Admiral

French admiral, unsuccessful against British fleet at Newport; 1729—94.
French Admiral, defeated British fleet at Chesapeake Capes; 1722—88.
British admiral, brother of William Howe; 1726—99.

I set out on this ground, which I suppose to be self-evident, that the earth belongs in usufruct to the living; that the dead have neither powers nor rights over it. This, with its echo of the Declaration (self-evident) was Jefferson at his most terse. Except for the phrase in usufruct — a legalism meaning the right to use property for a certain time — Jefferson’s words could be chiseled in stone, or shouted on the hustings.

Richard Brookhiser
James Madison (2011)