The contexts and purposes for civic writing may influence the composition process as well as text features, and an analysis of the purposes and audiences for civic writing might yield an insight into the way that such writing stimulates the personal and moral development of both its readers and writers. An examination of two related pieces written by citizens of a small town shows that the first document, the Final Report of the Wareham Charter Commission, created by a citizens' group to devise a new charter for approval by the town's residents in the next election, is a "committed" piece of civic writing, while the second text, one of five recall petitions by a group of angry inhabitants, is more spontaneous. The goals of the charter commission (elected by majority vote) were positive, and the tone is gracious and self-confident. The recall petition, on the other hand, arose from the concerns of a self-selected group, and the tone is one of rage. However, there are important similarities: both texts reflect "group" voice, not individual voice, and both are formally addressed to the Board of Selectmen, although clearly intended for the public. Ultimately, civic or political writing is about power, or the testing of power. (Seventeen reference notes are provided, as well as the texts of the documents examined in this paper.) (NKA)