In telling these stories, however, in the limits of brief chapters, we
have carefully abstained from the writing of formal biographies. Such
a treatment would have resulted merely in a rehash of time-worn data
beginning "He was born," and ending "He died."
The plan of these stories is to give a personal portrait of the man,
using the background of his early life--to trace his career up from
boyhood through the formative years. Such data serves to explain the
great soldier of later years. Every schoolboy knows, for example, what
Washington did after he was placed in command of the Colonial Army--but
what he did in the earlier years to _deserve_ this high command is a
story not so well known. Yet it is both interesting in itself, and
serves to humanize its subject. The stately Washington steps down off
his pedestal, and shoulders again his surveyor's tripod of boyhood
days, while he invites us to take a tramp through the Virginia wilds.
The writing (and, we hope, the reading) of these life stories brings an
especial message. We discover that in each instance the famous soldier
was not a pet of Fortune, but was selected for his high and arduous
task, because of the training received in his formative years. His
peculiar gift of leadership was merely an expression of his indomitable
will to forge ahead.
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