Part 1 (2/2)
The bent of his ious He was a diligent student of the Bible, and, Mr Rives says, ”he explored the whole history and evidences of Christianity on every side, through clouds of witnesses and chaainst, from the fathers and schoolhteenth century” So wide a range of theological study is remarkable in a youth of only two or three and twenty years of age; but, re at home, it is even more reinia a hundred and twenty years ago could be found a library so rich in theology as to ad is impossible
His studies on this subject, however, whether wide or liious intolerance was at that tihborhood, and it aroused him to earnest and open opposition; nor did that opposition cease till years afterward, when freedoely by his labors and influence
Even in 1774, when all the colonies were girding the revolutionary conflict, he turned aside from a discussion of the momentous question of the hour, in a letter to his friend[3] in Philadelphia, and exclaimed with unwonted heat:--
”But aith politics! That diabolical, hell-conceived principle of persecution rages ay can furnish their quota of imps for such purposes There are at this time in the adjacent country not less than five or six well-ious sentiments, which in the main are very orthodox I have neither patience to hear, talk, or think of anything relative to this matter; for I have squabbled and scolded, abused and ridiculed so long about it to little purpose that I aer tered in But he felt strongly Probably he, no more than many other wiser and older le which was getting so earnest; but evidently in his ious rather than civil liberty which was to be guarded ”If the Church of England,” he says in the saion in all the Northern colonies, as it has been ahout the continent, it is clear to radually insinuated aratulated his friend that they had not pero in Philadelphia; and Boston, he hoped, would ”conduct matters with as s were interesting and important; but ”aith politics! Let me address you as a student and philosopher, and not as a patriot” Shut off fro incidents of that year in the towns of the coast, he lost so student, solitary, ill in body, perhaps a trifle ained at Princeton could find no better use than to save schooling for the six youngsters at home,--to him it may have seee, under his own eyes, of ”five or six well-ious sentiments,” than by any tax which Parliament could contrive Not that he overesti, but that he underestietting the true perspective
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 1: Dr Draper has kindly put into our hands the correspondence between hiical notes in full, with the letter in which they were sent, as all that the ex-President had to say about his ancestry:--
MONTPELLIER, _February 1, 1834_
DEAR SIR,--I have received your letter of December 31st, and inclose a sketch on the subject of it, made out by a member of the family With friendly respects,
JAMES MADISON
”James Madison was the son of James Madison and Nelly Conway He was born on the 5th of March, 1751 (O S), at Port Conway, on the Rappahannock River, where she was at the ti there
”His father was the son of Ahter of Francis Conway and Rebecca Catlett
”His paternal grandfather was the son of John Madison and Isabella Minor Todd His paternal grandhter of Jarandfather was the son of Edwin Conway and Elizabeth Thornton His hter of John Catlett and ---- Gaines
”His father was a planter, and dwelt on the estate now called Montpellier, where he died February 27, 1801, in the 78th year of his age His mother died at the sae
”His grandfathers were also planters It appears that his ancestors, on both sides, were not a the most wealthy of the country, but in independent and comfortable circumstances”]
[Footnote 2: _Calendar of State Papers_, Colonial Series, 1574-1660, Preserved in the State Paper Department of Her Majesty's Public Record Office, edited by W Noel Sainsbury, Esq, etc London, 1860]
[Footnote 3: The letters to a friend, from which we have quoted, ritten to Williaeneral in Washi+ngton's ads of James Madison_, vol i]
CHAPTER II
THE YOUNG STATESMAN
Madison's place, both froor, was in the council, not in the field One of his early biographers says that he joined a military company, raised in his own county, in preparation for war; but this, there can hardly be a doubt, is an error
He speaks with enthusiash-spirited” volunteers, who came forward to defend ”the honor and safety of their country;” but there is no inti his patriotism But of the Committee of Safety, appointed in his county in 1774, he was est, for he was then only twenty-three years old
Eighteen inia Convention of 1776, and this he calls ”ave him also an opportunity for some distinction, which, whatever may have been his earlier plans, opened public life to him as a career The first work of the convention was to consider and adopt a series of resolutions instructing the Virginian delegates in the Continental Congress, then in session at Philadelphia, to urge an immediate declaration of independence The next overnment for the province
Madison was made a member of the committee to which this latter subject was referred One question necessarily came up for consideration which had for him a peculiar interest, and in any discussion of which he, no doubt, felt quite at ease This was concerning religious freedohts provided that ”all men should enjoy the fullest toleration in the exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience, unpunished and unrestrained by the ion, any man disturb the peace, happiness, or safety of society” It does not appear that Mr