A very important and timely book. It will be of interest to anyone concerned with
the origins of our form of government or the implications of our fundamental law. All other
treatments are slight. I stand back from McDonalds achievement in admiration and astonishment.
M. E. Bradford

The title translated means "a new order for the ages" and, it being the motto on
the Great Seal of the United States, is seen on the reverse side of the dollar bill. The book
explains both how and why the events that occurred in Philadelphia in September, 1787, ushered
in "a new order" in human affairs.

McDonald deftly recreates the intellectual dimension of the amazing fifty-five men whose genius
and passion gave to us the United States Constitution. It was this work that was primarily responsible
for Forrest McDonald's appointment as the 1987 Jefferson Lecturer in the Humanities, the highest
scholarly recognition offered annually by the U.S. government through its National Endowment for
the Humanities.