"I am the proprietor of this estate," he shouted, seizing the fellow by the nape of his neck and pulling him out of his canoe, "and we will see whose rights are to be regarded."
The hunter begged for mercy, promising to quit the grounds and never more trespass upon them. Washington restored his gun to him, and allowed him to depart without further punishment.
Mr. and Mrs. Washington were active and influential members of the Episcopal Church. Irving says:
"The Episcopal Church predominated throughout the 'Ancient Dominion,' as it was termed. Each county was divided into parishes, as in England, each with its parochial church, its parsonage, and glebe. Washington was vestryman of two parishes,—Fairfax and Truro. The parochial church of the former was at Alexandria, ten miles from Mount Vernon; of the latter, at Pohick, about seven miles. The church at Pohick was rebuilt on a plan of his own, and in a great measure at his expense. At one or other of these churches he attended every Sunday, when the weather and the roads permitted. His demeanor was reverential and devout. Mrs. Washington knelt during the prayers; he always stood, as was the custom at that time."
One of Mrs. Washington's biographers says of her:
"It is recorded of this devout Christian that never, during her life, whether in prosperity or adversity, did she omit that daily self-communion and self-examination, and those private devotional exercises, which would best prepare her for the self-control and self denial by which she was, for more than half a century, so eminently distinguished. It was her habit to retire to her own apartment every morning after breakfast, there to devote an hour to solitary prayer and meditation."
Mount Vernon was a home of prayer, of course. The presence of guests, however distinguished, never modified the family devotions. These were among the essentials of good family government. In one of Washington's orders sent to England is the following:
"A small Bible, neatly bound in Turkey, and "John Parke Custis" wrote in gilt letters on the inside of the cover.
"A neat small prayer-book bound as above, with "John Parke Custis," as above."
The necessity of erecting a new house of worship was discussed in the vestry of Truro, and a vote in favor of the project was secured. On the location, the vestrymen were divided.