"Our nation's first president is not usually thought of as a man of words. Yet Washington was keenly aware of the power and importance of language. From the time of his entrance into the public arena at the age of twenty to his death forty-seven years later, he produced a steady stream of letters, reports, memoranda, addresses, messages, and speeches designed to express his views and to persuade people to them. Here is the authoritative selection of Washington's thoughts and observations culled from his public discourse and private correspondence."--BOOK JACKET.