the advice of the council of state, for the purpose of pro. curing subsistence and other necessaries for the allied army under the command of his excellency General Washington : be it enacted, that all such acts of government, evidently productive of general good, and warranted by necessity, be judged and held of the same validity, and the like proceed ings be had on them, as if they had been executed by and with the advice of the council, and with all the formalities prescribed by law. And be it further enacted, that the said Thomas Nelson, Jun. Esq. be, and hereby is, in the fullest manner, indemnified and exonerated from all penalties and dangers which might have accrued to him from the same.” Having thus been honourably acquitted of charges from which his noble and patriotic conduct ought to have saved him, he now retired wholly from public life. His death occurred on the 4th of January, 1789, just after he had completed his fiftieth year. Few patriots of the revolution have descended to the grave more justly honoured and beloved. Few possessed a more ample fortune ; few contributed more liberally to support the cause of liberty. It was the patriotism, the firmness, the generosity, the magnanimous sacrifices of such men, that conducted the colonies through a gloomy contest of seven years continuance, and gave them a rank among the independent nations of the earth. We shall conclude this notice of this illustrious man, by presenting to our readers the tribute, which was happily and affectionately paid to his memory by Colonel Innes : 66 The illustrious General Thomas Nelson is no more! He paid the last great debt to nature, on Sunday, the fourtb of the present month, at his estate in Hanover. He who undertakes barely to recite the exalted virtues which adorned the life of this great and good man, will unavoidably pronounce a panegyric on human nature. As a man, a citizen, a legislator, and a patriot, he exhibited a conduct untarnished and undebased by sordid or selfish interest, and strongly marked with the genuine characteristics of true religion, sound benevolence, and liberal policy. Entertaining the most ardent love for civil and religious liberty, he was a among the first of that glorious band of patriots whose exertions dashed and defeated the machinations of British tyranny, and gave United America freedom and independent , . empire. At a most important crisis, during the late struggle for American liberty, when this state appeared to be designated as the theatre of action for the contending armies, he was selected by the unanimous suffrage of the legislature to command the virtuous yeomanry of his country ; in this honourable employment he remained until the end of the war; as a soldier, he was indefatigably active and coolly intrepid ; resolute and undejected in misfortunes, he towered above distress, and struggled with the manifold difficulties to which his situation exposed him, with constancy and courage. In the memorable year 1781, when the whole force of the southern British army was directed to the immediate subjugation of this state, he was called to the helm of government; this was a juncture which indeed tried men's souls.' He did not avail himself of this opportunity to retire in the rear of danger ; but on the contrary, took the field at the head of his countrymen ; and at the hazard of his life, his fame, and individual fortune, by his decision and magnanimity, he saved not only his country, but all America, from disgrace, if not from total ruin. Of this truly patriotic and heroic conduct, the renowned commander in chief, with all the gallant officers of the combined armies employed at the siege of York, will bear ample testimony ; this part of his conduct even contemporary jealousy, envy, and malignity were forced to approve, and this, more impartial posterity, if it can believe, will almost adore. If, after contemplating the splendid and heroic parts of his character, we shall inquire for the milder virtues of humanity, and seek for the man, we shall find the refined, beneficent, and social qualities of private life, through all its forms and combinations, so happily modified and united in him, that in the words of the darling poet of nature, it may be said, His life was gentle : and the elements FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE. a FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE, the fourth son of Thomas Lee, was born on the fourteenth day of October, 1734. His father for several years held the office of president of the king's council of the provincial government of Virginia. He had several sons, all of whom were highly distinguished for their talents, and for the services which they rendered their country. Philip Ludwell, a member of the king's council ; Thomas Ludwell, a member of the Virginia assembly; Richard Henry, as the champion of American freedom; William, as a sheriff and alderman of London, and afterwards a commis sioner of the continental congress at the courts of Berlin and Vienna ; and Arthur as a scholar, a politician, and diplomatist. Francis Lightfoot, the subject of the present memoir, was perhaps not less distinguished, although he had not the advantages, which were enjoyed by the elder sons, of an education at the English universities. His advantages, however, were not of a moderate character. He was placed under the care of a domestic tutor of the name of Craig, a gentleman distinguished for his love of letters, and for his ability to impart useful knowledge to those of whom he had the care. Un der such a man, the powers of Francis Lightfoot rapidly unfolded. He acquired an early fondness for reading and men tal investigation, and became well acquainted with the vari, ous branches of science and literature. The fortune bequeathed him by his father rendered the study of a profession unnecessary. He, therefore, devoted himself for several years to reading, and to the enjoyment of his friends. He was a man, however, in whom dwelt the spirit of the patriot, and who could not well be neglected, nor could he well neglect his country, when the political troubles of the colonies began. In 1765, he was returned a member of the house of bur. gesses from the county of Loudon, where his estate was situated. In this situation, he proved himself to be a gentleman of strong good sense and discriminating judgment; and to this FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE. 417 a office he was annually re-elected until 1772; when having become connected by marriage with a daughter of Colonel John Tayloe, of the county of Richmond, he removed to that county, the citizens of which soon after elected him a member of the house of burgesses. In 1775, Mr. Lee was chosen a member of the continental congress, by the Virginia convention. This was an eventful period in the annals of America. It was the year in which was shed the first blood in the revolutionary struggle. It was emphatically the year of clouds and darkness,” in which “ indeed the hope of better days was indulged, but in which, notwithstanding this hope, "men's souls were tried.” Mr. Lee continued a member of congress until the spring of 1779. During his attendance upon this body, he seldom took part in the public discussions, but few surpassed him in his warmth of patriotism, and in his zeal to urge forward those measures which contributed to the success of the American arms, and the independence of the country. To his brother, Richard Henry Lee, the high honour was allotted of bringing forward the momentous question of independence, and to him, and his associates in that distinguished assembly, the not in ferior honour was granted of aiding and supporting and finishing this important work. As already noticed, Mr. Lee retired from congress in the year 1779. It was his wish to be exempted from public care, and in the pleasures of home to seek those enjoyments which were consentaneous to his health and happiness. This seclusion, however, he was not permitted long to enjoy. The internal condition of Virginia, at this time, was one of much agitation and perplexity. His fellow citizens, justly appreciating the value of such a man, summoned him by their suffrages to represent them in the legislature of Vir ginia. Although reluctantly, he obeyed the summons, and took his seat in that body. He was fond of ease, and of the pleasures of domestic life ; still he was conscious of his obligations, and most faithfully discharged them. While a member of the continental congress, he had been characterized for integrity, sound judgment, and love of country. In his pre sent office, he was distinguished for the same virtues. He could not content himself, however, long in this situa tion. He became wearied with the duties of public life ; and, at length, relinquished them for the pleasures of retirement. In this latter course of life, he not only enjoyed himselt highly, but contributed greatly to the happiness of many around him. The benevolence of his disposition, and the urbanity of his manners, recommended him both to the old and the young, to the gay and the The shared in his benevolence and advice. In his intercourse with his particular friends, he was uncommonly pleasing and instructive. Mr. Lee, having no children to require his care and attention, devoted much of his time to the pleasures of reading, farming, and the company of his friends. His death was occasioned by a pleurisy, which disease about the same time, also, attacked his beloved wife, and terminated the life of both, within a few days of each other. It is said, that he had embraced the religion of the gospel, and that under its supporting hope and consolation, he made his exit in peace from the world. CARTER BRAXTON. CARTER BRAXTON was the son of George Braxton, a wealthy planter of Newington, in the county of King and Queen, in Virginia, where he was born on the tenth of September, 1736. His mother was the daughter of Robert Carter, who was for some time a member, and the president of the king's council. Carter Braxton was liberally educated, at the college of William and Mary. About the time that he left college, it is supposed that his father died, although this is not well ascer |