Mary Baldwin College - Bluestocking Yearbook (Staunton, VA)

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Lrnj u u Ln r rJI n-l I Ln [ rH flJ I Ln r r-n n-l L£][ d][]J Q, When South CaroHna was fighting the Indians, Spotswood appealed to the Burgesses for supphes and money to aid them. The Burgesses rephed that they would hke to help their suffering neighbors, but that Virginia was not rich and that they ought to fortify their own State first. Spotswood became very angry at this, and after telling them that they were only considering the ideas of an ignorant people and not the welfare of their country, he dissolved them. Q, This was not the only difference Spotswood had with this body, though one of his better-known disagreements was with Commissary Blair. Up to this time, the vestry inducted the rectors. But now, if once a rector was in- ducted he was to be the pastor of that church for life, and since there were so few good preachers in the colony, the people were afraid of being saddled with a bad one. So, for that reason, very few ministers were inducted. Spots- wood now claimed the right to appoint the clergy. In this he was claiming more power than had ever been claimed by any governor before his day. As was the case with every one who contended with Blair, Spotswood was worsted. Q Then Spotswood wrote a letter to the vestry in which he made several direct attacks on the Commissary ' s conduct in regard to the Church. The Governor said that Blair was too lax in his church duties, that he had a layman to read the service and to conduct the burial services while he was present, and that he opposed the induction of the clergy. Q Blair answered all these charges easily and satisfactorily. As to the first charge, he said that he had a layman read his services in his church only when he was sick and could not read it himself, that a layman had conducted the burial service several times in his presence, simply because he happened to be passing and had stopped; that the people, on account of the scarcity of min- isters, could not wait for one to bury their dead and that the service was often read by laymen throughout the colony by law; and lastly, that he did not oppose the induction of ministers. Here again the old Commissary gained the advantage over Spotswood. And it was about this time that anonymous letters against Spotswood were sent to England, which later on caused his removal from office. Q, About August of the year 1716, Spotswood decided to take a party of gentlemen and rangers with him to cross the Blue Ridge Mountains and to explore the region beyond. He knew that England claimed the land through to the other ocean — wherever it was — and he thought that it was time they were asserting their claims and settling in that region. The French were build- mg forts all along the Great Lakes and the big rivers, and he saw that it was time for England to fortify her claims, if she wished to prevent a long and bloody war. Another reason for his desiring to cross these mountains was to k]D=. £lD=! 1:3 IL cat! LDtcD LntDi£] LaticJ LDDncQnJ Latent klGncOt bCDcat n PS] Latent rap D= t LDDDc£]t p]P [F n- f p c= dnLLicDGJ LaQjcDtl i=3P CF n P CF

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£l[!=)c£][H £l[bc£][]J =afcc£]cJ z£]lLcaDJj =3P CT LDEhcDoi -U|j- ' -1JLj- Latic£lt! Q He also did what a great many other able and efficient governors failed to do — he undertook the education of the Indians, sending them good teachers and doing everything possible for their improvement. At Fort Christanna he built a school for them. This was composed of five houses, each one protected by a cannon — one of which is now on the campus of William and Mary College — and all surrounded by palisades. Spotswood often made trips to the school in all conditions of weather or of seasons, his interest in it was so great. At one time it was thought that it was kept up at his expense, but then it was discovered that it was run by the Indian Company. For all his care and interest not many results were noticed. Still Spotswood said that he would be glad if the coming generations would reap the benefit, that they couldn ' t expect wonderful changes immediately. Q An incident is related in the Makers of Virginia History about one of Spotswood ' s visits to the school. Fifteen of the Saponeys had been killed by the Genitoes, an Indian tribe, and when Spotswood came to inspect the school, they asked permission to send fifteen of their young men in order to avenge themselves. This request was granted, and pretty soon the young men came forth in full dress; their hair cut in curious shapes, their bodies painted blue and red, and wrapped in red and blue blankets. They had a very disagreeable odor from greasing their bodies with bears ' oil and from staying in their smoky cabins a great deal. They looked wild and were mighty shy of an Englishman. Q, Spotswood also helped the colony by the use of stringent methods with the pirates. During his administration all up and down the coast the pirates were ravaging the country, carrying ruin and destruction everywhere. Spots- wood soon captured some of less renown; but John Teach, known as Black- beard, and the most dangerous of all, eluded his vigilance for quite a time. At last Captain Henry Maynard surprised and captured him in Pamlico Bay in 1718. Blackbeard, as soon as the engagement had begun, had stationed a man at the powder magazine to blow up the ship if they should have to surrender. For some reason, the man failed to light the powder. And as the enemy were boarding his ship, Blackbeard started to stab the man, but fell dead as he reached over towards him. The crew was soon captured and taken to Williamsburg. Spotswood presided at their trial there. These men were soon afterwards hanged on the road that is now called Lovers ' Lane, because it is the popular promenade for the young people of that city. Q, Though Spotswood had a gentle breeding and a manly bearing, which was much loved by the Virginians, he often quarreled with the Burgesses and Council. He also combined the quality of obstinacy with Scottish candor and freedom of speech. L Dzicat! = P i j= p c f P t Lnn-,cJ[H k]Diic£lcz[ F P Cn

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£]t) CP P £lt) £:Cb P P £lfc =ap fit P Jt P P £][b P P [ cDdJ r Lr nJLn r Lr TJi-n S]Cn cDdJ L nH rJ I Ln n rJI r n- ' LrnJ ' -r .£] find a way to connect the forts of the Enghsh in the north with those of Vir- ginia, and to see if Lake Erie was accessible from there. Some statements of the Indians had led him to believe this last. Blair heartily agreed with him in his plan of crossing the Ridge, which was then considered as a dangerous undertaking. Q, So one day in August, a party of the finest Virginia gentlemen set out from Williamsburg with the Governor in his coach. In this they traveled to his home at Germanna. Here the party was joined by the rangers, servants and pack-horses, and from here they proceeded on horseback. The journey was not made hurriedly. Each night they pitched camp at some comfortable spot and each time named it after a member of the cavalcade. They also had a long rest during the heat of the day, stopping to drink the many differ- ent wines — Burgundy, champagne and those brewed at Germanna by the settlement of German Protestants under Spotswood ' s care — and to eat the bountiful game and fish which they daily shot and caught, and to rest in the shade of the abundant trees along the way. All through this region game was very abundant, and the streams were full of fish. These lands were used by the Indians as hunting-grounds, but not as permanent settlements. Spots- wood saw no Indians on this trip, and this fact was used as a great inducement for settling the Valley. Q, In about twenty-six days after leaving Williamsburg, Spotswood and his cavalcade reached the summit of the Ridge, making the ascension near Swift Run Gap. They descended the other side, and having forded the Shen- andoah, they took possession of the land with great formality in the name of George I, King of England! After the usual drinking of healths in the dif- ferent wines, Spotswood buried a bottle in the bank of the river, which con- tained a slip of paper saying that the land had been taken by himself in the name of the king. This bottle is supposed to be still undiscovered. Q, Here they rested a while, and after having named the highest peak Mount George and the next highest Mount Spotswood, according to Fontaine, and Mount Alexander, according to Rev. Hugh Jones, the party returned to Williamsburg, having been away eight weeks, and having traveled in all four hundred and forty miles. Four years later, all the valley between Fredericksburg and the mountains was called Spotsylvania, in honor of the Lieutenant-Governor. Q It was from this trip that The Knights of the Golden Horseshoe came into existence. In the low, sandy plains very few of those articles had been used. But on a trip over the mountains, where the way would be rough, rocky and steep, it was necessary to protect the horses ' feet, so a large number of horseshoes were provided for the expedition. And on returning to the town. E [b La P P { la [P [b L3tid]d f p l LDDricDCb! p fcc£l P ' =D f=3P [n .£1 IF pip r=ap