The conscientious performance of every trust confided to him
was the watchword of his life. In his conduct as a legislator he was
never ruled by faction or interest, but the promotion of the public good
was the motive of all his actions. While exhibiting none of the showy
and sparkling qualities of the orator, he was distinguished for the
possession of good judgment and strong practical common sense. He was a
man of calm and even temperament, and was seldom, if ever, controlled by
prejudices or swayed by passion. Those who were associated with him here
remember his dignified and courteous bearing. No words of bitterness or
reproach ever escaped his lips, and he never forgot what was due to
others as well as to himself.
I never heard him speak an unkind word of another, and while reserved,
and to a certain extent formal, in his demeanor, he was a man of
infinite sweetness of disposition:
And thus he bore without abuse,
The grand old name of gentleman.
Both in his public and private life he furnished an example worthy of
the emulation of all who love the true nobility of humanity. We will
draw aside the curtain only for a passing glance at the domestic circle,
of which his beautiful and lovely wife was at once the pride and the
ornament.
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