Mary Anne Clark is a 31-year-old struggling waitress and soon-to-be-divorced mother of five, who serves 65-year-old Laurens Morgan Hamilton, heir to J. P. Morgan and Founding Father Alexander Hamilton. He returns the next day—her day off—to announce he’s going to marry her. She tries to dissuade him, but Laurens courts her and her five children, offering fancy meals, lavish gifts, and extravagant trips.
More than a memoir, Mary Anne’s unbelievable life stories segue to three sections of 90 Hamilton facts labeled Laurens’ Lists A, B, and C. QR Codes link to her speeches online. Over 70 images, most in color, are posted next to their related true stories, which are entertaining and inspiring as well as challenging. These tragedies and triumphs—and an unprecedented global phenomenon when Mary Anne is in her 80s—create an unexpected purpose for her life.
SPOILER ALERT
Initially, Mary Anne Hamilton, 31, was hesitant to develop a relationship with a 65-year-old man. Two things happened that made her more comfortable.
The first is explained in Chapter 6 of the book, Destined to Be a Hamilton. The second occurred when Mary Anne read a speech Laurens delivered at the US Coast Guard Academy on January 7, 1966. Instead of always being proper and stuffy, his speech revealed a refreshing glimpse of his persona. He seemed to be fun and witty and smart. When she saw the photo of Laurens seated on the floor, chatting with the cadets after his speech, he appeared to be so down to earth, literally. She continued getting to know him better.
Both the photo and the speech are posted here.
This First Annual Alexander Hamilton Lecture was dedicated to RICHARD PARKHURST, my long time fellow Hamiltonian, companion, collaborator, and friend of the Coast Guard" by LAURENS M.HAMILTON, who delivered the Lecture at the United States Coast Guard Academy, New London, Connecticut, 7 Jan.1966
FIRST ANNUAL
ALEXANDER HAMILTON LECTURE
DELIVERED BY
THE HON. LAURENS M. HAMILTON
7 January, 1966
Thank you. Admiral Bender, Admiral Scullion, President-General Coe, my long-valued friend and Hamiltonian Richard Parkhurst, Captain Smith, distinguished guests, members of the faculty and, last but not least, you gentlemen of the Corps of Cadets of this Academy. Now, if I have left anybody out, will they please raise up their hand. I'd like to include by name Mr. Broadwell and the band; it's always a pleasure to come where they play.
The first mission with which I am charged tonight is to present to you the regrets of your Commandant, Admiral Roland, that he cannot be here. He had hoped to be, but something came up in Washington (things are always coming up in Washington), and he phoned me personally at the last minute and asked me to present his regrets to you at not being able to be with you this evening. Admiral Scullion represents not only himself but Admiral Roland in addition.
It is coincidental that I should be introduced tonight by my long-time friend and compatriot, Howard Coe, for, as he said, he and I first met right here in New London, some thirty years ago, in what we refer to in our jocular moments as the "Battle of New London.” There was an effort to unseat the President-General, which was treason in those days, and Mr. Coe and I collaborated to re-elect the incumbent, the late Messmore Kendall, to the office which Mr. Coe himself holds today so ably.
A further coincidence (and Mr. Coe forgot the little commercial he might have gotten in) is that for the first time since then, the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution are going to hold their National Congress in New London again this year, this coming June.
Now, that's where coincidences stop. At least they could, except, like all plays and movies and books, any resemblance between the man President-General Coe introduced and myself is purely coincidental. I thought he knew me better, but I must have been mistaken or else he's a bigger liar than I took him for. But, anyway, I do thank him for saying such nice things about me.
It is not my intention this evening to eulogize Alexander Hamilton. For one thing, I don't think it is becoming a descendent to eulogize one of his own ancestors. And, for another thing, I am sure that so long as Alexander Hamilton's picture appears on a ten-dollar bill, he'll be popular.
But there is a still more important reason for not eulogizing an individual. It is because this is a public institution, supported by public funds, devoted to training public servants for public service. I therefore do not think a private opinion, even my own, of an individual or on any controversial question should be inflicted upon you. However, it should be possible to borrow some lesson from Hamilton's career which we can apply to some of our present day problems.
As Professor Rossiter so ably expressed it in that excellent book of his, Alexander Hamilton and the Constitution, several copies of which are in the Library, (I know because I gave them) there are many facets to Hamilton's character. Even Thomas Jefferson, who can hardly be counted among Hamilton's friends and admirers, wrote in a letter to Madison on the subject of Hamilton that "without numbers, he is an host within himself".
I therefore think we might appropriately take two facets from the many and examine them this evening. I intend to speak to you tonight about "Hamilton the Patriot" and about "Hamilton the Officer", for it is in those two capacities that he best serves as an example for the conclusions that I hope to come to this evening.
As a patriot, Hamilton has recently come under fire from another of those writers who is an ardent Jeffersonian and therefore can discover nothing but vice in Hamilton. Parenthetically, I would like to express my amusement, not to mention my amazement, to put it mildly, by the fact that every man who wants to boost Jefferson seems to find it necessary to tear down Hamilton. I didn't think that Jefferson was so short. Hamilton was only about five foot four, he wasn't like Mr. Parkhurst or Admiral Bender, or some of these other six footers I've been up against. (What a basketball team you could have here, incidentally.) But they all seem to think they have to tear down Hamilton before they can build up Jefferson.
But perhaps in order better to understand what I mean about patriots, we should decide just what a patriot is. I suggest that it is not only those who lay down their lives for their country in battle who are patriots. To me, those who devote their lives, dedicate their lives, to the service of their nation are none the less patriotic.
Oddly enough, Hamilton could qualify as a patriot in either of those classifications, for when he laid down his life on a dueling ground in Weehawken in 1804 he was fighting for the honor of his country and what he felt was his country's interest just as keenly as he did at the Battle of Yorktown in 1781, when he stormed Redoubt No. 10 and staged the prelude to the victory through which American Independence was won.
His subsequent service as a member of the Continental Congress, as a member of the Legislature of his own state, (in which I insert a parenthetical remark that when I took my seat in that same Legislature, it was 141 years after he had taken his) then as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, his labors in producing most of "The Federalist" papers, and his battle at Poughkeepsie to have the Constitution ratified by the State of New York---they were certainly patriotic labors.
Washington as Secretary of the Treasury, the first Secretary of the Treasury under President Washington, marked the end of his active civilian career, for although he was at all times a political power to be reckoned with, he did not emerge again in the public eye as a civilian until Washington insisted on his being named senior Major-General and Inspector-General of the United States Army. That is when the United States Army started in 1788, at a time when war with France seemed inevitable. On Washington's death in December of 1799, Hamilton automatically became the Commanding General of the United States Army, until he resigned that office in 1800.
So, I suggest that at all times, both in peace and in war, and in many different capacities, Hamilton proved his patriotism during the years he devoted to the creation and foundation of this Nation.
Now, you gentlemen are patriots according to my definition. You are dedicating your lives to one of the most useful and demanding public services. You are preparing yourselves for ceaseless war against elements and human stupidity, which demand a heavy toll of lives and property each year, and with which there can be no truce. The Honor Roll of the Coast Guard has as many names of Coast Guardsmen who have sacrificed their lives in peace as in time of war.
That brings me to the second facet of Hamilton's character, namely, "Hamilton the Officer". He trained himself and others to serve as officers, and he subsequently proved by his own service as an officer the soundness of that training.
Shortly after his admission, in 1774 I think it was, to what was then King's College in New York, he was one of the organizers of a small militia group known as "Hearts of Oak" Artillery Company. Today we would liken it to the ROTC Unit in some college or university. (I don't suppose you have an ROTC Unit here, do you Admiral? They are all--well, never mind, you don't know what you've missed!) But it was in that capacity, training that small battery that he first attracted the attention of his superiors and eventually, that of his Commander-in-Chief. General Washington was quick to recruit the young artillery captain for his staff, where Hamilton served with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel as Washington's closest and most-often consulted military secretary. The missions on which he was sent, like the one to General Gates to beg for reinforcements, (which he got, incidentally) were all tributes to the faith Washington had in him and in his ability.
Always chomping at the bit for active service, the impetuous young Hamilton, just over twenty years of age, finally found active service under his friend Lafayette at Yorktown, down in Virginia where I've lived for the past 25 years, (I don't mean at Yorktown, I mean in Virginia) in what turned out to be the concluding battle of that war.
In the way he prepared himself as a young college student for the military prowess he later exhibited, each and every one of you may find an example of which you may well make use while here at this Academy, and later on active service. After all, the purpose of this Academy is to train the officers of tomorrow for the Coast Guard. You have been admitted here only after you proved your competence, and without political appointment. You will have undergone, before you are finished, four years of intensive practical training--training equal to that received by any cadet at West Point or any midshipman at Annapolis. I might say, that when President Johnson delivered the Commencement Address here in 1964 (I was here on that occasion), that immediately put this Academy at New London on the same footing as the Military Academy at West Point and the Naval Academy at Annapolis. Training, I might add, such as Hamilton was one of the first to advocate when he became one of the sponsors of the creation of a military academy.
It is an interesting footnote to that, incidentally, that the last letter General George Washington is known to have written before his death in December of 1799, was to Hamilton, in reply to one from Hamilton about the establishment of a military academy, the place which we now know as West Point, and from which all the other service academies, including this one, have derived.
The importance of thorough training in order to be able to do a thorough job should need no expiation from me in this place, at this time or at any other time. The motto of your service, "Semper Paratus", could be translated "Always Prepared" just as correctly as "Always Ready." You will be taught to use the most modern weapons in your war against the elements and human stupidity, and even, as happens at the moment, some foreign enemies. You will be taught by men with years of active experience how to cope with the forces you will find arrayed against you, time and time again. You will be taught by others of equal experience how to discharge the administrative duties which are part of the Coast Guardsman's job. In short, you will be taught how to become Coast Guardsmen.
I would like to interpose here a little comment on just how fine it can be to be a Coast Guardsman. It was my happy privilege just three weeks ago tomorrow to be at New Orleans when the new Coast Guard Cutter ALEXANDER HAMILTON was launched. I might state that although it is officially named ALEXANDER HAMILTON, it will be called HAMILTON so as not to confuse it with the submarine ALEXANDER HAMILTON which was launched just across the river, about four years ago, I think it was. My niece was the sponsor, and if we hear of the ALEXANDER HAMILTON going around the world under water, we want to know that it wasn't the Revenue Cutter.
I mingled in New Orleans with all the "high brass" and a lot of the "intermediate brass" of the Coast Guard. I saw them at cocktail parties; I saw them at dinners; I saw them in private conversations. From your Commandant down, every one of them was a credit to the service, and as a citizen I felt very proud of my Coast Guard. Your Commandant was equaled by the Secretary of the Treasury, (your number one boss, I guess; well, just under the President, your number two boss) Mr. Fowler, whose gracious lady broke the traditional bottle of champagne with such vigor that she literally seemed to push the vessel half-way into the Mississippi River, where it landed with a tremendous splash. I envy those of you who will later see service on that cutter and its sister ships. As many of you may know, on the Mississippi they have to launch them thwart-wise. It isn't wide enough to let them go down stern-first, so you see this vessel up on a levee, and a lady smacks it with champagne and something happens and the next thing you know, the whole darn thing is slipping to leeward and it lands in there with an awful splash, shakes itself a couple of times like a terrier and then floats proudly. That was the experience three weeks ago tomorrow.
Now, I think I have read enough of Hamilton's own writings and other people's comments on him and them to be able to frame on this occasion a few precepts which Hamilton might incorporate if he were laying down rules for young officers as specifically as he laid down rules of conduct for his own eldest son. And I might point a little tragic note on that, his eldest son, Philip, was killed two years before Alexander himself was, on the same dueling ground, and for the same reasons. So that the youngest son, who was born shortly after the eldest son's death, was also called Philip, and on the cover of that book, Alexander Hamilton and the Constitution, you will see a portrait of Hamilton which is a little different from the one which hangs in the lobby of Hamilton Hall. You will see the father who has just lost his oldest son; the party leader whose party has disintegrated; and the man who is getting old and discouraged at the age of forty-five or six.
I think that Hamilton would stress the importance of being thoroughly prepared, (he always was) of being proud to be an officer, of being obedient to superiors and a good leader to those under your command.
I would like to pause at those last words for a moment, for leadership is, in my opinion, the most vital element in the American concept of command. Just as Hamilton led his troops in the assault on Redoubt No. 10 at Yorktown, so do most American officers lead their men into battle. Leadership is the essence of instilling in your subordinates that will to obey, that will to follow, which accounts for American success in peace and war.
As to obedience, I know of no situation in which it is more important than on a ship at sea. There can be only one man in command of any ship at any time and his commands must be obeyed without question and without hesitation. You can't go to the telephone and ring up somebody and say, "Speak to Pete and tell him not to speak roughly to me." During your years as junior officers, you will receive commands from your superiors, but a day will come when each of you will find himself the number one man, with people under your command, waiting for your orders, willing to obey those orders, looking to you for leadership in a crisis.
The crowning moment in your future careers will probably come the first time you find yourselves in command of your own ship. From my own experience as a yachtsman who ran his own ship for many thousands of miles, I can assure you that you will never know a loneliness or a care or a worry equal to that of suddenly realizing your responsibility for everything--and I mean everything. You will stand long hours, never off duty even though not on watch. You will rehearse in your mind all that you have been taught or have learned from experience. You will anticipate emergencies before they happen, so that if and when they do happen you will know the right thing to do and how to get it done. That is when you will realize the importance of obedience, for just as there is room for only one man to give commands on a ship, each and every man under him must know where to be and what to do at a given moment, and wait for the given command. The juniors must not ask questions or offer suggestions. They must wait at their appointed posts and execute promptly and competently whatever maneuver is ordered from the bridge.
I'd like to explain on that, that I had that experience on my own ship, which was eighty-five feet long, and I had two paid hands forward and some friends aft. And when there was an emergency, the friends would crop around, "Hey, Laurie, what do you want us to do?" "What shall I do?" "Where shall I go?" But when you are coping with a situation, you do not want to be asked questions. You are trying to review all the factors involved--and there are never fewer than three, and the fewest I can think of is safety, convenience and comfort. And you're reviewing those three factors with the known things and if people would just leave you alone to think, then you'd say, "Bill, throw that line over." "Tom, do this please." "Joe, watch out back there." But, if they are all asking you questions or making suggestions, it makes your job just twice as hard. And that is why I stress that the willingness to obey the man in command and to wait until he gives you a command is just as important as being in command and knowing what command to give. I think Hamilton would have said the same thing to you.
So you see, gentlemen, in “Hamilton the Patriot" and "Hamilton the Officer" there is much we can learn regardless of what people like Mr. Boyd may want to write. I hope that future Alexander Hamilton Lectures will follow this same pattern and stress some particular facet in his brilliant career so that when you go to sea, you will think of Alexander Hamilton not just as the man who founded your service, or after whom Hamilton Hall at this Academy is named, but as a fellow Coast Guardsman, a fellow patriot, a fellow officer, a fellow young man.
In conclusion, I wish to stress the importance of faith--faith in yourselves, to begin with, faith in your fellow men and above all, faith in your God and in the traditions of your splendid service.
It was during World War I (my war) that a Canadian officer who was later killed, I believe his name was McCrae, wrote an immortal poem entitled, "In Flanders Fields". You may remember the opening line, "In Flanders fields the poppies grow, amid the crosses row on row." As I recall them, the concluding lines of that poem are as follows: "To you from dying hands we pass the torch; be yours to hold it high. We shall not sleep in Flanders fields if ye keep not faith with us who die." And that is what each generation inherits from past generations and holds in trust for future generations. It's that faith, proven and unshakable faith, in the things we know to be true.
And there is one other apostrophe to faith, which is even older than that. It is in the seventh verse of the fourth chapter of Saint Paul's Second Epistle to Timothy. Saint Paul knew he was approaching the end of his ministry and he was passing the torch to Saint Timothy. "I have fought a good fight; I have finished my course; I have kept the faith." Whether you say that at the end of a long and distinguished career as Coast Guardsmen, or whether you say it at the moment of some heroic sacrifice during your active service, remember those last words, "I have kept the faith." I am sure Hamilton thought of them on his death-bed in New York 162 years ago.
Thank you and good evening.
By Laurens Morgan Hamilton, US Coast Guard Academy, New London, CT, January 7, 1966 ~ Courtesy of Mary Anne Hamilton