The Van Buren press., 1859-10-21
Patrick Henry.

| very htlic Is k3OWh OF the m OSt eloquent
orator of our revolutionary history-one
who derived all of his original genius. from
the study of nature and men, and had nc
acquaintance with be4ks. The following
sketch Of his charactefand habits Mr.. Web.
ster received from Mr.. Jefferson, and is
found in the published volumes of Mr..
Webster's correspondence:
Patrick Henry was originally bar keep
er. He was married very young, and going
into some business, was bankrupt in less
than year. When / was about the age OF
| fifteen, l left school to go to college at
Williamsburg. l stopped few days at d
friends house in the county of Louisa
There l first saw and became acquainted
with Patrick Henry. Having spent the
Christmas hOlida ~ there, proceeded to
Williamsburg. Ssmc luestions arose about
my admission, as my preparatory studies
had not been pursued at the sch ool con.
nected with that institution. This DELAYED
my admission about fortnight, at which
time Henry appeared in Williamsburg, and
applied for a license to practice law, having
commenced the study of it at or subsequent
iy to my meeting him at Louisa. There
were four examiners-Wythe, Penlleton,
Peyton Randolph and John Randolph
Wythe and Pendleton at once rejected his
application. The two Randolphs, by his
importantly, were prevailed upon to sign
his license; and having obtained their sig
natures, he applied again to Pendleton, and
after much entreaty and many promises of
future study, succeeded in obtaining his.
He then turned out practicing LAWYER.
The first case which brought him into no.
tee was contested election, in which he
appeared as counsel before. the Committee
OF BQrgesses. His second was the parsons
case. already well known. These and sim
liar efforts soon obtained for him so much
reputation, that he was elected member of
the Legislature. He was as well suited to
the times as any man ever was, and it is
not now easy 10 say what could have been
done without Patrick Henry. He was far
before all in maintaining the spirit of the
revolution. His influence was most extern
sive among the members from the upper
counties, and his boldness and their votes
overawed the more cool, or the more timid
aristocratic gentlemen of the lower part of
the State. His eloquence was peculiar, if,
indeed, it could be called eloquence, for it
was impressive and sublime, beyond what
can be imagined. Although it was diff
cult, when he had spoken, to tell what he
had said, yet while he was speaking it SEEM
ed directly to the point. When he had
spoken in opposition to my opinion-had
produced great sensation, and / myself
been blighted and moved, 1 have asked N.Y.
sell, when he had ceased, "What has he
said!'' l could never answer the inquiry.
His person was of full size, and his manncr
and yoice free and 2anly. His utterance
was ncithcr very fast nor slow. His speech
es generally s.ort--from a quarter to half
an hour.
He was man .. very little knowledge
of any kind; he read notni:c,g, had no books.
Returning one November. from Albermarle
Court, he borrowed Hume's Essays, in two
volumes, saying he would have leisure II,
the Winter for reading. In the spring he
returned them, declaring that he had not
been able to go further than twenty or thir-
ty pages in the first volume He wrote
almost nothhg-he could not write The
resolutions of rs, which have been ascribed
to him, have by many been supposed to
have been written by johnson, who acted
as his second: but if they were written by
Mr. Henry himself, they were not such as
to prove any power Of composition. Neith-
er in politics nor in his profession was he a
read man. His biographer says he read
Plutarch every year. doubt whether he
ever read a volume of it in his hfe. His
TEMPER was excellent, and he generally OBJ
served dccorum in debate On one or two
occasions have seen hila angry, and his
anger was terrible; those who witnessed it
were not disposed to rouse it again. In his
opinion he was yielding, practicable, and
not disposed to differ with his friends. In
private conversation, be was agreeable, fa-
cetious, and while in genteel society SEEM
ed to understand the decencies of it as well
as any one; but in his heart, he preferred
low society, and sought it as often as pos
siblS. He would hunt in the pine woods
of Fluvenna. With oyerseer>, aud people Of
that description. living in a camp for a fo,t-