Under the British imperial system, even the most enterprising colonist would remain second class. An Englishman who held a lower rank could order him around, and worse, that Englishman made more money than he did. Everyone knew it, too, which outraged Washington and made recruiting colonists for the British cause a constant challenge. At one point, an official suggested that he supplement his ranks with men from the county jail. Washington privately complained that he’d have better luck trying “to raize the Dead to Life again.” In a letter to Dinwiddie, he equated the undervalued work of
...more
