y 1 S t 0 rl C q- q r 1 t- t jT f f F. F 1 w wr y nH x r C J 5 9 y tp La f C t i t 1183 f fC fy r v 3 p a Y 7 i d. d x C tc 6 r s y Fy sQ S g. g r t iS i ta P x tv it f 1 C. fi 7 OS' OS I yi iy lS ut J c. c a C Washington aS in on and a a at atAi e i. i j rt r s y ii a t d F Y a. a rk C b. b r tt f J Surrender of br t PS t Gen a h Picture of Surrender of Hessian Troops courtesy cour tour tesy the Mabel Brady Brady Garvin Institute of Amer lean ican Arts and Sciences Yale university Other plc pictures ures courtesy George Was Washington ington Bicentennial nial Commission for forthe the Celebration of the Two Hundredth Hundredth Anniversary of the Birth of George Washington Washington 1932 1932 e By ELMO SCOTT WATSONS WATSON S THE TIlE time draws nearer for forthe forthe th the observance In 1032 of the rife two hundredth anniversary of the birth of George Was Washing ton It Is worthy of ot comment that the man who Is to be b be e honored In a wide nation Je celebration cele eels 1 bration only a n little more thana t than thana nn nna a year hence was the c central figure In n tw two of the most Christmas da days s 's In all aU American history One of ot them was In 1770 1776 and md the story of It is so EO familiar to all nU Americans that it needs retell retell- lug trig here only In the b barest est outline holy outline how ho hoon on Christ mas eve e Washington ton tool took supper sUper ut at General Greenes Greene's headquarters an and there perfected h his plans for crossing the Dela Delaware t are r river rater er the time next day an and l attacking the British outpost ar at Trenton N N. J J. J held by n a force of approximately tely 1001 1000 Hes lies clans under unter the tile command of Colonel Inet i Rail because lie he JIO believed belh that these Germans busy with their feasting g and merrymaking would fall al easy victims to 0 a n surprise attack fhe The of the 1 pr hi- hi hian hean an ut nt t six uIo Christmas evening e Washington planned to have hu e his entire army arnny m on the tile Jersey r ilY slime shore l hy by y Ili IIII and begin the tile march r to Trenton by hy one Ulle o'clock oc so o that he lie could attack the Ile Just Jest before dawn But the tilled ice river threatened lo to tr upset nil all his a plans and some of his his' officers nO were for calling ofT off If the tire expedition entirely Washington ton on however howe resolved resolve I to t ca calr carry rry f il It l th through h although the crossing took tooT no less than limn ten tin hours It II mis c finally n accomplished n and four o'clock In the morn morn- Ing found his army drawn up on the New Jersey ferse side ready rendy for the s Re eten to 10 So away they went went with sleet and md snow beatIng heat beat ant Ing upon their hack backs s s. s and lea ln leaving bloody not prints In the snow ns as the they marched cur Two other divisions of Washington's army which were to cooperate co ro co- co operate in the attack lead had failed LJ to cross the river and nd hJ hI force consisted of between 2300 and 2400 2401 men True Rail Rall ha had only 1000 Hessians ns atton's nt at Trenton but if his fits patrols discovered ered erect Washing Washing- tons ton's advance e he could fight n a defensive ment meat until aid came engage Fortunately for the cause of oft American nn bert liberty t a patrol sent out ont early In the by one of ot Rolls halls morning g subordinates the commander himself was sleeping bleeping off ofT his Christmas c celebration e did not go far enough ugh and the Americans s were at nt the outskirts of Trenton before they were ere erect ered Despite the tile sun surprise prise the Hessians rallied rind and i pu up tip a n stubborn defense for n a ri short time but it t was bo hopeless p e ess Rail was' was i mortally lIy Noua lcd r C d t l A r t Fsr r s y f A rv r t. t d u y Ji Ar f i. i 6 ro rr L' L iv e sg a t t ys A I A r ro y r a L so o r r k Ady tt t I i i Washington f- f 1 Crossing the Delaware tutu died LJ the Hie following algid two Twenty l ol ut the Hessians were I killed d outright S so s haul badly IY y wounded wound wound- ed cd thin thai rhe they were left in III Trenton un CO fiG others carried along with the victorious Americans ns as re the We r river r wit with I their S SO Si prIsoners pris prIs- ris Wn Washington's hington s III loss hiss s t was tri c four wounded f tad illel out not a n man killed billed IB Ills His victory was auras a tonic to the discouraged tm patriots s s.- s. A Among Aldine Christ 11 nags mis gifts tire Hie 0 ii achievement at mat Trenton must he be rater among the tile must most std splendid ea of ut it all 1111 time But if Christmas day of ut 1770 u was is n a bright on one ole e for aih Washington u and Ills his fellow ow tile the Christinas lily day of f i 1777 was tris correspondingly g ly Iv dark The Tile British half Philadelphia the nil Conti n a army was US huh but a II shadow of f II a lighting fr lucre force e a plot ilot to remove remu Washington from command tend had heen been nn narrowly Ii ert averted iI congress M wt was demoralized und and th tile the e In patriot ell cause use was WiS nt at n a low ebb Rot Bol Both II for tor its defensive value and as a n potential threat n against Philadelphia Washington had hied decided t to move his bis at army uiS to Valley Forge from Whlter is where It was stationed at lit the beginning o of f Decem Decent ber ber 1777 1717 So he took up the fhe mile ID-mile march and nud again there thele were footprints In the snow t stained with red Arriving at ar Valley II e For Forge Ie on run December t 10 W. his bis a of army ragged rugged half half d Co Continentals went Into the tho winter camp Unit which has hns made the name Valley Forge forever tore fatuous famous as nS a s symbol of ot suffering and deathless C Christmas devotion to a cause On day ny Washington in his orderly book rIoted poled that lint t rh the army was hutted for the win winter tel In some 1200 cabins x r. r rj Cut lul usi statement bring up HI a picture of ot an nr snugly housed In comfortable barracks le let it he be re recorded ell that thul the tile huts hUIS were Ii little more than thuu piles of ot lugs logs thrown up hastily around Ironies holes du dug In in n he te ground O the Sluices spaces between y t the he logs pins plas n with h mutt mul The Tile roofs were wre slabs but hUI they the t were tIe leil leaky and water poured Inured in on the heads o of their Inhabitants a n well as ns seeped through th the walls trills unless they IhlY had had foresight hl or streu strength th enough t to dig drain ditches around the outside Add t ti tb such stich a II sit the thu Ills misery IY of ut hunger hunge lin find and sl sickness l. l and mid less you JOU have hurc n a picture of the horror that was urns Valley l Forge o ge I For or the commissary of th the Continental tal army neglected b by n a vacillating g urn anti and bickering rini i cong congress t ess hind had fallen down qI on Its Job entirely t i el on OI December 2 23 J the commander In n ch chief e wrote TOle 10 to 0 tile the lie 01 ot of congress that inai out om o 01 about mien men we have b by return this HiPs day madeno made no Ito less than 2 men anon now in n camp unfit unlit for duty they are barefoot and otherwise naked lIe He also reported that this on nn same day tile the army had not tint a II single le hoof of ot any kind to slaughter and not note more nare than twenty five barrels of ot flour hour Few men teen had more than one shirt many many only the moiety of of one Olle nn and 1 some none nt at all Owing to the lack Inck of blankets numbers had to sit situ up lip p al nil all nl night ht by fires Under such conditions it is only too easy to Imn Imagine what a n cheerless Christmas day it was wa that Washington and his men mn spent id IIi 7 17 a at al Valley Forge ee by Western Newspaper Union 0