George Washington caught a cold in 1799 and then he was killed. He came back from a ride on his estate on December 12, 1799 and got a sore throat. The next day a doctor was called as his condition worsened. The doctor prescribed the procedure of blood letting in the belief that by expelling blood disease and infection would be eliminated. This country’s first president was drained of his blood, once in the morning and twice in the afternoon for a total of 32 ounces of blood. The process actually made him weaker which led to his death. When he realized he wasn’t going to make it he said of his inevitable death, “the debt which we all must pay.” 

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