TY - JOUR
AU - Heaney, Howell J.
AB - 256 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL HISTORY Vol. 2 DOCUMENTS ADVICE TO A LAW STUDENT: A Letter of William Wirt in The Hampton L. Carson Collection of The Free Library of Philadelphia Edited by HOWELL J. HEANEY* N HIS LIVELY SKETCH of William Wirt (1772-1834) in the Dictionary of American Biography, Thomas P. Abernethy tells us that Wirt's original equipment on setting out to practice law in Culpeper County, Virginia, in the early 1790's, "con­ sisted of a rapid and indistinct enunciation, a considerable degree of shyness, a copy of Blackstone, two volumes of Don Quixote, and a copy of Tristram Shandy." By the fall of 1817, some twenty-five years later, Wirt's eloquence and personal charm had carried him to the office of Attorney General of the United States, an office which he held with distinction for almost twelve years. In writing the following letter to a young man about to begin the study of the law, Wirt may have realized that his own career was remarkable. He may even have wished that the foundations upon which it was built had been broader and deeper. Although it would be interesting to know to whom the letter was addressed, and 
TI - Advice to a Law Student: A Letter of William Wirt in The Hampton L. Carson Collection of The Free Library of Philadelphia
JF - American Journal of Legal History
DO - 10.2307/844391
DA - 1958-07-01
UR - https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/oxford-university-press/advice-to-a-law-student-a-letter-of-william-wirt-in-the-hampton-l-exlfsXyy9u
SP - 256
EP - 258
VL - 2
IS - 3
DP - DeepDyve
ER -