The President of the Constitutional Convention, George Washington, was determined to prevent leaks from the meetings in Philadelphia. One day one of the delegates absent-mindedly left his notes behind on a table in the meeting room.

The next day President Washington held up the page of notes before the group, saying: “I must entreat the gentleman to be more careful lest our transactions get into the newspapers and disturb the public response by premature speculations. I know not whose paper it is, but there it is; let him who owns it, take it.”

With that George dropped the paper on the nearest table, bowed, and left the room. No one came forward to claim that paper.

At the end of the Convention, when all the hard work had been completed, Washington saw to it that the new Constitution would receive a sympathetic response by releasing one copy, and one copy only, to the newspapers. The Pennsylvania Packet and the Daily Advertiser cooperated and published the complete document for the public to read.