and a nervous haste in delivery. By the wise counsels and gentle raillery of a friend, Wirt resolved to overcome his diffidence, studied law, and commenced to practice in Virginia in his twentieth year. The first case of a young lawyer, marked for future distinction, is no less interesting than the great artist's first painting, or the eminent poet's earliest lines. Wirt made his debut as a barrister in a case of assault and battery, in which, after judgment against his client, he attempted to obtain that relief by motion which had formerly been granted only by writ. The county court, aided by the advice of numerous amici curiae, denied the right to relief by this method of procedure. Wirt was incensed at the objection, and for getting his timidity, argued his point with such force and determination as to carry conviction to the mind of the court. This first modest effort resulted successfully, and gave him an immediate standing at the bar. From that time, his reputation and clientage grew, and by his twenty-fifth year he ranked among the best lawyers of the section. It was Mr. Wirt's good fortune, at the be ginning of his career, to form the acquain tance of some of the foremost men in public life. He enjoyed a personal friendship with James Madison, James Monroe and Thomas Jefferson, and their sagacious advice and il lustrious examples often supplied a powerful stimulus to the young barrister in his profes sional life. Though his future success at the bar seemed assured, Mr. Wirt always enter tained a strong desire to distinguish himself in literature. Partly for diversion, partly by way of experiment, and from an aspiration to try his literary pinions, he began the publication of a series of essays signed by the pseudonym of "The British Spy," con taining comments upon the life, character, politics and morals of Virginians. The series aroused the most intense interest, and not a little antagonism from those whose
peculiarities he depicted, and materially contributed to the author's fame. So suc cessfully did he wear his disguise that many of his readers long held to the firm convic tion that the essays were written by an American who had received his education in Great Britain and had imbibed British prejudices, while others declared they had seen the very foreigner in question, who was indeed a true Briton! Another of Mr. Wirt's literary projects was to write the biographies of the. eminent citizens of his State. He was a Virginian only by adoption, but he felt a filial pride in the commonwealth, and earnestly desired to commemorate her great men. Among these, Patrick Henry stood foremost in his thought. Though he had never seen this great patriot, he had honored and admired him, and deemed that no more acceptable gift co'ild be offered to the people of Vir ginia than to describe the life and depict the character of their heroic leader. The plan was ultimately realized after infinite pains and discouragements, by the publica tion of the "Life of Patrick Henry," the standard work upon the subject in our American literature. The increasing eminence of the author and practitioner led to his employment in a class of business which was exceedingly distasteful to him. He had won much of his earlier distinction by his successful par ticipation in criminal cases, but he frankly confessed that this branch of the practice was, to him, uncongenial and revolting. His ambition was directed toward employ ment in causes involving the investigation of important legal questions in which the great analytic and logical powers of his mind might enjoy free play. He held be fore him the example of John Marshall, whose mind he described as "little else than a mountain of barren and stupendous rocks, an inexhaustible quarry, from which he draws his materials and builds his fabrics, rude and Gothic, but of such
