It Is Far Better To Be

This saying appears in Washington's handwritten school copybook as Rule No. 56 of the "Rules of Civility & Decent Behaviour in Company and Conversation," transcribed by Washington as a penmanship exercise before the age of sixteen. The rules originated with French Jesuit educators in 1595 and reached Washington via a 1640 English translation. Though Washington did not author the maxim, he appears to have taken it to heart, applying the full set of 110 rules to shape his conduct throughout his life.