s not a man living who wishes more sincerely than I do, to see a plan adopted for the abolition of [slavery]...by Legislative authority..." (Fitzpatrick v.28, p.408). He also writes on September 9, 1786, to John Mercer that, "I never mean...to possess another slave by purchase; it being my first wishes to see some plan adopted, by which slavery in this country may be abolished by slow, sure, and imperceptible degrees" (Fitzpatrick v.29, p.5). Much later in his life, Washington is still echoing this same message when he writes on August 4, 1797, to Lawrence Lewis that, "I wish from my soul that the Legislature of this State [Virginia] could see the policy of a gradual Abolition of Slavery..." (Fitzpatrick v.36, p.2). Despite Washington’s high hopes and grand talk, he himself did not free one slave during his lifetime. Before it is thought that Washington was simply all talk, however, it is important to consider the circumstances, in particular his financial situation, that he had to deal with upon returning home from the war in late 1783. As Freeman writes, "The eight years of service in the Army had been eight years of neglect at home" (v.6, p.4). Debtors paid Washington back during his absence with greatly depreciated currency. The 1781 British raid saw eighteen slaves run away, and another nine had to be sold. The nine slaves that were sold during Washington’s time in the army, were sold only because the estate had not even enough money to pay for taxes. According to Carroll and Ashworth, Washington opposed the selling of Negroes like cattle in the market (Carroll v.7, p.585). The man left in charge of Washington’s estate, Lund Washington, had an aversion to travel and bookkeeping, which meant that rent from Washington’s western lands were never collected (Freeman v.6, p.4-5). In Washington’s own words, "I made no money from my Estate during the nine years I was absent from it, and brought none home with ...
