But thomas jefferson , the polymath us president , was hardly a slouch when it came to reading either , bequeathing his collection of 6400 books to what became the library of congress .
What the president did note with some pride , however , is that beyond preventing a second attack , he is bequeathing to his successor the kinds of powers and institutions the next president will need to prevent further attack and successfully prosecute the long war .
But he had often heard of fathers bequeathing their offspring with " pet names " of some kind or another , and he could think of no endearment better suited to this infant .