Quotable - Simon Starr

Simon Starr and the Constitutional Convention from James Michener's Legacy

“In his compact canvas saddle bags he carried four books he had come to treasure at college:  Thucydides’ account of the Greek wars, John Locke’s treatise on government, a book by Adam Smith on the political economy of nations, a saucy novel by Henry Fielding.  In his head he carried about as good an education as was then available in either the United States or Great Britain, but in both Princeton and Virginia he had been careful to mask any pretension to superiority.  He was an earnest young man of solid ability who would always show deference to his elders.  As one of the two youngest members of the Convention he would feel himself at a disadvantage, but he intended to associate himself with older men of talent and make his contribution through supporting them.”

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