It was July 2, 1776, and Thomas Jefferson's draft of the Declaration of Independence was stuck in committee during the First Continental Congress. Jefferson had worked day and night for the last 17 days, but now the committee was cutting out whole paragraphs.
What did Jefferson do? Nothing.
Why? He had total confidence in the draft. He realized that anything he said might be seized upon by opponents of the document. So he sat through the debate in silence, even when a favorite section condemning slavery was deleted.
''In cases of doubt it is better to say too little than too much,'' Jefferson later wrote to President Washington, as cited in ''Citizen Jefferson: The Wit and Wisdom of an American Sage,'' edited by John P. Kaminski.
It was that kind of restraint, combined with a trust in his abilities, that allowed Jefferson to take a calm approach to the editing. The document, of course, became a great success, and Jefferson (1743-1826) became the country's third president and premier Renaissance man.
Jefferson always read avidly. He began his serious study of politics and philosophy in 1760 as a 17-year-old at the College of William and Mary. He understood that a broad education would be his greatest ally in any field he chose. He sought out volumes by top thinkers like John Locke, Francis Bacon and Isaac Newton.
To glean as much as possible from the great thinkers of every culture, he learned Greek, Latin, Spanish, French and Italian.
He read everything he could, focusing on extensive accounts of past revolts and revolutions and their causes. Jefferson asked experts question after question in an effort to understand every aspect of a topic.
As a lawyer and member of the Virginia House of Burgesses, Jefferson used a succinct writing style to outline his arguments.
He believed that the purpose of a document was not always to propose a bold new idea. Often, he said, it should make complex political and philosophical arguments seem like simple common sense.
At the Continental Congress, Jefferson remained quiet during most public debates. He knew he had a reputation as a talented writer. Instead of showing off and making enemies, Jefferson took a low-key approach that helped him make allies of many delegates during informal conversations.
''We confide in our own strength, without boasting of it,'' he later wrote. ''We respect that of others, without fearing it.''
That mix of talent and humility so impressed John Adams that he recommended the young Virginian, then only 33, to write the Declaration.
Whenever Jefferson saw an opportunity to advance his young country, he seized it.
While ambassador to France (1784-89), he frequented influential Paris salons. There, he talked of democratic ideas with intellectual and political leaders. He urged them to visit America to see for themselves the developments and possibilities.
Instead of becoming frustrated by America's lowly diplomatic standing at Versailles, he tried to bolster the country's standing by negotiating trade treaties with other foreign ministers.
Hoping to improve life in America, Jefferson traveled throughout southern France and northern Italy to search for ideas that could be used back home. He made notes on bridges, canal locks and wines of the countryside.
He compiled detailed notes on how to make Parmesan cheese and sent olive trees and rice strains to South Carolina, where he felt the climate would be hospitable.
To see how Americans could benefit from an understanding of the Old World, he made informal studies of European culture.
''In Europe there are shops for every want,'' he wrote to his daughter. ''Its inhabitants therefore have no idea that their wants can be furnished otherwise. Remote from all other aid, (Americans) are obliged to invent and execute; to find means within ourselves, and not to lean on others.''
To avoid what he thought was the danger of a rising American aristocracy, Jefferson tried to move the presidency closer to the ordinary citizen. To relax the stuffy White House atmosphere, he quickly banned the practice of formal semiweekly meetings with foreign diplomats. Instead, the White House would be open every morning to any citizen who chose to visit.
To foster the spirit of democracy, Jefferson held an Independence Day parade on the White House lawn each July 4 for any visitor who wished to attend. Then he'd stand in the doorway shaking the hands of all comers and inviting them in for lemonade and cakes.
He was so opposed to measures of status that he never dressed up for officials of state.
That shocked one visitor, who wrote, ''A tall, high-boned man came into the room. He was dressed, or rather undressed, with an old brown coat . . . (and) slippers without heels. I thought this man was a servant . . . (but) it was the president.''
Jefferson wanted to ensure that ideas could always be expressed freely in America. While some politicians chafed at the exercise of the First Amendment, Jefferson went out of his way to uphold it. As president, he refused to try to censor the newspapers, even when stories made him look bad.
When a man who had been turned down for a postmaster's spot printed a series of scandalous rumors about him, Jefferson simply let them pass.
''I laid it down as a law to myself, to take no notice of the thousand calumnies issued against me,'' he wrote, ''but to trust my character to my own conduct, and the good sense and candor of my fellow citizens.''
Knowing that an educated population was essential to self-government, Jefferson, at age 74, began planning America's first secular public university, the University of Virginia. To get the necessary funding, he pressured the Legislature year after year.
''The boys of the rising generation are to be the men of the next,'' he wrote, ''and the sole guardians of the principles we deliver over to them.''
To make his vision a reality, Jefferson oversaw each step in the school's development. He surveyed the lands, designed the buildings and hired respected faculty from Europe. When the university finally opened in 1825, Jefferson invited students to weekly dinners at Monticello to hear their thoughts on the new institution.
Even as an older man, Jefferson had busy days, so he relied on a strict daily schedule to make sure he got everything done. As a general blueprint, he spent mornings writing and answering letters. At midday, he oversaw the Monticello grounds or university construction. Evenings were reserved for family and guests.
Above all, Jefferson tried to be humble, both as a democrat and patriot.
A year before his death, he wrote to a relative: ''Love your neighbor as yourself, and your country more than yourself. Be just. Be true.''
