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Excerpt from An Oration Commemorative of the Character of Patrick Henry Mr. Henry's character in every position of life, was a high and honest credit to his country. He was the righthand friend of human free dom and of universal rights, a famous pattern of social purity, and a demi-angel among men. His essential services to his country in her very moment of fearfulest peril his comprehensive patriotism and well known decided unbending and abiding fidelity to the cause of republican ism; his Melancthonian purity of motive in any course he marked out for himself, or cause he espoused, elicited from distinguished sources testimonials of hearts sent and head sanctioned approbation and grateful esteem. Like Them istocles, he resolved to serve his country as a son should serve his sire, nor sought for other rewards, than the reection that he had per formed some services which contributed to her special benefit and well being. Pro bono pub lico ad infinitum. Was his maxim as a states man; and no man illustrated and expounded the meaning of his precepts more fully than did he by nearly every public and private act. He feared consolidation of power from the forming of a constitution, vesting such wide extended powers and inuence in the hands of a few, as he believed the introduction of the Constitution of the United States would, and if he erred in opposing its ratification for this and similar reasons, then surely it was an er ror which is attributable to an excess, rather than to a want of cautious, zealous patriotism and anxiety for the permanency of the republic. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the o