Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1884-06-17
From the Courier-JournaI.(
Patrick Henry.

l. ~ s'Ao VI AAO fuSlIlld Dccld
ration of Independence, Mr.. J. Ester
Cooke has contributed an admirable pane,
to the Magazine of american History Ma,
number), which has just been published
dealing with the important actien4aken BY
the Commonwealth of Virginia. Just priol
to the Declaration of July 4, 1776. It has
been too commonly said that its promoters
were mere "ciphers and butterflies Mr.
Cooke takes pains to show that in charac
ter, intellectual power, as well as social DO
sition, those. men were naturally suited tc
carry on the work with which their names
will alwayste associated. He thus depicts
Patrick Henry
Henry's caseer>is so familiar that only
few pexson2S details in reference to him
need De presented; as some of them have
never before been published, they may in
terest the reader. There exists very
prevalent error as to his social origin, which
is said to have been ignoble. This state
ment has no foundation. His father, Col.
Aenry was gentleman of respectabillty, a
classical scholar, a presiding magistrate
when that office was only conferred upon
persons of social position, and good
Ghurchman and royalist, who "drank the
Kings health at the head of his regiment. -
Another error in relation to Patrick Hem
ry is his supposed want of education, and
MIR. Writ dwells upon all these points as
tending to enhance the splendor Of his ge
MUS. Unfortunately, the statements are
all untrue. The "Man Of the People" and
prophet of the Revolution" as his con-
temporaries styled him, was not uneduca-
ted, any more than he was Of low origin
On the contrary, he was so well educated
that at fifteen he read Livy and his "stand-
ard volume through life was that diff
ficult book, Buffers '.Analogy of Religion" +"
lie remained poor scholar for no other
reason than that he had little taste for read
ing. He was also indolent by nature, and
only capable of sustained exertion when his
interest was excited. The factexplains the
early failures so much dwelt upon by Mr..
Writ. He failed in farming because he had
no taste for agriculture, and became bank
rupt as country store-keeper because
trade was equally repugnant to him. This
IS the sufficient explanation of all those idle
hunting and fishing excursions, the violin
playing and storytelling, when he ought to
have been attending to his business, which
his biogTaphers have so much emphasized
as contrast to his subsequent career Like
other human beings, he avoided what was
unpleasant. He was a natural and gem
ulne man, loved plain company and rus
tic humor, and was once discovered, when
he was old and famous, lying on his back
and playing his violin for crowd of chill
dren .tumbling over him-traits attributa-
bic, one and all, to his strong human sym.
patbles. There is nothing to show that he
was considered by his contemporaries rude
or Ignorant person. From some chance
phrases In his private letters he seems to
have shared Jefferson's distrust of the
planter class; but the old ssnabobs'' were
not so absurd as to regard him as their in
ferior.
His wonderful oratory made him thou
sand times their superior. By the common
consent of all his contemporaries, his elo-
quence was indescribable; and even Jeffer-
son, who indulged in somewhat undemo-
cratic sneers at his origin, said ''he spoke
as Homer wrote" Mr.. Writ has cast
doubt by his rhetoric upon this point as
upon others. His exaggeration enfee-
bles the delineation. But enough has
been established to make it certain that
Patrick Henry was one of the two or three
greatest orators of the world. One of his
contemporaries, who had often felt the
spell of his eloquence, declared that his
force lay rather in his manner than in his
matter-'in the greatness of his emotion
and passion, the matchless perfection of the
organs of expression; the intonation, pause,
gesture, attitude, and indescribable play of
countenance 1t is certain that he swayed
every assembly which he addressed appar-
emily at his pleasure. Whenever he was
fully aroused he overthrow all opposition,
and forced his listeners as from species of
magnetism to accept his views as the only
true ones. Any comparison of him with
the very greatest of his contemporaries
would only establish their inferiority. His
superiority was acknowledged. When he
rose IN Congress and exclaimed, 'British
opposition has effaced the boundaries of the
several colonies-the distinctions between
Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New Workers,
and New Englanders are no more-I am
not Virginian, but an American?" his
listeners are said to have declared him the
greatest public speaker on the continent.
No writer speaking of Henry should omit
to fnotice his devout piety. He wrote in
his will 81 have now disposed of all my
property to my family; there is one thing
more l wish 1 could give them, and that is
the Christian religion. If they had that,
and had not given them one shilling, they
would be rich; and if they had not that, and
had given them all this world, they would
be poor" In person, Henry was tall and
graceful, and stopped. His eyes were blue,
his expression grave, and he wore buckskin
clothes, yarn stockings, and wig without
powder. These details are set down as part
of the personal portrait of one in reference
to whom every triflle must interest-for
this man changed the destiny of the North
American continent.