May-Baskets

May-Baskets

by Evaleen Stein

Let us take our baskets early

To the meadows green,

While the wild-flowers still are pearly 

With the dewdrops' sheen.

Fill them full of blossoms rosy,

Violets and gay

Cowslips, every pretty posy

Welcoming the May.

Then our lovely loads we'll carry

Down the village street,

On each door, with laughter merry,

Hang a basket sweet.

Hey-a-day-day! It is spring now,

Lazy folks, awake!

See the pretty things we bring now

For the May-day's sake!

Hallowe'en by John Kendrick Bangs

HALLOWE'EN

by John Kendrick Bangs

BRING forth the raisins and the nuts -

To-night All-Hallow's Spectre struts

Along the moonlit way.

No time is this for tear or sob,

Or other woes our joys to rob,

But night for pippin and for bob.

And Jack-o'-Lantern gay.

Come forth ye lass and trousered kid,

From prisoned Mischief raise the lid.

And lift it good and high.

Leave grave old Wisdom in the lurch,

Set Folly on a lofty perch,

Nor fear the awesome rod of birch

When dawn illumes the sky.

'Tis night for revel, set apart

To reillume the darkened heart.

And rout the hosts of dole.

'Tis night when Goblin, Elf, and Fay,

Come dancing in their best array,

To prank and royster on their way.

And ease the troubled soul.

The ghosts of all things past parade.

Emerging from the mist and shade

That hid them from our gaze;

And full of song, and ringing mirth,

In one glad moment of rebirth,

Again they walk the ways of earth

As in the ancient days.

The beacon light shines on the hill,

The will-o'-wisps the forests fill

With flashes filched from noon;

And witches on their broom-sticks spry

Speed here and yonder in the sky,

And lift their strident voices high

Unto the Hunter's Moon.

The air resounds with tuneful notes

From myriads of straining throats.

All hailing Folly Queen;

So join the swelling choral throng,

Forget your sorrow, and your wrong,

In one glad hour of joyous song

To honor Hallowe'en!

Indigenous Peoples Index

Samples of lessons and crafts about Indigenous peoples.

       Indigenous peoples or Natives (formerly Indians) held undisputed possession of the wilds of the Americas before the European invasion of those continents. Once masters of the fairest regions on the globe, the natives represented many degrees of civilization. They ranged from nomadic tribes, wandering the grasslands freely in order to hunt the buffalo to survive to those native peoples whose architectural achievements in the tropical rain forests of South America made their conquerors marvel.

• Search the Native American coloring pages at Crayon Palace

Indigenous Peoples' Artifacts & Art for Enhancing Lesson Plans:

1. Craft a paper war bonnet
2. Gobble Up Over 100 Turkeys!
3. Cut and Paste Paper Pueblos
4. Picture Puzzle: Find the hidden potter
5. Molas Characterized by Kuna Legends, Real Animals, Politics or Geometric Shapes 
6. Squanto, The Native American Hero of Thanksgiving 
7. Weave Indian Corn for Autumn Fun!
8. The Hiawatha Paper Cuts Restored 
9. Patterns for a Plains Indian village - canoe with paper dolls and teepee/tipi template 

My Indigenous People's Art Lessons & Crafts from Art Education Daily:

• Effigy Pots Lesson Plan
• Aztec Inspired Mask
• Maori Designs
• Song Cousins
• String a necklace made from seeds
• Sculpt Peruvian peasant and llama ornaments 
• Weave the ojo de dios 

Indigenous Artifact Clip Art Drawn by Kathy Grimm:

• Mende Artifact Clip Art
• Angola Artifact Clip Art
• Mali Artifact Clip Art
• Senufo Artifact Clip Art
• Kwakiuti Artifact Clip Art
• Nigeria Artifact Clip Art
• Central Mexico Artifact Clip Art
• Papuan Gulf Artifact Clip Art

Specialized Collections About Native Americans:

• Study Native Amercians Online 
• Gifts From The Native Americans
• The South American Jungle: Home of The Yanomami

 Visit the Museum of The American Indian

The Life of President George Washington

Gilbert Stuart's unfinished 1796 painting of
 George Washington is also known as  
The Athenaeum, his most celebrated
 and famous work.

       George Washington(1732-1799), an American soldier and statesman, the hero of American independence, and the first President of the nation which he helped to establish. There are two Americans of the generations now past who have won the undying love and reverence of their countrymen - Washington and Lincoln.

       Though they are equally honored, the one as founder and the other as preserver of the American nation, they are thought of as totally different types. Lincoln, so much nearer our own time, is by far the more human figure. His humanity, his rugged appearance, his humor and his kindliness are remembered as the characteristics of a very real man. Washington is more or less of a mythical personage. The idealized portrait painted by Charles Stuart, reproduced right, is in a way symbolic of the impression that Americans cherish of the "Father of His Country." He seems to them a lofty figure somewhat detached from everyday life; a great man, but one aloof from his fellowmen; a strong man, but without fire and vigor. The complete record of his life refutes these ideas. There is every reason to believe that if he were alive to-day he would be a virile and influential figure in American political affairs, a personality as vivid as in his own time. 

• The Ancestry and Youth of George Washington
• The Early Military Career of Washington
• At Mount Vernon
• The Revolutionary War
• The Constitution and First Administration
• President Washington's Second Term
• The End of Washington's Story

Artifacts About President George Washington:

1. Questions and Answers About George Washington
2. President Washington's Receptions
3. Farewell, Address To His Officers
4. Tribute To Washington
5. Ode For Washington's Birthday
6. Washington's Birthday by William Cullen Bryant
7. Welcome to Lafayette by Edward Everett
8. The Twenty-Second of February by Webster
9. True Heroism
10. Under The Washington Elm, Cambridge
11. Provocation: Abraham Lincoln and Cabin Building

More Online Resources:

• White House biography
• United States Congress. "George Washington (id: W000178)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• George Washington's Mount Vernon
• American President: George Washington (1732–1799) at the Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia
• George Washington: A Resource Guide at the Library of Congress
• George Washington Resources at the University of Virginia Library
• Original Digitized Letters of George Washington Shapell Manuscript Foundation
• The Papers of George Washington at the Avalon Project
• The Papers of George Washington, subset of Founders Online from the National Archives
• George Washington Birthplace National Monument, Virginia from the National Park Service
• Copies of the wills of General George Washington: the first president of the United States and of Martha Washington, his wife (1904), edited by E. R. Holbrook
• "What Made George Washington a Good Military Leader?". EDSITEment: Lesson Plans. National Endowment for the Humanities.
• Works by George Washington at Project Gutenberg
• George Washington Personal Manuscripts

The End of Washington's Story

       Washington declined a third election, delivered his famous farewell address and retired to Mount Vernon in 1797. Thereafter he devoted himself to agriculture, though in 1798, at the prospect of the war with France, he was chosen commander in chief of the United States army and accepted, though he was not called into the field. He died in December, 1799, from illness brought on by long exposure in the saddle. The news caused almost as widespread mourning in Europe as in America. The greatest statesmen and soldiers of every nation united in paying him tribute as a man, general, statesman and friend of humanity. The words of his old friend and companion, "Lighthorse Harry" Lee, "First in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen," were without question literally true. He had avoided the snares of factional and partisan politics, had generously overlooked the harshest criticisms and had respected and used the abilities of his severest critics and opponents. Though a slave-holder at his death, he was in favor of the gradual abolition of slavery by legislation, and by his will he arranged that his one hundred twenty-five slaves should be emancipated at the death of his wife, so that the negroes of the two estates who had intermarried might not be separated." Washington's body and that of his wife, who survived him nearly three years, rest in the family vault at Mount Vernon. 

President Washington's Second Term

       During this term international affairs for a time overshadowed domestic issues. A war between France and England vastly aroused the sympathies of a group friendly to France, and there were some extremists who demanded that the nation go to its assistance. Another faction as vehemently urged neutrality or support for England. Washington, who saw clearly that the United States was too weak and insecure to be implicated in European quarrels, issued a proclamation of neutrality and refused to take sides. An unfortunate incident of this affair was the activity of Edmon, or "Citizen," Genet, a Frenchman whose defiance of the proclamation caused the government considerable anxiety. The French sympathizers were also greatly exercised over the acceptance of the Jay Treaty (1794) with England. This treaty was not so favorable to America as its sponsors wished, but it was the best that could be obtained, and it served the purpose of averting war with England, which Washington felt would be a national calamity.

       The power of the Federal government was vigorously exercised in this administration. In Pennsylvania in 1794 there occurred an insurrection in protest against the excise tax, to quell which Washington ordered out 15,000 militia. Trouble with the Indians was settled by Anthony Wayne's victory over them at Fallen Timbers in 1794, and by the negotiation of treaties. Other events include the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney; the erection of the first woolen mill in Massachusetts; the admission of Tennessee into the Union, and the development of two great political parties, by followers of Hamilton and Jefferson, respectively.

The Constitution and First Administration

       Five years after the signing of the peace treaty a new crisis called Washington again into public life. Under the Articles of Confederation affairs were steadily growing more chaotic, and in May, 1787, a convention was called to meet in Philadelphia to prepare a new form of union. To this body Washington was sent as head of the Virginia delegation; on its organization he was unanimously elected its president. In September the convention completed a new Constitution and gave it to the states for ratification. The influence that Washington exercised in the consummation of this great achievement is ably summarized in Woodrow Wilson's History of the American People:

       "It gave the convention great dignity that Washington had presided over its counsels and was heart and soul for the adoption of the measures it proposed. His name and quiet force had steadied the convention on many an anxious day when disagreement threatened hopeless breach. His fame and Influence infinitely strengthened also the measures proposed, now that they were completed. He supported them because they were thorough-going and courageous and cut to the root of the difficulties under which the country was laboring. Issue had been joined now, as he had wished to see it joined, between government or no government, and the country was to know at last where it stood in the most essential matters of its life."

       It is not surprising that when the votes of the first Electoral College were counted it was found that Washington was the unanimous choice for President of the United States, John Adams was honored with the Vice-Presidency. Washington was inaugurated in New York, - which was then the national seat of government. Standing on the balcony in front of the old Federal Hall, whose site is now occupied by the imposing Subtreasury, he took the oath of office on April 30, 1789, though the legal day for the ceremony was March 4. Difficulties in setting the new machinery in motion were responsible for the delay.

       From the first he displayed in civil affairs the same equalities of leadership and invariable good judgment which he had shown during his military career. He set about informing himself concerning all that had happened during the period of the Confederation - the relations of the new government to foreign nations, and the questions of internal administration and finance, which were soon to become pressing issues. He also chose a remarkably strong Cabinet, including Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, who, though directly opposite in their political opinions, were acknowledged leaders in the political life of the country.

       The selection of Alexander Hamilton as head of the Treasury Department was momentous in its results, for through his farseeing statesmanship the country was put on a sound financial basis. In accordance with Hamilton's program the national government assumed the debts of the states incurred during the war; a national bank and a mint were established; and a national income was provided for by duties on imports and a system of internal revenue.

       Other important events of the first four years under the Federal Constitution were the organization of the United States Supreme Court, the admission of Vermont (1791) and Kentucky (1792) as states, the adoption of a decimal system of coinage, and the incorporation into the Constitution of the first ten amendments. So profoundly impressed were the people with the results of Washington's first term that there was a spontaneous demand that he serve again. Against his personal wishes he consented, and was unanimously reelected, being inaugurated in Philadelphia on March 4, 1793. The city of Washington did not become the national capital until 1800.