" The right wing, where I stood, was exposed to and received all the enemy's fire ... I heard the bullets whistle, and, believe me, there is something charming in the sound. "
Letter to his brother, John A. Washington | Friday, May 31, 1754
Editorial Notes
Written in the letter's postscript, here 22-year-old George Washington boasted to his brother about his experience during the opening battle of the French & Indian War. On 28 May Washington and his men defeated a French force on the Pennsylvania frontier. The death of the French leader Joseph Coulon de Villiers, Sieur de Jumonville, during the skirmish led to the 3 July French retaliatory attack on Fort Necessity.
