The General who did that was no understrapper.

The man whose courage diffused itself among the ten thousand starving soldiers at Valley Forge, and enabled them to endure against the starvation and distress of a winter, may very well fail to be classified among the Prince Ruperts and the Marshal Neys of battle, but he ranks first in a higher class.

His Fabian policy, which troubled so many of his contemporaries, saved the American Revolution.

His title as General is secure.

Nor should we forget that it was his scrupulous patriotism which prevented the cropping out of militarism in this country.
Finally, a country which owed its existence to him chose him to be for eight years its first President.