George Bancroft, History of the United States from the Discovery of the American Continent, Vol. 10

[410] his leaning to authority, combined with something

Chap. XIX.} 1780.

of a mean opinion of his fellow-men, cut him off from the sympathy of the masses, so that he was in many ways unfit to lead a party; and the years of his life which were most productive of good were those in which he acted with Washington, who was the head. the leader, and the guide of a nation in a manner which he was not only incapable of, but could never even fully comprehend. While the weightiest testimony that has ever been borne to the ability of Hamilton is by Washington, there never fell from Hamilton's pen during the lifetime of the latter one line which adequately expressed the character of Washington, or gave proof that he had had the patience to verify the immense power that lay concealed beneath the uniform moderation and method of his chief. He had a good heart, but with it the pride and the natural arrogance of youth, combined with an almost overweening consciousness of his powers, so that he was ready to find faults in the administration of others, and to believe that things might have gone better if the direction had rested with himself. Bold in the avowal of his own opinions, he was fearless to provoke and prompt to combat opposition. It was not his habit to repine over lost opportunities; his nature inclined him rather to prevent what seemed to him coming evils by timely action.

The England of that day had its precocious statesmen. For stateliness of eloquence, and consummate skill in managing a legislative assembly, the palm must be given to Pitt, whom Hamilton excelled in vigor, consistency, and versatility. There were points of analogy between Hamilton and Fox. Both were