“Impress upon the mind of every man, from the first to the lowest, the importance of the cause, and what it is they are contending for.”
k.) Offense is Defense:
(1) To JOHN TRUMBULL, June 25, 1799.
“Offensive operations oftentimes are the surest, if not . . . the only means of defense.” (emphasis in the original)
l.) Use of Power:
(1) To JOSEPH REED, July 4, 1780.
“Extensive powers not exercised as far as was necessary have, I believe, scarcely ever failed to ruin the possessor.”
(2) To HENRY LEE, October 31, 1786.
“Influence is no government.”
3. Creating Trust in Leaders:
a) To THE PRESIDENT OF CONGRESS, Valley Forge, March 7, 1778.
“It may not be a little dangerous, to beget in the minds of our own Countrymen, a Suspicion that we do not pay the strictest Observance to the Maxims of Honor and good Faith. It is prudent to use the greatest Caution, not to shock the Notions of general Justice and Humanity, universal among Mankind, as well in a public as a private View: in a Business, on the side of which the Passions are so much concerned as in the Present, Men would be readily disposed to believe the worst and cherish the most unfavourable Conclusions.”
4. Good Leaders
a) To THE MASSACHUSETTS SENATORS, [February 24, 1797.]
“I entertain the pleasing hope, that the intelligence and superior information of my fellow citizens, enabling them to discern their true interests, will lead them to the successive choice of wise and virtuous men to watch over, protect and promote them, who while they pursue those maxims of moderation, equity and prudence, which will entitle our country to perpetual peace, will cultivate that fortitude and dignity of sentiment which are essential to the maintenance of our Liberty and independence.”
b) To JAMES MCHENRY, July 4, 1798.
“A good choice [of General Staff ] is of . . . immense consequence. . . . [They] ought to be men of the most respectable character, and of first-rate abilities; because, from the nature of their respective offices, and from their being always about the Commander-in-Chief, who is obliged to entrust many things to them confidentially, scarcely any movement can take place without their knowledge. . . . Besides possessing the qualifications just mentioned, they ought to have those of Integrity and prudence in an eminent degree, that entire confidence might be reposed in them. Without these, and their being on good terms with the Commanding General, his measures, if not designedly thwarted, may be so embarrassed as to make them move heavily on.”
c) To JAMES MCHENRY, August 10, 1798.
“It is infinitely better to have a few good men than many indifferent ones.” (emphasis in the original)
5. Public Good
a) To JOHN JAY, Head Quarters, Middle brook, April 14, 1779.
“Conscious that it is the aim of my actions to promote the public good, and that no part of my conduct is influenced by personal enmity to individuals, I cannot be insensible to the artifices employed by some men to prejudice me in the public esteem.”
b) To MAJOR FRANCIS HALKET, August 2, 1758.
“I am uninfluenced by prejudice, having no hopes or fears but for the general good.”
c) To THE SELECTMEN OF BOSTON, July28, 1795.
“In every act of my administration, I have sought the happiness of my fellow citizens. My system for the attainment of this object has uniformly been to overlook all personal, local, and partial considerations; to contemplate the United States as one great whole; to confide that sudden impressions, when erroneous, would yield to candid reflection; and to consult only the substantial and permanent interests of our country.”
6. Good of the Great Whole
a) To JOHN ARMSTRONG, May 18, 1779.
“To please everybody is impossible; were I to undertake it, I should probably please nobody. If I know myself I have no partialities. I have from the beginning, and I hope I shall to the end, pursued to the utmost of my judgment and abilities, one steady line of conduct for the good of the great whole.”
7. Promises
a) To CHARLES CARROLL, OF CARROLLTON, Mount Vernon,
August 2, 1798.
“It is an invariable maxim with me, never, before hand, and until the moment requires it, to pledge myself by promises which I might find embarrassing to comply with.”
8. Prudence
a) To RICHARD HENRY LEE, December 14, 1784.
“It is easier to prevent than to remedy an evil.”
b) To JAMES MCHENRY, August 10, 1798.
“It is much easier at all times to prevent an evil than to rectify mistakes.”
9. Supervisors
a) AGREEMENT WITH WILLIAM PEARCE, Mount Vernon, September 23, 1793. “But it may not be amiss to repeat that one of the most effectual steps to accomplish all these ends, is to see that the Overseers of the Farms and the Superintendants of other business, are constantly at their posts; for it may be received as a maxim that if they are away or entertaining company at home, that the concerns entrusted to them will be neglected, and certainly go wrong: and it is not less certain that relaxation on his part will serve only to beget liberties on their’s; therefore strictness with justice is the sure means of having the business well conducted.”
b) To BURGES BALL, Philadelphia, July 27, 1794.
“If you can keep him always with your people he will make you a good Overseer; and without it, neither he or any other man will. With me, it is an established maxim, that an Overseer shall never be absent from his people but at night, and at his meals.” [emphasis in the original]
V. MILITARY AND PATRIOTISM
A. Military
1. The Army’s Need of Food and Clothing
a) To PHILIP LIVINGSTON, ELBRIDGE GERRY AND GEORGE CLYMER, Camp at the Clove, July 19, 1777.
“It is a maxim, which needs no illustration, that nothing can be of more importance in an Army than the Cloathing and feeding it well; on these, the health, comfort, and Spirits of Soldiers essentially depend, and it is a melancholy fact, that the American Army are miserably defective in both these respects; the distress the most of them are in, for want of Cloathing, is painful to humanity, dispiriting to themselves, and discouraging to every Officer. It makes every pretension to the preservation of cleanliness impossible, exposes them to a variety of disorders, and abates, or destroys that Military pride, without which nothing can be expected from any Army.”
2. Military Strength
a) To THE PRESIDENT OF CONGRESS, Head Quarters, Camp near German Town, August 10, 1777.
