relations, and he has enjoyed their highest esteem. To none, even the
humblest of his fellow advocates, has he ever manifested any of the
haughtiness of a Pinkney, or any of that ruggedness and asperity which
gained for the morose and sullen Thurlow the nickname of _the
tiger_. Amid the fiercest janglings and hottest contentions of the
bar, he has never forgotten that courtesy which should mark the
collision, not less than the friendly intercourse, of cultivated and
polished minds. His victories, won easily by argumentative ability,
tact, and intellectual keenness, unaided by passion, have strikingly
contrasted with the costly victories of advocates less self-restrained.
Though naturally witty and quick at retort, he has never used the weapon
in a way to wound the feelings of an adversary. In examining and
cross-examining witnesses, he has assumed their veracity, whenever it
has been possible to do so; and though he has had the eye of a lynx and
the scent of a hound for prevarication in all its forms, yet he has
never sought by browbeating and other arts of the pettifogger, to
confuse, baffle, and bewilder a witness, or involve him in
self-contradiction. Adopting a quiet, gentle, and straightforward,
though full and careful examination, winning the good-will of the
witness, and inspiring confidence in the questioner, Mr. Paine has been
far more successful in extracting the truth, even from reluctant lips,
than the most artful legal bully. He knows that the manoeuvres and
devices which are best adapted to confuse an honest witness, are just
what the dishonest one is best prepared for. It was not for all the
blustering violence of the tempest, that the traveler would lay aside
his cloak. The result was brought about by the mild and genial warmth of
the sun.

Few advocates have had more success with juries than the subject of this
sketch. The secret of this success has been, not more the admirable