Chapter XXII: Last Days (1)

The intimation given by Patrick Henry to his daughter, in the summer of 1796, that, though he could never again engage in a public career, he yet might be compelled by "some unlooked-for circumstance" to make "a transient effort" for the public safety, was not put to the test until nearly three years afterward, when it was verified in the midst of those days in which he was suddenly to find surcease of all earthly care and pain.

Our story, therefore, now passes hurriedly by the year 1797,--which saw the entrance of John Adams into the presidency, the return of Monroe from France in great anger at the men who had recalled him, the publication of Jefferson's letter to Mazzei, everywhere an increasing bitterness and even violence in partisan feeling. In the same manner, also, must we pass by the year 1798,--which saw the popular uprising against France, the mounting of the black cockade against her, the suspension of commercial intercourse with her, the summons to Washington to come forth once more and lead the armies of America against the enemy; then the moonstruck madness of the Federalists, forcing upon the country the naturalization act, the alien acts, the sedition act; then the Kentucky resolutions, as written by Jefferson, declaring the acts just named to be "not law, but utterly void and of no force," and liable, "unless arrested on the threshold," "to drive these States into revolution and blood;" then the Virginia resolutions, as written by Madison, denouncing the same acts as "palpable and alarming infractions of the Constitution;" finally, the preparations secretly making by the government of Virginia[465] for armed resistance to the government of the United States.

Just seven days after the passage of the Virginia resolutions, an eminent citizen of that State appealed by letter to Patrick Henry for some written expression of his views upon the troubled situation, with the immediate object of aiding in the election of John Marshall, who, having just before returned from his baffled embassy to Paris, was then in nomination for Congress, and was encountering assaults directed by every energy and art of the opposition. In response to this appeal, Patrick Henry wrote, in the early part of the year 1799, the following remarkable letter, which is of deep interest still, not only as showing his discernment of the true nature of that crisis, but as furnishing a complete answer to the taunt that his mental faculties were then fallen into decay:--

TO ARCHIBALD BLAIR.

RED HILL, CHARLOTTE, 8 January, 1799.

DEAR SIR,--Your favor of the 28th of last month I have
received. Its contents are a fresh proof that there is cause
for much lamentation over the present state of things in
Virginia. It is possible that most of the individuals who
compose the contending factions are sincere, and act from
honest motives. But it is more than probable, that certain
leaders meditate a change in government. To effect this, I
see no way so practicable as dissolving the confederacy. And
I am free to own, that, in my judgment, most of the measures
lately pursued by the opposition party, directly and
certainly lead to that end. If this is not the system of the
party, they have none, and act 'ex tempore.'

I do acknowledge that I am not capable to form a correct
judgment on the present politics of the world. The wide
extent to which the present contentions have gone will
scarcely permit any observer to see enough in detail to
enable him to form anything like a tolerable judgment on the
final result, as it may respect the nations in general. But,
as to France, I have no doubt in saying that to her it will
be calamitous. Her conduct has made it the interest of the
great family of mankind to wish the downfall of her present
government; because its existence is incompatible with that
of all others within its reach. And, whilst I see the
dangers that threaten ours from her intrigues and her arms,
I am not so much alarmed as at the apprehension of her
destroying the great pillars of all government and of social
life,--I mean virtue, morality, and religion. This is the
armor, my friend, and this alone, that renders us
invincible. These are the tactics we should study. If we
lose these, we are conquered, fallen indeed. In vain may
France show and vaunt her diplomatic skill, and brave
troops: so long as our manners and principles remain sound,
there is no danger. But believing, as I do, that these are
in danger, that infidelity in its broadest sense, under the
name of philosophy, is fast spreading, and that, under the
patronage of French manners and principles, everything that
ought to be dear to man is covertly but successfully
assailed, I feel the value of those men amongst us, who hold
out to the world the idea, that our continent is to exhibit
an originality of character; and that, instead of that
imitation and inferiority which the countries of the old
world have been in the habit of exacting from the new, we
shall maintain that high ground upon which nature has placed
us, and that Europe will alike cease to rule us and give us
modes of thinking.

But I must stop short, or else this letter will be all
preface. These prefatory remarks, however, I thought proper
to make, as they point out the kind of character amongst our
countrymen most estimable in my eyes. General Marshall and
his colleagues exhibited the American character as
respectable. France, in the period of her most triumphant
fortune, beheld them as unappalled. Her threats left them,
as she found them, mild, temperate, firm. Can it be thought
that, with these sentiments, I should utter anything tending
to prejudice General Marshall's election? Very far from it
indeed. Independently of the high gratification I felt from
his public ministry, he ever stood high in my esteem as a
private citizen. His temper and disposition were always
pleasant, his talents and integrity unquestioned. These
things are sufficient to place that gentleman far above any
competitor in the district for Congress. But, when you add
the particular information and insight which he has gained,
and is able to communicate to our public councils, it is
really astonishing that even blindness itself should
hesitate in the choice.... Tell Marshall I love him, because
he felt and acted as a republican, as an American.... I am
too old and infirm ever again to undertake public concerns.
I live much retired, amidst a multiplicity of blessings from
that Gracious Ruler of all things, to whom I owe unceasing
acknowledgments for his unmerited goodness to me; and if I
was permitted to add to the catalogue one other blessing, it
should be, that my countrymen should learn wisdom and
virtue, and in this their day to know the things that
pertain to their peace. Farewell.

I am, dear Sir, yours,
PATRICK HENRY.[466]

The appeal from Archibald Blair, which evoked this impressive letter, had suggested to the old statesman no effort which could not be made in his retirement. Before, however, he was to pass beyond the reach of all human appeals, two others were to be addressed to him, the one by John Adams, the other by Washington, both asking him to come forth into the world again; the former calling for his help in averting war with France, the latter for his help in averting the triumph of violent and dangerous counsels at home.

On the 25th of February, 1799, John Adams, shaking himself free of his partisan counsellors,--all hot for war with France,--suddenly changed the course of history by sending to the Senate the names of these three citizens, Oliver Ellsworth, Patrick Henry, and William Vans Murray, "to be envoys extraordinary and ministers plenipotentiary to the French republic, with full powers to discuss and settle, by a treaty, all controversies between the United States and France." In his letter of the 16th of April declining the appointment, Patrick Henry spoke of himself as having been "confined for several weeks by a severe indisposition," and as being "still so sick as to be scarcely able to write this." "My advanced age," he added, "and increasing debility compel me to abandon every idea of serving my country, where the scene of operation is far distant, and her interests call for incessant and long continued exertion.... I cannot, however, forbear expressing, on this occasion, the high sense I entertain of the honor done me by the President and Senate in the appointment. And I beg you, sir, to present me to them in terms of the most dutiful regard, assuring them that this mark of their confidence in me, at a crisis so eventful, is an agreeable and flattering proof of their consideration towards me, and that nothing short of an absolute necessity could induce me to withhold my little aid from an administration whose ability, patriotism, and virtue deserve the gratitude and reverence of all their fellow citizens."[467]

Such was John Adams's appeal to Patrick Henry and its result. The appeal to him from Washington--an appeal which he could not resist, and which induced him, even in his extreme feebleness of body, to make one last and noble exertion of his genius--happened in this wise. On the 15th of January, 1799, from Mount Vernon, Washington wrote to his friend a long letter, marked "confidential," in which he stated with great frankness his own anxieties respecting the dangers then threatening the country:--

"It would be a waste of time to attempt to bring to the view
of a person of your observation and discernment, the
endeavors of a certain party among us to disquiet the public
mind with unfounded alarms; to arraign every act of the
administration; to set the people at variance with their
government; and to embarrass all its measures. Equally
useless would it be to predict what must be the inevitable
consequences of such a policy, if it cannot be arrested.

"Unfortunately,--and extremely do I regret it,--the State of
Virginia has taken the lead in this opposition.... It has
been said that the great mass of the citizens of this State
are well-affected, notwithstanding, to the general
government and the Union; and I am willing to believe it,
nay, do believe it. But how is this to be reconciled with
their suffrages at the elections of representatives, ... who
are men opposed to the former, and by the tendency of their
measures would destroy the latter?... One of the reasons
assigned is, that the most respectable and best qualified
characters among us will not come forward.... But, at such a
crisis as this, when everything dear and valuable to us is
assailed; when this party hangs upon the wheels of
government as a dead weight, opposing every measure that is
calculated for defence and self-preservation, abetting the
nefarious views of another nation upon our rights; ... when
measures are systematically and pertinaciously pursued,
which must eventually dissolve the Union, or produce
coercion; I say, when these things have become so obvious,
ought characters who are best able to rescue their country
from the pending evil, to remain at home? Rather ought they
not to come forward, and by their talents and influence
stand in the breach which such conduct has made on the peace
and happiness of this country, and oppose the widening of
it?...

"I come, now, my good Sir, to the object of my letter, which
is to express a hope and an earnest wish, that you will come
forward at the ensuing elections (if not for Congress, which
you may think would take you too long from home), as a
candidate for representative in the General Assembly of this
Commonwealth.

"There are, I have no doubt, very many sensible men who
oppose themselves to the torrent that carries away others
who had rather swim with, than stem it without an able pilot
to conduct them; but these are neither old in legislation,
nor well known in the community. Your weight of character
and influence in the House of Representatives would be a
bulwark against such dangerous sentiments as are delivered
there at present. It would be a rallying point for the
timid, and an attraction of the wavering. In a word, I
conceive it to be of immense importance at this crisis, that
you should be there; and I would fain hope that all minor
considerations will be made to yield to the measure."[468]

There can be little doubt that it was this solemn invocation on the part of Washington which induced the old statesman, on whom Death had already begun to lay his icy hands, to come forth from the solitude in which he had been so long buried, and offer himself for the suffrages of his neighbors, as their representative in the next House of Delegates, there to give check, if possible, to the men who seemed to be hurrying Virginia upon violent courses, and the republic into civil war. Accordingly, before the day for the usual March[469] court in Charlotte, the word went out through all that country that old Patrick Henry, whose wondrous voice in public no man had heard for those many years, who had indeed been almost numbered among the dead ones of their heroic days foregone, was to appear before all the people once more, and speak to them as in the former time, and give to them his counsel amid those thickening dangers which alone could have drawn him forth from the very borders of the grave.

When the morning of that day came, from all the region thereabout the people began to stream toward the place where the orator was to speak. So widespread was the desire to hear him that even the college in the next county--the college of Hampden-Sidney--suspended its work for that day, and thus enabled all its members, the president himself, the professors, and the students, to hurry over to Charlotte court-house. One of those students, John Miller, of South Carolina, according to an account said to have been given by him in conversation forty years afterward, having with his companions reached the town,--

"and having learned that the great orator would speak in the
porch of a tavern fronting the large court-green, ... pushed
his way through the gathering crowd, and secured the
pedestal of a pillar, where he stood within eight feet of
him. He was very infirm, and seated in a chair conversing
with some old friends, waiting for the assembling of the
immense multitudes who were pouring in from all the
surrounding country to hear him. At length he arose with
difficulty, and stood somewhat bowed with age and weakness.
His face was almost colorless. His countenance was careworn;
and when he commenced his exordium, his voice was slightly
cracked and tremulous. But in a few moments a wonderful
transformation of the whole man occurred, as he warmed with
his theme. He stood erect; his eye beamed with a light that
was almost supernatural; his features glowed with the hue
and fire of youth; and his voice rang clear and melodious
with the intonations of some grand musical instrument whose
notes filled the area, and fell distinctly and delightfully
upon the ears of the most distant of the thousands gathered
before him."[470]

As regards the substance of the speech then made, it will not be safe for us to confide very much in the supposed recollections of old men who heard it when they were young. Upon the whole, probably, the most trustworthy outline of it now to be had is that of a gentleman who declares that he wrote down his recollections of the speech not long after its delivery. According to this account, Patrick Henry--

"told them that the late proceedings of the Virginian
Assembly had filled him with apprehensions and alarm; that
they had planted thorns upon his pillow; that they had drawn
him from that happy retirement which it had pleased a
bountiful Providence to bestow, and in which he had hoped to
pass, in quiet, the remainder of his days; that the State
had quitted the sphere in which she had been placed by the
Constitution, and, in daring to pronounce upon the validity
of federal laws, had gone out of her jurisdiction in a
manner not warranted by any authority, and in the highest
degree alarming to every considerate man; that such
opposition, on the part of Virginia, to the acts of the
general government, must beget their enforcement by military
power; that this would probably produce civil war, civil war
foreign alliances, and that foreign alliances must
necessarily end in subjugation to the powers called in. He
conjured the people to pause and consider well, before they
rushed into such a desperate condition, from which there
could be no retreat. He painted to their imaginations
Washington, at the head of a numerous and well-appointed
army, inflicting upon them military execution. 'And where,'
he asked, 'are our resources to meet such a conflict? Where
is the citizen of America who will dare to lift his hand
against the father of his country?' A drunken man in the
crowd threw up his arm, and exclaimed that he dared to do
it. 'No,' answered Mr. Henry, rising aloft in all his
majesty, 'you dare not do it: in such a parricidal attempt,
the steel would drop from your nerveless arm!' ... Mr.
Henry, proceeding in his address to the people, asked
whether the county of Charlotte would have any authority to
dispute an obedience to the laws of Virginia; and he
pronounced Virginia to be to the Union what the county of
Charlotte was to her. Having denied the right of a State to
decide upon the constitutionality of federal laws, he added,
that perhaps it might be necessary to say something of the
merits of the laws in question.[471] His private opinion was
that they were good and proper. But whatever might be their
merits, it belonged to the people, who held the reins over
the head of Congress, and to them alone, to say whether they
were acceptable or otherwise to Virginians; and that this
must be done by way of petition; that Congress were as much
our representatives as the Assembly, and had as good a right
to our confidence. He had seen with regret the unlimited
power over the purse and sword consigned to the general
government; but ... he had been overruled, and it was now
necessary to submit to the constitutional exercise of that
power. 'If,' said he, 'I am asked what is to be done, when a
people feel themselves intolerably oppressed, my answer is
ready,--Overturn the government. But do not, I beseech you,
carry matters to this length without provocation. Wait at
least until some infringement is made upon your rights, and
which cannot otherwise be redressed; for if ever you recur
to another change, you may bid adieu forever to
representative government. You can never exchange the
present government but for a monarchy.... Let us preserve
our strength for the French, the English, the Germans, or
whoever else shall dare to invade our territory, and not
exhaust it in civil commotions and intestine wars.' He
concluded by declaring his design to exert himself in the
endeavor to allay the heart-burnings and jealousies which
had been fomented in the state legislature; and he fervently
prayed, if he was deemed unworthy to effect it, that it
might be reserved to some other and abler hand to extend
this blessing over the community."[472]

The outline thus given may be inaccurate in several particulars: it is known to be so in one. Respecting the alien and sedition acts, the orator expressed no opinion at all;[473] but accepting them as the law of the land, he counselled moderation, forbearance, and the use of constitutional means of redress. Than that whole effort, as has been said by a recent and a sagacious historian, "nothing in his life was nobler."[474]

Upon the conclusion of the old man's speech the stand was taken by a very young man, John Randolph of Roanoke, who undertook to address the crowd, offering himself to them as a candidate for Congress, but on behalf of the party then opposed to Patrick Henry. By reason of weariness, no doubt, the latter did not remain upon the platform; but having "requested a friend to report to him anything which might require an answer," he stepped back into the tavern. "Randolph began by saying that he had admired that man more than any on whom the sun had shone, but that now he was constrained to differ from him '_toto coelo_.'" Whatever else Randolph may have said in his speech, whether important or otherwise, was spoken under the disadvantage of a cold and a hoarseness so severe as to render him scarcely able to "utter an audible sentence." Furthermore, Patrick Henry "made no reply, nor did he again present himself to the people."[475] There is, however, a tradition, not improbable, that when Randolph had finished his speech, and had come back into the room where the aged statesman was resting, the latter, taking him gently by the hand, said to him, with great kindness: "Young man, you call me father. Then, my son, I have something to say unto thee: keep justice, keep truth,--and you will live to think differently."

As a result of the poll, Patrick Henry was, by a great majority, elected to the House of Delegates. But his political enemies, who, for sufficient reasons, greatly dreaded his appearance upon that scene of his ancient domination, were never any more to be embarrassed by his presence there. For, truly, they who, on that March day, at Charlotte court-house, had heard Patrick Henry, "had heard an immortal orator who would never speak again."[476] He seems to have gone thence to his home, and never to have left it. About the middle of the next month, being too sick to write many words, he lifted himself up in bed long enough to tell the secretary of state that he could not go on the mission to France, and to send his dying blessing to his old friend, the President. Early in June, his eldest daughter, Martha Fontaine, living at a distance of two days' travel from Red Hill, received from him a letter beginning with these words: "Dear Patsy, I am very unwell, and have Dr. Cabell with me."[477] Upon this alarming news, she and others of his kindred in that neighborhood made all haste to go to him. On arriving at Red Hill "they found him sitting in a large, old-fashioned armchair, in which he was easier than upon a bed." The disease of which he was dying was intussusception. On the 6th of June, all other remedies having failed, Dr. Cabell proceeded to administer to him a dose of liquid mercury. Taking the vial in his hand, and looking at it for a moment, the dying man said: "I suppose, doctor, this is your last resort?" The doctor replied: "I am sorry to say, governor, that it is. Acute inflammation of the intestine has already taken place; and unless it is removed, mortification will ensue, if it has not already commenced, which I fear." "What will be the effect of this medicine?" said the old man. "It will give you immediate relief, or"--the kind-hearted doctor could not finish the sentence. His patient took up the word: "You mean, doctor, that it will give relief, or will prove fatal immediately?" The doctor answered: "You can only live a very short time without it, and it may possibly relieve you." Then Patrick Henry said, "Excuse me, doctor, for a few minutes;" and drawing down over his eyes a silken cap which he usually wore, and still holding the vial in his hand, he prayed, in clear words, a simple childlike prayer, for his family, for his country, and for his own soul then in the presence of death. Afterward, in perfect calmness, he swallowed the medicine. Meanwhile, Dr. Cabell, who greatly loved him, went out upon the lawn, and in his grief threw himself down upon the earth under one of the trees, weeping bitterly. Soon, when he had sufficiently mastered himself, the doctor came back to his patient, whom he found calmly watching the congealing of the blood under his finger-nails, and speaking words of love and peace to his family, who were weeping around his chair. Among other things, he told them that he was thankful for that goodness of God, which, having blessed him through all his life, was then permitting him to die without any pain. Finally, fixing his eyes with much tenderness on his dear friend, Dr. Cabell, with whom he had formerly held many arguments respecting the Christian religion, he asked the doctor to observe how great a reality and benefit that religion was to a man about to die. And after Patrick Henry had spoken to his beloved physician these few words in praise of something which, having never failed him in all his life before, did not then fail him in his very last need of it, he continued to breathe very softly for some moments; after which they who were looking upon him saw that his life had departed.

FOOTNOTES:

[465] Henry Adams, _Life of J. Randolph,_ 27-28.

[466] _Writings of Washington_, xi. 557-559.

[467] _Works of John Adams_, ix. 162; viii. 641-642.

[468] _Writings of Washington_, xi. 387-391.

[469] Garland, _Life of John Randolph_, 130.

[470] Fontaine, MS.

[471] The alien and sedition acts.

[472] Wirt, 393-395.

[473] _Hist. Mag._ for 1873, 353.

[474] Henry Adams, _John Randolph_, 29.

[475] J. W. Alexander, _Life of A. Alexander_, 188-189. About this whole scene have gathered many myths, of which several first appeared in a Life of Henry, in the _New Edinb. Encycl._ 1817; were thence copied into Howe, _Hist. Coll. Va._ 224-225; and have thence been engulfed in that rich mass of unwhipped hyperboles and of unexploded fables still patriotically swallowed by the American public as American history.

[476] Henry Adams.

[477] Fontaine, MS.

LIST OF PRINTED DOCUMENTS

CITED IN THIS BOOK, WITH TITLES, PLACES, AND DATES OF THE EDITIONS USED.

ADAMS, CHARLES FRANCIS. (See John Adams.)

ADAMS, HENRY, The Life of Albert Gallatin. Philadelphia: 1880.

ADAMS, HENRY, John Randolph. Am. Statesmen Series. Boston: 1882.

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ADAMS, JOHN, The Works of. Ed. by Charles Francis Adams. 10 vols.
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ADAMS, SAMUEL, Life of. (See Wm. V. Wells.)

ALEXANDER, JAMES W., The Life of Archibald Alexander. New York:
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American Archives. (Peter Force.) 9 vols. Washington: 1837-1853.

The American Quarterly Review. Vol. i. Philadelphia: 1827.

BANCROFT, GEORGE, History of the United States. 10 vols. Boston:
1870-1874.

BANCROFT, GEORGE, History of the United States. The Author's Last
Revision. 6 vols. New York: 1883-1885.

BANCROFT, GEORGE, History of the Formation of the Constitution of
the United States of America. 2 vols. New York: 1882.

BLAND, RICHARD, A Letter to the Clergy of Virginia, n. p. 1760.

BROUGHAM, HENRY, LORD, The Life and Times of, Written by himself. 3
vols. New York: 1871.

BURK, JOHN (DALY), The History of Virginia. 4 vols. Petersburg:
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BYRD, WILLIAM, Byrd Manuscripts. 2 vols. Richmond: 1866.

Calendar of Virginia State Papers. Vol. ii. Richmond: 1881.

CAMPBELL, CHARLES, The Bland Papers: Being a Selection from the
Manuscripts of Colonel Theodorick Bland, Jr. 2 vols. Petersburg:
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CAMPBELL, CHARLES, History of the Colony and Ancient Dominion of
Virginia. Philadelphia: 1860.

Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society. Vol. ii.
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Colonel George Rogers Clark's Sketch of his Campaign in the Illinois
in 1778-79. Cincinnati: 1869.

COOKE, JOHN ESTEN, Virginia: A History of the People. (Commonwealth
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COOLEY, THOMAS M. (See Joseph Story.)

Correspondence of the American Revolution. Edited by Jared Sparks. 4
vols. Boston: 1853.

CURTIS, B. R., Reports of Decisions in the Supreme Court of the
United States. Boston: 1855.

CURTIS, GEORGE TICKNOR, History of the Origin, Formation, and
Adoption of the Constitution of the United States. 2 vols.
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CURTIS, GEORGE TICKNOR, Life of Daniel Webster. New York: 1872.

DE COSTA, B. F. (See William White.)

DICKINSON, JOHN, The Political Writings of. 2 vols. Wilmington:
1801.

ELLIOT, JONATHAN, The Debates in the Several State Conventions, on
the adoption of the Federal Constitution, etc. 5 vols.
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EVERETT, ALEXANDER H., Life of Patrick Henry. In Sparks's Library of
Am. Biography. 2d series, vol. i. Boston: 1844.

FROTHINGHAM, RICHARD, The Rise of the Republic of the United States.
Boston: 1872.

GALES, JOSEPH, The Debates and Proceedings in the Congress of the
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GALLATIN, ALBERT. (See Henry Adams.)

GARLAND, HUGH A., The Life of John Randolph of Roanoke. 2 vols. New
York: 1860.

GIBBS, GEORGE, Memoirs of the Administrations of Washington and John
Adams, edited from the Papers of Oliver Wolcott. New York:
1846.

GIRARDIN, LOUIS HUE. (See John Burk.)

GORDON, WILLIAM, History of the Rise, Progress, and Establishment of
the Independence of the United States of America; including an
account of the Late War, and of the Thirteen Colonies from their
origin to that period. 3 vols. New York: 1789.

GRIGSBY, HUGH BLAIR, The Virginia Convention of 1776. Richmond:
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HAMILTON, ALEXANDER, Works of. Edited by John C. Hamilton. 7 vols.
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HANSARD, T. C., The Parliamentary History of England. Vol. xviii.
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HAWKS, FRANCIS L., Contributions to the Ecclesiastical History of
the United States of America. Vol. i. New York: 1836.

HENING, WILLIAM WALLER, The Statutes at Large: Being a Collection of
all the Laws of Virginia. 13 vols. Richmond, New York, and
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HENRY, PATRICK, Life of. (See Wirt, William, and Everett, Alexander
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HENRY, WILLIAM WIRT, Character and Public Career of Patrick Henry.
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HENRY, WILLIAM WIRT, Patrick Henry: Life, Correspondence, and
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HERRING, JAMES. (See National Portrait Gallery.)

HILDRETH, RICHARD, The History of the United States of America. 6
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The Historical Magazine, and Notes and Queries Concerning the
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HOWE, HENRY, Historical Collections of Virginia. Charleston: 1845.

HOWISON, ROBERT R., A History of Virginia. Vol. i. Philadelphia:
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IREDELL, JAMES, Life of. (See McRee, G. J.)

JAY, WILLIAM, The Life of John Jay. 2 vols. New York: 1833.

JEFFERSON, THOMAS, Notes on the State of Virginia. Philadelphia:
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JEFFERSON, THOMAS, The Writings of. Ed. by H. A. Washington. 9 vols.
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JEFFERSON, THOMAS, Life of. (See H. S. Randall.)

JONES, SKELTON. (See John Burk.)

Journal of the House of Delegates of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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KENNEDY, JOHN P., Memoirs of the Life of William Wirt. 2 vols.
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LAMB, GENERAL JOHN, Memoir of. (See Leake, Isaac Q.)

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LEAKE, ISAAC Q., Memoir of the Life and Times of General John Lamb.
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LEE, CHARLES CARTER. (See Lee, Henry, Observations, etc.)

LEE, HENRY, Observations on the Writings of Thomas Jefferson, with
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the late Gen. Henry Lee. In a series of Letters. Second ed.,
with an Introduction and Notes by Charles Carter Lee.
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LEE, RICHARD HENRY. (See Richard Henry Lee, 2d.)

LEE, RICHARD HENRY, 2d, Memoir of the Life of Richard Henry Lee. 2
vols. Philadelphia: 1825.

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INDEX

Adams, John, on Henry's confession of illiteracy, 12;
early recognizes Henry's importance, 88;
describes enthusiasm of Virginians over oratory of Henry and Lee, 101;
describes social festivities at Philadelphia, 104-106;
in Congress asks Duane to explain motion to prepare regulations, 108;
describes Henry's first speech, 110;
debates method of voting in Congress, 110;
gives summary of Henry's speech against Galloway's plan, 116;
on committee to prepare address to the king, 117;
forms a high opinion of Henry's abilities, 124;
discusses with Henry the probability of war, 125;
on Henry's apparent profanity, 126;
has brief military aspirations, 154;
envious of military glory, 154;
on committees in second Continental Congress, 172, 175;
as likely as Henry to have been a good fighter, 188;
but unlike him in not offering, 188;
urged by Henry to advocate French alliance, 199;
on importance of Virginia's action in adopting a constitution, 201;
advocates a democratic constitution in "Thoughts on Government," 202;
praised for it by Henry, 204-206;
his complimentary reply, 206;
comments on Virginia aristocrats, 207;
his friendship with Henry, 397;
becomes president, 407;
sends French mission, 411, 412;
appoints Henry envoy to France, 412;
thanked by Henry, 412.

Adams, Samuel, member of first Continental Congress, 108;
of the second, 173;
friendship of Henry for, 206;
unfavorable to federal Constitution, 330.

Alexander, Rev. Archibald, of Princeton, analyzes Henry's success
as a jury lawyer, 370;
gives anecdotes of his success, 371-375.

Alsop, John, member of second Continental Congress, 173.

Arnold, Benedict, commands marauding expedition in Virginia, 278.

Articles of Confederation, their weakness deplored by Henry, 305;
plans of Henry and others to strengthen, 305, 306.

Assembly, General, of Virginia. See Legislature.

Atherton, Joshua, opposes federal Constitution, 330.

Atkinson, Roger, describes Virginia delegates in Continental Congress,
102.

Aylett, Mrs. Betsy, letter of Henry to, describing his political
opinions, in 1796, 405.

Baker, Counsellor, opposes Henry in British debts case, 362.

Baptists, petition convention for religious liberty, 209;
congratulate Henry on his election as governor, 216;
his reply, 217.

Bar of Virginia, examination for, 22-25;
its ability, 90;
leaders of, 93;
opposes, as a rule, the federal Constitution, 319;
its eminence and participation in British debts case, 360.

Barrell, William, entertains delegates to first Continental Congress,
at his store, 106.

Bayard, ----, entertains John Adams at first Continental Congress, 105.

Bernard, Sir Francis, describes exciting effect of Virginia Resolves
in Boston, 82.

Bill of Rights, the demand for in the new federal Constitution, 324,
325, 326, 331;
secured in first ten amendments, 354, 355.

Blair, Archibald, draws forth Henry's opinions on American foreign
policy, 409.

Blair, John, prominent in Virginia bar, 93;
on committee to notify Henry of his election as governor, 212;
tries British debts case, 362.

Bland, Richard, on committee to protest against Stamp Act, 66;
believes submission inevitable, 67;
opposes Henry's Virginia Resolves, 71;
loses leadership to Henry, 89;
leader of conservatives, 95;
appointed delegate to Continental Congress, 99;
described by Atkinson, 102;
by John Adams, 106;
in debate on manner of voting, 112;
opposes Henry's motion to arm militia, 137;
on committees, 152;
in convention of 1776, 190;
on committee to draft bill of rights and constitution, 200.

Bland, Theodoric, opposes ratification of federal Constitution, 320;
presents to Congress Virginia's appeal for a new federal convention,
354.

Bland, Theophilus, letter of Tucker to, sneering at Henry, 269.

Bloodworth, Timothy, of North Carolina, opposes federal Constitution,
330.

Boston Port Bill, its day of going into operation made a public fast
day by Virginia Assembly, 97.

Boyce, Captain, asks Washington, through Henry, for a letter, 301.

Braxton, Carter, wishes an aristocratic state constitution in Virginia,
201;
recommends a pamphlet in favor of such a government, 203, 206;
condemned by Henry, 204, 206.

Breckenridge, ----, against Henry in murder trial, 376.

British debts case, cause for the action, 359, 360;
question at issue, did treaty of 1783 override a Virginia sequestration
act, 360;
the counsel, 360;
Henry's preparation for, 361, 362;
first trial and Henry's speech, 362-364;
intense popular interest, 363;
second trial before Chief Justice Jay and Justice Iredell, 364-367;
comparison of Henry's and Marshall's pleas, 366;
Iredell's opinion, 367.

Brougham, Lord, third cousin of Patrick Henry, 3;
resemblance between the two orators, 3, 4.

Burgesses, House of. See Legislature of Virginia.

Burgoyne, John, his campaign and capture, 240.

Burke, Aedanus, opposed to federal Constitution, 330.

Butler, Bishop Joseph, his "Analogy" Henry's favorite book, 20, 391;
an edition printed and distributed by Henry to counteract skepticism,
394.

Byrd, William, of Westover, describes Sarah Syme, Henry's mother, 1, 2.

Cabell, Dr. George, Henry's physician in his last illness, 421, 422.

Cadwallader, John, entertains John Adams at first Continental Congress,
105.

Campbell, Alexander, with Henry in British debts case, 360.

Carrington, Clement, son of Paul, explains Henry's military defect to
be lack of discipline, 187.

Carrington, Edward, on Henry's desire for disunion in 1788, 317.

Carrington, Paul, friendly with Henry at time of Virginia Resolutions,
74;
on committee of convention to frame Constitution, 200.

Carrington, Paul, Jr., opposes Henry in a murder case, 372, 373.

Carter, Charles, of Stafford, on committee of Virginia convention, 152.

Carter, Landon, on committee to prepare remonstrances against Stamp Act,
66;
deplores to Washington the number of inexperienced men in Virginia
convention of 1776, 191;
writes to Washington sneering at Henry's military preparations, 222,
223.

Cary, Archibald, on committee of Virginia convention, 152;
in convention of 1776, 190;
on committee to draft constitution and bill of rights, 200;
reports plan to the convention, 210;
his reported threat to kill Henry if he should be made dictator, 226;
another version, 234.

Chase, Samuel, member of first Continental Congress, 108;
overwhelmed at first by Lee's and Henry's oratory, 119;
later discovers them to be mere men, 119;
opposed to federal Constitution, 330.

Chatham, Lord, praises state papers of first Continental Congress, 117;
his death, 240.

Christian, William, on committee for arming Virginia militia, 151;
with Henry in flight from Tarleton, 281, 282.

Clapham, Josias, on committee of Virginia convention, 152.

Clark, George Rogers, sent by Henry to punish Northwestern Indians, 258;
success of his expedition described by Henry, 258-260, 263.

Clergy of Virginia, paid in tobacco by colony, 37;
their sufferings from fluctuations in its value, 38;
their salaries cut down by Option Laws, 40, 41;
apply in vain to governor, 43;
appeal to England, 44;
bring suits to secure damages, 44.
See Parsons' Cause.

Clinton, George, opposes federal Constitution, 330;
his letter answered by Henry, 353.

Collier, Sir George, commands British fleet which ravages Virginia, 257,
264, 267.

Collins, ----, calls on John Adams, 105.

Committee of Correspondence, established, 96.

Committee of Safety, of Virginia, given control of Virginia militia, 177;
ignores Henry's nominal command, and keeps him from serving in field,
180, 181;
causes for its action, 184-187.

Congress, Continental, called for by Virginia Burgesses, 98;
delegates elected to in Virginia, 99;
members of described, 101-108;
convivialities attending session, 104-106;
holds first meeting and plans organization, 107-111;
debates method of voting, 108, 111-113;
elects a president and secretary, 107, 108;
resolves to vote by colonies, 113;
appoints committee to state grievances, and others, 113, 114;
absence of reports of its action, 114;
debates and rejects Galloway's plan of union, 115, 116;
discusses non-importation, 117;
appoints committees to draft state papers, 117, 118;
rejects Lee's draft of address to king, 118;
mythical account of proceedings in by Wirt, 119-122;
fails, according to Adams, to appreciate dangers of situation, 124;
warns people to be prepared for war, 129;
selects Washington for commander-in-chief, 152, 153;
second Congress convenes in 1775, 166;
its proceedings secret and reports meagre, 168, 171-172;
question as to Henry's behavior in, 168-170;
the important questions decided by it, 170, 171;
committees in, 172-175;
adjourns, 176;
decides to adopt Virginia troops, 181;
sends Henry a colonel's commission, 181;
urged by Virginia to declare independence, 197;
flies from Philadelphia, 230;
cabal in against Washington, 242-250;
reports of Henry to, concerning sending militia south, 260-262;
and concerning Matthews' invasion, 264-266.

Congress of the United States, reluctantly led by Madison to propose
first ten amendments, 354-355.

Connecticut, prepares for war, 131, 133.

Constitution of the United States, convention for forming it called, 309;
opposition to in South for fear of unfriendly action of Northern
States, 309-311;
refusal of Henry to attend convention, 310-312;
formed by the convention, 313;
its adoption urged upon Henry by Washington, 313;
struggle over its ratification in Virginia, 314-338;
at outset favored by majority in Virginia, 315;
campaign of Henry, Mason, and others against, 316, 317;
opposed by Virginia bar and bench, 319;
struggles in the convention, 320-338;
Henry's objections to, 322-330;
policy of opposition to work for amendments, 330;
ratified by convention with reservation of sovereignty, 331, 332;
obedience to it promised by Henry for his party, 332, 333;
struggle for amendments, 339-356;
difficulties in amending, 339, 340;
doubts expressed by Henry of its possibility, 341;
organization of a party to agitate for amendments, 341-345;
Virginia demands a new convention, 347-350;
twelve amendments proposed by Congress, 354;
this action probably due to Virginia's demands, 355, 356.

Constitution of Virginia, its adoption, 200-211;
its democratic character, 211.

Convention of Virginia. See Legislature.

Conway, General Thomas, praised in anonymous letter to Henry, 244;
his cabal against Washington, 250.

Conway cabal, its origin, 242;
attempts to prejudice Henry against Washington, 243-246;
explained by Washington to Henry, 248-250;
supposed connection of R. H. Lee with, discredits him in Virginia,
252, 253.

Cootes, ----, of James River, laments Henry's treasonable speech in
Parsons' Cause, 58, 59.

Corbin, Francis, favors ratification of federal Constitution, 320.

Corbin, Richard, on Dunmore's order pays for gunpowder, 161.

Cornwallis, Lord, defeats Greene at Guilford, 278;
invades Virginia, 279;
sends Tarleton to capture the legislature, 279.

Cushing, Thomas, member of second Continental Congress, 174.

Custis, John, informs Henry of Conway cabal, 247.

Dandridge, Bartholomew, on committee to notify Henry of his election as
governor, 212.

Dandridge, Dorothea, second wife of Patrick Henry, 241;
on his religious habits, 392.

Dandridge, Colonel Nathan, Jefferson meets Henry at house of, 8.

Dandridge, Nathaniel West, contests seat of Littlepage, 61;
employs Henry as counsel, 61.

Davies, William, letter to concerning dictatorship in 1781, 286.

Dawson, John, assists Henry in debate on ratifying federal Constitution,
320.

Deane, Silas, describes Southern delegates to first Continental Congress,
especially Patrick Henry, 114, 115;
on committees of second Continental Congress, 173, 174.

Democratic party, disliked by Henry for its French sympathies, 397;
its attempt in Congress to block Jay treaty condemned by Henry, 405;
its subserviency to France and defiance of government denounced by
Henry, 409.

Dickinson, John, meets John Adams at first Continental Congress, 105,
106;
on committee to prepare address to the king, 117;
prepares final draft of address, 118;
thinks war inevitable, 130.

Dictatorship, supposed projects for in Virginia during Revolution in
1776, 223-235;
in 1781, 285-287;
real meaning of term in those years, 227-229.

Digges, Dudley, in Virginia convention of 1776, 190;
on committee to draft bill of rights and constitution, 200;
on committee to notify Henry of his election as governor, 212.

Dresser, Rev. Charles, on Henry's religious habits, 392.

Duane, James, member of first Continental Congress, 108;
moves a committee to prepare regulations for voting, 108;
favors Galloway's plan of home rule, 115;
on committee of second Continental Congress, 172.

Dunmore, Lord, dissolves House of Burgesses for protesting against
Boston Port Bill, 97;
makes a campaign against Indians, 131;
reports to home government the military preparations of Virginia, 133;
sends force to seize gunpowder, 156;
alarmed at advance of Henry's force, 160;
offers to pay for gunpowder, 160;
issues a proclamation against Henry, 162, 163;
suspected of intention to arrest him, 166;
describes to General Howe his operations against rebels, 178, 179;
his palace occupied by Henry, 214.

Education in Virginia, 5.

Ellsworth, Oliver, appointed envoy to France, 412.

Episcopal Church, established in Virginia, 37;
its increasing unpopularity, 43, 57;
virtually disestablished by declaration of rights, 209;
its incorporation proposed by Henry, 294;
Henry a member of, 391, 392.

Fauquier, Governor Francis, condemns Henry's speech against the Stamp
Act, 86.

Federalist party, at first viewed with suspicion by Henry, 397;
later sympathized with by him, 398, 399;
sincerity of its leaders in offering Henry office questioned by
Jefferson, 404;
its folly in passing alien and sedition acts, 408.

Fleming, John, Henry's assistant in introducing the Virginia Resolves,
69.

Fontaine, Edward, gives Roane's description of Henry's speech for
organizing militia, 146, 150.

Fontaine, Mrs. Martha, with Henry in last illness, 421.

Fontaine, Colonel Patrick Henry, statement as to Henry's classical
training, 15;
finds his examinations rigorous, 16;
tells story of his grandfather's conversation in Latin with a French
visitor, 16, 17;
describes his grandfather's preparation in British debts case, 361;
describes his abstemiousness, 386.

Ford, John, defended by Henry in a murder case, 374, 375.

France, alliance with desired by Henry as preliminary to declaring
independence, 194, 198, 199;
discussed by Charles Lee, 195;
adherence to, advocated strongly by Henry, 254, 255;
infidelity of, combated by Henry, 393;
its quarrel with United States during Adams's administration, 407-412;
its conduct toward Marshall, Pinckney, and Gerry condemned by Henry,
409, 410;
commission to, nominated by Adams, 412.

Franklin, Benjamin, on committee with Henry in second Continental
Congress, 174, 175.

Frazer, ----, recommended to Washington by Henry, 175.

Free trade, advocated by Henry, 291, 292.

French Revolution, effect of its excesses on Henry and others, 398;
its infidelity condemned by Henry, 409.

Gadsden, Christopher, at Continental Congress, meets John Adams, 104,
105;
a member of Congress, 108;
in debate on manner of voting, 112;
on gunpowder committee of second Continental Congress, 175.

Gage, General Thomas, describes the exciting effect of the Virginia
Resolves over the continent, 82.

Gallatin, Albert, his alleged Latin conversation with Henry, 16, 17.

Galloway, Joseph, meets John Adams at first Continental Congress, 105;
a member of it, 108;
offers plan of reconciliation with England, 115;
its close approach to success, 115.

Gardoqui, ----, Spanish envoy, negotiates with Jay respecting navigation
of the Mississippi, 307, 308.

Gates, General Horatio, cabal to place him in supreme command, 242, 250;
praised in anonymous letter to Henry, 244;
consoled after battle of Camden by Virginia Assembly 277.

Genet, Edmond Charles, upheld by Jefferson and Madison, 397.

Gerry, Elbridge, opposes adoption of federal Constitution, 330.

Gerrymandering, employed in 1788 against Madison in Virginia, 351, 352.

Girardin, Louis Hue, in his continuation of Burk's "History of Virginia,"
written under Jefferson's supervision, accuses Henry of plan to
establish a dictatorship in 1776, 225;
says the same for the year 1781, 285.

Gordon, Rev. William, describes circulation of the Virginia resolutions
in the Northern colonies, 80.

Grayson, William, opposes ratification of federal Constitution, 320;
assists Henry in debate, 320;
elected senator at Henry's dictation, 350, 353.

Greene, General Nathanael, beaten at Guilford, 278;
considered as possible dictator in 1781, 286.

Griffin, Judge Cyrus, tries British debts case, 362, 364.

Grigsby, Hugh Blair, considers Wirt's version of Henry's speech for
arming militia apocryphal, 149;
but admits that outline is authentic, 150;
reports statement of Clement Carrington regarding Henry's military
failings, 187;
on the injustice of Henry's treatment, 188.

Hamilton, Alexander, urges magnanimous treatment of Tories, 289;
letter of Madison to, warning of Henry's intention to defeat operation
of Constitution, 344;
his financial schemes disapproved by Henry, 397.

Hamilton, Colonel Henry, governor of Detroit, 259.

Hampden-Sidney College, 16;
suspends work to hear Henry's last speech, 415.

Hancock, John, his military aspirations, 153, 154;
doubtful about federal Constitution, 330.

Hardwicke, Lord, declares Virginia option law invalid, 44.

Harrison, Benjamin, on committee to remonstrate against Stamp Act, 66;
appointed delegate to Continental Congress, 99;
described by John Adams, 106;
opposes Henry's motion in Virginia convention to organize militia, 137;
on committee to arm militia, 151;
on other committees, 152;
returns to Virginia convention, 176;
his flight from Tarleton, 281, 282;
denounces Constitution as dangerous, 319, 322;
assists Henry in debate, 320.

Harvey, "Butterwood Tom," his evidence assailed by Henry in a murder
trial, 374, 375.

Hawley, Joseph, his letter prophesying war read by John Adams to Henry,
125.

Henry, David, manager of "Gentleman's Magazine," kinsman of Henry, 3.

Henry, John, marries Sarah Syme, 2;
father of Patrick Henry, 2;
his education and character, 2, 3;
distinguished Scotch relatives, 3;
educates his son, 6, 13;
sets him up in trade, 6;
after his failure and marriage establishes him on a farm, 7;
hears his son's speech in Parsons' Cause, 49, 50.