The Howards of Virginia

In the 27th year of the reign of our sovereign, George II

by the grace of God, king of England

His Majesty's American colony of Virginia.

Matt, the light!

Reuben!

- Reuben! Lord keep us. - Susie.

- Uncle Reuben! - Matt. Young Matt.

- Where did you come from? - Richmond, without a stop.

Then you have news. ?ut with it, man.

A fine welcome, Susie. Your brother's half wore to death...

For shame, James. Come inside, there's soup in the pot.

?h, soup!

A plague on the man. ?ff to bed with you, lad.

- We'll not be travelling tonight. - Yes, Father!

- More soup, Reuben? - No, thank you, lass.

- Well, Reuben, tell us your news, man. - News? ?h.

- How's your crop, James? - Listen to him.

- You know about the crop. - Poor, huh?

Aye. Land's wore out. No good tobacco left in it.

What's fit to sell goes for quit-rents and taxes.

So fine folk like you take to smugglin'.

Will you tell your news and stop plaguing?

If you had some new, rich, honest land, say, out in the great ?hio country...

- ?hio? - He's daft. ?hio ain't fit for settlers, man.

No?

Suppose it's cleared of Indians and French?

General Braddock and his redcoats are marchin' off right now.

Virginia's raisin' two companies of troops to help.

And hearken, James. The pay's gonna be in land.

A thousand virgin acres to every man that fights, free of quit-rents for 15 years.

Free of... For 15...

Susan? Do you mind what he's sayin'? It's our one endurin' chance.

Wake up, Susan. Don't you understand?

I understand it's war, James.

But what's left to us here? Slow starvation on worn-out land.

?ur one chance is the west, new land and no government.

Where men can have their freedom.

I'd rather die reaching for almighty things like that than be as we are.

- I'm goin'. We're goin', aren't we? - Aye.

Can I go t...

- ...go... too? - Matt!

- Can I go, too, huh? - What?

- Go to bed, Matt. - I'm near tall growed as a man, Father.

- And I'm strong, too, see? - Reuben.

Matt, lad. We'll all be goin' out to ?hio soon.

You'll be a great leader there someday.

- But you'll need more schoolin'. - I'd like to go to ?hio.

Colonel Jefferson said he'd help get you in the finest school in Louisa County.

- I'm set for ?hio. - It's school, I said.

- Thank you, Father... - School!

- ?hio! - It's school! School!

Here was the redcoats, Father wrote, and here our Virginia men

with Father and Uncle in front.

The French charged, with four men to our every one

but we stood them off. Aye, Tom, right there at Red Stone Creek.

Don't you wish we were fightin' with 'em?

Dominic!

Well, we'll proceed at once with our Latin lesson.

Beginning... chapter nine, section 27.

Matthew Howard. You will be so kind as to scan these lines for us.

Without delay, sir.

"Quodcumque...

"... facius...

"...facero...

"...omnibus viribus."

Translate.

"If..."

I mean...

- I mean, "Where or when..." - "Whatever."

"Whatever."

- "Whatever is to be..." - "Whatever you do!"

And no coaching, Master Jefferson, if you please.

"Whatever you do."

"Whatever you do..."

- I can't, sir! - The line reads,

"Whatever you do, do with all your might."

Come here. And bring that piece of paper you were so intent upon as I entered.

Quickly, sir.

- What is this, Master Howard? - The war in ?hio, sir.

Silence! Master Howard,

gentlemen pursuing the classics do not fight Indians in ?hio.

I'll now teach you one bit of Latin you'll never forget.

Turn round, sir. Turn round.

Bend over.

Whatever you do, do with all your might.

- Whatever... - Matt, don't!

- I don't want your classics! - Put that down, you wildcat.

I hate you and your old classics. I want ?hio where men can be free!

Free, is it? You're not free enough under His Majesty's government. A rebel, eh?

- You little... You... - Here, here.

- Colonel Jefferson, sir. - What's this?

Your charge, sir, Master Howard, a firebrand, a budding traitor to the crown.

- I don't want the crown. - You hear? Hanging is what rebels want.

?ne moment, please. Before we take drastic steps, Dominic,

I'll have a little talk with our rebel here. Strangely enough, it's what I came for.

- Suppose you ride home with me. - Thank you, sir.

- May I go too, Father? - Do you object?

- ?f course not, Colonel. - Come, lads.

- Good day. - Good morning, Colonel.

Will they hang me today, Colonel Jefferson, sir?

?h, no, my lad. Not today or any other day.

- I give you my word. - Thank you, sir.

What I... What I want to talk to you about, Matt...

I want to tell you about the campaign in ?hio.

Father wrote all was well.

There's just been a great engagement, Braddock leading the entire army.

- ?ur Virginia men, too? - Yes.

It must have been wonderful. We beat them, didn't we?

The trouble was, Braddock knew little of frontier fighting.

Stayed in columns instead of scattering for cover.

Their scarlet coats could be seen for miles.

- ?h, but... - In five minutes, half were cut down.

But our Virginia men, sir, they know how to...

They stood and fought magnificently.

But the odds were...

Well, out of our 400 Virginia men, only 30 left the field.

Thirty? Some of those men were from...

How many, sir? How many men were left from Albemarle?

Not one, lad. Not one from Albemarle.

Not one? Father?

Uncle Reuben?

- ?h, Father! - I'm sorry, lad.

Come now.

I'll... I'll be going over to my mother now.

- Yes, my lad. - She might hear about it

and me not bein' there...

Matt, I'll send one of the slaves with you to help you with the farm.

?h, it's all right. It's all right.

Listen, my boy. We're going to see you from time to time.

I want you to go on with your studies at home.

You want to be a surveyor. We talked about that, you know.

I will, sir. Because, you see, my father, he wanted me to be a...

Well, I got to be going. Thank you, sir. Goodbye.

Matt...

You wildcat, you.

...become a wastrel, like you.

Mr Jefferson, there's a man outside called Howard who wants to see you.

Howard? Excuse me, Roger!

- Matt! Matt! - Hello, Tom.

Matt, you wildcat.

- Where were you going? - Huh? When?

- Just now. - You were busy, I didn't want to interrupt.

You idiot! I waited for weeks around Shadwell for you. You said you'd come.

Aye, well, things happen, Tom, and...

- I just came to say goodbye to you. - Goodbye?

- I sold the farm. - You didn't.

I did. It was Mother getting married again, and moving to Carolina.

- So, well, I just decided... - That's amazing! That's wonderful!

- Come on in. - No, no, Tom.

- No, you see, I'm on my way to ?hio. - ?hio?

Yeah. So... So...

- It's goodbye, Tom. - Now just a minute, you headlong fool!

You can't rush off to the wilderness like that. Come!

- Now, look here, Tom, I ain't cleaned up. - It's cleaning up you want?

- Landlord, send a bath to my room. - Yes, Mr Jefferson.

This way, Mr Howard.

Tom, you see Matt Howard soaping the last of that pesky farm off his hide.

- How much did you make? - Three pound ten.

- A fortune! - Aye, now you can tell people

you have a wealthy friend!

And what does my wealthy friend plan to do in ?hio?

- Survey. - Survey?

Aye. I brought along the instruments your pa left me.

Whom will you survey for in ?hio? You can't head into a wilderness on a chance.

I thought once I got there, I'd find some land that needs surveyin'.

Splendid! But the men who own western land are right here in Williamsburg.

This is the place to angle for work.

- Yes, Matt, I've decided. - Decided what, Tom?

- You're staying here. - ?h, well, thank you, Mr Jefferson

but I can do my own decidin'. I don't aim to get lost in a big place like this.

- Hey, where are my clothes? - Clothes?

- Aye, my buckskins! - ?h, the buck...

They belong to the past, not the civilisation you're about to enter.

So I took the liberty of disposing of them.

- Have you gone daft? - From now on, you live among people.

- What, like this? - No! Like that.

Get into that suit, Mr Howard, and meet the flower of Williamsburg society.

I won't be seen in them frills. I ain't gonna look like no jackass for nobody!

Hey, where are you... Come back here!

Tom Jefferson, you heard! I won't wear 'em!

I wouldn't be found dead in the consarned things.

No!

Mr Howard!

We've been waiting for you. My friends are anxious to meet you.

- Won't you come in? - Look, Tom, I...

You look splendid! Refreshed and comfortable after your bath, I trust?

- No! - Splendid!

Now, my dear Howard, this way, please.

Gentlemen! May I present my schoolboy friend, Matthew Howard.

My cousin Jack Randolph, the most inveterate dice-caster in the Tidewater.

- Honoured. - ?ver there, Leslie Stevens.

A great talent with music, none with the ladies.

- Your servant, sir. - And John Walker.

Famed for his breed of gamecocks.

- A pleasure, sir. - And, well, gentlemen.

?h, and Roger Peyton.

I rank in importance after Walker's gamecocks. Exquisite pleasure.

- A tippler of distinction, I might add. - I thank you, Mr Jefferson.

- Howard? A Virginia family? - Certainly.

Howard? Which Howard is that? That is, if I'm not being too...