lS,is.] r)!;") [Sliarswooil. 



.seemed never to fiiil. ITe early adopted the practice of niakiui^ 

 notes and extracts from the books he read, evidently not lor the 

 ordinary nses of a common place book. Imt rather as a mode of 

 nnderstanding and impi-essing them on his memory. ITe seems 

 to have continneil this practice, thongh no doubt with many in- 

 terruptions, throuuh his whole life. The books are without date, 

 but there was a constant change going on in his hand writing, 

 though the general character of it remained, -which enal>les one 

 to say with tolerable accuracy to what period any particular ex- 

 tract belongs. Among his manuscripts, and probably at a late 

 period of ids lile, are to be found copies of many parts of the 

 Holy Scriptures — a copy of the Book ot Genesis, of Job, and 

 consideraTile part of the Gospels. ITe kept, during the whole of 

 his professional life, a diar\', not indeed of all the cases and busi- 

 ness brought to him, for that would have been impossible, l)nt of 

 such as seemed most interesting and important, and of whicli he 

 wished to preserve a memorandum to refresh his memory. This 

 diary is occasionally interrupted, though very rarely, with inci- 

 dents of personal history. I say very rarely: I consider it very 

 remarkable that so little is to be found in his library and manu- 

 scripts which relat(> to his own personal histor}'. Even the ora- 

 tions and addresses Avhich he was called on from time to time to 

 deliver, and which were printed, were not preserved by him in 

 any separate form. Yet I may be permitted here to draw from 

 his diary two exceptional cases. 



" March 9, 1827. — Returned from Waslungton, where I had 

 gone on the 25th of February to argue Pennock v. Dialogue., and 

 Cowi'rjys V. Fo.s-.se. Neither case, however, was reached. The 

 mjourn there of a Aveek was unprofitable, exce])t that it showed 

 liOAv far from laboriously cases were generallj' argued there. 

 Gentlemen who have acquired a reputation live on it sometimes 

 without much eflbrt to retain it. Political life seems to gratify 

 those who are in the midst of it, as any ardent exertion of the 

 mind, perhaps, will do, but to the looker on it is a heartless, com- 

 fortless, and I fear in many instances an unprincipled career.'' 



At this time Mr. Ingersoll certaiidy felt no inclination for po- 

 litical life, and it was not till after he ajipears to have I'esolved 

 on withdrawing from the bar, that he yielded to the solicitations 

 of his political friends to enter Congress. 'Idie other exceptional 

 case is in reference to a sinuular eveut in his life. 



