Americans held that virtue was pivotal to the success of their new nation.

What did they mean by virtue? How did they hope to ensure that their citizens and leaders possessed virtue?

The word virtue is used to refer to the behaviors that show high moral standards. This includes nobility, purity, worthiness, goodness, morality, integrity, etc. In other words, virtue is for the "common good". This can be manifested through the discipline of children to eradicate completely the notions of bad behaviors.