How does McCullough describe Washington in Chapter 2?

Washington was a man of exceptional, almost excessive self-command, rarely permitting himself any show of discouragement or despair, but in the privacy of his correspondence with Joseph Reed, he began now to reveal how very low and bitter he felt, if the truth were known. (Chapter 2)

George Washington knew how important it was to maintain a certain type of image before his subordinates and how much they would be affected if there were to know that Washington lost his hope in the American army. Because of this, the correspondence between Washington and Reed is important because it reveals how Washington really felt about the war, the fears and insecurities he had and it allows the reader to peer into the mind of a man who kept his composure during a war he was most certain to loose.