[originaltext] Some of the notebooks George Washington kept as a young man a

Some of the notebooks George Washington kept as a young man are still in existence. They show that he was learning Latin, was very interested in the basics of good behavior in society, and was reading English literature.
    At school he seemed only to have been interested in mathematics. In fact his formal education was surprisingly brief and incomplete. Unlike other young Virginian gentlemen of that day, he did not go to the College of William and Mary in the Virginian capital ot Williamsburg. In terms of formal training then, Washington contrasts sharply with som other early American presidents such as John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. In later years, Washington probably regretted his lack of intellectual training. He never felt comfortable in a debate in Congress, or on any subject that had nothing to do with everyday, practical matters. And because he never learned French and could not speak directly to the French leaders, he did not visit the country he admired so much. Thus, unlike Jefferson and Adams, he never reached Europe.