Today I'm stocking a bunch of Red, White, and Blue-ish Teacup cards for a July SALE coming up in my Store. While making this card I was thinking about George Washington cutting down the cherry tree and couldn't recall the details of the story, so I looked it up.
Washington's biographer, Mason Locke Weems, said this story as a way to show Washington's honesty.
When George was about six years old he owned a hatchet
like most little boys of the day, of which he was extremely fond.
My husband bought our son a hatchet as a birthday gift once, which was used for destroying a wood fence. So I understand George's eagerness, back to the story:
George went about chopping everything that came his
way. One day, as he wandered about the garden
amusing himself by hacking his mother's pea
sticks, he found his father's beautiful, young English Cherry
tree. He began using the edge of his hatchet to strip the bark off. When his father discovered what
had happened to his favorite tree, he came into
the house in great anger, and demanded to know
who the mischievous person was who had cut
away the bark.
I'm picturing Mrs. Washington in the background saying, "Ask about my pea sticks, dear." But Mr. W. is fixed on discovering who his tree assassin is.
"George,'' said his father, "do
you know who has killed my beautiful little cherry tree
yonder in the garden? I would not have taken five
guineas for it!'' This was a hard question to answer, and for a
moment George was staggered by it, but quickly
recovering himself he cried, "I cannot tell a lie, father,
you know I cannot tell a lie! I did cut it with my little
hatchet.'' The anger died out of his father's face, and
taking the boy tenderly in his arms, he said, "My son, that you should
not be afraid to tell the truth is more to me than a
thousand trees! Yes - though they were blossomed with
silver and had leaves of the purest gold!''
I created this Teacup card from one of my vintage hand painted plates. It comes with a Harrisons & Crosfield English Breakfast teabag inserted in the rim of the cup, and is blank inside for writing a personal note. It is one of my personal favorites.