Burke and Webster are models in the forensic literature of our own language as truly as are Demosthenes and Cicero in the language of the ancient classics. Each has distinct and inimitable characteristics which give force and beauty to his work. The study of each should be ordered in such a way as to put one in touch with those qualities of mind and heart, of intellectual and moral manhood, by which each became a leader in political philosophy and a model in literary style. One who studies such

Mr. Webster approaches as nearly to the beau ideal of a republican Senator as any man that I have ever seen in the course of my life; worthy of Rome or Venice rather than of our noisy and wrangling generation.-- Hallam . Coleridge used to say that he had seldom known or heard of any great man who had not much of the woman in him. Even so the large intellect of Daniel Webster seemed to be coupled with all softer feelings; and his countenance and bearing, at the very first, impressed me with this.

Gentlemen of the Jury,--It is true that the offence charged in the indictment in this case is not capital; but perhaps this can hardly be considered as favorable to the defendants. To those who are guilty, and without hope of escape, no doubt the lightness of the penalty of transgression gives consolation. But if the defendants are innocent, it is more natural for them to be thinking upon what they have lost by that alteration of the law which has left highway robbery no longer capital, than upo

The general question is, whether the acts of the legislature of New Hampshire of the 27th of June, and of the 18th and 26th of December, 1816, are valid and binding on the plaintiffs, without their acceptance or assent . The charter of 1769 created and established a corporation, to consist of twelve persons, and no more; to be called the "Trustees of Dartmouth College." After the institution thus created and constituted had existed, uninterruptedly and usefully, nearly fifty years, the legislatu

Let us rejoice that we behold this day. Let us be thankful that we have lived to see the bright and happy breaking of the auspicious morn, which commences the third century of the history of New England. Auspicious, indeed,--bringing a happiness beyond the common allotment of Providence to men,--full of present joy, and gilding with bright beams the prospect of futurity, is the dawn that awakens us to the commemoration of the landing of the Pilgrims. Living at an epoch which naturally marks the

This uncounted multitude before me and around me proves the feeling which the occasion has excited. These thousands of human faces, glowing with sympathy and joy, and from the impulses of a common gratitude turned reverently to heaven in this spacious temple of the firmament, proclaim that the day, the place, and the purpose of our assembling have made a deep impression on our hearts. If, indeed, there be anything in local association fit to affect the mind of man, we need not strive to repress

Mr. President,--When the mariner has been tossed for many days in thick weather, and on an unknown sea, he naturally avails himself of the first pause in the storm, the earliest glance of the sun, to take his latitude, and ascertain how far the elements have driven him from his true course. Let us imitate this prudence, and, before we float farther on the waves of this debate, refer to the point from which we departed, that we may at least be able to conjecture where we now are. I ask for the re

I am little accustomed, Gentlemen, to the part which I am now attempting to perform. Hardly more than once or twice has it happened to me to be concerned on the side of the government in any criminal prosecution whatever; and never, until the present occasion, in any case affecting life. But I very much regret that it should have been thought necessary to suggest to you that I am brought here to "hurry you against the law and beyond the evidence." I hope I have too much regard for justice, and t

Mr. President,-The gentleman from South Carolina has admonished us to be mindful of the opinions of those who shall come after us. We must take our chance, Sir, as to the light in which posterity will regard us. I do not decline its judgment, nor withhold myself from its scrutiny. Feeling that I am performing my public duty with singleness of heart and to the best of my ability, I fearlessly trust myself to the country, now and hereafter, and leave both my motives and my character to its decisio

We are, my friends, in the midst of a great movement of the people. That a revolution in public sentiment on some important questions of public policy has begun, and is in progress, it is vain to attempt to conceal, and folly to deny. What will be the extent of this revolution, what its immediate effects upon political men and political measures, what ultimate influence it may have on the integrity of the Constitution, and the permanent prosperity of the country, remains to be seen. Meantime, no

Your solemn announcement, Mr. Chief Justice, has confirmed the sad intelligence which had already reached us, through the public channels of information, and deeply afflicted us all. Joseph Story, one of the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, and for many years the presiding judge of this Circuit, died on Wednesday evening last, at his house in Cambridge, wanting only a few days for the completion of the sixty-sixth year of his age. This most mournful and lamentable ev

April, 1817. Mr. Webster had been elected to Congress from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in 1813, and his term expired in March, 1816. In August of that year (1816) he removed his family to Boston, and decided to devote himself exclusively to the profession of the law. He had won a high position both in law and politics in New Hampshire. The change of residence marks an era in the life of Mr. Webster. Mr. Lodge says that there is a tradition that the worthies of the Puritan city were disposed at fi

March, 1818. Within a year after the defence of the Kennistons, Mr. Webster was called upon to defend his Alma Mater against the acts of the Legislature of his native State. The case was one of the most interesting ever argued before the Supreme Court of the United States, because there were involved in it certain constitutional questions which had never been tested. "Mr. Webster by his management of this case," says Edward Everett, "took the lead in establishing what might almost be called a ne

December, 1820. The "Old Colony Club," formed for social intercourse in 1769, was the first to celebrate Forefathers' Day. Although the club was dissolved in 1773, the anniversary celebrations were continued until 1780; between this time and 1820, when the "Pilgrim Society" was founded, they were held with but few interruptions. The foundation of the "Pilgrim Society" in 1820 gave a new impetus to the celebrations, and in that year Mr. Webster was chosen to give the address. 1. P. 64, l. 17. 1.

June, 1825. As early as 1776, the Massachusetts Lodge of Masons, over which General Warren had presided, asked the Government of Massachusetts for permission to take up his remains, which were buried on the hill the day after the battle, and bury them with the usual solemnities. The request was granted on condition that the government of the colony should be permitted to erect a monument to his memory. The ceremonies of burial were performed, but no steps were taken to build the monument. Genera

January, 1830. The third period of Mr. Webster's life and work may be said to begin with his new honor--his election to the United States Senate in 1827, and his changed attitude toward the question of the tariff as seen in his great speech on the tariff of 1828. To understand Mr. Webster's position on the question of the tariff, one must remember that he insisted upon the principle that the question of the tariff was purely a business question, and that it was to be determined by the conditions

August, 1830. Almost immediately after the Reply to Hayne, Mr. Webster was engaged with the Attorney-General of Massachusetts in one of the most remarkable criminal cases on record, and on August 3d made the argument in the trial of John Francis Knapp for the murder of Captain Joseph White. The following is a summary of the facts: On the night of the 6th of April, 1830, the town of Salem was visited by a desperado who entered the house of Joseph White, a wealthy and respectable citizen, and murd

February, 1833. Mr. Webster had intimated in his Reply to Hayne that South Carolina was playing a high game. There were some at that time who thought that he had sounded the note of alarm in too loud a strain; but when in November, 1832, the State Convention, assembled at Columbia, South Carolina, adopted an ordinance declaring the revenue laws of the United States null and void, the voice of the croakers ceased to be heard in the general excitement that filled the country. The Legislature assem

August, 1840. Mr. Webster had been in almost continual public service since 1813, and during that period the two great questions which demanded the attention of statesmen were the tariff and the currency. The history of the former is to be found in the Reply to Hayne and the Reply to Calhoun; the history of the latter, in that memorable series of speeches during the session of 1831-1833 on the policy of President Jackson regarding the United States Bank. Out of this great controversy the Whig pa

September, 1845. Of the many friends of Webster during his long political career, there was no one more constant in his attentions, more sympathetic in his judgments, or more helpful in his counsels than was Mr. Justice Story. Ever since they had acted together in the Massachusetts Convention in 1820 they had maintained for each other's character and attainments the most generous and cordial enthusiasm. The death of Mr. Story on the 10th of September, 1845, was a great affliction to Mr. Webster,