The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1811-02-26

lives 10 admiring, instead Of greatly and he
roically, daring. to rival them. Let my
youthful reader lay this thought TO heart
and RENE mbcr that the means which made
Lord Mansfield great were--midnght labor
and holy emulation.
But see how garueus age and vagrant
fancy have borne me from my purpose
Let me now endeavor to return to t-Ic was
in the midst of the opinion delivered i'm this
case. that Lord Mansfield broke off into
that beautiful and eloquent depression on
the pOpNlar fervor which had been excited
IN behalf OF Mr.. Wilkes and against himself
Mr. Burrow in his report OF the case has
manyled this depression most barbarously.
What MACPHERSON has very vainy said of
transiators is much more true of speech re-
por,ers-I mean of those who report from
sparse notes which they afterward fill up,
of themselves to do it well, one must be
capable of equalling the original" But it
was not for such a bat, as Burrow to follow
the eagle flights Of Lord Mansfeld's mind
nor is it for such u dormouse as Cecil to re.
new an attempt in which Burrow mas failed.
will say, though, that Mr. Burrow has sue.
ceeded in nothing but in Catching a few
bright passages which struck the muli itude
with SO much force as to awaken a thousand
echoes in the conversations of the day, aud
which were thus kept alive for the Reporters
benefit.
Lord Mansfield having set aside all the
objections TO the process of outlawry which
had been raised by the counsel for Mr..
Wilkes. and in the very moment when pop
alar hope was expiring being about to pass
to those insuperable objections to that pro-
cess which had been discovered by the Court
themselves appeared suddenly to have been
struck with the idea that the candor of the
bench might be misinterpreted, and that the
populace might impute to terror what was
purely the effect OF conscientious conviction.
Recoiing at this idea from the stream of his
arguW ent, and raising himself erect with a
dignity and solemnity of look and voice
which struck even riot and faction dumb
with awe, he said" Here let me pause ="
But to paint the look with which that phrase
was filled. would demand all the boldness of
Angelo's pencil. 1t was more than human
The crowd felt the celestial lightning of the
mind that flashed from his eyes, and shrunk
back, in breathless amazement, as if in the
presence of divinity. The scene is inde-
| scribable. Never was there exhibited, be-
lieve, more impressive illustration of the
ascendancy Of genius, eloquence and charac-
ter. Then came his depression ; and in the
course off those beautiful sentiments which
have led me into this long and unattended
narration. Il honor the king and res
pect the people. But many things acquired
by the favor OF either, are, in my account,
objects not with ambition. wish Popular
ty; BUTT is popularity which follows. not
that which is run after. Ii is that popu-
larity, which, sooner or later, never fails TO
dojuSiice to the pursuit of nobfe ends by no
bic means.''
Let the vain and selfish hunter of popu
larity, the poor and low spirited intriguer for
Office, who calls himself republican, read
these sentiments of a British Lord, and
blush. Let my young friends who have not
yet entered the lists Of fame, read the same
sentiments and engrave them uhon their
hearts. They point out the only read that
will ever lead to virtuous and lasting fame.
Aspire to excellence. Labor, the Roman
poet has told, conquers all things Propose
TO yourselves, then, a competitor and deter
mine to surpass him in all that is good and
great. But do not choose your competitor
from the ranks of common life. Put up a
Chatham, Camden, Fox and Erskine.
such as they are exhibited to us and rise
to the glorious competition with spirit
which will burst asunder all the bonds of 81
rem sloth and scatter all opposing difficulties
t.c the w;nts Of Heaven. Train the sou! 70
the Doblest virtues by the constant contem.
\ plation of the noblest examples. Make
yourselves capable of serving the people :
of serving them greatly and effectually make
yourselves worthy of their love and conf
dence by the perpetual exhibition of pure,
a virtuous and an useful life, and YOU will
then possess that Popularity which .foNozus :
the only popularity, should think, that an
ingenious and noble mind can ever eDloy
/ have strong pre-sentiment, that, on this
subject. a revolution of manners is close at
hand. We are now. / believe. at the bot
tom of the moral wheel; or, at least. as low,
/ hope, as we shall ever sink. Much de-
ponds on the young men who are at this
tine preparing TO come forward. And
strongly anticipate, that, instead of raging
with each other in the mean and degrading
arts of intrigue, they are preparing for the
Doblcst of human contests 7pbich of then,
shall best deserve The ioue and conf
dcnce Of their country /! If such be the
case, may Ue not, also, expect, ere long, to
have our Solon, our Lycurgus, our Plato,
our Aristotle, our Dcmosthenes, our Cato
and Cicero, our Livy and Tacitus Are the
heights Of virtue and intellectual glory mere
inaccessible to a Vrginian, than o Greci-
an or Roman? Incidence may try to excuse
itself by talking of an original difference in
the fabric of the character: But it is folly
& nonsense. The same paths which led them
to those heights, are just as open to us, as
they were to them: We have wanted on
ly the vigor of spirit, the enterprise and he
rolsm to enter these paths and scale those
heights. j anticipate the time, and it is not
far off, when We shall want them no lon
ger. o could live to see that day, in the
sincerity of my soul, l think could truly
eXClaim with the Dronhe - Noeu o1J 10,