A rather startling omission in the galleys on which our report (page 415) was based is filled in with the final proofs now received. That is the chapter close to the end dealing with Adams' own departure from the White House. This is essential to a sound appraisal of the book as a whole and that in spite of the fact that its tenor is the same. In no sense an apologi or a defense, this chapter- I Leave Washington- is simply a clearcut statement of the facts as Adams sees them. He places the onus directly on the right wing Republicans fearful of his power and on the Democrats anxious to get him into public disfavor. He acknowledges- somewhat naively for a seasoned politician- his mistake in taking the responsibility of handling some pretty hot potatoes, of sending on requests for information and passing on inquiries, without appreciating the indubitable fact that by so doing he was using his position as a lever. That some of these sources were venal, that some of the contacts turned out to be engaged in illegal practises, were not factors then involved but simply made use of later. The fact that ""everybody's doing it"", and he was merely a scapegoat, does not in the afterview redeem him but his plausible presentation makes one accept his personal probity.