Vision, integrity, understanding, courage, depth of character and the ability to communicate -- these are the qualities by which Dwight David Eisenhower measured greatness. He set them down, in that order, in a letter to a friend. This book measures the man on his own gauge. From the time of his childhood in a small Kansas town, Dwight Eisenhower's vision of himself and his country was one of confidence and hope. His hard-working parents taught him self-reliance, and nothing that happened in his long career ever eroded this trait. The unquestioned integrity that was perhaps his most notable characteristic was another quality that grew out of his home training. It manifested itself in all his activities, public and private. During nearly half a century of service to his country and the world, Dwight Eisenhower displayed a deep understanding of the problems, aspirations and fears that prevailed during both war and peace. His great physical courage was proved when he was little more than a child, and this book abounds with evidence of his moral courage under trying circumstances. The depth of his character was revealed chiefly in his dedication to duty. Throughout his life, he responded selflessly and wholeheartedly to all personal and public obligations. It was his ability to communicate -- especially through the spoken word -- that was most often under criticism. His writing -- ranging from orders and reports to his several book -- was a model of clarity. If in public speaking he was not always successful in conveying his ideas and attitudes, the opposite was true in private conversations with associates and subordinates. And, by his life alone, he communicated with the American people in a remarkable way. They recognized in him a man of sincerity and instinctive good will and they trusted him implicitly. Dwight David Eisenhower inscribed his own gauge of greatness -- vision, integrity, understanding, courage, depth of character and the ability to communicate. To his countrymen, he demonstrated these qualities again and again in full measure. - Jacket flap.