Homes of American Statesmen; With Anecdotical, Personal, and Descriptive SketchesVarious
History
Homes of American Statesmen; With Anecdotical, Personal, and Descriptive Sketches
Various
Historic buildings -- United States; Statesmen -- United States; United States -- Biography
There was in this extraordinary man an unusual combination of the
capacity of apprehending truth, with the ability to demonstrate and make
it palpable to others. They often exist together in unequal degrees.
Lord Mansfield's power of luminous explication was so surpassing that
one might almost say that he made others perceive what he did not
understand himself; but the numerous instances in which his decisions
have been directly overthrown by his successors, and the still greater
number of cases in which his opinions have been silently departed from,
compel a belief that his judgment was not of the truest kind. Lord
Eldon's judicial sagacity was a species of inspiration; but he seemed to
be unable not only to convince others; but even to certify himself of
the correctness of his own greatest and wisest determinations. But Judge
Marshall's sense appeared to be at once both instinctive and analytical:
his logic extended as far as his perception: he had no propositions in
his thoughts which he could not resolve into their axioms. Truth came to
him as a revelation, and from him as a demonstration. His mind was more
than the faculty of vision; it was a body of light, which irradiated the
subject to which it was directed, and rendered it as distinct to every
other eye as it was to its own.
The mental integrity of this illustrious man was not the least important
element of his greatness. Those qualities of vanity, fondness for
display, the love of effect, the solicitation of applause, sensibility
to opinions, which are the immoralities of intellect, never attached to
that stainless essence of pure reason. He seemed to men to be a
passionless intelligence; susceptible to no feeling but the constant
love of right; subject to no affection but a polarity toward truth.
As has already been stated, the great chief justice was married when
twenty-eight years of age, to Miss Ambler, of York, in Virginia; there
have been few such unions in every respect more fortunate and
delightful; the wife died but a short time before the husband, who, not
more than two days previous to his own decease, directed that his body
should be laid with hers, and that the plain stone to indicate the place
of their rest should have only this simple inscription:
"John Marshall, son of Thomas and Mary Marshall, was born on the
24th of September, 1755, intermarried with Mary Willis Ambler on
the 3d of January, 1783, and departed this life the ---- day
of ---- 18--."
With no other alteration than the filling of the blanks, this is
engraved on the modest white marble which is over their remains in the
beautiful cemetery on Shoccoe Hill, of Richmond.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account