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THE REFLECTOR.
MILLEDUEVILLE, G. TUESDAY. Al’lUL 21, 1818.
NO. 24.
BIOGRAPHY.
MR. WIRT.
from "Letters from Washington on the consti-
lawa and public characters of the United States
reigner”—published in the National Uegister. j
t now introduce you to another pro-
personage, who figures in this go
ut, and of whom, you requested me
some account. Mr. Wirt, the At-
General of the United States, has
lished himself hy his literary and fo-
abours. In his person, he is more al
and elegant, and in his manners
raceful and easy, than either of the
ion (Mr. Monroe and Mr. Crawford)
mentioned. Mr. Wirt is a native ot
and, and like Socrates, owes his being
nts, who existed in the humbler walks
It is reported, hut 1 shall not voir ii
correctness, ttiat lie was •• conceived
ture, and by fire begot.” Whether
true or not, is a matter of indifference
ietv, and if true, can only add to the
of the man. Without regular or acad.'m-
cation, without patronage, and without
ntial and powerful connections, he has
his way through the difficulties by which
surrounded, to the sphere of cnii-
in which lie now revolves. His exam-
nislies another evidence of the exitl-
of this government, which opens so
way to genius, industry and exertion.
Trt in his youth, was distinguished In
liant and romantic fancy, and farilin
e acquisition of knowledge. At tin
of his father, lie was left under the
dianship of Dr. Hunt, of Montgomery
ty, Maryland, who is said to bave been
versed in the Greek and Latin language
diich he was so good as to instruct hr,
d. In a few years the guardian paid ti.,
t of nature, and left his young charge to
ct the storms of life as he could. The
tli of Mr. Hunt not only deprived Wirt,
the neighborhood of a good teacher, and
excellent friend, and the loss was deemed
-parable unless supplied by Wirt hiinseli
knj iiiQiln nit i tirntwirl/Mvi lil:» nnrvft.
o had made no inconsiderable proficient )
he languages and other branches of know-
ge, and who, as he was now without 1W-
e and destitute of other means of support,
sented to officiate as preceptor. In this
ation he continued only until he had made
self acquainted with the principles of the
al science under the direction of judg •
wards, witli whom he had formed an ac-
intance, and in whose house ho boarded
the benefit of his instruction. It was dur-
Jiis residence in this part of Montgome-
, that he formed a juvenile attachment,
ich was either not reciprocated, or which
s not sufficiently ardent to exist for any
gth of time ; it however, called forth the
ertion of his muse, and the fire of his fan-
, and the letters which he addressed to the
ung lady are said to have been replete with
the imagery of poetry, and all the com-
n place of love. Being now prepared
the practice of law, but entirely destitute
funds, a nei^ibor, and a friend gave him
orse, and money enough to enable him to
iceed to Fauquier, in Virginia, his point -
destination, where he took up his resi-
nce, and commenced the practico of his
ofession. He had not been long at the bar
fore he entered into the connubial state, ami
come the husband of a respectable young
J y of the county in which he resided.—
hethcr he conceived his marriage prenm-
re and unfortunate, or whether an improp-
association with some dissipated and dis-
lute young men of the neighborhood, was
;e cause of his intemperance, I am not able
say; but Mr, Wirt became attached to
pleasures of the bottle, and for some
ars led a life disgraceful to himself and
inful to the more moral and virtuous part
his friends. It was about this period too
at he began to relish the visionary theories
Godwin, and to imbibe the intoxicating,
Ht deadly poison of infidelity. A cloud
ung over his prospects, iiis wife left this
orld, and his dissolute life ai*i dangerous
inions excluded him from professional Ini-
rness. To this melancholy blank in his car-
existence, he alludes in one of the letters
his “ British Spy,” written in 1S03. *• It
he observes, “ at this gitldy period of
fe, when a series of dissolute courses have
ebauchcd the purity and innocence of the
cart, shaken the pillars of the understand
ing, and converted her sound and w holcsome
perations into a little more than a set of fe-
erish starts and incoherent and delirious
reams ; it is in such a situation that a new
angled theory is welcomed as an amusing
ucst, and deism is embraced as a balmy
mforter against the pangs of an offended
nscience.” While under the influence of
eso feelings, and leading this kind of life,
composed a comic piece called the“ Coiiu-
y Court Lawyer,” which has never I be-
ve, been presented to the public. I have
;en informed that about this time, while
ill trammelled by habits of intemperance,
id floating amidst the dark and dreary
ilds of scepticism and infidelity, he was
prevailed upon to accompany a friend to the
rustic church of the divine, he so elegantly
and poetically describes in his •• Spy.” He
entered and took his seat, he neither noticed
the congregation nor the sightless Demos
thenes that addressed him, and was fast
sinking into the arms of the drowsy deity,
when instinctively, and witli an impulse, he
could n .ilier control nor repress, he started
from the bench on which he sat, as if struck
by electricity, and gave his whole attenti. n
t> ihe discourse of the preacher; whose
blasts of r’ >qn is .• had thus roused him
from b s . tu| -r and riveted his every faculty
as if bj enchantment. What moral effect
the eloquence of Doctor Waddel had upon
Mr. Wirt, I have not been able to learn, but
it is certain, that soon after this event, he a-
handuned his former associates, and removed
to Richmond, where he underwent a radical
change in ni.s religious opinions, and moral
feelings, anil was i hosen by the then govern
or of the state, Mr. Monroe, one of his privy
c.'iinceil irs. I nun that epoch he rose rapid
ly in h.s profession, and in the estimation of
the put-lii. IIis •* Spy” gave him a recep-
'ion, w uicli his eloquence at the bar tended
; > establish, and the fortune and respectabili
ty of the lady to whom he is now united, en
larged the circle of his friends, and extend
'd his spore of action. He has recently en
deavored to add to the just fame he has ac
quired, by the publication of a life of Pa
trick Henry, whose eloquence he seems to
admire a little too much, A whose character
he ti;,s on all occasions been fond of portray
ing. As an evidence of the respect hi which
lie is in Id by his adopted state, the vacant
situation of senator of the United States
,vis offered him by the legislature of Virgin
ia... few sessions ago, but he refused to ac
cept it. Since that, he has been elevated by
the President, to the post he now holds, w hich
l presume is more agreeable to Ids feelings
and more consistent with his professional
pursuits and studies, to which he has been,
far many years, assiduously devoted. 01
the literary productions of Mr. Wirt, the ge
neral character is brilliancy of coloring, re
dundancy ot i irfforicul embellishment, and
a loudness for poetical imagery. The char
acteristic feature of his mind is fancy, the
iiiicontroiled indulgence of which often leads
him into extravagant hyperboles, alike in
consistent with the sober dictates of sound
sense, and the. canons of correct taste. The
remarks w hich Jotinson applies to Collins,
may be, 1 think, not inaptly applied to the
subject of these observations. “ He loves
fairies, genii, giants and monsters ; he de
lights to rove through the meanders of en
chantment, to gaze on the magnificence of
golden palaces, and to repose by the water
falls of Elysian gardens.” Mr. Wirt does
no. seem to search for imagery or to labor
after the splendid but fugitive coloring of
fancy. From the native fertility of his ima
gination, this is rendered unnecessary, and
new creations spring up in his mind unex
pected., hut not, unsolicited. There is a want
of simplicity ami chastity however in his
compositions, which can only be imputed to
.is occasional love of extravagance, and his
fondness for poetical embellishment. The
subje ",s in which lie excels, and in which he
displays the best specimens of his style of
writing,arc those of elocution and oratory,
which may be found interspersed throughout
all his literary works. His sty le of speaking
bears a strong affinity to his style of writing,
and blazes not unfrequently with the efful
gence of Curranian eloquence.
Whatever were the errors into which Mr.
Win may have fallen, at the conuneuccmeiit
of his oratorical career, from false imitation,
and a brilliant fancy, his good sense has since
enabled him to shun them, aud to adopt a
more chaste and correct style of speaking.
As you have never had an opportunity of see
ing any of his speeches, 1 w ill send you i
few extracts from one of his specimens o
oratory, in the case of Aaron Burr, who was
tried some years ago, for treason. The ora
tor, after describing the character of Burr
proceeds to give the following picture of
Blanncrhassct, an Irishman, who hud come
to this country to avoid what lie called perse
cution, and who had retired to a beautiful
island, in the Ohio. But lie carried with him,
says Mr. Wirt, taste, science, and wealth,
and “ lo the desart smiled. Possessing him
self of a beautiful island in the Ohio, he
rears upon it a palace, and decorates it with
every romantic embellishment of fancy.
this tranquility, this feast of mind, this pure
banquet of the heart, the destroyer comes ;
lie comes to turn this paradise into lu ll ; yet
the flowers do not wither at his approach, anil
no monitory shuddering through the bosom
of their unfortunate possessor, warns him ol
the ruin that is coming upon him.” Blan-
nci'hasseU is ranght in the toils which the
arch traitov has set to ensnare him, and hi
becomes a willing accomplice in the conspira
cy. The result is thus described by the orator.
•• No inure he enjoys the tranquil scene;
it has heroine flat and insipid to his taste ;
Ins books are abandoned ; his retort and cru-
eible are thrown aside ; his shrubbery blooms
and breaths its fragrance upon the air in
vain ; lie likes it not; his ear no longer
drinks the rich melody of music ; it lougs
lor the trumpet’s clangor, and the cannon’s
mar; even the prattle of his babes, onro so
sweet, n<> longer affects him ; aud the angel
smile of his wife, which hitherto touched his
bosom with ecstacy so unspeakable, is now
unfelt and unseen. His enchanted island is
destined soon to relapse into a desart; and
in a few months we find the tender anil beau
tiful partner of his bosom, whom he lately
** permitted nor the winds of summer to visit
too roughly,” we see her shivering, at mid
night, on the winter banks of the Ohio, and
mingling her tears with the torrents that
froze as they fell. Yet this unfortunate man,
thus deluded from his interest and happiness
—thus seduced from the paths of innocence
and peace—thus confounded in the toils
w hich were deliberately spread for him and
overwhelmed by - the mastering spirit and
genius of another—this man, thus ruined and
undone, and made to play a subordinate part
in his grand drama of guilt and treason-
tins man is to be tailed the principal offenti-
er ; w hile he, hy w hom he was thus plunged
and steeped in misery, is comparatively in
noceut—a mere accessary. Sir, neither the
human heart nor the human understanding
will bear a perversion so monstrous anil ab
surd ; so shocking to the soul; so revolting
to reason.”
MISCELLANY.
FEMALE EDUCATION
“ An impression at once erroneous and in
jurious to society, prevails in many parts of
our country, relative to the importance of
education to the female character. This im
pression lias given birth to a system produc
tive of so little good, that it is totally over
whelmed in the flood of evils which attend it.
Nature designed woman to be the companion
of man, endowed her with u quickness of
apprehension, sensibility of feeling, strength
of intellect, which eminently qualify her for
that station, if it were not for the injudicious
system of education adopted for her.
disdain, when decayed beauty ceases to pos
sess charms, and when fortune, which is li
ver subject ton thousand casualties, shall
have lost its attractions. With no longer a
disposition to engage in the giddy dance, and
without that education and those mental en
dowments which command attention, they
find themselves supplanted in a few years iu
the estimation of former admirers, and al
most totally neglected hy them. When
daughters are so much less capable than sons
of hustling through an uncharitable world,
iu the event of misfortunes overtaking their
best grounded prospects, is not that parent
neglectful of his real interests, who d dips
to iiis daughters an opportunity of improving
themselves in useful and polite literature?—
Prodigal and lavish in their expenditures up
on their sons, parents are too often regard
less of that of their daughters : Since woman
was designed to he the companion of man,
why abridge the pleasure they ought to feci
in each others society, by improving the in
tellect of the one in every p dite and useful
branch of knowledge, and limit the natural
capacities of the other, hy denying her an
opportunity in early life of improving her
mind ? To move with grace in a minuet,
and touch with nimble hands the notes of a
sonnet, is thought hy some to be the sunanuni
bonuui of a lady’s education. True, there
is a something wonderfully attractive in the
female figure, something bewitching in her
attitudes and graceful movements in a draw
ing room or assembly ; yet there are attrac
tions still more poworf l ihan these upon the
enlightened part of the community.
So contracted are the notions of some pa*,
rents on female education, that they would
not blush in a daughter's betraying so
much -ignorance of the geography of ner
native country, as to bound the state of Ohio
hy the Atlantic ocean, and pour the waters
of the St. Law rence into the Gulf of Mexico,
and empty those of ih- Mississippi into ‘:c
Ray of Fundy ; and yet would oe ready to
sink with shame to sec her mistake a single
step in a hornpipe, or movement in a waltz.
Fearful least they should contract pedantic
habits, by an acquaintance with books,
parents often deny them the very opportuni
ties of making them respected in the socie
ties in which they are destined to mov •, vltich
above all others is best call uiuted to insure
it. Without heing a politician a lady might
be allowed to make herself acquainted with
the character of thegovernment of her native
country ; without being an authoress she
might make herself acquainted witli the
beauties of rhetoric and composition : w ith
out setting herself up fora philosopher, she
might derive pleasure from the study of the
elements of philosophy ; and without risk
of sinking into the. pedant, she might find
Men
if fortune, who move in the first circles of amusement as well as advantage in the stuuy
shrubbery that Slirntone might have envied,
blooms around him, music that might have
charmed Calypso and her nymphs is his ; an
extensive library spreads its treasures before
him ; a pliylosopliical aparatus offers to him
all the secrets and mysteries of nature; peace,
tranquility and innocence shed their mingled
delights around him, and to crown the en
chantment of the scene, a wife, who is said
to he lovely even beyond her sex, and graced
witli every accomplishment that can render
it irresistible, had blessed him with her love,
and made him the lather of her children. In
the midst of all Utis peace, is innocence.
society, feel a pride in having their sons in
structed in science, and polite and useful li
terature, and at the same time almost totally
neglect the education of their daughter.—
Universities of the first respectability arc se
lected for the education of their sons ; while
on that of their daughters they bestow no o-
tlier care, than to give them the mere rudi
ments of an English education, with a little
smattering of French, music and dancing.
With these few advantages they are ush
ered into the world at an age when their
minds are too little improved, and too ten
der to withstand the allurements of gay so
ciety and temptations of dissipated life.—
Flattered and caressed for their beauty, the
elegance atid grace with which they lead
down the dance, and the sprightliness of their
wit, and the gaze of admiration which is be
stowed upon them, at an age when flattery
operates with its greatest force upon their
vanity : they are often seduced from that
particular course of conflict so ornamental
to the sex. With no knowledge of the ar-
ranrements of domestic''pursuits, or the eco
nomy of a family, they often contract en
gagements for which they are so illy quali
fied as to embitter their own lives ,as
well as ull others around them. The art
of deceiving is one of those accomplishments
enforced with great energy upon the minds
of some females by parents of contracted
feelings—but this seldom fails to excite dis
gust and pity with the enlightened part of
the community. Why will a parent thus
cruelly treat his daughter ? Why will he de
ny to her those opportunities of cultivating
her mind, which arc of so much greater va
lue-than the decoration of her person, and
which alone arc calculated to enlist the ad
miration and respect of the other sex, and
afford herself pleasure at a more advanced
period of life, when licr taste for frivolous
accomplishments have entirely subsided, aud
when the violence of her passions for dissi
pated amusements shall have been allayed
hy the cares of a family continually multi
plying upon her. Should they not succeed
in early life, through the influence of fortune,
beauty, and brilliancy of wit, in arriving at
the object at which they are particu
larly directed to aim their attention, a
few years will shew yiem the effects of cold
of history and geography. We can no m -ro
expect that every lady can make herself a
Madame dc Stacl, a Hannah More, a Lady
Morgan, or a Miss Edgworth, than that e-
very man Induing a seat in our national le
gislature should make himself a Solon—yet
are those branches now too much neglected,
which are absolutely necessary to givu fe
males that rank in the opinion and estima
tion of the learned and accomplished of the
other sex they ought always to hold. A pro
per course of female education cannot be
completed in that period to which it has been
limited by fashion, when the mind is yet un
settled and tender, when hooks are la;-, a-
side for the toilet, and the sweets c.far- ;em-
ic life are exchanged for a round of fas toll
able pleasures. Having once embarked in
to life, where either a round of gay amuse
ments or a multiplicity of domestic cares
crowd themselves upon the attention, ladies
have but little time to devote to nicuul im
provement, and repair those losses which
neglect of youth may have occasioned. Give
them an edui ation suitable to their rank in
society ; instill into their minds the princi
ples of virtue and morality, and endow them
•«ilh a knowledge of polite literature, for
which the female mind seems admirably a-
dapted, and you prepare them for any situ
ation in life to which they may he calied.—
Oruameuts to their tamilics and the country,
they become companions for men of cultivat
ed minds ; liberal and chaste in tlteir ideas,
they are alike the friends of every society
in which virtue and taste are respected.
Parents must certainly he insensible
of the injustice they do their daughters, by
neglecting their education, or in other words
[inscribing a course to he completed by the
tune they have reached the twelfth or thir
teenth year of age—It is at this season a-
bove all others, which should be assiduously
devoted to study, and which would be par
ticularly favorable to their advancement.-^-
A few years more of application, under the
superiutcndaucc of able instructors, would
prepare them to step forward into society un
der circumstances of far greater advantage
to themselves, aud would enable them to ac-
qurie a character far more valuable than the
ephemeral admiration which is elicited hy
beauty aud external accomplishments^”