Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1872-02-01
Yt1istellaueuns &eading.
WHO WILLIAM WRIT WAS.

WHO WILLIAM WRIT WAS.
James Parton gives US this story Of the life
of William Writ, which is very entertaining,
if not entirely true:
Bladenburg, in Maryland, near the Potom-
&C River, was thriving village before the
Revolutionary war, having great trade in
exporting tobacco and importing foreign mer-
chandise In this village there was one tav-
ern, kept by Jacob Writ, native of Switzer,
land, assisted by Henrietta, his wife, who was
a German. William Writ was the youngest
oftheir six children, and he was born in 1772.
Besides this tavern, Jacob Writ possessed
some other property in the place, and he was
thus enabled to maintain his family in plenty,
and with some homely comfort. He died
when his son William was two years Of age,
leaving an estate of three or four thousand
dollars to his young family.
Among the frequenters of. the Bladensburg
tavern was lawyer by the name of Carnes.
During the lifetime of the father, he had be-
come warmly attached to the family, and par
ticularly to two members of 1.-THE eldest
daughter, twelve years ofage, and this pretty
amusing little William, aged two. When the
landlord died, and the whole care of the
house fell to the landlady, he lent her help
ing hand in many ways, advising her about
her property and the education of her chill
dren. When at last the mother died also, he
redoubled his attentions. That eldest daugh-
ter was then beautiful and blooming girl of
eighteen, and it is evident that he already
looked upon her as his future wife. He sent
the boy to Latin school, and after seeing his
education we'll begun, he removed to Georgia,
where he had great success at the bar. Soon
we find him inviting Elizabeth Writ and her
brother to come to Georgia, and live with him.
The young lady accepted the invitation, and
became his wife but the boy had found other
friends, and saw an opening to an education
nearer home.
And it was all owing to his engaging quail.
tiles. He describes himself as pert, lively,
saucy and pretty school-boy, who sang comic
songs very we'll, danced with great agility,
and made smart answers, which, he says,
caused him to be thought "a genius" He
does not appear to have been very diligent
student, but he was extravagantly fond Of ro-
mantle and humorous literature.
He we'll remembered the incident which
first suggested to his mind to try for the legal
profession. His excellent school.master was
in the habit of taking his pupils to attend the
sessions of the county Court, four miles dis
tant from the school, Among the advocates
was popular and brilliant young man of the
neighborhood, well-known to the boys, and a
great favorite with them, who seemed to them
to surpass his elders in wit and eloquence.
Young Writ admired him extremely, and to
the whole school he appeared the hero Of the
county.
"Why should we not have court of our
own ?" was the rv as they trudged home
ward.
It was agreed to. Writ was appointed to
draw up the rules. He was the hero Of this
juvenile forum, and it was there that he ac-
quired the taste for legal pursuits. The part
he took in that school-boy court led him di.
rectly to real courts and real cases. One of
his school-fellows-the son Of a noted lawyer
and politician, named Benjamin Edwards -
happened to take home copy Of the rules
which Writ had dawn up for the guidance
of the mock court, to which the author had
appended an elegant epistle, apologizing for
their imperfections. This production young
Edwards displayed to the family, and he ex-
tolled, in unmeasured terms, the eloauence
and gayety Of the author. His father read
the rules, and was much struck with their
humor and spirit. He wrote to Writ, then
fifteen years of age, telling him that he had
two nephews and son preparing for college,
and inviting him to become an inmate Of the
family, and direct the studies Of those three
young men while prosecuting his own. He
could not but accept so opportune an invita-
ton. He resided in this family twenty
months, winning the cordial esteem of every
member of it, and receiving from the expert
enced lawyer the most useful, paternal, assid-
uous guidance in his studies. Forty years
after, we find him writing to this benefactor
of his youth in terms of the most afectionate
gratitude. Indeed, everybody loved him, and
took pleasure in helping him; for he must
have been as handsome, as pleasing, as joyous,
as brilliant young fellow as ever captivated
human affections.
He was twenty years of age. A friend in
formed him of an excellent opening for a
lawyer in Culpepper county, Virginia, and he
FASTENED to seize it, carrying with him, as he
used to say, his whole library. which consisted
of Blackstone's Commentaries, two volumes
of Don Quixote, and volume of Tristan
Shandy. Having no case himself, young
Writ went shares in small cause that be-
longed to friend of his, who was also to make
his first essay. His friend began by making
motion which, though legal and proper, was
not usual in the courts of that county. The
old lawyers objected, and put their objections
in by no means the most friendly form. Writ
rose indignant at what he conceived unworthy
treatment of beginner His fears forsook
him, and he defended both the motion and
the mover of it with warmth and frmness.
He made an excellent speech, and sustained
his point so well that one Of the old lawyers
of the county came to the assistance Of the
young gentlemen, and their motion was gran
ted.
He soon had considerable practice, married
into respectable family, and made his way
in due time to wealth and renown. The
young lawyers in those days used to ride about
on horseback from court to court, amusing
themselves as they rode with pleading imagi-
nary causes and other games, keeping it up
to late at night at the taverns over their wine.
Wirt's ma agnifcent display Of oratory at
the trial of Aaron Burr gave him national ce-
lebrity, which led to his appointment to the
Attorney. .Generalship of the United States,
which he held during two administrations,
and in which he acquired solid distinction.
He would have entered the public service
long before if he could have done so without
sacrificing the interests of his family, whom
he loved with peculiar tenderness and devo-
tion. He died in 1884, having preserved his
buoyancy of spirits and all the winning traits
of his character to his last days. Like so