of error was at once taken to the United States Supreme
Court, where it was docketed on September 18, 1818.
Six of the greatest lawyers in the country were re-
tained for its argiunent — William Pinkney, Daniel
Webster and United States Attorney-General William
Wirt, in behalf of the Bank, and Luther Martin, Jo-
seph Hopkinson of Philadelphia, and Walter Jones
of Washington, for the State. Beginning on February
22, 1819, the argument proceeded for nine days as
follows : Webster opened for the Bank and Hopkinson
for the State; Hopkinson spoke all day, February
28; on February 24, Wirt argued for the Bank and
Jones for the State; on February 25, Jones finished
his argument, and Martin began his long argument
which lasted through Friday and Saturday, February
26 and 27, Of Martin's effort. Judge Story later
narrated that he ended by saying that he had one
last authority which he thought the Court would ad-
mit to be conclusive, and he then read from the reports
of Marshall's own speeches in the debates in the Vir- ^
ginia convention when the adoption of the Constitution
was discussed, whereupon, said Story, Marshall drew
a long breath, with a sort of sigh. After the Court
adjourned, he rallied the Chief Justice on his uneasi-
ness, and asked him why he sighed: to which Mar-
shall replied, " Why, to tell you the truth, I was afraid
I had said some foolish things in the debate; but it
was not so bad as I expected." ^ On Monday, March
1, Pinkney began the argument which was to prove
the greatest effort of his life, consuming three full
days, ending on March 3, and described by Judge
Story in a letter written on the last day: "I never,
in my whole life, heard a greater speech ; it was worth
1 Life of Alexander H, SUphms (1888), by Richard M. Johnson and William Hand Browne, 183. Stephens by mistake stated that the counsel was Chapman Johnson of Maryland, instead of Luther Martin.
