not know what to
with him; "Doll at the Ferry must be taught to knit, and _made_ to do a
sufficient day's work of it--otherwise (if suffered to be idle) many more
will walk in her steps"; "it is observed by the weekly reports, that the
sewers make only six shirts a week, and the last week Carolina (without
being sick) made only five. Mrs. Washington says their usual task was to
make nine with shoulder straps and good sewing. Tell them therefore from
me, that what _has_ been done, _shall_ be done"; "none I think call louder
for [attention] than the smiths, who, from a variety of instances which
fell within my own observation whilst I was at home, I take to be two very
idle fellows. A daily account (which ought to be regularly) taken of their
work, would alone go a great way towards checking their idleness." And the
overseer was told to watch closely "the people who are at work with the
gardener, some of whom I know to be as lazy and deceitful as any in the
world (Sam particularly)."

Furthermore, the overseers were warned to "endeavor to make the Servants
and Negroes take care of their cloathes;" to give them "a weekly
allowance of Meat ... because the annual one is not taken care of but
either profusely used or stolen"; and to note "the delivery to and the
application of nails by the carpenters,... [for] I cannot conceive how it
is possible that 6000 twelve penny nails could be used in the corn house
at River Plantation; but of one thing I have no great doubt, and that is,
if they can be applied to other uses, or converted into cash, rum or other
things there will be no scruple in doing it."

When robbed of some potatoes, Washington complained that "the
deception ... is of a piece with other practices of a similar kind by which
I have suffered hitherto; and may serve to evince to you, in strong colors,
first how little confidence can be placed in any one round you; and
secondly the necessity of an accurate inspection into these things
yourself,--for to be plain, Alexandria is such a recepticle for every thing
that can be filched from the right owners, by either blacks or whites; and
I have such an opinion of my negros (two or three only excepted), and not
much better of some of the whites, that I am perfectly sure not a single
thing that can be disposed of at any price, at that place, that will not,
and is not stolen, where it is possible; and carried thither to some of the
underlying keepers, who support themselves by