George Washington: “None can serve it with purer intentions than I have done or with a more disinterested zeal.”

I have finally determined to accept the commission of Commander in Chief of the armies of the United States.

I must not conceal from you my earnest wish that the choice had fallen upon a man less declined in years and better qualified to encounter the usual vicissitudes of war.

I can not express how greatly affected I am at this new proof of public confidence.

To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace.