The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1913-05-23

pearance than most powdered folks
In their conversation"
The high bearing and capacity OF
the southern delegates came upon this
New England men like q great sur.
prise: where they had expected to sea
rustic squires they found men OF ele
gance and learning.
But there was, in fact, no good rea<
son to wonder at the natural leader
ship Of these men. Their life had
bred them more literally than others
It required a much more various ca
pacity and knowledge of the world tc
administer a great property and livs
the life OF q local magnate In tbs
south than sufficed TO put a man al
the front OF trade or OF legal practices
in Boston or New York or Philadei
phia.
The southern colonies, besides, had
lived more in sympathy with the life
Of the empire than had their northern
\ neighbors. Their life had depended
| directly upon that OF England hitherto
and had partaken Of it with n COZ
slant zest. They had no rival trade:
they had wanted no rival government
The general air Of the wide empire
had blown IN all ordinary seasons
| through their affairs. and they had cuf
| tivated none of that shrewd antago
nism toward the home government
which had so starpened the wits and
narrowed the political interests Of tbs
best men in New England.
Reasons for VirgIria's Primary.
They had read law because they
were men OF business, without caring
too much about its niceties or mean
ing to practice it in litigation. They
had read their English history with
out feeling that they were separats
from it. Their passion for freedom
was born not of local feeling so much
as of personal pride and the spirit OF
those who love old practices and the
just exemptions Of an ancient constt
tuition.
1t was the life they had lived, ans
the conceptions OF personal dignity
and immemorial privilege that had
gone always with It, that gave then
! so striking an air of mastery. It was
not simply because the Massachusetts
delegates kept themselves prudently
, in the background and the rest yield
ed to her pretensions that Virginia
was accorded primacy in the con
gress: it was also because her repre-
sentatives we're men TO whom power
won so honorable place of leader
{ ship already in the common affairs oil
the continent
Washington Not Leader.
/ Colonel Washington, striking and
: forcible man though he was, did not
> figure as leader among the Virginian
: delegates.
/ Peyton Randolph was elected presi.
dent of the congress; Richard Henry
Lee and Patrick Henry stood forth al
the virginian leaders on the floor.
IF you speak of solid information
and sound Judgment, Colonel Washing
ton is unquestionably the greatest man
on that floor" vas Henry's confident
ana generous verdict; but Washington
was no politician, and did not stand in
exactly the same class witt the rest.
He had headed committees and pre-
sided over popular meetings among
his own neighbors in Fairfax, and had
been prompt to join them in speaking
with high spirit against the course OF
the ministry in England He had been
forward in urging and punctiliously
careful in practicing non-importation.
He had declared Cages conduct IN
Boston more becoming a Turkish ba
shaw than an English governor
Deeds and Not Words.
. But he was a man of action, rather
than of parliament. Il will raise ons
thousand men, enlist them at my OWE
!. expense, and march myself at then
head for the relief of Boston," haa
: been his impetuous utterance in thu
!. Virginia convention-ethe most elo
! quent speech that was ever made" Mr.
Lynch declared Il have heard ht
said" reported an admiring PhiladeI
phian-I have heard he said he
!. wished to God the liberties of Amer
: lea were TO be determined by a single
/. combat between himself and George!'
But his fellow yirginians understood
him better. They had chosen him FOL
: force and sobriety; not as an orator
but as the first soldier and one of tht
= first characters OF the commonwealth;
and he had made the impression thsy
expected.
fTn RE -nNTTNrIyERN