separating 
 on the day of their first meeting, Washington, who seems 
 to have been at once struck with the manliness of Lafay- 
 ette, took him aside, spoke most kindly to him, compli- 
 mented him upon the spirit he had shown and the sacrifices 
 
14 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 he had made, and begged him to consider himself as one of 
 Washington's own family. The young Marquis must have 
 made a remarkable impression upon the cautious general to 
 receive at their first meeting such marks of friendship. 
 
 Made happy by his success with the Congress, proud of 
 the favor of Washington, Lafayette entered at once upon 
 his duty as assistant of the commander-in-chief. Urged 
 by Washington to take that rank in the army which Con- 
 gress had granted him, he replied that " he was not as yet 
 capable of discharging the duties of such a post ; that he 
 must begin by being instructed himself, and by learning to 
 obey before he took upon himself to command; that he 
 would, with the permission of the commander-in-chief, act 
 as a volunteer : and when he should have given proofs by 
 his services that he merited a commission, he would be 
 ready to receive that honor; that he wished to conduct 
 himself, in every respect, as an American citizen, and was 
 only desirous to follow the example of General Washington 
 in every situation, whether in war or in peace." As the 
 weeks went by, he showed himself courageous, devoted, 
 more able and more judicious than his youth and character 
 had led them to expect. The friendship that was at once 
 established between Lafayette and Washington was on both 
 sides tender and devoted. Washino-ton soon came to love 
 him as a son. The conditions of the contest were better 
 known by the commander-in-chief now than they had been 
 six months before. He saw that it was indeed a desperate 
 one ; he knew it must be a long one ; he knew better than any 
 one else the weaknesses as well as the strength of the means 
 at his disposal ; he had learned at last to desire and hope for 
 the aid and alliance of France. In the meantime Lafayette 
 was writing to friends in France urging open alliance with the 
 United States, and open hostilities against England as the true 
 policy of the French Government. While lying upon a bed 
 of pain after his wound at the battle of Brandywine in 
 September, 1777, cared for by the Moravian brothers at 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 15 
 
 Bethlehem, he wrote to the old Count Maurepas to uro-e 
 immediate action. The plan suggested by Lafayette was 
 not adopted by the cautious minister, but he always after- 
 wards expressed a great liking for the young Marquis. ' ' He 
 will end one day," said the count, " by unfurnishing the 
 palace of Versailles to serve the American cause ; for when 
 he has taken anything into his head it is impossible to resist 
 him." 
 
 Then came in a few days the surrender of Burgoyne and 
 his forces at Saratoo-a. 
 
 Until the news of that victory reached France she had not 
 been led to conceive any very sanguine hopes of the ulti- 
 mate success of the American arms. She now thought it 
 expedient to espouse and assist the cause of the new nation. 
 On the eighth of February, therefore, was presented to the 
 world the remarkable spectacle of a monarchy with 
 scarcely any constitutional limitation to'its power signino- a 
 treaty of alliance, amity and commerce with a self-made 
 republic, in rebellion against a monarchical neighbor of 
 France. Favorable accounts of the progress of Ameri- 
 can affairs in the letters of Lafayette to his friends at court 
 had exerted an obvious influence on the action of the min- 
 isters, and contributed in no small degree towards brino-ing 
 to a happy conclusion the negotiations which had been 
 pending for fourteen months. 
 
 He was one of the flrst to receive information of the 
 treaty, and gave himself the pleasure of bearing the intelli- 
 gence in person to the commander-in-chief. The news at 
 once spread through the camp. The most lively demon- 
 strations of joy followed. The officers and soldiers crowded 
 around Lafayette to try to express to him the affectionate 
 regard in which they held him. By order of Washington 
 the brigades were assembled, and public thanksgivings were 
 offered to heaven for this great favor. The joyful discharo-e 
 of cannon resounded throughout the camp, and at a given 
 signal, the whole army cried as with a single voice: " Long 
 
16 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 live the King of France ! " In every one of the thirteen 
 States was soon heard the same voice of praise and thanks- 
 giving to God. The military success of the army of Gates 
 had been followed at once by the diplomatic victory of 
 Deane and Franklin. The army could endure privation 
 and hardship with fortitude ; the people were ready to make 
 new exertions and to supply the soldiers with the needed 
 supplies. The high hopes which the alliance with France 
 had raised were, as we know, doomed to partial disappoint- 
 ment, but the immediate effect alone ujDon soldiers and 
 people was of incalculable benefit to the cause. 
 
 "Assure the Encylish Government of the King's pacific 
 intentions," M. de Vergennes wrote to the French am- 
 bassador in England, Geo. III.'s answer was the recall 
 of his ambassador. "Anticipate your enemies," said 
 Franklin to the ministers of Louis XVI. "Act towards 
 them as they did to you in 1755 ; let your ships put to sea 
 before any declaration of war; it will be time to speak 
 when a French squadron bars the passage of General Howe, 
 who has ventured to ascend the Delaware." The character 
 of King Louis was a compound of straightforwardness and 
 timidity. These qualities were equally opposed to this bold 
 plan of the astute American ; he hesitated long ; and when 
 Count D'Estaing at last went out of Toulon harbor to sail 
 for America with his squadron, it was too late, for the 
 English were on their guard. No formal declaration of 
 war was made, but on the 17th of June, the third anniver- 
 sary of the battle of Bunker Hill, the first shot was fired 
 by England in the English channel. 
 
 The French minister had for some time been trying to 
 draw into the war against England the Bourbon King of 
 Spain. But so essentially monarchical, so faithful to ancient 
 traditions was the Spanish Government, so little sympathy 
 had Charles III. with the rising Republic, so fearful was he 
 that the contagion of liberty would spread to the Spanish 
 colonies, so great would be the expense of such a war, that 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 17 
 
 it was only after long hesitation that Spanish hatred of 
 England was allowed to prevail over the dictates of pru- 
 dence. France added to other arguments the promise to 
 help Spain recover Gibraltar and Minorca, and the King of 
 Spain at last agreed to take part in the war, without, how- 
 ever, recognizing the independence of the United States, or 
 making an alliance with them. Spain meant to fight against 
 England; not for the new republic. England now had 
 reason to regard her situation as serious. The channel was 
 plowed by the keels of the enemy ; thousands of men were 
 mustering in Normandy to descend upon the southern coast 
 of England. Paul Jones was ravaging the coasts of Scot- 
 land. Sweden, Russia and Holland, alarmed at the disregard 
 shown by the English admiralty of the rights of neutrals, 
 threatened to maintain these rights with arms. Ireland was 
 ready for revolt. Scotland and England were distracted 
 by religious quarrels. The Cabinet of Lord North had lost 
 its hold upon Parliament and people. The mob ruled Lon- 
 don whenever any news came to stir its passions. The end 
 of the struggle between England and her colonies seemed to 
 many sanguine French observers as clearly foreshadowed. 
 But to the Americans, in spite of the success in the north, 
 the situation had never seemed so critical as at the very 
 moment when so many dangers were threatening England. 
 This was indeed the darkest hour before the day that was to 
 dawn. The paper money, based upon no certain security, 
 was both counterfeited by the enemy and discredited by the 
 friends of the Revolution. The people who had rebelled 
 against paying taxes to England, saw themselves called 
 upon by a power which they were hardly more inclined to obey 
 to pay even heavier taxes now; but still the Government had 
 no power to enforce their collection. By refusing the 
 payment of taxes, by depreciating the paper currency, by 
 feeding the enemy, selfish citizens crippled the Government 
 and made themselves rich. True patriots alone endured 
 privations and misery. While a numerous English garrison 
 
is LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 lived sumptuously at New York, a few hundreds of men, 
 ill-clothed and poorly fed, wandered upon the shores of the 
 Hudson. A freshly recruited army of 18,000 men just 
 from England, with an abundance of supplies of all kinds, 
 was at Philadelphia ; the army of Washington, wintering 
 in its wooden huts and ragged tents at Valley Forge, was 
 reduced to 5,000 men, and was in danger every day of utter 
 annihilation. The soldiers were in want of everything ; of 
 coats, of hats, of shirts, of shoes. Their feet and legs froze 
 until they turned black and amputation had to follow. 
 Neither provisions nor means of transporting them could be 
 had. Officers as well as soldiers were reduced to two, and 
 often one, ration a day. The sight of such misery made it 
 difficult to levy recruits. Desertion was easy, although not 
 so frequent as one would suppose. The triumph of the 
 north and the tranquillity of the south lulled to sleep two 
 thirds of the continent. The strip between the two British 
 armies was the scene of suifering and loyal devotion of 
 which the rest of the country had then but little knowledge. 
 To conceal the unfortunate condition of thino;s from the 
 enemy it must also be kept from the nation ; for by awaken- 
 ing one, information would be given to the other. Had 
 the English generals in New York and Philadelphia known 
 what, perhaps, they ought to have known about the weak- 
 ness of the little band encamped in the snow at Valley 
 Forge, blows would have been struck which would have 
 ruined the American cause before democratic tardiness 
 could have come to its support. Congress was not fully 
 informed as to the real state of things, and some of the 
 generals, even, were deceived. 
 
 It is impossible for us to form any proper conception of 
 the burden which Washington carried during this trying 
 winter. In the midst of this accumulation of trials the 
 young Marquis de Lafayette seems to have been his only 
 confidant. This confidence sprang from the warm affection 
 in which he held the young Frenchman, and was fully justi- 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 19 
 
 fied by the spirit in which it was met. Lafayette adoptedi 
 the American dress, food and customs Reared in the lap! 
 of luxury, he sudenly changed his whole manner of living. ' 
 He seemed to wish to be more simple, more frugal, more 
 austere than the Americans themselves. He cheerfully en- 
 dured privations and fatigue. How comforting, how cheer- 
 ing was this sympathetic affection, this co-operation so free 
 from jealousy, this activity for the common cause, so entirely 
 without thought of self, we can learn from many passages in 
 the letters of Washington. 
 
 I will not speak now of the military events immediately 
 following that seemingly endless winter ; of the arrival of 
 Count D'Estaing and his fleet and the miserable failure of 
 the Rhode Island expedition, a result due almost entirely to 
 the lack of French co-operation — all familiar events in 
 the history of our revolution. It was the opinion of Lafay- 
 ette often expressed to Washington that unless France 
 should send vessels of war and troops in sufficient numbers 
 and put them under the immediate command of the com- 
 mander-in-chief, the benefits of the alliance must necessarily 
 be partial and insignificant. Count D'Estaing had given the 
 secret orders of his king as a reason for his unwillingness 
 to do his part in the Rhode Island affair. Every French 
 officer might in the same way evade the duty lying plainly 
 before him, if jealously or any other evil suggestion 
 prompted such action. Impressed with the importance of 
 a better understanding between the French and American 
 Governments upon this subject, and anxious after the be- 
 ginning of war between France and England to be for a 
 time in his own country, Lafayette left the United States in 
 January, 1779. He had left France a rebel and a fugitive ; — 
 he returned there triumphant and the hero of the hour. 
 In his memoirs he writes : — "I was interrogated, compli- 
 mented and exiled, — but to the good city of Paris. * * * 
 On my arrival I had the honor of being consulted by all the 
 ministers, and, what was far better, embraced by all the 
 
20 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 ladies. Those embraces, however, lasted but one day ; but 
 I retained for a greater length of time the confidence of the 
 Cabinet, and T enjoyed both favor at the Court of Versailles 
 and popularity at Paris. I was the theme of conversation 
 in every circle, even after the Queen's kind exertions had 
 obtained for me the regiment of the King's dragoons. 
 Times are widely changed ; but I have retained all that I 
 most valued ; — popular favor and the affection of those I 
 love." His favor at court Lafayette employed in winning 
 sympathy and aid for the American cause which he 
 had so much at heart. It was upon General Washington 
 that the confidence of the French Government and the hopes 
 of the French Nation depended. It was to him, therefore, 
 that Lafayette succeeded in despatching pecuniary aid, and 
 it was under his control that the fleet and troops of Count 
 de Rochambeau, which were soon sent to the United States, 
 and which made the capture of Cornwallis at Yorktown 
 possible, were placed by the explicit orders of the King of 
 France. The superiority of Washington was at once 
 acknowledged by the French ofiicers of this auxiliary force. 
 By the gift which he had received from God he was always 
 and every where chief of the men placed within his range 
 and under his influence. While in France Lafayette lost 
 no opportunity of extolling the character and ability of his 
 beloved friend and chief. In the protracted audiences 
 granted him by the Queen, whose mind was exquisitely sus- 
 ceptible to generous and exalted sentiments, and upon whom 
 the chivalry and devotion of the young Marquis had pro- 
 duced a great impression, W^ashington was often the sub- 
 ject of their conversation. Lafayette when speaking of 
 him could hardly command himself, and his ardor and elo- 
 quence made his enthusiastic admiration of the American 
 General contagious. Said the Queen one day to Frank- 
 lin: — " Do you know. Doctor, that Lafayette has really 
 made me in love with your General Washington ? What a man 
 he must be, and what a friend he possesses in the Marquis." 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 21 
 
 The house of the American minister was besieg-ed from 
 morning to night by thousands who begged his influence 
 with the French Government that they might leave France 
 to fight under Washington. The daily scenes at Paris and 
 Versailles could be understood only by an acquaintance 
 with the impetuous disposition of the youth of that mercurial 
 people. Men would often travel for hundreds of miles by 
 post to be among the first to present themselves at court 
 and win permission to serve in the American war. No one 
 was received wherever he went with more enthusiasm than 
 was General Lafayette, the leader of the movement against 
 England and in behalf of the United States. 
 
 But it was soon apparent to the mind of Lafayette that 
 he could not serve his King better than by serving America. 
 
 On the 26th of April, 1780, he arrived in Boston before 
 the Americans or the English had the least knowledge of the 
 auxiliary reinforcement which he had secured and which was 
 on its way. He was received with a perfect ovation. Can- 
 non boomed ; bells rang ; fireworks were displayed ; enter- 
 tainments were given in his honor ; and all this before he 
 told them of his success with the French Government. 
 
 We can well understand the joy with which the return of 
 his young friend was welcomed by Washington. When the 
 despatch announcing the event reached him, his eyes were 
 filled with tears of joy. Those who have studied the tem- 
 perament of Washington will see in this the surest proof of 
 a truly paternal love. When Lafayette went to see him 
 and the first pleasure of the meeting was over, when he had 
 heard the story of the difficulties surrounding them, it was 
 then that he announced to the commander-in-chief what he 
 had done and the aid that would soon arrive. 
 
 We must now pass without remark over the important 
 operations of 1780-81. The story of the success of the 
 combined armies of the Americans and French at York- 
 town is better suited to another time than this. But to this 
 great and important event Lafayette largely contributed. 
 
22 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 In negotiating the articles of capitulation, the English Gen- 
 eral, full of admiration of the valor and bearino- of the 
 Marquis, asked as a special favor that he be permitted to 
 treat with him alone, and to surrender his sword into his 
 hands ; but this offer the modesty of Lafayette would have 
 obliged him to decline, even if there were not other grave 
 reasons for refusing such an honor. Met by applause and 
 followed by gratitude wherever he went, in December, 1781, 
 he sailed again for France to urge the French Government 
 to extend further assistance. Again the court and people 
 of France vied in showing admiration of the young hero 
 who in the twenty-fourth year or his age was the leader of 
 the American cause in Europe, and the friend and confidant 
 of Washington. In a short time it was clearly under- 
 stood in Europe that peace was a question of only a few 
 months. Then came the treaty of Versailles in 1783, of 
 which Lafayette was the first to send the news to Washing- 
 ton and to Congress. 
 
 Once more before the outbreak of the great French Re- 
 volution do we see Lafayette and Washington together. 
 At the invitation of his former chief the Marquis visited in 
 his retirement at Mt. Vernon the father of the new repub- 
 lic. How remarkable a scene was this: Washington and 
 Lafayette ! two whose names were known and respected the 
 civilized world over; brought together in the first instance 
 by such strange circumstances ; engaged in events of such 
 serious importance to the whole world ; favored with such 
 glorious results ; moved by the tenderest paternal regard 
 on the one hand, and on the other by filial love; equally 
 stirred by an affection which a difference in age of twenty- 
 five years, a difference in race and temperament which could 
 hardly be greater, the distance by which they were origi- 
 nally separated from each other, seemed only to strengthen 
 and intensify. 
 
 '* No enemies to that great man can be found except 
 among the enemies of his own country; " wrote Lafayette 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHENGTON. 23 
 
 in 1778 to Baron Steuben : — " nor is it possible for any 
 man of a noble spirit to refrain from loving the excellent 
 qualities of his heart. I think I know him as well as any 
 person, and such is the idea which I have formed of him; 
 his honesty, his frankness, his sensibility, his virtue, to the 
 full extent in which this word can be understood, are above 
 all praise." 
 
 " My dear Marquis," wrote Washington to Lafayette in 
 the same year, " the sentiments of affection and attachment 
 which breathe so conspicuously in all your letters to me, 
 are at once pleasing and honorable, and afford me abun- 
 dant cause to rejoice at the happiness of my acquaintance 
 with you. Your love of liberty, the just sense you enter- 
 tain of this valuable blessing and your noble and disin- 
 terested exertions in the cause of it, added to the innate 
 goodness of your heart, conspire to render you dear to me; 
 and I think myself happy in being linked to you in the 
 bonds of the strictest friendship." 
 
 But I need not multiply illustrations which may be found 
 in such numbers in the correspondence of both, to show the 
 trust, the confidence never belied, the true and honest affec- 
 tion, which during these years of trial made so valuable to 
 the leader of the rebels this association with the subject 
 of the most absolute government among the monarchies of 
 Europe. If France had sent no money, no ships, no sol- 
 diers, no munitions of war, — and yet had sent to Washing- 
 ton the aid and friendship of the Marquis de Lafayette, the 
 boon was one for which Washington would ever h^ve been 
 grateful. 
 
 "The American war is a history of hopes deceived," 
 said the American chief after the bitter disappointment 
 which the inefficiency of the first French contingent brought 
 to him; but in Lafayette he could always find a bright, a 
 cheerful consoler, whose very youth was a support in such 
 days of trouble. The character of Lafayette in this country 
 rests on ^ foundation which is only made the firmer by the 
 
24 LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON. 
 
 strictest scrutiny. In spite of his youth, his courage was 
 equalled by his prudence and military knowledge. The 
 attributes of youth, ardor, enthusiasm, buoyancy of spirits, 
 cheerfulness under the most trying circumstances, were the 
 proper counterpart of the gravity, the self-poise, the self- 
 restraint, the persistency of him who was " first in war, 
 first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen." 
 
 The spirit of Washington contributed largely to the 
 development and perfection of the character of Lafayette. 
 Washington was his father, his friend, his mentor. In 
 more mature years, Lafayette never suffered his venerable 
 image to be out of sight. Washington, near or distant, was 
 ever the guide, the model of the actions of Lafayette. And 
 when old age had come, after years spent in the tumultuous 
 chaos of revolution, after long years of weary imprisonment 
 and happy years of liberty and popularity, his thoughts 
 still turned to that land of his youthfur labors for whose 
 freedom he had fought and shed his blood; and that he 
 might shed tears of affection at the tomb of Washington, 
 Lafayette once more crossed the ocean and lived over again 
 those early days, the hero of a continent. " It was," 
 writes Mr. Quincy, "as if one of the dead heroes of the 
 past, to Avhom the indebtedness of mankind is always 
 acknowledged, were to be reanimated to receive the grati- 
 tude of a living world. Never was the benefactor of a peo- 
 ple awarded a homage so universal, so spontaneous, so 
 heartfelt, so intelligent." 
 
 Moved by a noble and generous impulse, the people of 
 the French republic, — a republic erected upon the ruins of 
 kingdoms and empires, younger by almost a century than 
 that for which Washington and Lafayette struggled, have 
 desired to place in a commanding position in the commer- 
 cial door-way of the new world, a statue which shall be at 
 once a token of present amity and union and a memorial of 
 the days when monarchical France was the friend of the 
 would-be republican America, When that noble conception 
 
LAFAYETTE, THE FRIEND OF WASHINGTON . Z.) 
 
 is fully realized, when liberty, torch in hand, shall light the 
 way for men of every clime over the threshold of this Ian { 
 of freedom, when this work, of art which is the gift of no 
 king, or emperor, or rich man, but of all the people of 
 France, shall stand firmly upon the foundation laid by the 
 gift of no state, no city, no money-king, but of all the peo- 
 ple of this republic, — then, under the names of Washing- 
 ton and Lafayette might fitly be cut those words of the 
 noble Frenchman in which he bade farewell to this country 
 in 1784: — 
 
 " May this ureat temple of freedom ever stand as a lesson 
 to oppressors, an example to the oppressed, a. sanctuary for 
 the rights of mankind; and may these United States attain 
 that perfect splendor and prosperity which will illustrate the 
 blessings of their government, and for ages to come rejoice 
 the departed souls of its founders."' 
 
LIBRftRY OF CONGRESS 
 
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