It was the influence of a few great men that made America a nation.

If one is not subject to the spirit of ancestor worship that has long ruled American history, one is bound to say that--apart from some forceful pamphleteering of transient purpose--the voluminous political literature of the formative period displays much pedantic erudition but has little that goes really deep.

The _Federalist_, the artillery of a hard fought battle, is a striking exception.

So, too, is the series of reports by Hamilton.

But his plans could not prevail by force of reason against the general spirit of selfish particularism.