⁠SIR,
AMBITIOUS to avoid both the style and the sentiment of common dedication, more frequently the incense of adulation than the result of truth, I only ask the illustrious Washington to permit a lady of his acquaintance, to introduce to the public, under his patronage, a small volume written as the amusement of solitude, at a period when every active member of society was engaged, either in the field, or the cabinet, to resist the strong hand of foreign domination.