Yet there is no doubt that his natural abilities were what most distinguished [John] Marshal from other lawyers and jurists. His head,
said Senator Rufus King, is the best organized of anyone I have known.
Marshal could grasp a subject in its whole and yet simultaneously analyze it parts and relate them to the whole. He could move progressively and efficiently from premise to conclusion in a logical and rigorous manner and extract the essence of the law from the mass of particulars. In the words of Justice Story, he had the remarkable ability to seize, as it were by intuition, the very spirit of juridical doctrines.
Even Jefferson acknowledged Marshall’s talent, but he scarcely respected it. Jefferson told Story that when conversing with Marshall, I never admit anything. So sure as you admit any position to be good, no matter how remote from the conclusion he seeks to establish, you are gone. So great is his sophistry you must never give him an affirmative answer, or you will be forced to grant his conclusion. Why, if he were to ask me whether it were daylight or not, I’d reply,
Sir, I don’t know, I can’t tell.
Henry, Patrick
Williamsburg, VA — Built in 1715, the current church was the third Anglican Church for a parish founded in 1660.
Philadelphia, PA — Completed in 1770, this Georgian building was the meeting place of the First Continental Congress in 1774.
Williamsburg, VA — Built 170—20 for the colonial governors of Virginia, it later served as the residence for Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson during their respective terms as governor.
Brookneal, VA — The last home and burial place of Patrick Henry, who retired here in 1793.
Beaverdam, VA — From 1771 - 78 this was the home of Patrick Henry, his wife, and six children.
Richmond, VA — Completed in 1741, it was the first church in Richmond; in 1775, it was the site of the famous speech by Patrick Henry ending with “Give me liberty or give me death.
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Empire of Liberty: A History of the Early Republic, 1789–1815 (2009)