nd mourning
had passed, her hand and heart were sought by other worthy men. It was
not, however, until she providentially met Colonel Washington, in the
manner we have described, that she was at all disposed to enter into
another matrimonial alliance.

The wedding of Washington was a splendid affair conducted after the old
English style that prevailed among wealthy planters. Military and civil
officers with their wives, graced the occasion. Ladies appeared in the
costliest brocades, laces, and jewels which the Old World could provide.
The bride was arrayed in the height of English fashion, her wealth of
charms a fit accompaniment to the manly beauty of the bridegroom, who
stood six feet and three inches in his shoes, "The tallest and
handsomest man of the Old Dominion."

An old negro servant of Mrs. Custis expressed his views of his new
master, as follows:

"Never seed the like, sir,--never the like of him, though I have seen
many in my day,--so tall, so straight! And then, sir, he sat on a horse
and rode with such an air! Ah, sir, he was like no one else! Many of the
grandest gentlemen, in the gold lace, were at the wedding, but none
looked like the man himself."

Washington resided at the "White House" three months before taking his
seat in the House of Burgesses. That he had resolved to abandon a
military career, and that his new relation afforded him unalloyed
pleasure, is quite evident from what he wrote to a friend:

"I am now, I believe, fixed in this seat, with an agreeable partner for
life; and I hope to find more happiness in retirement than I ever
experienced in the wide and bustling world."

From a child, Mrs. Washington had enjoyed the luxuries and society that
wealth multiplies. Her own property, now united to that of her husband,
amounted to a large fortune. She could live in princely style, although
she adopted that style only so far as her social position demanded.
There was an aristocratic element that ruled in Virginia at that time,
embracing the wealthy, cultured, and ruling classes, to which she
belonged; and to this standard of living she was obliged to conform.
Her home was the resort of the wealthiest and most influential people of
Virginia.

After three months had elapsed, Washington took his seat in the
Legislature. That body arranged to honor the hero as soon as he appeared
in the House, by a eulogistic address by the speaker. No sooner had he
taken his seat, than the speaker, Mr. Rob