With pace, clarity, judiciousness and a sense of balance, Miller recounts the story of the dramatic clash over fundamental issues that marked the Federalist administrations, the classic contest between Hamilton and Jefferson for dominance in Washington's administration, and between John Adams and the Hamiltonians when the New Englander succeeded to the Presidency. Miller makes it perfectly clear that the Federalists were maladroit politicians who failed to recognize the democratic roots of American society. One learns why the Federalists felt that the American experiment in free government had failed when Jefferson was elected, but, despite their shortsightedness, they had taken a parchment and turned it into an effective instrument of government.