s elder brother Lawrence,
who had held a king's commission in the Carthagena expedition, and was one
of the few officers who gained repute in that ill-fated attempt. At Mount
Vernon George must have heard much of fighting as a lad, and when the ill
health of Lawrence compelled resignation of command of the district
militia, the younger brother succeeded to the adjutancy. This quickly led
to the command of the first Virginia regiment when the French and Indian
War was brewing. Twice Washington resigned in disgust during the course of
the war, but each time his natural bent, or "glowing zeal," as he phrased
it, drew him back into the service. The moment the news of Lexington
reached Virginia he took the lead in organizing an armed force, and in the
Virginia Convention of 1775, according to Lynch, he "made the most
eloquent speech ... that ever was made. Says he, 'I will raise one
thousand men, enlist them at my own expense, and march myself at their
head for the relief of Boston.'" At fifty-three, in speaking of war,
Washington said, "my first wish is to see this plague to mankind banished
from off the earth;" but during his whole life, when there was fighting to
be done, he was among those who volunteered for the service.

The personal courage of the man was very great. Jefferson, indeed, said
"he was incapable of fear, meeting personal dangers with the calmest
unconcern." Before he had ever been in action, he noted of a certain
position that it was "a charming field for an encounter," and his first
engagement he described as follows: "I fortunately escaped without any
wound, for the right wing, where I stood, was exposed to and received all
the enemy's fire, and it was the part where the man was killed, and the
rest wounded. I heard the bullets whistle, and, believe me, there is
something charming in the sound." In his second battle, though he knew
that he was "to be attacked and by unequal numbers," he promised
beforehand to "withstand" them "if there are five to one," adding, "I
doubt not, but if you hear I am beaten, but you will, at the same [time,]
hear that we have done our duty, in fighting as long [as] there was a
possibility of hope," and in this he was as good as his word. When
sickness detained him in the Braddock march, he halted only on condition
that he should receive timely notice of when the fighting was to begin,
and in that engagement he exposed himself so that "I had four bullets
through my coat, and t