Alexander Hamilton on the Fruit of Labor and Thought

"Men give me some credit for genius. All the genius I have lies in this: When I have a subject in hand, I study it profoundly. Day and night it is before me. I explore it in all its bearings. My mind becomes pervaded with it. Then the effort which I make is what the people call the fruit of genius. It is the fruit of labor and thought."

-- Alexander Hamilton

(Featured image sourced from J. R. Benjamin.)

Alexander Hamilton's Biography

Alexander Hamilton was born circa January 11, 1755 or 1757 (the exact date is unknown), on the island of Nevis, British West Indies. In 1777, Hamilton became General George Washington's assistant. Some 10 years later, Hamilton served as one of the chief authors of the Federalist Papers along with James Madison and John Jay, who together published a series of essays between 1787 and 1788 in an effort to persuade New York state voters to ratify the United States Constitution. In 1788, he successfully convinced New Yorkers to agree to ratify the U.S. Constitution. He then served as the nation's first secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795. On July 12, 1804, in New York City, Hamilton died of a gunshot wound that he sustained during a duel with Aaron Burr, the third Vice President of the United States (serving under President Thomas Jefferson's first term).

(Biography sourced from Encyclopedia Britannica and Biography.com.)

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