A CRITICISM OF THE PUBLIC SPBAKEHG OF JGHH MARS MALL PRIOR TO 1801 Gale Lee Richards A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, In the Department of Speech in the Graduate College of the State University of Iowa August 19030 ProQuest Number: 10902188 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10902188 Published by ProQuest LLC(2018). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 AGmiaCUSlXEiEKTS To Dr* A* Craig Baird, for his kindly and pene­ trating direction of this study, and to Dr* Orville A. Hitchcock, for his criticism of the manuscript* To Dr. K* Clay Harshbarger, in appreciation for much sound advice and suggestion throughout the course of the writer*a graduate study* To Mr* William Van Schreeven, Archivist of the Virginia State Library, to Mr* James J* Hill, Librarian of the University of Nevada, and to the librarians of the Uni­ versity of Iowa libraries, gratitude must be expressed for guidance and cooperation in securing appropriate source materials* To his wife, Barbara, who helped prepare the manuscript, the writer makes this humble acknowledgment of many small sacrifices over a long period, to attain a distant and elusive goal* TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page INTRODUCTION ................. 1 Purpose and Scope........... 1 Biographical Treatment . . . . . . . . . 3 Sources ........... . . . . . . . . . . 7 I FACTORS IN SPEECH .EDUCATION........... . . 15 Foreword ................ 15 Early Environment and Family Influences 15 Influence of Father ......... 17 Influence of Mother.............. 23 Early Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Military Experience . . . . . . ....... 32 Legal Training and Experience . . . . . . 37 Deliberative Speaking Experiences . . . . h3 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 U VIRGINIA FEDERAL RATIFYING CONVENTION OF 1788s SOCIAL SETTING ............ 60 Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 60 Occasion.................... 60 Virginia in the Federal Convention . . 66 Prior Ratifications ............. 71 John Marshall in the Convention ... ?6 Election of Delegates . . . . . . . . 80 Representation, in Virginia — it88 • • 88 Issues of the Convention . . . . . . . 91 The Audience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Composition of the Audience * . • • • 9h Population Changes............ 97 Economic Influence 106 Agriculture . .................... 106 Influence of Commerce . . . . . . . . 112 Taxation and Money . . . . . . . . . . 121 Lack of Money . ............... 122 Taxation « . . . .................126 Summary .................. 132 iii Chapter Page III VIRGINIA FEDERAL RATIFYING CONVENTION OF 1786* tHB SPEECHES..................... • liil Textual Authenticity...................11! The Speaker and the Issues of the Convention..........................1i*5 Parliamentary Maneuvers in the Debates H|8 Immediate Occasion® . . . . . . . . . . . XSk Speech on Taxation.......... . . • . 25U Speech on Militia............ • • • 156 Speech on -Judiciary . . . . . . . . . 158 Speaker* s Ideas and Their Support . . . * 162 Relation of the Federal Government to the People . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 "The Parse and the Sword" . . . . . . 180 Relation of State to Federal Govern­ ment * ................. . . . . 195 Federal Courts Should, be Included in Federal Government * .........* . 199 Refutation # * * • » * * • • * ♦ * * • 211 Method of .Argument . . . . . . . . . . 216 Effectiveness of Speeches . . . . . . . . 220 Speech on Taxation . . . . . . . . . . 221 Speech on the Militia...............222 Speech on the Judiciary .......... 223 Summary ............ . . . . * 225 IV IM CONGRESS t 1800 - ADDRESS ON ARMY REDUCTION 230 Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230 Occasion .............. 231 Rise of National Party Politics . . . 231 The Election of 1799 ....... 237 Immediate Occasion •. . ........... 2ii The Audience ......... 214-7 Marshall and His Audience.........* 2$6 Summary . 258 The Speech on Reduction of th© Army • * • 260 Textual Authenticity.................260 Statement of Issues 263 Argument and Evidence . . . . . . . . 266 Refutation . . . . . . . . 279 Summary ......... 280 iv Chapter Page IV IK CONGRESS f 1800 - ADDRESS OH AIM! REDUCTION (CONTIKU®) Effectiveness of the Speech......... 232 Summary . . ........... 286 V IK CONGRESS* 1800 - THE JONATHAN ROBBINS ADDRESS......... . 292 Foreword . . . . . . . . . . .......... 292 Occasion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292 Statement of Issues ....... . . . . . . 306 Argument and Evidence . . . . ....... 316 Jonathan Bobbin® Case Governed by- Jay Treaty * * . ......... * 316 Jonathan Robbins Case Proper for Executive Decision......... 328 The President Did Not Interfere with Judicial Decision . . . . . . ....... 33k Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338 Refutation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339 Structure . • 3k5 Effectiveness of the Speech ♦ 3k7 Summary. ......... 390 VI IK THE COURTS* 1782-1800 332 Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352 Marshall’s Law Training and Practice . . • 352 Marshall *s Law Training............ 352 Marshall’s Law Practice . . . . . . . . 357 Social Setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366 The Law in Virginia - 1782-1800 . . . . 366 The Courts In Virginia - 1782-1800 . . 371 The Speeches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375 Textual Authenticity . . . . . . . . . 376 Statement of Case . . . . . . . . . . . 379 Argument and Evidence . . . . . . . . . 33k Emotional Appeals . . . . . . . . . . . . 39k Personal Appeals ........... 396 Refutation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397 Effectiveness of Legal Speaking . . . . k03 Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . k05 v Chapter Pag© vti sftsaon ookpositicw and bmjverx U 2 3? oreword * ■ • • • • » » • • 1|X2 Speech Composition * . * , . • . * * . • I*12 Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l*2l* Delivery * • . . . . •• •.......... . * h26 Vole© and Bodily Action . . . . . . . 1*27 Personality 1*31 Sugary * . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1*35 viii summary Aim conclusions . . . . . . . . . . • k37 Federal Ratifying Convention of 1788 . hhQ Congressional Speeches in 1800 . . . . . ith9 Marshall *s Legal Sp ©aiding . . * . . • . \£6 Speech Coiaposition and Delivery • • * • L&L Conclusion . . « . . . . . . . . . . . 1*63 BIBLXQUEAHOr I466 APPENDIX................ L76 vi 1 INTRODUCTION wSSSm mmScm Sw John Marshall was Chief Justice of the 0nited States Supreme Court from 1801 until his death in 1835* This period in Ms public career has been the prime concern of critics and bio­ graphers* There has been relatively little study of Marshall as a legislator* lawyer, and orator, in the period prior to 1801* As a prominent and widely respected citiaen of the "Old Dominion" from 1782, when he entered the Virginia legislature, to 1799, when he was elected to Congress as a leading southern Federalist, Marshall*s public career in his native state can profitably engage the atten­ tion of the interested critic-hlstorian» In his early career, the great jurist was engaged with equal enthusiasm in the successful practice of law in Richmond, and in tie mercuric and turbulent poli­ tical life of eighteenth century Virginia# This study will examine and appraise on© aspect of this earlier portion of John Marshall’s puHic career, his public speak­ ing, both in the courts and in the Virginia legislature# As an active pleader before the bar, and a© an influential political leader, Marshall frequently took the platform to influence the beliefs and behavior of those about him* It is intended here to critic!»e John Marshall's public address prior to 1801 and to analyse the nature of his skill in the rhetorical art# 2 So manor h«v© written of the nature of rhetorical criticism 'that to discuss it at any length would involve needless repetition* H* A* Wiehelns initiated current thinking out the specific purpose 1 of rhetorical criticism* in his "literary Criticism of Oratory"* *H* A. Wiehelns* "The Literary Criticism of Oratory1* * Studies In Rhetoric and Public Speaking in honor of James A. WinansVChew York* — ~ ~ ------------------------ Since then inquiry into critical problems in public address has been 2 continuous and probing* The most comprehensive work in this area has ^Articles representative of this trend are to be found in the Quarterly Journal of Speech more or less continuously for the period of its 'publication*'" Recent examples of these articles are* Donald C* Bryant* "Some Problems of Scop© and Method in Rhetorical Scholarship", Quarterly Journal of Speech* 23: 182-189, (April, 1937)3 Bower Aly, *»¥he History olf American Public Address as a Research Field", Quarterly Journal of Speech* 29* 308—311*, (October, 19^3)3 Dallas C* Dickey, "Miak Directions Should Future Research in American Public Address Take?", Quarterly Journal of Speech* 29# 300-3Oh, (October, 19^3)3 A. Craig' Baird and Tester Yhonssen, "Methodology in the Criticism of Public Address"* Quarterly Journal of Speech* 331 13U-138, (April, 191*7)5 Wayne H* "raonpson, Contemporary Public Address as a Research Area", Quarterly Journal of Speech* 33* 2714—283, (October, 19^7)* These' titles are not given with my pretense to complete representation, but only to indie-at© the direction of thinking about problems of method in the criticism of public address* 3 been the recently published volume by Thonssen and Baird* This work ^Lester Thonssen and A* Craig Baird, Speech Criticism* (Sew York, 191*8). has been the guiding influence in the present study. It is said that the duty of the critic is to appraise that 3 which has gone before- according to the standards of his own. time, Thi® criticism is directed toward an adequate arid accurate appli­ cation of the critical standard® of present-day rhetoricians to the public speaking, career of John Marshall# The purpose of this study, then, is to appraise John Marshall’s speaking prior to 1801 according to his effectiveness in gaining audience response by reason of skill in adjusting his argument to his audience and to the occasion# . Biographical Treatment Mo complete appraisal of John Marshall’s public speaking has been done prior to the present study* The bulk of scholarly treatment given to Marshall’s wo He centers upon the period of his service on the Supreme Court bench, with only sufficient focus upon his early life to form a background* Of the biographies of Marshall currently available, only two deal with Marshall’s youth and early career in detail. These are Albert J* Beveridge’s Life of John Marshall^, and John F* Dillon’s, John Marshall; Life# ^Albert J. Beveridge, The Life of John Marshall, k vole*, (Cambridge, Mass#, 1916)# Character and Judicial Services**, a three-volume compilation of % ' n" rn“"_'"' 1 " T ,r,r:r" rT ■ n ' .... ^John F* Dillon, John Marshall; Life, Character, and Judicial Serv­ ices, 3 vols#, (cTiica^,r1^63).