Read the excerpt, and then answer the question.
"i you most sincerely for your polite notice of me, in the elegant lines you enclosed; and however undeserving i may be of such encomium and panegyrick, the style and manner exhibit a striking proof of your great poetical talents. in honour of which, and as a tribute justly due to you, i would have published the poem, had i not been apprehensive, that, while i only meant to give the world this new instance of your genius, i might have incurred the imputation of vanity. this and nothing else, determined me not to give it place in the public prints. if you should ever come to cambridge, or near head quarters, i shall be happy to see a person so favoured by the muses, and to whom nature has been so liberal and beneficent in her dispensations. i am, with great respect, etc." george washington's reply to phillis wheatley, 1776.
which words indicate the tone president washington conveys?
a. polite and elegant
b. stylish and poetical
c. sincere and respectful
d. generous and liberal