and
with the former, and sustained his position by an array of arguments
against which his opponents were powerless. The struggle was one of
great bitterness, but Marshall, although victorious in it, made no
enemies among his antagonists.

For the next three years he devoted himself industriously to his
profession, appearing in public only to defend with masterly eloquence
the course of President Washington with reference to the insolent
conduct of Citizen Genet, the French Agent. In 1795, he was again
elected to the Legislature, "not only without his approbation, but
against his known wishes;" but yielding to the desires of his friends he
took his seat in that body. The great question of the day was the
adoption of "Jay's Treaty" with Great Britain. In Virginia, a bitter
opposition assailed the treaty, and the entire State rang with
denunciations of it. Even the influence of Washington was powerless to
stay the tide of popular passion excited against the treaty and those
who upheld it. Meetings were held in Richmond, and the treaty was
fiercely denounced. Marshall now came to the rescue, and before a
meeting of the citizens of that place made such an unanswerable argument
in favor of the treaty, that the men who had been foremost in assailing
it now united in the adoption of resolutions indorsing the policy of the
Administration. In the Legislature his efforts were equally successful,
and the opponents of the Administration were forced to abandon their
constitutional objections to the treaty, and to content themselves with
a simple denial of the expediency of the measure at that time. President
Washington attached so much importance to these services that he offered
to his old friend and comrade the position of Attorney-General of the
United States, but Marshall declined the offer, as he wished to devote
himself to his practice, which had now become very lucrative. He
continued to sit in the Legislature, which did not interfere with his
private business, and remained the constant and vigilant friend of
Washington's Administration. In 1796, he was offered the post of
Minister to France, as Mr. Monroe's successor, but he declined it for
the same reason which had made him refuse the Attorney-Generalship. In
1797, when the offer was repeated, this time by President Adams,
Marshall yielded to the entreaties of Washington, and went to France
with Pinckney and Gerry, as Envoy Extraordinary. The object of the
mission was to r