"Even more impressive were those, such as Abraham Lincoln or Bartolomeo Vanzetti, whose natural facility with language trumped their humble beginnings."
Dear slithy toves: Your juxtaposition of Abraham Lincoln and Bartolomeo Vanzetti surprised me. I have never seen any of Vanzetti's writings. I do remember the bombing of the judge's house. I remember seeing an article in which a relative of one of the two men about twenty years ago stating his belief that they were guilty. Perhaps other members of the board would also welcome your giving some samples of Vanzetti's writings.
P.S. I found on Internet a discussion by Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter of the Sacco and Vanzetti case. They obviously had an incompetent lawyer. There was obviously far more reasonable doubt than I had known before. Vanzetti was described as speaking "broken English" in early stages. But having been inmprisoned for about seven years, was able to write quite well. However, I can't quite accept his being favorably compared with Abraham Lincoln.
