Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1817-11-22

ges he then concluded with highly
wrought ealogium on the +; nevolence Of
tie clergy. And. rev, came on tie first
trial Of Patrick Henry's strength. No ..
one had ever heard him speak, aud Gu
riosity was on tiptop. lie rose very =
awkwardiy, and f.. tered much in his
exordiam. The people hung their head,
at 50 uapromising commence. lent tue
clergy were. observed to exchange s!y
lpnks with each other aud his father is
described as having almost SINK With
confusion, fom his seat. But :hcsc fee
inss were OF short duration, Y soon gave
place to Others, of very d,fcren: cha
racter. FIR, now, were those wonder!ci
faculties vhich he possessed, fur the iTs,
time developed aud now, WAS Inst,
witnessed that mystelicu. and almost sn-
petnatural Transformation OF appearance,
which the fire Of his own eloquence never
failed 10 wo-k in him For as his mind
rolled alhag, and began to glow from liz
own action, all the exuv,e oi the clown,
seemed TO shed Themselves Spontaneous
ly. His attitude, by degrees. became
| erect and lofty. The Split Of his genius
! a yakened all his features. His counte-
nance shone with a nob!eness aSd gran
deur which il had never baf,re exhibited.
There was lightning in his eyes which
seemed to rive the spectator. his action
became graceful. bnld and commanding;
! and in the tones OF his voice, but mrre
especially in his emphasis, there wasa
peculiar charm, magic, OF which any
one who ever lizard him, will speak as
soon as he is named, but OF which 10
one can give an adequate description
They can only say that it struck upon
the car and upon the heart. in manner
,ohick language cannot tell. Add to all
these, his wonder. working fancy and the
peculiar phraseology in which he Clothed
its images TO- he painted TO the heart
with force that almost petrihed il. Ia
the language of those who head him On
this occasion, he made their b.-od run
cold, aud their hair TO rise on end
I" II will not be difficult for any one,
Who ever heard this most cxtacI binary
mau, to believe the whole account Of the
transaction which IS given by his surviv~
ing hearers and from their account, Tie
court house Of Hanover county, must
have exhibited on this occasion, scene
as picturesque as hes been ever witnessed
in real life. They say, that The people,
whose countenances had fallen As he arose
had beard but very few sentences be-
lore they began to lock up; then to look
at each other with surprise, as il doubt.
Ing the evidence If their own senses
then, attracted by some strong gesture,
struck by some majestic attitude, fasci-
mated by the spell Of Lis eye, the charm
of hi, emphasis, and the vaied and COM
mandipg expression OF his cCuntcnance,
they could lock away no more. In less
than twenty minutes, they might be seen
in every part O! the house, Oh every bench,
in every window, STOPPING forward from
their stands, in deathlike silence their
features fixed in amazement and awe
all their senses listening and riretted up
on the speaker, as if 10 catch the last
strain Of some heavenly visitant. Tie
mockery Of tle clergy was soon turned
into alarm their triumph into confusion
and despair and at one burst Of his ra-
pid and overwhelming invective, they
lied from their bench in precipitation and
terror. AS for. the father. such was his
surprise, such his anazement, such his
| rapture, that, forgetting where lie was,
and the character which he was filling,
tears of ecstacy streamed down his
cheeks, without the power or inclination
to repress them.
" The jury seem to have been SO con-
pletely bewildered, that they lost sight
not only Of the act OF l74s, bat thai o!
1853 also for thoughtless even Of tie ad-
mt,ed right of the plaintiff, they had
scarcely left the bar, when they returned
with . verdict Of one penny damages
| A motion was made for uew trial but
the court too, had now lost the efuipoise
of their judgment. and overIued the mo-
ton by an unanimous vote. The verdict
and judgment overruiins the motion, were
followed By redouLied reclamation. from
within and without the house. The peo-
pie, who had with difficulty kept their
hands Of their champion, from the ho-'
| ment of closing his haraGgue, no sooner
saw the fate Of the GAUGE finally scaled,
than they seized him at the bar, AID in
spite of his own exerlious, aud the coll
tinued cry OF 50 order" from tie skcritls
aud the court, they bore him oct Of the
court house, aad raising him on their
shoulders, carried him about the ward,