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DANIEL WEBSTER
VOLUME I

DANIEL WEBSTER

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DANIEL WEBSTER

By '

CLAUDE MOORE FUESS

VOLUME I

1782 1830

With illustrations

BOSTON
LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY

1930

AH rights reserved

Published October, 1930
Reprinted October, 1930
Reprinted December, 1930

THE ATLANTIC MONTHLY PRESS BOOKS

ARE PUBLISHED BY
LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY

IN ASSOCIATION WITH
THE ATLANTIC MONTHLY COMPANY

To my Wife

FOREWORD

WHEN, several years ago, I first conceived the project of a
comprehensive biography of Daniel Webster, I resolved to
begin by reading everything in existence by or about him.
This I have failed to do, for his letters are still widely distrib-
uted, and there are some which are inaccessible to the inves-
tigator. I have, however, done my best to trace all that he
ever wrote and all that has been said concerning his character
and achievements.

It is, perhaps, superfluous to state that the available sources
are very extensive; and I have been fortunate in being able
to utilize a considerable amount of material which was not at
the disposal of earlier biographers. The basis of research is
the imposing National Edition of Webster's Writings and
Speeches, published in 1903, in eighteen large volumes. This
is supplemented by original documents in the New Hampshire
Historical Society, the Massachusetts Historical Society, and
the Congressional Library, not to mention smaller collections
in private libraries and in the papers of Caleb Gushing, Edward
Everett, and others. Not a few letters to and from Webster
are owned by individuals and are scattered widely through the
United States.

No statesman of that era was discussed more frequently
or frankly in the public press ; and the newspapers, not only
in Washington, New York, and Boston, but also in such com-
munities as Portsmouth, Keene, and Concord, are filled with
references to him. While I have lacked time for going through
all the journals of that period, I have examined many of them
in various sections of the country, and have found the labor
profitable.

viii FOREWORD

Of other first-hand material, diaries, such as those of John
Quincy Adams, Philip Hone, James K. Polk, and Ralph W.
Emerson, have been of incalculable assistance; and remi-
niscences and memoirs, like those of Harvey, Lanman, Poore,
Wentworth, Plumer, Hoar, and many others, have been help-
ful, not only with facts, but also with impressions of contem-
porary society and politics. There are naturally countless
monographs covering in detail special phases of Webster's
career and of the historical events in which he participated.
It is not an exaggeration, furthermore, to say that, in the biog-
raphies of nearly all the eminent Americans of the first half
of the nineteenth century, mention of Webster may be found.
The list is long and formidable, including not only such giants
as Clay, Calhoun, Jackson, the Adamses, Douglas, and Lincoln,
but also lesser figures, like Benton, Van Buren, Sumner, Gar-
rison, Tyler, Buchanan, Everett, Gushing, and Choate. The
names of the more important books will be found at the close
of this volume.

During Webster's long life, he was compelled again and
again to take sides on controversial questions. Even his most
ardent eulogists can hardly approve every one of his decisions,
and I have occasionally been obliged to be critical of his atti-
tude and his conduct. Whenever this has happened, I have
attempted to sustain myself by logic and by ample authority.
But there will always be honest disagreements arising from
differences in temperament, geographical location, and political
philosophy. There is also a wealth of mythical stories which
have accumulated around Webster's name, and which can now
be neither confirmed nor disproved.

It is not easy to express adequately my gratitude for the aid
which I have received from numerous acquaintances and
friends. My colleagues, Archibald Freeman, Roy E. Spencer,
Arthur W. Leonard, Horace M. Poynter, and Charles H. Forbes,
have read several of the chapters and have made helpful sug-
gestions. In the proof reading I have been aided greatly by
Mr. and Mrs. Alan R. Blackmer. Among those upon whose
knowledge I have most relied are Charles Warren, Esquire, of

FOREWORD ix

Washington, D. C. ; Worthington C. Ford and Mark A.
DeWolfe Howe, of the Massachusetts Historical Society;
Judge Elias B. Bishop, of the Superior Court of Massachusetts ;
President Ernest M. Hopkins, Professor Leon B. Richardson,
and Mr. Gilman D. Frost, all of Dartmouth College ; Reverend
Alfred R. Hussey, of Plymouth, and Reverend Alfred Gooding,
of Portsmouth ; Clarence E. Carr, of Andover, New Hamp-
shire; Wilson Olney, of Boston, who placed at my disposal
his interesting collections of manuscripts ; Charles S. Tyler, of
Beverly, who allowed me to inspect his unequaled collection
of Websteriana, and Edwin A. Bayley, of Boston, who con-
sented to let me reproduce some of his Webster engravings
and daguerreotypes ; Major Otis Hammond, of Concord, who
granted me many privileges in the New Hampshire Historical
Society; Foster W. Stearns, of Hancock, New Hampshire;
and Howard S. F. Randolph, of the New York Genealogical
and Biographical Society. Laurence M. Crosbie, of Exeter,
has allowed me to profit by his extensive researches into New
Hampshire history and has read a good share of my manuscript.
Judge A. W. Cozart, of Columbus, Georgia, has also read the
book and has given me the benefit of his legal experience and
his sympathetic counsel. My friend, Markham W. Stackpole,
of Milton, has kept me from many verbal indiscretions and
infelicities. Lewis A. Armistead, of Boston, Webster's great-
grandson, permitted me to use the unpublished manuscript
diary of his grandmother, Julia Webster Appleton. Many
other persons have advised me on matters of detail. I wish
also to acknowledge my obligation to the staffs of the Congres-
sional Library, the Boston Public Library, the New Hampshire
Historical Society, the Massachusetts Historical Society, the
Keene, New Hampshire, Public Library, the public library of
Charleston, South Carolina, the Dartmouth College Library,
the Phillips Exeter Academy Library, and the library of
Phillips Academy, Andover, and, above all, to the Boston
Athenaeum, where much of my reading has been carried on.
To Mr. Edward A. Weeks, of the Atlantic Monthly Press, I
am under great obligation for a searching reading of my manu-

x FOREWORD

script, and many fruitful suggestions. My wife, patient under
my moods and abstractions, has sustained my courage during
long hours of toil and meditation.

It is futile to expect that a work of this scope will be abso-
lutely accurate or complete. There will be blunders and omis-
sions, no matter how much pains has been taken to correct
them. Nor will the treatment of the hero please everybody.
Webster's versatile activities as lawyer, orator, and statesman
were so broad in scope that some of them have undoubtedly
been neglected. It is my hope, however, that Daniel Webster
will emerge from these pages, not a legendary figure, but a
human personage, with weaknesses and shortcomings, perhaps,
but also with something of the glorious magnetism which
thrilled those whom he met. No one can read his utterances
and look long at his portraits without being in some degree
overwhelmed by the power and majesty of the man.

C. M. F.

CONTENTS

FOREWORD vii

I THE BACKGROUND 3

II EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 30

III MATURING YEARS 62

IV A WIDER HORIZON: WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 94
V FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS . . .122

VI A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION . . .148

VII LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX . . .176

VIII THE ATHENS OF AMERICA . . . . 197

IX THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE . . .215

X THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER .... 246

XI IN THE PUBLIC EYE 268

XII THE GREAT ORATOR 284

XIII A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 307

XIV SLINGS AND ARROWS 339

XV THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION . .361

ILLUSTRATIONS

DANIEL WEBSTER BY GILBERT STUART . Frontispiece

THE ENTRY OF DANIEL WEBSTER'S BIRTH IN THE SALIS-
BURY TOWN BOOK 4

BIRTHPLACE OF DANIEL WEBSTER, FRANKLIN, NEW

HAMPSHIRE 16

WHERE WEBSTER ROOMED AS A STUDENT, HANOVER,

NEW HAMPSHIRE 48

WHERE WEBSTER RECORDED DEEDS, FRYEBURG, MAINE 48

WEBSTER AS A YOUNG MAN 90

WEBSTER IN His FORTY-THIRD YEAR .... 90

THE ENTRY OF DANIEL WEBSTER'S MARRIAGE IN THE

SALISBURY CHURCH RECORDS 100

WARNER HOUSE, PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE . 118

GOVERNOR LANGDON'S HOUSE, PORTSMOUTH, NEW

HAMPSHIRE 118

CAROLINE LE ROY WEBSTER 358

GRACE FLETCHER WEBSTER 358

WEBSTER REPLYING TO HAYNE 374

DANIEL WEBSTER
VOLUME I

THE BACKGROUND

Born the wild Northern hills among.
From whence his yeoman father wrung
By patient toil subsistence scant,
Not competence and yet not want,
He early gained the power to pay
His cheerful, self-reliant way.

WHITTIER, Snow-Bound

Heaven bless this goodly land of our fathers ! Its rulers and its people
may commit a thousand follies, yet Heaven bless it! Next to the friends
beloved of my heart, these same hills and glens and native woods and native
streams will have my last earthly recollections.

WEBSTER, Letter to James Kent, June 5, 1832

ON a summer afternoon in 1790, a frail, black-eyed boy, bare-
footed and dressed in a tow shirt and coarse cassimere trousers,
stepped out of his father's tavern at Salisbury Lower Village,
in the upper valley of the Merrimack River. Across the high-
way was the general store kept by his school-teacher, William
Hoyt, filled with tempting things to eat and wear. There his
glance fell on a novelty, a large cotton handkerchief, crudely
printed on both sides, and, having already a passion for
literature, he bought it with the coins which were jingling in
his pocket. What he saw was the text of the Federal Consti-
tution, which had recently been ratified by the states and was
being circulated in this quaint fashion. Then and there he sat
down under a spreading elm and read it through.

More than sixty years afterward, within sight of the spot
where he made this significant purchase, Daniel Webster dic-
tated an account of it to his friend, Blatchford. "From this,"
he said, "I first learned either that there was a Constitution,
or that there were thirteen states." "I remember to have

4 DANIEL WEBSTER

read it," he added whimsically, "and have known more or less
of it ever since."

When that lad was born, on January 18, 1782, the American
colonies were functioning under the Articles of Confederation,
adopted early in the previous year. Whether the thirteen
states, with their jealousies and rivalries, could be moulded
into a coherent nation was yet to be determined. Only three
months before, the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown had
dissipated England's last hope of retaining her American pos-
sessions; but she had not yet recognized their independence,
and the exhausted patriot leaders had lapsed into lethargy,
with economic and political disorganization everywhere around
them. At Paris, the tactful Franklin was patiently awaiting
an opportunity to negotiate a peace. Lord North, still stupidly
obstinate, refused to resign, and it was not until the autumn
of 1783 that a treaty could be wrung from the British cabinet.
So far as New Hampshire citizens knew, they were still rebels,
at war with the mother country, and their future was dark
with hazards.

Of the builders of the young republic, several were already
on the stage. George Washington, his campaigns over, was
soon to retire at a little over fifty into what he hoped might be
the undisturbed placidity of Mount Vernon. John Marshall,
a budding lawyer of twenty-seven, had lately taken his seat
in the General Assembly of his state ; and Thomas Jefferson,
his kinsman and political foe, was revising his Notes on Virginia
after two terms as Governor. The precocious Alexander
Hamilton, later the leader of the Federalist Party, was as yet
more of a soldier than a statesman. John Quincy Adams was
in Paris, a lively assistant secretary to the American Mission.
In North Carolina, a raw-boned youth named Andrew Jackson
was mastering the humble trade of saddler. Somewhere in the
"Slashes," south of the Potomac, little five-year-old Henry
Clay, in homespun, was astride a horse on his way to Daricott's
Mill. Four men destined to be Webster's most relentless
opponents were also born in 1782 Thomas H. Benton, on
March 14, John C. Calhoun, on March 18, Lewis Cass, on

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THE ENTRY OF DANIEL WEBSTER'S BIRTH IN
THE SALISBURY TOWN BOOK

THE BACKGROUND 5

October 9, and Martin Van Buren, on December 5. Edward
Everett and Rufus Choate and Caleb Gushing, whose fates
were to be so inextricably interwoven with those of Webster,
were still in "the realm of the unborn."

Four generations of Websters before him had tilled the soil
of New England and were buried within its borders. There
he received his education and won his first successes. He was
to be more than once New England's candidate for the Presi-
dency. His career of over seventy years divides itself with
mathematical precision into two periods of almost equal length,
the first belonging to New Hampshire, the second mainly to
Massachusetts. From Salisbury he moved to Boscawen, and
from there successively to Portsmouth and Boston. Even
when he was officially in Washington, his real home was either
at The Elms, near his birthplace, or at Marshfield, on the shore
of the Atlantic. Webster loved New England, and she, in
return, bestowed upon him nearly every honor within her gift.

His family was of what genealogists call "sturdy New Eng-
land stock," and believers in eugenics will find in his ancestry
much to sustain their faith. Most of the many Websters in
the United States to-day trace their line back to Thomas Web-
ster, a shadowy figure who died in April 1634, at Ormsby, near
Yarmouth, in Norfolk County, England. 1 At a more remote
period, the family was probably lowland Scotch, and the name
itself means a male weaver. 2 Thomas's widow, Margaret
(or Margery), came to this country with her infant son,
Thomas, about 1635 and settled at Ipswich, Massachusetts,
later moving north to Hampton, New Hampshire. Of this son
we know little, except that he married Sarah Brewer and died,
in 1715, at Hampton, at the age of eighty-three.

Among Thomas's five sons and four daughters, the most
aggressive was Ebenezer (1667-1736), who, pushing a few miles
to the west, was one of the grantees of the town of Kingston,

1 See Dearborn's History of Salisbury, New Hampshire, p. 828 fT. This book, pub-
lished in 1890, is full of interesting material, but must be used cautiously because of
its numerous inaccuracies and inconsistencies.

2 Burns uses the word in his poem, "Willie was a wabster guid," and Stevenson
employs it in a sentence in Catriona "Tom was a wabster to his trade."

6 DANIEL WEBSTER

New Hampshire, where he settled at the opening of the
eighteenth century. He became an intrepid Indian hunter
and a guide in the company of Captain John Gilman which set
out in 1710 in pursuit of marauding redskins. By his wife,
Hannah Judkins, he had nine children, of whom the eldest son,
also named Ebenezer, was born at Kingston in 1714. This
second Ebenezer did not inherit his father's energy and has been
described as "poor, versatile, and witty, obtaining a scanty
living by hatcheling flax, cutting cord wood, shearing sheep,
etc." l He was, however, fortunate in his marriage, for, on
July 20, 1738, he took as his wife Susanna Batchelder, who
brought into the family a fresh and vigorous strain.

The true Websters, according to Daniel's testimony, had
"light complexions, sandy hair, a good deal of it, and bushy
eyebrows," and were "rather slender than broad or corpulent." 2
But Susanna was the descendant of the Reverend Stephen
Bachiler (1561-1660), the first settled clergyman in the prov-
ince of New Hampshire, an enterprising and obstinate man,
tall, with very swarthy skin, black coarse hair, and sultry eyes,
"like sloes," quite different from the blonde and freckled
Websters. He was a refractory personality, with some uncler-
ical weaknesses of the flesh. His great-great-granddaughter,
Susanna, was a woman "of remarkable strength of character,
robust in form, with black hair, a piercing black eye, and dark
complexion." 3 Writing to his son, Fletcher, Daniel Webster
once said :

I believe we are all indebted to my father's mother for a large por-
tion of the little sense and character which belongs to us. Her name
was Susannah Batchelder ; she was the daughter of a clergyman, and
a woman of uncommon strength of understanding. If I had had
many boys, I should have called one of them "Batchelder." 4

1 New England Historical and Genealogical Register y VI, i.

2 National Edition of Webster's Writings and Speeches, XVII, 3.

3 Dearborn, Salisbury, p. 829.

4 See the Batchelder-Batcheller Genealogy , by Frederick Clifton Pierce, published in
1898, which, however, cannot be entirely relied upon. Several eminent persons trace
their lineage back to the Reverend Stephen Bachiler, but the statement frequently
made that John Greenleaf Whittier and Caleb Gushing were among his direct descend-
ants has no foundation in fact, and their supposed physical resemblance to Webster
was not due to heredity.

THE BACKGROUND 7

Her oldest son, Ebenezer, born on April 22, 1739, at East
Kingston, was Daniel Webster's father. His childhood was
spent on the farm, but he was then bound out to a tyrannical
master, and, at the age of fourteen, ran away to live with his
benefactor, Colonel Ebenezer Stevens. 1 While still a boy, he
enlisted as a private in the famous "Rangers/' led by Major
Robert Rogers, 2 and saw active military service with General
Jeffrey Amherst during his invasion of Canada in 1759.
Returning with the rank of captain, he married Mehitable
Smith, of Kingston, and with a party of discharged veterans,
headed by Colonel Stevens, pushed north up the Merrimack
to a district designated as Stevenstown, which their patron had
obtained by grant from Governor Benning Wentworth. On
the northern boundary of the new township which was
christened Salisbury and still bears that name, although some-
what altered in shape and size Captain Webster was allotted,
in 1762, some 225 acres of land.

At first, he had no roof to shelter him. He and his com-
panions had to dig a well, clear the virgin forest, and sow and
plant the soil. Soon he built for himself a log cabin on high
ground three miles west of the Merrimack, close to a foamy
stream which he called Punch Brook. He was indeed of pioneer
stuff, just as rugged, just as inured to hardship, just as patient
under adversity, as any "Forty-Niner" or early settler on the
bleak Iowa prairies.

By 1767, the population of Salisbury was 210, and the grow-
ing town was incorporated a year later, in the name of His
Majesty George III. The New Hampshire clearings, hewn
out laboriously from the pines which clothed the hills, were
dotted with outcroppings of rock, and the soil at its best was
thin. Some of the farms at the base of Mount Kearsarge were
styled "Little Gains/' "Hard Scrabble," and "Dungeswamp"
the last being an Indian word to signify the poorest land in

1 Dearborn, Salisbury, pp. 829-30.

2 These troops, enlisted from the hardiest and boldest young men in New England,
carried both snowshoes and skates during the winter months, and achieved some bril-
liant military exploits. It was a mark of distinction to belong to Rogers's company.

8 DANIEL WEBSTER

creation. 1 But soon, In the midst of the wilderness, could be
seen charred stumps, with a few fruit trees here and there, and
some scanty wheat peeping up after the spring rains. The
forest abounded in black and brown bears, lynxes, and gray
wolves, and Captain Webster killed many a fat buck for his
larder. The beaver had built a dam within a few rods of his
cabin. It was a wild country in the "1760*8," and there are
sections of it which are almost as wild to-day.

In front of Ebenezer's house, to the southwest, rose Searle's
Hill, called by Webster Mount Pisgah, on the summit of which
the first settlers erected their church, a large, two-storied
structure, without a steeple. Because of its commanding sit-
uation, it served also as a watchtower. But the ceaseless
snows of winter blocked the road to the top, and it was also
discovered that the more fertile tracts lay on lower ground.
To-day that meetinghouse, with its adjacent cemetery, has
vanished, and its very site, like the other land on the side of
Searle's Hill, has reverted to timber. The scars cut by the
pioneers have been obliterated by dense underbrush. Nature
has triumphed over man. Ebenezer Webster, however, did
not easily abandon the conflict. On the fringes of civilization,
with hardly a white man's habitation between him and the
St. Lawrence, on debatable ground where Indians frequently
alarmed his wife and children, he slowly won a temporary
advantage over climate and soil, and eked out a subsistence
for himself and his family.

Ebenezer's wife, Mehitable, about whom little is known
except that she bore him five children, 2 died in March 1774,
leaving him with an eight-year-old girl and two small boys,

1 See Webster's speech "On the Opening of the Northern Railroad to Grafton, N. EL,
August 28, 1847'* (National Edition, IV, 107-11).

2 There is some confusion as to the birth dates of the children of Ebenezer Webster
by Mehitable Smith. Olle, or Olivia, born January 28, 1762, died in infancy ; Ebene-
zer, born July 16, 1764, died of the same epidemic which struck down his older sister;
Susanna, born October 25, 1766, later married John Colby, of Andover, New Hamp-
shire, and died in that town, March 23, 1804; David, born May I, 1769, became a
farmer in Canada, married a widow, Rebecca Hun toon, and left a large family; and
Joseph, born March 25, 1772, died unmarried, January 20, 1810. No one of them
seems to have displayed marked ability of any kind.

THE BACKGROUND 9

the youngest a mere infant. Several stories have been handed
down regarding his second marriage, the best authenticated
of which states that Captain Webster, in his masculine perplex-
ity regarding his motherless family, consulted "Aunt Ruth/'
the wife of his brother, William, who lived on the slope of
Searle's Hill. When he had explained his problem, she thought
a minute and replied, "Eben, haven't you heard of Nabby
Eastman ? She 's a tailoress by trade and knows what life
is. In every respect she 's a most excellent person. She 's up
from below right now, visiting her relatives here. Go home,
put on your Sunday suit, and ride over and see Nabby/' 1 This
counsel had the ring of common sense, if not of romance. Cap-
tain Webster accepted it, and, in August of that year, Abigail
Eastman, of Salisbury, Massachusetts, was united to him in
marriage by Parson Jonathan Searle. When the two came
down from the hilltop to Ebenezer Webster's log house, the
bridegroom said simply, "These, Nabby, are my children."

Abigail Eastman, the mother of Daniel Wejjster, was thirty-
seven years old at the time of her wedding and had undoubtedly
long been classed as an "old maid." 2 She was one of the
"black Eastmans/' of Welsh origin, her immigrant ancestor
having been Roger Eastman (Easman), who came to America
in 1638 in the ship Confidence and settled at Salisbury, Massa-
chusetts. 3 Abigail's father was Major Roger Eastman, "a

1 This story is told in fuller detail in Dearborn's History of Salisbury > pp. 746-47,
quoted from an article in the New York Evangelist for March i, 1883, giving the recol-
lections of Mrs. Betsey Webster, who died at Palmyra, New York, in 1880, aged eighty-
seven years. It doubtless came down to her as a family tradition. Another version,
slightly different in minor respects, is to be found in Towne's Birthplace of Daniel
Webster, published in 1927, on page 4.

2 She was born on July 19, 1737, the youngest of four children, and was two years
older than her husband.

3 Webster's ancestry, while neither Pilgrim nor Puritan, was nevertheless largely
Anglo-Saxon and Celtic, with hardly a trace of the Latin element. Those who are
curious to follow out in detail the ramifications of Webster's ancestry and kin should
examine The Genealogy of the Webster Family to Which Daniel Webster Belonged, an
unpublished manuscript by Mabel Fern Paling, a bound typewritten copy of which is
deposited with the New England Historical Genealogical Society, in Boston. On the
general subject of family pride, Webster expressed himself in the Plymouth Oration :
"There may be, and there often is, indeed, a regard for ancestry, which nourishes
only a weak pride; as there is also a care for posterity which only disguises an
habitual avarice or hides the workings of a low and groveling vanity. But there

io DANIEL WEBSTER

soldier bold," who was bred a house carpenter, but, having
"a noble and lofty soul," went out to fight the French and lost
a leg; 1 and her mother was Gerusha (Jerusha) Fitz, described
by Daniel as handsome, with "dark, beautiful eyes, inimitable
teeth, and hair as black as a coal." 2 Soon after their daugh-
ter's belated matrimonial venture, her parents came to live with
her in New Hampshire, where they died in Captain Webster's
house. 3 A neighbor of "Nabby " Webster's once said that she
had " a dark complexion, with strongly marked features, indica-
tive of a strong mind and sound sense," 4 and another acquaint-
ance remembered that her countenance wore " the expression
of strength rather than beauty." There is in existence a sil-
houette showing her as a decidedly plain, rather large-nosed
woman, of ample proportions. Although Daniel referred to her
with affection, he did not seem drawn to her as he was to his
father; but she was a conscientious mother to Ebenezer's
children and a faithful helpmeet to her husband.

Captain Webster had qualities which made him a leader in
the scattered community around the headwaters of the Merri-
mack. As early as 1764, when his cabin had just been com-
pleted, he was named Highway Surveyor. Five years later,
he was chosen for the first of many terms as Moderator of Town
Meeting a position which, in New England, is seldom ac-
corded to a citizen who cannot compel the obedience of even
the most unruly voter. He also served intermittently as Town
Clerk, Selectman, and Coroner. But it was the outbreak of
another war which offered him his real opportunity. He ob-
is also a moral and philosophical respect for our ancestors, which elevates the character
and improves the heart. Next to the sense of religious duty and moral feeling, I hardly
know what should bear with a stronger obligation on a liberal and enlightened mind,
than a consciousness of alliance with excellence which has departed ; and a conscious-
ness, too, that in its acts and conduct, and even in its sentiments and thoughts, it
may be actively operating on the happiness of those who come after it."

National Edition, XVI, 663.

2 Webster's statement to Charles H. Warren, Proceedings of the Massachusetts His-
torical Society, XV, 280-81.

3 Daniel Webster wrote that Major Eastman planted trees for fruit on the Webster
farm, "and among others planted a pear tree about 1770, which is now in full bearing."
(Letter to Warren, September 19, 1852, National Edition, XVI, 663.)

< Ibid., XVII, 60.

THE BACKGROUND n

Gained in 1774 a commission as Captain in the mi!itia > and, as
soon as the news of Lexington and Concord penetrated to Salis-
bury, he marched with some of his men under "forced draft"
to Cambridge to meet with the Massachusetts Committee
of Safety. While stationed at Dorchester Heights, he was
assigned to guard duty around Washington's tent. The
Commander-in-Chief summoned Captain Webster to his
headquarters, consulted him regarding patriotic sentiment
in New Hampshire, offered him some refreshment, and closed
the interview by warmly shaking his hand. 1

As one of the Salisbury Selectmen, Captain Webster signed
the famous "Association Test," engaging, for the citizens of
the town, "that we will, to the utmost of our power, at the
risque of our lives and fortunes, with arms, oppose the hostile
proceedings of the British fleets and armies against the United
States." 2 He was quite ready himself to undergo the hazards
of battle. At Bennington, on August 16, 1777, he conducted
himself with conspicuous valor, being among the first to scale
the Tory breastworks; and he emerged from the hand-to-
hand conflict with his features so besmeared with powder as
to be hardly recognizable.

Like many of the colonial officers, Captain Webster usually
came back to his fireside for the winter months, setting out
in the spring, after the roads were cleared of snow and mud, to
join his command. As a volunteer without pay, he was wel-
comed by General Washington. In August 1778 he partici-
pated in the expedition to Rhode Island, and in 1780 he was
in charge of a company in the regiment of Colonel Moses
Nichols, assigned to the protection of West Point. When he
and his men were posted on guard over Washington's tent on
the evening after Arnold's treason had been disclosed, the
General said to him earnestly, "Captain Webster, I believe

1 Harvey, Reminiscences, pp. 5-6.

2 According to a story told by Harvey, Webster was appointed on a committee to
determine the amount which each citizen ought to contribute to the conduct of the
war. When the richest man in the community objected that his share was too large,
Webster said, " Sir, our authorities require us to fight and pay. Now, you must pay
or fight." (IUd.> p. 7.)

12 DANIEL WEBSTER

I can trust you." * It is easy to understand why Washington
was idolized in the Webster family.

Writing of him as he was in his prime, Daniel described his
father as "tall, six feet, or six feet within a half an inch, with a
broad and full chest, hair still of an unchanged black, features
rather large and prominent, a Roman nose, and eyes of brilliant
black." 2 General John Stark, referring to Daniel's Moorish
complexion, said that it was like that of Ebenezer Webster,
which burnt gunpowder could not change. 3 He had a martial
bearing, and once, at Exeter, when a mob gathered at the Court
House, he merely stepped to a balcony and, in a stentorian
voice, shouted, "I command you to disperse." 4 The rioters
melted away. Daniel said of him that he had a heart which
"he seemed to have borrowed from a lion," 5 and he kept his
intrepid spirit to the end of his days. Although he had never
been to school, he taught himself to read and write ; and his
letters are good in handwriting, and no worse in spelling than
those of some college graduates of that generation. Every-
thing which we hear of Ebenezer Webster shows him to have
been a man of native common sense, strong tenacity, and force-,
ful character. 6 It is regrettable that no portrait of him was
ever painted.

Although Captain Webster could be stern, he had also a
grim humor which made him an agreeable companion. Daniel'
spoke of him as "deeply religious, but not sour," and he was
for many years an elder in Salisbury Church. Even in his

1 Harvey, p. 7.

2 National Edition, XVII, 4.
/#, 5-6.

4 This incident occurred in 1786, coincidental with Shays's Rebellion in Massa-
chusetts. Want of money and business depression led about two hundred men, armed
with muskets and clubs, to march into Exeter from the surrounding country and send
in a petition to the Legislature for the redress of their grievances. Surrounding the
Court House where the Legislature was then in session, they demanded an immediate
answer. It was then that Ebenezer Webster appeared, with General Sullivan and
others, and issued his command.

5 National Edition, XVIII, 229.

6 Ebenezer Webster is listed among the subscribers from New Hampshire to Jeremy
Belknap's History of New Hampshire, in 1792. This list, numbering over a hundred,
includes most of the distinguished men in the state at that period.

THE BACKGROUND 13

old age, when he was crippled by rheumatism, he enjoyed his
joke and had an infectious laugh. His readiness to efface
himself and make sacrifices for his children is a trait which will
become evident later in this narrative.

There were moments when a wider field of activity seemed
about to open for Ebenezer Webster. He served capably in
the Legislature, 1 and he was chosen in 1788 as a delegate to the
State Convention for considering the proposed Federal Con-
stitution. Although he himself is supposed to have favored the
Constitution, he was hampered by the opposition of an advisory
committee of his townspeople, who objected to it on the ground
that it tolerated slavery. It was then, according to Daniel
Webster, that his father made the following speech :

Mr. President, I have listened to the arguments for and against the
Constitution. I am convinced such a government as that Constitu-
tion will establish, if adopted, ^government acting directly on the
people of the states, is necessary for the common defence and the
general welfare. It is the only government which will enable us to
pay off the national debt, the debt which we owe for the Revolution,
^nd which we are bound in honor fully and fairly to discharge.
Besides, I have followed the lead of Washington through seven years
of war, and I have never been misled. His name is subscribed to this
Constitution. He will not mislead us now. I shall vote for its
adoption. 2

Whatever the actual views- of Ebenezer Webster may have
been, these words sound suspiciously as if they had been put
into his mouth by his son aut Casar aut nihiL There is a
further difficulty. The State Convention, after assembling
at Exeter in February, adjourned because a majority of the
delegates had been instructed by their towns not to favor the
Constitution. At its second session, held at Concord, in June,
Ebenezer Webster was one of four delegates present but not

1 In 1778-80, he was Representative from Salisbury and Boscawen, and he was the
Representative from Salisbury in 1790-91. In 1788, he was chosen by the Legislature
as Senator from Hillsborough County, no Senator having been elected by the people
of that district, and he took a conspicuous part in the committee work of that session.

2 Curtis, Life of Daniel Webster, I,

I 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

voting when the issue was finally presented. 1 He did, how-
ever, as one of the presidential electors from New Hampshire,
cast his vote in 1789 for Washington. He once said that, if
he had had a broader education, he might have been a Congress-
man under the new Federal Government. His ambition had
to be satisfied, however, with a commission in 1791 as Justice
of the Inferior Court of Common Pleas a position which
brought him some distinction and a small annual salary.

"Nabby" and "Eben" Webster had five children. The
oldest, Mehitable, named for Captain Webster's first wife,
was born in 1775, became a "noted teacher," and died un-
married at the age of thirty-nine. Abigail, born in 1778, later
married William Haddock and died at twenty-seven. Then
came two sons, Ezekiel, born on March 1 1, 1780, and Daniel,
and finally Sarah, the youngest, born in 1784, who married
her cousin, Ebenezer Webster, and died in 1811.

The first three were born in the log cabin. Towards the
close of the Revolution, however, Captain Webster built for
his family a small frame dwelling only a few rods distant, and
in this Daniel first saw the light of day. A drawing of this
structure made by Charles Lanman, Webster's private secre-
tary, while the latter was bending over his shoulder, was repro-
duced as a woodcut for the frontispiece of Lanman's The Pri-
vate Life of Daniel Webster, published in 1852 a few weeks after
Webster's death. According to Lanman, it was one-storied,
with a high gabled roof, a single chimney, one front door with a
window on either side, three windows at each end, with four
rooms and an addition in the rear for the kitchen. 2 The sketch
shows a well-curb and sweep at the eastern end, with a noble

1 Captain Webster's part in this Convention is still something of a mystery. There
is a tradition that the four delegates not voting were detained not unwillingly at a
dinner given by a certain Timothy Walker. Those interested will consult A History
of the New Hampshire Convention for the Discussion and Decision of the Federal Con-
stitution, by Joseph B. Walker, published in 1888. A clear statement of the problems
involved is presented by Fisher in The True Daniel Webster, pp. 26-28. New Hamp-
shire was the ninth state to ratify the Constitution, and her acceptance of it made the
Federal Government a reality. Lewis Cass, a native of Exeter, remembered the
bonfires which blazed in the streets on the evening of the day when the Constitution
was adopted.

2 Lanman, The Private Life of Daniel Webster, p. 1 1.

THE BACKGROUND 15

elm towering above. Behind the house was a large barn in
the midst of partly cleared pasture. Directly in front was a
meadow sloping gradually down to Punch Brook and degen-
erating into a bog at the edge of the alder-bordered stream.

When this building was removed or destroyed cannot be
ascertained, but General Lyman, visiting the spot in 1849,
reported that nothing was left of it except the cellar. 1 This
testimony was corroborated by Edward Everett, who wrote,
"It has long disappeared, but the spot where it stood is well
known, and is covered by a house since built/* 2 Everett
doubtless referred to the Sawyer house, erected in the late
eighteenth century and still extant.

Local tradition, however, maintained that a portion of the
first frame dwelling had been preserved as an ell, or shed,
incorporated in the larger Sawyer farmhouse. 3 In 1904, a
group of public-spirited citizens formed the Webster Birth-
place Association, later expanded into a larger organization for
restoring the place where Webster was born. Some investi-
gations revealed what was assumed to be the site of Ebenezer
Webster's home, and, after the ell had been removed to this
stone foundation, the remainder was reconstructed in general
conformity with the original design. 4 The title was transferred
in 1917 to the State of New Hampshire, by which it is now

1 " Not a vestige of that habitation remains, to mark the place, unless it is the cellar,
now partly filled up, and the trunk of an ancient apple-tree, the top of which is dead,
but from which, near the earth, are sprouting forth a few thriving branches." (Lyman,
Life and Memorials of Daniel 'Webster, I, 170.)

2 National Edition, I. 8. Everett's Biographical Memoir, published first in 1851,
was unquestionably read by Webster himself, and can, therefore, be relied upon in
most essential particulars.

3 In 1894, tne New Hampshire Historical Society made a pilgrimage to Franklin
and visited " the room in which the famous lawyer, orator, and statesman first opened
his eyes to the light of day, as established by indisputable evidence of Dr. J. J. Dearborn,
the historian of Salisbury, who was present and gave the company much interesting
information."

4 The model selected by the architect was a drawing by H. Billings, engraved by
E. A. Fowle and printed as the frontispiece to the first volume of Webster's Works in
1851. According to Lanman, this sketch represents, not the birthplace, but the
property adjoining it, and " was engraved by mistake, or, at any rate, without Mr.
Webster's sanction." Lanman added, "The authentic drawing was given to the
engraver, but he strangely thought proper to substitute the handsome but false picture
for the homely but accurate one." (Lanman, p. 65.)

16 DANIEL WEBSTER

maintained. The birthplace in its restored form does not to-day
altogether correspond to the description given by Lanman,
but it is probable that the older portion is part of the original
Webster dwelling.

As one to-day looks south from the birthplace, there is not
another roof visible, and the seclusion is impressive. A farmer
and his son still mow and rake and load the hay in the pasture
along Punch Brook as Captain Webster and his children used
to do, and they unhesitatingly admit that Salisbury has a
stubborn soiL Jagged boulders dot the meadow, and there
are boggy patches in the hollows. From its edges one may
step directly into dense bushes, and from them into what seems
like primeval forest. Searle's Hill, its summit now inaccessible
except to the pedestrian, stands out as it did when the alarmed
settlers kindled their beacons at the top; and the peak of
rocky Kearsarge, nearly three thousand feet in elevation, still
dominates the western landscape. Punch Brook, formed on
the Webster farm by the mingling of two smaller streams, has
its foamy pools where trout lie hidden. On its banks just
below the bridge have been uncovered the foundation walls of
what must have been Captain Webster's sawmill, and a section
of an old "up-and-down" saw, together with a rusty axe dug
up from the cellar, are preserved in the Birthplace Museum-
Giant elms, which were saplings when Daniel roamed the coun-
try side, stand guard over the clearing.

In the new frame house, which must have seemed very
luxurious to the Websters, Daniel Webster was born, in the
very midst of a bleak New England winter, assisted into the
world by the local midwife. He was a "crying baby/' of
whose life the sturdy mother often despaired. 1 In the lofty
church on the hill, during the summer following his birth, the
child was baptized by Parson Jonathan Searle, wearing his
customary powdered wig, deerskin breeches, long silk stock-
ings, with silver knee and shoe buckles, and an ample surplice

1 Webster remembered having a long illness, and hearing his father say to Abigail
Webster, **We must give him up; we never can raise this child." (Harvey,
P- 397-)

ffi

ft.

<:
DC

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THE BACKGROUND 17

and gown. 1 There had never been a Daniel in the Webster
family, but the mother christened her sons after her two
brothers, Ezekiel and Daniel.

When he was barely two years old, Daniel was moved with
all the family treasures to a new farm in the valley of the Merri-
mack, at Salisbury Lower Village, about three miles to the
east. On his military expeditions, Captain Webster had seen
agricultural land which made him realize the poverty of the
soil at the base of Searle's Hill ; and he had also to consider
the second Mrs. Webster, who preferred a less isolated place
of residence. He bought sixty acres, and one-half of a hun-
dred-acre lot, from Sarah Call, for 155 pounds, reckoned at
the rate of three shillings per bushel of Indian corn a trans-
action indicating some of the financial difficulties of those pre-
carious days at the close of the Revolution. The area thus
acquired was about two and one-half miles south of the junc-
tion of the Pemigewasset and the Winnepesaukee, in the fertile
intervale. On the farm were the remains of a log fort, one of
the last of the stockades constructed along the frontier as a
protection against the Indians. In a cabin in the valley, a
Mrs. Philip Call had been massacred by a band of marauding
redskins, while her daughter-in-law, with a tiny baby, managed
to escape death by hiding behind the chimney. 2 The land
was then in Salisbury, but in 1828 was made a part of the town-
ship of Franklin.

The new dwelling of the Websters was a frame building of
considerable size, with two stories and garret. There, for the
next fifteen years, Captain Webster maintained a tavern for
passing travelers. It occupied a strategic position where the
highway, the earliest one laid out within the town limits,

1 Daniel used to tell with gusto the story, related to him by one who saw the incident,
of how, after the baptism, Mrs. Clay's ample bonnet, bedecked with ribbons, blew off
and was carried down the slope by the wind. At her request, the parson strutted
after it, but too slowly, refusing to unbend his dignity. Finally the exasperated lady
shouted. " Searle, you devil, you, why don't you run ? " This appeal was irresistible,
and the clergyman, throwing off his pride, hastened his pace, captured the bonnet, and
restored it to the wearer. (Lyman, 1, 184-85.)

2 The story, as Webster used to relate it, is told in Lyman, I, 155-56. See also
National Edition, XVI, 525-26, and XVIII, 536.

x8 DANIEL WEBSTER

after turning west from the Merrimack for perhaps a third of a
mile, curved sharply again to the north. Recently this portion
of the road has been straightened, and the old thoroughfare is
little more than a grass-grown path; while the broad modern
boulevard, bearing the name of the Daniel Webster Highway,
is traversed daily by thousands of automobiles on the way to
White Mountain resorts or to mill cities along the Merrimack.
Webster described it as "a spot of absolute quiet/' l but the
railroad, laid across it in 1846, transformed that district, and
the automobile has completed the metamorphosis which the
locomotive began.

The Merrimack at this point is rather deep and narrow, with
steep banks rising perpendicularly from its eastern shore.
On the western side, however, where the Webster farm was
located, lies a level stretch, an alluvial deposit of an earlier
period, fully half a mile wide, and, when properly cultivated,
very productive. Behind it to the west the hills rise gradually to
the Center Road Village and Salisbury Heights. When Captain
Webster transported his family, he followed a rough road down
Punch Brook to the spot where it falls into the Merrimack, and
then turned south for some rods until he reached his new acres.

Except when the summer foliage softens its contours, the
landscape in this section of New Hampshire seems stern and
pitiless. Bleak ridges, gray with outcroppings of granite,
rise from a sombre forest. If you wander far from the main
motor highways, you find yourself on "ribbon 3 ' roads, lined
with tumble-down stone walls, with an occasional deserted
farmhouse, its roof open to the rains and its blinds hanging
loose upon their hinges. In the more solitary places, the
pastures are reverting to undergrowth, and the farmers who
have dung to them have almost forgotten how to smile. The
scenery is not unlike that in the English Westmorland or the
Scottish Highlands, but no Wordsworth or Scott has immor-
talized it. 2 Writing of it towards the close of his life, Webster

1 Webster to Fillmore, July 13, 1852 (National Edition, XVIII, 535).

2 Robert Frost, especially in North of Boston^ has caught more of the spirit of the
New Hampshire countryside than any other poet.

THE BACKGROUND 19

said, "This is a very picturesque country. The hills are high,
numerous, and irregular some with wooded summits., and
some with rocky heads as white as snow. ... I really think
this region is the true Switzerland of the United States/' l

The climate is subject to disconcerting extremes of heat and
cold. Winter sets in early and continues long, 2 and in some
years the snow does not melt until the end of April Ffosts
have been recorded there in July, and in February the rural
roads are packed with colossal drifts. Readers of Whittier's
Snow-Bound have in their imaginations a perfectly drawn picture
of what Daniel Webster must often have experienced when he
looked out and saw

No cloud above, no earth below,
A universe of sky and snow !

In midsummer, on the other hand, there are likely to be
periods of intense, oppressive heat, terminated by thunder-
storms of extraordinary violence. And then, for compensation,
there will come in July and August afternoons of amazing
beauty, with a light breeze tempering the sun's rays and a
romantic glow investing the hills. The chief quality of the
climate is its infinite variety. Any weather, good or bad, may
be expected at any time.

A post-rider made the trip on horseback once a week between
Boston and Concord, New Hampshire, sometimes carrying
farther north 'copies of the Columbian Centinel and the Concord
Gazette. Writing of the year 1805, Webster said, "Stage-
coaches, then, no more ran into the center of New Hampshire
than they ran to Baffin's Bay." 3 But biographers have some-
what overemphasized the isolation of the youthful Webster.
The tavern on the valley highway was an oasis where travelers

1 Webster to Mrs. Cheney, September 29, 1845 (National Edition, XVI, 675).
He added, " I am attracted to this particular spot by very strong feelings. It is the
scene of my early years."

2 Thomas W. Thompson, writing from Salisbury Lower Village in October 1804,
described a storm which deposited snow a foot deep in the woods and wreaked immense
damage upon the neighboring orchards. (Ibid. y XVII, 190.)

3 National Edition, XVII, 22.

20 DANIEL WEBSTER

paused for rest and refreshment; and, as the eighteenth cen-
tury drew to a close, the population along the Merrimack was
rapidly increasing. 1 The Websters had communication with
the outside world. Captain Webster's political activities
drew him frequently to Concord, the capital of the state, less
than twenty miles to the south. Probably Daniel never felt
the loneliness attributed to him by historians.

It is not easy, in these days of rapid and cheap transportation,
of readily obtainable comforts and luxuries, and of entertain-
ment furnished by motion pictures, magazines, and radios,
to imagine what life was like in Salisbury in the last decade of
the eighteenth century. Of the 150,000 people in New Hamp-
shire, a large proportion, including even clergymen, lawyers,
and physicians, practised husbandry, and each farmer was
virtually self-supporting. He raised all his own food, and his
womenfolk spun and wove their own clothes. Hulled corn,
hominy, hasty pudding, pork and beans, and beef were all
products of his estate, and he even manufactured his own cider
and rum, which he consumed in large quantities on festival
occasions. 2 Stoves were not introduced until well into the
nineteenth century. Joints were roasted either in the "tin
kitchen" in front of the huge open fireplace or in the spacious
brick oven heated by wood. Vegetables were boiled in kettles
suspended on the adjustable iron hooks at the corner of the
hearth. Corn was pounded in a rough wooden mortar, and
the dishes were either wooden or pewter. At night, the only
illumination came from candles or from the open fire, fed with
pine-knots, which was the centre of household activity.

And, for the winter fireside meet,
Between the andirons* straddling feet,
The mug of cider simmered slow,

1 Even in 1767, there were 752 people in Concord, 285 in Boscawen, 502 in Canter-
bury, on the other side of the Merrimack, and 210 in Salisbury. The population
of New Hampshire in 1800 was 183,868.

2 " Among husbandmen, cyder is their common drink. Malt liquor is not so fre-
quent as its wholesomeness deserves/' (Belknap, History of New Hampshire, III,
265.)

THE BACKGROUND 21

The apples sputtered in a row,
And, close at hand, the basket stood
With nuts from brown October's wood. 1

The blaze on the hearth had to be covered with ashes before
the master of the house went to bed, for there were no matches,
and the rekindling of the fire could not be neglected. Carpets
were still unknown, but the floors were sometimes sprinkled
with white sand. Outdoors each thrifty housewife had her
mash-tub, in which ashes were leached for making soap.

Some flax was then grown in the township, and there are
still hidden away in garrets the odd-looking implements once
used for its breaking, swingling, carding, and spinning. Eze-
kiel and Daniel probably wore suits colored from the dye-pot
which stood in the chimney corner. The women went about
their homes in petticoats, but "dressed up" when visitors
came. On Sunday, people donned their best garments and
rode to church, not merely to sing hymns and listen to the
tedious sermons, but also to learn what had happened during
the week ; and the lunch at noon was a welcome opportunity
for gossip. Everybody was up and stirring on week days
before sunrise, and nobody was awake long after sundown.
Traveling was uncomfortable, and there were women who
never, from the cradle to the grave, went outside the limits of
the town. Wagons were just coming in, but they had no
springs, and the roads were very rough. The first sleigh in
Salisbury was owned by Ebenezer Webster.

Agriculture was carried on under what seem to us primitive
conditions. The soil was turned by a huge plow, twelve or
fifteen feet long, which it took six yoke of oxen to draw, with
one man riding on the beam to keep its nose in the ground.
Shovels were wooden, shod with iron, and the pitchforks, made
by the local blacksmith, were very heavy. Captain Webster
brought to Salisbury, in 1765, the stones for a grist-mill, drag-
ging them in on an ox-sled. In the Webster household, as in
those of their neighbors, specie was rare, and a system of barter

1 Whittier, Snow-Bound, Cambridge Edition, p. 401.

22 DANIEL WEBSTER

had to be adopted. Although he labored incessantly, Captain
Webster was never prosperous and was seldom free from the
menace of debt.

For all the ordinary ailments simple remedies sufficed, and
the physician was summoned only in the most serious emer-
gencies. The death rate, especially among children, was ex-
ceedingly high, but those who survived infancy were likely
to be of such tough fibre as to withstand most diseases. This
explains many cases of remarkable longevity. The fact that
all but two of Ebenezer Webster's ten children reached matu-
rity indicates that the stock had unusual vitality.

Daniel was the thinnest and feeblest of "Nabby" Webster's
flock, and she once rode with him on horseback to Little Boar's
Head, on the seacoast, in order to test the effect of salt-water
bathing upon him. Whenever he told this story, his eyes filled
with tears, and he would end, "There was a mother for you ! " l
He was not allowed to do any of the heavy chores, but was per-
mitted to spend his time largely in play. There were, of course,
light tasks for him to perform. He yoked the oxen, curried
the horses, drove the cows to pasture, followed the mowers with
a wooden spreader, and rode the horse to harrow between rows
of corn at weeding season. In after life, he liked to reminisce
about those boyhood days. In 1837, he said proudly to an
audience in St. Louis, "I am a farmer, and on the yellow sands
of the east, many a time have I tilled my father's field, and
followed my father's plough." 2 His fondness for Gray's Elegy
was due to such realistic stanzas as :

Oft did the harvest to their sickle yield :
Their furrow oft the stubborn glebe has broke :

How jocund did they drive their team a-field !
How bow'd the woods beneath their sturdy stroke !

As is inevitable with the youngest boy in a large household,
Daniel was a family pet. He liked to pitch quoits and to

1 Harvey, p. 317. According to Harvey, Webster could find nothing away from
home that equaled his mother's cooking, and once wrote her from Hanover a poetical
letter heralding his arrival and asking her to have ready for him his favorite dish of
chickens and pork.

2 National Edition, XIII, 80.

THE BACKGROUND 23

wrestle, and on winter afternoons he coasted down the long hills
or skated on the river. Of the period until he was fourteen,
he said, "A great deal of the time I was sick, and when well
was exceedingly slender, and apparently of feeble system.** 1
This frailty was the excuse for giving him more schooling than
had been accorded his older brothers and sisters. And yet,
in 1839, thirteen years before his death, he noted that, at the
age of fifty-seven, he had outlived them all.

Taught his letters by his mother, Daniel could not remem-
ber a time when he was unable to read. His first Bible was
her gift, and his copious quotations from it in after years prove
that its style and substance were well assimilated. Of its
influence upon him Webster once said to Lanman :

My father had a sonorous voice, an untaught but correct ear, and a
keen perception of all that was beautiful or sublime in thought. How
often after the labors of the day, before twilight had deepened into
obscurity, would he read to me his favorite portions of the Bible, the
Book of Job, the Prayer of Habakkuk, and extracts from Isaiah ! It
was doubtless his impressive manner on such occasions, his suffused
eye, his broken voice, and reverential intonation, that gave me a taste
for the inspired authors, and preserved me from that danger of neg-
lect into which our early familiarity with these books a familiarity
in the meantime rather with the sound of the words than with their
sense and beauties too often threatens to precipitate us. 2

In this description we are reminded of how in "The Cotter's
Saturday Night"

The priest-like father reads the sacred page,
How Abram was the friend of God on high . . .

Or Job's pathetic plaint, and wailing cry;
Or rapt Isaiah's wild, seraphic fire;

Or other holy Seers that tune the sacred lyre.

When he was well enough, he was sent at irregular intervals
to the migratory schools which even the least enterprising
communities in New England established as soon as their
churches had been organized. His teachers were semi-itiner-

1 National Edition, XVII, 9. 2 IKd., XIII, 572.

2 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

ant and usually poorly qualified for instructing others. " Noth-
ing was taught but reading and writing/' said Webster in his
Autobiography. 1 Sometimes the school was kept in the Lower
Village, close by his home ; at other seasons he had to walk two
or three miles each way, morning and afternoon, carrying his
luncheon with him; and when it was being held even farther
from his home, he was "boarded out" at the house of a family
friend. His first master was Thomas Chase, of whom Web-
ster made the comment, "He could read tolerably well, and
wrote a fair hand; but spelling was not his forte." 2

When the lad had learned his letters, he proceeded to borrow
every volume within his reach. His father had joined with
Thomas W. Thompson, the local attorney, and the Reverend
Thomas Worcester, the Salisbury clergyman, in starting a
circulating library, small but carefully selected, in which the
bookish Daniel found his chief delight. Long afterwards,
Webster sometimes astonished his legal companions by quoting
at length from the Essay on Man or Paradise Lost, or even
from Watts's hymns, most of which he could recite by the time
he was twelve. His guests at Marshfield used to hear him
singing in the early morning such stanzas as :

Our lives through various scenes are drawn,

And vexed with trifling cares ;
While thine eternal thoughts move on

Thine undisturbed affairs.

Almost unconsciously, he acquired a thorough knowledge
of the English classics, including such writers as Samuel Butler,
Addison, Swift, Pope, and Dr. Johnson. He was much affected
by the papers from the Spectator y particularly the essay on the
ballad of "Chevy Chase." Through this intensive reading

1 National Edition, XVII, 7. Webster's Autobiography is a fragment, written out
in i829^fbr Mrs. Eliza Buckrninster Lee, and extending only to 1817. Brief though
it is, it is of great value because of its recollections of his childhood.

^ 2 Another teacher was William Hoyt, who kept the general store in Salisbury Lower
Village. Still another was James Tappan, who lived to an advanced age, surviving
his famous pupiL Webster wrote him an interesting letter on July 20, 1852. (National
Edition, XVIII, 541.)

THE BACKGROUND 25

came a feeling for style and rhythm which had a beneficial
effect upon his speeches.

When the yearly almanac arrived, he and Ezekiel usually
memorized before nightfall the verses at the tops of the pages
devoted to the months. Once the two brothers, differing as
they lay in bed regarding the rendering of a line in April's
poetry, stole out in their nightshirts to the chamber where
their aged grandmother was sleeping and brought back the
precious pamphlet, only to discover that Ezekiel had won.
Just as he was dropping off to slumber again, Daniel noticed
a flickering light in the room which they had just visited, and
springing out of bed, found that flames were spreading from an
overturned candle. He shouted to arouse the family, and
Captain Webster, hastening to the rescue, seized everything
that was ablaze and wrapped it in blankets. It was a fortu-
nate escape from a disaster which would have been blamed on
an overscrupulous attention to accuracy of quotation. 1

Literature was even then an indispensable source of stimula-
tion to Daniel Webster. "We had so few books that to read
them once or twice was nothing," he wrote. "We thought
they were all to be got by heart." 2 But he was also a friendly
boy, who liked people, especially those of marked individuality.
He enjoyed talking with old John Bowen, who had been a
prisoner among the Indians, and with George Bayly, "a yeo-
man of humor and mimicry/' 3 who had seen the first tree
felled in northern New Hampshire. In a tiny cottage on a
corner of the Webster farm lived Robert Wise, a Yorkshire-
man who had survived a career of miraculous adventures as
soldier and sailor, who had been twice a deserter, and had at
last, after fighting under the Union Jack at Bunker Hill, joined
the colonists and served under Stark in later campaigns. 4 His

i National Edition, XVII, 8. 2 Ibid. 8 IMd., XVIII, 296.

*Ibid. y XVII, 16-17. Henry A. Wise, in his Seven Decades of the Union, 195-96,
tells of a conversation with Webster about Robert Wise, but the account is filled with
minor errors. It says that Webster's early home was " along the New Hampshire
coast," that the name of the old pensioner was Daniel Wise, and that he was a bachelor.
Webster, in his Autobiography, expressly states that Robert Wise had a wife, but
no child.

26 DANIEL WEBSTER

fantastic tales held the credulous, imaginative lad in a mes-
meric spell; and the veteran also took him as a companion
on his walks, paddled him up and down the river, and taught
him the art of angling. 1 An odd playmate he must have been,
and a diverting tutor. In return, Daniel read the newspapers
to him, for he could neither read nor write.

Although Daniel was fond of nature and could beat a path
through the woods with Wise for hours at a stretch, he had no
love for farm labor. In his sixty-fifth year, writing at the
spot where he had been brought up, he said :

This fair field is before me. I could see a lamb on any part of it.
I have ploughed it, and raked it, and hoed it; but I never mowed it.
Somehow, I could never learn enough to hang a scythe. I had not
wit enough. My brother Joe used to say that my father sent me to
college in order to make me equal to the rest of the children. 2

Something about him made an impression on strangers.
He often entertained guests at the tavern by reading aloud
from the Bible ; and teamsters, as they pulled up at the door,
would say, "Come, let's go in and hear a psalm from Dan
Webster/* Many years later, when Senator Webster had
just ended one of his political speeches, a man came up to him
and asked in amazement, "Is this the little black Dan that used
to water the horses?" His teacher, James Tappan, remem-
bered that Daniel "was always the brightest boy in school."
On a Saturday morning, Master Tappan held up a shining
new jackknife, promising it as a reward on Monday to the
pupil who would commit to memory the greatest number of
verses from the Bible. Many of the boys and girls did well,

1 Daniel's passion for fishing, if not instinctive, was at least created in him very
early. At the age of five, according to Lanman, the boy was riding on horseback with
his father along a road near his birthplace, when Captain Webster, passing near Punch
Brook, suddenly exclaimed, " Dan'l, how would you like to catch a trout ? " They
dismounted, and Ebenezer, cutting a hazel rod, attached to it a line and hook which
he had in his pocket, baited it with a worm captured under a stone, and then told the
youngster to creep up on a boulder and cast carefully into the deep pool below. The
little fellow, obeying instructions, hooked his fish, and then, in his excitement, lost his
balance and tumbled into the water, over his head. He was drawn out, still clutching
the improvised rod, with a good-sized trout trailing from the hook. (Lanman, p. 135.)

2 Webster to Blatchford, May 3, 1846 (National Edition, XVIII, 228).

THE BACKGROUND 27

for the prize was worth striving for; but Daniel had memorized
so many verses that, after he had repeated sixty or seventy,
the master stopped hirn^ leaving him to protest that there were
several chapters more which he could recite. At the sawmill
on Punch Brook, which Captain Webster still operated even
after he had moved to the Lower Village, Daniel was some-
times assigned the not very arduous task of setting the saw and
hoisting the gate ; and, during the few minutes while the blade
was grinding through the timber, he employed the time in read-
ing from the book which he never failed to carry in his pocket.

It was a household in which love of country was instilled
into the children with their daily food. At the tavern fireside,
Daniel listened to tales of the Revolution from men who were
familiar with the flash of rifles and who had seen Knox and
Steuben and Washington. Captain Webster must have told
stories of his campaigns under Rogers and of the debates in
the New Hampshire Convention of 1788. As Parton said,
Daniel learned political history at town meetings, on election
days, from the actors themselves not from the cold and unin-
viting pages of textbooks. And always before him was the
figure of George Washington, his father's hero, as the model of
what a patriot ought to be.

The three hundred dollars which Ebenezer Webster received,
after 1791, as annual compensation for his services as Lay
Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, was chiefly responsible
for his decision to give his youngest son an education. At the
close of the century he exchanged houses with his son-in-law,
William Haddock, 1 and moved to The Elms, a comfortable
dwelling still standing, with some additions, only a short dis-
tance from the site of the tavern. 2 It was this farm which

1 William Haddock (1769-1828) came to Salisbury from Haverhill, Massachusetts,
before 1794, being by trade a tanner and currier, as well as a shoemaker. For his first
wife, he married Daniel's sister, Abigail, and accumulated a small fortune, most of
which he later lost through poor investments. His son, Charles Brickett Haddock
(1796-1861), was Daniel's favorite nephew.

2 For a useful and accurate map of The Elms farm and its environment, see the
drawing by F. N. Hancock in Fisher's The True Daniel Webster > facing page 42. The
house is now occupied as the office and residence of the Superintendent of the New
Hampshire Orphans" Home.

28 DANIEL WEBSTER

Ebenezer Webster occupied until he died in 1806. It was then
taken over by his son, Ezekiel, at whose death in 1829 it was
bought by Daniel, who kept it mainly for raising cattle. But
at the time when Judge Webster transferred to The Elms,
Daniel was a student in Dartmouth College. It was the tavern
which was his boyhood home, and to which his recollections
invariably turned.

Certain events of his childhood were indelibly stamped on
Webster's mind. Struthers Burt has written :

No one knows the countryside,
Sweet and deep and amplified,
Until he 's watched it day by day.
Month by month from frost to hay.

This Captain Webster's sons had done. Daniel never forgot
how, when the Merrimack was teeming with fish in the spring,
the shad, on reaching the junction of the two streams which
form the larger river, went up the Winnepesaukee to the warmer
waters of the lake, while the salmon sought the colder Pemige-
wasset rushing down from the mountains. He vividly recalled
that during an April freshet a great barn went sailing down the
valley, swept along by the torrent. Writing of his affection
for New Hampshire, he said, "For my part, I shall continue
to love her white-topped hills, her clear running streams, her
beautiful lakes, and her deep shady forests, as long as I live." 1
More specifically he described The Elms as follows :

This house faces north. Its front windows look towards the River
Merrimack. But then the river soon turns to the south, so that the
eastern windows look toward the river also. But the river has so
deepened its channel, in this stretch of it, in the last fifty years, that
we cannot see its water without approaching it, or going back to the
higher lands behind us. ... Looking out at the east windows at
this moment (two P.M.), with a beautiful sun just breaking out, my
eye sweeps a rich and level plain of one hundred acres. At the end
of it, a third of a mile off, I see plain marble gravestones, designating
the places where repose my father, my mother, my brother Joseph,

1 Webster to Coffin, June n, 1840 (National Edition, XVIII, 86).

THE BACKGROUND 29

and my sisters Mehitable, Abigail, and Sarah, good scripture names,
inherited from their Puritan ancestors. 1

In almost the last letter which he wrote, Webster said to
Charles H. Warren: "But you never saw Salisbury, nor the
sources of the Merrimack, nor Kearsarge, nor the Ragged
Mountain, nor my Punch Brook Pasture, of 500 acres, where
100 cattle graze along the glades and glide through the bushes
like so many deer. My ! I do not think you ever saw any-
thing." His New Hampshire home was his solace to the end
of his days.

There was little of the prodigy about the youthful Web-
ster. Except for his physical weakness, which he later
entirely outgrew, he seems to have had a normal, healthy
childhood, free from morbid influences and without Freudian
complexes. His parents, although straitened in their resources,
were refined people, with a Puritan respect for learning and
law, and with rigid standards of conduct. The forces to which
Daniel was susceptible came from nature, from humanity,
and from books, and he profited by them all.

1 National Edition, XVIII, p. 228. The railroad and the attractive new brick
buildings of the New Hampshire Orphans* Home have considerably altered the view
which Webster described, but the little cemetery is still carefully kept. A bronze tablet
on a boulder commemorates the fact that the Superintendent's Residence or rather
one section of it was once the home of Daniel Webster's father and later of Daniel
himself. In 1925, a Daniel Webster Memorial Building was dedicated at the Orphans*
Homej with an address by Senator George H. Moses. In 1852, Webster wrote,
" There are seven houses in the village, of which two are mine, one for our use and
one for the tenants." Both the houses which he mentions are still standing, but the
old tavern has long since disappeared, and its site is unmarked.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH

The duty of man to his Maker, to his fellow-men, and to himself have
ever been here inculcated.

WEBSTER, Address at the Abbot Festival, Exeter,

August 23, 1838

It is doubtful if the name of any educational institution in the land is so
Inseparably blended with the name of a graduate, or even of a founder, as
is the name of Dartmouth with that of Daniel Webster.

PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. TUCKER, Address at the Webster
Centennial of Dartmouth College, September 25, 1901

ONCE, in the broad meadow at The Elms, "Dan'l" Webster
was set to mowing by his father, but made awkward work of
it. His wayward scythe was sometimes on the ground and
sometimes over the tops of the grass never where it should
have been if it had been swung by competent hands. When
he complained that the tool was not properly balanced, un-
successful efforts were made to adjust it. At last the vexed
Captain Webster cried, "Well, hang it to suit yourself/*
Quickly the boy threw it over the limb of a tree, saying, '* There,
that *s just right." The father, laughing in spite of his irrita-
tion, told him to let it remain where it was.

But Daniel might have been obliged to settle down as a
farmer if his alertness of mind had not attracted the notice
of a man who had the inclination and the power to help him.
Thomas W. Thompson, 1 an intimate friend of the Webster

1 Thomas White Thompson (1766-1821), born in Boston, early moved with his
parents to Newburyport, attended Dummer Academy, and graduated from Harvard
College in 1786. With notable versatility, he studied theology, acted as a tutor at
Harvard, and read law under Theophilus Parsons. What drew him to New Hampshire
is not known, but he opened an office in 1791 at Salisbury Center, and moved in the
following year to the Lower Village, where he became the leading citizen. He was
later Member of Congress (1805-07), and, after removing to Concord in 1809, was
State Treasurer (1810), Speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 31

family, maintained a law office near the tavern; and, when
Daniel was not more than thirteen, the attorney, lacking a
clerk, hired the lad to sit at his desk while he was away on
business and explain to prospective clients where he had gone.
The duties of the position were so slight that the boy investi-
gated the books on the shelves around him, and, when Thomp-
son casually tossed him a Latin grammar, Daniel, hoping to
please his employer, committed it to memory. This feat so
stirred Thompson's interest that he suggested to Captain
Webster the wisdom of encouraging the youngster by sending
him to an academy, with the idea of preparing him to be a
teacher. Ebenezer Webster, neither then nor later, had any
superfluous funds. On the other hand, Daniel's physical
deficiencies seemed to indicate that he could never earn a living
by manual labor. The only alternative was to equip him
with as much schooling as the family finances would allow.
Consciousness of this fact, joined with pride in the impression
which his son had made on Lawyer Thompson, led Captain
Webster to come to a definite decision. The announcement
of his plan, so important to Daniel's development, was made
under circumstances best told in the latter's own words:

Of a hot day in July, it must have been in one of the last years of
Washington's administration, I was making hay with my father, just
where I now see a remaining elm tree. About the middle of the after-
noon, the Honorable Abiel Foster, M. C, who lived in Canterbury,
six miles off, called at the house, and came into the field to see my
father. He was a worthy man, college learned, and had been a minis-
ter, but was not a person of any considerable natural power. My
father was his friend and supporter. He talked awhile in the field,
and went on his way. When he was gone, my father called me to
him, and we sat down beneath the elm, on a haycock. He said,
"My son, that is a worthy man, he is a member of Congress, he goes
to Philadelphia, and gets six dollars a day, while I toil here. It is

(1812-14), and United States Senator (1814-17). He was elected a trustee of Dart-
mouth College in 1801. Thompson was described as "an accomplished gentleman,
distinguished for the dignity and urbanity of his manners, for integrity and piety/*
His political career served as a stimulus to Daniel Webster, who admired and respected
him, and was influenced by his unadulterated Federalism.

32 DANIEL WEBSTER

because he had an education, which I never had. If I had had his
eaxly education, I should have been in Philadelphia in his place. I
came near it as it was. But I missed it, and now I must work here."
"My dear father/' said I, "you shall not work. Brother and I will
work for you, and wear our hands out, and you shall rest." And I
remember to have cried and I cry now at the recollection. "My
child," said he, "it is of no importance to me. I now live but for
my children. I could not give your elder brothers the advantage of
knowledge, but I can do something for you. Exert yourself, improve
your opportunities, and when I am gone, you will not need to go
through the hardships which I have undergone, and which have made
me old before my time." *

The pathos of this incident is heightened for us by the fact
that, only seventeen years later, Daniel Webster was elected
to Congress from New Hampshire, attaining with little effort
the office which Captain Webster had struggled vainly to se-
cure. This conversation in the hayfield opened an unexpected
future to the barefooted country lad. Before that date no
one among the American Websters had been in any sense a
scholar. Gaining a precarious livelihood by tilling the soil,
they had belonged to the yeoman class. Daniel and his
brother, Ezekiel, were the first to become "learned'* men.

The plan upon which Captain Webster had resolved was
put into operation the following spring. On May 25, 1796, he
lifted the youngster on a horse with a side saddle and, mount-
ing his own steed, started with him for Exeter, one of the most
important New Hampshire villages and the seat of the Phillips
Exeter Academy. The route was familiar to him, for Exeter
had been the capital of the state, which he had often visited
on legislative business. The travelers stopped for the night
at Allenstown, continued their journey on the next day as far
as Poplin, and reached their destination early on the following
morning. 2

The Phillips Exeter Academy, now one of our greatest pre-
paratory schools, comparable with Eton and Harrow in

1 National Edition, XVIII, 228-29, Letter to Blatchford, May 3, 1846.
8 Lyman,I, 203.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 33

England, had then been in operation about thirteen years. 1
Founded mainly through the liberal endowments of Dr. John
Phillips, it had been incorporated in 1781, and opened to pupils
two years later. Its first Principal, William Woodbridge, had
been succeeded by Benjamin Abbot/ one of the most brilliant
of American teachers, who governed the school for half a
century, leaving it "famous for scholarship and the devotion
of its graduates to church and state." 3

The first small school building was soon outgrown, and a
new and beautiful main hall, on Front Street, was completed
just before Webster's arrival. In 1796, the enrollment was
not far from ninety, of whom about half were from New
Hampshire. In Webster's day 3 Dr. Abbot had only one assist-
ant, usually a young and inexperienced man who remained
for but a year.

Father and son rode down the shaded street of the country
village, the boy on the bony horse, in clumsy cowhide shoes
and a homespun suit too tight for him. According to tradi-
tion, 4 Captain Webster took the lad to Dr. Abbot to arrange
for his admission. The Principal, in his pompous manner,
donned his cocked hat and said, "Let the young gentleman
be presented for examination/' After making the conven-
tional inquiries, he handed him a Bible and asked him to read
aloud the twenty-second chapter of Luke, describing the be-
trayal of Jesus by Judas and the denial by Peter. This was
an easy task for the boy who had so often declaimed the Psalms

1 It was almost inevitable that Captain Webster should turn to Exeter for the
education of his son. He himself had been born at Kingston, only six miles away, and
he had known Exeter as a boy. As for the school, it was then, as it is to-day, the best
in New Hampshire, its only rival in New England being the slightly older Phillips
Academy, Andover, Massachusetts, established also by the Phillips family.

2 Benjamin Abbot (1762-1849), a graduate of Phillips Academy, Andover, and
Harvard (1788), spent all his mature life at Exeter. He believed that the burden in
education must be placed squarely upon the undergraduate, and he was a thorough
drillmaster. His discipline was strict, but just, and he pursued a firm policy as Prin-
cipal In his character he represented the Puritan virtues of industry, honesty, and
idealism.

3 Quoted from The Phillips Exeter Academy: A History , by Laurence M. Crosbie,
a thorough and readable study of the development of the school. It has an admirable
chapter No, VIII on "Abbot's Favorite Pupil: Daniel Webster."

4 Lyman, I, 204-5.

34 DANIEL WEBSTER

in Ms father's tavern, and he went unfalteringly to the close
of the rhythmical passage. He closed the book and stood
silent. Then Dr. Abbot, taking the volume from his hand,
said simply, "Young man, you are qualified to enter this
institution."

At that moment, however, Daniel Webster did not look
like a promising candidate for greatness. The diffident
farmer's son, who had never before been away from home, was
thrown without warning into strange surroundings, among
lads from the cities, much better dressed than he and far more
sophisticated. While waiting for the meal to be served in his
boarding house, he at first sat at the table with his knife and
fork held upright on either side of his plate ; and his father is
reported to have said, "Daniel knows no more about holding
a knife and fork than a cow does about holding a spade."
Squire Clifford, in whose house Daniel roomed and boarded,
saw the boy's embarrassment and, realizing his shyness,
induced another student to sacrifice himself for the benefit of
Daniel. At the next meal, the victim deliberately held his
utensils aloft with his fists planted on the table as Daniel had
been doing. Squire Clifford then reproved him, and the
scapegoat, controlling his laughter only with difficulty, thanked
his mentor and accepted the rebuke. Daniel did not miss
the hint, and his manners steadily improved. 1 Other vague
tales of Webster's uncouthness have undoubtedly some basis
in fact, but he was quick to learn and soon took on the color
of his environment, as boys have a way of doing.

Squire Clifford's residence known to-day as the Garrison
House had been built in 1658 as a protection against the
Indians, and is still standing in excellent condition at the cor-
ner of Water and Clifford Streets, near the "white bridge."
Webster's study table, a hinged board which folded against the
wall when not required, is shown to visitors.

The routine did not allow the students much leisure. Morn-
ing prayers were held at seven-thirty every day in Dr. Abbot's

* Cunningham, Familiar Sketches of the Phillips Exeter Academy, pp. 130-32. See
also Crosbie, p. 80.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 35

room, which was plain and bare, with rows of unpainted pine
desks and a gigantic cast-iron stove, the heat from which was
augmented on cold winter days by the blaze from the logs in
the huge fireplace. There was no artificial light except from
candles, and it was often so dark that printed letters could
hardly be made out. The woodwork everywhere, on desks
and walls and railings, was scarred by jackknives, and Webster
himself was later to cut a rude "D. W." deep into a panel in
the bell tower. The pupils studied and recited from eight
until ten, and then, after a recess of twenty minutes, continued
at their books until twelve. The afternoon sessions lasted
from three to six in summer and from two to five in winter.
Each boy was compelled to be in his room at seven o'clock in
the evening and had to go to bed at nine. Wednesday and
Saturday afternoons were half-holidays.

Because Webster had appeared in the middle of the academic
year, the Principal assigned him to the lowest class, where, for
a few weeks, he covered familiar ground in English grammar,
writing, and arithmetic. Accustomed as he was to the in-
efficient teachers in the district schools of Salisbury, he had to
adjust himself to instructors who knew their business. But
at the end of a month, the Principal's assistant, Nicholas
Emery, afterwards a lawyer and judge in Portland, Maine,
placed him at the head of the section. When the term
closed, Emery, having ascertained by questioning Webster
that the lad might not return, urged him to come back, promis-
ing that he should be promoted to a higher class where he
could advance more rapidly. " Those were the first truly
encouraging words that I ever received with regard to my
studies," said Webster later. "I then resolved to return,
and pursue them with diligence, and as much ability as I
possessed."

Webster had not been altogether happy at the school. His
unfashionable garb and awkward manners had excited the
derision of some of his mates. The fourteen-year-old lad had
not yet outgrown the sensitiveness which had been the conse-
quence or the accompaniment of his physical weakness.

36 DANIEL WEBSTER

Emery's sympathy filled the boy with a new confidence and
induced him to persevere at Exeter a little longer.

On his return in October, Daniel began Latin and public
speaking under the precocious Joseph Stevens Buckminster,
who, although only in his thirteenth year/ was already a Senior
at Exeter and was taking Dr. Abbot's place while the latter
was recovering from an indisposition. That a child like Buck-
minster should have charge of instruction in Latin at Exeter
may well seem remarkable to present-day students of that
institution, but the prodigy was apparently quite equal to the
responsibility. Under his guidance, Webster made rapid
progress in Latin, and he always regarded his tutor with kind-
ness. It is impossible to ascertain the length of time during
which Webster was actually taught by Dr. Abbot, but he must
have sat under him, for the Principal later said :

It was generally believed that Webster was a dull and unsuccessful
pupil, but such was not the case. His mind rarely seemed to
be occupied with his studies. His large, lustrous, thoughtful eyes
were gazing about the room, or looking out of the window ; but, at
recitation, the pupil who appeared not to be engaged in studious
preparation always acquitted himself well.

Webster's only conspicuous failure was in declamation, then
an important feature of the curriculum. In the public exhibi-
tion held each week, every student was supposed to take part,
but the boy who was to become America's most famous orator
could not overcome his timidity. His own confession tells
the story :

Many a piece did I commit to memory, and recite and rehearse in
my own room, over and over again, yet, when the day came, when the
school collected to hear declamations, when my name was called, and
I saw all eyes turned to my seat, I could not raise myself from it.

1 The stories of Buckminster's precocity would seem mythical if they were not so
well authenticated. He was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on May 26, 1784,
and was thus more than two years and five months younger than Webster. He had
read the Greek Testament when he was only five, and, in 1796, was a tall and dignified
youth, who seemed much older than he was. He later graduated from Harvard at
sixteen, became a clergyman, was appointed Lecturer in Biblical Criticism at Harvard,
and died of epilepsy on June 9, 1812.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 37

Sometimes the instructors frowned, sometimes they smiled. Mr.
Buckminster always pressed and entreated, most winningly, that I
would venture, but I could never command sufficient resolution. 1

Doubtless much of Webster's embarrassment arose from a
dread of further ridicule from his fellows, but there may have
been an actual physical inhibition based upon a nervous weak-
ness. It was, at any rate, merely a temporary difficulty, which
completely disappeared when he reached college.

Little beyond these meagre details can be learned regarding
Webster's brief career at Exeter. The records of his marks
in his various studies have long since disappeared. His stay
was too short for the formation of many enduring friendships,
but among those with whom he was best acquainted were
Lewis Cass, 2 later Governor of Michigan, Minister to France,
Secretary of State, and candidate for the Presidency ; J. W.
Brackett, of New York City ; William Garland, of Portsmouth ;
James Hervey Bingham, 3 with whom he was to continue his
intimacy at Dartmouth ; and Leverett Saltonstall, of Salem,
afterwards a noted lawyer and member of Congress. In later
life he was thrown into close relations with other Exeter gradu-
ates, including Edward Everett, Jared Sparks, and George
Bancroft.

On one occasion he walked with a companion to Rye Beach,
ten miles away, and there, just before the sun was setting, had
a view of the ocean. "I remember distinctly the impression
made upon me at that time," he said, "a sensation such as has
never since come to me, much as I have looked at, and love to
look at, the sea/' 4 There he went again in 1845, towards the
close of his life, to gaze once more at the Atlantic from the
point where his eyes had seen it as a boy.

1 National Edition, XVII, 10.

2 Webster remembered Cass as " a clever fellow, good-natured, kind-hearted, ami-
able, and obliging."

3 Bingham later said of Webster as he remembered him at Exeter: " He had an
independent air and was rather careless in his dress and appearance. He did not join
much in the plays and amusements of the boys of his age, but paid close attention to
his studies." See National Edition, XVII, 55.

4 Harvey, p. 346.

38 DANIEL WEBSTER

Webster may not have made a deep impression at Exeter as
a leader, but the time came when he was welcomed back as his
Alma Mater's favorite son* He was elected a Trustee in 1835,
and remained nominally a member of the Board until his death,
although he was recorded as being present at only two meet-
ings one in 1 836 and another in 1 838. At the Abbot Festival
in 18385 he presided and delivered an eloquent address, at the
close of which he said, in presenting a silver pitcher, the gift
of the alumni, to the Principal, "Some men have wrought on
brass, some men have wrought on marble, but Abbot wrought
on mind/* The applause at the conclusion of this sentence
was described by one of the guests as "like a sudden peal of
thunder.** l It was the orator's sincere tribute to a great
teacher of young men.

There is little remaining to-day of the Exeter which Daniel
Webster knew, but he is still remembered there. His portrait
hangs in the Academy Auditorium; the marble mantel over
the fireplace In the lecture hall was taken from Webster's law
office in Boston ; and one of the newest dormitories bears his
name. The school still maintains its ancient traditions of
liberality and democracy, and continues to offer an exceptional
opportunity for boys of the Webster type.

In June 1834, Webster sent his youngest son, Edward, to
Exeter, and afterwards wrote him an excellent letter of advice,
which has been preserved. 2 Only four months before his own
death, he wrote, on June 7, 1852, to the Golden Branch literary
society, of which he had been made an honorary member,
enclosing copies of a speech which he had recently delivered in
New York, and ending :

My Brothers ! let us do honor to the Founder of our academy !
Let us cherish, affectionately, the memory of the venerable and
beloved Benjamin Abbot ! And let us labor to repay to the cause of

1 Quoted by Crosbie from an article by " G. O.," in the Boston Advertiser of July 20,
1881. For a good account of the Abbot Festival, see Crosbie, pp. 70-72.

2 Crosbie, p. 85. See Van Tyne, Letters of Daniel Webster > p. 587, for a letter from
Webster to his son, Fletcher, asking the latter to take his brother to Exeter and enroll
him in the Academy.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 39

Learning, what a most excellent Institution for Learning has done for
us. My Brothers, Farewell I l

This was his last communication to the school.

At the close of the fall term, in December 1796, Captain
Webster came for his son and took him back to Salisbury. The
reasons why the boy did not return to complete his course can
only be surmised. The legend, perpetuated by undergraduate
tradition, that he was dismissed by the authorities has no
foundation. The suggestion that his health had been impaired
is not supported by the evidence. It is more likely that the
expense of maintaining the lad away from home was becoming
a strain upon the father's financial resources. 2 For the moment
there was some uncertainty as to what it would be best for him
to do. On his fifteenth birthday, he was teaching a district
school, composed of both girls and boys, many of them
older than he 5 in a room in the farmhouse of his uncle,
William Webster, on the eastern slope of Searle's Hill. He
must have been a strange pedagogue, this youth with the
gleaming eyes, whose only experience with the world outside
of Salisbury had been nine months at Exeter. But he had in
his boyish head more sound knowledge of the three R's than
any of his own early instructors could have claimed. When
school hours were over, he was the companion of his pupils
at "apple peelings" and "straw rides" and other rural diver-
sions. 3

It was probably the Reverend Samuel Wood, 4 of Boscawen,
who rescued Daniel Webster from a career as a schoolmaster.

1 Crosbie, p. 87.

2 This view was accepted by the late Professor Herbert D. Foster, of Dartmouth
College, who had accumulated a large amount of material on Webster, and was ex-
pressed by him in a letter to Laurence M. Crosbie, March n, 1926.

3 Lyman, I, 212-13.

4 Samuel Wood (1752-1836) was a man of wide influence in the Merrimack Valley.
Graduating from Dartmouth in 1779, as Valedictorian of his class, he had settled in
Boscawen, six miles southeast of Salisbury, in 1781, where he was a clergyman for
almost fifty years. His house still stands on the road between Salisbury Center and
Boscawen, about two miles west from the Merrimack River and Boscawen Plain, on a
hill commanding a broad view over the valley. Here, with characteristic enterprise,
he planted a large orchard of choice fruit trees, and undertook also the cultivation of
the silkworm, with no great success. Under his tutelage, more than a hundred young
men were prepared for college, many of them gratuitously.

4 o DANIEL WEBSTER

Having been thrown into contact with the boyish teacher, he
was struck by his ability and ambition, and, going to Captain
Webster, offered to prepare Daniel for Dartmouth College.
The generous proposal could not be rejected. The necessary
arrangements were completed, and, as the father and son
drove in a "cutter" to Boscawen, the former revealed to the
boy his plan to give him a college education. In recollecting
that dramatic moment, Daniel afterwards wrote :

He said he then lived but for his children, and if I would do all I
could for myself, he would do what he could for me. I remember
that I was quite overcome, and my head grew dizzy. The thing
appeared to me so high, and the expense and sacrifice it was to cost
my father, so great, that I could only press his hands and shed tears.
Excellent, excellent parent ! I cannot think of him, even now, with-
out turning child again. 1

From February to August 1797 Dr. Wood did his best to
get Daniel ready to meet the Dartmouth entrance require-
ments. The task was both congenial and familiar, but was
made unusually difficult by the necessity of covering so much
work in such a short time. Although the boy knew only a little
Latin grammar. Dr. Wood set him at once to reading Virgil
and Cicero. "I conceived a pleasure in the study of them,
especially the latter, which rendered application no longer a
task/' he wrote in his Autobiography. 2 With the coming of
spring, he took up Greek grammar under David Palmer, a
young Dartmouth Senior who happened to be staying with
Dr. Wood. For Greek he had no great fondness, but he was
diligent, and, after he had been working only six weeks, Dr.
Wood urged him to try to enter college at the opening of the
regular fall term. It is not astonishing that he went to Han-
over, according to his own confession, " miserably prepared,
both in Latin and Greek." 3 He was not yet sixteen, and the

1 National Edition, XVII, 10. It is interesting to notice how much Webster's
career was affected by external forces. He was, no doubt, eager to secure an education,
but the stimulus seems to have come first from Thomas W. Thompson and then from
Dr. Wood. It was unquestionably their advice which persuaded Captain Webster to
send his son away from home for an education.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 4 i

only systematic instruction which he had received had been
at Exeter and at Boscawen, in each case for a short period.

He had never outgrown his aversion to farm labor. During
the haying season, Captain Webster, in need of hands, sent for
him to come back and help in the fields. Finding the turning
over of the hay to be a lonely and dull process, the boy inveigled
his younger sister, Sally, into wandering off with him to pick
whortleberries. They rode away on horseback together and
did not return to the tavern until sundown reminded them
of supper. When Captain Webster, who had been away at a
neighboring village on business, returned and, through question-
ing, found out what had happened, he could not hold back his
laughter; and on the following morning after breakfast he
quietly handed his son a compact bundle containing the clothes
which the latter had brought from Boscawen. "I believe,"
said Ebenezer Webster, with a grim smile, "that you may as
well go back to Dr. Wood's/* So Daniel was destined to use
his brain instead of his muscles. 1

In Boscawen he found various forms of diversion, both
intellectual and physical. The picturesque village, with a
population recorded in the Selectmen's books for 1786 as "827
soles/' was a centre for the surrounding agricultural community,
and the farmers drove in frequently for business and gossip.
In the Boscawen Social Library, Webster discovered about
two hundred books, classified as theological, historical, and
miscellaneous, the group including, besides the poems of Milton,
Pope, Thomson, and Cowper, The Fool of Quality y Letters on
Courtship, Coquette, and Arabian Nights 9 Entertainments, in
lighter vein. Here it was that he first turned the enchanting
pages of Don Quixote, of which he later said :

I began to read it, and it is literally true that I never closed my eyes
till I had finished it ; nor did I lay it down for five minutes, so great

was the power of that extraordinary book upon my imagination. 2

1 The story is told in Lanman, p. 28, and in various other sources. As the boy left
the tavern that morning, his patron, Thomas W. Thompson, saw him with his bundle
and asked, " Where are you going, Dan ? " " Back to school," was the rather shame-
faced answer. " I thought it would be so," said Thompson, with a quiet laugh.

2 National Edition, XVII, n.

4 a DANIEL WEBSTER

But he did not spend all his time in reading. He was fond
of fishing along Mill Brook and of hunting in the dense forest
which could be reached quickly in almost any direction from
the Wood farm. There was about him nothing of the recluse
or thin-blooded scholar, and his physical vitality was increas-
ing day by day, Once, in an introspective mood, he confessed
his divided allegiance :

I must do myself the justice to say that, in those boyish days,
there were two things I did dearly love, viz.: reading and playing;
pastimes which did not cease to struggle, when boyhood was over
(have they yet, altogether ?) and in regard to which neither the cita
mars nor the victoria laeta could be said of either. 1

Neither Ebenezer Webster nor his son had thought of any
college except Dartmouth. It was then the only higher
institution of learning in New Hampshire; and Captain
Webster had been, in 1789, Chairman of the Legislative Com-
mittee which had recommended the Dartmouth College Grant
of forty-two thousand acres in the northern part of the state.
Dr. Wood was a graduate, although not as has sometimes
been erroneously asserted a Trustee. It had the advantage
of being easily accessible, for shortly after the Revolution the
College Road, four rods broad, had been laid out by surveyors
from Boscawen to Hanover, connecting the Merrimack with
the Connecticut. The route was through Salisbury, Andover,
Wilmot, Springfield, Enfield, and Lebanon. It was along
this rutted highway, past the rugged slopes of Mount Cardigan
and Mascoma Lake, that Daniel Webster, on horseback,

1 Among the many legends of Webster's mental energy when aroused is one often
related by himself, of the occasion when Dr. Wood, noticing how much time the lad
was spending in play, suggested that his example might be bad for the other boys.
Daniel, sensitive to the suggestion that he was not doing his duty, sat up all that night
studying. On the next morning, he construed his assigned one hundred lines without a
mistake. Dr. Wood was about to leave s but Daniel requested him to listen to a few
more pages. The boy continued, while Dr. Wood sat, impatient for breakfast, which
had been announced. Finally the master asked his pupil how much farther he could
go. " To the end of the twelfth book of the JEneid! " was the confident answer. This
story is told in Lyman, I, 218-19. Doubtless many of the stories of this sort are
apocryphal, the product of a lively imagination engaged in retrospection : but Webster,
as youth and man, was capable, under stress, of accomplishing an amazing amount of
work in a brief period.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 43

carrying with him his feather bed and bedding, together with a
few books, some clothes, and provisions for the journey, rode 5
like D'Artagnan, to seek his fortune. He was now only fifteen
years and six months old, but he had matured rapidly at Exeter
and Boscawen, and diffidence was no longer one of his handicaps.

On his arrival in Hanover, he fell into the friendly hands
of Roswell Shurtleff, 1 then a Junior in the College, who directed
him to Ford's Tavern, on the north side of the Green a
building which was afterwards the residence of Squire Mills
Olcott and later known as Choate House. 2 Here Webster,
with other prospective Freshmen, brushed his clothes and
made ready for the entrance examinations. 3 He had to appear
in succession before various members of the faculty, then
called the "executive authority," to be tested in Greek,
Latin, English, and arithmetic; and, despite the fact that
his knowledge of the classics was, according to Shurtleff, "just
to the limit prescribed by law at that period/' he was duly
admitted, with Dr. Wood's letter of recommendation to sup-
port him.

Webster was also obliged to furnish evidence of "good moral
character" and to provide a bond of two hundred dollars for
the payment of his college bills. When these routine require-
ments had been met, he doubtless called on President John
Wheelock, at the Mansion House, now the Howe Library,

1 Roswell Shurtleff (1773-1861), a brilliant student who was much older than his
classmates, graduated in 1799 from Dartmouth, and later returned to Hanover as Tutor,
Phillips Professor of Theology, Minister of the College Church, Librarian, and Professor
of Moral Philosophy and Political Economy. His reminiscences of Webster were used
freely by the latter's early biographers.

2 The house has recently been moved and now stands in a new location on the east
side of North Main Street.

3 According to a story preserved by Lyman, I, 21920, Daniel left Salisbury dressed
in a new suit of blue clothes, including coat, vest, and pantaloons. On his way, just
before reaching Hanover, he passed through a violent storm, which drenched him to the
skin. When he dismounted at Ford's Tavern, he found that the water had started
the color of his suit and that he was " as blue as an indigo-bag." He was called before
the faculty without having time to get new attire, and appeared in their presence, as
he said, " not only black Dan, but blue Dan." When he related his mishaps, however,
he stimulated their sympathy, and his sad plight may have helped to gam him admis-
sion. This picturesque tale has no other authority than that of Lyman, whose inac-
curacies in other respects make it exceedingly questionable.

44 DANIEL WEBSTER

which then occupied the present site of Reed Hall, and was
there formally welcomed to the college. He was enrolled in
classes which were probably studying the jEneid y Cicero's
Ora/ions, the Greek Testament, arithmetic, English grammar,
rhetoric, composition, and public speaking a course which,
in difficulty and variety, corresponds rather closely to that of
the next to the highest year in any of our standard prepara-
tory schools to-day.

Dartmouth College, founded in 1769 through the initiative
of Eleazar Wheelock, who became its first President, was still,
at the close of the eighteenth century, a "small college," from
our present point of view ; but it had an average enrollment
of a hundred and forty undergraduates, and between 1790 and
1800 its normal graduating class of thirty-six was larger than
that of any of its rivals except Harvard. The President, John
Wheelock, 1 son of the founder, was a stiff and formal person-
age, with whom none of the students felt on easy terms. With-
out any marked intellectual ability or breadth of vision, he
had a prodigious store of energy which was often released in
ways unfortunate for the college. There were four teachers
of professorial rank: Bezaleel Woodward, an unpretentious,
friendly person, the sanest and most respected member of the
staff, whose field was mathematics and natural philosophy,
but who was a collegiate Pooh-Bah; John Smith, known as
"Professor Johnny/' who taught the languages, and who was
so nervous and timid that he was frequently completely dis-
concerted in the classroom; Nathan Smith, of the Medical
School, who offered instruction in chemistry, anatomy and
surgery, and the practice of physic ; and the President himself,
who lectured on Civil and Ecclesiastical History and assumed
entire charge of the work of the Senior year. To supplement
these there were tutors, young men not long out of college, who
were dallying with teaching: John Noyes, later a Congress-

1 Jolin Wheelock (1754-1817), born at Lebanon, Connecticut, graduated at Dart-
mouth in 1771, as a member of its first class, became a tutor, served as Lieutenant-
Colonel in the Revolutionary Army, and, in 1779, at the death of his father, succeeded
him through a process of scholastic nepotism. He was deprived of his office by the
Trustees in 1815, and died two years later.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 45

man; Stephen Bemis, afterwards a clergyman in Harvard,
Massachusetts; and Roswell Shurtleff, who has already been
mentioned. All of them were graduates of Dartmouth, and
no one of them except Shurtleff remained permanently on the
faculty.

The college and the village bore only a slight resemblance to
those of to-day. It would, indeed, be difficult to imagine a
more striking contrast than that between the Hanover Green
of 1797, cut out of a grove of stately pines and bordered with
unpretentious residences, and the noble array of brick build-
ings which now provide for Dartmouth undergraduates every
facility which the scholarly life can require. The college was
then compact, occupying the low ridge on the east side of the
Common. The central structure was Dartmouth Hall, con-
taining not only thirty-six rooms for students, but also quarters
for the library and for " philosophical apparatus." It was
burned down in 1904, but was almost immediately restored, in
brick and stone, on its old location. Directly to the south of
Dartmouth Hall stood the Chapel, which dated from 1790,
but which was removed in 1828. The Commons Hall., a long,
plain wooden structure, had been erected in 1791, on the site
now covered in part by Rollins Chapel ; but it was not in actual
use in Webster's time. 1 The only landmark with which
Webster was acquainted is the Meetinghouse, which was built
in 1795 on the northeast corner of the square, and which, some-
what restored and remodeled, remains one of the loveliest of
New England churches. The historic Burying Ground near
the Connecticut, with its simple headstones beneath the pines,
preserves the continuity between the past and the present,
linking the ancient and the modern Dartmouth as nothing
else could do.

Eminent authorities at the college have disagreed with
regard to the quarters occupied by Webster while he was at
Dartmouth. Professor Charles F. Richardson, in his address

1 Memorandum from Professor Leon B. Richardson, of Dartmouth, to the author,
December 20, 1929. Professor Richardson is an authority on Dartmouth College
history.

4 6 DANIEL WEBSTER

delivered at the Webster Centennial in 1901, stated positively
that Webster lived during his Freshman and Sophomore years
in the house of Humphrey Farrar, on South Main Street,
citing as evidence a letter written on November 25, 1852, by
George Farrar to Professor Edwin D. Sanborn. 1 A portion
at least of this original dwelling is still standing, and the owners
have marked it with a tablet. Professor Richardson was
certain also that Webster, as a Senior, had a room in Dart-
mouth Hall.

On the other hand, the late Professor Herbert D. Foster,
who gave the whole question the most searching scrutiny,
asserted that, according to the Treasurer's books, Webster
roomed in a college dormitory for the first three years of his
course, and, as a Senior, moved to a suite outside of college,
probably in what is to-day known as Webster Cottage. 2 A
letter from Webster to Bingham, headed "Beechnut Hall,
December 28, i8oo," 3 seems to indicate that as a Senior
he was then living in a private home, and Professor Foster
declared that the proof "rests not merely upon unbroken and
uncontradicted traditions, but upon the contemporary record
of the careful William Dewey, repeated within the house itself
to another cautious witness, Miss McMurphy, and written
down by her later/' This residence was built about 1780,
by Sylvanus Ripley, husband of Abigail Wheelock, President

1 National Edition, XVII, 53. Farrar's exact words were, " Mr. Webster, Freeborn
Adams, my brother William and myself, roomed at my father's house, during the first
two years of his college course." It must be kept in mind, however, that this was
written considerably more than half a century after the event. Edwin David Sanborn
(1801-85), who graduated at Dartmouth in 1832, was long a professor at that college.
In 1837, he married Mary Webster, daughter of Daniel's brother, Ezekiel. He was the
author of a Eulogy on Webster (1853) and a History of New Hampshire (1875), an d was
recognized as an authority on Daniel Webster.

2 See " Webster and Choate in College," by Herbert D. Foster, published in the
Dartmouth Alumni Magazine for April and May 1927. These two articles are a mine of
interesting information regarding Webster's college days. The Webster Cottage
formerly occupied the southwest corner of North Main Street and Webster Avenue, but
has lately, in the peripatetic fashion of so many Hanover dwellings, been moved to a new
site across the street. There is a charming article in the Dartmouth Alumni Magazine
for January 1929, by Alice Van Leer Carrick, illustrated with excellent photographs of
the old house in the process of removal. Mrs. Carrick, a well-known author and
antiquarian, has made the place famous under the name of " Next-to-Nothing House."

5 National Edition, XVII, 84.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 47

John Wheelock's sister; and Mrs. Ripley, then a widow,
occupied the house during the period when Webster is said to
have roomed there. The problem is entangled with rumor
and belated reminiscences. 1

The expense of education in that day was moderate as com-
pared with that of our time, and undergraduates apparently
had no difficulty in securing credit, even with the college
authorities. Professor Foster estimated that Webster incurred
a total bill of $88.34, which included three years of room rent,
four years of tuition, interest, incidentals, and Commencement
tax. His room rent averaged $4.09 annually. For twenty-
five months Webster made no settlement with Professor
Woodward, the Treasurer. In his Junior year, he paid him
$18.40, earned by teaching school at six dollars a month, in
Salisbury. 2 In view of his later propensities, it is significant
to find him borrowing $26.99 fr m Richard Lang, the village
storekeeper, who had a little square shop near where Webster
Hall now stands. His account at Lang's, recently brought to
light by Professor Foster, shows that he purchased a candle-
stick (3/4), with snuffers (2/6), ink-powder (9^.), a hundred
quill pens, a "Salmbook (4/6)," and "best laced clock'd cotton
hose (15/6)," which must have been an improvement on the
stockings which he had worn at the tavern. But even allowing
for extravagances not disclosed, it is not easy to see how Daniel
could have been then a very heavy burden upon his father,
except by depriving him of his assistance on the farm.

Although he was growing more robust, he was still thin-faced,
with prominent cheek-bones, and storm-tossed eyes "peering
out under dark overhanging brows." So swarthy was he in
complexion that the Deweys took him for an Indian as he
walked down the aisle on the first Sunday in the College Church,
and he was soon given the nickname of "Black Dan." He
was interested in politics, and enjoyed fishing, swimming,

1 Professor Foster's conclusions are confirmed by the more recent Investigations of
Professor Leon B. Richardson.

2 Webster apparently paid all his bills to the college in full before leaving Hanover
in 1801, making a final payment of $5.94 on August 24 to balance his account.

48 DANIEL WEBSTER

riding, and hunting, although not considered a good shot.
"The store accounts and letters/* says Professor Foster,
"reveal a frank, warm-hearted, sunny, lovable boy, fond of
books and friends/' When Aaron Loveland, his roommate,
brought him to his home in Orford, the grandmother in the
Loveland household complained because Daniel put his feet
upon the soft soapstone around the fireplace and scratched it.
"He was sometimes humorous, always companionable and
pleasant, wrote one of his acquaintances. But there is
evidence also that he was rather awkward in his bearing, and
Loveland said that he was not very popular with the class,
owing to his being "so independent and assuming." His
closest friend, James BL Bingham, had to confess that Webster
was "not intimate with many." But in spite of the fact that
"he was, and felt himself to be, a king or oracle," he was rec-
ognized as the ablest man in college, and even those who dis-
liked his "unbounded self-confidence" were forced to admit
that he was distinguished for the extent and readiness of his
knowledge and that his obvious ambition was justified by his
ability. He seems to have been free from vices. In a day
when everybody, including clergymen and the "best people"
generally, consumed considerable quantities of alcoholic bever-
ages, Webster bought and drank them in moderation. Al-
though he refers occasionally in his letters to girls of the
neighborhood, his philandering was of an innocuous type, and
he had no serious love affair. There are indications in his
correspondence, however, that he was not forgotten by some
of the local belles, even after many months had elapsed. 1

After his Freshman year, during which he was busy trying
to adjust himself to his new surroundings and to make up for
the deficiencies in his preparation, Webster had a creditable
scholastic record at Dartmouth. As he himself admitted,

1 There is a letter, dated February 25, 1802, from Hanover, and signed "CD.,"
which would indicate that the writer had a fondness for Daniel. It closes: " Do not
forget one who thinks of you with the same tender friendship which causes her to go
so far from you only with the greatest reluctance but in so doing follows your better
judgment. Yours with the truest affection." (From a letter in the collections of the
N. H. Historical Society.)

^"J'^jWlyV"

.vTte,^;,^,,, "^XT

'', ''' /''>! ?$$W$>Wtf'$t$< ^$'^$$toj*t* J *-

^'Aite 6'/wf>

WHERE WEBSTER ROOMED AS A STUDENT, HANOVER,
NEW HAMPSHIRE

WHERE WEBSTER RECORDED DEEDS, FRYEBURG, MAINE

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 49

there were others who read more than he did, but he mastered
whatever books he took up. He once said to Jacob McGaw :

So much as I read I made my own. When a half hour or an hour,
at most, had elapsed, I closed my book, and thought over what I had
read. If there was anything peculiarly interesting or striking in the
passage, I endeavored to recall it, and lay it up in my memory, and
commonly could effect my object. Then if, in debate or conversa-
tion afterward, any subject came up on which I had read something, I
could talk very easily as far as I had read, and then I was very care-
ful to stop. Thus greater credit was given me for extensive and
accurate knowledge than I really possessed. 1

Webster evidently possessed to a high degree that faculty of
mental concentration which is so often found in men of great
genius. The charge that he was indolent does not seem to be
substantiated by the evidence. "My life was not an idle
one," he once broke out. "What fools they must be to suppose
that anybody could succeed in college or public life without
study!'' 2 Shurtleff, his fellow student and tutor, wrote of
him, "Mr. Webster was remarkable for his steady habits, his
intense application to study, and his punctual attendance
upon the required exercises." He rose very early, sat in chapel
at daybreak, and often read far into the night. s There were
fields in which his scholarship was decidedly deficient. He
once told George Ticknor that, while he was better informed
in history and English than any of his class, and was good in
composition, he was not strong in Greek and mathematics.
He said shortly before his death, "Would that I had pursued
my Greek till I could read and understand Demosthenes in
his own language ! " But Webster had the gift of making the
most of his knowledge, and later when Latin literature was the

1 National Edition, XVII, 51.

2 Webster Centennial Proceedings, p. 35.

8 When Professor Sanbora once said to him at his own table in Franklin, "It is
commonly reported that you did not study much in college," Webster burst out:
" I studied and read more than all the rest of my class, if they had all been made into
one man. And I was as much above them all then as I am now ! " See Webster Cen-
tennial Proceedings, p. 35. Webster's classmate, Hotchkiss, wrote, February 25, 1853 :
" Webster was never an idle student, as some persons falsely and erroneously believe."
(National Editiort, XVII, 66.)

50 DANIEL WEBSTER

topic of conversation he held his own with Rufus Choate and
Caleb Gushing, two of the most learned men of his generation.
He did a good deal of dreaming, and visions of a brilliant
future flitted across his mind.

The curriculum which Webster pursued may be examined
in the "Laws to be observed by the members of Dartmouth
College/' enacted by the Trustees on February 9, 1796. As
a Sophomore, he continued his Latin and Greek, reading
Cicero's De Orators and a collection called Grceca Majora,
but he also studied algebra and geometry (subjects now usually
covered in the preparatory school), together with geography
and exercises in logic, composition, and speaking. In his
Junior year, Latin and Greek were still prescribed, but the
course was broadened by the addition of Paley's Political
Philosophy (first published in England in 1785), the sixth
book of which was devoted to political science, a subject pe-
culiarly fascinating to Webster. The Senior work included
"Metaphysics, Theology, and Natural Law," some of the books
assigned being Locke's famous treatise On Human Under-
standing, Edwards On the Will^ Stewart's Philosophy of the
Mind, and Burlamaqui's popular Principles of Natural Law
(published in Geneva in 1747 and republished in Boston in
1792), which Webster seems to have reread frequently. This
curriculum emphasized, besides the Greek and Roman classics,
the basic elements of philosophy, theology, and law, and
particularly the writing and speaking of our native tongue.
It will be observed that there was very little training in scien-
tific methods, and no instruction in the modern languages.

Although Webster did not receive the highest grades in his
dass, he was not far from the top. He was elected on June 5,
1800, while he was a Junior, to the honorary scholarship
society of Phi Beta Kappa, of which twelve out of his class
of thirty were members ; and some of the extant records of
the Dartmouth Chapter are in his handwriting as Secretary.
When the time came for Commencement appointments, the
faculty could not assign him the Latin Salutatory, for that was
automatically given to the foremost scholar, Thomas A.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 51

Merrill, later a clergyman for many years in Middlebury,
Vermont. The English Valedictory had usually been awarded
by vote of the class, but a feud between the two literary socie-
ties the Social Friends and the United Fraternity pre-
vented a choice; whereupon the faculty, exercising their
authority, ignored Webster who was the candidate of the
United Fraternity and appointed Caleb Tenney, afterwards
a minister at Wethersfield, Connecticut. Webster was offered
as consolation either a poem or an oration in English, but,
disgruntled at not receiving the English Valedictory, requested
to be excused from appearing on the Commencement plat-
form. 1 As a consequence, that member of the graduating class
who was later to shed the most lustre upon the college had no
part in the programme on August 27, 1801. The story that,
in a fit of petulance, he tore up his diploma, crying, "My
industry may make me a great man, but this miserable parch-
ment can not!" was told by Charles Lanman, and sponsored
by the authority of Theodore Parker; but it was never
sanctioned by Webster and is entirely mythical. 2

A few extant specimens of Webster's composition at this
period show how far he had progressed as an author. His
earliest attempt at poetry of which we have any knowledge is
a passage in couplets sent on December 20, 1798, to his friend,
George Herbert, 3 in which " heart " rhymes somewhat loosely
with "Clark," and "Time" with "thine." It was his custom
to enclose verses in letters to his classmates, but few of them
are above mediocrity. Webster was almost devoid of the
lyrical and imaginative quality without which such jeux
d* esprit are of slight value, and he did not then, or later, have
any of the gracefulness of phrasing which frequently serves as
a substitute for inspiration. In his Junior year he earned part

1 Webster told Rufus Choate that " no disappointment of his whole life ever affected
him more keenly." (Parker, Reminiscences of Rufus Choate, p. 270.)

2 The evidence on this subject is discussed with clearness and thoroughness in
Professor Richardson's Address, Webster Centennial Proceedings, pp. 50-52.

3 George Herbert (1778-1820), who graduated a year before Webster, became a
lawyer in Ellsworth, Maine. Later he was pitifully impecunious and wrote Webster
several begging letters, to which the latter responded with characteristic generosity.

52 DANIEL WEBSTER

of his board at the college by contributing under the pseudonym
of "Icarus" to the village newspaper, the Dartmouth -Gazette,
which had been started in August 1799 by Moses Davis, a
young printer from Concord. 1 Webster's articles included
essays on "Hope/* 2 on "Charity/* and on "Fear," poems on
"Winter" and on "Spring" (both in blank verse), a metrical
epistle on Jefferson's candidacy for the Presidency, and some
miscellaneous discussions of contemporary affairs exhibiting
a strong Federal bias. In addition to this material, we have
also one of his college themes, written on December 15, 1800,
and presenting, in about five hundred words, an argument for
the acquisition of Florida by the United States. There is a
tradition that he wrote a drama which was acted on the com-
mencement stage in his Junior year, but no evidence regarding
it can be discovered.

It was in debating and public speaking that Webster was
most conspicuous at Dartmouth. The bashfulness and nerv-
ous apprehension which had so embarrassed him at Exeter
had now vanished, and he was entirely at ease, even before large
audiences. The rivalry between the two debating societies
the Social Friends (founded in 1782) and the United Frater-
nity (founded in 1786) was intense and stimulating.
Webster, who joined the United Fraternity on November 7,
1797, soon became its most active member, holding in succes-
sion several honors, beginning with "Inspector of Books"
(August 12, 1798), and advancing through the offices of

1 The earliest letter of Webster's which has been preserved was written on August 27,
1799, to Moses Davis, submitting a manuscript and offering himself as a weekly con-
tributor to the Dartmouth Gazette (National Edition, XVI, 3). Webster also contributed
to a local periodical called the Literary Tablet, under the signature of " Monos," but all
copies of that magazine have been lost. Manuscript copies of many of Webster's
writings at this period are preserved in the archives of the New Hampshire Historical
Society in Concord, and there are others in the Dartmouth College Library (see the
Boston Herald, November 4, 1907).

2 This, Webster's first contribution to the Gazette, was dated August 27, 1799.
Beginning as prose, it changed later to blank verse, with opening lines as follows :

Upborne on Hope's elastic wings, the soul
Scans the dark prospect of futurity,
Opes distant, pleasing objects to the mind
And keeps still burning emulation's flame.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 53

" Librarian," "Orator," and "Vice-President" to that of
President (November 25, 1800). The subjects of the weekly
debates in which Webster frequently participated ranged
over a wide field, including such questions as "Are great riches
conducive to happiness?" "Ought separate schools to be
provided for the education of the different sexes ?" and "Does
eloquence tend to the investigation of the truth?" l We are
told that, by the close of his Junior year, "Black Dan" was
accounted the best writer and speaker in college. "The
powers of his mind," declared one of his friends, "were remark-
ably displayed by the compass and force of his arguments
in extemporaneous debate." 2 His classmate, the Reverend
Elihu Smith, spoke of one characteristic which Webster dis-
played throughout his career :

In his movements, he was rather slow and deliberate, except when
his feelings were aroused; then, his whole soul would kindle into a
flame. I recollect that he used to commence speaking rather monot-
onously and without much excitement, but would always rise, with
the importance of the subject, till every eye was fixed upon him. 3

The testimony as to his effectiveness as a debater is vir-
tually unanimous. "We used to listen to him," wrote the
Honorable Henry Hubbard, "with the deepest interest and
respect, and no one thought of equalling the vigor and glow
of his eloquence." 4 Even with members of the faculty he did
not hesitate to express his own views, and they were forced
to acknowledge his talents. Professor Woodward, in predict-
ing a brilliant future for young Webster, said, "That man's

1 For a fuller treatment of the policies and procedure of the two societies, see Professor
Charles F. Richardson's address on " Mr. Webster's College Life " in the Webster
Centennial Proceedings and Professor Herbert D. Foster's article in the Dartmouth
dlumni Magazine for April 1927, pp. 517-20.

2 Letter of the Reverend Brown Emerson to Professor Sanborn, November 19, 1852
(National Edition, XVII, 52).

3 National Edition, XVII, 46. Dr. Smith recalled that Webster was accustomed to
arrange his thoughts in his mind in his room or on private walks, and put them on paper
just before the exercise was called for.

4 //V., p. 47. Henry Hubbard (1784-1857), who graduated from Dartmouth in
1803, was later United States Senator (1835-41) and Governor of New Hampshire,
and his judgment can be relied upon.

54 DANIEL WEBSTER

victory is certain who reaches the heart through the medium
of the understanding. He gained me by combating my
opinions, for I often attacked him merely to try his strength/' l

The citizens of Hanover asked Webster to deliver the Inde-
pendence Day Oration in that village in 1800, when he was
only a Junior and in his nineteenth year. The Dartmouth
Gazette^ in its account, said that "the students first formed a
procession at the college and moved to the President's house,
where they were joined by the officers of the college, and
immediately after by a respectable number of the neighboring
citizens.'* The oration itself was delivered in the meeting-
house, and the Gazette declared that, though composed on
very short notice, it "would have done honor to gray-headed
patriotism, and crowned with new laurels the most celebrated
orators of our country." It was published "by request of
the subscribers" in a small pamphlet, and is worth examina-
tion as the first of a long series of occasional addresses. It
must be judged with his youth and lack of experience always in
mind ; but it will not suffer by comparison with most of the
Fourth of July orations delivered to-day in small towns of the
United States. The biographers who have condemned it
because of its floridity and bombast would have done well to
remember, not only that Webster was not yet of voting age,
but also that the trend of the times was towards an exuberant
nationalism and a highly ornamental phraseology. It would
have been astounding if the Dartmouth undergraduate, with
all his native genius, had not been affected by the smugness and
boastfulness of his generation.

Considering the period and the occasion, it was natural that
the speech should denounce Great Britain and glorify the
United States. The orator referred to England as "imperious
Britain" and "haughty Albion," and, in defiance of natural
history, announced :

America, manfully springing from the torturing fangs of the British
lion, now rises majestic in the pride of her sovereignty, and bids her
eagle elevate his wings.

1 Knapp, Life of Webster, pp. 9-10.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 55

With undisguised satisfaction, he contrasted the peace
which our country was enjoying with the sufferings of con-
tinental Europe, then being overrun by Napoleon :

We can now sit down beneath the shadow of the olive, while her
cities blaze, her streams run purple with blood, and her fields glitter,
a forest of bayonets.

Even in the pursuit and dissemination of education, he
claimed superiority for America :

Yale, Providence, and Harvard now grace our land; and Dart-
mouth, towering majestic above the groves which encircle her, now
inscribes her glory on the registers of fame ! Oxford and Cambridge,
those oriental stars of literature, shall now be lost, while the bright
sun of American science displays his broad circumference in un-
eclipsed radiance.

Like most of his countrymen in 1800, he was quite ready to
defy the world, and, if necessary, to fight France as well as
England :

But Columbia stoops not to tyrants ; her sons will never cringe to
France; neither a supercilious, five-headed Directory, nor the gas-
conading Pilgrim of Egypt will ever dictate terms to sovereign
America.

Despite its noisy provincialism and inflated style, this Han-
over oration is significant in the emphasis which the youthful
Webster lays on the need of a truly national spirit and of a
staunch fidelity to the principles of the Federal Constitution.
Like most of the faculty and the undergraduates, he was
strongly Federalist in his political beliefs, and he was a member
^of a "Federal Club" which had been formed in the student
body. 1 In speaking of the Constitution, he used a sentence
which perhaps first publicly expressed the veneration for it
which was later to mark him as a statesman :

But, in the adoption of our present system of jurisprudence, we see
the powers necessary for the government voluntarily springing from

1 See the letter from Mrs. George Herbert, March 16, 1856, printed in National
Edition, XVII, 74, in which she speaks of a " Constitution of the Federal Club," with
several signatures appended, among which was that of Webster, and adds, " These were
doubtless intimate friends and choice spirits, of that early period of life ; and probably
not one of them now survives."

56 DANIEL WEBSTER

the people, their only proper origins and directed to the public good,

their only proper object.

This has much of the tone of Daniel Webster at his finest,
and would have fitted perfectly into the Reply to Hayne. The
dominating theme of the oration was what Lodge called " the
necessity and the nobility of the union of the States/' and this,
in varying tones and degrees of emphasis, was Webster's text
from youth to age.

Another oration of this period was the funeral eulogy delivered
in honor of one of his classmates, Ephraim Simonds, who
died at Hanover on June 18, 1801, at the age of twenty-six.
It is difficult, in such a production, to avoid emotional exaggera-
tion, and Webster yielded to the temptation. He said, for
instance, in one paragraph :

Simonds shall never be forgotten. The future child of Dartmouth,
as he treads o'er the mansions of the dead, with his hand on his bosom
shall point, "There lies Simonds !" and however careless of his eternal
being, however immersed in dissipation or frozen in apathy, he shall
check for a moment the tide of mirth, and while an involuntary tear
starts in his eye, shall read

Hicjacet, quern religio et sdentia condecoraverunt.

Simonds's monument, set up by the United Fraternity
beneath the noble pines in the Hanover Burying Ground, still
stands, bearing some verses probably composed by Webster :

Science, religion, in our Simonds shone,
And all the manly virtues were his own.
With anguished hearts we mourn his early doom,
And pay affection's tribute at his tomb.

In August, the spot is charming, and the visitor is sure to
look with curiosity at the row of headstones marking the graves
of dead Dartmouth students. But Simonds's slaty memorial
has begun to crumble, and the letters of the inscription are
almost indecipherable. Even if they could easily be read,
it is doubtful whether any "child of Dartmouth" to-day knows
or cares what they mean. Webster mouthed sonorous phrases
and culled skillfully the flowers of rhetoric. The feeling

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 5?

which he displayed was genuine. But the world would have
lost nothing if the eulogy had been forgotten and its words
had died upon the air. 1

Although Webster, as we have explained, took no part in the
Commencement exercises of 1801, he did deliver during that
week an oration before the United Fraternity, which was later
published from a manuscript copy which, by vote of the mem-
bers, had been deposited in the society archives. 2 The sub-
ject was "The Influence and Instability of Opinion" by
which he meant "Public Opinion," or the Fox PopuU, which
he did not believe to be identical with the Vox Dei. It was,
like so many Federalist utterances of the early nineteenth
century, an attack on the theories of that dangerous Demo-
crat, Thomas Jefferson. After expatiating on the pernicious
effects of public opinion in the fields of literature, science,
religion, and politics, Webster concluded that the truly great
man was he who could stand firm "amidst the turmoil of
passion and prejudice, amidst the conflict of the winds and
waters of party and opinion." He named Locke, Newton,
and Washington as men who possessed this quality of internal
greatness, and said, in conclusion :

Let our sentiments be immovable by any other powers than truth
and conviction ; and let neither tergiversation nor seduction attach
us to the systems of those opinionated visionaries who mistake the
fantastic dreams of their own minds for the oracles of philosophy.

Rufus Choate, in reading this production^ was struck by its
"copiousness, judgment, and enthusiasm," and the sentence
just quoted is, in its vocabulary, remarkable for a young man
still under twenty.

1 When George Ticknor, in 1810, told Webster of finding a copy of the Oration on
Simonds y as it was printed in pamphlet form, Webster seemed disturbed, and said:
" I thought till lately that, as only a few copies of it were printed, they must all have
been destroyed long ago ; but, the other day, Bean, who was in college with me, told
me he had one. It flashed through my mind that it must have been the last copy in
the world, and that if he had it in his pocket it would be worth while to kill him, to
destroy it from the face of the earth. So I recommend you not to bring your copy
where I am."

2 See the New York Herald, August 16, 1853.

58 DANIEL WEBSTER

Webster himself had later only regret for these early per-
formances and spoke of them disparagingly. 1 In comment-
ing upon them, he once said, with clear discernment :

I had not then learned that all true power in writing is in the idea,
not in the style, an error into which the An Rhetorlca^ as it is usually
taught, may easily lead stronger heads than mine. 2

But those who have taken the pains to read these orations
with care will not be disposed to be too severe upon them.
With all their defects, they show Webster's later style in the
making : the effective use of short and crisp sentences following
balanced periods; the fondness for adjectives, verbs, and
nouns in series of three, such as "For us they fought, for us
they bled, for us they conquered"; the mingling of poly-
syllabic Latin derivatives with briefer Anglo-Saxon words;
and the complete clarity of utterance, even in the discussion of
abstruse topics. Compared with the Plymouth Oration of
1820, these youthful discourses seem verbose and bombastic,
but they are fully as mature as similar efforts of other colle-
gians, such as Edward Everett and Charles Sumner, who
afterwards developed into great orators.

It is a pity that we know so little about Webster's inner
life at Dartmouth. Most of the stereotyped reminiscences of
his friends seem to indicate that he was something of a prodigy
and prig. But here and there in the midst of the formal letters
of himself and his coterie of friends we get a touch of human-
ity. Professor Sanborn tells us that for two years he garbed
himself in homespun like the other farmers' sons, but that,
after the opening of the Junior year, he became more fastidi-
ous in his attire and dressed rather better than the average
undergraduate.

1 Webster, in conversation with Professor C. C. Felton, said that Joseph Dennie,
the journalist, wrote a review of the Hanover Oration, which was printed " in a literary
paper which he then edited " presumably the United States Gazette, of which Dennie
had charge in 1 800. Webster went on : " He praised parts of the oration as vigorous
and eloquent; but other parts he criticised severely, and said they were mere empti-
nesses. I thought his criticism was just; and I resolved that whatever else should be
said of my style, from that time forth there should be no emptiness in it." (National
Edition, XIII, 582, reprinted from the American Whig Review y December 1852.)

2 Autobiography, National Edition, XVII, n.

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 59

We are told that he and his group of friends* like the early
Christians, "had all things common/* and that the first one
to rise in the morning clothed himself in the best that the
apartments could offer, the last one out of bed being the one
to suffer most. 1 There is a story of his carrying off with him
on his vacation a new and glossy beaver belonging to his chum,
Benjamin Clark, leaving in its stead a battered old felt hat,
which Clark, lacking other headgear, had to wear for some
weeks. 2

There were, of course, social events in the village of Hanover,
and the place probably seemed very gay to the boy who had
been brought up in the rural simplicity of Salisbury Lower
Village. Many of his classmates and friends were initiated
into the Masonic order, but neither he nor Ezekiel ever joined
a lodge. Some allusions in his letters indicate that he had
learned to dance and was no recluse. One of his friends remem-
bered that he joined in games of ball and other physical exer-
cises, 3 but he was certainly no athlete. During the winter,
like many of his impecunious college mates, he became a school-
master. In the winter of 1797-98 he taught at the house of
his Uncle William, for four dollars a month, and during the
ensuing winter he was engaged at the schoolhouse at Shaw's
Corner, near his birthplace, for six dollars a month, the period
of employment being ordinarily three months. Writing from
Salisbury, on February 5, 1800, he tells Bingham that he has
fifty pupils, including "five English grammarians, I mean
students in English, and two Latin scholars/' 4 Special allow-
ances were made for cases like his, and he had no difficulty in
keeping up with his class.

Chase, in his History of Dartmouth College and Hanover, N. H.>
says that the moral tone of the college deteriorated from
1790 to 1800, and that there was, at the close of the century,
a "wave of irreligion." Only a single member of the class of
i?99> we are told, was publicly known as a professing Christian.
This may well have been true, but there is nothing to show

1 National Edition, XVII, 76. 2 JMd.

8 Ibld.> p. 66, Letter from Hotchkiss. * IHd., p. 79.

60 DANIEL WEBSTER

that this alleged laxity had any effect on Webster, and it is
worth noting that eight of the thirty members of his graduating
class became clergymen. Certainly the existing correspond-
ence between Webster and his friends offers no evidence of
either dissipation or what used to be called with horror
"infidelity."

Even after graduation, Webster kept in touch with Dart-
mouth and his friends in Hanover. He frequently returned
to it at Commencement and made sentimental journeys to his
former haunts. The story of how, in the Dartmouth College
Case, he saved his Alma Mater from dissolution will be the
theme of a later chapter. . . . The college, on her part, has
rejoiced to do him honor. In 1882, a Daniel Webster Pro-
fessorship of Latin was founded. In 1901, there was an im-
pressive celebration at Hanover, with addresses by President
William Jewett Tucker, Samuel W. McCall, Frank S. Black,
George F. Hoar, and Chief Justice Melville W. Fuller, com-
memorating the centennial of Webster's graduation. At
this time the corner stone of Webster Hall, a beautiful modern
auditorium in brick and granite, was laid by Samuel Appleton,
Esquire, the only living grandson of Daniel Webster. One
may visit the house where he once lived and study his portraits
hanging on the walls and walk a street which bears his name.
Indeed, it is of Daniel Webster that every intelligent visitor
thinks first when he stops at Hanover and strolls about among
the college buildings.

During Webster's four years at Dartmouth, he made steady
progress towards maturity. Although mathematics aroused
his dislike and Greek did not stir his interest, he became
something of a scholar in Latin, and extended his acquaintance
with English literature, modern history, and philosophy. His
most noticeable advancement intellectually, however, had
come from his wide reading in history and politics. This
mental growth produced a keen interest in governmental
affairs, both in Europe and in the United States, and some of
his comments on the contemporary situation indicate that he
was fascinated by what was going on. In the midst of the in-

EXETER AND DARTMOUTH 61

tense party antagonism which preceded the election of 1800,
Webster, appalled by the iniquities of the Jeffersonians, wrote
his friend, Bingham, that he feared "intestine feuds" and could
see in his imagination the time "when the banner of civil war
shall be unfurled*' and when "American blood shall be made
to flow in rivers, by American swords." l Already, moreover,
he was a firm believer In a strong central government, and he
burst out, in the letter just quoted, "Heaven grant that the
bonds of our federal union may be strengthened . . . that
traitors may be abashed, and that the stars and stripes of
United Columbia may wave triumphant." This is the sort of
language with which Daniel Webster was later to make his
countrymen familiar.

Webster had also developed amazingly in courage and self-
confidence. The timid, uncouth rustic who had been so be-
wildered at Exeter had now acquired poise and an assurance
which sometimes could not be differentiated from conceit.
He had had an opportunity of measuring himself in competi-
tion with other youths of the same age; he had suddenly
exhibited that facility and forcefulness in speaking which were
to be so large a part of his equipment in statesmanship ; and
he had discovered that he had a gift for leading others. He
was moody, sometimes lethargic, but never negligible. As
other important assets, he had displayed a tenacious memory,
a remarkable capacity for intellectual concentration, and a
talent for writing. His health, meanwhile, had improved until
he was a fairly robust man. Those who knew Webster at
Dartmouth both undergraduates and teachers were im-
pressed by his potentialities and did not hesitate to predict
his future eminence, although few could have prognosticated
the heights which he would reach.

1 National Edition, XVII, 79. A portion of this interesting letter was later printed
as a contribution to the Dartmouth Gazette.

Ill

MATURING YEARS

I cannot control my fortune : I must follow wherever circumstances lead.
WEBSTER, Letter to Bingham, October 6, 1802

I really often desfpaired. I thought I never could make myself a lawyer
and was almost going back to the business of school teaching.

WEBSTER, Autobiography

THE seven years following Webster's graduation from Dart-
mouth were a probationary period during which he was serving
his apprenticeship to the law. To this profession, which he
chose without enthusiasm and with some misgivings as to his
qualifications, he was not absolutely devoted, and he had
hours of indecision when he felt that he had embarked on the
wrong career. 1 There was, however, no escape in any other
direction. Meanwhile, with crucial problems to settle and
routine duties to fulfill, he wisely made the most of his spare
time by reading as widely as possible. Deprived of the per-
sonal stimulus of teachers and of college competition, he gener-
ated his own energy, storing up a fund of knowledge, both
legal and literary, which later was to be very serviceable to
him.

While Daniel had been at Hanover, Ezekiel, one year and
two months older, had been shackled to the farm as his father's
most dependable helper. The two brothers, unusually sym-
pathetic in their tastes and opinions, had been playmates dur-
ing their childhood. But Ezekiel, although more robust than

1 Webster had been one of eighteen men in his class to register in the Medical School
during his Junior year, and this has led certain people to believe that he actually
intended at one time to become a physician. As a matter of fact, he, like the others,
did this merely so that he might take courses in natural science which the Medical
School offered in its curriculum. There *is no evidence whatever that Webster ever
thought seriously of medicine as a career. See the Dartmouth Alumni Magazine,
May 1927, p. 606, and April 1929, p. 383.

MATURING YEARS 63

Daniel, had grown less rapidly to mental maturity and did not
seem to have his brother's aptitude for books. Captain
Webster's older sons were all established in life, and there was
no one to take care of him, his wife, and the two unmarried
daughters, unless Ezekiel carried on the farm work. It was
an exigency which often arose in rural New England, and in
this case Ezekiel seemed likely to be the unfortunate victim.
It was the boys themselves who took the situation into their
own hands. Ezekiel had had his ambition kindled by Daniel's
success, and the two invariably talked matters over whenever
the latter was home for his vacations. The crisis came in
May 1799, when the brothers, lying side by side on their pallet
at the tavern, held an all-night conference, as a consequence of
which they resolved to ask their father to let Ezekiel go first
to school and then to college. It was the plausible Daniel,
of course, who advanced the arguments, offering on his part
to earn money by teaching and to take more than four years,
if necessary, to secure his Dartmouth diploma. Captain
Webster's reply, which must have required some courage, was
recorded in Daniel's Autobiography as follows:

He said at once he lived but for his children ; that he had but little,
and on that little he put no value, except so far as it might be use-
ful to them. That to carry us both through college would take
all he was worth ; that for himself he was willing to run the risk, but
that this was a serious matter to our mother and two unmarried
sisters ; that we must settle the matter with them, and if their con-
sent was obtained, he would trust to Providence, and get along as
well as he could. 1

A family council was called, at which the mother, proud of
Daniel's unselfishness and Ezekiel's ambition, is reported to
have said :

I have lived long in the world and have been happy in my children.
If Daniel and Ezekiel will promise to take care of me in my old age, I
will consent to the sale of all our property, at once, and they may
enjoy the benefit of what remains after our debts are paid. 2

* National Edition, XVII, 12. 2 IKd., p. 33.

6 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

A feasible plan was at once outlined. Captain Webster
exchanged houses with his son-in-law, William Haddock,
leaving the tavern and going to live in the Elms House, where
he resided for the remainder of his life. Ezekiel was entered
immediately in Salisbury Academy, and completed his prep-
aration for college by spending nine months under Dr. Wood,
at Boscawen, as Daniel had done before him. In the spring
of 1801, he matriculated at Dartmouth only a few months
before Daniel graduated. Despite the deficiencies of his early
education, Ezekiel claimed and held the position of leading
scholar of his class.

The praiseworthy sacrifice which the parents underwent
for their children was matched by the tenderness with which
the two boys later cared for their mother and father. The
promise of future support was faithfully kept, and Daniel's
interposition in his brother's behalf was one of the most
unselfish acts ever recorded to a man's credit. Abigail and
Ebenezer Webster's confidence was rewarded by the devotion of
their sons and justified by their accomplishments in public life.

The young Dartmouth alumnus, fresh from his oratorical
triumphs, now came back to Salisbury Lower Village to live
with his parents at The Elms. There, not very ardently, he
began the study of law with his patron, Thomas W. Thompson,
whose office was diagonally to the northeast across the old
highway. 1 In those days, more than 90 per cent of Dart-
mouth's graduates entered one of the four professions law,
medicine, teaching, or the ministry. Daniel had already
tried teaching, and did not fancy it as a career. He was
not fitted by temperament to become either a physician or a
clergyman. By a process of elimination, therefore, he turned
towards the law. He wrote in the autumn to a friend, "I fell
into a law office, pretty much by casualty, after Commence-
ment, where I am at present." 2 His letters of the period

1 Thompson's office was a small wooden building, one story in height, containing
two rooms and a narrow hall the front room being used for general business and the
back room for study and private conferences with clients. It was adjacent to Thomp-
son's house, which could be reached from a side door.

2 Letter to Nathaniel Coffin, October 3, 1801 (National Edition, XVII, 94).

MATURING YEARS 65

indicate that he was often dissatisfied, apathetic, and despond-
ent, and that he was much disturbed by his father's financial
difficulties. 1

It was a period when Webster's avid mind was roving from
one project to another. He took some part in local affairs;
indeed, he once said: "My first speech after I left college
was in favor of what was then regarded as a great and almost
impracticable internal improvement, to wit, the making of a
smooth, though hilly road from Connecticut River, opposite
the mouth of the White River, to the Merrimack River at the
mouth of the Contoocook." 2 He pored restlessly over the
masterpieces of Vattel, Burlamaqui, Robertson, and Montes-
quieu; he studied Blackstone assiduously, though without
much interest; and, when ennui assailed him, he turned to
fiction and poetry. That he gained some practical legal ex-
perience is indicated by his casual remark, "I have made some
few writs, and am now about to bring an action for trespass
for breaking a violin/' 3 There is a dubious tradition that his
first case concerned a bankrupt ; tradesman in New Chester.
Thompson sent Webster, with th^ Sheriff, to seize the property,
but they found the establishmen| closed. Webster then picked
up a log of wood and hurled it/ against the door, demolishing
the panels, but did not walk inside, for that would have been
the offense of "breaking and entering." The Sheriff, stepping
across the threshold, then served the attachment. 4

Some of his letters show him in a whimsical mood as he
meditated on the charms of the young ladies from whose society
he was cut off. "My heart always overflows with affection

1 See his letters to Bingham, National Edition, XVII, 92-94 and 98-99. James
Hervey Bingham (1781-1859), whom Webster addressed as " My best friend " and
" Jemmy," became an attorney in Lempster, New Hampshire, from which village he
frequently wrote to Webster. He served creditably in the Legislature as Representa-
tive and Senator and enjoyed an excellent reputation. In 1847, through Webster's
good offices, he was appointed a clerk in the Department of State, and he died in Wash-
ington* With no one of his college mates was Webster on more intimate terms.

2 National Edition, IV, 108. The road was later the Fourth New Hampshire Turn-
pike. Webster, holding the proxies of several absent subscribers, attended the first
meeting of the proprietors in 1801, at Andover, New Hampshire.

3 Letter to Binghara, October 06, 1801 (National Edition, XVII, 96).

4 Coffin^ History of Boscamn> p. 444.

66 DANIEL WEBSTER

for the sex/* he wrote to Bingham. 1 When he was bored with
law's aridities, he strolled into the woods to shoot partridges
or squirrels, or sauntered with a fishing rod along one of the
Salisbury brooks. But he was habitually unsettled, and com-
plained, <c I never was half so much dispirited as now. Though
I make myself easy as I can, yet I am really very unpleas-
antly circumstanced/' 2

In January 1802 the precarious financial affairs of the
Websters reached a crisis a contingency which Daniel had
foretold. Money was indispensable, and he was pledged to
provide it. Through a college friend, Samuel A. Bradley, 3
he had been offered a teaching position at Fryeburg, Maine,
then a part of Massachusetts, and he finally engaged to go for
six months, at a salary of $350 a year. After his experience
as a pedagogue in Salisbury, he had no misgivings as to his
qualifications, and he set out confidently for his destination,
not far from the New Hampshire border, at the foot of the
White Mountains. The snow must have been deep and the
thermometer low when Daniel Webster arrived in Fryeburg,
but he was glad to have a change from the monotony of The
Elms, and, after he had sold his horse, he settled down gladly
to his new responsibilities.

Fryeburg, which has been agreeably described under the
name of Equity in the opening paragraphs of William Dean
Howells's A Modern Instance^ is one of the most charming of
New England villages. 4 Once a favorite hunting ground of
the formidable Pequawket Indians, it is only a mile from
LovewelPs Pond, where, in 1725, a company of colonial scouts
ambushed by the redskins defended themselves in one of the
bloodiest conflicts of pioneer days. The settlement itself lies
along a broad, elm-bordered avenue, at the eastern end of which

1 National Edition, XVII, 101. 2 Ilid^ p. 97.

8 Samuel Ayer Bradley (1774-1844), born in Concord, New Hampshire, had gradu-
ated from Dartmouth in 1799, and had become an attorney in Fryeburg, where he spent
the remainder of his life.

4 For a description of Fryeburg and for poems dealing with it, see The Illustrated
Fryeburg Memorial, a small pamphlet published in 1882. The town was named after
Chaplain Jonathan Frye, who died heroically in the batde at LoveweU's Pond,

MATURING YEARS 67

rises like a sentinel the Jockey Cap, an odd-shaped granite
mound forming a conspicuous landmark. To the north in a
long sweep are the Pequawket mountains* and, farther off to
the west, is Chocorua Peak, the monarch of the Sandwich
range. From any point in the village the residents can lift
up their eyes to the hills. The Saco River, more winding
than the Meander, flows back and forth across the valley,
crossed here and there by picturesque covered bridges. Frye-
burg was a centre for farmers and lumbermen, and its stately
residences, shut off by white fences from the street, made it
seem a prosperous community.

Fryeburg Academy occupied an insignificant, square, one-
storied building, erected in 1791, at the foot of Pine Hill, near
the corner of Main Street and the East Conway road. Here
it was that Master Webster taught the youth and maids of the
village. Despite his inexperience, he was "always dignified
in deportment," and "usually serious, but often facetious
and pleasant/* l The solemn manner in which he opened and
closed the sessions with extemporaneous prayer made a lasting
impression on several of his pupils. Naturally his pedagogi-
cal duties occupied most of his days, and he attended to
them conscientiously, winning " the universal respect of both
scholars and villagers."

Webster found in Fryeburg another friend, James McGaw,
who had graduated from Dartmouth in 1797 and had after-
wards read law in Thompson's office at Salisbury. The two
were inseparable, and McGaw, who had some facility of expres-
sion, left a vivid description of Webster at twenty :

Neither the physical nor intellectual expression of his countenance
had become so striking as in subsequent life. His cheeks were thin
and his cheek bones prominent. There was nothing especially
noticeable about him then except his full, steady, large, and searching
eyes. Nobody could see those eyes and ever forget their appearance
or him who possessed them. 2

When Charles Lanman asked him about his appearance at

1 Samuel Osgood to Professor Sanborn (National Edition, XVII, 58).

2 National Edition, XVII, 50.

68 DANIEL WEBSTER

that period, Webster replied, "Long, slender, pale, and all
eyes; indeed, I went by the name of all eyes the country
round/' l He was still very slight in figure, a mere stripling
weighing less than one hundred and twenty pounds.

Much to his satisfaction, he was able to add to his income
by outside work. He and McGaw boarded and roomed with
James R. Osgood, the Register of Deeds for Oxford County,
who employed Webster to copy in longhand the documents
which came under his jurisdiction, at the rate of one shilling
and sixpence each. 2 Although it was a tedious task, Webster
toiled at it faithfully during the winter months. In writing
about his labors, he said :

Four evenings in a week earned two dollars; and two dollars a
week paid my board. This appeared to me to be a very thriving
condition ; for my three hundred and fifty dollars salary as a school-
master was thus going on, without abatement or deduction for vivres.*

Almost half a century later, in 1851, when Webster was
serving his second term as Secretary of State, he spent some
hours in Fryeburg, where he hunted out the volumes of deeds
in his own handwriting, still neat and legible, as indeed his
chirography always was; and he declared, as he gazed at
the yellow pages, that the ache was not yet out of his fingers.
But he made no complaint in 1802, for he was helping his
brother ; and in May, during his spring vacation, he pocketed
his first quarter's salary and rode across country to Hanover,
where he placed his savings in the hands of "Zeke." 4 In

1 Lanman, p. 31.

2 The small brick structure in which Webster did his copying still stands on the south
side of the main street, not far from the centre of the village. The curious may find in
Vol. II of the bound records of the Commissioner the deeds which he copied.

8 National Edition, XVII, 13.

4 George Ticknor, then preparing for Dartmouth, saw Webster in Hanover on this
occasion and recalled that the undergraduates were " very proud and very fond of him "
and ** treated him very caressingly and very very affectionately." Ticknor remembered
that Webster at this time " was thin and had not the appearance of being a strong man."
He remained in Hanover two or three days, enjoying the company of Ezekiel and the
latter's friends, and calling upon the young ladies of the village, and then spent a week
with his parents in Salisbury. For Ticknor's account of the visit, see Curtis, I, 51-52.
Webster himself described his experiences in a letter to Bingham, May 18, 1802 (Na-
tional Edition, XVII, 107-10).

MATURING YEARS 69

his Autobiography, Daniel called this t the first earnings of my
life/' forgetting his earlier wages as a teacher during his winter
absences from Dartmouth.

At Fryeburg, Webster found himself in lively society, sur-
rounded by "men of information and conversable manners/'
and he did not lack diversion. In a poetical epistle to his
friend, Porter, he described his lot as follows :

Where Saco rolls, (a name so rough and fierce
It frights the Muse to bring it into verse,)
Tied to my school, like cuckold to his wife,
Whom God knows he 'd be rid of, runs my life.
Six hours to yonder little dome a day,
The rest to books, to friendship, and to tea ;
And now and then, as varying fancies choose,
To trifle with young Mary, or the Muse.
This life, tho' pleasant of its kind, is yet
Much too inactive, I 'm resolved to quit. 1

He amused himself by scribbling and produced a number
of essays and poems which he grouped under the title, Sports
of Pequawket, but he did not publish them. There were
young ladies in Fryeburg who inspired him to be "a little ro-
mantic and poetical." "I have seen nearly thirty white
muslins trail across a ball room on an evening," he wrote to his
friend, Merrill. He did not, however, take either love-making
or verse-writing too seriously.

At this period he began to smoke, and there are several
references in his letters to his lighting a cigar or drawing com-
fort from his pipe. He even composed an ode beginning :

Come, then, tobacco, new-found friend,
Come, and thy suppliant attend
In each dull, lonely hour. 2

In his account at the Bradley store, the item "

1 National Edition, XVII, 114.

2 Ibid., p. 93. In later life, Webster abandoned smoking because of what he thought
:o be its injurious effect on his throat.

70 DANIEL WEBSTER

recurs frequently* along with "Raisins^ $d" l His favorite
outdoor pastime was trout fishing, to which he devoted
Wednesday and Saturday afternoons in spring and summer,
but always with a copy of Shakespeare in his pocket in case
the fish proved unresponsive.

Many years afterwards, Webster wrote that he found in
Fryeburg cc most of the elements of a happy New England
village/' and spoke especially of the local clergyman "a
learned, amiable, and excellent minister of the gospel/' 2
He continued to be an omnivorous reader, and secured from
the local attorney, Judah Dana, permission to use his library.
There he browsed, renewing his study of Blackstone, and
poring over such works as Adams's Defense of the American
Constitution) Mosheim's Ecclesiastical History, Goldsmith's
History of England, Williams's Vermont, and other historical
and political treatises. One of the greatest of American ora-
tions, Fisher Ames's speech in 1795 on the Jay Treaty with
Great Britain, fell into Webster's hands, and he memorized
it, with full approval of its strongly Federalist doctrines. As
for belles-lettres, McGaw speaks of their reading aloud alter-
nately all of Pope's poetry and the Tatler and the Spectator,
which they procured at the circulating library in the village;
and Webster was much struck with the Pursuits of Literature
that quaint poem by Mathias, richer In prose annotation
than in couplets, but always a boon to bibliophiles.

Webster was complimented by an invitation to deliver the
Independence Day Oration, which he spoke in the old Frye-
burg Church on July 5, the actual anniversary coming in
1802 on a Sunday. It was a sound exposition of those Federal-
ist principles which he had absorbed at his father's fireside
and which labeled him, even in his youth, as a conservative.
In one notable paragraph, prophetic of many of his later ad-

1 These items are excerpted from an interesting monograph, John Adams and Daniel
Webster as Schoolmasters (1903), by Elizabeth Porter Gould. From January 9 to
September 3, 1802, Webster ran up a bill of $33.89 at the Bradley store. He paid $24
on account in June, but the balance was not settled until April 29, 1804, when Samuel
A. Bradley paid $9.64, doubtless at Webster's request.

2 National Edition, XVIII, 147.

MATURING YEARS 71

dresses on the same theme, he stressed the Importance of
guarding the integrity of oor government :

To the preservation of this Constitution every system of policy
should ultimately tend. It should be considered as the sacred and
inviolable palladium, ready to wither the hand which would lay hold
on it with violence. . . . Whoever does not wish to perpetuate our
present form of Government in its purity, is either weak or wicked ;
he cannot be the friend of his Country. . . . If the Constitution be
picked away by piecemeal, it is gone, and gone as effectively as if
some military despot had grasped it at once, trampled it beneath his
feet, and scattered its loose leaves in the wild winds. ... To alter
the instrument which ties together five millions of people, on which
rests the happiness of ourselves and posterity, is an important and
serious business, not to be undertaken without obvious necessity, nor
conducted without caution, deliberation, and diffidence.

The young man who spoke these words was already the
"Defender of the Constitution," distrustful of change, sus-
picious of innovation. The oration, we are told, "was greatly
admired by the Federal party and much disliked by the Demo-
cratic" a verdict which Webster probably expected. Of
perhaps more immediate importance to the orator of the day
was the five dollars with which he was presented as an hono-
rarium.

When his six months were over, Webster was urged to re-
main at Fryeburg, the inducements offered being a salary of
five or six hundred dollars, a house of his own, a piece of land
to cultivate, and ultimately a remunerative position as Clerk
of the Court of Common Pleas. 1 If he had at that time any
premonition that he was to become great, he kept it carefully
concealed. In discussing his prospects with Bingham, he
wrote :

The talent with which Heaven has intrusted me is small, very
small, yet I feel responsible for the use of it, and am not willing to
pervert it to purposes reproachful or unjust, nor to hide it, like the
slothful servant, in a napkin. 2

1 National Edition, XVII, 1 10. 2 ttid. y p. in.

72 DANIEL WEBSTER

This may have been affectation, but he made statements
to his roommate, McGaw, which would indicate that he was
entirely sincere in his declaration that he had only "moderate
expectations of his eminence in future life/' l

But teaching school was not his goal. His father and
friends were agreed that he ought to continue with the law.
Mr. Thompson was ready to accept him again as a student,
without charge, and had promised to make him his successor
at Salisbury. Captain Webster, moreover, was getting feeble
and needed one of his sons close at hand. Accordingly, in
September 1802, after Ezekiel had come to Fryeburg for a
visit, the two brothers made a short excursion into Maine and
then returned together to Salisbury. 2 The mood in which he
resumed his accustomed place in Thompson's office is re-
vealed in a sentence in one of his letters :

To the winds I dismiss those hopes of eminence which ambition
inspired and vanity fostered. To be "honest, to be capable, to be
faithful" to my client and my conscience, I earnestly hope will be my
first endeavor.

For the next year and a half Webster was a fairly assiduous
student in Thompson's office, where the prospects of his dis-
tinguished success did not seem bright to him or to anybody
else in the vicinity. He was planted, it seemed almost irrev-
ocably, in a small rural community, among people whose
interests must have appeared very narrow, as compared with
even Fryeburg and Hanover. Confessing to Ezekiel that he
had no cash to send him, he went on, "We are all here just
now in the old way, always behind and lacking ; boys digging
potatoes with frozen fingers., and girls washing without wood." 3

1 National Edition, XVII, 51.

2 Webster revisited Fryeburg in 1806, at which time he stood godfather to William
Pitt Fessenden, 1831, and 1851. The site of his schoolhouse was purchased, in 1809,
by Samuel A. Bradley, who would never allow anyone to build upon it. In 1902,
Fryeburg observed the centennial of Webster's residence there with appropriate exer-
cises. Senator George F. Hoar, regretting that he could not be present, wrote, " It
lends a dignity to the streets of our town that his feet have been familiar to them."

3 National Edition, XVII, 123.

MATURING YEARS 73

As for Ezekiel, he was even worse off, as a letter to Daniel
proves :

Money, Daniel, money. As I was walking down to the office after
a letter, I happened to find one cent, which is the only money I have
had since the second day after I came on. It is a fact, Dan, that I
was called on for a dollar, where I owed it, and borrowed it, and have
borrowed it four times since, to pay those I borrowed It of. 1

There was, indeed, a pitiful lack of ready cash in the Webster
family, and allusions in his correspondence indicate that Daniel,
forced against his will to apply for loans, had already accumu-
lated debts small, but beyond his capacity to pay back.
Importuned by the unfortunate Ezekiel, with his exhortation,
"Whenever you meet, let money be the object of your con-
sultation," and only too well aware of Captain Webster's
straitened condition, it is no wonder that Daniel wrote to
Bingham :

This is a cold, poor, comfortless place. If the hill of difficulties be
so high we cannot climb over it, yet perhaps we can make a shift to
creep around it. At all events it is worth a trial. 2

No pessimism is so profound as that of the young, and
Webster was seldom again so despondent as he was in 1802
and 1803. His gloom was accentuated by occasional minor
illnesses. Uncertainty regarding the future kept his mind
overwrought, and he could not leave off speculating on the
projects which rushed in on his teeming brain. Driven by
surging energy and conscious power, he was "cabin'd, cribb'd,
confin'd," with no chance of escape from his captivity.

Probably he would have been less disgruntled if he had been
more sure that he had chosen the right profession. When
he completed Blackstone's Commentaries^ Thompson pre-
scribed Coke upon Littleton^ in those days the universal ele-
mentary textbook for law students in this country. With
this abstruse volume, Webster was soon completely disgusted.
He wrote later in his Autobiography :

1 National Edition, XVII, 124. 2 /&</., p. 137.

74 DANIEL WEBSTER

A boy of twenty* with no previous knowledge of such subjects, can-
not understand Coke. It is folly to set him upon such an author.
There are propositions in Coke so abstract, and distinctions so nice,

and doctrines embracing so many distinctions and qualifications, that
it requires an effort not only of a mature mind, but of a mind both
strong and mature, to understand him. 1

The ancient black-letter edition was not at all inspiring,
and Webster would have agreed with Justice Story, who com-
plained of "the intricate, crabbed, and obsolete learning of
Coke upon Littleton" and with John Quincy Adams, who called
it "a very improper book to put into the hands of a student
just entering upon the acquisition of the profession." What
Webster needed was a practical explanation of such matters
as the kinds of writs issued in a suit and the ordinary papers
required in legal transactions; instead he was occupied with
theoretical questions which could never arise in the experience
of a New Hampshire attorney. 2

Relief came when Webster, prowling through Thompson's
library, picked up Espinasse's Law of Nisi Prius, in two musty
volumes which resembled "a couple of psalm-books." To-
day this treatise is virtually obsolete, but Webster, thoroughly
bored with Coke, found it to be "plain, easy, and intelligible."
Soon he discovered for himself that the most economical way
of studying law is "in relation to particular points," by ac-
cumulating information around some definite theme or case.
Other students since that day have learned through wasteful
experience that it is always best to read with some clear pur-
pose in mind.

Webster did not neglect to lighten the heaviness of the law
with some general reading. While he was acquiring a knowl-
edge of special pleading through a perusal of Bacon's Elements
and Saunders's Reports, he was completing Hume and Gibbon,
as well as other historians, and memorizing whole pages of the
Latin classics. Some of his verse translations of Horace's

1 National Edition, XVII, 14.

2 For Webster's candid opinion of the system, see Lyman, II, 8-9. See also National
Edition, XVII, 129-31.

MATURING YEARS 75

Odes were printed in New Hampshire newspapers, but have
never been resurrected.

But this young, full-blooded man, hardly out of his teens,
had also his livelier pastimes. The essence of his philosophy
was expressed in a paragraph of a letter written to Bingham :

It is not he who spends most hours over his books that is the most
successful student. It is impossible to keep the mind on the stretch
forever; it will sometimes relax; and though we may keep our eyes
on our books, it will steal away to easier contemplations, and we may
run over pages without receiving an idea. I know this is the case
with myself, and believe it is with others. The true science of life is
to mingle amusement and business, so as to make the most of time, 1

We hear, through his letters, of trips to Concord, where
he "had fine times, singing and dancing, and skipping," to
Hanover, to Woodstock, Vermont, and to other places nearer
by. He still bantered his friends about the ladies and had
them or one or two of them on his own mind. But his
chief recreation was taken by himself, among the hills and along
the streams of Hillsborough County, where he could roam and
meditate undisturbed. In his Autobiography, there is a most
significant passage :

At this period of my life, I passed a great deal of time alone. . . .
I like to let thoughts go free, and indulge in their excursions. And
when thinking is to be done, one must of course be alone. No man
knows himself who does not thus, sometimes, keep his own company. 2

The thoughts of the solitary walker ranged over an exten-
sive field, uncircumscribed by space or time. Often, in de-
pression of spirits, he would rebel against his lot, as he did
in a letter to Merrill:

Accuracy and diligence are much more necessary to a lawyer, than
great comprehension of mind, or brilliancy of talent. His business
is to refine, define, and split hairs, to look into authorities, and com-
pare cases. A man can never gallop over the fields of law on Pegasus,
nor fly across them on the wings of oratory. If he would stand on

1 Letter to Bingham, December 23, 1803 (National Edition, XVII, 154).
. 15.

76 DANIEL WEBSTER

terra firma, he must descend ; if he would be a great lawyer, he must

first consent to be only a great drudge. 1

Yet he was still expecting to become a country lawyer and
was considering where to settle. After conducting a case at
Woodstock, he thought of opening an office in Vermont; and
he made inquiries regarding prospects in Washington, in West-
moreland, and in Chesterfield, all of them villages in Cheshire
County. He told Bingham that he was looking for a place
'* where the practice of the bar is fair and honorable/' 2 and
intimated that he preferred a location near the Connecticut
River. Mr. Thompson, who discerned his protege's ability,
suggested Portsmouth, but Webster wrote, "At present, I
do not feel that Portsmouth is the place for me/' As spring
arrived in 1804, his restlessness increased, and he was eager
to get away from too familiar Salisbury. Although he had
at least a year more of reading before he could be admitted
to the bar 3 he was convinced that he ought to study for a few
months in some other environment. . . . And then, at a
moment when he declared that his life was marked with "dark
traces and heavy shades," the miraculous happened. An
avenue of release was opened up !

As the winter closed in, it was obvious to Daniel and Ezekiel
that one of them must earn some money,, and it seemed to be
the latter's turn. In January 1804, therefore, Daniel went to
Boston, probably his first trip to that city, found an
opening in a school then being conducted by his college friend,
Cyrus Perkins, 3 and secured the position for Ezekiel, who,
although in his Senior year at Dartmouth, had been teaching
at Sanbornton, five miles from The Elms, during the winter.
Arrangements having been made with the college authorities,
Ezekiel was soon in sole charge of Perkins's small private

1 Letter to Merrill, November n, 1803 (National Edition, XVII, 151).

2 /fW.,p. 163.

3 Cyrus Perkins (1778-1849), born in Middleboro, Massachusetts, graduated from
Dartmouth in 1800, as a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and, after some years of teaching,
became a physician, later returning to Hanover as Professor of Anatomy and Surgery
(1810-19). He was at one time president of the New Hampshire Medical Society.

MATURING YEARS 77

school on Short Street since renamed Kingston Street
in Boston. His contract with his predecessor specified that
Ezekiel was to receive no money from the students already in
attendance until that " quarter " was over; hence his income
did not really start until July, and meanwhile he could do
nothing for Daniel He did, however, write him on April 4,
1804, urging him to come to Boston :

I would have you decamp immediately with all your baggage from
Salisbury, and march directly to this place. . . . Consult father,
the family, and your friends, and start for Boston immediately after
receipt of this letter. Another such opportunity may never occur.
Come, and if you don't find everything to your liking, \ will carry
you back to Salisbury with a chaise and six, and pay you for your
time. I must say again, consult father. If he approves, take the
patriarchal blessing, and come. 1

Because the necessary funds were not then forthcoming,
Daniel was unable to adopt his brother's suggestion. Further-
more, he was awaiting the outcome of negotiations which
seemed likely to gain him an appointment as Clerk of the
Court of Common Pleas of Hillsborough County, and he was
in a vacillating mood. Fortunately the clerkship evaded
him, 2 and he wrote, on June 10: "For cash I have made out.
Perhaps in three weeks you may see me in Short Street." 3
It was not, however, until July 17 that he presented himself
at EzekiePs lodgings, confident that the Fates, hitherto malign,
were at last to beam upon him. 4

It soon appeared that the too sanguine Ezekiel was not
really in need of an assistant, but was ready to pay Daniel's
expenses if the latter could obtain a place in a reputable law
office. Whether through carelessness or ignorance, he had
brought with him no credentials, and he called unsuccessfully
upon two or three well-known firms. Then, with inspired
audacity, he went with his college chum, Samuel A. Bradley,

1 National Edition, XVII, 165. 2 /^W., p. 174. * J#, p. 173.

4 In one of the last letters before leaving Salisbury, he wrote to his brother : " Zeke,
I don't believe but that Providence will do well for us yet. We shall live, and live
comfortably."

7 8 DANIEL WEBSTER

to see the eminent lawyer, Christopher Gore/ an aristocratic
gentleman of wealth and worldly experience. It was at the
door of his office on the third story of "Scollay's Building/'
on Tremont Street, that Daniel Webster knocked on July 20,
with his heart beating fast in trepidation.

Bradley., who himself barely knew Gore, had volunteered
an introduction, but Webster soon took control of the situa-
tion, explained his ambitions, and secured the lawyer's atten-
tion. The very ingenuousness of the appeal must have tickled
Gore's sense of humor, and Webster's personality even then
was magnetic. Soon the frown faded from the attorney's
face. He listened courteously, made some inquiries as to
Webster's previous training, and finally said :

My young friend, you look as though you might be trusted. You
say you came to study, and not to waste time. I will take you at
your word. You may as well hang up your hat at once ; go into the
other room ; take your book and sit down to reading it, and write at
your convenience to New Hampshire for your letters. 2

The timorous Bradley, meanwhile, had disappeared, but
Webster's embarrassment had been relieved by Gore's tact, and
he lost no time in obeying these instructions. It was more
than a week before Gore knew the name of his new clerk ; but
before very long the latter was writing from "Dear Boston"
describing himself as sitting comfortably in Gore's office
a large room on the third story of a brick building in the heart
of the city with a sea-coal fire burning and near by "a most

1 Christopher Gore (1758-1827), whose father had been banished as a Tory during
the Revolution but had been restored to American citizenship by legislative act in 1787,
graduated from Harvard in the class of 1776, and studied law with Judge John Lowell.
He acquired a lucrative practice in Boston and was appointed by President Washington
in 1789 as the first District Attorney of the United States for Massachusetts. From
1796 until 1 804 he resided in England, fulfilling the duties of his office as Commissioner
under the Jay Treaty, and, in 1803, he acted for a time as our chargt d'affaires. In 1809
he was chosen Governor of Massachusetts as a Federalist, but was defeated for reelection
by Elbridge Gerry, a Democrat. In 1813, he succeeded James Lloyd as Senator from
Massachusetts, but retired in 1816 to private life. At his death, he left valuable
bequests to Harvard, and Gore Hall, formerly the home of the Harvard Library, was
named after him. He was a staunch conservative and held political principles of which
Webster thoroughly approved. See the sketch of him by Lawrence S. Mayo in the
Dictionary of American Biography*

2 Autobiography, National Edition, XVII, 18-19.

MATURING YEARS 79

enormous writing-table with half a cord of books on It." l
Webster had been fortunate, for Gore was one of the inner
circle of Boston Federalists, who knew everybody worth while
in New England, and whose legal reputation was such as to
make him the envy of an aspiring young attorney. Un-
doubtedly Webster's Federalism was strengthened by associa-
tion with a man of Gore's conservative tendencies.

For the next nine months, except for some unavoidable
absences, Webster read law under Gore's supervision, making
what he modestly called "respectable progress." In August,
while Ezekiel went back to Hanover to receive his diploma from
Dartmouth, awarded to him after only three years of actual
residence, 2 Daniel took charge of his brother's school for a
few days, 3 one of his pupils being Edward Everett, later among
his closest friends. 4 Meanwhile, at his boarding house, Mrs.
Whitwell's, in Court Street, he had met a Mr. Taylor
Baldwin, an eccentric and wealthy gentleman, who took a
fancy to Webster and asked him to be his companion on a
pleasure trip to the Hudson River. On November 5, Elec-
tion Day, the two set out "in a hackney coach, with a pair
of nimble trotters, a smart coachman before, and a footman
on horseback behind," 5 on a journey which took them to
Springfield, thence to Hartford, through the Berkshires to

1 National Edition, XVII, 198.

2 Daniel had used all his influence with his friends at Hanover to secure this con-
cession to Ezekiel. In spite of his shortened period of residence, Ezekiel was one of the
highest scholars in his class.

8 Paul Revere Frothingham, in his Edward Everett, makes the mistake of saying that
Ezekiel Webster was taken ill and " sought the temporary assistance of a younger
brother who had recently completed his law studies." The truth is that Ezekiel was
at Hanover, in excellent health, and that Daniel had by no means finished his legal
preparation.

4 Edward Everett (1794-1865) was, in 1804, in his eleventh year, and was soon to
embark on that career of remarkable precocity which has probably never been equaled
in this country. He remained in the Webster school for only a few months, going to
Boston Latin School in the autumn. Webster never forgot that Everett had once been
his pupil, and, only a few months before his own death, he wrote him, " We now and
then see, stretching across the heavens, a long streak of clear, blue, cerulean sky, with-
out cloud, or mist, or haze, and such appears to me our acquaintance, from the time
I heard you for a week recite your lessons in the little schoolhouse on Short Street to
the date hereof."

6 National Edition, XVII, 198.

80 DANIEL WEBSTER

Albany, and then down the Hudson and back through
Connecticut and Rhode Island to Providence. In Albany,
Webster made some desirable acquaintances, including Abra-
ham Van Vechten, the Schuylers, and Stephen Van Rensselaer. 1
When he reached Mrs. WhitwelFs again at the close of the
month, he had jingling in his pocket what he described as
"one hundred and twenty dear delightfuls," paid to him by
Mr. Baldwin in addition to his expenses, and most acceptable
to the impecunious Webster. Shortly afterwards, Daniel
made a trip to Salisbury to see his father, who was recovering
from a siege of illness and who, as his pathetic letters show,
was much worried about his finances. 2

In Gore's office, Webster's chief study continued to be the
common law, particularly those portions relating to special
pleading; and he actually took the pains to go through an
old folio edition of Saunders's Reports, translating from Latin
and Norman French into English and making abstracts of all
the important arguments. During the winter he was "earnest
in the study of the French language," 3 which he recognized
to be indispensable. His Journal shows that he read carefully
such standard volumes as Ward's Law of Nations, Evans On
Insurance, Viner's Title of Pleadings, Abbott On Shipping,
Bacon's Elements of Common Law, and Vattel (for the third
time). He attended regularly the sessions of courts, sum-
marizing all the decisions and observing closely the methods
of the advocates. Placed for the first time where he could
watch in action such first-rate lawyers as Harrison Gray Otis,
James Sullivan, Theophilus Parsons, Daniel Davis, and Samuel
Dexter, as well as his own patron, Christopher Gore, he had an
unusual chance for criticism and comparison; and he left in
his Diary shrewd comments on Parsons, Sullivan, and Dexter.

Once, as he was sitting alone in the office, a little man dressed
in a plain gray suit entered, and, when he was told that Mr.
Gore was out, sat down to await his return. Observing that
Webster was reading Roccus's De Navibus et Naulo, he talked

iLyman, pp. 16-17. 2 Van Tyne, pp. 14, 18. National Edition, XVII, aoa.

MATURING YEARS 81

with him on problems of maritime law s displaying an amazing
knowledge of that intricate subject. The stranger was Rufus
King, 1 the eminent Federalist, who had just come back from
England, where he had been Minister at the Court of St.
James's. Within ten years, the two were to be in Congress
together, and on the most intimate terms.

Webster's admiration for Gore increased as he grew to know
him better, and he wrote :

He is a lawyer of eminence and a deep and varied scholar. Since I
left John Wheelock, I have found no man so indefatigable in research.
He has great amenity of manners, is easy, accessible, and communica-
tive, and, take him all in all, I could not wish a better preceptor. 2

For relaxation, Webster continued to read with his usual
assiduity. He found Gifford's Juvenal "worth perusing on
more accounts than one/' but he did not care for Gibbon's
Autobiography , regarding that author as "a learned, proud,
ingenious, foppish, vain, self-deceived man." Among other
volumes which he mentions are Moore's Travels in Italy and
France, Paley's Natural Theology (which he must have read
in his college days), BoswelFs Hebrides , and Puffendorfs
Latin History of England. He contributed some communica-
tions to the newspapers, but no one has as yet been able posi-
tively to identify them. 3

Webster, although still reserved, had little difficulty in mak-
ing friends, and there were several whom he saw frequently,
including Cyrus W. Perkins, Augustus Alden, and others with

1 Rufus King (1755-1827), a native of Maine, had graduated at Harvard in 1777
and studied law in Newburyport with Theophilus Parsons. He had been a member
of the old Continental Congress and was a delegate from Massachusetts to the Con-
stitutional Convention of 1787. He moved to New York in 1788, and was soon chosen
a United States Senator from that state. He was appointed Minister to Great Britain
in 1796. Politically, he was an unswerving Federalist. See the sketch in the Diction-
ary of American Biography.

2 National Edition, XVII, 194. Letter to Merrill, November 30, 1804.

3 Thomas W. Thompson wrote to him, October 17, 1804: " I am much pleased with
the communications signed Mass, and W. and I can assure you that they have excited a
very interesting inquiry for the author. The former I recognized : the latter I had not
seen till after the receipt of your letter. Go on. Catch every leisure moment. If
pecuniary compensation should not follow, you will have a compensation of a higher
nature." (National Edition, XVII, 189.)

82 DANIEL WEBSTER

whose names his correspondence is sprinkled. Occasionally
he played backgammon with the young ladies in the Whitwell
boarding house, "in order to keep off the glooms/* and there
were numerous homes in which he was welcome, including
that of Gore. Now and then he scribbled rhymes, such as :

What nonsense lurked within the pate, oh !

Of definition-making Plato,

Who sang in philosophic metre

"Man is a rational and biped creature' 1 ?

Many do think, and so do I,

Old codger, that you told a lie;

And, yet, perhaps, you surly lout,

There is a hole where you 11 creep out ;

Males you call rational, but no man

E*er heard you say the same of woman. 1

For the most part, however, he kept hard at work, realizing
that it would be unwise for him not to improve his opportuni-
ties while he was in Boston.

It was at this period, according to the story related by
Philip Hone, that Webster first began to drink wine. His
patron, Gore, noticing that his clerk looked pale and feeble
from the effects of hard study, asked him how he lived. Web-
ster confessed that he was obliged to depend on corned beef
and cabbage and to drink water. "That will not do," said
the kindly Gore. "You must drink a glass of good wine oc-
casionally, and eat an apple after dinner to promote digestion."
"But," replied Webster, "I cannot afford to drink wine." "I
will take care of that," replied Gore; and from that time
Daniel received occasional presents of Madeira, by which he
benefited greatly. "I recovered my health and was enabled
to pursue my studies and perform my task with renewed ardor,"
he concluded, as he related the tale. 2

In January 1805, when his apprenticeship to the law was
almost completed, Webster had to make a crucial decision.
For some months Captain Webster had been using his influence

1 National Edition, XVII, 196. a Hone, Diary > II, 296-97.

MATURING YEARS 83

with his friends on the New Hampshire bench to secure for his
son an appointment as Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas
for Hillsborough County. When Chief Justice Timothy
Farrar offered the position to Daniel, his father was overjoyed.
The fees accompanying the office amounted annually to at
least $1500, and to Captain Webster, whose farm was mort-
gaged and who had seldom known what it was to be solvent,
it looked like a wonderful opening for an inexperienced youth.
Even Daniel, realizing that he would be able not only to clear
up the family indebtedness but also to help Ezekiel, felt as if
his fortune were made. There was not the slightest doubt
in his mind that he should accept what seemed like a rich
prize. , . . But once again, as so often in Webster's career,
an outside influence intervened. When he exultantly informed
Mr. Gore of the news, the latter took it for granted that his
protege would decline the offer. "Why/' said he, "you don't
mean to accept it, surely !" Webster was staggered. Then
Gore, seeing the young man's embarrassment, sat down with
him to talk it over. He stressed the fact that Daniel was
nearly through with his preparation for the law; he showed
him that the clerkship was, at best, a precarious position, the
fees of which might be reduced, and that, even if they were
not, he would be merely a clerk for the rest of his life. "Go
on," said the wise counselor, "and finish your studies; you
are poor enough, but there are greater evils than poverty;
live on no man's favor ; what bread you eat, let it be the bread
of independence; pursue your profession; make yourself
useful to your friends, and a little formidable to your enemies,
and you have nothing to fear." l

This advice, though unexpected, was sane and convincing,
and Daniel, after one or two sleepless nights, determined to
follow it. He now had to confront the painful necessity of
notifying his father of his decision. Borrowing several hundred
dollars from Joseph Taylor, one of his Boston friends, he hired
a seat in a country sleigh which had come down to Boston to

1 Autobiography, National Edition, XVII, 21.

84 DANIEL WEBSTER

market, and reached The Elms just at sunset. There sat his
father warming his hands before the fire, his face pale and his
cheeks sunken, very feeble from illness and old age. He could
not at first understand his son's refusal of the lucrative clerk-
ship, and for a few seconds he looked angry. Then, as if
resigned to the Inevitable, he said, "Well, my son, your mother
has always said you would come to something or nothing.
She was not sure which ; I think you are now about settling
that doubt for her."

The subject was never brought up again. With the borrowed
money, Daniel paid some family bills and made purchases for
his parents and sisters. Within a week he was back again in
Gore's office with his books in front of him. Before two years
had passed, the fees of the clerkship were materially reduced. 1
If Webster had accepted it, he might never have become a
figure of national importance. It may well be that Christopher
Gore, intervening at the psychological crisis, rescued Daniel
Webster from oblivion.

Because of some negligence on the part of Thomas W.
Thompson, Webster's admission to the bar was unnecessarily
delayed. 2 In March 1805, however, he was admitted to
practice in the Court of Common Pleas of Suffolk County,
being introduced formally to the judges by Mr. Gore, who
made a short speech predicting the future success of his pupil.
Having achieved his immediate goal, he proceeded at once to
Amherst, New Hampshire, where his father was sitting on the
bench, and accompanied him back home. He had now to
select a place in which to hang out his shingle. Many of
Captain Webster's neighbors were eager to have Daniel settle
at the Center Road Village, in the town of Salisbury. 3 He
himself had virtually resolved to go to Portsmouth, but, when
he found his father very feeble and ill, he could not desert him. 4

1 In the summer of 1805, Daniel evidently tried to secure the same clerkship for his
brother, Ezekiel, but the latter also decided not to accept it. See National Edition,
XVII, 215-16.

2 National Edition, XVII, 188, and XVI, 670.
8 Ibid., XVII, 197-98.

* In telling Bingham of his decision, Webster said that it was made "partly through
duty, partly through necessity, and partly through choice." (fbid^ p. 206.)

MATURING YEARS 85

Accordingly he rented In early April an office In Boscawen,
where he had studied not many years before under Dr. Wood.
Webster knew it well. It was only six miles south of the Salis-
bury Lower Village, and from it he could reach his parents
quickly in an emergency.

Boscawen accented on the opening syllable, and pro-
nounced locally Bos-kwine was first settled in 1733* and
incorporated in iy6o > when it was named as a compliment to
the famous British admiral. It is to-day a picturesque New
England village, built along a wide and shaded street parallel
with the west bank of the Merrimack, between that river and
a low ridge of hills. The valley at this point is more than half a
mile wide an intervale of rich alluvial deposits, rising across
the Merrimack in a steep sandy ascent to the town of Canter-
bury on the eastern shore. Houses are still standing which
were there in Webster's time, and the general appearance of
the spot has altered very little in a century and a quarter.
It has always been a hospitable community, and the inhabit-
ants are justly proud of its distinguished sons among whom,
besides Daniel and Ezekiel Webster, have been Charles Carle-
ton Coffin and John A. Dix. The population by 1800 had
increased to fourteen hundred, and there was a thrilling mo-
ment, just before Webster settled there, when Boscawen had a
slender chance of. being designated as the state capital. But
Concord had more influential backers, and, after a little flurry,
Boscawen relapsed into its customary calm.

Webster's first clients were received in a small building
attached to a dwelling house on King Street the home of
Lieutenant Colonel Timothy Dix. In this residence John A.
Dix was born in 1798, and he was a child playing with his
toys when Webster began to practise law. The Webster
office was torn down before 1880, but the site is marked by a
bronze tablet fastened to a large boulder. There he remained
until September 1807, a period of approximately two years
and a half, lodging meanwhile with Mr. Joel French, in the
one-story dwelling still standing north of the village parsonage.

In Boscawen, then, Webster opened what he cynically called

86 DANIEL WEBSTER

a shop "for the manufacture of justice writs/' and a modest
business soon came his way. Within a few weeks he wrote
Ezekiel that he had already drawn fourteen court writs and
that Mr. Dix had given him about forty demands of various
descriptions to collect; 1 but he added less optimistically on
July 29, "I pick up ... but very little cash, hardly laying
my hand upon a dollar/' 2 He had originally set five hundred
dollars as the sum which he ought to earn for the first year,
and had determined not to remain in Boscawen if his receipts
fell short of that amount. How far he achieved this modest
desire may be judged from a letter which he wrote on January
19, 1806, to Bingham:

It is now eight months since I opened an office in this town, during
which time I have led a life which I know not how to describe better
than by calling it a life of writs and summonses. Not that I have
dealt greatly in those articles, but that I have done little else. My
business has been just about so-so; its quantity less objectionable
than its quality. 1 shall be able at the end of the year to pay my bills,
and pay perhaps sixty pouncis for my books. I practice in Hills-
borough, Rockingham, and Grafton. Scattering business over so
much surface is like spilling water on the ground. In point of profit
I should do better, much better, if it were convenient to attend the
courts in one county only. 3

Webster confessed later that his legal business at Boscawen,
while tolerable, was not altogether to his mind, and that there
were in the village "no pleasures of a social sort/' He worked
very hard, often sleeping on a cot in his office, and seldom re-
tiring before midnight. Most of his cases involved the collec-
tion of bills, and the clientage which he was building up was
not the sort which, in his dreams, he had thought of himself
as securing. He found, furthermore, that "an accursed thirst
for money vitiates everything/' and after some experience
with shyster rivals he wrote Bingham :

Our profession is good if practised in the spirit of it ; it is dam-
nable fraud and iniquity, when its true spirit is supplied by a spirit of
mischief-making and money-catching. 4

1 National Edition, XVI, 6-7. 2 Ibid., XVII, 214. Ibid., p. 220.

4 Letter of January 19, 1806 (National Edition, XVII, 222).

MATURING YEARS 87

Although disillusioned as to the law, he did not lower his
own ideals He still maintained that study was "truly the
grand requisite for a lawyer/' and, when he felt "the burden
of perpetual solitude and seclusion/ 9 he took down a volume
on law or history and buried himself in its pages. After
deploring the corruption and depravity of his country, he
sought refuge in the Latin classics. He even wrote at least
four articles for the Monthly Anthology, a literary magazine
started in Boston in 1804. The first, published in 1806, was
an intellectual review of Tunis Mortman's Treatise on Political
Economy. This was followed, in 1807, by a criticism of Volume
I of Johnson's New York Reports,, and by an article on the
French language. In 1808, appeared a review of Lawe's
Treatise on Pleading. His attendance at the various courts
obliged him to travel considerably, and we hear of him at
Boston (December 1805), at Fryeburg (August 1806), and at
Portsmouth, as well as at other places less distant. He wrote
to "Zeke," September 24, 1805, "I have been absent a month
on the tour of courts, or you would have heard from me before."
He signalized his return to his own section of the state by
delivering, in 1805, an Independence Day Oration before the
Federalists of Salisbury. 1

Tradition says that Webster's first argument after his
admission to the bar was made before a justice of the peace
"Old Justice Jackman, who received his commission from
George II." Webster himself once wrote that his first speech
before a jury was made when his father was on the bench, and
added, "He never heard me a second time/* 2 Apparently
this plea was made in September 1805, at the court house in
Plymouth, the county seat of Grafton County, during a session
of the Court of Common Pleas. 3 General Lyman, who visited

1 Letter to Ezekiel Webster, July 28, 1805 (National Edition, XVII, 213).

2 Letter to Blatchford, May 3, 1846 (Bid. y XVIII, 228).

8 Mr. Alfred Russell, writing in 1853, a ^ ter some exhaustive researches, declared that
Webster's first case was tried before the Superior Court, in Plymouth, with Chief
Justice Jeremiah Smith presiding. In view of the fact that Webster was not admitted
to practice before the Superior Court until May 1807, this version seems improbable.
Furthermore, Captain Webster could not have sat on the bench of the Superior Court,
being only a Justice of the Court of Common Pleas.

88 DANIEL WEBSTER

Plymouth in 1852, met several older people who remembered
the case and the part which Webster took in it; and Joel
Parker said that it was an action founded on a tavern bill*
amounting to twenty-four dollars,, seventeen dollars of which
Webster recovered for his client. In his Address at the Webster
Centennial at Dartmouth College^ David Cross, a New Hamp-
shire lawyer and judge, asserted that, according to the records,
Webster* at the September Term, in 1805, of the Superior
Court of Hillsborough County, entered at Hopkinton twenty-
two writs and argued two causes before a jury. 1 One of these
was Haddock v. Woodward^ which he won; the other was
Carson v. Corson y which he lost. The opposing counsel in
both suits was Webster's friend, Parker Noyes, whom he had
known in Thompson's office at Salisbury. 2 Jacob McGaw,
usually a trustworthy witness, described a case in Grafton
County involving the trial for murder of a man who had
once worked for Captain Webster. Daniel Webster, then
attending the court, went to see the prisoner, who implored
him to lend what aid he could give to his counsel, Mr. Sprague.
The latter, convinced of the guilt of his client, declined to
represent him; and Webster, stepping forward, made "an
argument of such wonderful force and ingenuity, that all who
heard him were astonished,'* and Chief Justice Smith was
lavish in his encomiums. 3 Another interesting trial was that
of "Old Man Hodgdon," of Northfield, who had been accused
of stealing a saddle. Webster, for the defense, showed that his
client was the victim of a conspiracy, and that the real criminal
had hidden the saddle behind Hodgdon's chimney.
Though it is difficult to prove the truth of some of these

1 Webster Centennial Proceedings^ p. 248. Cross also said that these cases were
argued " in the presence of his father, one of the judges upon the bench," but this is
obviously an error, for Captain Webster was never a Judge of the Superior Court. The
original writs in these cases are on file in the Court House at Nashua, New Hampshire.

2 Parker Noyes (1776-1852), of South Hampton, New Hampshire, studied law with
Thomas W. Thompson and became his partner in 1804, after marrying Thompson's
daughter. In 1 8 10, when Thompson moved to Concord, Noyes bought out his business,
and later took one of his pupils, George W. Nesmith, as a partner. He held a high rank
at the New Hampshire bar.

3 National Edition, XVII, 52.

MATURING YEARS %

tales, there can be no doubt of the lasting impression which
Webster, at this early period of his career, made on com-
petent critics. Chief Justice Joel Parker, of the New Hamp-
shire Court of Common Pleas, told of a brilliant argument
delivered by Webster in September 18065 which created a
sensation among his colleagues at the bar, and was the subject
of discussion for several days. 1 John H. Morison, in his
Life of Jeremiah Smithy described a suit for trespass tried in
Hopkinton at the May Term of the Superior Court in i8oy. 2
Webster, although associated with a Mr. Wilson as counsel
for the plaintiff, was not yet legally entitled to argue a case
in the Superior Court ; but, in view of the fact that he was
soon to be admitted, the Chief Justice allowed him to present
his cause. The scene which followed was depicted by Sheriff
Israel W. Kelley, of Concord, later Webster's brother-in-law :

When Mr. Webster began to speak, his voice was low, his head was
sunk upon his breast, and his eyes were fixed upon the floor, and he
moved his feet incessantly, backward and forward, as if trying to
secure a firmer position. His voice soon increased in power and
volume, till it filled the whole house. His attitude became erect, his
eye dilated, and his whole countenance was radiant with emotion.
The attention of all was at once arrested. Every eye in the crowded
court-room was fixed on the speaker but my own ; for I was obliged
to watch the door that I might prevent confusion by the throng of
spectators that were constantly crowding into the hall. 3

In May 1806, at Plymouth, Webster was assigned by the
court to defend one Josiah Burnham, charged with killing two
of his companions in the cell of the Haverhill jail, by stabbing
them with a weapon made from the point of a scythe. Web-
ster's plea was an argument against capital punishment, but
the jury brought in a verdict of "Guilty," and Burnham was
hanged, August 12, 1806, on Powder House Hill, near Haver-
hill, before a throng of ten thousand people. 4

1 Harvey, pp. 44-45*

2 Morison, Life of Jeremiah Smith* pp. 179-80.
8 Harvey, pp. 46-47.

4 Granite State Monthly ', IV, 101.

90 DANIEL WEBSTER

It makes little difference whether these stories are regarded
as truth or as fanciful legends. The fact underlying them
all is that Daniel Webster, even as a young lawyer, made
himself respected and feared. 1 1 was during this period that he
first encountered the redoubtable Jeremiah Mason/ later his
intimate friend and associate. Mason who told the story
to Webster's biographer* George Ticknor Curtis was asked
to defend a hitherto respectable citizen who had been in-
dicted for forgery. The action was to be tried in one of the
counties in which Webster practised, and he had been asked
by the Attorney-General to prepare the argument for the
prosecution. Mason had heard vague rumors of a wonder-
fully clever young country lawyer, said to be "as black as the
ace of spades/" but had never been brought into contact with
him. On the day of the trial, the Attorney-General was ill,
and the prosecutors, with Mason's consent, placed the case
in Webster's hands. The unknown Boscawen lawyer con-

1 Jeremiah Mason (1768-1848), born at Lebanon, Connecticut, was the sixth of nine
children of Jeremiah Mason, all but one of whom lived to maturity. His father, like
Webster's, was a farmer, a Revolutionary veteran, and a member of the state legislature.
Mason graduated from Yale in 1788, studied law at New Haven under Simeon Baldwin
for a year, and then at Westminster, Vermont, under General Stephen R. Bradley for
eighteen months, and was admitted to the Vermont bar at New Fane in June 1791.
He settled in Westmoreland, New Hampshire, in the following autumn, moving in 1794
to Walpole, six miles up the Connecticut, and in 1797 to Portsmouth, where he soon
rose to the head of his profession. We are told that, from 1805 to 1808, the number of
original entries made by him at any court session was usually more than those of all the
other attorneys in Portsmouth together. He married, November 9, 1799, Mary Means,
daughter of Robert Means, of Amherst, New Hampshire. He was six feet, seven inches,
in height, and she was so short that she often tied her handkerchief to his wrist so that
she could reach it. In 1802, Mason was made Attorney-General of New Hampshire,
but held the office only three years. Elected to the United States Senate in June 1813,
as a Federalist, he associated himself with colleagues of similar political principles,
such as Rufus King and Christopher Gore ; but he wearied of the office and resigned
his seat in 1817. It was his only service in Congress. His stooped shoulders and
rather awkward manner made him seem at first glance rather sluggish, and his face,
except for his keen and vigilant eyes, looked heavy. But once stirred to action, he
was transformed. He was, in the courtroom, simple and direct, using homely phrases
and a provincial pronunciation and speaking without gestures ; but he had Yankee
shrewdness and common sense, and he was so lucid that nobody ever failed to under-
stand him. Unlike Webster, he was not a wide general reader, but devoted himself
entirely to his profession. As a lawyer, he compelled his opponents to do their best,
for no one arguing against him could be negligent or superficial. Like Rufus Choate,
he did not really care for politics, and was always glad to get back to his office desk.
See the Dictionary of American Biography.

5 ai

MATURING YEARS gi

ducted the proceedings in a masterly manner. "He broke
upon me like a thunder storm in July/' confessed Mason,
"sudden, portentous, sweeping all before it.** Surprised by
this "remarkable exhibition of unexpected power/* Mason was
barely able to save his client, and he had from that time forth a
wholesome regard for Webster's prowess. 1 It was not to be
long before the two were to meet as professional rivals in the
same community; and Mason, with the generosity and lack
of jealousy which were among his many admirable characteris-
tics, never ceased to encourage his younger friend to enter a
broader field. "I never lost sight of Mr. Webster/' he said,
"and never had but one opinion of his powers."

Some meagre traditions still remain of Webster's life in
Boscawen. It is said that he organized a voluntary military
company, recruited chiefly from a group of men employed in
manufacturing barrel staves at a local coopering establishment,
and that these soldiers, with hoop-poles for weapons, used to
march up and down King Street to the music of fife and drum. 2
He took some interest in town affairs, enrolled himself as a
member of the religious society, voted at town meeting, and
served on the school committee. But he viewed his residence
in Boscawen as only temporary, and, on his occasional trips
to Boston and Portsmouth, he looked enviously and eagerly
upon those larger communities, where there was more life and
more scope for his talents. Scrupulously and uncomplainingly
he was keeping his bargain with his father.

Ebenezer Webster, after several months of failing strength,
died on April 22, 1806, and was buried in the little cemetery
at The Elms, only a short distance from the Merrimack. In
tribute to him, Webster wrote in 1846 :

1 This story is told in Curtis, I, 77, and also in Hillard, Life of Mason, p. 41. Still
another version is quoted in Lodge's Daniel Webster, pp. 39-40, in which the case is
spoken of as a " murder trial." Additional details are preserved in Harvey, pp. 58-59,
where the offense of the prisoner is described as " passing counterfeit money.'* I have
been unable to find the case reported in any of the newspapers of the period.

2 Coffin, Boscawen and Webster, pp. 446-47. If this story is authentic, it is almost
the only indication throughout Webster's career of a relish for military distinction.
He was later opposed on principle to the War of 1812 and to the Mexican War.

92 DANIEL WEBSTER

I neither left him nor forsook him. My opening an office in Bos-
cawen was that I might be near him. I closed his eyes in this very
house. He died at sixty-seven years of age, after a life of exertion,
toil, and exposure : a private soldier, an officer, a legislator, a judge,
everything that a man could be to whom learning never had disclosed
her " ample page/* l

Daniel, who had already paid out large sums for his father/
now assumed his debts/ and undertook to supply money also
for the living expenses of his mother and sisters. 4 Meanwhile
Ezekiel had been reading law in the office of James Sullivan,
later Governor of Massachusetts for two terms, in Boston,
and with Parker Noyes, in Salisbury. Admitted to the New
Hampshire bar In September 1807, he took over almost im-
mediately) by agreement with Daniel, the latter's office in
Boscawen, and also became manager of the family farm at
the Lower Village, The important facts about these arrange-
ments were written from Portsmouth by Daniel to Bingham :

The truth is, our family affairs at Salisbury rendered it necessary
for one of us to reside in that neighborhood, and not very willing to
take charge of the farm, I concluded to indorse over to my brother
both farm and office, if he would take them both together. Being
thus left to seek a new place of abode, I came to this town, a measure
which I had in some degree contemplated for a length of time. I
found myself here in the latter part of September. I knew few
people here, and Mr. Adams was the only person who advised the
measure. 5

Thus suddenly precipitated by Fate into a new community,
Ezekiel Webster, a man of exceptional ability, soon adjusted
himself to his environment, made for himself a distinguished
career as a lawyer, and became Boscawen's leading citizen.

1 National Edition, XVIII, 229. 2 Hid., XVI, 8.

* According to George Ticknor, quoted in Curtis, I, 78, Webster did not entirely pay
off his father's obligations until 1817.

4 Webster's youngest sister, Sarah Jane, died of consumption on March 19, 1811.
His older sister, Mehitable, died on July 4, 1814, thus leaving the mother absolutely
alone on the farm. Mrs. Ebenezer Webster, after spending her last days with her son,
Ezekiel, at Boscawen, finally died on April 25, 1816, almost exactly ten years after her
husband, and was buried by his side.

5 Letter to Bingham, February 27, 1808 (National Edition, XVII, 228).

MATURING YEARS 93

He married and built for his family a beautiful home* with
attractive gardens ; and, when he died very suddenly, at the
age of forty-nine, he was buried in the lovely old Boscawen
Cemetery, on a slope above the Merrimack.

Daniel Webster was admitted in May 1807 as Counselor in
the Superior Court of New Hampshire; and, with Ezeklel
comfortably established in Boscawen, he transferred in Septem-
ber all his belongings to Portsmouth, where he hoped, against
keener competition, to make a name for himself in the law.

IV
A WIDER HORIZON: WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH

I lived in Portsmouth nine years, wanting one month. They were very

happy years.

WEBSTER, Autobiography

Should we meet the flitting ghost of some old-time worthy, on a staircase
or at a lonely street corner, the reader musf be prepared for it.

ALDRICH, An Old Town by the Sea

PORTSMOUTH, New Hampshire, on the south bank of the
Piscataqua River, was, in 1807, a place of some consequence.
Settled first In 162,3, it had acquired by the close of the eight-
eenth century a population of more than five thousand and was
twelfth among the cities of the United States. It had the only
harbor and was the largest city in New Hampshire, surpassing
both Exeter and Concord in wealth and number of people, 1
and it was quite able to hold its own in commerce with its
Massachusetts rivals, Salem and Newburyport. There was
an insignificant village called Hooksett, near what was to be the
cosmopolitan industrial centre of Manchester, and there was a
sparse settlement at Watanic, on the site of what to-day is
Nashua. But manufacturing had not yet contaminated the
valley of the Merrimack, and the sea was still the most impor-
tant factor in New England's prosperity.

It was in Portsmouth that the earliest newspaper in the
state the New Hampshire Gazette was started in 1756.
Portsmouth had been the colonial capital of New Hampshire
until patriots during the Revolution moved the seat of govern-
ment inland to Exeter. 2 In Market Square Portsmouth's

1 Belknap's History of New Hampshire gives the population statistics for 1790 as
follows: Portsmouth, 4720; Concord, 1747; Exeter, 1722.

2 From 1775 to 1807, tn Legislature adjourned from town to town, sometimes to
Portsmouth, and often to Exeter and Concord. At the close of the first session in 1807,
it adjourned to Concord, which has since been the capital.

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 95

Place de la Concorde was the Old State House, the scene
of many public demonstrations, on the eastern balcony of
which President George Washington was welcomed In 1789.
Towards the eastern end of the Square was the town pump,
long used as a whipping post ; and at the south was the broad
plaza known as the "Parade/* where processions were formed
and the citizens promenaded on summer evenings. On
Vaughan Street could be seen the Assembly House/ where
Portsmouth's "four hundred" gathered for dancing parties
and musicales, and where Washington, attending a ball, found
"about seventy-five well-dressed and many very handsome
ladies."

Everywhere, in the Portsmouth of 1807, there were evi-
dences of prosperity. It boasted, in 1798, 626 dwelling houses,
of which, however, only sixteen were of three stories. On
nearly every street was some stately mansion, with the gambrel
roof which dated it before the Revolution. At a later period
had come the great, square three-storied residences, usually of
wood, but giving the impression of substantiality and filled
with furniture which now makes the antique hunter's heart
ache with envy. These houses reflected the good taste of the
shipowners and superannuated sea captains, who, retiring with
a competence, had established them as a refuge for their old
age. Such were many of the landmarks for which Portsmouth
is famous : the Warner House, the brick for the eigh teen-inch
walls of which was imported from Holland ; the Moffatt House,
once the wonder of the town, and now the property of the New
Hampshire Society of the Colonial Dames of America ; and
the truly noble Governor Langdon Mansion, where Washing-
ton dined and where such dignitaries as Louis Philippe and
James Monroe were guests. All these, and many others almost
as beautiful, were familiar sights to Daniel Webster as he
strolled about the streets. Most of them stood some yards
back from the flagstone sidewalks, and behind them were
attractive gardens, colorful in the right season with lilacs and

1 The Assembly" House was altered in 1838, and now constitutes two separate build-
ings, one on either side of Raitt's Court

96 DANIEL WEBSTER

roses and dahlias, and here and there a small orchard laden
with blossoms or fruit. There was not a ramble along a side
avenue which did not open some unexpected vista full of old-
world charm.

The Portsmouth of the early nineteenth century, however,
was a hustling community, more interested in its present than
in its past. Along the wharves, there was abundant activity,
as cargoes were unloaded or sailors wandered back and forth
from vessels to taprooms. Aldrich, in sentimental reminis-
cence, has said :

At the windows of these musty countingrooms which overlook the
river near Spring Market used to stand portly merchants, in knee-
breeches and silver shoe-buckles and plum-colored coats with ruffles
at the wrists, waiting for their ships to come up the Narrows ; the
cries of the stevedores and the chants of sailors at the windlass used
to echo along the shore where all is silent now.

The unmistakable aroma of the sea a pleasing blend of
brine and tar permeated the atmosphere, and the ships
returning from distant India or China gave it an exotic flavor,
quite different from that of inland cities. There were taverns
for the stranger, ready to cater to his needs : Mr. John Staver's
Earl of Halifax, from which the first stage set out for Boston
in 1761 and the name of which was discreetly changed by the
proprietor during the Revolution to the William Pitt Tavern ;
the Bell, on a post in front of which hung a huge bell, painted
a gaudy blue, and at which the patriots had once held their
seditious meetings ; and Stoodley's, on the north side of Daniel
Street, which, in Webster's day, was the fashionable resort of
bucks and "bloods/*

Portsmouth was a comfortable town, rather complacent
and conservative, as befitted a community in which most of
the citizens were well-to-do, and very hospitable. Belknap,
writing in 1792, said, "In Portsmouth, there is as much elegance
and politeness of manners, as in any of the capital towns of
New England." l Webster, arriving there not long after the

1 The Marquis de Chastellux, a visitor in 1782, speaks of handsome women elegantly
dressed, and of rich houses beautifully furnished.

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 97

days of wigs and cocked hats and flowered waistcoats, found
a society quite self-sufficient and dependent on itself. It had
its eccentric characters, its legends of ghosts and witches, and
its mysterious tragedies, as any ancient place should have, and
its citizens had no envy of Philadelphia or New York.

Certainly an ambitious young lawyer might have chosen
many worse spots in which to seek his fortune. But, although
the residents of Portsmouth were only faintly aware of the nem-
esis descending upon them, its "golden days" were almost
over. For the moment it was flourishing, and Webster had
selected it in the belief that its future was as promising as that
of Boston. But the Embargo Act was soon to fall like a blight
upon its foreign trade, and the War of 1812 was to bring with
it an even greater decline in shipping. Webster reached there
just as the old Portsmouth of the days "before the war" was
to become a memory. To-day, the traveler is likely to think
of it, in Aldrich's phrase, as "An Old Town by the Sea," where
" the wormeaten wharves, some of them covered by a sparse,
unhealthy beard of grass, and the weather-stained, unoccupied
warehouses are sufficient to satisfy a moderate appetite for
antiquity." Portsmouth's prosperity, such as it is, is now of
another kind. There are factories, but they seem incongru-
ous with their surroundings. Even automobiles are not alto-
gether suited to the "Parade."

During the passage of a century or more, Portsmouth has
greatly changed. The old houses are still alluring, but in some
instances they resemble "the crumbling shells of things dead
and gone." Once-fashionable avenues are now the slums of
the city. Gracefully carved doorways have been damaged
by the hands of ignorant vandals. The former haunts of
fashion and luxury have been turned often to ignoble uses.
There is, of course, on the part of some older residents, an inter-
est in the past, but in the business quarter a new generation
has grown up or come in which is indifferent to traditions.
It is significant that there is no memorial to Webster in the
city.

The Portsmouth of 1807 was so small that the arrival of a

98 DANIEL WEBSTER

stranger especially a stranger like Daniel Webster aroused
the curiosity of its inhabitants. We are told by Mrs. Eliza
Buckminster Lee l that* when he first was seated next to the
minister's family in the Old North Church 3 called the " three-
decker " because of its tiers of galleries,, her eldest sister reported
"that there had been a remarkable person in the pew with
her, and that she was sure he had a most marked character for
good or for evil/' Mrs. Lee, describing him as he then
appeared, wrote :

Slender and apparently of delicate organization, his large eyes and
massive brow seemed very predominant above the other features,
which were sharply cut, refined, and delicate. The paleness of his
complexion was heightened by hair as black as the raven's wing. 2

This vivid sketch corresponds well with a miniature of
Webster painted at about this period, 3 but Mrs. Lee's empha-
sis on his "paleness" is inexplicable when we recall that every-
body else particularly mentions his swarthy hue. Mrs. Lee
added that her father, noticing that Webster's constitution
was not very robust, persuaded him to join him in sawing wood
for half an hour before breakfast each morning an exercise
which had beneficial results upon his physique. Before he left
Portsmouth, the slim and frail-looking young lawyer was in
excellent health and gradually acquiring the portly proportions
of his prime.

Having rented bachelor quarters not far from the Buckmin-
ster home, Webster was soon the centre of an admiring circle.

1 Eliza (Buckminster) Lee (1794-1864), one of Webster's best friends in Portsmouth
and in later life, was the sister of his former teacher at Exeter, the Reverend Joseph
Stevens Buckminster, and the daughter of Dr. Joseph Buckminster, pastor of the Old
North Church, in Portsmouth, for thirty-three years. She married Thomas Lee, of
Boston, and moved to that city, where she became well known as an author. In the
Old North Church, which stood on the west side of Market Square and has been replaced
by a more modern edifice on the same site, Webster had a pew, and he was a warden
there in 1815-16.

2 From an interesting reminiscent letter to Fletcher Webster, dated January 23,
1856, and printed in the National Edition, XVII, 438 ff.

3 A photograph of this miniature is reproduced in Fisher, p. 81, and shows Webster
with a face which was sharp and narrow, instead of broad and square, as it was in his
later days. The likeness between this and the pictures of his old age is, however,
unmistakable.

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 99

His clever imitations of peculiar people established his reputa-
tion as a mimic, and he had a charm of manner which was irre-
sistible. Thrown for the first time into a society which was
opulent and urbane, he was quick to adopt its tone. If
he had been hitherto a little uncertain about rules of eti-
quette, he rapidly learned how to play the game, and, mingling
with polished men and women, was accepted as one of them.
His letters, not numerous during these years, tell us little of his
experiences, but he did meet such Portsmouth personages as
the stately Governor John Langdon ; * Honorable Jonathan
Warner, who had been a member of His Majesty's Council
before the Revolution; Captain William Rice, the enterpris-
ing merchant who controlled a fleet of privateers in the War
of 1812 ; Honorable John Goddard, who had refused a nomina-
tion to the United States Senate ; and the astute Judge Samuel
Sherburne, who had served two terms in Congress, had been
appointed United States District Attorney, and had ended as
a judge of the Circuit Court. Association with men of culti-
vation, who had traveled widely, gave him a broader outlook
than had been his in provincial Boscawen. It was In Ports-
mouth that Webster gained poise and sophistication.

To the ladies of Portsmouth, Webster was not attracted, for
he had already made his choice of a life companion. Writing
to Merrill, March 8, 1807, he said :

I rejoice that you have so comfortable a cage. A bird you cannot
but find easily. Your friend Webster has neither bird nor cage.
However, he lives in hopes. 2

Within the next few months the hopes developed into reali-
ties, for he wrote, December 2, 1807 :

1 John Langdon (1741-1819) was perhaps the most picturesque figure in New Hamp-
shire politics at the opening of the nineteenth century. Born in Portsmouth, he fought
in the Revolution at Bennington and Saratoga, and became a prosperous merchant.
He was a member of the State Legislature and its Speaker; delegate to the Constitu-
tional Convention of 1787: Governor of New Hampshire (1788); Senator from New
Hampshire (1789-1801) and first President of the United States Senate; and again
Governor for five terms between 1805 and 1812. He was a strong Democrat, and
Jefferson offered him in 1801 a place in his cabinet as Secretary of the Navy, which he
refused. He also declined the Democratic nomination for Vice President in 18 13.

2 National Edition, XVII, 226.

ioo DANIEL WEBSTER

I have been a young dog long enough, and now think of joining
myself, as soon as convenient, to that happy and honorable society
of which you are one ; the society of married men. 1

The young lady on whom he had set his heart was Grace
Fletcher, daughter of the Reverend Elijah Fletcher, the minis-
ter of Hopkinton, about ten miles southwest of The Elms,
who had died, April 8, 1786, leaving four small children, of
whom Grace was the youngest. Mrs. Fletcher whose
maiden name was Rebecca Chamberlain had married again,
her second husband being the Reverend Christopher Paige,
also of Hopkinton, to whom she had borne three sons and
one daughter. 2 Grace Fletcher, after graduating at Atkinson
Academy in 1800, had been intermittently a school teacher, for
a time at Boscawen, and, in 1805, at Salisbury. Her older
sister, Rebecca, had married Judge Israel W. Kelley, of Salis-
bury, in whose home Grace lived when employed in that vicin-
ity. It is said that Webster saw her first at church in Salis-
bury, when she wore a tight-fitting dress and looked "like an
angel/' s He did not find it difficult to carry on a courtship,
for Judge Kelley lived at Salisbury Center Village, only a few
miles from Boscawen.

Some sort of understanding must have been reached between
Webster and Grace Fletcher before he moved to Portsmouth.
In the late spring of 1808, he rode away from his bachelor's
headquarters without notifying anyone of his destination, and,

1 National Edition, XVII, p. 227.

2 Mrs. Paige's third son, James W. Paige, Esquire, who first met Webster in 1807 at
the Paige house, later became one of his close friends. He was afterwards a prosperous
merchant in Boston and was named as one of the trustees under Webster's will. A
considerable correspondence, chiefly on matters of business, was carried on between the
two. Paige died, May 19, 1868, in Boston.

3 According to the story told by William T. Davis in an article, " Memories of Daniel
Webster " (New England Magazine, April 1902), Rebecca Kelley on one Sunday morn-
ing told Grace not to dress up for church, as it was stormy, and no one would be there
for whom she cared. When she returned home, she said, " I did see some one, a man
with a black head, who looked as if he might be somebody." The stranger was Webster.
The earliest reference to Grace Fletcher in Webster's correspondence is in a letter from
Ezekiel to Daniel, from Boston, July 10, 1805, in which he asks, " Is Grace in Salisbury,
and is B. attentive to her ? "

- if >

/, sO&v^M^t.s^^

'^^M^^^^^^^^^'^^

THE ENTRY OF DANIEL WEBSTER'S MARRIAGE IN
THE SALISBURY CHURCH RECORDS

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 101

on Sunday, May 29,* he was married to her at Judge Kelley's
house, "in the middle west room/' by the Reverend
Thomas Worcester. 2 Mrs. Webster was a year and two days
older than her husband, having been born on January 16, 1781,
in Hopkinton. Judging from her portrait by Chester Harding,
she could not have been beautiful, but she was attractive in
manner and habitually amiable. 3 Although she was physi-
cally not strong, she possessed a brilliant mind and was a con-
genial companion for her husband, who relied much upon her
judgment. She seems to have been quite equal to the social
demands made upon her, and she preserved a dignified com-
posure, not only in Portsmouth, but also in the more exacting
drawing-rooms of Boston and Washington. George Ticknor,
who saw much of the Websters in Portsmouth, wrote, " Mrs.
Webster was pleasing and animated, and her manner to the
friends of her husband, and to us young men, was very kind
and cordial." 4

After his marriage, Webster rented a house on Vaughan
Street, which had formerly been occupied by his friend, Jere-
miah Mason. 5 This dwelling, which is still standing as "Num-
ber 137," was built in 1760 by George Meserve, and had been
Mason's home from 1800 to 1808. It was a pleasant resi-

1 The date given by Webster in his formal Autobiography is June 24, which is
obviously incorrect. Dearborn's History of Salisbury says that the marriage took place
on May 29, 1808, which fell on a Sunday, The Salisbury Church records give the
date as May 29.

2 Dr. Worcester came to Salisbury in 1791, as Parson Searle's successor in the church
at Salisbury Center Village. To this church, Daniel Webster had been united while
still a young man, but the date, September 13, 1807, given in Dearborn's History, is
probably a misprint for September 13, 1797.

3 Mrs. Lee, writing to Fletcher Webster regarding his mother, said, " Uniting with
great sweetness of disposition, unaffected, frank and winning manners, you will readily
believe that no one could approach your mother without wishing to know her, and no
one could know her well, without loving her." (National Edition, XVII, 440.)

4 Quoted by Curtis, I, 85.

5 With his increased income, Mason had built, in 1808, a large three-storied house on
the southeast corner of State and Summer Streets, in a location which was then thought
to be very secluded, although it was not more than a third of a mile from Market Square.
It was an imposing mansion, enclosed by a white fence, and with an orchard and exten-
sive gardens, in which he took much pride. It is still standing to-day, very little
altered, and occupied by a member of the Treadwell family, into whose possession it
came after Mason left Portsmouth, in 1832.

DANIEL WEBSTER

dence, with a gambrel roof, and behind it was a garden extend-
ing south to School Street. Diagonally opposite, on the west
side of Vaughan Street, was the Assembly House, where the
beaux and belles of Portsmouth held their balls. The place
was centrally located, only a short distance from the business
centre, and in what was then considered to be a desirable
locality. 1

Exactly how long Webster remained in the Vaughan Street
house it is impossible to say, but we do know that he soon pur-
chased for six thousand dollars what George Ticknor called
"a small, modest, wooden house/' on the northwest corner
of Court and Pleasant Streets, only two blocks from Market
Square. 2 It was of the same size and arrangement as the
Reverend Samuel Langdon House, only a short distance away
on Pleasant Street, just north of the Universalist Church, and,
like it, was two stories in height, with a gambrel roof and twin
chimneys, and two windows on either side of the front door.
Separating it from the street was a fence, with carved posts
at the gateway leading to the entrance. It was to a room in
this dwelling that Mrs. Lee referred when she wrote, "There
certainly was never a more charming room than the low-roofed
simple parlor, where, relieved from the cares of business, in
the full gayety of his disposition, he gave himself up to relaxa-

1 The changes in Portsmouth during the past century can be Illustrated in no better
way than by the story of the evolution of this once fine dwelling. It is difficult to trace
all its various owners after the Websters left it; but it came, in 1839, into the hands of
Robert Gray, by whom it was well kept up and in whose family it long remained. In
the late nineteenth century it was purchased by two men who were indifferent to its
beauty and who, after removing the charming interior stairway and much of the
exquisite woodwork, had the ground floor remodeled for stores. One side is now
occupied by a Food Shop and the other by a Pool Room; while the second story is
rented for apartments, A giant sassafras tree, said to have been the oldest in New
Hampshire, was ruthlessly cut down about 1918 in order to make room for a lunch cart.
Not many people in Portsmouth have any idea that it was once Webster's home ; but
the Assembly House, across the street, is marked by a tablet commemorating Washing-
ton's appearance there at a ball in 1789.

2 General Lyman, perhaps ignorant of the house in Vaughan Street, wrote : "When
Mr. Webster went to Portsmouth to reside with his wife, they took lodgings at the house
of a widow lady, where they resided some time, and were regarded as the proprietors
of the establishment, he paying all the expenses. At last he bought the house, furniture
and all pertaining to it, and had just paid for it, when it took fire and was burned to
ashes." (Lyman, II, 38.)

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 103

tion." l Unfortunately, it was consumed in the great confla-
gration of December i8i3, 2 while Webster was in Washington,
and when he returned, in the following spring, he moved his
family into a third house, on High Street, still in existence,
although a large addition has since been constructed in the
rear. The original portion, as Webster knew it, is in excellent
condition. 3 The east room on the ground floor, opening on
High Street, is about fourteen by eighteen feet in dimensions,
with a ceiling approximately nine feet high, and four windows.
The only other room on this floor must have been used as both
dining-room and kitchen, although it is possible that there may
have been a small wing at the back in which cooking was done.
There were two large bedrooms on the second floor. This
four-room dwelling was certainly no very pretentious habita-
tion for a Congressman.

Webster's domestic affairs in Portsmouth were happy and
untroubled. Two children were born to him there: Grace
Fletcher Webster, born April 29, 1810, and described by Tick-
nor as "a child of uncommon intelligence, with a brilliant red
and white complexion, and deep-set eyes, and hair as black
as her father's " ; 4 and Daniel Fletcher Webster, born July 23,
1813 The preference of both Webster and his wife was for
simple pleasures, and, although they sometimes attended
elaborate social functions, they did not entertain lavishly them-
selves. Instead, Webster would sit in the evening in his
parlor, "a bright and cheerful room/' and read the plays of
Shakespeare to friends who chanced to drop in.

Webster's office, during the greater part of his residence in
Portsmouth, was on the west side of Market Street, only two
or three doors from the square, in the second story over what
is to-day Peyser's clothing store. The rooms which he once

1 National Edition, XVII, 441.

2 The site of the Webster house is now occupied by an ugly three-story tenement,
painted brown, and quite out of place in the vicinity of the beautiful residences near it.

8 The building is still called " Webster House," and is used as a boarding house at
58 High Street.

4 Quoted in Curtis, I, 85. This child was born while Webster was attending court
at Hopkinton (National Edition, XIII, 549).

io 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

occupied are now utilized by the job-printing establishment
of Richard I. Walden, and have been somewhat remodeled;
but there are closets which look much as they did in Webster's
time. The only description which we have is from the pen of
George Ticknor, who wrote :

His office was a common, ordinary-looking room, with less furniture
and more books than common. He had a small inner room, opening
from the larger, rather an unusual thing. 1

This office was only a short distance from the houses in which
he lived. It was but slightly over one hundred yards, for in-
stance, from his third residence, on High Street, to his place of
business. From its windows, Webster could look into Market
Square, and he could easily be reached by anyone in need of
legal counsel.

The practice upon which Daniel Webster now entered was,
after a few weeks, of a size to demand his careful attention. 2
His reputation as a pleader had preceded him, and clients
flocked to his door. Like every attorney of that era, he spent
much time in the collection of small debts on a commission
an occupation which was neither uplifting nor profitable. But
he was able to write Bingham :

I have done as much business as I ought to expect. There are
eight or nine of us who fill writs, in town. Of course my share cannot
be large even if I should take my equal dividend. On the whole, how-
ever, I am satisfied that I did right to come, and suppose shall meet
with as much success as I deserve. 3

It was not long before Webster was making almost two
thousand dollars a year a considerable income for a young
man who did not know what it was to be free from debt and
who had been glad, at Boscawen, when he could count on five

1 Curtis, I, 85.

2 According"to Harvey, p. 51, Webster wrote in the fall of 1807 : " Thursday I tarried
in Concord ; Friday I came to this place j Saturday I got my office swept and my books
put up, and this week I have been quite at leisure."

'Letter to Bingham, February 27, 1808 (National Edition, XVII, 228).

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 105

hundred dollars annually. 1 Much of his professional work
was carried on by following the sessions of the Superior Court
through the state, as Lincoln did thirty years later in Illinois.
New Hampshire was then divided into six counties, five of
which Rockingham (in which Portsmouth was located),
Strafford, Graf ton, Hillsborough, and Cheshire had been
named by Governor John Wentworth for his friends among the
English nobility. The sixth Coos had been split off from
Grafton in 1803. Sessions of the court were held at the vari-
ous "shire" towns, and brought about an intimate associa-
tion of both lawyers and judges. By chaise in summer and by
sleigh in winter, Webster traveled with "his colleagues and
rivals from one centre to another in Rockingham, Grafton, and
Hillsborough Counties, coming back to Portsmouth whenever
possible for week-ends, but often detained from home for long
periods by bad weather or rush of business. He slept at
uncomfortable inns, ate unpalatable food, and endured all the
trying vicissitudes of the New England climate.

Meanwhile, he was being subjected to a discipline at which
he may sometimes have revolted, but which tested his mettle
and brought out all his latent powers. To the people in the
vicinity, the court sessions were dramas, eagerly anticipated
and largely attended. Every important trial was a tourna-
ment in which champions were matched against each other,
and farmers drove in from all the surrounding country to hear
a case argued by two famous advocates. Under these condi-
tions, lawyers were always tense and eager, and the one who
did well was sure of congratulations in the evening as he sat
with his fellows around the dinner table. Novitiates, through
this system, had the opportunity of listening day after day to
masters of their art. 2 Facing each morning a new problem,

1 By May 5, 1808, Webster could write Bingham : " I have nothing to charge against
fortune, on the score of professional success, and yet have nothing to boast, beyond the
ordinary success of young men. I am earning a small living, and have long been con-
vinced that I shall never be rich." (National Edition, XVII, 230.) In 1813, he wrote
that from 80 to 100 cases a term originated in his office. (/*//., XVI, 671.)

2 Senator George F. Hoar, recollecting the circuit system, wrote, " I cannot but
think that the listening to the trial and argument of cases by skillful advocates was a
better law school than any We have now." (Autobiography of Seventy Years, II, 368.)

106 DANIEL WEBSTER

Webster had to acquire the faculty of adjusting himself quickly
to changed conditions. It was obviously impracticable for a
lawyer on the circuit to carry with him a large library, and
books were seldom to be found in the towns where court was
held. Under the circumstances, a skillful pleader found him-
self relying, not on precedents, but on his wits, and victory
usually fell, not to him who knew the most, but to him who
could reason best and think most rapidly on his feet. There
was no opportunity for a lawyer to demur or delay. 1 He had
to prepare his case for jury or court in a hurry, under a pressure
which was unfavorable to calm scrutiny of the facts. In this
never-ending competition month after month, a man's true
ability was bound to be disclosed, for he had either to hold his
own in the rough-and-tumble intellectual battle or drop out.
Webster did not drop out. Indeed, it was not long before the
popular judgment placed him on a parity with the great
miracle-worker, Jeremiah Mason, whose "Titanic bulk and
elephantine movement" made him conspicuous wherever
members of the bar were assembled.

No one can study the legal career of Webster without con-
cluding that his obligation to Jeremiah Mason was very great.
In his earlier appearances in the courtroom, Webster, not yet
cured of the sophomoric tendencies shown in his college ora-
tions, had been rhetorical and even bombastic. 2 He had
formed the insidious habit of using words merely because of
their sound, and his sentences were too heavily freighted with
ornamentation. It was hard for him, as it was for so many of
his contemporaries, to resist the lure of "fine writing." Now
Jeremiah Mason, a shrewd Yankee, had evolved a style which
had no "frills," but was above all plain and direct. He wasted
no words, but aimed to become intimate with each member

1 " In his earlier years in circuit practice, Lincoln and other travelling attorneys were
employed by clients as soon as the Judge and his legal retinue arrived. ... A bill in
chancery, an answer, a demurrer, special pleas, and the like would have to be deter-
mined and prepared * before the opening of the court the next morning. 1 " (Beveridge,
Abraham Lincoln^ I, 518.) Such was substantially the procedure in Webster's day.

2 William Plumer, the elder, thought Webster, as a young man, to be " too excursive
and declamatory," and this criticism is sustained by the recollections of other New
Hampshire lawyers.

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 107

of the jury and to address them in a language which they could
comprehend. He even assumed a provincial accent and a
homeliness of phrasing in order to make rural jurymen feel at
ease. Webster, who was his own severest critic, soon perceived
the art behind Mason's apparent simplicity and began himself
to experiment with those short., incisive sentences for which he
was to become notable. As he watched and heard Mason, his
respect for the latter's technique increased, and he left a
permanent acknowledgment of his indebtedness in a passage
frequently cited: "Mason's method of argument led me to
study my own style and set about reforming it." In his
Autobiography, furthermore, Webster recorded his mature
estimate of Mason's ability :

He has been of infinite advantage to me, not only by his unvarying
friendship, but by the many good lessons he has taught, and the
example he set me in the commencement of my career. If there be
in the country a stronger intellect, if there be a mind of more native
resources, if there be a vision that sees quicker, or sees deeper into
whatever is intricate, or whatsoever is profound, I must confess I
have not known it. 1

It was not merely Mason's choice of words which had its
influence upon Webster. Devoted whole-heartedly to his law
practice and indifferent to social advancement or public honors,
Mason prepared himself for each legal battle as a general girds
himself for an attack. His round face and rather sleepy eye-
lids did not seem to indicate persistence, but he had a resolute
mouth. He was usually courteous to opponents, but, when
stung, he could be almost savage, and Webster testified that
his sarcasm was "not frothy or petulant, but cool and vitriolic."
Pitted against such a foe, Webster was obliged to marshal
all his resources. Once, in conversation with Rufus Choate,
Webster said with unmistakable sincerity :

I regard Jeremiah Mason as eminently superior to any other lawyer
whom I have ever met. I would rather, with my own experience
(and I have had some pretty tough experience with him), meet them
all combined in a case than to meet him alone and single-handed* He

1 National Edition, XVII, 24.

io8 DANIEL WEBSTER

was about the keenest lawyer I ever met or read about. If a man had
Jeremiah Mason and he did not get his case, no human ingenuity or
learning could get it. 1

Such unsought testimony as this, even allowing for Webster's
expansive generosity of spirit, has a genuine ring to it It is
supplemented, moreover, by a paragraph in a letter from him
to Mason, February 27, 1830, long after he had left Ports-
mouth :

I have been written to, to go to New Hampshire to try a cause
against you next August, brought by Mrs. Mellen v* Dover Company.
Where is the August Court holden ? I suppose up at the Lakes. If it
were an easy and plain case on our side, I might be willing to go ; but
I have some of your pounding in my bones yet, and don't care about
any more till that wears out. 2

Mason, in his turn, repeatedly praised the genius of his
younger rival. The truth is that each of these legal giants had
a wholesome respect for the other. The story has often been
told of the litigant who called on Webster to retain him in a
case. Webster was already engaged on the other side, but
recommended Mason. "What do you think of Mr. Mason ?"
was the query. "I think him second to no man in the coun-
try," was Webster's prompt reply. The man then went to
Mason and asked him about Webster's ability. "He's the
very devil in any case whatever," responded Mason, "and, if
he 's against you, I beg to be excused." 3

The two were soon dividing most of the really desirable legal
work in Portsmouth and vicinity, and were retained on oppo-
site sides "pretty much as a matter of course" to quote

1 Quoted by David Cross at the Webster Centennial of Dartmouth College in 1901.
See Proceedings of the Webster Centennial^ p. 251. Towards the close of his life, Webster
confessed to a friend, "If you were to ask me who was the greatest lawyer in the country,
I should answer, John Marshall, but if you took me by the throat and pinned me to the
wall and demanded my real opinion, I should be compelled to say it was Jeremiah
Mason."

2 National Edition, XVII, 489.

3 The difference between Webster and Mason was once expressed with some accuracy
in the sentence : " Mr. Mason was a great lawyer; but Mr. Webster was a great man
practising law."

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 109

Webster's own words. 1 Thrown together on their travels
around the circuit, they discovered congenial tastes and soon
formed the practice of driving side by side in a chaise, with their
luggage in a trunk strapped under the vehicle ; and they shared
the same room at taverns and boarding houses. Only once is
any friction between them mentioned. Something having
exasperated Mason in the courtroom, he turned upon Webster
"with the ferocity of a tiger/' and assailed him with the wither-
ing sarcasm of which, under provocation, he was capable.
While Webster was telling his wife of the incident, Mason's
servant was announced and said that his master would be glad
to see Webster at his office. When they met, Mason greeted
him cordially, saying, "I was irritated about something when
my eye fell on you, and I vented my feelings in the way I did.
Don't think of it, for I meant nothing of the sort." 2

We have a contemporary judgment of Webster from the
pen of William Plumer, 3 the younger, at that time a staunch
Democrat and opposed to him in politics. In an entry in his
Diary for August 1810, Plumer, then a law student in Ports-
mouth, wrote of Webster :

As a speaker merely he is perhaps the best at the bar. His language
is correct, his gestures good; and his delivery slow, articulate, and
distinct. He excels in the statement of facts ; but he is not thought
to be a deep-read lawyer. His manners are not pleasing, being
haughty, cold, and overbearing. 4

Looking back from the perspective of forty years, Plumer
could recall that Webster's demeanor was, like Cardinal

1 National Edition, XVII, 24.

2 Harvey, p. 60.

8 William Plumer (1789-1854), not to be confused with his father, Governor
William Plumer, after graduating from Harvard in 1809, studied law with his father
and was admitted to the bar in 1812. He was elected to Congress in 1818 and served
three terms. He became an ardent abolitionist, and vigorously opposed the admission
of Missouri as a slave state. Later he sat in the New Hampshire Senate (1827-28),
and was a member of the state Constitutional Convention of 1 850. His letter to George
Ticknor, written on April 2, 1853, and published in the National Edition, XVII, 546-47,
is an important contribution to Websteriana, although Plumer was not altogether in
sympathy with Webster and his views on current questions.

4 National Edition, XVII, 546-47.

no DANIEL WEBSTER

Wolsey'sj "lofty and sour to those that loved him not/' and
he quoted Dr. John Goddard, one of the most extreme of New
Hampshire Republicans, as having said, "Webster has talent
equal to any office ; but he is as malignant as Robespierre, and
not less tyrannical." It was Plumer's father Governor
William Plumer, 1 who on one occasion triumphed over the
arrogance of young Webster. During a trial in which they
were engaged in opposite sides, Plumer quoted from Peake's
Law of Evidence; whereupon Webster criticized the passage
for its wretched logic, denounced the book as worthless, and
then, casting it to the floor in his lordly way, said contemp-
tuously, "So much for Mr. Thomas Peake's compendium of
the Law of Evidence !" Then Plumer, who was too old a hand
to be disconcerted, produced a volume of Reports, from which
it appeared that the paragraph which Webster had rejected
with such disdain was taken word for word from a decision by
the great Lord Mansfield. Thus he secured his vindication. 2
There are other stories to prove that Webster, in his early days
at Portsmouth, was sometimes unceremonious and even rude,
not having yet attained the solemn courtesy which was later
ohe of his distinctive mannerisms. It may be that the adula-
tion of his admirers had temporarily turned his head.

Of the law cases with which Webster was concerned while
at Portsmouth, not much can be learned; but there were
situations in which he seemed to be inspired. One of these
was the dramatic trial of a wealthy resident of Portsmouth
named Matthew Bramble, who had attempted to swindle a
poor shoemaker named Brown out of an annuity of one hun-

1 William Plumer (1759-1850), born in Newburyport, Massachusetts, was at the
age of eight taken by his family to Epping, New Hampshire, received there a public-
school education, and was admitted to the bar in 1787. He served in the Legislature
for eight terms, during two of them as Speaker, and he was President of the
State Senate in 1810-11. Elected United States Senator in 1802 to fill a vacancy, he
remained in that office until 1807. At first a Federalist, he changed his views under
the influence of Clay and John Quincy Adams, and was Republican Governor of New
Hampshire in 1812-13 and 1816-17. It was he who, as Governor, planned to transform
Dartmouth College into a state university. We shall hear of him later in this volume.

2 This story, told first in Plumer's Life of William Plumer, pp. 214-15, is also related
in a vigorous way in Lodge's Webster, pp. 36-37.

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH in

dred dollars a year which, under contract, he had been paying
to him. Bramble's attorney was Jeremiah Mason, and it
looked as if the prisoner, who had some influence in the com-
munity, would escape the penalty of his fraud. By a fortu-
nate accident, Webster ascertained during the proceedings
that a worthless scoundrel named Lovejoy, slated to testify
against Brown, had been seen furtively taking a paper from
Bramble. After hearing Lovejoy's somewhat stilted testi-
mony, Webster shrewdly concluded that the document had
contained information which the latter had memorized; and
finally, drawing himself up and marching out from behind the
bar to the witness stand, he glared at Lovejoy and burst out,
"Give me the paper from which you are testifying!" Ter-
rified by this apparition, the witness pulled the sheet from his
pocket, and Webster seized it. Mason quite naturally pro-
tested, but, when he was told of all the circumstances, warned
his client, Bramble, that he would better settle as quickly as
possible. Eventually Bramble was obliged to pay five hundred
dollars to Brown, by way of indemnity, and to defray Web-
ster's fees as well as Mason's. The case became a classic in
New Hampshire legal history. Years afterwards, some old
men, meeting Webster in Exeter, where the trial had been held,
asked him the question, "How did you know that Lovejoy
had that paper in his pocket ?" l

It is of the Portsmouth period that "another story is told
which, although possibly apochryphal, deserves to be recorded.
A certain John Greenough, living in Grafton County, being in
litigation regarding the title to his farm, had engaged as counsel
Moses P. Payson, of Bath, Maine, who had called upon Web-
ster as a fellow Dartmouth man for assistance. When Green-
ough inquired about the associate counsel, Payson explained
that he was to be Daniel Webster, son of old Ebenezer, of
Salisbury. "What!" he cried, "That little black stable-boy
who once brought me some horses ! Then I think we might
as well give up the case." At that late hour it was impossible

1 Harvey, pp. 67-73.

DANIEL WEBSTER

to drop Webster, and Greenough attended court like the
Knight of the Rueful Countenance, so disheartened that,
when Webster rose to make the closing speech, his client sat
dejected, paying little attention to what was being said. Grad-
ually his attention wa's arrested by Webster's voice, and he
could not help listening ; and, as he listened, he was held spell-
bound by its witchery. When the lawyer had finished, Payson
turned to Greenough and asked, "What do you think of him
now? "Think!" was the answer. "Why, I think he is an
angel sent from Heaven to save me from ruin, and my wife and
children from misery !" l

In the merciless give and take of this practice in the New
Hampshire courts, Webster gained skill and confidence. He
later told Plumer that he "had never found any place where
the law was administered with so much precision and exact-
ness as in the County of Rockingham." He no longer spent
hours with the standard treatises on legal questions, and we do
not find him commended by his colleagues for his extensive
learning or familiarity with precedents. He tended to rely
more and more upon what he called "knowledge of general
principles," and his success encouraged him to believe that his
policy was correct. "Clearness, force, and earnestness," he
said, "are the qualities which produce conviction." For the
drudgery involved in poring over the pages of Reports he had to
count upon the assistance of his colleagues. "It so happened,
and so has happened," he wrote in his Autobiography, "that,
with the exception of instances in which I have been associated
with the Attorney-General of the United States, for the time
being, I have hardly ten times in my life acted as junior coun-
sel." 2 He took pains to consult others as to the law, but he
was more interested in what the law ought to be.

Webster once told to Thomas Jefferson a story illustrating
the point that men sometimes get more credit for readiness and
extent of knowledge than they really deserve. In his Ports-

1 This story, often since repeated, was told originally by Harvey, pp. 76-78, in much
greater detail.

2 National Edition, XVII, 24.

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 113

mouth days a blacksmith brought him a case under a will con-
cerning a trifling estate. After going through all his own books,
as well as the libraries of Jeremiah Mason and Peyton R. Free-
man, another Portsmouth attorney, he reached the conclusion
that the bequest was either a contingent remainder or an execu-
tory devise. Still persistent, he sent to Boston for Fearne's
Essay and other books, costing in all fifty dollars. After
studying the subject for some weeks and preparing an elabo-
rate brief, he went into court, argued the case, and secured a
verdict for his client. Touched by the blacksmith's poverty,
Webster charged him a fee of only fifteen dollars, and was thus
considerably out of pocket as a result of taking the suit.

There was, however, a sequel to demonstrate that virtue
has its reward. Some years later, while Webster was on his
way to Washington, Aaron Burr consulted him in New York
on a case which involved the same basic principle as that of the
blacksmith's bequest. After listening attentively to Burr's
statement of the facts, Webster began to reply, his amazing
memory coming to his aid, and cited a series of precedents
going back to the reign of Charles II. So astounded was Burr
that he could not help asking Webster whether the latter had
been consulted by the other side. Later Webster drafted a
written opinion, for which he charged Burr enough to com-
pensate himself for the expenses to which he had been origi-
nally subjected. In relating the episode, Webster said, "Mr.
Burr, no doubt, thought me a much more learned lawyer than
I was, and, under the circumstances of the case, I did not think
it worth while to disabuse him of his good opinion of me." l

Incidents of this kind and there are several others illus-
trating the same point prove that Webster was not indolent
and that, when necessity demanded, he would spare no exer-
tion to establish his case. If he had been lazy or careless, he
could not have held his own in the competition. He later told
Choate that "he had never met anywhere else abler men than
some of those who initiated him in the rugged discipline of the

1 This story is related in Harvey, pp. 74-76, and Curtis, 1, 224-25.

H 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

New Hampshire Courts/* Among those from whom he
learned most was Jeremiah Smith/ who had been Judge of the
United States Circuit Court (1801-02) and Chief Justice of the
Superior Court of New Hampshire (1802-09). After serving
one term as Governor (1809-10), he had been defeated for
reelection by John Langdon, and had resumed his law practice,
in which he was engaged during Webster's early years at Ports-
mouth. From 1813 to 1816, he was Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court of New Hampshire, and, in that position, per-
formed a valuable service in reorganizing the administration
of law in the state, which, before that time, had been chaotic
and unsystematic. After that Court was abolished in 1816,
through a political intrigue, Judge Smith held no other public
offices. He was defective as an orator, but he was an agree-
able conversationalist, and probably superior in exact scholar-
ship to either Mason or Webster. In writing to his widow,
Webster once said, "For what I am in professional life I owe
much to Judge Smith. I revere his character ; I shall cherish
his memory as long as I live." 2 Smith was so frequently on
the bench or in political office that his professional career,
until after 1816, was constantly interrupted, but he and Web-
ster were frequently opposed in the courts between 1809 and
1813. There is a tradition that Chief Justice Smith, after hear-
ing Webster argue a case in Hillsborough County, remarked
that "he had never before met such a young man as that." 3

1 Jeremiah Smith (1759-1842), born in Peterborough, New Hampshire, enlisted in
the Revolutionary Army and was wounded at Bennington. He spent two years at
Harvard (1777-79), but transferred to Rutgers, where he graduated in 1780. After
studying law, he was admitted to the bar at Dover, New Hampshire. A Federalist by
conviction, he served in Congress from 1791 to 1797, an< 3 ne was United States District
Attorney from 1797 to 1800. He received the degree of Doctor of Laws from Harvard
in 1807. Although he had his prejudices and preferences, he was said to have been,
on the bench, the very " personification of justice." Webster wrote of him : " Jeremiah
Smith was perhaps the best talker I have been acquainted with ; he was full of knowl-
edge of books and men, had a great deal of wit and humor, and abhorred silence as an
intolerable state of existence." (National Edition, XVIII, 296.)

2 In commending Judge Smith to Chancellor Kent in 1825, Webster wrote: "He
knows everything about New England . . . and as to the law, he knows so much more
of it than I do, or ever shall, that I forbear to speak on that point." (National Edition,
XVII, 384.)

8 Curtis, I, 76.

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 115

Certainly Smith became Webster's friend and patron, and the
latter profited by coming into contact with Smith's quickness
of perception, exemplary integrity, and dispassionate judg-
ment. The highest praise ever accorded him on the bench
was that "no one had anything to hope from his friendship, or
to fear from his enmity." l

Another eminent advocate with whom Webster contended
was the handsome and elegantly dressed George Sullivan, 2
of Exeter, whose flowing eloquence had power to stir the flinty
hearts of jurymen, but who was inferior to Smith and Mason
in logic and legal knowledge. Still younger, but destined to a
brilliant career, was the "Little Giant," Ichabod Bartlett, 3
who had been born in Webster's native town of Salisbury, and
who was to succeed him and Mason as the leader of the New
Hampshire bar. William Plumer, Jr., who knew them all,
described his father, Governor Plumer, as the Nestor or Ulysses
of the group; Smith, as the Menelaus, "with a touch of the
Thersites humor"; Mason, as the Ajax or Agamemnon; and
Webster as the Achilles, "impiger, iracundus, inexorabilis,
acerr

From 1807 until 1813, Webster devoted himself unstintedly
to his private law practice. Many years later, Robert Rantoul,
Jr., alluding to the brilliancy of the New Hampshire bar in the

1 Morison, Life of Jeremiah Smith, p. 208. The inscription on Judge Smith's tomb-
stone, in the old cemetery at Exeter, was prepared by Webster and George Ticknor, and
describes him as " equalled by few in original power, practical wisdom, and judicial
learning and acuteness; surpassed in the love of honor, justice, and truth by none."

2 George Sullivan (1771-1838), the son of General John Sullivan, was born in Dur-
ham, New Hampshire, graduated at Harvard in 1790, studied law, and began to
practice in Exeter, where he resided during the remainder of his life. He was in the
State Legislature in 1805, and was later Attorney-General, serving from 1815 to 1836.
John M. Shirley said of him : " He relied too little on his preparation, and too much
upon his oratory, his power of illustration and argument. But neither the court, the
jury, nor the people ever grew tired of listening to the silver tones of his arguments,
that fell like music on the ear." (McClintock, New Hampshire y pp. 514-15.)

8 Ichabod Bartlett (1786-1853), after graduating at Dartmouth m 1808, studied law
and was admitted to the bar in 1812. He was for three terms in Congress (1823-2,9),
but had a disinclination for political life. He was ready of speech, tactful, and success-
ful in gaining verdicts. Though small of stature, he was quite able to take care of
himself by his wits. When the gigantic Mason once said to him that, if he did not
cease his insolence, he would put him in his pocket, Bartlett replied, " Do it, and you
will have more law in your pocket than you ever had in your head,"

ii6 DANIEL WEBSTER

early nineteenth century, said, "The collision of such minds
invigorated and sharpened the faculties whose native temper
was competent to sustain the shock." l It was a struggle
which Webster enjoyed, and for six years he held his own single-
handed against older and younger rivals. After his election
to Congress in 1812, however, he was no longer able to ride the
circuit, and he acquired a partner, Timothy Farrar, 2 who kept
his office open and carried on routine business during his long
absences in Washington. At about this time, according to
Webster's explicit statement, he was nominated by Governor
John Taylor Oilman 3 as Attorney-General of New Hamp-
shire, but the Council rejected him by a vote of three to two. 4

1 Rantoul, Eulogy on Justice Levi Woodbury, October 16, 1851.

2 Timothy Farrar (1788-1874), sort of Chief Justice Timothy Farrar, of the New
Hampshire Court of Common Pleas, was born in New Ipswich, New Hampshire, and
was later, from 1824 to 1833, Judge of the State Court of Common Pleas. He published
in 1819 a Report of the Dartmouth College Case and in 1867 a Manual of the Constitution
of the United States. Webster wrote to Farrar, March 4, 1813, proposing a partnership,
and it was actually formed on March 24, 1813. (National Edition, XVI, 671.)

3 John Taylor Gilman (1753-1828), of Exeter, a large landowner and popular New
England federalist, was Governor of the state for eleven consecutive terms, from
1794 to 1805, being finally displaced by the Republican, John Langdon, during Jeffer-
son's administration. Later the War of 1812 brought New Hampshire back into the
Federalist ranks, and Gilman was again Governor for three years, from 1813 to 1815.
He was a handsome, genial, and efficient man, who made few enemies and invariably
ran ahead of his party ticket. He and Captain Ebenezer Webster were political allies
and personal friends, and the Governor did much to aid Daniel Webster in getting a
footing in the law.

4 Webster's own account of the incident was given in a speech at a dinner in Syracuse,
New York, in May 1851 (National Edition, XIII, 422 rT.), and reads in part as follows:
** At the age of thirty I was in New Hampshire, practising law, and had some clients.
John Taylor Gilman, who, for fourteen years, was Governor of the State, thought that,
a young man as I was, I might be fit to be an Attorney General of the State of New
Hampshire, and he nominated me to the Council ; and the Council taking it into their
deep consideration, and not happening to be of the same politics of the Governor and
myself, voted, three out of five, that I was not competent, and very likely they were
right." The facts are rather difficult to check up. Governor Gilman was elected in
March 1813, and took office in June, by which date Webster had been elected to Con-
gress and obviously could not have held a position as Attorney-General. The Governor
in 1812, when Webster was " at the age of thirty," was William Plurner, who, recently
converted to Republicanism and elected on that ticket, would hardly have appointed
a Federalist to any state office. The Governor in 1810 and 1811 was John Langdon,
also a Republican. I have been unable to find any record of Webster's nomination as
Attorney-General, but the facts indicate that it must have taken place in December
1815, when Daniel French resigned the office. Gilman was then Governor and three
of the council were Republicans. Thus conditions then would have been as Webster
described them, George Sullivan was eventually appointed to succeed French and

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 117

Although Webster's reputation was spreading from Ports-
mouth to the far corners of the state, he spoke very infre-
quently outside the courts. In the summer of 18093 however,
when he was invited to deliver the Phi Beta Kappa Oration at
Dartmouth College, he drove, with his wife and Mr. and Mrs.
Mason, to Hanover, preparing his address at the various inns
along the route. "Much was written on the road," he
declared, "and many things were conned over and delivered
which were never written at all." His subject was "The
State of our Literature" a theme rather difficult to handle
at a moment when the United States had no literature of any
consequence, and when Irving, Poe, Longfellow, Whittier, and
Emerson, to say nothing of Hawthorne and Whitman, had yet
to appear. Webster was obliged to confess that "this country
or this age is not distinguished by uncommon literary zeal"
and to add that there was "an apathy in the pursuit of literary
and scientific objects." l This deplorable condition he attrib-
uted chiefly to two causes: "an inordinate ambition to accu-
mulate wealth," and an exaggerated emphasis on politics. He
was moved to recommend most earnestly the formation of an
historical society in New Hampshire, 2 saying :

A historical society is one of the most easy and useful associations
of literary men. It is an object of primary consideration, in every
country that is desirous of giving its history to posterity.

George Ticknor, 3 who had graduated from Dartmouth in
1807, was back for Commencement, and reported that the

served for twenty years. When Webster was consulted regarding the matter in 1814,
he wrote to Moody Kent : " I cannot say whether I would or not accept the office if
offered. I was once rather in a temper for it, but of late my opinion is somewhat
altered. . . . My indifference to the office does not arise from any wish to be here
[Washington], I do not intend spending another winter in this Great Dismal." Van
Tyne, p. 69.

1 Webster had probably not read Wordsworth, Coleridge, or Scott although later
he became very fond of the Waverley Novels and used to recite long passages from
The Lady of the Lake and Marmion.

2 To-day, the New Hampshire Historical Society, in its beautiful stone building at
Concord, has the finest collection of Websteriana in existence.

8 George Ticknor (1791-1871), to whom all students of Webster are greatly indebted,
was born in Boston, and, after graduating from Dartmouth, studied law, and was
engaged in practice from i8i3toi8i7in Boston. A scholar by inclination, he then

n8 DANIEL WEBSTER

Websters and Masons made "a very merry party'' and were
"objects of great interest in the village through the whole time
they remained there/' Ticknor's comment on the Phi Beta
Kappa Oration was acute :

Mr. Webster's manner in speaking was very fine, fresh, earnest,
and impressive (I was then eighteen years old) ; his oration was very
much admired and praised ; but it seemed to me, at the time, that the
excitement he created and the homage he received were due rather
to their affection for the man, and their great admiration of him,
than to the merit of that particular performance. 1

Although Webster's income, during his Portsmouth period,
would seem to have been adequate to his needs, and although
he lived modestly, he accumulated debts which it took him
some years to pay off. "Property was something/' said Frank
B. Sanborn, "which Webster could acquire, but never retain." 2
It has been plausibly suggested that he had become so much
reconciled to debt in his father's household that he was very
little disturbed at owing money. Of the frugality so often
ascribed to the New England Yankee, neither he nor his father
had the slightest trace. He went through Dartmouth on bor-
rowed funds; he assumed his father's obligations, and paid
them off; and, when cash came in easily, it was spent as if
the source were inexhaustible. "He does not know the value
of money, and never will," said Judge Jeremiah Smith. "No
matter; he was born for something better than hoarding
money-bags/' 3

accepted a position as Professor of the French and Spanish Languages at Harvard,
remaining in that position until 1835. During the remainder of his life he wrote his
History of Spanish Literature (1849), and other important books, including a Life of
William Hickling Prescott (1864). His Life, Letters, and Journals (1876) is rich in
references to Webster.

1 Curtis, I, 96.

2 Professor Edwin D. Sanborn, who married a niece of Daniel Webster, said, in his
History of New Hampshire (1875), of Webster: " When he left Portsmouth in 1817,
his debts there, unpaid, amounted to thousands, which his Boston friends cheerfully
paid." On what authority this statement was based I have not been able to ascertain,
but Sanborn doubtless had sources of information denied to those outside the immediate
family, and his assertion is supported by traditions of long standing.

3 National Edition, XVII, 547,

WARNER HOUSE, PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE

GOVERNOR LANGDON'S HOUSE, PORTSMOUTH,
NEW HAMPSHIRE

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 119

William Plumer, the younger, once told a story illustrating
the marked contrast between Webster and Mason in their
attitude towards money. While in Congress, they kept a car-
riage between them ; and, at the close of one session, their
landlord asked Webster to remove a small shed which they had
put up as a stable. "Why," said Webster, with one of his
careless gestures, "remove it when you please. It is of no
further use to us. If it is worth anything to you, you are
welcome to it." As the landlord was thanking him for his
generosity, it occurred to Webster that one-half the property
belonged to Mason, and he told the man to consult the latter
on the subject. Mason, when he was approached, said, "You
may take down the shed and sell the materials either at auction
or at private sale, and account to me for the proceeds. But
this is no time to sell it to advantage when everybody is selling
out, at the close of the session. Wait a while, till it will bring
a fair price, and I will settle with you for it, next winter."
This was true New England prudence and foresight, contrasted
with Webster's careless indifference to a few dollars. 1 His
temperamental lavishness of disposition would be less culpable
if it had not led him to regard the borrowing of money as a
matter of small importance, and to accept only too readily the
sacrifices of others in his behalf. The maxim, "Easy come,*
easy go," never had a better demonstration than in Webster *s
career.

The calanrity which finally wrecked Webster's finances was
what is known even to-day as the "Great Fire." At seven-
thirty, on the evening of December 22, 1813, while he was on
his way to Washington, 2 a blaze was discovered in a barn
belonging to Mrs. Woodward, on the corner of Church and
Court Streets, just back of Webster's residence. Within half

1 National Edition, I, 546-48.

2 Brewster, in his Rambles about Portsmouth, Second Series, p. 210, is responsible for
the frequently repeated story that Webster, at dinner at Jacob Sheafe's, not far away,
heard the cry of " Fire ! " and that Mr. Sheafe, pouring out a fresh supply of wine,
insisted on taking a parting glass with his guest before he left. This tale is,
of course, entirely fanciful, like certain other stories in Brewster's entertaining but
frequently inaccurate volumes.

DANIEL WEBSTER

an hour it had spread to his house, which was speedily con-
sumed, and it was soon raging over a considerable area almost
in the heart of the town. The flames, fanned by a light wind,
moved so rapidly that almost nothing could be rescued by the
victims. When the conflagration was checked, at about five
o'clock on the following morning, fifteen acres lay in smoulder-
ing ruins, and 272 buildings had been destroyed, including
108 dwelling houses and 64 stores and shops, with a total loss
of more than $3oo,ooo. 1 It was a clear winter's night, and the
illumination could be seen as far away as Boston.

When Webster reached Washington, he found there a letter
telling him of the disaster, and he promptly wrote Ezekiel :

I arrived here last evening, and here learned of the Portsmouth fire
and the consumption of my house. I have only time to say, that the
safety of my family compensates the loss of the property. ... I have
not time to say more, but thought you would be glad to hear that I
am in possession of myself after the knowledge of such a loss. 2

On January 6, 1814, he wrote to I. P. Davis, from Washing-
ton, saying :

Our town has met with another conflagration. I heard not a
syllable of it till I reached here. I found a letter from my wife, but
so horrible was the general account which the people about me gave,
that it put my firmness to a severe test to open it. When I found
nothing lost but house and property, you may well imagine how much
I felt relieved from distress. 3

Mrs. Webster apparently spent the ensuing winter partly

1 Waldron wrote Webster : " The real distress & consternation at Portsmouth
is beyond all description & I hope something great and liberal will be done for them
you will see how many widows & people in low & middling circumstances have lost all
& are unable even to put up a shelter." (Van Tyne, p. 48.)

2 Letter of December 29, 1813, National Edition, XVII, 237. Webster's house,
which was uninsured, was worth $6,000, and his library also was very valuable. Mrs.
Webster, at a dinner at which Josiah Quincy was present, on February 17, 1826, said
jestingly that Webster regretted most the loss of a pipe of wine, adding, " It was the
first pipe of wine we ever had, and the getting it was a great event." To this sally
Webster replied that " it had been on tap for some time, and our table was not without
guests," and that it " could scarcely have been more than half a pipe at the time of the
fire." (Quincy, Figures of the Pasf, pp. 254-56.)

3 National Edition, XVII, 238,

WEBSTER IN PORTSMOUTH 121

with the hospitable Masons and partly with Ezekiel Webster,
who was comfortably settled in a large house in Boscawen. At
this time, it must be remembered, Daniel's oldest child, Grace,
was only four, and Daniel Fletcher Webster was a baby only a
few months old. In sending a note to his wife in January,
Daniel urged her "to do a great deal of visiting/* especially in
the neighborhood of Salisbury. When he returned in the
spring, they at once rented the house on High Street, which
they occupied until they moved to Boston.

Biographers of Webster have been disposed to pass over the
Portsmouth period as of slight importance, and it has been
overshadowed by the extensive investigations which have been
made into his later life. But it is a mistake to dismiss it with
a few casual sentences. It was a time when Webster, both in
law and in politics, was unconsciously preparing himself for a
broader career a career which he hoped might be his, but of
which he was never oversanguine. We have seen how rapidly
he rose to a foremost position at the bar of New Hampshire.
The early stages of his advancement in politics must now be
considered.

V
FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS

Every boy and every gal
That *s born into the world alive
Is either a little Liberal
Or else a little Conservative.

GILBERT, lolanthe

We are, sir, from principles and habit attached to the union of the states.
But our attachment is to the substance, and not to the form.

WEBSTER, The Rockingham Memorial

The voice of the whole mercantile interest is united, to an unprecedented
degree, against the war, which is declared to be undertaken, at so much hazard
of blood and treasure, for their benefit.

WEBSTER, Address before the Washington
Benevolent Society, Portsmouth, N. H.

OLD Ebenezer Webster was once taken suddenly ill in a village
which had cast its vote for Jefferson. "Carry me back home/'
he cried. "I don't want to die in a Republican town!" 1
Such was the fierceness of the partisanship to which the Webster
boys were accustomed in their youth. Captain Webster had
been a stubborn and influential figure in the legislature at a
period when New Hampshire people took their politics very
seriously. He favored the new Constitution in 1789, and later,
during Washington's administration, sided with Hamilton
against Jefferson. An uncompromising Federalist, he was
sure that the nation was on the brink of ruin in 1801, when
John Adams was superseded in the White House by the restless
statesman from Virginia.

Daniel Webster's political creed was codified before he was

1 The party of Thomas Jefferson, to-day usually known as " Democratic," was,
during the first two decades of the nineteenth century, more frequently called " Repub-
lican." Other terms, such as " Whig " or " Antifederalist," were also not infrequently
used.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 123

of voting age. The opinions quoted with approval about the
hearthstone in the Webster tavern were those of his father's
cronies, the Federalist leaders of New Hampshire, such as
Governor Gilman or Judge Jeremiah Smith. Some lads,
revolting against this parental dogmatism, might have become
radicals out of sheer perversity. But Daniel was tempera-
mentally a conservative, who preferred familiar objects and
long-traveled roads. He could not understand Jefferson's
passion for experimenting with science and society, and he
had a distrust of all reformers, heretics, and rebels. He was
no Percival, to follow "wandering fires," but an institutionalise
a supporter of family, church, and country; and he liked,
indeed probably overvalued, tradition, law, and regularity.
By individualists, such as William Lloyd Garrison, he was
repelled, and he cherished no desire to be "free from heart-
withering custom's cold control."

As he became more and more identified with the prosperous
and established elements in the community, his innate con-
victions hardened, and his tendency was to resist changes.
He was neither bigoted nor unprogressive, but he wished, if
possible, to avoid innovations. Thus, to his admirers, he be-
came a symbol of stability. Whenever waves of popular
unrest threatened to inundate the republic, he remained firm,
as immutable as that Mount Kearsarge under the shadow of
which he had been born.

In his Hanover Oration, in 1811, Webster denounced the
revolutionary ideas of Napoleon. Two years later, at Frye-
burg, as we have seen, he asserted that any alteration of the
Constitution was a serious business, "not to be undertaken
without obvious necessity, nor conducted without caution,
deliberation, and diffidence." Caution, deliberation, and diffi-
dence! These are strange words on the lips of a young man
just out of college. This is not the rashness which we condone
in "flaming youth." Henry Clay, in his "salad days," flung
prudence to the winds, and Andrew Jackson as a mature states-
man was not precisely discreet. Even the sedate John Quincy
Adams had his radical moments. But critics had no occasion

i2 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

to call Webster "reckless" or "impulsive/' Governed by his
reason, he saw the wisdom of a strong central government,
under which a too ebullient individualism should be restrained.
The border line between caution and cowardice is difficult to
define, and Webster's enemies often accused him of being
afraid. It was not timidity or inertia, however, which made
him a conservative, but rather a carefully considered phi-
losophy, inherited, and also confirmed by experience. When
he was ready to cast his ballot, not even Governor Gilman was
a fiercer Federalist than he.

It was inevitable that Webster, with his interest in public
affairs and his facility in debate, should be drawn into politics.
The first campaign in which he participated was that of 1804,
while he was in the office of Christopher Gore. President
Thomas Jefferson, detested by New England Federalists for
what they regarded as his radicalism in economics, in govern-
ment, and in religion, was a candidate for reelection, with
Charles C. Pinckney as his Federalist opponent. In August,
New Hampshire Federalists enjoyed a brief moment of triumph
through the success, by a small majority, of their Congressional
ticket, and Webster was much encouraged. 1 Events soon
showed, however, that he had been too sanguine. In Novem-
ber, electors were chosen for the first time in New Hampshire
by a system of popular suffrage, and the Federalists were
beaten. 2 Nor were the results in other sections of the country
satisfactory to Webster. Only two states Connecticut and
Delaware cast all their votes for Pinckney and King ; and
two more votes, secured from Maryland, gave the Federalists
a miserable total of 14 as compared with 162 for Jefferson.
It looked as if Federalism were moribund, if not defunct.

In the gubernatorial election of the following March, the
Federalist, Gilman, was a candidate for the twelfth consecu-
tive time, his opponent being John Langdon, a sagacious and
popular Republican. During the bitterly contested campaign,

1 Webster to Davis, October 20, 1804 (Van Tyne, p. 16).

2 At this election, held on November 5, 1804, the seven Republican electors from
New Hampshire received 6607 votes against 6336 for their opponents.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 125

Webster, while on a visit to his father, wrote " at a single sitting
of a winter's day and night" a pamphlet, published anony-
mously in February 1805, under the title. An Appeal to the
Old Whigs of New Hampshire. Captain Webster was under
financial obligation to both candidates. In the autumn of
1801, he had secured Governor Oilman's assistance in borrow-
ing "a few hundreds"; 1 and some years before that, he had
obtained the loan of a considerable sum from the wealthy and
generous Langdon. 2 Neither debt had been paid, and the
position was embarrassing to Daniel, who could understand
all its complications.

Encouraged, perhaps, by his anonymity, Webster traced
the historical origin of the Republican Party back to the Anti-
federalists of 1787 and the Jacobins of the French Revolu-
tionary days, and then reviewed the record of Jefferson's first
term, condemning especially that President's attack on the
judiciary, his abolition of internal taxation, and his abandon-
ment of the navy. Webster thought rather highly of his first
contribution to campaign literature. "Not long ago," he
wrote in 1829, "I found a copy of this sage production.
Among other things of a similar kind it is certainly not despic-
able." 3 But he could not hold back the tidal wave of Jeffer-
sonian Democracy, then at its flood. At the election on March
12, 1805, New Hampshire rejected Oilman and chose a Re-
publican Governor. 4 Prophets of gloom wailed that New Eng-
land and the nation were about to suffer the fate of Nineveh

1 Ebenezer Webster to his sons, December 21, 1804 (National Edition, XVII, 197).

2 Sanborn, New Hampshire, pp. 286-87.

3 The full text of this Appeal is reprinted in the National Edition, XV, 522 ff.
Webster said that he had had the pleasure of seeing his pamphlet " kicked about under
many tables."

4 The State Senate had seven Republicans and four Federalists. The New Hamp-
shire Gazette, on June 11, said gleefully, " At length the triumph of Republicanism is
complete." William Plumer wrote to Josiah Quincy : " Democracy has obtained its
long-expected triumph in New Hampshire. John Langdon is governor-elect. His
success is not owing to snow, rain, hail, or bad roads, but to the incontrovertible fact
that the Federalists of this state do not compose the majority. Many good men have
grown weary of a system whose labors bear a close affinity to those of Sisyphus."
(McClintock, New Hampshire, p* 474.) Governor Langdon took office on June 6,
1806, at Concord.

126 DANIEL WEBSTER

and Tyre. In his first political skirmish, Webster had been
defeated.

While this local clash of factions was taking place, the
mighty duel between Great Britain and Napoleon for Euro-
pean supremacy was moving towards a crisis, and the United
States, as the most important neutral shipping power, was
the unlucky victim of the punitive measures of the warring
empires. With each of the belligerents hoping to coax or
coerce America into an alliance, it was not easy for us to
preserve that neutrality enjoined by Washington in his Fare-
well Address. There were, of course, open adherents of both
England and France within our borders. The situation re-
sembled that during the early months of the World War, when
England and Germany, heading powerful confederations, were
endeavoring to force us to choose between them. The diplo-
matic correspondence of Jefferson and Madison resembles
in tone that of Wilson and Lansing more than a century later.
In 1915 and 1916, however, the United States was relatively
much stronger than in 1806 and 1807, and was consequently
freer to adopt an independent course.

Commercial interests in New England were chafing under
diminishing profits. Every time an American trader was
seized or sunk by a foreign warship, some Yankee was out of
pocket. Whenever a Salem merchantman was searched by a
British frigate and our sailors were forcibly impressed into
service under the Union Jack, new irritation developed. It
was at the seaports that resentment was keenest; interior
sections, although humiliated at our impotence, were not
affected so directly by these outrages. Jefferson, although
not a non-resistant, was a philosophical pacifist, who consid-
ered war as a last resort, justifiable only when all peaceable
means of adjusting difficulties between nations had been
exhausted. His apparent procrastination and his reluctance
to adopt measures of "preparedness" were the logical outcome
of his idealistic principles. As a result, the country, at the
opening of his second term, was as nearly without naval and
military protection as it has ever been in its history.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 127

What many New Englanders were thinking may be gathered
from Webster's oration on Independence Day, in i8o6 3 before
the " Federal gentlemen " of Concord. He did not discriminate
between England and France, but, condemning them both
for their affronts to the United States, demanded "a naval
force sufficient to protect our harbors and convoy the great
branches of our trade." He declared that the French Empire
had "all the immorality, the licentiousness, the prodigality
and corruption of declining Rome"; but he also referred to
England's attitude on the matter of our maritime rights as
"jealous, haughty, and arrogant." On the broad question of
preparedness, he said :

Nothing seems plainer than this : if we will have commerce, we
must protect it. So long as we are rich and defenseless, rapacity will
prey upon us. The government ought either to defend the merchant,
or to repeal the laws which restrain him from defending himself. It
ought to afford him the assistance of armed vessels, or to suffer him
to arm his own vessels. 1

He concluded with a striking sentence, the purport of which
he had already employed in his Fryeburg Address y and which
he was to use again forty-six years later at the conclusion of
his last speech in Congress :

A genuine patriot . . . feels that the last end, which can happen to
any man, never conies too soon, if he fall in defense of the law and
liberty of his country. 2

The unusual feature of this oration was the impartiality with
which Webster struck out at both warring nations, instead
of confining himself, like most of the Federalists, to the casti-
gation of Napoleon. The insults which so stirred his indigna-
tion at Concord were trifling, however, compared with those
which were to come. England and France now resorted to a
series of retaliatory measures, calculated to force neutrals into
the fray, on one side or the other. Already, on May 16, 1806,
Charles James Fox had issued an Order in Council placing the

1 National Edition, XV, 537 ff. 2 IKd., p. 521, and X, 170.

128 DANIEL WEBSTER

entire European coast from Brest to the Elbe under blockade,
with the object of shutting off supplies from the armies of
Napoleon. The French Emperor, choosing a moment when
the victory of Jena had made him military master of Prussia,
replied with the defiant Berlin Decree (November 21, 1806),
isolating the British Isles and forbidding any ship which had
touched at an English port to enter a harbor in France. Brit-
ain's response was another Order in Council, prohibiting all
neutral vessels from trading with any French port from which
British commerce was excluded. Napoleon then countered
with the sweeping Milan Decree, declaring that any boat
calling between British ports was lawful prize and that any
craft which submitted to search by an English cruiser thereby
relinquished its neutral character. Strict enforcement of all
these measures was, of course, impossible. But, in spite of the
fact that they were merely fierce gestures, our commerce suf-
fered more and more, and protests to the Department of State
became frequent. It has been estimated that, between 1803
and 1812, more than nine hundred of our vessels were cap-
tured by the British and more than five hundred by the French.
Although his equanimity was disturbed by these drastic
edicts and by the ravages on our commerce, Jefferson was not
ready for war. He preferred instead a policy of "peaceable
coercion." Recalling the success of the Non-Importation
Acts of 1756, he resolved to bring economic pressure to bear
on Europe. As a preliminary warning, the administration
issued a Non-Importation Act, prohibiting the admission of
certain British commodities to the United States, the purpose
being to deprive England of her American market and thus
to persuade her to modify her hostile attitude towards neutral
countries. Even when the British frigate Leopard bombarded
our Chesapeake^ killing three men, badly wounding fourteen,
and compelling her to haul down her colors and give up four
sailors, the President declined an opportunity to lead the
country into war. Instead he issued a dignified Proclamation,
called a special session of Congress, and, on December 22, 1807,
signed an act declaring an Embargo, unlimited in duration.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 129

on all American shipping engaged in trade with any foreign
port.

By the Embargo, Jefferson hoped to protect our merchant
vessels, to secure time for the atmosphere to clear, and, through
economic pressure to compel England and France to respect
our maritime rights. If it had been heartily supported by
the country, it might have succeeded. Instead it was greeted
by merchants and shipowners with derision and disapproval.
They did not want war, but they were even less favorably
disposed to an embargo. The news was printed in the issue
of the New Hampshire Gazette for December 29, 1807, by which
date Daniel Webster had become a resident of Portsmouth^
which, like most of the Atlantic coast towns, was dependent
on its carrying trade. After a temporary decline during the
Revolution, our commerce had undergone a marked revival.
The tonnage of Portsmouth on December 31, 1806, was 22,798,
and, during the preceding twelvemonth, 103 vessels had cleared
from there for the West Indies alone. Its exports during the
year 1807 aggregated $680,000, and its imports amounted to
more than JSoOjOOo. 1 It needed no trained economist to pre-
dict what the effect of the Jeffersonian policy would be.

As if by the waving of a devil's wand, tons of shipping in
Boston, Salem, Newburyport, and Portsmouth became worth-
less. The value of our exports dropped in a year from
$110,000,000 to $20,000,000. The Embargo was, no doubt,
frequently evaded, but, through its operation, thousands of
industrious people were deprived of their means of livelihood.
It was as if an army should turn its machine guns on its own
troops in an effort to annihilate the enemy. 2 Republican
newspapers in New England, loyal to their leader, tried to be
cheerful, but it was a bitter draught for them to swallow.

To the shipowners of the coast towns, born and bred in

1 These statistics are quoted from Barstow's History of New Hampshire (1842),
p. 341 ff.

2 An attempt h&s sometimes been made to prove that the Embargo had on New
England commerce a less detrimental effect than has ordinarily been supposed. But
it is difficult to find any other explanation for the extraordinary decline in shipping
which immediately followed the promulgation of the Embargo measures.

130 DANIEL WEBSTER

Federalism, it seemed as if Jefferson, whose political strength
was drawn principally from the South and West and from the
agrarian classes, were wreaking vengeance on the Northeast
and its commerce. 1 The hatred formerly felt towards Eng-
land and France was now transferred to the President. Soon,
by one of history's strange mutations, the Federalists of New
England were driven from their nationalist position into one
which was anti-national and sectional; and, in the privacy
of their homes, they began to whisper threats of disunion.
Self-interest transformed them into advocates of State rights,
and they used arguments similar to those which were later
advanced by South Carolina. While a storm of protest
rumbled along the Atlantic, the possibility of separation from
the Union was discussed in Market Square by men who were
Webster's clients and friends.

To the controversy thus precipitated, Webster made a con-
tribution in a small pamphlet called Considerations on the
Embargo Laws y published as propaganda during the summer
preceding the elections of 1808. Gallatin, the Secretary of the
Treasury, had courageously sent a letter to Jefferson, insisting
that an unlimited embargo was unconstitutional ; and Webster,
developing this point, treated the matter as a question of
constitutional law, comparing Jefferson's act unfavorably
with the sixty-day embargo laid by President Washington
in 1794. ^ ^ e moment when Webster's argument appeared,
the Jeffersonian Embargo had been in operation for more than
seven months without affecting the attitude of England and
France towards us. A few captains, habituated to risks and
indifferent to punishment, had made money by escaping the
vigilance of patrols ; but the average man noticed only that

1 The Federalists were not placated by Jefferson's tactless letter to the Legislature
of New Hampshire, in August 1808, advising the citizens of that state to retire from
the seas a/nd to provide for themselves " those comforts and conveniences of life for
which it would be unwise ever more to recur to distant countries." The condescension
of this counsel was peculiarly galling to merchants who were losing thousands of dollars
a month. Nor was their fury allayed when they read in the New Hampshire Gazette
for April 19, 1808, such cowardly doctrine as this: " The British have captured about
50, the French 10 or 15, American ships, under their respective blockading decrees!
What would have been the total if the Embargo had not kept our ships in port ?"

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 131

the Embargo was limiting our trade, causing many bank-
ruptcies, and hastening the decay and ruin of our merchant
fleets. 1

Webster specifically charged Jefferson with having instituted
the Embargo in order to favor France and encourage her in
her war against Great Britain. 2 The New England Federalists
were attached to England by various ties social, financial,
and sentimental. Webster's patron, Christopher Gore, had
resided for several years in London, and, like Rufus King, had
returned sympathetic with the British people. At times this
pro-British feeling, as in the case of Senator Timothy Pickering,
savored of Anglomania, and to this extreme Webster was not
disposed to go. Like most of his Federalist associates, how-
ever, he reasoned that the success of England in the contest
with the "detestable tyrant," Napoleon, was essential to the
welfare of an Anglo-Saxon country like the United States;
and he was fearful that the Embargo might precipitate open
war with Great Britain, thus weakening that nation at the
crisis when all her resources were needed. The policy of the
Federalists was dictated mainly by economic considerations.
It was because of our carrying trade that they wished to rid
themselves of the Embargo and to preserve peace with England.

The reaction in New England against Jefferson showed it-
self in the presidential election of 1808, when New Hampshire,
Massachusetts, and Rhode Island all went for Pinckney. 3 In
the rest of the country, however, Republicanism was still
strong. The Federalist candidates secured forty-seven elec-
toral votes as compared with fourteen in 1804; but James
Madison was triumphantly carried into the White House,

1 " When the Tenth Congress assembled for its winter session, on November 7, 1808,
no sensible man in the United States doubted that the embargo was a failure. It had
destroyed the commerce and impoverished the sailors and ship-owners it was supposed
to protect ; as an instrument of coercion it had proved futile." (Morison, The Life
and Letters of Harrison Gray Otis, II, I.)

2 Webster's pamphlet may be found in the National Edition, XV, 564 ff., reprinted
from a rare copy in the possession of the Massachusetts Historical Society.

3 At this period, parties were very evenly divided in New Hampshire. The Repub-
lican Legislature passed, June 14, 1808, an address to President Jefferson, compliment-
ing him upon his record. In the following autumn, however, the state cast its electoral
vote for Pinckney and King.

132 DANIEL WEBSTER

there to continue the work of his predecessor, to whom he
was indebted for his office. The full vigor of the opposition
was not revealed until after the passage of the so-called "Force
Act," of January 9, 1809, which bestowed upon government
officials almost unlimited power to carry out the provisions
of the Embargo. . . . Then came the explosion. Never
had the Federalists, even in 17985 claimed or exercised such
autocratic authority as that now assumed by the Jeffersonians.
For the moment, the tactical advantage passed to the Federal-
ists. The General Court of Massachusetts denounced both
the Embargo and the Force Act as unconstitutional. Town
meetings sent in their protests from all over New England. 1
The grumbling at dinner tables, the threats of disunion, the
demands for repeal, became more emphatic. 2 Even Northern
Republicans were beginning to join with the Federalists against
the administration. At last, three days before the close of his
term, Jefferson yielded, and the Embargo was withdrawn.

He himself must have been aware that his plan had failed.
Our trade had not been absolutely indispensable to England
and France. Conceived with the best intentions, the Em-
bargo had almost ruined our commerce. It had weakened
our national morale by its tacit assumption that it is better
to be safe than to fight ; and it had insidiously led the Repub-
lican Party into a justification of despotism. 3 In retaliation,
the Federalists had taken refuge in a sectionalism which,
before another decade had passed, was to be their destruction.

As a resident of Portsmouth, Webster had identified himself
with the Federalists. He cast his first vote there on March
8, 1808, when the citizens met in town meeting and balloted
for Governor, as they did throughout the state. John Lang-

1 In his reminiscences, Jefferson wrote, " I felt the foundation of the government
shaken under my feet by the New England townships/'

2 The New Hampshire Gazette, in Portsmouth, was hard put to it to meet the slashing
arguments of its Federalist rival, the Portsmouth Oracle. Jefferson, who was really
astonished at the whirlwind which he had raised, wrote, " I did not expect a crop of so
sudden and rank growth of fraud and open opposition by force could have grown up
in the United States."

8 See Henry Adams, United States, IV, 413 ff,, for a full and adequate review of the
disastrous consequences of the Embargo.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 133

don, the popular Republican, had still enough prestige to win
the election, in spite of the resentment against the Embargo.
In the following spring, however, Webster and his friends
induced Jeremiah Smith to resign as Chief Justice of the
Superior Court and accept the Federalist nomination for
Governor, and he defeated Langdon by a majority of two
hundred. A year later, after the abandonment of the Embargo,
the Republicans regained their ascendancy, and Langdon had
a small margin over Smith. On July 3, 1810, Webster was
appointed chairman of a committee to arouse Federalist en-
thusiasm in Portsmouth and its vicinity.

Having secured the repeal of the Embargo, the Federalists
were disposed to be quiet. Nor did the Madison Administra-
tion have any plan for positive action. Uncertain what to do,
Congress passed a new Non-Intercourse Act, forbidding
American vessels to trade with either England or France until
the offensive measures of those countries had been withdrawn,
but allowing commerce with other nations. Erskine, the
British Minister at Washington, promised, on behalf of his
government, that the Orders in Council would be abandoned
if the United States would cease to enforce the Non-Intercourse
Act against Great Britain. Trade was resumed with England,
and the spirits of the Portsmouth merchants were buoyant.
And then Canning, declaring that Erskine had exceeded his
instructions, repudiated the agreement, and the quarrel was
revived. Madison had shown himself willing to be on good
terms with England. Now that his overtures had been
openly rejected, he was ready to try what France had to propose.

Still in a temporizing mood, Congress, on May i, 1810, passed
what was known as "Macon's Bill, No. 2," authorizing the
President, if either France or England would revoke her re-
strictions against our commerce, to put the Non-Intercourse
Act in operation against the rival belligerent. This naive
experiment in international bribery induced the crafty Napoleon
to notify our Minister, through his Foreign Secretary, that
he would abandon the Berlin and Milan Decrees on Novem-
ber i, 1 8 10, if, during the interval, the British would repeal

i 34 DANIEL WEBSTER

their Orders in Council or the United States should cause its
rights to be respected by England. Although this promise was
made merely in an informal note, Madison grasped it with re-
lief and elation, and, reopening our relations with France,
declared our trade with England closed after February a, 1811.

The bickering, the recrimination, and the interchange of
diplomatic notes still continued. Napoleon, on April 28, 1811,
rather vaguely repealed the obnoxious edicts, but his fleet
still continued to capture American vessels for violating them.
He was playing his usual devious game, marked by evasions
and falsehoods, and he must have smiled cynically as he
watched the two Anglo-Saxon countries debating whether
or not the Berlin and Milan Decrees had really been revoked.
Meanwhile other incidents were exacerbating the bitterness
between us and England. Our ships were still being forcibly
searched; our seamen were being impressed from our decks
by prowling British cruisers ; and there were ominous clashes
between British and American war vessels. People were
raising the cry of "Free Trade and Sailors' Rights." But,
even with such provocation, the New England Federalists
preferred peace to the hazards of battle.

A new factor, however, was now to be reckoned with. Along
our frontier appeared a group of aggressive young men, full
of military ardor, resentful of insults, and eager for national
expansion. They wanted to wrest Canada from England,
Florida from Spain, and Texas from Mexico. With their
anger stirred by our grievances, these adventurous spirits
saw an opportunity to realize their ambitions. The uprising
of Tecumseh, backed by British encouragement, followed by
the Battle of Tippecanoe (November 7, 1811), offered another
pretext for war. Why should not the American republic
stretch from the Isthmus of Panama to the Arctic ? By a
paradox, it was not commercial New England which ultimately
led us into conflict with Great Britain, but rather the West
and the Southwest, alarmed by the alliance between the
Indian tribes and the British, and craving some outlet for their
energies.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 135

The Twelfth Congress, meeting in the autumn of 1811, was
controlled by audacious men, led by Henry Clay and John
Caldwell Calhoun. They were disgusted with "peaceable
coercion/' which had been tried but had accomplished nothing.
Of the members from New Hampshire, all of them Re-
publicans, three were for war, and one of them, John Adams
Harper, 1 was the author of the statement, "To me, sir, it ap-
pears that the Author of Nature has marked our limits in the
south, by the Gulf of Mexico ; and on the north, by the regions
of eternal frost/' President Madison sent a vigorous message
to Congress, threatening a breach with England, and it was
soon apparent that the expansionists were in the saddle. 2
John Randolph correctly analyzed the situation when he said,
"Agrarian cupidity, not maritime right, urges the war/*
Through the winter the discussion continued, and finally,
after another message from Madison, the House of Representa-
tives voted, seventy-nine to forty-nine, for war. A study of
the vote shows that the South, with Kentucky, Tennessee,
and Ohio, was virtually solid for the administration; while
the Eastern and Middle states were in opposition. Two
weeks later the Senate concurred by a vote of nineteen to thir-
teen, and the formal declaration was made on June 18. Only
five days later, the British Cabinet repealed all its Orders in
Council, thus settling most of the American complaints. If
there had been a transatlantic cable, much bloodshed might
have been averted. Even a little more patience on the part
of the "War Hawks" might have made a conflict unnecessary.
As it was, fighting continued, both on land and sea, for many
months.

1 John Adams Harper (1779-1816), born in Derryfield, New Hampshire, attended
the Phillips Exeter Academy, began to practice law in Sanbornton, and moved to
Meredith Bridge (now Laconia) in 1806. He was Clerk of the State Senate, served in
the New Hampshire Lower House, and was elected to the Twelfth Congress as a War
Democrat. He was a leading figure during the first session, and his speeches did much
to stimulate a war spirit. His defeat in 1812 removed him from political life, and he
died disappointed four years later.

2 For an excellent discussion of the causes of the War of 1812, see Expansionists of
1812, by Julius W. Pratt (Macmillan, 1925), which explains the rise of the doctrine of
" Manifest Destiny " in the West and Southwest.

136 DANIEL WEBSTER

Webster's position throughout the debate in Congress was
typical of that of the New Hampshire Federalists. They
had demanded government aid for the protection of their com-
merce ; they had objected to the Embargo because it destroyed
their trade; but they did not want war. They saw clearly
that it would be disastrous to importers and exporters, and
that it would give political preponderance to the West and
South. They were, furthermore^ on general principles unwill-
ing to break off friendly relations with England. The War
of 1812 was precipitated, not by the section which had suf-
fered most from British depredations, but by that which hoped
for an increase of territory as part of the terms of peace.

It was easy to make a declaration of war, but the actual
fighting was a different matter. The United States was
pitiably unprepared for the emergency. Although a clash
had been imminent for several years, there were only sixteen
vessels in our navy, which, under Jefferson, had been allowed
to disintegrate and rot at the wharves. Our army was badly
organized and poorly officered. Our frontier was long and
exposed to attack. We were in no condition for facing even
a third-rate power. Hostilities had hardly begun before
General William Hull made a disgraceful surrender of his
troops at Detroit. The nation was certainly not a unit, and
the Federalists, always opposed to the war, were now resolved
to do nothing to win it. We might postpone disaster, but no
one familiar with our vulnerability could doubt what the
outcome would be, especially if England, freed from her long
contention with Napoleon, should concentrate her veteran
navy and army upon us.

The news of the declaration of war had hardly reached
Portsmouth before Daniel Webster's opportunity arrived.
His views on the subject were no secret. It was natural that
the Washington Benevolent Society, 1 made up of Federalists,

1 Organizations bearing this name had been formed in many sections of New England
during Jefferson's administrations, the object being to unite the Federalists under the
gis of " The Father of His Country " and to give the impression that the Federalists,
in opposing Jefferson and the Republicans, were carrying on the Washington tradition.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 137

or, as they chose to style themselves, the "Friends of
Peace," should invite him to deliver their Independence
Day Address. On the Fourth of July, in 1812, there were two
patriotic celebrations in Portsmouth. The Republicans held
a "giant mass meeting/' with William Claggett, Esquire, as
the orator, and followed this with a jubilant dinner at Frost's
Hotel. 1 On the same Saturday morning, the Washington
Benevolent Society, escorted by the gorgeously uniformed
"Gilman Blues,'' marched through the streets to "Rev. Mr.
Ballou's meeting-house, in pleasant street," where, after an
invocation by the Reverend Mr. Parker and the reading of
The Legacy of Washington 2 by Major Samuel Larkin, Webster
delivered his address. 3 The procession then reformed and
paraded to "Underwood's Rope Walk/' where more than
four hundred citizens joined in a collation. It was one of
Portsmouth's memorable days.

To those who lived through the World War and observed
its psychology, it will seem incredible that Daniel Webster and
the "Friends of Peace" could have opposed the War of 1812
without bringing upon themselves the charge of disloyalty
and being persecuted as "pacifists" or "undesirable persons."
We had probably even more direct provocation for challenging
England in 1812 than for fighting Germany in 1917. Yet
at a public gathering, on the anniversary of our national inde-
pendence, Webster expressed himself as out of sympathy with
Madison's foreign policy a policy which three out of New
Hampshire's five Congressmen had approved. His earlier

1 The Republican New Hampshire Gazette said on July 7, i8ia, of this celebration:
" It was the spontaneous effusion of honest zeal, of patriotic ardor, of disinterested
feeling for their grossly insulted and much injured country, towards whose altar the old
and young were eagerly pressing, there to renew the oath TO LIVE FREE OR DIE ! "
The Gazette ostentatiously refrained from mentioning the Federalist ceremonies on the
same day. Claggett graduated from Dartmouth in 1808 and had only recently been
admitted to the bar.

2 This was evidently Washington's Farewell Address* a favorite document with
the Federalists.

3 The Portsmouth Oracle, decidedly Federalist b point of view, reported on July n :
" An address was delivered before the Society by Daniel Webster, Esq., in a more
impressive and eloquent manner than we ever witnessed on a similar occasion." The
Oracle made no reference in its columns to the Republican celebration of the same date.

138 DANIEL WEBSTER

occasional addresses had been largely conventional, safe, and
platitudinous, and only rarely partisan in temper. Now he
burst out in a strongly Federal utterance, in which he con-
demned the government for leading us into an unjustifiable
war. 1

After some characteristic paragraphs praising Washington
as a statesman "whose conduct was the result of well-consid-
ered and settled principles/' Webster went on to show that
the Federal Constitution was originally adopted "for no
single reason so much as for the protection of commerce/'
which, under the ineffective Articles of Confederation, had
been in distress ; that, because of the aid offered by the Con-
stitution, a large and lucrative shipping trade had been built
up, to the immense advantage of "every interest and every
class of the community"; that the subsequent "total aban-
donment of all provision for our naval defense " under Jeffer-
son 2 was a colossal blunder in that it left our fleet exposed to
an enemy; that Washington, facing crises far more ominous,
had managed, "by able and impartial negotiations/' to avoid
armed conflicts with European countries ; that it was unjust
to single out England and not to proceed with equal vigor
against France, with whom there was "still abundant cause
of war"; and that the War of 1812 was "premature and in-
expedient," undertaken ostensibly for the benefit of merchants,
but likely to bring about their ruin. 3 Webster's aversion to
Napoleonic France was like the horror felt by many respectable
Americans for "Red Russia" during the aftermath of the
World War; and he closed his address with the fervent dec-
laration that he and the "Friends of Peace" would never
allow the "unhallowed hosts" of France to land on our shores

1 This Address Is printed in the National Edition, XV, 583 ff., from a version pub-
lished by the Oracle Press, in Portsmouth.

2 The Federalists were accustomed to pass quietly over the fact that the bill allowing
the President, at his discretion, to reduce our naval force to thirteen vessels was signed
by the Federalist President, John Adams, on March 3, 1801, as one of the last acts of
his administration.

8 At that moment, Webster did not realize the significance of the expansionist
movement along the frontier, but he saw clearly that New England would be the
section to suffer most through the war.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 139

without resisting to the death. . . . His voice was not the
only one raised that day in protest against the war. All over
New England the opposition was becoming articulate. At
the Independence Day Banquet of the Boston Federalists
one of the toasts drunk with the most enthusiasm was : " The
Existing War the Child of Prostitution. May No American
Acknowledge It Legitimate /"

There were uncompromising Federalists who believed that
New England, in view of the unsympathetic attitude of the
administration, had sufficient justification for leaving the
Union ; and the possibility of secession was frequently hinted
at in the correspondence of Northern statesmen. The eco-
nomic situation was precisely the reverse of that which existed
in the "1830'$," when South Carolina was convinced that the
North was conspiring to ruin her. So strong is the instinct
of self-preservation that any section of the Union is likely to
contemplate separation when it finds its welfare threatened
by the central government. Those who, in 1812, held to the
"compact theory" of the Union had good precedents to quote
and plausible arguments to advance. On several occasions
since Washington took the oath of office, Individual states
had claimed the right to nullify Congresssional enactments
and had asserted their authority as superior, under certain
conditions, to that of Congress. 1 The Virginia and Kentucky
Resolutions the first drawn up by Madison, the second
mainly by Jefferson had, in 1798, declared the Alien and
Sedition Bills unconstitutional and had defiantly announced
that those two states would resist their operation. Indeed,
the Virginia Resolutions had set forth the doctrine that,
whenever the Federal Government assumes powers not dele-
gated to it by the states, "its acts are unauthoritative, void,
and are of no force."

But suggestions of separation had not arisen entirely from

1 At a later date, William Rawle's A View of the Constitution of the United States
(1825), used at the United States Military Academy at West Point when Grant and
Lee were students there, taught the doctrine that a state has a right to withdraw from
the Union without being in rebellion. Rawle was a leader of the Philadelphia bar and
long an attorney for the Bank of the United States.

140 DANIEL WEBSTER

Republican sources. With the triumph of Jefferson in 1800,
the disgruntled Federalists, now for the first time in a minority,
had meditated the creatioli of a Northern Confederacy ; and
members of the notorious "Essex Junto" had seriously talked
over such a project. 1 These individualists maintained that
each state, having of its own free will entered the Federal
compact, had the privilege of withdrawing from it, just as the
member of a corporation, dissatisfied with its management,
resigns after due notice. That they never pushed through
their scheme was owing to their inability to secure the support
of certain influential leaders without whose approval they
dared not go on.

In 1808, during the turmoil occasioned by the Embargo
Act, separatist sentiment in the Northeast again flared up,
and might have been dangerous if the repeal of the offensive
measure had not come when it did. The acquisition of Loui-
siana had been regarded by the New England Federalists as a
despotic act ; and when it was proposed to admit the Territory
of Orleans to the Union as the State of Louisiana, Josiah
Quincy announced on the floor of the House of Representa-
tives (January 14, 1811) that, if the bill were passed, "the
bonds of this Union are virtually dissolved," and declared that
it would then be the duty of some of the states "to prepare
definitely for a separation; amicably if they can, violently
if they must. 11

Proud and sensitive minorities usually try every device
for escaping from the tyranny of immovable majorities. If
Daniel Webster, as a faithful Federalist, had lent an ear to
those who were dallying with the project of a Northern Con-
federacy, it would not have been unexpected. Nevertheless
he claimed to be an adherent of the Union. In his Portsmouth
Address, he lamented the commencement and continuation

1 The Essex Junto so named because it comprised a small group of statesmen from
Essex County, Massachusetts Included Timothy Pickering, Fisher Ames, Theophilus
Parsons, George Cabot, and others, representing the " upper classes." Most of them
were rich, well-educated, and socially prominent, and they were aristocratic in all their
political theories. The democracy which Jefferson represented and advocated was to
them peculiarly abhorrent.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 141

of the strife with the mother country. He felt that it would
endanger rather than secure our rights upon the sea. He
shuddered at the prospect of being thrown into an alliance
with the detested Bonaparte. And yet, when he came to sug-
gest a possible course of action, he said :

With respect to the war, in which we are now involved, the course
which our principles require us to pursue cannot be doubtful. It is
now the law of the land, and as such we are bound to regard
it. Resistance and insurrection form no parts of our creed. The
disciples of Washington are neither tyrants in power, nor rebels out.
If we are taxed, to carry on this war, we shall disregard certain dis-
tinguished examples, and shall pay. If our personal services are
required, we shall yield them to the precise extent of our Constitu-
tional liability. At the same time, the world may be assured that we
know our rights, and shall exercise them. We shall express our opin-
ions on this, as on every other measure of government, I trust with-
out passion, I am certain without fear. We have yet to learn that
the extravagant progress of pernicious measures abrogates the duty
of opposition, or that the interest of our native land is to be aban-
doned, by us, in the hour of her thickest dangers, and sorest necessity.
By the exercise of our Constitutional right of suffrage, by the peace-
able remedy of election, we shall seek to restore wisdom to our councils,
and peace to our country. 1

This was a statesmanlike utterance. Seldom had the
duty of a loyal but disapproving citizen, in an hour of national
peril, been asserted more frankly. The right of the individual
American to disagree with a governmental policy and to
criticize it openly was courageously maintained. There were,
of course, sections of the United States in which Webster's
doctrines were not altogether palatable. In Portsmouth
itself, he was probably in a minority. But among the "Friends
of Peace," his words were accepted as gospel, and they ap-
plauded and concurred. It must be reiterated, however, that
Webster never refused to aid the government when called upon
to fulfill his obligations as a citizen.

Because of this Independence Day Address, Webster was

1 National Edition, XV, 594.

14* DANIEL WEBSTER

conceded the supremacy among the younger Federalists in
Rockingham County, no one of whom had his eloquence or his
skill in argument. His speech, printed by the Oracle in a
diminutive broadside, went quickly through two editions;
newspapers throughout New England commented on its vigor
and courage; and puzzled voters seeking guidance turned
to him, as they always do when a leader appears. Although
he was only thirty years old and without political experience,
his success at the bar had given him assurance, and he did
not disappoint those who relied upon him.

While the inadequate but plucky American navy was pre-
paring to face heavy odds and General Hull was waiting vainly
at Sandwich for the Canadian yeomen to enroll under his
standard, a meeting of the Federalists of Rockingham County
was called for August 5, 1812, at Brentwood, about five miles
west of Exeter. 1 Brentwood is to-day hardly more than a
hamlet, away from the main thoroughfare, and looking as if
the world had passed it by. It was, however, situated near
the geographical centre of the county, and easily reached by
coach or carriage from every point. The gathering was to
have been held in the meetinghouse, but, as party after party
drove up, it was apparent that they could not all be accom-
modated indoors, and arrangements were hastily improvised
for seating them under what the Portsmouth Oracle called
"the great canopy of Heaven." A platform was nailed to-
gether under the shade of a tall pine, and there, before an
audience of more than two thousand, the Honorable Samuel
Tenney, of Exeter, took the chair. An Epping clergyman
pronounced the invocation, after which the Honorable George
Sullivan, then a member of Congress and one of Webster's
rivals in the law, delivered an address, said by enthusiastic

1 The notice printed in the Portsmouth Oracle^ July 25, 1812, reads: "A Meeting
of the Friends of Peace, of the County of Rockingham, without regard to former Political
Distinctions, will be holden at Brentwood, on Wednesday, the 5th day of August next,
at ten o'clock A.M. Every lover of Honorable Peace is requested to attend. It is
expected the meeting will be numerous and respectable." It was hoped that such a
call might appeal to certain Republicans who, because of business interests, were
opposed to the war, and might, consequently, be willing to join with the Federalists
in denouncing it.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 143

partisans to contain "great political truths, conclusive and
convincing arguments, enforced in language, elegant, impres-
sive, and energetic." Sullivan was then a better-known
figure than Webster, and his speech was printed in full in all
the Federalist papers in New Hampshire. The assembly
then adjourned until the afternoon in order to allow the com-
mittees to prepare their reports and the guests to enjoy their
basket luncheons on the village common. 1

Webster had been appointed chairman of a committee
instructed to prepare a memorial, among the other members
being Nathaniel Oilman and George Sullivan, both of
Exeter, Colonel Bradbury Cilley, of Nottingham, and
Thomas W. Thompson, his first tutor in the law, who had
since moved to Concord. Notified in advance what his
duties would be, Webster had drafted a suitable document,
which was formally approved by the committee. On that
still and sultry afternoon, he read to the throng what has
since been known as the "Rockingham Memorial," addressed
to "James Madison, Esquire, President of the United States/*
It was adopted unanimously, amid lusty cheers from Federal-
ist throats.

In language sonorous but restrained, Webster recapitulated
the familiar grievances and reviewed the events of the pre-
ceding five years. He perceived in the General Government
"a disposition to embarrass and enthrall commerce by re-
peated restrictions," and to make war "by shutting up our
own ports." He and the "Friends of Peace" were quite ready
to shoulder arms if their rights and liberties required the
sacrifice, but they could not see that the breach with Eng-
land was warranted by "justice, necessity, and expediency."
The number of cases of impressment by British ships had
been "extravagantly exaggerated." Those sections of the
country which were maritime and which, therefore, might be

1 The Portsmouth Oracle described the gathering editorially as " indeed the solemn
assembly of the people," and proudly reported : '* The greatest harmony and order
prevailed throughout die day. Not the slightest disturbance or irregularity took
place."

144 DANIEL WEBSTER

supposed to be most seriously disturbed by impressments were
those unalterably opposed to the war. The army and navy
were unprepared for emergencies, and the Republican adminis-
tration, although long aware of the imminence of hostilities, had
done nothing for our protection. The reasons for going to
war with Napoleon were even more cogent than those for
fighting Great Britain. Certainly the Federalists of Rocking-
ham County would in no event "assist in uniting the Republic
of America with the military despotism of France." This,
however, was the only ultimatum in the appeal, and Webster
closed with a statement which was dignified and temperate :

It only remains for us, to express our conscientious convictions,
that the present course of measures will prove most prejudicial and
ruinous to the country, and to supplicate the government to adopt
such a system as shall restore to us the blessings of peace and com-
merce. 1

One or two paragraphs in the Rockingham Memorial have
sometimes been cited by historians to prove that Daniel
Webster at this period was not unwilling to see New England
separated from the Union. In view of charges later made
by his political foes, it is important to know precisely what
his language was. Fortunately it was neither ambiguous or

evasive :

We shrink from the separation of the states, as an event fraught
with incalculable evils, and it is among our strongest objections to
the present course of measures, that they have, in our opinion, a very
dangerous and alarming bearing on such an event. If a separation of
the states ever should take place, it will be, on some such occasion,
when one portion of the country undertakes to control, to regulate,
and to sacrifice, the interest of another; when a small and heated
majority in the Government, taking counsel of their passions, and not
of their reason, contemptuously disregarding the interests, and per-
haps stopping the mouths, of a large and respectable minority, shall
by hasty, rash, and ruinous measures threaten to destroy essential
rights ; and lay waste the most important interests. 2

1 National Edition, XV, 610. * Ibid., p. 609.

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 145

This was but a simple statement of fact, accompanied by a
warning. It indicated no desire on the part of Webster, or of
those whom he represented, to withdraw from the Union.
On the contrary, as if suspecting that he might be misconstrued,
he took pains in the next paragraph to clarify his position
so that there could be no doubt of his loyalty :

It shall be our most fervent supplication to Heaven to avert both
the event and the occasion; and the Government may be assured,
that the tie which binds us to the Union, will never be broken, by us. 1

Webster was unmistakably incensed at the repeated blows
to Portsmouth's prosperity; he despised the administration
then in power; and he was fearful that its policies might
endanger the Union. When the Governors of three states
Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island refused,
even at the formal request of the Secretary of War, to call out
their militia, and when Federalists everywhere were declining
to subscribe to war loans, Webster's gloomy forecasts had
some justification. But, although apprehensive of such a
cleavage, Webster also deplored it.

The Rockingham Memorial was extensively quoted in the
press, and was hailed with enthusiasm by Federalist papers. 2
By the Republicans, it was greeted with the sneers and in-
difference customarily bestowed by partisans upon the argu-
ment of a political enemy. 3 President Madison made no
acknowledgment or reply.

1 National Edition, XV, 609-10.

2 The New York Evening Posf, in printing the full text of the Memorial, remarked
that other important material had been omitted in order to satisfy the popular demand.
The Philadelphia Freeman 9 s Journal said of it, " It is one of the most interesting, elo-
quent, and powerful appeals to the judgment and justice of our Administration we
have ever read." Webster himself thought that it was " of a tone and strain less vulgar
than such things are prone to be."

3 A long letter appeared in two installments of the New Hampshire Gazette for August
1 8 and September i, 1812, accusing Webster of inconsistency in his attitude, towards
England, and quoting passages from his Concord Oration of July 4, 1806, and the
Portsmouth Oration of July 4, 1812, to prove the point. It ended: "Perhaps even
the orator may improve by experience; and be more cautious in the future of vain
boasting. * This is a consummation devoutly to be wished/ Such an event would
add to his fame and happiness, and promote the prosperity of his country. American
patriots, who are his best friends, would hail him welcome to their fraternity and real
Americans will join in the exclamation of AMEN."

146 DANIEL WEBSTER

Before the Brentwood gathering broke up, Daniel Webster
was nominated, on a so-called "Peace Ticket," as a Repre-
sentative in Congress from New Hampshire. His Independ-
ence Day Address had made him the outstanding Federalist
candidate in Rockingham County for office in the state or the
nation; 1 but, according to William Plumer, when it was first
suggested that he go actively into politics, Webster rejected
the idea on the ground that he was poor and must attend to
his business as a lawyer. Within a few hours, however, he
had reconsidered his impulsive decision and had written to
Jeremiah Smith, confessing that he should not decline a seat
in Congress if elected. "As to the law," he said, "I must
attend to that too, but honor after all is worth more than
money. " 2

The delegation from New Hampshire in the House of Rep-
resentatives, hitherto numbering five, had been increased in
1812 to six, and the candidates of both parties were placed on
a general ticket to be voted for throughout the state. The
slate prepared at Brentwood included, besides Webster, Colonel
Bradbury Cilley, of Nottingham, Honorable William Hale,
of Dover, Samuel Smith, Esquire, of Peterborough, Honorable
Roger Vose, of Walpole, and Jeduthun Wilcox, Esquire, of
Orford. Somewhat later, on September 10, the Republicans
held their convention at Kingston Plains, the only one of their
Congressmen to be renominated being the "War Hawk,"
John A. Harper. During this summer, the caustic Isaac Hill,
editor of the New Hampshire Patriot, first recognized the
dangerous qualities in Daniel Webster and began a virulent
attack which hardly ceased until 1850. Hill referred to the
Portsmouth Oracle as "Daniel Webster's paper," and dwelt
on its "stupidity and malevolence." It was not, however,
an administration year, and, at the November election, the
entire Federalist ticket was elected, Webster, with 18,597

1 The Keene Sentinel for August 29, 1812, said, ** We rejoice to find the list headed
with the name of Daniel Webster, Esq., of Portsmouth, a gentleman of commanding
talents and undoubted patriotism."

2 Letter of William Plumer to George Ticknor, April 2, 1853, in National Edition,
XVII, 547-

FIRST ADVENTURES IN POLITICS 147

votes, running second only to Vose. It was long since the
New Hampshire Federalists had won such an overwhelming
victory. Thus, in his thirty-first year, Webster was chosen
to that office which his father had coveted long and vainly,

Webster must now have felt that he had at last reached an
arena where his talents would have sufficient scope. His
success is remarkable because he had hitherto held no office
in town, county, or state. Without having served any ap-
prenticeship, he had, by a single speech, become conspicuous
even among those who had long been active in politics. Rarely
indeed does so young a man, with no discipline whatever
in legislative affairs, step from a law office into the National
Capitol. Webster may possibly, as Lodge asserted, have
matured late, but he had accomplished much at an age when
many a prospective statesman is toiling obscurely.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION

Thou

Whom the rich heavens did so endow
With eyes of power and Jove's own brow,
With all the massive strength that fills
Thy home-horizon's granite hills.

WHITTIER, " The Lost Occasion "

Wholly inexperienced in public affairs, my first object is to comprehend
the objects, understand the maxims, and imbibe the spirit of the first ad-
ministration, persuaded as I am that the principles which prevailed in the
Cabinet and Councils of that period, form the only anchorage in which our
political prosperity and safety can find any hold in this dangerous and stormy
time,

WEBSTER, Letter to Pickering, December n, 1812

ON a Tuesday morning in June,, 1813, there was a quaint scene
at the White House, then referred to in Washington as the
"Palace." President Madison, weakened by several days of
fever, lay propped up on pillows, a nightcap on his head and his
pretty wife, Dolly, as a nurse by his side. To the sick chamber
were admitted young Congressman Webster, of New Hamp-
shire, and John Rhea, "old Rhea," of Tennessee, who
had been designated by Mr. Speaker Clay to transmit certain
resolutions passed by the House, and asking questions which,
it was hoped, might embarrass the Executive. The invalid
received the papers and replied, with his habitual quiet
courtesy, "They will be attended to/' Two days later, Web-
ster, with inconsiderate glee, wrote to a friend, mentioning
Madison's illness and adding, "I think he will find no relief
from my prescription." Webster had already addressed
Madison in the Rockingham Memorial, but this was his first
experience in bearding a President in his home. The incident,

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 149

though trivial, is symbolical of Webster's attitude throughout
the War of 1812. Whenever the administration was in straits,
he was on hand to annoy those responsible for its actions.

During the months just before he took the Congressional
oath of office, Webster was much in the public eye. Ports-
mouth politics were seething during the winter of 1813. While
the New Hampshire Gazette was printing the bulletins of
Napoleon's Grand Army on its retreat from Moscow, the
Federalists and Republicans, whose antagonism the French
Emperor had indirectly done so much to promote, were en-
gaged in one of their periodical clashes. Early in January,
it was announced that the veteran Federalist, John Taylor
Gilman, would accept a nomination for Governor by the
"Friends of Peace." Governor William Plumer 1 was once
more the Republican candidate and the perennial rivals
fought a closely contested battle. During the campaign
Webster dwelt effectively on the damage done to New Hamp-
shire commerce by the war, 2 and assailed Plumer for calling
out the militia. The March election reversed the situation,
and the Federalists were once more in the saddle, winning
both branches of the Legislature and swinging Gilman into
office. 3 On Saturday, June 5, the Governor took the oath
at Concord, and the state was again in what Webster believed
to be safe hands.

Before that day arrived, however, Daniel Webster had set
out on his first great political adventure. By an act of the
preceding session, the Thirteenth Congress was to assemble

1 No majority having been secured by either candidate in the popular vote of 1812,
Plumer had been elected by the Legislature (June 4, 1812), by a vote of 104 against
82 for Gilman.

2 General Lyman (Memorials of Daniel Webster, II, 42-44) described dramatically
one of the Federalist meetings during this campaign, when the crowd refused to listen
to any orator but Webster and responded to his remarks with " thunders of applause."

3 The vote for Governor was 18,107 for Gilman against 17,410 for Plumer. The
Portsmouth Oracle announced on March 20, 1813, " We feel much pleasure in announc-
ing the restoration of New Hampshire to the true principles of the Washington school."
Webster's friend, Thomas W. Thompson, was chosen Speaker of the House by a vote
of 106 to 75, and the Senate was Federalist, 9 to 3. After Dr. John Goddard had
declined an election as United States Senator, the Legislature agreed on Jeremiah
Mason as a successor to Charles Cutts.

i 5 o DANIEL WEBSTER

on May 24, 1813; and he was at his desk, in Washington,
filled with curiosity and expectation, when the House of Rep-
resentatives was called to order. He had gone to the capital
alone, for Mrs. Webster had little Grace to care for, and was
also expecting another child in midsummer. He made most
of the journey by mail coach, following a route through Boston,
Hartford, New Haven, New York, Princeton, and Baltimore, 1
and he was ten days on the road. The trip from Portsmouth
to Washington in those days was much more hazardous than
a voyage to Europe in the twentieth century.

The national capital was then a city of fewer than ten thou-
sand people, 2 which Webster, not without justification, called
"this dismal place." The original plan of Major L'Enfant
was magnificent, but, because of inertia and lack of funds,
it had not been carried out. The corner stone of the Capitol
had been laid as early as 1794, and the north and south wings
were in use in 1813; but the space between them, intended
for the dome, was merely an improvised passageway roofed over
with rough boards, and no additional appropriation had been
passed by Congresss since 1 8 io. 3 The " President's House " had
been completed in 1809, but Pennsylvania Avenue, although
boasting a few unhealthy trees planted under Jefferson's admin-
istration, was lined with ugly shanties and made a poor impres-
sion upon visitors ; and in winter its mud seemed bottomless.
Three hotels in the vicinity of Capitol Hill did all the business,
the best being the Indian Queen, on The Avenue, in front of
which hung "a large swinging sign upon which figured Poca-
hontas, painted in glaring colors." 4

1 Lyman, II, 45. Plumer, Life of William Plumer, p. 41, says that the journey from
New Hampshire to Washington in 1801 was not usually performed in less than ten or
twelve days. Jeremiah Mason, in 1814, consumed six days between Hartford and
Baltimore, his course being by stage from Hartford to Mount Pleasant (on the Hudson
River), by packet boat to New York, by boat to New Brunswick, by stage to Phila-
delphia, and by mail stage to Baltimore. Writing on November 24, 1814, from Wash-
ington, Mason said : " Yesterday Gerry died very suddenly. He had travelled from
Boston to this place in five days, which was enough to kill a younger and stouter man."

2 A census gave the population of Washington in 1807 as 5652.

3 Hazelton's The National Capitol, p. 34, has an excellent drawing of the building
as it appeared in 1814, before its destruction by the British,

4 Poore, Reminiscences of Sixty Years, I, 42.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 151

Most members of Congress lived in boarding houses, 1 paying
approximately fifteen dollars a week for attendance, wood,
candles, food, and plenty of brandy and whiskey, which was
placed on the table in decanters without extra charge. There
were no homes in Washington as luxurious as some of those
which Webster had known in Portsmouth. It was probably
his fastidiousness which led him to take up his quarters in
Georgetown, 2 three miles away, driving back and forth to the
Congressional sessions in a rickety coach. Women of culture
were not numerous, and Webster complained of the "unvary-
ing masculinity " of the society. 3 There was a good deal of
whist playing and faro gambling. The one theatre was oc-
casionally opened by a company from Philadelphia, but other
recreations were few.

Webster, of course, was seeing the city in war time, when
gayeties would naturally be curtailed. Indeed there was
always the fear that it would be besieged by the enterprising
British, who, just before Webster's arrival, had ascended
Chesapeake Bay under Admiral Cockburn, burning and
pillaging Havre de Grace and other villages, and coming un-
comfortably close to Washington. Mrs. Madison wrote, May
12, 1813, "For the last week all the city and Georgetown

1 It was estimated in 1816 that only 20 per cent of the Senators and Congressmen
lived in hotels.

2 On a drive with Peter Harvey, Webster once ordered the coachman to stop and,
pointing to an old and decaying mansion, said : " That large white house, with dilapi-
dated walls and broken fences, was the hotel where I boarded when I first entered
Congress from New Hampshire. It was then the Federalist Headquarters. Governor
Gore, Rufus King, and John Marshall were fellow-boarders. Governor Gore used to
drive out of that gate in a coach drawn by four horses, and attended by servants in
livery." Harvey names the location as Alexandria, but this is obviously a misprint
for Georgetown. (Harvey, p. 176.) William Lowndes wrote from Washington in
December 1811, " The comforts of a city are such in winter that I think I shall spend
the next (if I come here at all) in Georgetown." (Meigs, Calhoun^ I, 1 13.)

* There was another side to the social life. Mrs. Samuel Harrison Smith, writing
on March 13, 1814, said: " Washington possesses a peculiar interest, and to an active,
reflective, and ambitious mind, has more attractions than any other place in America.
. . . There are here peculiar facilities for forming acquaintances, for a stranger cannot
be long here, before it is generally known. The house of representatives is the lounging
place of both sexes, where acquaintance is as easily made as at public amusements."
(The First Forty Years of Washington Society , p. 94.) Doubtless Webster, in his
bachelor quarters, received quite a different impression.

152 DANIEL WEBSTER

(except the cabinet) have expected a visit from the enemy, and
were not lacking in their expressions of terror and reproach." l

Washington presented the appearance of a capital "made
to order," and its unlighted streets, disfigured with mud holes
in wet weather, were felt to be discreditable to the young
nation. Gazing at the unused planks and stones which sur-
rounded the unsightly and unfinished Capitol, the editor of
the National Intelligencer was reminded of the ruins of Rome
as described by Volney. 2 Webster did not enjoy the climate,
and he wrote to Ezekiel on Independence Day, "The weather
is already very hot; more so than ever I experienced." 3

But uncomfortable though he may have been, Webster *s
mind was intent on other matters besides architecture, society,
and climate. The Hall of Representatives, with its twenty-
four Corinthian columns and its semicircular galleries, had
been completed in 1807, and provided on the floor sufficiently
commodious quarters for the membership of 182. Here he
found that one of his friends had marked a seat for him, "in
good company" with Joseph Lewis, Jr., and Daniel Sheffey,
both of Virginia, on his left, and Joseph Pearson and William
Gaston, both of North Carolina, and Timothy Pitkin, of
Connecticut, on his right. 4 He made at once a formal call
upon President Madison, but wrote, "I did not like his looks,
any better than I like his Administration. I think LaVater
could find clearly eno in his features, Embargo, Non-Inter-
course, & War." 5

The House had little difficulty in organizing, for the ad-
ministration had a substantial working majority, 114
Republicans to 68 Federalists, and promptly elected Henry
Clay, 6 of Kentucky, as Speaker. Bold and autocratic, ready
in debate, fiery in manner, and magnetic in personality, he
was more susceptible to emotion than to reason. He was

1 Memoirs and Letters of Dolly Madison, p. 90.

2 Bryan, National Capital, I, 618. 3 National Edition, XVII, 237.

4 Ibid., XVI, 14. Pitkin was Clay's opponent for Speaker, and received 54 votes
to the latter's 89. 5 Ibid. y p. 15.

^Heniy Clay (1777-1852), five years older than Webster, was born in Virginia, the
son of a poor white preacher. His father died when tJfie boy was four, and, his mother

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 153

tall and thin, with gray eyes and petulant mouth, and his
rich voice and captivating smile were irresistible. With his
breezy cordiality and superficial cleverness, he combined a
talent for managing men, and he exercised over his admirers
an influence almost hypnotic. He was often politician and
demagogue as well as statesman; but in 1812 he held proudly
aloft the banner of "Young America/* and was himself prin-
cipally responsible for our aggressive policy towards Great
Britain. To his adoring followers, he was gallant "Harry of
the West," aflame with patriotic ardor, the hero of newly
settled territories and pioneer peoples. They pictured him as
a plumed knight in shining armor, riding to overthrow the
cherished idols of an old and perhaps decadent civilization
the civilization of comfort and degenerate ease in which they
suspected Webster of living. In Clay were centred all the
vague aspirations and suppressed desires of that virile and
hard-won land beyond the Alleghanies.

If Clay was all feeling, another "war hawk" John Cald-
well Calhoun, 1 of South Carolina was all logic. With his

having married again, his stepfather secured a place for him in the office of the Clerk of
the High Court of Chancery in Richmond. Licensed to practise law, he moved west to
Lexington, Kentucky, where he quickly rose to distinction. After sitting in the State
Legislature, he was elected in 1806 to fill an unexpired term in the United States Senate,
although still under the legal age for that position. At the close of his term, he became
Speaker of the Kentucky Assembly, but, in 1809, again went to the United States
Senate to complete an unexpired period. Elected to the Twelfth Congress, he was
immediately chosen Speaker and assumed the leadership of the war party. In a great
speech on January 8 and 9, 1813, he had defended Jefferson and accused New England
of having fomented a plot " that aims at the dismemberment of the Union/' His
audacity and nationalism at this period are strongly contrasted with Webster's con-
servatism and sectionalism.

1 John Caldwell Calhoun (1782-1850), two months younger than Webster, was born
in Abbeville, South Carolina, and graduated from Yale College in 1 804. He studied law
in Litchfield, Connecticut, was admitted to the bar in 1807, and opened an office at
Abbeville. He served for two sessions in the South Carolina Legislature, and, at the
age of twenty-eight, was elected to the House of Representatives, where, despite his
youth, he attracted attention and was recognized as a leader of the administration on
the floor of that body. At the first meeting of the Committee on Foreign Relations,
to which he had been appointed, Calhoun was unanimously made Chairman, and it was
he who, in his report on a section of the President's Message, sounded the first authentic
note of war, in 1811, saying, " The period has now arrived when, in the opinion of your
committee, it is the sacred duty of Congress to call forth the patriotism and the resources
of the country." When Webster took his seat, Clay and Calhoun were the outstanding
figures in the House.

154 DANIEL WEBSTER

gaunt frame and long black locks, his bushy eyebrows above
sunken sockets, he gave the impression of dynamic intensity.
He was then and later the spokesman of the aristocratic South,
the dispassionate interpreter of its troubles and its needs.
Although some people found him reserved, he made friends
readily, and there was but one opinion as to his genius for
leadership. A gentleman by birth and breeding, he could argue
fiercely without indulging in personalities; and even when
Webster opposed Calhoun's tenuous theories, he could not help
liking the man and respecting the sincerity of his motives.

The temptation to draw sharp contrasts is one which few
historians can resist, and the differences between Clay and
Calhoun are bound to impress any student of the two states-
men. Clay was impulsive ; Calhoun was cool and calculating.
Clay was sociable; Calhoun was solitary. The Kentuckian
was gay and shallow; the South Carolinian was serious and
profound. One was full of humor ; the other was so lacking in
it that he seldom smiled. Clay was flexible, quickly susceptible
to external influences, and easily moved ; Calhoun was rigid and
introspective. Finally, Clay, with all his brilliancy, was at
heart an opportunist ; while Calhoun was made of martyr stuff.

Thus, in 1813, the members of the Great Triumvirate,
Clay, Calhoun, and Webster, who were later so long to domi-
nate the Senate, came together in the Lower House. At that
moment, Clay and Calhoun were nationalists, uttering the
sentiments of the country as a whole. As time went on, how-
ever, Calhoun was to express the peculiar doctrines of the
South just as Clay those of the West and Webster those of New
England. To read the speeches of these three is to cover
American history for forty years.

Among other conspicuous members of the House were
John McLean, of Ohio, who was later to sit on the Supreme
Court Bench as the nominee of President Jackson; Charles
J. Ingersoll, of Pennsylvania, who, under Tyler and Polk, was
to be an influential Chairman of the House Committee on
Foreign Affairs; George M. Troup and John Forsyth, both
from Georgia, the latter afterwards Jackson's Secretary of

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 155

State ; and, from South Carolina, the brilliant William Lowndes,
who died prematurely at the age of forty, and the versatile
Langdon Cheves, Clay's successor as Speaker when the latter
resigned early in 1814 to accept a place on the Peace Commis-
sion. These men were Republicans and supporters of Madison.
Josiah Quincy, the Massachusetts Federalist who had stirred
up such a turmoil during the previous session, had declined a
reelection ; and the erratic John Randolph, half genius and
half madman, had, to the relief of Calhoun and his coterie,
been defeated by Jefferson's son-in-law, John W. Eppes.
Among Webster's allies were Colonel Timothy Pickering, of
Massachusetts, the most intolerant of the Essex Junto ; l
Alexander C. Hanson, the brilliant and caustic editor of the
Baltimore Federal Republican; and William Gaston, of North
Carolina, a new member who was to become Judge of the
Supreme Court of North Carolina. The Federalists were
relatively weak in numbers, but they included some men of
marked ability, and their quality was high. In the Senate,
which was then the less important body, were Christopher
Gore, Rufus King, and, within a few weeks, Jeremiah Mason,
whom Webster was proud to call his friends.

Webster reached Washington with a course of action care-
fully prepared. Sustained by the knowledge that his con-
stituents were back of him, he proposed to denounce the war
and to withhold his support when measures for its prosecution
were introduced. Always before him was the possibility of
embarrassing the Republican administration. It was not
a very noble ambition, and there was nothing constructive in
Webster's plan. Although his views must have been familiar
to Clay, the latter gave him an assignment on the Committee
on Foreign Relations, under Calhoun as Chairman. 2 It was a

1 Webster wrote Pickering, December n, 1812: " Among the consequences which
may grow out of recent events, I look forward to none with more pleasure than the
opportunity which may be afforded of cultivating the acquaintance of one of the masters
of the Washington school of politics." (National Edition, XVI, 1 2.)

2 March wrote Webster, from New York, May 31, 1813 : " I am glad to see by the
Intelligencer you are on the Foreign Committee ; and wish you had a majority on your
side, . . . Calhoun I don't know personally but have a high respect for his talent.
He is young and if honest may yet be open to conviction." (Cong. Lib. Misc. L)

156 DANIEL WEBSTER

distinction for a new member to be placed on a committee of
such importance.

There was no tradition in the House to restrain a new
member from asserting himself too soon. Clay had been
chosen Speaker at the opening of his first term in that body,
and Webster, at what he felt to be a moment of national
crisis, was In no mood to postpone the attack. He quickly
seized upon what he thought to be the best available issue
and made the most of it. 1 It had been asserted by the Duke
of Bassano, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, that the
revocation by Napoleon of the Berlin and Milan Decrees had
been transmitted to the French Minister at Washington for
delivery to our Secretary of State. As nothing had been
divulged by the administration regarding this alleged repeal
until after Congress had passed its declaration of war, the
Federalists suspected that President Madison had received
but had suppressed this very important information. The
Republicans naturally doubted the veracity of the French
nobleman, but Webster, with strategical skill, saw an oppor-
tunity for putting Madison on the defensive.

When routine preliminary matters had been disposed of,
Webster was ready for action, and wrote to his friend, Charles
March, 2 in New York, on Monday, June 7 :

" Tomorrow I intend to bring forward a motion, calling for infor-
mation relative to the famous Trent Decree, repealing the Berlin &
Milan Decrees. Lest some accident should prevent, you will say
nothing of this, till you see or hear more of it. If they choose to
oppose it & to bring on a general battle, we are ready." 3

1 In a speech delivered at Madison, Indiana, June i, 1837, Webster said: " Among
the luminaries in the sky of New England, the burning lights which throw intelligence
and happiness on her people, the first and most brilliant is her system of common
schools. I congratulate myself that my first speech on entering public life was in their
behalf." (National Edition, II, 253.) Where and when this speech was delivered,
I have not been able to ascertain, and there is no record of it in the Proceedings of
this Congress.

2 Charles March was a New York merchant, a son of Dr. Clement March, of Green-
land, New Hampshire, a small village about eight miles south of Portsmouth. Webster
kept him carefully informed as to everything which occurred during this session, sending
him brief letters almost every day.

8 National Edition, XVI, 19.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 157

Webster's d6but was unavoidably postponed until Thurs-
day, June 10, on which date he rose and made his first speech
in the House of Representatives, submitting five resolutions
for its consideration. 1 In his remarks, he focused attention
on the fact that, if the decree of April 1811, said to have been
transmitted to the President, had been published at the time
when it was received, the war with England would probably
not have taken place, for its appearance would have "produced
the repeal of the British orders in council'* and it was upon
this issue mainly that the question of peace or war was decided.
He declared, therefore, that the honor of the nation demanded
"a full and free inquiry into a subject of so much importance/' 2

It was said by one who was present that no member "ever
riveted the attention of the House so completely in his first
speech," 3 and this may well be true, for Webster was very
much in earnest and the Representatives were not accustomed
to his sonorous style of oratory. In the earliest edition of his
collected works the Speeches and Forensic Arguments , pub-
lished in 1831 it was not included, perhaps because Webster
did not wish then to revive recollections of the days when he
had been strongly sectional in his views. Chief Justice John
Marshall, at the time when the volume appeared, expressed
his disappointment at not finding this argument among the
contents and said to Justice Story: "I read these speeches
with very great pleasure at the time. At the time when the
first was delivered, I did not know Mr. Webster; but I was
so much struck with it, that I did not hesitate to state that

1 Webster wrote March, on the afternoon of June 10 : " The resolutions were offered
today they lie until tomorrow for consideration. What the House will do with
them, I cannot say. The question to consider them was carried 138 to 28. I have
done what I tho't my duty & am easy about the result." (National Edition, XVI, 20.)

2 A report of this speech, evidently an abstract, is printed in National Edition, XIV,
3 fF. taken from the Boston Messenger. Webster himself arranged to have the Resolu-
tions forwarded to the New York Commercial Advertiser and asked March to send
copies to Thomas W. Thompson, Ezekiel Webster, and Isaac P. Davis, of Boston,
as well as to William Garland, of Portsmouth.

8 The same observer said : " Members left their seats when they could not see the
speaker face to face, and sat down or stood on the floor fronting him. All listened
attentively and silently during the whole speech ; and when it was over, many went up
and warmly congratulated the orator." (Lyman, II, 51.)

158 DANIEL WEBSTER

Mr, Webster was a very able man, and would become one of
the very first statesmen in America, and perhaps the very
first/* l Webster's constituents were given an abstract of
it in the Portsmouth Oracle, and its effect on other sections of
the country may be surmised from an editorial in the New
York Herald y which referred to Webster as "second to none
on the floor of the House/' At a dinner in Keene, New Hamp-
shire, on July 5, one of the toasts offered was "Mr. Webster's
Resolutions, the Northern Emetic, skillfully administered.
May it operate to restore health and vigor to the body politic !"
There is probably no instance in Congressional history where
a Representative of so little legislative training produced
such a striking impression on his colleagues. From that
day it was admitted that Clay and Calhoun had a foeman
worthy of their best efforts.

Webster's resolutions precipitated a sharp debate, in the
course of which Calhoun rushed to the defense of the Adminis-
tration. It was the first of the numerous verbal duels in which
the two leaders were to take part. But the opposition had the
better of the encounter. "Poor Madison!" wrote Webster
to March on June 14. "I doubt whether he has had a night's
sleep these three weeks." 2 Again, five days later, he said :
"The fact is, the Administration are, for the moment, con-
founded. They are hard pushed in our house much harder
in the Senate. . . . They are in a sad pickle. Who cares ?" 3
Soon the Republicans realized the inadvisability of stifling
the inquiry. Objections were removed, and the resolutions
were duly passed on June 2i. 4 Webster, as we have seen,

1 Quoted in Curtis, I, 1 10.

2 National Edition, XVI, 21.
8 IKd.

4 Webster sent his version of the matter to March, June 21, 1813 : " The Resolutions
have passed unaltered, except putting in the usual saving in the last Resolution, which
was left out by accident. The last Resolution passed 93 to 68. I made no speech.
When I came to the House this morning, Calhoun told me, the motion for indefinite
postponement would be withdrawn his motion to amend withdrawn & he & some
of his friends should vote for the Resolutions as they are. I, of course, could not object
& considering the thing given up on their part, I forebore to speak. They have acted
very strangely, A dozen motions, made & withdrawn some pulling one way
some another. They do not manage like so many Solomons." (Ibid. y p. 22.)

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 159

was appointed, with John Rhea, to deliver them to the Chief
Executive.

The sequel was unexciting after such a tempest. A reply
was submitted on July 12, showing that the earliest official
intimation of the French repealing decree had been received
by our government from Barlow, our Minister to France, on
July 13, 1 8 ia, some weeks after war had been declared. Cal-
houn as Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations,
to which this answer was referred, reported a resolution
approving the conduct of the President, but the House declined
to act upon it, there being too much urgent business to attend
to, and nothing more had been done at the date when Congress
adjourned on August 2, 1813.

Even before Madison's answer had been scrutinized by
Congress, Daniel Webster, convinced that he was needed
more urgently in Portsmouth than in Washington, was on his
way home. He wrote on July 6: "For four or five days I
have found myself getting out of sorts, & have determined to
stay here not much longer. So late is the period of the Ses-
sion, so hot the season, so languid is every body, that I incline
to think we shall have no general battle about the War/' l
On Saturday, July 10, he said to March: "I expected to leave
this place Tomorrow, & to be with you by the middle of
next week. But understanding that we are to hear from the
President either to-day or Monday, I shall wait a few days
longer." 2

Early in the following week, he started on his long journey
north, arriving in Portsmouth in season for the birth of his
oldest son, Daniel Fletcher Webster, on July 23. He had
been away for only a brief period. He had modestly refrained
from talking too much or too long, but he was the only mem-
ber of the New Hampshire delegation who had had anything
to say. The Federalists, sadly in need of leadership, had

1 Letter to March, National Edition, XVI, 04. On July 9, he was given leave of
absence from Sunday, July n, for the remainder of the session. Webster's last vote
was cast on Saturday, July 10, and Madison's Report was presented on the following
Monday.

2 National Edition, XVI, 25.

160 DANIEL WEBSTER

welcomed him and had accorded him a position usually con-
ceded only to veteran statesmen. 1 The fear with which he
was regarded by Clay and Calhoun was evidenced by his
removal from the Committee on Foreign Relations, of which
he had been far from a tractable member.

The second Thursday of September, 1813, had been set apart
by the President as a solemn fast day. And indeed it did seem
as if an appeal to divine Providence were our only recourse.
A series of shameful disasters, beginning with the Battle of
Queenston (October 13, 1812), had disclosed the incompetency
of our commanders and the pusillanimity of our militia.
American soldiers had not only run away from bullets; they
had stolidly refused to serve outside their own states. Never
have our armies met with such reverses as when Hull, Van
Rennsselaer, Smyth, and Dearborn were defeated in succes-
sion ; and Eustis, the Secretary of War, resigned on December
3, 1812. The only real victory of the year was won by the
navy at Lake Erie, on July 10, under Commander Oliver
Hazard Perry. In the autumn of 1813, with the crushing of
Napoleon at Leipzig and the British successes in the Spanish
peninsula, it looked as if England might soon be free to turn
all her guns on us.

Webster returned to Washington somewhat late for the
second session of the Thirteenth Congress, 2 only to be greeted
with the disconcerting news of the Portsmouth fire. While
he was hesitating whether his duty was not with his homeless
family, a letter from his dauntless wife reassured him, and,

1 The New Hampshire Patriot^ ably edited by Isaac Hill, a strong Democrat, con-
tinued during this summer its virulent attacks on Webster, In its issue for July 27,
Webster could have read that " the great Mr. Webster, who is so extremely flippant in
arguing petty suits in our courts of law, cuts but a sorry figure at Washington; his
overweening confidence and zeal cannot there supply the place of knowledge. We think
he will not be anxious again to appear in the Capitol" It spoke on August 17 of his
" imprudent and abortive attack on the administration."

2 News items in the Portsmouth Oracle indicate that Webster left for Washington on
December 11, five days after the session opened. He stopped for a few days in New
York and did not reach the capital until the evening of December 28. He reported on
Wednesday, December 29. He voted with the majority on the following day for a
resolution asking the President to give up any information explaining the failure " of
the arms of the United States on the Northern frontier."

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 161

with his fears removed, he turned from domestic to national
calamities. With premeditated malice, he became a gadfly
to the Madison administration^ prepared to sting whenever a
vulnerable spot was exposed. Although his country was
obviously in peril from a foreign foe, he preferred to hamper
rather than to help those who were entrusted with its defense.
The policy which he followed can best be illustrated by a
consideration of his stand on specific measures. When the
House, by a vote almost unanimous, approved of an inquiry
into "the causes of the failure of our arms,'* Webster declared
that the war had been "ill-judged and ill-timed in the begin-
ning/' With annoying pertinacity, he continued:

If its advocates can show satisfactorily that this war was under-
taken on grounds plainly and manifestly just ; if they can show that
it was necessary and unavoidable; that it is strictly an American
war ; that it rests solely on American grounds ; and that it grew out
of a policy just and impartial as it related to the belligerents of
Europe, if they ever make all this manifest, the war will change its
character. It will then grow as energetic as it is now feeble. It will
then become the cause of the people, and not the cause of a party,

Webster's sarcastic reference in this speech to our two
"drivelling campaigns" could not have mollified Clay and the
other "war hawks." But the member from New Hampshire
was to make himself even more disagreeable. When a resolu-
tion was introduced for inquiring into the expediency of plac-
ing the trial of citizens for treason under military jurisdiction,
Webster was at once on his feet, and, in a brief speech only
imperfectly reported, described the proposed measure as "an
enormous stride of usurpation," which took away the orderly
processes of "indictment, arraignment, and trial," substitut-
ing in their stead a military tribunal. 1 By a strange shifting
in point of view, the party of Thomas Jefferson now sponsored
an act no less subversive of individual liberty than the Federal-
ist Alien and Sedition Bills of 1798 ; while the Federalist Party
appeared in the unfamiliar guise of defender of the rights of

1 Speech on January 10, 1814 (National Edition, XIV, n ),

162 DANIEL WEBSTER

citizens. Largely because of Webster s timely protest, this
measure., although referred by a majority of eleven votes, was
never again brought up.

The first of Webster's Congressional speeches to be fully
reported was delivered on January 14, 1814, in the course of
the debate on a proposal for filling the ranks of the regular
army by offering each recruit a bounty in money and land. 1
He reminded the House that the Federalists had not brought
on the conflict; that they had, on the contrary, resorted to
every legitimate device to delay a declaration of hostilities;
and that they had predicted with some accuracy the misfor-
tunes which would result. With exasperating irony, he com-
pared the administration of James Madison with that of Lord
North in respect to incapacity and persistence in keeping up
a foolish and wasteful war. He was quite willing, he averred,
to approve measures for defense only; and he recommended
that the government abandon "futile projects of invasion,"
take up fortified positions on land, and rely on the navy for
victory. Above all, with the welfare of New England shipping
in mind, he urged that the system of commercial restrictions
be abandoned, saying :

Unclinch the iron grasp of your Embargo. Take measures for that
end before another sun sets upon you. With all the war of the" enemy
upon your commerce, if you would cease to war upon it yourselves,
you would still have some commerce. That commerce would give
you some revenue. Apply that revenue to the augmentation of your
navy. That navy will, in turn, protect your commerce.

1 Webster wrote to Ezekiel, January 30, 1814, in a letter enclosing some printed
copies of this speech : " The speech is not exactly what it ought to be. I had not time.
I had no intention of speaking till nine o*clock in the morning, and delivered the thing
about two. I could make it better, but I dare say you think it would be easier to make
a new one, than to mend it. It was well enough received at the time, and our side of
the House said they would have it in this form. So much for speeches." (National
Edition, XVII, 239.) As soon as a version reached Keene, New Hampshire, the
Sentinel advertised that a pamphlet edition, containing sixteen pages, was in press and
would be on sale " at the very low price of 6 cents single and 4 cents by the 100, 50,
or even 25 copies, for distribution.'* Comparatively unknown two years before outside
of Rockingham, Grafton, and Hillsborough counties, Webster was now recognized as
the chief spokesman of the Peace Party.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 163

These terse and pregnant sentences show a marked improve-
ment over his earlier somewhat grandiloquent style. There
is more weight in these crisp, incisive words than in the longer
balanced periods, modeled on Cicero,, to which he had been so
much addicted. In this oration, Webster attained a maturity
of expression which proved that he had profited by his court-
room and legislative experience. He was not done experi-
menting, but he had acquired a manner and a method peculiarly
his own.

Calhoun had charged that the Federalists, through their
factious opposition, were to blame for the failure of the war.
In reply, Webster declared that this opposition was not only
conscientious, but "constitutional and legal," and rested
"upon settled and sober conviction.*' "The more I perceive
a disposition to check the freedom of inquiry by extravagant
and unconstitutional pretences," he said, in ringing words,
"the firmer shall be the tone in which I shall assert, and the
freer the manner in which I shall exercise it." l

The opening act of the session, passed before Webster's
arrival, had been a new Embargo, requested by the President,
covering the coastwise and foreign trade of the country and
forbidding commerce by water, not only between different states,
but between ports in the same state. As a result of this ill-
considered measure, which Webster believed to be unconstitu-
tional and his constituents thought to be iniquitous, 2 the
residents of the island of Nantucket found themselves cut off
from all intercourse with the "Continent." When a bill was
introduced granting them relief, Webster opposed it on the
somewhat perverse ground that he would not vote to restore a
privilege of which they could not legally be divested. 3 Even
with this necessary modification, the Embargo was far from

1 National Edition, XIV, 25.

2 The Portsmouth Oracle, on Saturday, January i, 1814, complained, " In addition
to those ministers of vengeance with which it has pleased God to visit us, the Sword,
Fire, and Famine, we have again stalking amongst us, like a pestilence, the mammoth

EMBARGO."

3 The bill relieving Nantucket of these commercial restrictions was eventually
passed, Webster and seven others voting in the negative.

164 DANIEL WEBSTER

being a success, and in the following March, only three months
after it had been passed, Madison called for its repeal. Cal-
houn, in explaining the motives for this sudden reversal of
policy, showed himself very adroit, but he opened himself to
some ironic observations by Webster, who said :

Sir, a government which cannot administer the affairs of a nation
without producing so frequent and such violent alterations in the
ordinary occupations and pursuits of private life has, in my opinion,
little claim to the regard of this community. 1

With Republicans and Federalists united against it, it was
not remarkable that the Embargo was repealed by a decisive
majority. A few days later the stormy and unproductive
session was brought to a close.

There is some evidence to indicate that Webster's loyalty
to the mercantile interests of the Northeast was not unre-
warded. Writing to March on June 14, 1813, he said, in a
sentence the importance of which he brought out by under-
lining, " You must contrive some way for me to get rich as soon
as there is a peace." 2 March, who was an importer and
therefore very anxious to see all commercial restrictions re-
moved, was kept informed by Webster of everything contem-
plated by Congress. On June 29, 1813, the latter wrote March,
"Shall draw on you today or tomorrow," 3 and on November
20 he drew on the New York merchant, with the latter's con-
sent, for nine hundred dollars. With only these meagre facts
as a basis, it is impossible to ascertain the precise relation-
ship between Webster and March ; but it would not be aston-
ishing if the former had accepted remuneration for his services
in behalf of his friends in business. Such a practice would
have been considered less reprehensible then than now. To-
day similar conduct, if discovered, might subject a Repre-
sentative to congressional investigation.

Webster returned to discover that his course in Congress

1 Webster's speech " On the Repeal of the Embargo " was delivered in the House
on April 6, 1814. It is printed in National Edition, XIV, 35 ff.

2 National Edition, XVI, ax.

p. 24.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 165

was approved by most of his fellow citizens. 1 His speeches
had been printed in the local newspapers, and even those who
disagreed with his views, with few exceptions, acknowledged
his ability. 2 At the state election in March 1814, the Fed-
eralist, John Taylor Oilman, again defeated Plumer for the
Governorship. In June, Webster received the unanimous
endorsement of his party for a second term. The Republicans,
inspired by the Patriot, fought hard against him, declaring
that "the self-importance and gross egotism" which he had
displayed were disgusting and that he had "by his own ex-
travagance and folly involved himself in pecuniary difficulties
at home." 3 At the election on August 29, however, he and
the other nominees on the "Peace Ticket" had a comfortable
margin over their opponents, who attributed their failure to
the absence from the state of so many soldiers.

Meanwhile, during the summer and autumn of 1814, Dis-
aster was piling up on disaster. Napoleon's abdication in
April enabled England to release veteran troops and fresh
ships against America. It is true that our forces did well at
Lundy's Lane (July 25, 1814) and that Commodore Mac-
donough's victory on Lake Champlain lightened the gloom.
But most of our seaports were blockaded, and part of the
coast of Maine was held by the enemy. The currency was
disordered, and the President issued a pathetic appeal for

1 The Keene Sentinel, March 26, 1814, asking the question, " Who is the greatest
man in the House of Representatives, party influence aside?" said, " Mr. Webster is a
young Ajax in political disquisition, and gives every promise of a towering politician."

2 The Portsmouth Oracle, Federalist in sentiment, said;, July 23, 1814: "Even the
opposition must feel their pride secretly gratified unless party spleen has banished every
vestige of native pride from their hearts, at the lustre, shed on New Hampshire by the
pre-eminent talents of a Mason and a Webster." Even Webster's implacable foes
were compelled to concede his ability, and the New Hampshire Patriot confessed,
August 27, " He is the only one of the members from New Hampshire that has opened
his mouth." The editor of the Patriot, Isaac Hill, had gradually gained for his paper
a circulation of more than three thousand subscribers, and, recognizing that Webster
was dangerous, assailed him bitterly.

3 New Hampshire Patriot, August 2 and August 9, 1814. In the midst of the cam-
paign, Isaac Hill wrote: " As to the talents of Webster, if we may take his speeches
which have from time to time appeared before the public as a specimen, they afford
evidence, indeed of what ? Not that he is a statesman, not that he ever could originate
a single idea that would be of any service either to his own party or to his country,
but that, like the moon-struck maniac, he can tire the ear with much speaking."

166 DANIEL WEBSTER

men and money. The culminating misfortune came in August,
when British regulars, landing in Maryland, routed our militia
at Bladensburg (August 24, 1814), and, marching into Wash-
ington with practically no resistance, burned the Capitol and
some other public buildings, including the "President's Palace."
Portsmouth, threatened in May, was in real danger in Sep-
tember, 1 and its citizens, directed by Webster, prepared to
resist a possible British landing at Rye Beach or Hampton,
south of the city. Because of the crisis, Webster was late
in returning to Congress, and the Patriot accused him of de-
laying in order to obtain legal fees in Portsmouth.

President Madison, having called Congress into an emer-
gency session, confessed that the treasury was on the verge
of bankruptcy, and Senator Mason wrote: "The Govern-
ment is in utter confusion and distress. Without a cabinet,
without credit or money, the nation is in a most deplorable
condition." 2 When Webster arrived, on October 14, he found
Congress occupying temporary quarters in a ramshackle build-
ing on 7th Street, formerly allotted to the Patent Office and
the General Post Office, and, before that, in succession a theater,
a tavern, and a boarding house. The room assigned to the
Lower House was so small that not all the members could
have desks, and every spot, even on the window ledges and in

1 At a Town Meeting, called on September 3, to arrange for the defense of Ports-
mouth, Jeremiah Mason was Moderator, and Webster offered some patriotic resolutions,
which were adopted. A nonpartisan Committee of Twelve was appointed, with
Webster as Chairman. On September 10, the Oracle printed a letter from Belfast,
Maine, predicting that the enemy would soon attack Portland and Portsmouth, and
Governor Oilman, as Commander-in-Chief, issued instructions for the militia to be in
readiness. But the expected landing never was attempted. Webster was always
proud of his share in these proceedings and, in 1835, wrote Caleb Cushing asking him
to include the following paragraph in an article which the latter was preparing on
Webster: " In the recess of Congress, in the summer of 1814, when the whole seaboard
was threatened by invasion, Mr. W. gave the principal part of his time in cooperating
with others for preparing for defense, in case of an attack by the enemy in the neighbor-
hood. By the citizens of Portsmouth, & on the nomination of that venerable republi-
can, John Langdon, he was placed at the head of the principal committee raised to
concert means of defense, & he offered his personal services to the Governor of the State
to be commanded in any mode in which they might be thought useful," (Fuess,
Cakb Cushing, I, 172-73.)

*Hillard, Jeremiah Mason, p. 93.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 167

the fireplaces, was filled. Certain spiteful Federalists, acting
on their usual determination

To rule the nation if they could,
But see it damned if others should,

improved the opportunity presented to them of causing trouble
for the administration and proposed removing the capital
to another city. Webster arrived just in time to cast his
vote in favor of removal. Fortunately the bill was negatived
in the House, and the seat of government remained on the
Potomac.

Webster, joining the assault on the administration, rose
to speak on October 24, during the debate on a plan to raise
money for carrying on the war by doubling the land tax.
With his wrath aroused by the threatened British attack on
Portsmouth and by the evidences of enemy destructiveness
all around him in Washington, Webster might have cried
loudly for revenge. Not at all! He seemed to be more
incensed against Madison than against the Prince Regent.
He attributed the "fearful wreck and ruin" of the public
credit to "an incompetent management of the powers of
government." In a spirit partisan rather than patriotic, he
denounced the Republicans for their failures. He ended by
expressing his intention of voting against the tax bill, justify-
ing himself by the fact that it was certain to pass and that,
by opposing it, he could voice his disapproval without holding
up the prosecution of the war. 1

Conditions did not improve as the year drew to a close.
Writing to Ezekiel on November 29, Webster said :

We are on the Eve of great events I expect a blow up soon. My
opinion is, that within sixty days Govt. will cease to pay even Secre-
taries, Clerks & Members of Congress. This I expect & when it comes

1 Webster had some difficulty in deciding what course to adopt. He wrote Ezekiel,
October 20, 1814: " My present inclination is, not to deny all sorts of supplies, in the
present crisis, but to hold myself quite at liberty to vote for or agst. any particular
tax. ... As to increase of the land tax, I have not decided." (National Edition,
XVI, 30.)

168 DANIEL WEBSTER

we are wound up. ... In shorty if Peace does not come this winter,
the Govt. will die in its own weakness. 1

He had one more opportunity on December 9, when a meas-
ure for a compulsory draft of all the free male population
between the ages of eighteen and forty-five was up for debate.
A plan of much the same kind was introduced in Congress in
1917 and quickly passed, as a necessary step in our participa-
tion in the World War. But Daniel Webster, in 1814, was its
uncompromising critic.

In what turned out to be his last speech on the war, Webster
declared that the principles of the bill were "not warranted
by any provision of the Constitution." The question at issue
was "nothing less than whether the most essential rights of
personal liberty shall be surrendered, and despotism embraced
in its worst form/* He reviewed the disasters of the pre-
ceding months, during which people had seen "the public
credit destroyed, and the national faith violated and dis-
graced." Referring specifically to the Conscription Bill, he
painted a vivid but much exaggerated picture of the plan in
operation, "when the class shall assemble to stand its draft,
and to throw the dice for blood." Conscription to him
was "an abominable doctrine," an "infamous expedient,"
and a "horrible lottery." "The nation," he continued, "is not
in a temper to submit to conscription." And then, carrying
his anti-administration theories to the farthest extreme which
he ever reached, he added, with regard to the military draft :

In my opinion it ought not to be carried into effect. The opera-
tion of measures thus unconstitutional and illegal ought to be pre-
vented by a resort to other measures which are both constitutional and
legal., It will be the solemn duty of the State Governments to pro-
tect their own authority over their own militia, and to interpose
between their citizens and arbitrary power. These are among the
objects for which the State Governments exist; and their highest
obligations bind them to the preservation of their own rights and the
liberties of their people. 2

It is impossible to avoid the conclusion that Webster was
1 National Edition, XVI, 3I . * Ibid., XIV, 68.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 169

here threatening, and even justifying, state nullification of a
Federal law an astounding doctrine to be advanced by a
disciple of Washington and Hamilton. To such an extreme
position had he been forced through his opposition to the war
and his abhorrence of Jeffersonian principles ! His influence
was exerted successfully. Although an act to much the same
effect had passed the Senate by a majority of seven, the bill was
indefinitely postponed in the House, and the announcement
of peace a few weeks later made any further discussion futile.
For some reason this speech was not published at the time
in the Portsmouth newspapers, 1 and it was not included In the
earlier editions of Webster's works. Indeed, George Ticknor
Curtis said that it had not been preserved. 2 Webster, how-
ever, had written it out after delivering it, and his manuscript
found its way into the archives of the New Hampshire His-
torical Society, where it was discovered by Van Tyne, who
included it as an "unpublished speech " in his edition of the
Letters of Daniel Webster,, in 1902. As the utterance in which
Webster showed himself most concerned regarding the rights
of states, this speech deserves careful study. It was for-
tunate for him that, when he was later condemning the nulli-
fiers of South Carolina, there was no one to revive against him
the words which he had used in 1814. Even Calhoun, who
must have been on the floor when Webster's remarks were being
made, never saw fit to resurrect them. In fairness to Webster,
however, it must be added that, although he did defend nulli-
fication, he devoted his closing paragraph to the repudiation
of disunionism :

Allusions have been made, sir, to the state of things in New Eng-
land, and, as usual, she has been charged with an intention to dis-
solve the Union. The charge is unfounded. She is much too wise
to entertain such purposes. She has had too much experience, and
has too strong a recollection of the blessings which the Union is ca-

1 Senator Jeremiah Mason's speech on the same question, delivered in the Upper
House in November, was printed in the Portsmouth Oracle for December 3, 1814.

2 Curtis, 1, 138. Referring to this speech in 1831, Webster said, " I had a hand, with
Mr. Eppes and others, in overthrowing Mr. Monroe's conscription in 1814."

170 DANIEL WEBSTER

pable of producing under a just administration of government. It is
her greatest fear> that the course at present pursued will destroy it,
by destroying every principle, every interest, every sentiment, and
every feeling which have hitherto contributed to uphold it. Those
who cry out that the Union is in danger are themselves the authors of
that danger. They put its existence to hazard by measures of vio-
lence, which it is not capable of enduring. They talk of dangerous
designs against government, when they are overthrowing the fabric
from Its foundations. They alone, sir, are friends to the union of
the States, who endeavor to maintain the principles of civil liberty in
the country, and to preserve the spirit in which the Union was framed. 1

Webster's absence from New England during this Special
Session covered the period of the "New England Conven-
tion/' which sat from December 15, 1814, to January 5, 1815,
in Hartford, Connecticut. Such a gathering had been sug-
gested at least as early as December 15, 1808, by Harrison
Gray Otis to Josiah Quincy, but action was delayed, and it
was not called until Massachusetts issued a formal invitation
to the other New England states. Twenty-three delegates
were present, including representatives from Rhode Island,
Connecticut, and Massachusetts, as well as one from Vermont
and two from New Hampshire. When the notification from
Massachusetts was received in New Hampshire, the Legisla-
ture was not in session. Governor Gilman, a thoroughgoing
Federalist, was quite ready to name delegates, but was appar-
ently blocked in his design by the opposition of his Counselors,
three out of five of whom were Republicans. 2 The people of

1 National Edition, XIV, 69.

2 In June 1814, the Legislature elected Elijah Hall, of Portsmouth, as a member of
the Governor's Council. Hall was a Republican, and Webster, in a letter to Moses P.
Payson (National Edition, XVI, 28), expressed indignation that a legislature supposedly
Federal should have chosen him. Later an alleged illegality was discovered in Hall's
election as Representative at the Portsmouth Town Meeting, and Webster appeared
before the Legislature to demand a rejection of the votes. He carried his point, but,
when the election was again held, the Legislature chose Hall once more, by a major-
ity of two votes. This gave the Republicans a majority in the Council, and, according
to Cyrus P. Bradley, prevented Governor Gilman from arbitrarily naming delegates
from New Hampshire to the Hartford Convention. (Biography of Isaac Hill, pp. 38-39,
published in Concord, in 1835.) The New Hampshire Patriot for November 29, 1814,
asserted that, at a secret Federalist meeting at Exeter, Webster had opposed the pro-
posed Hartford Convention and had blocked a plan to send delegates to it.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 171

Cheshire and Grafton Counties, along the Connecticut River,
did, however, hold assemblies and elect two men to represent
them.

About the Hartford Convention and its deliberations there
has always been an atmosphere of mystery. The call for the
Convention, sent out by the Massachusetts General Court,
spoke of a conference of the New England states upon " the
subjects of their public grievances and concerns/' and there
were undoubtedly some among the delegates who, like Harrison
Gray Otis, favored a new national convention for the radical
revision of the Federal Constitution. That even bolder meas-
ures, including the formation of a Northern Confederacy,
were suggested, cannot be denied. Among those who took
an active part in the discussions held in the council chamber of
the old Hartford State House were bold spirits who advocated
secession as a drastic but effectual remedy for their ills. 1 But
the majority seem to have been moderate Federalists, not
unlike Webster in their point of view, and the report of the
proceedings did not seem incendiary. 2 Briefly, it confessed
that the hour for open resistance had not arrived, and made
four innocuous recommendations : that state armies be raised ;
that seven specified amendments to the Constitution be passed ;
and that, if Congress failed to act, a second Convention be
called in June, in Boston. If the war had continued much
longer, it is conceivable that the restless agitators behind the
Hartford Convention might have caused trouble. But the
news of Jackson's victory at New Orleans, followed closely
by the tidings of the Treaty of Ghent, welcomed by New
England more warmly than by any other section of the country,
removed all the motives for separation and left Harrison
Gray Otis and his followers without an argument, 3

1 John Quincy Adams, with his usual lack of moderation, called the Convention
" unconstitutional and treasonable . . . wholly abnormal, hideous, and wicked."

2 A full account of the Convention was published in the Portsmouth Oracle for
January 14, 1815, only nine days after it had dissolved.

3 Senator Mason wrote of the Hartford Convention, November 04, 1814: "I do
not expect much from it at present, whatever may be the wishes or intentions of those
gentlemen, & expect it will end in a strong declaration of principles & a recommendation
of moderate measures." (Hillard, p. 103.)

i 7 2 DANIEL WEBSTER

Some years later, when Webster had become the outstand-
ing advocate of the inviolability of the Federal Union, efforts
were made by his political foes to implicate him with the Hart-
ford Convention. The plot was a complete failure. There
were witnesses to prove that he had advised Governor Oilman
not to appoint delegates from New Hampshire, and that he
was fearful lest it might be led into treasonable utterances.
George Ticknor, in his Recollections > speaks of a visit which
he made to Washington in January and February, 1815, just
after he had left Hartford, and makes the following statement :
"Mr, Gore, and more especially Mr. Mason and Mr. Webster,
expressed their dissatisfaction with the meeting of the conven-
tion ; and more particularly that they received no information
by correspondence from its members." * On August 24, 1835,
in reply to a letter of inquiry from James H. Bingham, Webster
put himself on record as follows :

If it would gratify yourself and friends, I would give you sundry
facts and dates, which show, what is strictly true, that I had no hand
or part whatever in the Hartford Convention, and it is true that I
expressed an opinion to Governor Gilman, that it would not be wise
in him to appoint delegates. Further than this I have no recollection
of interfering in the matter. At the same time, it is true that I did
not regard the proposed convention as seditious or treasonable. I
did not suppose that Mr. Cabot, Mr. West, Judge Prescott, and their
associates, were a knot of traitors. 2

At a date even later, Webster prepared for Hiram Ketchum
a formal statement of the facts, emphasizing the point that he
had nothing whatever to do with the meeting at Hartford, and
concluding :

It is certain that, after ten years of painstaking of all kinds (begin-
ning in Mr. Adams's administration), not a scrap or syllable has been
found, fixing upon me any approbation of, or concurrence in the
objects or the results of that convention. The truth is, I kept aloof
from all concern with it, and, as I had duties to perform here, con-
fined myself to their performance. 3

1 Curtis, 1, 136. 2 National Edition, XVIII, 11.

3 Ibid., pp. 184-85. This letter is sufficiently explicit to meet every charge raised
by Webster's opponents.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 173

As winter set in, Webster and the Federalists redoubled their
attacks on the administration. On December 22, 1814, he
wrote Moody Kent: "The Govt. cannot execute a Conscrip-
tion Law, if it should try, It cannot enlist soldiers It
cannot borrow money what can it do?" 1 Meanwhile the
rumors of peace which had been in the air developed into some-
thing more than gossip. The British and American Com-
missioners, who had convened at Ghent in the preceding
August, were, in spite of vacillations and delays, bringing their
negotiations through to a satisfactory conclusion, and a
treaty was signed on December 24, 1814. It conceded virtu-
ally nothing to the United States, but conditions were such
in this country that the American envoys were glad to give
their assent to the agreement The news of Jackson's defeat
of Pakenham on January 8, 1815, was a solace to the despond-
ent Republicans, and was followed in the middle of February
by the announcement of peace. 2 Webster had returned to
Portsmouth, reaching there on February 22, and heard the
church bells ringing joyfully to proclaim the end of the war.
Although he probably did not realize it at the moment, the
Federalists were left without an issue.

When Daniel Webster had reached such prominence that his
political record was being searched for inconsistencies, his
utterances before and during the War of 1812 were revived,
like ghosts, to testify against him. In the autumn of 1828,
the Jackson Republican, a semi-weekly journal established in
Boston by some former Federalists who had espoused the cause
of Andrew Jackson, published an article asserting that John
Quincy Adams, conversing with Thomas Jefferson, had de-
clared that Webster and other well-known Federalists had,
in 1807 and 1808, been "engaged in a plot to dissolve the
Union and reannex New England to Great Britain/' Webster,
who was in 1828 a Senator of the United States, was naturally

1 National Edition, XVI, 32.

2 The Portsmouth Oracle for February 25, 1815, which printed the full text of the
Treaty, said, " The Treaty of Peace reached Portsmouth in 76 hours from the City of
Washington, a distance of 550 miles." Ratifications of the Treaty were exchanged on
February 18, 1815.

I 74 DANIEL WEBSTER

aroused by this accusation, and brought a suit for criminal
libel in the Supreme Judicial Court against Theodore Lyman,
Jr., one of the proprietors of the newspaper. The trial was
held on December i6 9 1828, before a jury, with the distin-
guished Chief Justice Isaac Parker presiding. 1 As Lyman
belonged by birth to that inner circle of Boston society, to
which Webster had been admitted through his talents, the
case became a kind of cause cil^bre^ the outcome of which was
awaited eagerly.

The evidence showed that Adams, in mentioning the
"leaders of the Federal party in New England," had never
named Webster specifically, and that the perpetrator of the
alleged libel had included Webster only because of his later
important position in the Federalist councils. Samuel Hub-
bard, in defending Lyman, made the point that it could not be
libelous to assert that a man had plotted to dissolve the Union,
for "every State has a right to secede from the Union without
committing treason" a declaration particularly interesting
because of the fact that Webster's Reply to Hayne was made
only a little more than a year later.

It was, of course, preposterous to suppose that Webster,
who, in 1808, was a struggling attorney in Portsmouth with
only a limited political influence, had then anything to do with
the plans of the Essex Junto. The jury were unable to reach
a verdict, although it was reported on good authority that
they stood ten to two for conviction. That Webster failed to
obtain the vindication he desired was due to a doubt on the
part of the jury as to whether the charge were ever really made.
Mr. Benton, who studied the details carefully, reached the
conclusion that Lyman never intended to accuse Webster of
complicity in a treasonable plot to break up the Union and
that, therefore, no ground for libel ever existed. Lyman
and Webster were later reconciled, but echoes of the trial were
heard long after at dinners on Beacon Hill.

1 The story of this famous suit has been vigorously and entertainingly told by Josiah
H. Benton, b A Notabk Libel Case, a booklet published in 1904, by Charles E. Good-
speed, of Boston, Most of Webster's biographers have neglected to mention the
episode, and it has seldom been accorded the attention which it deserves.

A CONGRESSMAN IN OPPOSITION 175

Webster, during the period covered by this chapter, was
guided in his political conduct mainly by two factors his own
instinctive antagonism to Republican principles and his re-
gard for the financial interests of his own section of the coun-
try. Jefferson's commercial restrictions and the war with
England were prejudicial to the merchants and shipowners of
Portsmouth, whom Webster represented. 1 In opposing the
Embargo and the war, Webster was thinking in terms, not of
the nation from the Atlantic to the Mississippi, but of New
England. Professor Van Tyne was not far wrong in styling
him a "local politician," for there was indisputably a pro-
vincial feeling in all that he had to say on the fateful issues of
that period. It was not until later that he was to boast, as
he did on March 7, 1850, "I wish to speak to-day, not as a
Massachusetts man, nor as a Northern man, but as an
American/*

1 It is noteworthy that, throughout this period, the town of Portsmouth regularly
gave a small majority for the Republican candidates, both for Governor and for Con-
gress. Undoubtedly the wealthier citizens of that seaport were strongly Federalist,
but the middle and lower classes so-called were usually Jeffersonian in their
principles and votes.

VII

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX

Sweet with persuasion, eloquent
In passion, cool in argument,
Or, ponderous, falling on thy foes
As fell the Norse gocTs hammer blows.

WHITHER, u The Lost Occasion "

My efforts in regard to the banks, at different times suggested, and in
regard to the currency of the country > I think were of some small degree of

utility to the public.

WEBSTER, Autobiography

DANIEL WEBSTER was a thoroughly healthy human being, with
keen senses, sound digestive organs, and a mind free from those
complexes and repressions which so fascinate the pathologist.
Once it was reported that Webster had said that he wished that
he had never been born ; but Rufus Choate, when he heard of
it, declared that this must have been a momentary fit of gloom,
occasioned by disaster, for "Webster was rather a constitu-
tionally happy man/* His personality was neither subtle nor
inexplicable. His attention was fixed, not in his own reactions,
but on externalities; on lawsuits and politics, not on the
elusive mysteries of life or the hidden wonders of the universe.
Busy with practical matters, he refused to yield to moods.
He escaped both despondency and exaltations, and was in this
respect quite different from the neurotic and introspective
Abraham Lincoln.

Webster seldom unlocked his heart. His letters tell us what
he is doing., not what he is thinking. His so-called "private
correspondence" is as public as a newspaper. It was not that
he was secretive. He simply attached no importance to those
caprices and mad desires which make the confessions of Cellini
and Rousseau so charming. Nor was it that he was dull. He

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 177

was almost as uncommunicative about himself as Grant or
Cleveland, but there are countless stories of him > told by
others, which divulge the essential man, undraped and off
guard a very human person, with frailties which make us
love him. What we miss are those intimate and indiscreet dis-
closures in which writers like John Quincy Adams and Roosevelt
so completely reveal themselves. If we are searching for the
real Webster, we find him in Harvey's Reminiscences and in the
hundreds of anecdotes, verifiable or legendary, which indicate
how superbly vital he was.

Of his daily life in Washington during his early terms in
Congress we know very little aside from some meagre items
culled from his letters. His salary of six dollars a day and
mileage did not permit of luxurious quarters, but he had lodg-
ings at Crawford's Hotel, in Georgetown, with Senator Mason, 1
as well as with such wealthy men as Christopher Gore and
Rufus King, both of whom brought their wives with them and
maintained considerable style. Webster for some time had a
room next to Mason's, and the two ate at a congenial table in
the hotel, often, however, dining with Gore and King. 2 "In
the mess," said Ticknor of Webster, "he was very amusing,
talking gayly, and as if no care rested upon him. Everywhere
he was liked as a social companion."

Into the formal society of the capital Webster seems not to
have entered, except in a casual way. After a little experience,
he wrote to Bingham :

A few ladies, indeed, are to be seen by going to the weekly rout
at the palace ; but they are there only as so many curiosities rara
aves fit for all the purposes of social life, save only the unimportant

1 Mason wrote, November a, 1814, that he had " an excellent chamber, consisting
of two apartments," at Crawford's Hotel. On December 27, he added, ** The mess
(as it is here called) with which I dine, consists of eight or ten gentlemen, mostly well-
informed, pleasant, and agreeable."

2 In speaking of Webster, Ticknor wrote: "His society was much sought. His
relations with Mr. Gore, dating from the period of his studying the law, and his inti-
mate friendship with Mr. Mason, never at any moment interrupted or disturbed, made
him a most welcome member of that brilliant circle, which generally met in the evening
in the private parlor belonging to Mrs. King and Mrs. Gore, which was rather an elegant
drawing-room, for the time." (Curtis, I, 135.)

I7 8 DANIEL WEBSTER

particulars of speaking and being spoken to, . . I have been to the
levee or drawing room but once. It is a mere matter of form. . . .
You stay from five minutes to an hour, as you please ; eat and drink
what you can catch* without danger of surfeit, and if you can luckily
find your hat and stick, then take your French leave ; and that's going
to the a levee. ni

He once dined with < CoL Pickering, Mr. Stockton, and a
few others** at Mount Vernon, as the guest of Judge Bushrod
Washington, and had "a very pleasant time/' But he tells
us nothing of the food, the clothes, or the conversation.

His colleagues, however, were talking about him and learning
to respect him. New member though he was, he was appointed
in July 1 8 13 on a Federalist " steering committee," with Timothy
Pickering as Chairman, to control party matters in the House. 2
Ticknor, writing of a period in the early months of 1815,
declared that Webster, although he had then been in Congress
less than two years, "was already among its foremost men,
and stood with Gaston and Hanson to lead the opposition in
debate, on the floor of the Lower House/" 3 He had taken pains
to familiarize himself in a practical way with the technique of
legislation, and his spare time was devoted to reading in history
and economics. 4 He was well aware that, in Congress, the man
whose mind is stored with information is certain to acquire
influence.

1 National Edition, XVII, 234.
3 Ibid., p. 237.

3 Regarding Webster's power as a speaker, Ticknor wrote : " I heard Mr. Webster
several times in the House, not In formal speeches, but in that very deliberate con-
versational manner, and with the peculiar exactness of phraseology, which marked him
as a public debater to the end of his life. He did not fail then, any more than afterward,
to command the attention of the House. The subjects on which he spoke related to the
common course of business, and were not exciting or particularly interesting."

4 The best witness as to Webster's reading at this time is again George Ticknor,
who said : " He was at this time much occupied with the study of British politics.
Volumes of the 'Annual Register* and the 4 Parliamentary Debates* covered his table ;
and while I was in Washington he read through Brougham's * Colonial Policy of the
European Powers,' parts of which he praised to me, while with other portions he was
much dissatisfied. When conversing with the other members with whom I constantly
saw htm, he seemed to me to know more about the details of business before the House
than any of them. I mean that he appeared to know more what was to come up next,
or soon, facts which I was anxious to know." (Curtis, 1, 136.)

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 179

In his physical appearance, Webster, although only a little
over thirty, had become a commanding figure, who moved
among others as if conscious of his superiority. Visitors per-
ceived that he was no ordinary man. Some thought that he
was too theatrical, and indeed he did have the dramatic instinct
which makes the orator and the actor akin. But it was his
sincerity, backed by that broad forehead and those lustrous
eyes, which endowed him with power. Massive and leonine,
he dominated others even before his lips were open ; and, when
the rich tones rolled forth, his hearers were enchanted, like the
mariners listening to the Sirens. His easy flow of language
and his calm self-possession, even in the fury of debate, were
noticeable. He never stammered or groped for an idea, and he
had a clearness of expression which was refreshing when issues
were confused and timid men were hesitating which way to
turn.

To the first session of the Fourteenth Congress, which opened
in December 1815, Webster returned late. He reached
Washington with Mrs. Webster in early January 1816, but they
were almost at once called north by the serious illness of their
daughter, who had been left with friends in Cambridge. When
he was finally able to resume his seat, on February 7, 1816, he
was aware that the divergencies between parties were no longer
as obvious as they had been. The Treaty of Ghent had
deprived the Federalists of their cherished grievance, and the
party was slowly dying of inanition. The Hartford Convention,
so menacing to the Administration a year before, now seemed a
fiasco, and Harrison Gray Otis's mission to Washington had
made him the laughingstock of the Republicans. There were,
of course, nominal divisions in the House, with Clay and
Calhoun still heading one group and Webster exercising a large
influence over the other. But the " Era of Good Feeling" was
at hand. Questions of the currency and the tariff, with which
this session was mostly concerned, were not discussed primarily
as problems of party policy, but rather on their merits as
economic measures.

Congress reassembled in a plain brick structure, which had

i8o DANIEL WEBSTER

been erected during the preceding summer by John Law and
leased to the government as temporary headquarters. 1 Look-
ing around him in the crowded hall assigned to the House,
Webster could see, besides Clay in the Speaker's Chair and
Calhoun on the floor, William Pinkney, then the undisputed
leader of the American bar, the eccentric John Randolph,
once more in his place after two years out of office, and, among
the new faces, these of Joseph Hopkinson, of Pennsylvania,
and Samuel R. Betts, of New York. Webster declared in 1831
that he had seen no such Congress for talents as the
Fourteenth, 2 In such a galaxy, the most conspicuous figures
were undoubtedly Calhoun and Webster, although we are told
that Randolph talked more than either.

The important topic in Congress was that of the reestablish-
ment of a National Bank, on which Webster's utterance was
eagerly awaited, for he had already discussed the matter in the
preceding session. When the original Bank of the United
States, organized in 1791 through the foresight of Alexander
Hamilton, expired at the end of twenty years, an effort to
recharter it was defeated, chiefly because Republicans were
suspicious of its Federalist origin. Meanwhile a mania for
state banks had resulted in an era of paper money, over which
the Federal Government had no jurisdiction ; and the doubtful
state of the currency was a constant menace to legitimate
business. In the autumn of 1814, with the treasury facing an
enormous deficit, the party of Thomas Jefferson became through
necessity the advocate of the very institution which it had con-
demned less than a quarter of a century before. Webster him-
self, as a loyal follower of Hamilton, favored a National Bank;
but, being a "hard money " man, he stipulated that it should
be compelled to redeem its notes in specie, that it should not be
overcapitalized, and that it should be free to determine for
itself whether or not it should make loans to the government.
The principles on which Webster insisted are entirely sound,

1 Hazelton, The National Capitol, p. 39. This " Brick Capitol," as it was called,
stood on the corner of A and First Streets, N. E.

2 From a manuscript letter quoted by Curtis, I, 146.

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 181

and, in the opinion of the best authorities, are at the basis of
any wise system of banking. It would have amazed Ebenezer
Webster, who was always in debt, to hear his son, also not
unaccustomed to borrowing, discoursing on theories of banking.
But Daniel Webster could arrange the financial affairs of a
nation far better than he could his own monetary perplexities.
The bill as proposed by the administration in December
1814 had established a "paper money" bank, with a capital of
fifty million dollars, of which only four million dollars was to be
specie. Furthermore the government was to have not only the
power to borrow up to thirty millions of dollars, but also the
right to frame regulations regarding specie payments. In
plain terms, the bank was to be merely the creature of the
government, with almost no authority of its own, and existing
mainly that its funds might be available for government
demands. The effect of this plan would have been to put
into circulation an irredeemable paper currency, founded upon
forty-six millions in government stocks, then much depreciated
because of the war. In commenting on this phase of the proj-
ect, Webster said, in a memorandum written in 1831 :

Throughout all the debates on the bank question, I kept steadily in
view the object of restoring the currency, as a matter of the very first
importance, without which it would be impossible to establish any
efficient system of revenue and finance. The very first step toward
such a system is to provide a safe medium of payment. I opposed,
therefore, to the full extent of my power, every project for a bank so
constituted that it might issue irredeemable paper, and thus drown
and overwhelm us still more completely in the miseries and calamities
of paper money. I would agree to nothing but a specie-paying
bank. 1

The Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander J. Dallas, who
sponsored the measure, resorted to every possible device in
order to drive it through Congress. It had originally been
rejected by the House in late November; but Dallas, un-
daunted, had it introduced in the Senate and was able to

1 Curtis, I, 140.

1 82 DANIEL WEBSTER

secure its passage there* On the day before Christmas it was
reported, with some unimportant amendments, by the Com-
mittee of the Whole in the House, Alarmed, the Federalists
sent for Webster, who was spending the holiday in Baltimore,
and he rode the forty miles to Washington on horseback, in
season to appear in his seat on the morning of Tuesday, De-
cember 27. Owing to the death of a Senator, the bill was laid
upon the table until Monday, January 2, 1815, when Webster
made a powerful speech in criticism of it. His remarks, which
displayed a thorough acquaintance with the basic principles as
well as the history of banking, stressed the desirability of a
specie-paying bank, free to transact business without outside
interference. The essence of his argument is compressed in a
single paragraph :

Excessive issues of paper, and a close connection with government,
are the circumstances which of all others are the most certain to de-
stroy the credit of bank paper. If there were no excessive issues, or,
in other words, if the bank paid its notes in specie on demand, its
connection with government and its interest in the funds would not,
perhaps, materially affect the circulation of its paper, although they
would naturally diminish the value of its stock. But when these two
circumstances exist in the condition of any bank, that it does not pay
its notes, and that its funds are in public stocks, and all its operations
intimately blended with the operations of government, nothing fur-
ther need be known, to be quite sure that its paper will not answer the
purpose of a creditable circulating medium. 1

Unanswerable objections such as these had their effect even
on prejudiced minds. 2 After the House had refused to recom-
mit the measure, it was brought to a direct vote, the roll call
showing 8 1 "yeas" and 80 "nays." Speaker Langdon Cheves,
of South Carolina, then rose, and, after giving reasons for his

1 National Edition, V, 44-45. This speech was the earliest of Webster's Congres-
sional speeches to be included in the official edition of his works. The New York
Evening Post said of this speech that it presented its readers " with more sound sense,
more practical knowledge of the subject in a style plain and unadorned, yet precise and
chaste, than we have yet seen from any other man/*

2 For a good summary of Webster's criticisms of the bank bill, see Robert L. Carey's
Daniel Webster As an Economist (1929), pp. 101-04.

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 183

action > cast his vote in the negative. 1 The bill was thus lost
by a tie. Calhoun, who felt keenly the humiliation of the
administration, then strode dramatically across the floor to
Webster's desk and, holding out his hands in appeal, begged for
his assistance in framing an act which would have the latter *s
support. When Webster pledged himself to help, the South
Carolinian burst into tears. 2

Webster kept his promise. A revised plan, meeting most of
his objections, was drafted, and, after undergoing some modi-
fications in the Senate, was passed by both Houses. But
President Madison now became a factor in the controversy and,
on January 30, returned it without his signature, advancing
various reasons for his veto. Writing to Ezekiel, Webster said,
"The President has negatived the bank bill. So all our labor
is lost. I hope this will satisfy our friends, that it was not a
bank likely to favor the administration. What is to be done
next nobody can tell." 3 Although another project, intended
to meet the criticisms of the Chief Executive, was now intro-
duced, the news of the Treaty of Ghent interrupted the debate,
and, when the end of the session came on March 3, 1815, noth-
ing had been accomplished.

By resisting these attempts to organize a bank which would
have only an insubstantial basis of credit, Webster performed a
genuine service to the nation. Against untried panaceas and
delusive remedies for the ills of the body politic, he stood firm,
convinced that it was better to be safe than to run the risk of
insecurity. What Hamilton started, Webster continued, and
no theorist could dislodge him from his position.

Such was the history of the preliminary stages of the measure

1 Langdon Cheves (1776-1857), one of the most brilliant of South Carolina lawyers,
entered Congress in 1811 and was a strong supporter of the war with England. He
succeeded Henry Clay as Speaker of the House, receiving the support of the Federalists
against Felix Grundy, who was the candidate of the administration. In 1819, Cheves,
who had been a judge of the Superior Court of South Carolina since 1816, was made
President of the Bank of the United States and was largely responsible for establishing
its credit. When he resigned in 1822, he had transformed it into a strong and reputable
institution.

3 Quoted in Curtis, I, 143, from Ticknor, who heard the story from Webster himself.

8 National Edition, XVII, 251.

184 DANIEL WEBSTER

which Webster found under discussion when he resumed his
seat in February 1 8 1 6* At the first convenient opportunity, on
February 28, he reiterated his convictions in a speech which was
undoubtedly the most important contribution to the debate. 1
Because of his incontrovertible arguments, the proposed large
capitalization ($35,000,000) was considerably reduced and the
power of the President to authorize the suspension of specie
payments was stricken out. Webster was also opposed to the
subscription of stock on the part of the government and to the
appointment of government directors, but was unable to bring
about any alteration in these features of the plan. When this
bill, as modified by the Senate, came once more before the
House, Webster, in reply to Grosvenor, of New York, spoke in
an amiable and tolerant way, pointing out again the fact that
it placed in the hands of the government altogether too much
control over the proposed National Bank. With perfect con-
sistency, he cast his vote against the measure, but it was passed
by Congress, April 10, 1816, and signed by the President.
Although he had been defeated, Webster could comfort himself
with the knowledge that the Bank was sure to be a better one
because of his inflexible opposition to some of the dangerous
features which had been proposed. 2

In connection with another important measure of this session,
Webster showed his skillful leadership. Calhoun, as Chairman
of the Committee on the National Currency, presented a plan,
suggested by the Treasury Department, requiring all govern-
ment revenues to be paid in nothing but gold, silver, copper,
such foreign coins as were legal tender, and treasury notes, thus
excluding the notes of banks which were not specie-paying.
The opposition from the friends of state banks was very deter-
mined, and the bill was eventually lost by a margin of one vote.

1 A condensed and inadequate Version of this speech is printed in National Edition,
XIV, 70 ff.

2 Calhoun always contended that, as Chairman of the Committee on the National
Currency, he was the one responsible for the Second Bank of the United States. " I
might say with truth," he said in the Senate, January ij, 1834, " that the bank owes as
much to me as to any other individual in the country ; and I might even add that, had
it not been for my efforts, it would not have been chartered." (Meigs, Calhoun^ I, 194.)

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPIJEX 185

Then Webster gave an amazing display of his power. On the
following morning, he introduced a joint resolution covering
precisely the same principle, supporting it in a speech so clear
and so persuasive that it actually converted some of his
opponents to his side. He pointed out that the situation of the
country "in regard to its finances and the collection of its
revenues" was "most deplorable"; he asserted that, because
of the lack of a uniform system of collection, the whole revenue
was thrown into "derangement and endless confusion"; he
exposed what he called " the plausible and insidious mischiefs
of a paper-money system"; and he reiterated his conviction
that these evils required the immediate attention of Congress.
He made no attempt to be rhetorical. He endeavored, by his
earnestness, to carry conviction. Seldom has a complicated
matter been more lucidly explained.

Webster's sheer audacity enabled him to succeed where
Calhoun had failed. The resolution went through all the
stages of legislation on the same morning, was ultimately passed
by a large majority, and was signed by the President four days
later. It provided that, after February 20, 1817, all monies due
the government must be paid in coin, treasury notes, notes of
the Bank of the United States, or of other banks redeeming
their bills in legal currency. Thus the policy of specie pay-
ments was formally adopted. The Second Bank of the United
States, under William Jones, once Secretary of the Navy and
Acting Secretary of the Treasury, as president, was opened for
business in 1817, and, after some vicissitudes, the country was
on a sound money basis. The achievement of this happy result
was due largely to Webster's personal intervention. In com-
menting on what had been accomplished, he wrote proudly in
1831:

The resolutions had all the desired effect. They brought about
an entire change in the currency of the country. Duties and taxes,
debts for lands, etc., were then equally borne and equally paid.' After
some years of unfortunate management, the national bank took a
good direction ; and from that time to this the United States have
had a currency perfectly sound and safe, and more convenient, and

1 86 DANIEL WEBSTER

producing local exchanges at less expense, than any other nation Is

or ever was blessed with.

No small part of Webster's constructive work as a legislator
was carried on in the unromantic but exceedingly useful guise of
an economist. The average citizen does not become ecstatic
over columns of figures and prefers tales of battles and sieges to
pages of statistics. Yet the statesmen who provide revenue for
the machinery of government of ten perform more lasting serv-
ices than those who revel in picturesque adventures. Too little
attention has been paid to Webster's share in stabilizing our
finances and keeping the ship of State off the rocks of insolvency.

The tariff, too, is a prosaic subject, but one with which
Webster was much concerned during certain periods of his
career ; and the criticism to which he was subjected because of
his change of attitude makes it necessary to explain his position
in 1816. As a representative from a district in which shipping
was the chief industry, he was In theory an advocate of free
trade, looking upon import duties as justifiable only as a means
of paying government expenses. At the time of the proposed
repeal of the Embargo Act in 1814, Webster, replying to a
speech by Calhoun favoring the retention of certain duties as a
protective measure, said forcibly that he doubted the wisdom
of retaining double duties "as a more effectual safeguard and
encouragement to our growing manufactures." 1 His exact
words are important in view of the volte-face which he later
made:

In respect to manufactures, it is necessary to speak with some pre-
cision. I am not, generally speaking, their enemy. I am their
friend, but I am not for rearing them, or any other interest, in hot-
beds. I would not legislate precipitately, even in favor of them;
above all, I would not profess intentions in relation to them which
I did not purpose to execute. I feel no desire to push the capital into
extensive manufactures faster than the general progress of our wealth
and population propels it.

1 This speech was delivered on April 6, 1814, called forth by Calhoun's proposal,
on April 4^ to repeal the Embargo Act. It is printed in National Edition, XIV, 35 ff.

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 187

This is very good laissezfaire doctrine, actuated s in Webster's
case, by the fact that Portsmouth was a seaport town and that
New England was relying for its continued prosperity mainly
upon its carrying trade. His opinions on economic matters
were formed by the needs and demands of his section. Born
and brought up on a farm, he was not eager to stimulate manu-
facturing at the expense of agriculture ; and it was this feeling
which was responsible for one of his eloquent paragraphs still
quoted in legislative halls :

I am not anxious to accelerate the approach of the period when the
great mass of American labor shall not find its employment in the
field ; when the young men of the country shall be obliged to shut
their eyes upon external nature, upon the heavens and the earth, and
immerse themselves in close and unwholesome workshops ; when they
shall be obliged to shut their ears to the bleating of their own flocks
upon their own hills, and to the voice of the lark that cheers them at
the plough, that they may open them in dust, and smoke, and steam,
to the perpetual whirl of spools and spindles, and the grating of rasps
and saws. 1

Before many years had passed, great manufacturing centres
were to rise along the Merrimack : Hooksett was to become
Manchester, Watanic was to be transformed into Nashua, and
Lowell, Haverhill, and Lawrence were to develop into teeming
hives of industry. Even at Franklin, only a short distance from
Webster's hitherto isolated birthplace, textile mills were to
bring prosperity to thousands of employees. The wharves
along the coast, as if in reaction, were slowly to fall into aban-
donment and decay, and the farms along the ridges were to be
deserted. With this change were to arise novel and puzzling
problems : the difficulties of foreign immigration, the social
and hygienic questions presented by crowded tenements, the
inevitable adjustments between capital and labor. When this
complex era dawned, Webster's views had to be modified ; but
in 1814 he said with fervor :

It is the true policy of government to suffer the different pursuits
of society to take their own course, and not to give excessive boun-

1 National Edition, XIV, 4$.

1 88 DANIEL WEBSTER

ties or encouragements to one over another. This also is the true
spirit of the Constitution. It has not, in my opinion, conferred on
the government the power of changing the occupations of the
people of different states and sections, and of forcing them into other
employments. It cannot prohibit commerce any more than agricul-
ture, nor manufacture more than commerce. It owes protection to
all. 1

With the War of 1812 over, Congress was free to turn its
attention to matters of internal policy, among which the tariff
was foremost. An act, framed principally by the Secretary of
the Treasury, and intended to protect "infant industry," was
introduced in the spring of 1816, and, strangely enough in the
light of future events, received the support of Calhoun and
Lowndes, of South Carolina. 2 Webster, although he did not
enter into any discussion of the broad issues involved, devoted
his efforts, not unsuccessfully, to reducing the duties on textiles,
and especially on iron and hemp, which New Englanders
employed extensively in ship construction. He did not attempt
to fight a policy which obviously had a considerable majority in
its favor, contenting himself with guarding the interests of his
constituents. Then, as always, the attitude of different sec-
tions of the country towards the tariff was determined mainly
by selfish motives.

During this session, Webster voted in favor of a measure for
raising the pay of Congressmen from six dollars a day, and
mileage, to $1500 a year. At the passing of this bill, there was
an outcry throughout the country, and many of the members
who had sanctioned the increase failed to secure a renomination.
Webster himself had nothing to lose, for he had moved to
Massachusetts, and was no longer eligible to office from New
Hampshire.

Even in the heat engendered by controversy, Webster did not

1 National Edition, XIV, 45.

2 Calhoun was not the author of the Tariff of 1816, but he approved of it and declared
his belief that " a certain encouragement should be extended, at least, to our woolen
and cotton manufacturers." There was then a strong sentiment in South Carolina
favoring protection. (Meigs, I, 191.)

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 189

Indulge in personalities, 1 and was invariably courteous and
tactful towards those who disagreed with him. It was not in
his nature to allow differences on public matters to degenerate
into private grudges. He kept on polite terms with President
Madison, whose policies he was so vigorously opposing ; and he
and Calhoun, meeting at dinner, showed no disposition to
quarrel. But, in the spring of 1816, he incurred the wrath of
the fiery John Randolph, of Roanoke, by objecting to a tax on
sugar which the latter wished to incorporate in the tariff bill ;
and Randolph, following his customary practice, challenged
Webster to meet him on the "field of honor." Under similar
conditions, Alexander Hamilton had felt obliged to meet the
requirements of the " code/' But Webster, who disapproved of
dueling, had the temerity to decline a meeting, and replied to
Randolph refusing to concede the latter's right to call him to
account for "words of a general nature used in debate." He
concluded :

It is enough that I do not feel myself bound, at all times and under
any circumstances, to accept from any man, who shall choose to
risk his own life, an invitation of this sort ; although I shall always be
prepared to repel in a suitable manner the aggression of any man
who may presume upon such a refusal. 2

Friends of the two men, well aware that Randolph had only
the flimsiest excuse for his conduct, now intervened and
arranged an amicable adjustment, and Webster emerged from
the affair without loss of prestige, even with hot-headed
Southern Congressmen. Indeed, Randolph, when his blood
had cooled, was so far pacified as to send Webster, at the latter *s
request, a copy of the correspondence between them. Thus
was "honor" satisfied a century ago.

Webster's high expectations of a Congressional career had not

1 The New Hampshire Republicans still hated him, and Hill's Patriot published, on
January 16, 1816, a poem, which included the lines:

What though a Thompson or a Webster plume
Their powder'd skull-caps, with prodigious bloom;
And, high in office, loud in voice, proclaim
Each other's tide to respectful fame ?

2 Letter to Randolph, April, 1816, published in National Edition, XVII, 259.

190 DANIEL WEBSTER

been altogether realized. The House, until its novelty had
worn off, had been interesting, but he had found there the same
incompetency* the same intolerance, the same selfishness,
which were to be encountered in Portsmouth or in any other
city. Withdrawn for weeks at a time from his law practice, he
had revived his legal ambitions. 1 In February 1814 he had
been admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the
United States, and, at that term, was employed in at least two
cases involving prizes of war. His first appearance as counsel
before the Supreme Bench was in the matter of the St. Lawrence
(8 Cranch, 210 C), in which certain claimants had appealed
from the Circuit Court of the United States for the District of
New Hampshire. A United States vessel, going to England
after the war had started, had brought back a cargo belonging
principally to British subjects, and had been captured and con-
demned. Webster, who appeared for two of the many claim-
ants, some New York merchants, McGregor and Penniman,
was able to convince the Court that his clients had some
recognizable rights, although the decision, rendered by Judge
Henry B. Livingston, declared that the Circuit Court was
bound to confiscate the cargo of the St. Lawrence as a legitimate
prize of war. 2 At the same term, Webster was an associate
of the distinguished Samuel Dexter 3 in the case of the Grotius
(8 Cranch, 219 ff.), another prize appeal, of no great impor-
tance. This sitting of the Supreme Court was dominated by

1 Webster's first case in the United States Circuit Court was United States v. McNeal
(i Gallison, 387), tried at the May term in 1813, before Joseph Story, Circuit Judge,
and Sherburne, the District Judge. A question of perjury was involved, and, when
Webster proved that the indictment gave the wrong date, his client was acquitted.
Mason and Webster were joint counsel for the defendant, and Humphreys appeared
for the plaintiff.

2 The other attorney for the claimants was Irving, and the lawyer for the defendants
was Pitman. In this case, Webster charged one of his clients three hundred dollars
the largest single fee which he had received up to that time.

8 Samuel Dexter (1761-1816) was, in 1816, nearing the close of a brilliant legal
career. He had been United States Senator (1799-180x3), Secretary of War (1801),
and Secretary of the Treasury (1801), and had then resumed the practice of law, appear-
ing every winter before the United States Supreme Court. Once a Federalist, he had
turned Republican in 1812 on the issue of the war with England. In court, he was a
dear reasoaer and shrewd thinker, but lacked the eloquence of Pinkney,

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 191

Dexter, Robert G. Harper, and William Pinkney 3 the last named
of whom was employed in nearly ail the suits. Webster, as a
young attorney, was glad to have an opportunity of learning
how business was conducted before the highest legal tribunal
in the land.

The first appeal of any significance in which Webster was
engaged was that of The Town of Pawlet v. Daniel Clark, et aL
(9 Cranch, 292 flf.), which came up from the Vermont Circuit
Court at the February term in 1815. It involved, in the first
place, the question of the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in
controversies arising between citizens of the same state claiming
land under grants of different states, when one of the states
involved had been admitted after the adoption of the Constitu-
tion. Taking a liberal interpretation of the Constitution,
Webster persuaded the Court that the clause in question
covered not only the thirteen original parties to the compact,
but also all those which had been, or might be, legally admitted
to the Union at a later date. Arguing with Pitkin for the
plaintiffs, Webster also secured a decision sustaining the
validity of a Vermont statute affecting Pawlet. A colonial
grant had divided the land set apart for the town into sixty-
eight shares, one of which had been designated as " a glebe for
the Church of England as by law established/' There being no
Church of England in Vermont before the Revolution, the town
had administered that share as Trustee, and the income from it
had later been appropriated to the use of the public schools.
The right of the town to do this was asserted by the Supreme
Court. The chief significance of the case lay in Webster's
plea for the enlargement of the jurisdiction of that tribunal.

The modest successes which Webster had enjoyed in these
cases before the Supreme Court undoubtedly stirred his
dormant ambition to build up a larger practice in his profession.
To do this, it was essential that he should escape from Ports-
mouth to a more important city, where opportunities would be
more numerous. On March 26, 1816, he wrote frankly about
his plans to Ezekid :

i 9 a DANIEL WEBSTER

I have settled my purpose to remove from New Hampshire in the
course of the summer. I have thought of Boston, New York, and
Albany, On the whole, I shall, probably, go to Boston ; although I
am not without some inducements to go into the State of New York.
Our New England prosperity and importance are passing away.
This is fact. The events of the times, the policy of England, the con-
sequences of our war, and the Ghent Treaty, have bereft us of our
commerce, the great source of our wealth. If any great scenes are to
be acted in this country within the next twenty years, New York is
the place in which those scenes are to be viewed. 1

This jeremiad, occasioned partly by the news which he
received regarding the decline of shipping in Portsmouth,
showed no vision of the prosperity which was shortly to come to
New England from her mills and manufactures. But Webster
doubtless displayed good judgment in seizing upon that
moment as opportune for moving to a wealthier and more
populous city. He could hope for very little enlargement of
his professional income if he stayed in Portsmouth. He had
gone as far as he could go in that community* and it was time
to seek a broader field.

While he was still occupied with Congressional business, his
aged mother, after some months of declining health, died
in Boscawen, at the home of Ezekiel, on April 10, 1816. On
the following day, unaware of her death;, Daniel wrote to his
brother, "I pray for her everlasting peace and happiness, and
would give her a son's blessing for all her parental goodness." 2
Congress rose on April 30, and Webster was back in Portsmouth
in early May. In June, he and his wife went to Boston to in-
spect houses, and he moved with his family to that city in Au-
gust. Only eleven years had passed since he had left Boston, an
obscure and untried law student; now he returned, with a
reputation as one of the foremost advocates in New Hampshire
and a fame almost national as a leader in Congress. There was
no danger that clients would not flock to his door.

Webster, through his change of residence, was, of course,

1 National Edition, XVI, 256.

2 Letter to Ezekiel, April ir, 1816 (National Edition, XVII, 257).

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 193

ineligible for a renoraination to Congress. His place at the
head of the Federalist ticket was taken by Jeremiah Smith;
but, despite the latter 's popularity, the Republicans won in
November by a vote of 8309 to 723 1. 1 Had Webster been a
candidate, he would undoubtedly have met the same fate, so
strong was the reaction towards Republicanism after the war.
One more session still remained of the Fourteenth Congress,
and Webster had arranged with Senator Mason to take their
wives to Washington for the winter. If the schedule as outlined
was carried out, 2 the Websters left Boston on Monday, No-
vember n, driving by "hack or gig" to Hartford, by way of
Worcester and Stafford, taking one more day to New Haven
and two days from there to New York. They spent a week
seeing the sights of New York and Philadelphia, finally reach-
ing the capital on November 31. On the following day,
Mrs. Webster sent to her brother, James W. Paige, a letter so
rich in details that we cannot help regretting that so little of
her correspondence has been preserved. In describing their
quarters, she said:

We reached this place, called a city, yesterday. Our journey was
pleasant and much less fatiguing than I expected. We have not yet
taken permanent lodgings, but shall in a day or two. We shall be,
and indeed are now, on the hilly Capitol, I should say very near the
house where Congress sits, which is a pleasant circumstance. Mr.
and Mrs. Mason, my husband and myself, make what is here termed
a mess; indeed there are to be no other lodgers in the house. 3

On December 14, after she had had time to look around* she
wrote :

I have twice been to see the ruins of the Capitol. It was more
splendid than I had imagined. The external, which is of stone, is
entire except the windows. There is considerable remains yet of
the architecturing, tho broken and defaced. . . . The Capitol is

1 The Patriot said exultingly on September 24, 1816, " Mr. Webster, the great gun,
has left the ticket." Webster wrote to Bingfyam, October 9,1816," From the symptoms
exhibited in Rockingham, I thought nothing but exertion necessary to carry the Fed.
Ticket in Nov." But he was too optimistic.

2 Letter to Mason, October 29, 1816 (National Edition, XVI, 35).

3 Van Tyne, p. 72.

i 94 DANIEL WEBSTER

directly in front of our lodgings, and if Congress sat there, it would
add much to our amusement to see them pass and repass. 1

While Mrs. Webster and Mrs. Mason made themselves
acquainted with the city, Webster himself was once more in
Congress, listlessly fulfilling his duty. He wrote to William

Sullivan, January 2, 1817:

We are doing nothing now but quarrel with one of our laws of the
last session, called the horse law (not because horses made it, for it
was made by asses), its object being to pay the Kentucky men for all
the horses which died in that country during the war. So far very
well ; but there was a section put in to pay for all houses and build-
ings burned by the enemy on account of having been a military

deposite. This played the very d . All the Niagara frontier, the

city of Washington, &c., wherever the enemy destroyed anything, was
proved to have been a military deposite; one tavern, twenty-seven
thousand dollars, because some officers or soldiers lodged in the house
a day or two before the burning ; one great rope-walk, because a rope
had been sent there to mend from the navy yard, &c. &c. Some say
the fault is in the law, some say it is in the commissioner who executed
the law ; others say there is no error in either, and others insist that
there are great errors in both. I agree with the last, as the most
probable proposition. 2

What promised to be a happy winter spent in a less rigorous
climate was rudely interrupted by the critical illness of little
Grace Fletcher Webster, who had been left with Mrs. Samuel
Webber, widow of the former President of Harvard College, in
Cambridge. Before her parents started for Washington, she
had developed what seemed to be a tumor on the neck, but
which later was diagnosed as a manifestation of an acute form
of tuberculosis. Hastily summoned, the father and mother
returned to Cambridge to find her critically ill, and within little
more than a week she was dead. 3 She had been a precocious

1 VanTyne, p. 73.

2 This letter Is published in the National Edition, XVII, 254-56, under the date of
January 2, i8/6 9 but internal evidence makes it certain that the date should be January
2, 1817.

3 Webster wrote to Ezekiel, January 26, 1817, regarding Grace : " Her death, though
I thought it inevitable, was rather sudden when it happened. Her disease, the con-
sumption, had not apparently attained its last stages. The day of her death, she was

LIFE BECOMES MORE COMPLEX 195

and delicate child, whose unselfishness had endeared her to all
the friends of the family. Mrs. Lee, who was present when
Grace died, remembered that, as Webster turned away from
the bed, "great tears coursed down his cheeks." 1

Sorrowful and alone, Webster returned to Washington and
busied himself with his appointments in the Supreme Court.
After the destruction of the Capitol in 1814, the Court had been
obliged to seek temporary quarters, and, in 1817 and 1818, it
occupied "a mean apartment of moderate size" which had been
hastily fitted up in the midst of the charred ruins of the North
Wing. This was, however, an arena where momentous issues
were being discussed, and Webster, meeting as opponents or
associates Hoffman, John Sergeant, Samuel Dexter, and
William Pinkney, found that he had to keep his wits sharpened
or fail in the competition. Pressure of Congressional business
prevented him from accepting any retainers in 1816, but he
was engaged at the February term in 1817 in several prize cases,
and he appeared for the defendant in United States v. Bevans
(3 Wheat., 336), which defined the power of the Supreme Court
over harbors in the different states. It was a period when, as
we shall see later, Chief Justice Marshall and his fellow judges
were to promulgate a series of far-reaching decisions, greatly
extending the authority of the Federal Government.

Absorbed in legal work, Webster, although still a member of
Congress, attended its sessions in a perfunctory manner. No
issue was raised which called him out of his melancholy, and he
was bored with politics. When Calhoun introduced a project
for setting aside the bonus and dividends of the Bank of the
United States to carry out a comprehensive scheme of "internal
improvements," Webster sustained him by his vote, thus
voicing his belief that Congress had full authority to devote
money to such purposes. After Madison vetoed the bill on the

pretty bright in the forenoon, though weak. In the afternoon, she grew languid and
drowsy. She, however, desired her friends to read and talk with her until a few minutes
before eleven, when her countenance suddenly altered, and in five or six minutes she
expired." (National Edition, XVII, 263-64.) EzekieTs daughter, Mary, had died
only a short time before.
1 Curtis, 1, 158.

196 DANIEL WEBSTER

pretext that it was unconstitutional, Webster was among those
who tried unsuccessfully to pass the measure over the Execu-
tive's disapproval. The significant fact is his coming out
openly for a liberal interpretation of the Constitution and for
the doctrine of "implied powers/*

The Federalist Party, to which Webster still nominally
adhered, was now disrupted as a national organization. At the
election of 1816, James Monroe had received 183 votes against
34 for Rufus King, the Federalists getting the support of only
three states Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York.
Republicanism, to Webster's disgust, was everywhere
triumphant. He remained in Washington until after March
4, seeing for the first time the ceremonies ushering a new
President into office. When his cases before the Supreme Court
had been argued, he went back to Boston and resumed the
practice of his profession. Although he always regarded
Portsmouth with affection, he seldom returned there, and his
life, almost exactly half over, was now to be lived in Massa-
chusetts and Washington. In a sense his preparation, both
as lawyer and statesman, was completed. The remainder of
his career was to show how his promise was to be fulfilled.

VIII
THE ATHENS OF AMERICA

What care though rival cities soar

Along the stormy coast,
Perm's town. New York and Baltimore,

If Boston knew the most !

EMERSON, "Boston**

I'll tell you, though, if you want to know it, what is the real offence of
Boston. It drains a large water-shed of its intellect, and will not of itself be

drained - HOLMES, The Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table

I shall enter upon no encomium of Massachusetts ; she needs none. There
she is. Behold her, and judge for yourselves. There is her history; the
world knows it by heart. The past, at least, is secure. There is Boston and
Concord and Lexington and Bunker Hill ; and there they will remain for-

ever - WEBSTER, Reply to Hayne

WHEN Daniel Webster moved from Portsmouth to Boston, lie
became a resident of a place which, although still under the
town form of government, was actually the third city in the
United States in population and importance. It was a homo-
geneous community of not far from forty thousand persons,
largely of the same race, habits, and religious faith. 1 Although
the official directory had a separate list of "people of color,"
most of the inhabitants were descendants of the original British
settlers, and there was no "foreign quarter." The great
immigration of Irish to Boston did not begin until 1848. Nor
were there any "slums/* for even unskilled laborers were in
fairly comfortable circumstances. The atmosphere was that
of a large village. Clerks stopped to chat on the street corners

1 William Tudor, writing in 1819, said, "A more peculiar and unmixed character,
arising from its homogeneous population, will be found here than in any other city in
the United States." (Letters on the Eastern States, p. 319.)

i 9 8 DANIEL WEBSTER

as they walked to their offices, and ladies, from behind their
window curtains, stared curiously at strangers. 1

Although enterprising financiers were investing in mill
securities, Boston was still second only to New York in her
maritime commerce, and her extensive docks the marvel
of visitors were teeming with activity. There could be
seen every sort of vessel, from the tiny fishing smack to the
towering brig, and the harbor seemed a "forest of masts."
India Wharf and Central Wharf were lined with rows of ware-
houses, at which cargoes from all corners of the globe were
unloaded bags of ginger, cases of nutmeg and cinnamon,
bales of palm leaf, and hogsheads of molasses. In Boston
drawing-rooms were carved ebony elephants, teakwood tables,
silk draperies from the Orient, and porcelain vases in colors
which seemed the product of witchery. Along the water front,
Boston was exotic, and one could learn there something of

The beauty and mystery of the ships
And the magic of the sea.

The Boston of the first half of the nineteenth century was
both primitive and romantic. The standardizing process which
has made American cities so much alike had not yet done its
deadly work. The downtown streets, many of them so narrow
that two vehicles could barely pass, were paved in the middle
with cobblestones from the neighboring beaches ; and the over-
hanging second stories of the houses and shops made the town
look as mediaeval as York or Niirnberg. A foreigner spoke of
the streets as "scarcely more than lanes, which at noontime
are choked with good-natured strollers/' The oysterman and
the lobsterman still plaintively called their wares, and the
lamplighter, with his ladder and torch, was a picturesque
figure on his rounds just before sunset. Pipes for lighting the
city by gas were first laid in 1826, and, before that, candles
and whale oil were the only sources of illumination. Pound-

1 Describing the Boston of his boyhood, Henry Cabot Lodge said, "It was possible
to grasp one's little world, and to know and be known by everybody in one's own
fragment of society." (Lodge, Early Memories, p. 18.)

THE ATHENS OF AMERICA 199

keepers and fence-viewers were chosen annually at the Town
Meeting, held In the Old State House, at the head of State
Street. The Town Crier rang his bell from the steps of the
Exchange Coffee House to announce a missing child or a lost
pocketbook. There too was the headquarters for importers
and brokers, who gathered for final informal conferences at
"Change Hour" before strolling to their homes for a three
o'clock dinner. Some wealthy Bostonians still went person-
ally to market in Faneuil Hall before breakfast and brought
home the food for luncheon in a basket. The town was gov-
erned, as a rule, by intelligent, well-educated, public-spirited
leaders. For many years Charles Bulfinch, the eminent archi-
tect, was Chairman of the Board of Selectmen and Superin-
tendent of Police. The first Mayor, who took office on May i,
1822, was the aristocratic John Phillips, and his successor was
Josiah Quincy, in whose veins flowed the bluest blood of Boston.

No one can comprehend the operations of Webster's mind
without understanding the community of which he was a
part. He was, at times, a very independent thinker, but he
was also peculiarly susceptible to his surroundings, and he was
profoundly affected by Massachusetts traditions. Webster
helped to mould public opinion in Boston, but he was also
moulded by it. He carried into the Senate a message to the
nation from State Street and Beacon Hill.

In extent, the Boston of 1820 was much smaller than that
of a century later. 1 Retail business was confined to a limited
section on Washington Street, Scollay Square, Hanover, Court,
and State Streets, and, inevitably, the harbor front.
Much of the district known as Back Bay was then mud flats
and salt marsh, and the land in that locality now adorned
with massive structures of steel and brick was once submerged.
During Bulfinch's active administration, the Mill Pond at the
foot of Beacon Hill was filled with earth scraped from the peak

1 Edward Everett Hale's A New England 'Boyhood offers a charming picture of
Boston in the early nineteenth century. See also the Life, Letters^ and Journals of
George Ticknor, and Morison's Harrison Gray Otis and Maritime History of Massa-
chusetts. Josiah Quincy's Figures of the Past has some interesting material, as does
Mark A. DeW. Howe's Boston.

200 DANIEL WEBSTER

behind the State House, thus adding seventy acres to the north
end of the town ; and Charles Street was laid out over a swamp.
The Mill Dam, available for travelers in 1821, connected Beacon
Street with Brookline and gave Boston an important outlet
to the main land. Webster's Boston included the territory
around Beacon Hill and extending south and east to the
wharves. Emerson wrote of it,

" Each street leads downward to the sea,
Or landward to the west."

The Bulfinch State House, with the dignified fagade, natu-
rally dominated the landscape and was one of the sights to
which visitors were first taken. Park Street, recently opened
up as an approach to the Capitol, was lined with new and at-
tractive residences. 1 At its foot was the Park Street Church
on what came to be known as Brimstone Corner because of
the incendiary nature of the Calvinistic theology there ex-
pounded. King's Chapel and the Granary Burying Ground
have been little changed by the passage of years, and St. Paul's
was dedicated in 1820. Webster himself usually attended
the Old Brattle Street Church, where what John Adams styled
"the politest congregation in Boston" gathered on Sundays,
both morning and afternoon, to listen to Dr. Palfrey. 2 Fan-
euil Hall, remodeled and enlarged by the indefatigable Bul-
finch, looked then much as it does to-day, except for the motor
traffic which encircles it. Quincy Market was not completed
until 1827. The Court House, built on School Street in 1810,
has long since been superseded by the more imposing edifice
which overshadows Pemberton Square.

The historic Common, then ornamented by only a few scat-
tered elms, was "a piece of pasture land with a small pond in
the middle, and surrounded by low wooden posts with one or

1 Several of these houses are still standing, somewhat altered, most of them being
occupied by business concerns. Their outline, silhouetted against the sky, is pictur-
esque when viewed from the Common.

2 John G. Palfrey, who succeeded " young Mr. Everett " in 1818, was pastor of the
Brattle Street Church until 1824. Three of Webster's children Julia, Edward, and
Charles were baptized in that church.

THE ATHENS OF AMERICA 201

two rails between them.' 9 Cows still grazed there, and the
children of "the solid men of Boston" played marbles or flew
their kites unmolested by the police, or even fished in the muddy
Frog Pond. As late as 1847, an indignant citizen wrote to the
Journal objecting to "the pestiferous dusting of dirty carpets**
on the Common. Along Beacon Street " the sunny street that
holds the sifted few" were some noble mansions, including
that of John Hancock, next to the State House, and that of John
Phillips, of brick, still standing on the corner of Walnut Street.
On Chestnut and Mount Vernon Streets, and their tributary
avenues, were many houses bearing the Bulfinch stamp, and
the neighborhood was becoming fashionable. After 1829,
Webster's friend, George Ticknor, occupied the stately resi-
dence at the corner of Park and Beacon Streets, " the best
location in Boston," where he could overlook the Common
and in which he welcomed many noted people, exerting such
an influence that one of his friends proposed that the name of
Boston be changed to Ticknorville. On the Tremont Street
side of the Common, there rose, in 1830, the splendid Masonic
Temple ; * and not far away, on the corner of Tremont and
West Streets, were the Washington Gardens, a favorite resort
of the pleasure-loving, which delighted their habitues in May
1817 by installing gas lights for illumination. The distinctive
feature of Tremont Street, however, was Colonnade Row, a
line of nineteen four-story brick buildings constructed by Bul-
finch, in which at various times dwelt many of Webster's closest
friends, including Jeremiah Mason, Benjamin Rich, Peleg
Sprague, and Benjamin Gorham.

Taverns, like the Indian Queen and The Bunch of Grapes,
still allured travelers with large swinging signs. The Exchange
Coffee House, in Congress Square near State Street, was re-
puted to be " the most capacious building and the most exten-
sive establishment of its kind in the United States." 2 In

1 The site is now occupied by the department store of the R. H. Stearns Company.

2 The famous Exchange Coffee House was built in 1808, from designs by Bulfinch,
of stone, marble, and brick, and was seven stories high. Here President Monroe was
entertained during his visit to Boston in 1817. It was almost totally destroyed by fire
on November 3, 1818.

DANIEL WEBSTER

^ the small boys used to coast down Beacon and School
Streets, past the Latin School., where the present Parker House
has its entrance.

Poring over the yellow and brittle newspapers of that period,
we are in touch with a world far removed from ours. We read
that, on June 15, 1820, three pirates were hanged in public
at ten in the morning ; that the Plymouth Beach Lottery was
in operation and prizes would soon be awarded ; and that old
Madeira was for sale openly by the cask. But human nature
was the same then as now. Dr. Rolfe's Botanical Drops and
Dr. Meade's Antidyspeptic Pills are no longer sold, but they
have their substitutes to-day* The Extract of Roses, "for
cleaning, preserving, and beautifying the hair," sounds very
modern. And for amusements, Bostonians could choose, in
December 1820, between a performance on the "musical
glasses'* or Bamwdl, or the London Apprentice y advertised to
begin "at 6 precisely/' The only holidays were Washington's
Birthday, Fast Day, Independence Day, and Thanksgiving.
No one had thought of a Saturday half-holiday.

The circle to which the Websters were admitted was per-
haps as exclusive and as cultured as any to be found on this
side of the Atlantic. The members were near neighbors,
meeting constantly on the streets or at social gatherings. 1
Many of them had amassed fortunes in foreign trade and had
accumulated heirlooms through several generations. They
owned houses in which the furniture, according to Edward
Everett Hale, was "stately, solid, and expensive," and the
table linen and silver exquisite. Dinner parties were com-
monly held in the afternoon, with suppers of a less formal char-
acter at nine in the evening. Decanters of wine ornamented
every sideboard, including that of Daniel Webster, and, after
the ladies had retired, the bottle was passed freely. Nothing
about the entertaining was ostentatious, but there was a great
deal of "cheerful, frank hospitality, and easy social inter-

1 Rnssell Sturgis spoke of Boston society as " like a large family party," and added,
" There were many who could announce the precise degree of relationship between any
two people in any assembly."

THE ATHENS OF AMERICA 203

course." There being no great discrepancies in wealth, few tried
to outdo the others in extravagance. Among the chief families
were the Derbys, Otises, Lawrences, Cabots, Amorys, Lymans,
Lowells, Minots, Boylstons, Langdons, Adamses, and Blakes,
the descendants of many of whom may be found in Boston's
Social Register.

Like all those who have acquired possessions, these Bos-
tonians were distrustful of changes, fearing that they might
lose if the established order were overturned. They wished to
keep their own world stable and unaltered. They were not
interested in those who wanted to undertake reforms. The
day had not come when a craze for organization was to pro-
duce the countless societies for the relief of the poor and suffer-
ing which now flourish in Boston. Webster's friends were
generous, but in an unscientific fashion, and they lived their
lives quite untroubled by the ills and wants of any "submerged
tenth." As for pacifists, and feminists, and abolitionists,
and communists, and prohibitionists, they did not yet exist.
Not for a decade or more was Boston to become, in the words
of Dr. Frothingham, "remarkable for explosions of mind/'

Into such a group Daniel Webster was welcomed by congenial
spirits who recognized his intellectual and social kinship with
themselves. It was a far cry from the simple fare and crude
furnishings of The Elms to the brilliance of Captain Israel
Thorndike's dinners, but Webster was entirely at ease in his
luxurious environment. The awkward rustic had been trans-
formed, almost without realizing it, into an aristocrat on the
British model, who loved comfort and longed for an estate where
he could move like a lord among his retainers. In certain ob-
vious respects, Boston society was enervating, creating and
fostering prejudices and producing a narrow point of view
among those long subjected to its influence. But Webster had
the stamina to resist its provincialism, although he was unable
entirely to stand out against the temptation to easy living. 1

1 Josiah P. Quincy, writing in 1881 of Boston in the early part of that century, said:
" Many of the peculiarities of Puritanism had been softened, and so much of the old
severity as remained supported the moral standards which the God-fearing founders

ao 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

Webster was soon thoroughly Bostonian in his tendencies
and habits. The Athenaeum Library, established in 1807, had
a list of distinguished proprietors, to which his name was added
as early as 1822, when it moved from Tremont Street to Pearl
Street He was soon elected to that institution which called
itself proudly "tfae Historical Society/* 1 and he belonged to
a famous dinner club, which met every Saturday. He was
on the Committee of Thirteen, appointed in 1821 to frame a
municipal charter, some of his associates being Josiah Quincy,
William Tudor, William Prescott, and Lemuel Shaw, with
John Phillips as Chairman. Beginning with his much-dis-
cussed Speech on the Tariff, on October 2, 1821, he spoke
again and again in Faneuil Hall, until it seemed as if that audi-
torium were incomplete without his bodily presence on the
platform.

Boston was not yet the literary and cultural centre which
it was to become in the days when Emerson and Longfellow
and Holmes and Lowell walked the streets. It did, however,
enjoy a reputation as an intellectual oasis where the liberal
arts were respected. Harvard College and its faculty gave
a certain tone to society, and Commencement at Cambridge
was one of the notable events of the year. Visiting foreigners
were entertained at Harvard, and, from there, found their way
to Beacon Hill. The sons of Webster's associates were enrolled
almost automatically under Presidents Kirkland and Quincy,
and Fletcher Webster graduated there in 1833,

It is essential to keep in mind that Daniel Webster became
the authentic and trusted representative of the merchants, the
bankers, and the professional men who were clustered in offices
around State Street. They were his clients, and his daily
associates when he was in the city. Through them he made

of the State had raised. A few men were accepted as the leaders of the community
and lived under a wholesome conviction of responsibility for its good behavior. If the
representatives of good society were in no sense cosmopolitan, their provincialism was
honest, manly, and intelligent."

1 The Massachusetts Historical Society, the oldest organization of the kind in the
United States, was founded in January 1791. On its rolls are most of the most dis-
tinguished men of Boston.

THE ATHENS OF AMERICA 205

his living, and from them, in some degree, he derived his opin-
ions. Webster was identified with the so-called "upper
classes." While he was in no sense a "snob/* he lacked the
democratic spirit of such leaders as Jefferson, Jackson, and
Lincoln. Like many patricians, he was popular with servants 5
but he was out of touch with the great bulk of humanity
those who patiently carry on the dull routine and bear the
burdens of the world. More and more he was thrown^ through
his profession, with the rich, the cultured, and the well-born,
and his attitude towards current problems was thereby pro-
foundly affected.

According to Webster's own evidence, he and Mrs. Webster
came to Boston to live on August 14, 1816, bringing with them
their two children, Grace and Daniel Fletcher. For two or
three weeks they boarded with a Mrs. Delano, but Webster
soon rented from ex-Senator Jonathan Mason a house on the
north side of Mount Vernon Street, only a few rods from the
State House. 1 In December 1819 he bought a home at
37 Somerset Street, 2 on a site now covered by the City Prison,
a part of the Boston Court House which was constructed in
1886. It was then a select residence district, but conditions
in the vicinity make it now seem quite different. Webster
sold his place in 1822, and, on May 10, went with his family
to spend the summer at the house of a Mr. Welles, in Dor-
chester, one of the suburbs. On their return to the city in
November, they took lodgings with a Mrs. Le Kains, in Pearl
Street, nearer the harbor. 3 During the summer season of

1 This house is still standing at No. 57 Mount Vernon Street and is probably little
changed since Webster's day. It has four stories, with a very handsome grilled iron
balcony opening from the second-story window at the left, over the front door. It sits
some fifty feet back from the street, and the lawn in front is surrounded by an iron
fence. For interesting details regarding this house, which was built in 1804, see Cham-
berlain's Beacon Hill (1925), pp. 95-96. The first story is stone, the others brick.
Webster was succeeded as a tenant by Reverend Sereno Dwight, of the Park Street
Church. It was later the residence of Charles Francis Adams.

2 It was an immense square, three-storied house, with the stone steps of the front
porch rising directly from the street, and a narrow alley on the south side. It was later
the home of Abbott Lawrence.

3 Pearl Street, even as late as the " 4o's," was a charming residence quarter, in which
were fine old houses.

2o6 DANIEL WEBSTER

1823 they were again in Dorchester; but Mrs. Webster, with
Julia and Edward, accompanied him to Washington in the
autumn, remaining until the following June. 1 After another
summer in Dorchester, Webster moved in November 1824 into
a house belonging to Israel Thorndike on the corner of High
and Summer Streets, 2 an imposing brick dwelling, set somewhat
back from the road, with a garden surrounding it. Lined as
it was with superb horse-chestnut trees, Summer Street was a
shaded avenue with an eighteenth-century atmosphere. The
first shop is said to have invaded it in 1847, and it is now de-
voted entirely to business. Daniel Webster Square as the
junction of Summer, High, and South Streets is called to-day
is a very crowded spot, through which most of the commuters
from the near-by South Station walk to their offices. There
is nothing to remind one of the more leisurely days when Daniel
Webster had his home there.

He had agreeable neighbors. Next to him, to the north,
lived the hospitable Captain Israel Thorndike, 3 with whom he
became so intimate that the latter built a passageway between
the two houses so that they could be used together for large
receptions. 4 On Summer Street also lived John Lowell, Jona-
than Callender, Charles P. Curtis, and Chief Justice Isaac
Parker, as well as many retired shipowners, who liked to be
within easy walking distance of the wharves.

1 Webster preserved these details in an interesting manuscript called " Autobio-
graphical Notts," owned by the New Hampshire Historical Society and printed in
National Edition, XIII, 549-51.

2 This house was torn down about 1860 and replaced by " a splendid block of stores
called Webster's buildings.'* These were destroyed in the Great Fire of 1872, and a
modern block was erected on the same site, at Nos. 136 and 138. This structure,
called the Webster Building, is occupied now by mercantile establishments, and the
ground floor is used by the Waldorf Lunch Company. It is five stories high and bears
a large carved stone inscription, *' The Home of Daniel Webster."

3 Israel Thorndike (1755-1832), born in Beverly, accumulated a large fortune in
shipping and moved about 1800 to Boston, where he increased his wealth by judicious
investments, chiefly in real estate. He was said at this period to be the richest man
in Boston, and he left at his death an estate appraised at nearly $1,200,000.

4 It was through this device that Webster secured sufficient space for his reception to
General Lafayette on June 17, 1825, after the Bunker Hill Oration. On February 2,
1826, Ticknor wrote Webster, " We went the other night to a great ball at Colonel
Thorndike\ a part of which extended into your house, which it was not altogether
agreeable to enter without finding its owner there to welcome us.** (Ticknor, 1, 371.)

THE ATHENS OF AMERICA 207

In his serene and comfortable family life, Webster found
solace from the tribulations of his profession. The loss of
his daughter. Grace, in 1817, had been hard to bear, but a
year later, on January 16, 1818, in the house on Mount Ver~
non Street, a second daughter was' born. His eldest son*
Daniel Fletcher Webster, usually known as Fletcher,
was by that date a boy of nearly five years. He had two more
children Edward, born on July 20, 1820, and Charles, born
on December 31, 1822, both in the Somerset Street house.
The latter, however, died on December 18, 1824, in the Summer
Street house, leaving only Fletcher and Edward as Webster's
male heirs. During the early years in Boston, Mrs. Webster's
time was so filled with domestic duties that she had little leisure
for attending dinners and balls. One servant, Hannah, who
had been with them since their Portsmouth days, was suffi-
cient for their normal needs. Mrs. Webster, who had no
ambition to be a society matron, certainly did not maintain
the style of some of her husband's clients ; but she was a popu-
lar member of a select circle of ladies and did her share of infor-
mal entertainirtg.

All contemporary descriptions of Webster agree in por-
traying him as a handsome and impressive man. Physically
he was much more robust and was gradually putting on
weight. He was slightly above five feet, ten inches tall, with,
a head which seemed abnormally large even for his muscular
shoulders. His dark eyes were conspicuous for their rich glow,
and his abundant hair was still a deep black. Mrs. Lee wrote,
"The majestic beauty of his countenance was never more
striking than at this period." * Although there were months
when he had little rest, the effects of good eating were begin-
ning to be manifest. With the passing of youth he acquired the
stern and portentous dignity which made him such an imposing
figure. Soon the slender schoolmaster of Fryeburg had been
metamorphosed into a stalwart man who tipped the scales at
nearly two hundred pounds and who had exchanged his earlier
vivacity for a slow stateliness which was awesome to strangers.

1 National Edition, XVII, 440.

208 DANIEL WEBSTER

He was usually up with the sun, waking the other members
of the household by singing his favorite hymns. The family
breakfasted together in unhurried, patriarchal fashion, and
the father was very attentive to his children and their unceas-
ing prattle. He then walked to the office/ and did not return
until two or three o'clock in the afternoon, unmistakably fa-
tigued and hungry. After a heavy dinner, he would throw him-
self upon the sofa, where his children would gather, eager to
be as near him as possible. Mrs. Lee noted that, if visitors
called in the evening, "Mr. Webster was too much exhausted
to take a very active part in the conversation." 2 He con-
stantly taxed his glorious physique and his steady nerves to
the utmost, requiring many hours for recuperation. At this
period he did not, apparently, use tobacco, either for smoking
or for snuff, and, while he enjoyed his Madeira, we do not
hear that he drank to excess.

With most people Webster seems to have been rather grave,
if not solemn, in his manner, but he had his moments of relaxa-
tion, and even of frivolity. Ticknor, writing on August 17,
1826, regarding Webster's Oration on Adams and Jefferson,
said, "He was at our house the evening before, entirely dis-
encumbered and careless ; and dined with us unceremoniously
after it was over, as playful as a kitten/ 7 3 He was not, how-
ever, a quick or clever conversationalist, and nobody has re-
corded any remarkable specimen of wit or repartee. In serious
discussions he was always ready to do his part. Ticknor men-
tions a dinner at the home of Isaac P. Davis, when Webster
'* talked a good deal about Europe," having been reading up
on that subject.

1 Fletcher Webster could remember his father when they lived on Mount Vernon
Street, ** dressed in a frock coat, with tight pantaloons, a pair of long blucher boots
reaching to the knee and adorned with a tassel, a bell-crowned beaver hat set a little
on the side of his head, and a riding whip in his hand, as he proceeded to mount his
horse for his morning ride.*' (Harvey, p. 318.)

2 Webster belonged to the type of worker who, to quote Dr. William Osier, " loves
to see the sun rise " and " comes to breakfast with a cheerful morning face, never so
fit as at 6 A.M./* as contrasted with the man who is saturnine in the morning and then
slowly gains in good humor as the day draws on, until he is at his best by midnight.
(Oskr, The Student Life.*)

3 Ticknor, I, 379.

THE ATHENS OF AMERICA 209

Webster's first office in Boston was on the northern corner of
Franklin Avenue, a narrow alley running from Comhill to
Court Street, which it entered at a point near the present Old
Colony Trust Company. Later he rented more commodious
quarters on the second floor of a building on the northern cor-
ner of Court and Tremont Streets, only a short distance from
the Court House and the banking and commercial section.
He was often away from home, sometimes in Washington at
sessions of the Supreme Court, 1 and frequently in various New
England cities.

He seems to have entered almost at once upon a lucrative
practice, and his retainers, especially after the publicity which
he derived from the Dartmouth College Case, show a sub-
stantial advance. For the year extending from August 14,
1818, to August 12, 1819, he received in fees the sum of $15,181,
excluding "several small affairs and sums under ten dollars/' 2
He charged $2000 for appearing for the Bank of the United
States in McCullough v. Maryland. During the years immedi-
ately following, however, his fees seem to have diminished,
and Curtis's estimate that his professional income from 1818
to 1823, when he entered Congress for the second time, was
not far from $20,000 is probably much exaggerated. 3 For a
young man who, in Portsmouth, had never taken in more than
$2000 annually, he was, however, doing very well. Certainly
his courage in declining the Clerkship of the Hillsborough
County Court had been amply rewarded.

Even if this book were devoted exclusively to Webster's

1 In a letter to Justice Story, January 2, 1821, Webster gives an interesting account
of one such trip to Washington, which occupied from Saturday noon to Wednesday
afternoon. Webster said, "Our journey was safe and expeditious.** (National
Edition, XVII, 314.)

2 See Ibid., p. 291 if., for a full statement of Webster's professional receipts during
this year.

z According to Webster's own manuscript record (printed in National Edition, XVII,
545), his fees for the five years from 1818 to 1823 were as follows: August 14, 1818-
August 12, 1819, f 15,181; 1819-20, $8393; 1820-21, $10,240^ 1821-22, $12,805;
1822-23, $5095. The total is 151,714, an average of approximately $10,342 a year.
For the year extending from September 1827 to September 1828, he took in (including
his pay as Senator) about $ 16,000. On the basis of Webster's own books, there was no
year up to 1832 when his legal income was above $ 17,000.

no DANIEL WEBSTER

legal career, it would be impossible to treat in any detail
the multitudinous cases in which he participated. Although
he was primarily what we call today a "corporation lawyer,"
he was engaged in suits of every conceivable kind, criminal
as well as civil, and involving a variety of principles. Among
his clients were many of Boston's foremost citizens, including
Harrison Gray Otis, George Crowninshield, James Otis, Samuel
Hubbard, George Blake, John Brooks, and others. He was
retained in 1819 by John Jacob Astor, and he made a note of
having received, on January 2 of that year, $400 "Of Casus
Extraordinarius" a mysterious reference which will probably
never be elucidated.

It was not long before Webster, by the common consent of
those familiar with his practice, both in Boston and in Wash-
ington, was placed at the head of the American bar. "That
Mr Webster was the foremost American lawyer of his time,"
declared Senator George F. Hoar, "as well in the capacity to
conduct jury trials as to argue questions of law before the full
court, will not, I think, be seriously questioned by anybody
who has read the reports of his legal arguments or who has
studied the history of his encounters before juries with antago-
nists like Choate or Pinkney*" This high estimate of Web-
ster's genius is corroborated by the unsolicited testimony of
such eminent advocates as Rufus Choate^ Charles O'Conor,
Isaac Parker, and William H. Seward. 1

Of many of Webster's nisi prius cases hardly a mention can
be found, even in contemporary newspapers, and we have to
rely on gossip and tradition for the details of what must have
been interesting litigation. A trial which greatly appealed
to the public at the time was that of the Kenniston brothers,
at Ipswich, in April 1817, for the alleged robbery of Major

1 Choate perceived in Webster " a whole clask of qualities which made him, for any
description of trial by jury whatever, criminal or civil, by even a more universal assent,
foremost." Seward, speaking in the Senate, declared of Webster that " the fifty
thousand lawyers in the United States conceded to him an unapproachable supremacy
at the bar," Justice Sprague, of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts, said of him,
** In consultation no man was ever more weighty ; in trials at the bar no man was his
equal.'*

THE ATHENS OF AMERICA 211

Elijah P. Goodridge. 1 According to a tale related by Good-
ridge, and substantiated in part by facts, he had been
assaulted about nine o'clock on a December evening while
riding on the highway between Newburyport and Exeter, and
had been dragged from his horse, relieved of a considerable
sum in cash and notes, and beaten until he was unconscious.
Afterwards, apparently in a state of delirium, he crawled to
the nearest tavern, where, to prove his fantastic story, he dis-
played a small bullet wound in the palm of his left hand, between
the third and fourth fingers. He later recovered sufficiently
to guide some persons to the scene of the attack, where many
of his possessions were scattered on the ground. He accused
the Kennistons of the crime, identified as his own a piece of
gold which he claimed to have unearthed under a pork barrel
in their cellar, and had them brought to trial. The circum-
stantial evidence was very strong, and the Kennistons, in spite
of their guileless simplicity and previous good reputation, were
in some danger of being convicted.

Webster, on his way home from the Congressional session,
heard the details from a Mr. Perkins, of Newburyport, who
rode with him in the stage from Providence to Boston and
offered as a theory the startling suggestion that Major Good-
ridge, in order to avoid paying some of his debts, had concocted
the whole tale, and, for the sake of realism, had shot himself
deliberately through the inside of the left hand. On the follow-
ing morning, after breakfast in Boston, Webster was called
upon by two gentlemen from Newburyport, who told him that
a fund had been subscribed for the defense of the Kennistons
and urged him to take the case. Weary from his long trip,
he at first refused, but finally yielded to their appeals and,
with only a few days of preparation, appeared in court. It was
his first case in Essex County, and a great throng packed the
courtroom to hear him. 2

1 The name is also spelled Goodrich. Both forms seem to have been used in the
newspapers of the period.

2 The story as related by Harvey (Reminiscences , pp. 97-102) contains some dis-
crepancies and a few misstatements, but tells the gist of the trial.

DANIEL WEBSTER

At the trial itself, Webster's genius was demonstrated in
his cross-examination of Goodridge, who, embarrassed when
called upon to explain how the wound happened to be on the
inside of his hand, was cleverly drawn into some palpable con-
tradictions in his evidence. To account to the jury for Good-
ridge's peculiar conduct, Webster argued that the latter, orig-
inally actuated merely by a desire to avoid his obligations
or perhaps also by a passion for notoriety, had been forced, by
the course of events, into the necessity of casting the blame on
somebody; and he built up the plausible theory that Good-
ridge, intending only to shoot himself through the coat sleeve,
had by accident perforated his hand. Webster's earnest and
impressive manner had a moving effect on the jury, who
promptly acquitted the Kennistons. Later Webster success-
fully defended one Jackson, another victim of Goodridge's
malicious charges ; and when still another, Ebenezer Pearson,
brought an action for damages against Goodridge, Webster
recovered a verdict for the plaintiff to the amount of $2ooo. 1
Eventually Goodridge, completely discredited, left New Eng-
land for parts unknown. Some years later, when Webster,
on a trip to Niagara Falls, was spending the night at an inn
near Geneva, New York, he noticed that the barkeeper seemed
very much agitated at his appearance. Later he ascertained
that the unfortunate Goodridge had sought in the obscurity
of that country tavern a refuge from the indiscretions of his
past. 2

Cases of this kind, fascinating though they are to the lay-
man, were not reported in the court records. If we turn the
pages of the Reports of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massa-
chusetts and of the Circuit Court of the United States for the
First Circuit, we find Webster's name mentioned in connection
with many decisions, some of them of the highest importance
to lawyers. His first appearance in the Supreme Judicial

1 The Boston Advertiser, on January 8, 1819, speaking of Webster's argument in this
case, said, '* On this occasion we witnessed a degree in ingenuity, a chain of close logical
reasoning, and a force of eloquence seldom exhibited in this or any other court."

2 This sequel appears in two slightly different versions, one in Harvey, pp. 101-2,
and the other in Curtis, 1, 175.

THE ATHENS OF AMERICA 213

Court of Massachusetts was to have been for the defendant
in Nightman v. Coates (15 Mass., i), a suit for breach of promise,
but it was called for the March term in 1818, when he was in
Washington very much occupied with the Dartmouth College
Case, and he was obliged to be absent. At the October term
in 1818, he was associated with Phinney for the plaintiff in
Thomas Cochran v. The Inhabitants of Camden (15 Mass*> 296).
The earliest instance of his appearing in that court as sole
counsel was in Welsh v. Barrett (15 Mass., 380), called at the
March term in 1819, in which he argued unsuccessfully for the
plaintiff in a matter involving a promissory note, the real point
at issue being whether the memorandum book of a bank mes-
senger, deceased, could be admitted as evidence.

Biographers have expressed some astonishment at the ra-
pidity with which Webster climbed to a leading position at the
Massachusetts bar. As a matter of fact, he was well known
in legal circles long before he took the decisive step of settling
in Boston. Stories of his effectiveness in the courtroom had
drifted down from New Hampshire, and many Boston attor-
neys, retained in cases which were tried in that state, had
reason to remember his prowess. Furthermore his Congres-
sional experience had brought him into rather intimate rela-
tionship with such distinguished Bostonians as Francis Cabot
Lowell and George Cabot, and he was already acquainted with
Christopher Gore. He came to Boston under the best of
auspices, with his character and capability guaranteed.

Boston was a city in which rivalry among lawyers was keen
and merciless. Two of the greatest Theophilus Parsons
and Samuel Dexter died not long before Webster's arrival.
But there were others who had made their reputations and,
in their prime, were formidable competitors. Among them
were William Prescott, twenty years Webster's senior, who had
moved to Boston from Salem in 1808 and was unequaled as a
maritime and insurance specialist ; Samuel Hubbard, who had
come to Boston in 1810 after a successful career in Biddeford,
Maine, and who was to end as a Judge of the Supreme Judicial
Court of Massachusetts ; Charles Jackson, who had left New-

2i 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

buiyport in 1802 to open an office in Boston, and had been
appointed to the Supreme Judicial Court only ten years later ;
Benjamin Gorham, the brilliant son of a brilliant father; Wil-
liam Sullivan, a masterly orator, who was long the President
of the Suffolk Bar Association; Lemuel Shaw, who, in 1830,
succeeded Isaac Parker as Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial
Court, serving in that office for almost thirty years; and a
group of promising younger men, like Samuel Hoar, Marcus
Morton, Franklin Dexter, Peleg Sprague, and Charles G. Lor-
ing, each of whom was to make his mark in state and national
affairs. Not one of them was a Dartmouth man. All but
two of them Hubbard and Morton were graduates of
Harvard, but they gave to him the right hand of fellowship
as if he were akin to themselves in antecedents and spirit.

It was not long before Webster's transcendent talents made
him as supreme among these gifted lawyers as he had been at
the bar of Portsmouth. His practice extended outside the
county of Suffolk, into Essex, Middlesex, and Plymouth, and
to sections even more distant. Whenever an important case
arose, the first impulse of each litigant was to secure the aid of
Daniel Webster. But it was his work before the Supreme
Court of the United States which won for him a truly national
reputation.

IX
THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE

Our college cause will be known to our children's children.

WEBSTER, Letter to Hopkinson, March 22, 1819

It is the legitimate business of government to see that contracts are ful-
filled, that charters are kept inviolate, and the foundations of human con-
fidence not rudely or wantonly disturbed.

JOHN FISKE

To many people, especially lawyers, but most of all to Dart-
mouth graduates, the name of Daniel Webster brings up the
picture of a small crowded courtroom in Washington. Chief
Justice John Marshall, his robes draped carelessly about him
and his hands tightly clasped on his desk, presides with dignity.
He and his associates, as well as the audience, have been sitting
for three hours enthralled by the persuasive tones of the orator
a heavy, broad-chested man, firm as a pyramid of granite,
with a domed forehead and gloomy eyes that pierce the soul.
The speaker pauses, as if in sorrowful meditation. No one
stirs. Then, under the influence of an emotion which even to-
day, after all these years, sets our pulses throbbing, he begins
again, with quivering lips and tremulous voice, "It is, sir, as I
have said, a small college and yet there are those who love
it. ..." Daniel Webster is finishing his argument in the
Dartmouth College Case.

"Dartmouth College v. Woodward (4 Wheat., 518) was argued
by Webster for the plaintiff before the Supreme Court of the
United States in 1818 and decided in his client's favor in Febru-
ary 1819. The complicated issues involved have been fre-
quently analyzed, and the history and significance of the case

6 DANIEL WEBSTER

have been exhaustively treated by competent legal authorities. 1
Here it will be examined mainly with regard to the conspicuous
part taken by Daniel Webster in its permanent settlement.
Around the Dartmouth College Case, as it is commonly
called, as around few others in the annals of the Supreme
Court, a romantic tradition has developed. There is, further-
more, the fact that it has been cited more than a thousand
times in subsequent litigations, and that, to quote Henry
Cabot Lodge, "it extended the jurisdiction of the highest
federal court more than any other judgment ever rendered by
them/* 2

Stripped of technicalities and nonessentials, the immediate
issue decided by the Dartmouth College Case was the inviola-
bility of the charter of incorporation of an institution of learn-
ing. It settled the question as to whether the charter was
a contract at all, within the meaning of the Constitution, and
answered the query, "Does the legislature of a state have the
power, under the Constitution of the United States, to modify
or abrogate a charter legally granted in all good faith to a
college ?** By implication it involved the whole subject of
the stability of contracts, and thus affected other institutions
founded and endowed in the same manner as Dartmouth. In
another sense, it was a phase of the historic conflict during the
formative days of the Republic between conservatives and
liberals, Federalists and Democrats, John Marshall and Thomas
Jefferson. It need hardly be said that Daniel Webster was on
the side of established order.

The original charter of Dartmouth College, granted in 1769,
was signed in the name of George III by John Wentworth,
"Governor and Commander in Chief in and over the Province

1 The fullest account is contained in John M. Shirley's The Dartmouth College Causes
and the Supreme Court of the United States (1879), a badly arranged but indispensable
book. Charles Warren discusses the case in his The Supreme Court in United States
History (1922), I, 474 ff., and Albert J. Beveridge in his John Marshall (1919), IV, 220-
81. See also " Historical Note on the Dartmouth College Case," by Charles Warren,
in American Law Review for 1912, Vol. XLVL There are some sane comments on the
case in Tucker's My Generation (1919), pp. 271-96.

2 Lodge, Webster v p. 96. This book, although often grossly unjust to Webster,
contains a very intelligent account of the Dartmouth College Case.

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 217

of New Hampshire/' 1 The project was the outgrowth of what
had been a charity school for Indians, founded at Lebanon,
Connecticut, by a philanthropic clergyman, Eleazar Wheelock,
who had raised in England funds amounting to more than
eleven thousand pounds from various persons of benevolent
tendencies, headed by William, Earl of Dartmouth, Secretary
for the Colonies. This royal charter created the institution
since known as Dartmouth College; appointed Wheelock as
President, with the privilege of designating his successor
who was, however, subject to removal by the trustees; and
established "one body corporate and politick in deed, action,
and name," made up of twelve members, to be called the
Trustees of Dartmouth College, with ample authority to buy,
receive, and hold lands, to fill vacancies on the Board, and to
make all necessary laws, rules, and regulations for the institu-
tion. Under this charter forming a perpetual and self-per-
petuating corporation, Dartmouth College was opened in the
town of Hanover, on the east bank of the Connecticut, and
had endured, through various vicissitudes, for nearly half a
century. It was the ninth and last of the colonial colleges.

Even the American Revolution had not broken the con-
tinuity of Dartmouth College. Eleazar Wheelock, dying In
1779, bequeathed the presidency to his son, John, and when the
latter took over his father's duties at Hanover a majority of the
trustees were in sympathy with him and the Wheelock family
tradition. As age crept upon him, however, John Wheelock
grew obstinate and tenacious of authority, and lost the respect
of most of the undergraduates. The membership of the Board,
meanwhile, had gradually changed, and several of the new men
were less subservient to Wheelock's wishes.

For diverse reasons, political, economic, and religious, a con-
troversy arose between the President and the majority of the
trustees, resulting in a bewildering series of charges and counter-
charges. The grave question as to who should preach in the

1 This charter is printed in full in Chase's A History of Dartmouth College and the
Town of Hanover, Vol. I, Appendix A.

DANIEL WEBSTER

village church kept the townspeople, the faculty, and the
trustees in a turmoil Wheelock, a Presbyterian, succeeded in
arraying other religious denominations against his opponents,
who were, for the most part, Congregationalists. Although he
had originally been a Federalist, Wheelock managed to rally
around him most of the Antifederalists and Republicans ; while
the trustees had the support of the Federalists and conserva-
tives. The President angered the trustees by requesting the
New Hampshire Legislature to appoint a committee for in-
vestigating the conduct of the college; and in May 1815 he
published an anonymous pamphlet, Sketches of the History of
Dartmouth College and Moor's Chanty School, in which he
assailed the trustees and perpetrated what was later described
by them as a <c gross and unprovoked libel." The dispute
culminated on August 26, 1815, when the trustees removed
Wheelock from office and elected the Reverend Francis Brown,
of Yarmouth, Maine, as his successor. By this time the con-
troversy had attracted widespread attention, and the Patriot
was filled with the details. Its Republican editor, Isaac Hill,
of course, took Wheelock's part.

For the moment, the trustees, by their prompt and vigorous
action, had the better of the quarrel; but it was now to be
carried into the realm of state politics. In March 1816, the
Federalists, after holding control in New Hampshire throughout
the war, were turned out, and William Plumer, a convert to
Republicanism, was elected Governor, with a party majority
in both branches of the Legislature. Dartmouth College had
now become the innocent victim of partisan disputes. The
trustees, warned of danger, did their utmost to avert trouble ;
but Governor Plumer, in his inaugural speech, announced that
the college charter contained principles "hostile to the spirit
and genius of a free government/' and demanded action. 1

1 Governor Plumer's Message was read on June 6, 1816. Later he sent a copy to
Thomas Jefferson, who replied, July 21, 1816, saying that it was " replete with sound
principles, and truly Republican." Commenting on what Plumer had said with regard
to Dartmouth College, Jefferson declared it to be most absurd " that institutions,
established for the use of the nation, cannot be touched or modified," and ridiculed
the idea " that the earth belongs to the dead, and not to the living." For the complete

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 219

With enthusiastic alacrity, the Legislature passed, on June 27^
18165 a bill changing the name of the institution to Dartmouth
University, increasing the number of trustees from twelve to
twenty-one, and providing for a board of twenty-five overseers,
appointed by the Governor and Council and entrusted with
the power of veto over any measures of the trustees. Thus*
for all practical purposes, the college was placed under the
thumb of the Legislature, and the Board of Trustees was to be
packed with Wheelock's friends. The bill was actuated mainly
by political motives, and it excited much bitterness among the
old trustees, who rightly declared that, if it were carried into
effect, every collegiate institution in the state would <c hereafter
hold its rights, privileges, and property, not according to the
settled established principles of law, but according to the
arbitrary will and pleasure of each successive legislature."

With little delay, the Governor named the trustees and over-
seers of the newborn university, and these officials took formal
possession of the college property ; but a majority of the old
trustees refused to yield, and Dartmouth College continued to
function, though the President and faculty were ousted from
their quarters. The University, of which John Wheelock had
been designated as President, was but a skeleton organization ;
it was difficult to obtain a quorum of either the trustees or the
overseers, and almost no undergraduates registered. The col-
lege students among whom was Rufus Choate calmly
went to lectures and recitations in Rowley Hall, not far from
the campus.

But the college trustees had no intention of submitting with-
out a fight. After consulting counsel, they brought an action
of trover, 1 on February 8, 1817, in the Court of Common Pleas

text of Jefferson's letter, see The Life of William Phmer y by William Plumer 5 Jr., pp.
440-41.

1 For the benefit of laymen, it may be explained that an action in trover is a pro-
ceeding under common law for recovering the value of personal chattels wrongfully
converted by another to his own use. The plaintiff in such an action seeks damages,
not possession, and cannot recover the specific chattel involved. In this case, it was
agreed that the return of the college seal and record books would satisfy the demands
of the verdict.

220 DANIEL WEBSTER

of Grafton County, against William H. Woodward, the former
treasurer of the trustees, for the recovery of the charter, the
records, and the seal, all of which he had refused to surrender.
By consent of both parties, the case was taken directly to the
Superior Court of Appeals of New Hampshire, for adjudication.
The trustees, as Samuel W. McCall once said, "were making
a struggle for self-preservation against great odds."

Daniel Webster, even more than most Dartmouth graduates,
had kept in touch with the situation. As a Federalist Congress-
man from New Hampshire, he was alive to its political signifi-
cance. He had been in college under President Wheelock, and
he knew personally nearly everybody involved. As early as the
winter of 1815, Wheelock had intimated to Webster his desire
to have the latter act as his counsel ; and in June, at Concord,
he had talked with him and obtained his conditional promise
of professional assistance. When the Legislature appointed
a Special Committee to investigate the concerns of the college,
the President wrote to Webster, enclosing twenty dollars
as a retainer and requesting him to come without delay to
Hanover and appear before this Committee as his personal
representative.

During the interval, Webster had been discussing the affair
with his former patron, Thomas W. Thompson, 1 who had
been a trustee of Dartmouth since 1801, and had decided
not only that Wheelock was in the wrong but also that certain
political aspects of the controversy made it inadvisable for him-
self to appear as the champion of the President. He therefore
discreetly declined to reply, and Wheelock was obliged to rely
on Judge Jonathan Hubbard and Josiah Dunham. When a
confidential letter from Senator Thompson to Professor Eben-
ezer Adams came into Dunham's possession, indicating that
Webster was about to take sides with Wheelock's critics,
Dunham at once wrote to Webster, enclosing a copy of the

1 Thompson had been Speaker of the House of Representatives in 1813-14, and had
been chosen United States Senator in 1814 to fill the vacancy occasioned by the resigna-
tion of Nicholas Gilman. At this period, Senator Thompson was a man of considerable
importance in New Hampshire politics.

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 221

document, and accusing him of treachery. To this outburst,
Webster replied with dignity, pointing out that he had not
regarded the request to appear before a Legislative Committee
as a professional matter, and saying, "I am not so fully con-
vinced as you are, that the president is altogether right, and
the trustees altogether wrong/* As to how far Webster was
ethically bound, there may be some question and there is
no record of what he did with Wheelock's twenty dollars.
Practically, however, it would have been both injudicious and
inconsistent for him to let himself be the tool of the Wheelock
faction, which was drawing its support from the Republicans,
his political foes. Furthermore, Thompson, Jeremiah Mason,
and Jeremiah Smith, all of whom were Federalists, were in-
volved, and Webster was inclined to follow where they led.
As the day approached for the meeting of the Legislature in

1 8 1 6, Webster's alarm increased. He wrote, June 4, 1 8 16, from
Portsmouth, to President Brown :

You do not feel a stronger wish than I do, that nothing may take
place at this session detrimental to the college, and I am willing to do
anything in my power to soften the irritated feelings of democracy
towards it.

As a strategic measure, he suggested that the General Court
be encouraged to form a new college, possibly at Concord, In the
hope that such a proposal would induce that body to keep its
hands off Dartmouth. After the Legislature had passed the
obnoxious act of June 27, Senator Thompson conferred with
Webster, who joined with Senator Mason, Judge Peabody, and
Timothy Farrar in the opinion that it was the duty of the
trustees to make a legal resistance; and he concurred in the
action of trover which they brought early in the following year.
By that date he had moved to Boston and was a resident of
Massachusetts.

It seems to have been taken for granted that Webster would
be among the counsel for the college trustees; but, when
Dartmouth College v. Woodward came up for a hearing in May

1817, at Haverhill, New Hampshire, the college was repre-

DANIEL WEBSTER

seated only by Jeremiah Mason and Jeremiah Smith. 1 Web-
ster may, perhaps, have held back, feeling that it was important
to have Mason and Smith ? both older and more influential than
he, actively enlisted in the case. At this preliminary clash,
the university attorneys were George Sullivan, then Attorney-
General of New Hampshire, and Ichabod Bartlett advocates
whose skill Webster had frequently tested. The Superior
Court, only recently established, comprised Chief Justice
William M. Richardson, Samuel Bell, and Levi Woodbury, all
appointees of Governor Plumer, all Republicans, and all high-
minded jurists. 2 The hearings at Haverhill were incomplete,
and, to allow further argument, the case was continued at
the September term, called at Exeter. During the summer,
Webster, at their urgent request, had joined Smith and
Mason. 3

When the case was called on September 19, Mason opened
the argument for the plaintiffs, in a plea which was a model of
condensed logic, maintaining that the recent acts of the Legis-
lature forming the university were not binding because (i) they
were not within the scope of legislative power; (2) they vio-
lated the Constitution of New Hampshire; and (3) they

1 Smith had only recently, through the repeal of the Judiciary Acts of 1813, been
removed from his position as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Hampshire,
and had returned to private practice.

2 Mason, a none too tolerant Federalist, confessed that " three more men so well
qualified as the present Judges, and who would accept the office, could not be found in
the state." Levi Woodbury (1789-1851), later Governor of New Hampshire (1823-24),
United States Senator (1825-31), Secretary of the Navy (1831-34), Secretary of the
Treasury (1834-41), United States Senator (1841-45), and Justice of the United States
Supreme Court (1846-51), was a statesman with whom Webster was frequently to be
embroiled. But for his sudden death in 1851, he would probably have been nominated
for President instead of Franklin Pierce by the Democratic Party, and would, of course,
have been elected.

3 On September 4, 1817, Webster wrote Mason from Boston: "Judge Smith has
written to me, that I must take some part in the argument of this college question.
I have not thought of the subject, nor made the least preparation ; I am sure I can do
no good, and must, therefore, beg that you and he will follow up in your own manner,
the blows which have already been so well struck. I am willing to be considered as
belonging to the cause and to talk about it, and consult about it, but should do no good
by undertaking an argument. If it is not too troublesome, please let Mr. Fales give
me a naked list of the authorities cited by you, and I will look at them before court.
I do this that I may be able to understand you and Judge Smith." (National Edition,
XVII, 265-66.)

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 223

violated the Constitution of the United States. His speech
occupied two hours, and that of Smith, who followed him, took
four. Bartlett and Sullivan, responding for the defendant,
filled three hours between them. Then Webster closed for the
plaintiffs in a plea two hours long, which no one took the
trouble to preserve. 1 Those who heard him, however, remem-
bered later that he was very emotional and even had tears in his
eyes. But neither reasoning nor pathos were of any avail to
the supporters of Dartmouth. The case was continued for
further advisement to the next session of the Court, at Plym-
outh. There, on November 6, the Chief Justice rendered a
decision adverse to the plaintiffs. The university had drawn
first blood.

Chief Justice Richardson's opinion which Webster later
admitted to be "able, ingenious, and plausible" 2 was
thoroughly Jeffersonian in doctrine. Asserting that the college
trustees formed a public corporation, it denied that they were
as a body sheltered under that provision of the New Hampshire
Bill of Rights declaring that no person should be deprived of his
property, immunity, or privileges except by judgment of his
peers or by the law of the land. Even if the charter were a
contract, the Legislature, as the supreme authority, had a right
to modify it at its discretion ; and the "law of the land" meant
any statute which the Legislature might choose to enact. In
plain language, the Legislature, being a popular assembly,
could do exactly what it pleased. Furthermore, the Court
definitely ruled that the legislation under discussion was "not
repugnant to the Constitution of the United States."

It had been assumed by the college trustees that, if they failed
in the Superior Court, they would carry their case to the
Supreme Court of the United States and that Daniel Webster
should take charge of it there. The latter was quite willing to
go, but he could not afford to give his services ; and he wrote

1 Farrar, Report of the Case of the Trustees of Dartmouth College against William H.
Woodward, omitted Webster's argument, merely stating that the latter's views were
more fully disclosed before the Supreme Court

2 National Edition, XVII, 287.

224 DANIEL WEBSTER

President Brown suggesting that, for the sum of a thousand
dollars^ he would undertake not only to appear in Washington
but also to engage Joseph Hopkinson^ of Philadelphia, as
associate counsel 1 The trustees, delighted at Webster's
acquiescence, undertook to raise the money, and he set to
work assembling material. 2 An acceptance from Hopkinson 3
assured Webster of competent support.

For the next few weeks, Webster, before going south, was in
correspondence with both Mason and Smith, and must have
met them in conference. 4 It was possible, on a writ of error to
the New Hampshire Superior Court, to bring the case before
the Supreme Court of the United States, under that provision
of the Federal Constitution giving the Supreme Court appellate
jurisdiction in matters involving the interpretation of that
document. The section covering the Dartmouth situation
was the famous clause declaring that "no State . . . shall pass
any bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the
obligation of contracts/* 5 The only basis on which the case,,
as it stood, could be brought to the Supreme Court was that the
legislative act modifying the Dartmouth charter did impair the

1 For the full text of this letter, dated November 15, 1817, see Chase's History of
Dartmouth College. It does not appear in the collected correspondence.

2 Webster wrote to Mason, November 27 : "I should like to know something of the
court's opinion ; I wish you or Mr. Farrar could get a copy for me. If I go to Washing-
ton, and have this cause on my shoulders, I must have your brief, which I should get
of course without difficulty, and Judge Smith's. . . . Will you inform me whether a
copy of Judge Richardson's opinion can be had, and whether you can devise a mode in
which I can get Judge Smith's minutes if I should go to Washington ? " (National
Edition, XVII, 266-67.)

3 Joseph Hopkinson (1770-1842), after graduating from the University of Pennsyl-
vania in 1786, studied law and began practice in Easton, but later opened an office in
Philadelphia, where he became a leader of the bar. Webster had met him as a
Federalist member of Congress in 1815-17. He was known as the author of the patriotic
song, " Hail, Columbia ! " written in 1798.

4 Webster wrote to Mason, from Boston, December 8, 1817: "Judge Smith has
written for a form of citation in the College cause, which I shall send him & write to him
for his minutes. My wish is to see both him & you, before I go to Washington. If I
should not be kept in town by the Court, as I do not expect to, I intend seeing you about
Christmas or New Year. Everybody will expect me at Washington to deliver the
Exeter argument. Therefore the Exeter argument must be drawn out before I go.
I wiU spend a day or two on tjiis subject at Portsmouth or Exeter, if you incline that
I should do so/' (National Edition, XVI, 39.)

5 Constitution of the United States, Article I, Section 10, Clause i.

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 225

obligation of a contract, thus violating the Federal Constitution.
As this point had been touched upon only briefly by the at-
torneys for the plaintiff at Exeter, Webster was disturbed at
the narrow range of inquiry involved^ and suggested bringing
another action in the United States Circuit Court/ such as
suing for the Wheelock lands/ which would allow the college
counsel to present all their arguments to the attention of the
highest tribunal in the country. After a conference between
Webster and the trustees in January 1818, three such actions
were entered in the Circuit Court, at Plymouth^ but they could
not be advanced enough to reach Washington in season. The
hearing on the Writ of Error was called for March 10, 1818,
before the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, Webster had re-
solved that he would argue his case upon not only the Con-
stitutional issue, but all the other points concerned. This he
shrewdly managed to do, with such success that it was un-
necessary to resort to further litigation.

The university trustees were not altogether happy in their
choice of counsel. There was a feeling that it would be a need-
less expense to send to Washington either Sullivan or Bartlett,
the two New Hampshire lawyers who had hitherto conducted
the case. Accordingly John Holmes, 3 a Congressman from
Maine, was engaged, with a recommendation from Woodward
that he was "extremely ready, of sound mind and a good
lawyer, inferior to D. W. only in point of oratory/ 1 Later

1 Webster wrote Judge Smith, December 8, 1817: "It is our misfortune that our
cause goes to Washington on a single point, I wish we had it in such shape as to raise
all the other objections, as well as the repugnancy of these acts to the Constitution of
the United States. I have been thinking whether it would not be advisable to bring
suit, if we can get such parties as will give jurisdiction in the circuit court of New
Hampshire. I have thought of this the more, from hearing of sundry sayings of a
great personage." (National Edition, XVII, 267.)

2 For purposes of the action, land owned by Wheelock in Hanover was leased or sold
to citizens of Vermont, thus making it an interstate litigation.

3 John Holmes (1773-1843), a graduate of Brown in 1794, studied law, was admitted
to the bar in 1799, and settled in Alfred, Maine. A strong Jeffersonian, he served in
the Massachusetts General Court, and in Congress from 1817 to 1820, when, on the
admission of Maine to the Union, he was elected United States Senator. In 1818,
Holmes was forty-five years old, a keen politician, but bombastic in his oratorical
style and not very refined in his tastes. He was a good " stump speaker," but lacked
dignity and poise.

226 DANIEL WEBSTER

William Wilt, 1 Attorney-General of the United States, was
also retained. These two attorneys presented the argument
for the defendants.

The case was argued before a full bench in a "mean apart-
ment of moderate size" in the North Wing of the Capitol,
assigned to the Court while its regular quarters were being
rebuilt after the fire of 1814. In the centre, dominating his
associates, was the great Chief Justice, John Marshall, 2 whose
luminous intellect and sane judgment did so much to determine
the course of our national history a lovable personality, tall,
ungainly, careless in dress and awkward in gesture, combining
simplicity of manner with dignity of bearing. Long after
Federalism had perished as a political force, he resolutely
upheld its doctrines from his throne of power. The other
members included Bushrod Washington, "a little, sharp-
faced gentleman, with only one eye, and a profusion of snuff
distributed over his face/* who had been appointed in 1798
and was the favorite nephew of President Washington ; William
Johnson, of South Carolina, who had taken his seat on the
bench in 1804, when he was only thirty-three years old "a
large, athletic, well-built man . . . with a full, ruddy, and fair
countenance, with thin white hair, and partially bald" ; Henry
Brockholst Livingston, of an old New York family, with his
"fine Roman face, aquiline nose, high forehead, bald head, and

1 William Wirt (1772-1 834), although not a college graduate, became one of the
most brilliant lawyers in Virginia. He did not care for political office, but served for
twelve years as Attorney-General. Wirt in 1818 had just entered the cabinet and was
worn out with the task of putting his papers in order. He described himself on January
21 as " extremely fatigued/* and he complained that he had no time to get ready for
Webster and Hopkinson.

2 John Marshall (1755-1835) was then in his sixty-third year and had been Chief
Justice since January 20, 1801. He had spent nearly six years in active military service
during the Revolution, and had then moved rapidly to the front in the law. An
admirer of Washington, he was also profoundly suspicious of Jefferson, and he became
one of the stalwart adherents of the Federalist Party. As Chief Justice, he asserted
vigorously the authority of the Supreme Court, and his opinions were almost as impor-
tant as the Constitution itself. For him, Webster had the highest respect, and the two
men agreed in their views on nearly every constitutional question. As early as March
28, 1814, Webster wrote: "There is no man in the court that strikes me like Marshall
... I have never seen a man of whose intellect I had a higher opinion." (National
Edition, XVII, 244.)

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 227

projecting chin/* who was pronounced by Story to be " a very
able and independent judge"; Thomas Todd, of Kentucky,
cc a dark-complexioned^ good-looking, substantial man"; Ga-
briel Duvalj of Maryland, "his head as white as a snowbank,
with a long white cue hanging down to his waist" ; and Joseph
Story, 1 of Massachusetts, appointed w th Duval in 1811
" below middle-size, of 1'ght, airy form, rapid and sprightly In
his motions, and polished and courtly in his manners*" Two
only were avowed Federalists Marshall and Washington.
Of the remaining five, three had been selected by Jefferson and
two by Madison. To convince such a court, even though
the members were endeavoring to be completely impartial, was
not an easy task for a New Hampshire Federalist.

At eleven o'clock on the morning of March 10, Webster
opened the argument for the plaintiff, speaking from notes
which he had carefully prepared. Webster himself felt that
his audience was "small and unsympathetic." 2 Nevertheless,
he occupied most of the session of the Supreme Court for that
day, the length of time which he filled being variously estimated
as from three to five hours. He necessarily covered much of
the ground already traversed in New Hampshire by Mason and
Smith and undoubtedly made good use of material which they
had laboriously accumulated ; but he made frank acknowledg-
ment, both in private and in public, of his indebtedness to them,
and, in view of the fact that neither one was present, it is diffi-
cult to see how he could have escaped reiterating what they had
said at previous hearings. 3 In fairness to Webster, moreover,

1 Joseph Story (1779-1845), a lawyer in Salem, Massachusetts, had been a leader
of the Jeffersonian party in the Massachusetts Legislature, and had been named by
Madison to the Supreme Court on his record as a sound Republican. He soon, how-
ever, showed himself to be Marshall's staunch supporter on most critical questions.
Story was an alert and persevering scholar, of broad education and winning personality,
with whom Webster was soon on the most intimate terms.

2 Congressional Reminiscences, by John Wentworth, pp. 42-46.

8 Webster wrote to Judge Smith, December 8, 1817 : " If I argue this case at Wash-
ington, every one knows that I can only be the reciter of the argument made by you at
Exeter. You are, therefore, principally interested, as to the matter of reputation, in
the figure I make at Washington." On January 9, 1818, he wrote again to Judge
Smith : " I must beg the favor of all your notes. I have not assurance enough,
although not entirely destitute, to think of arguing this cause on my own strength. To

DANIEL WEBSTER

it should be added that he did rearrange the available material
and did not merely repeat the briefs of his associates. His
argument was later carefully revised by him for publication and
fills less than thirty-nine pages in the standard edition of his
works.

After reviewing briefly the history of the case, Webster
declared that the legislative acts establishing Dartmouth Uni-
versity were not binding on the trustees of Dartmouth College :
first, because they were against common right and the Con-
stitution of New Hampshire ; second, because they were re-
pugnant to the Constitution of the United States. It was,
strictly speaking, only the latter point which it was permissible
to discuss before the Supreme Court. But Webster, who ap-
parently looked upon the Constitutional argument as the less
vital of the two, succeeded in introducing without the reproba-
tion of the Bench an analysis of the situation as it was affected
by the common law and also a passage showing that the legis-
lative acts were in violation of the New Hampshire Bill of
Rights. He summed up this portion of his plea in the following
paragraph :

If the view which has been taken of this question be at all correct,
this was an eleemosynary corporation, a private charity. The prop-
erty was private property. The trustees were visitors, and the right
to hold the charter, administer the funds, and visit and govern the
college, was a franchise and a privilege, solemnly granted to them.
The use being public in no way diminishes their legal estate in the
property, or their title to the franchise. There is no principle, nor
any case, which declares that a gift to such a corporation is a gift to
the public. The acts in question violate property. They take away
privileges, immunities, and franchises. They deny to the trustees
the protection of the law ; and they are retrospective in their opera-
argue it as you did would be more than I shall ever be able to do.'* (National Edition,
XVII, 269.) On April 23, 1818, he wrote to Mason : " As to the college cause, I cannot
argue it any more, I believe. I have told you very often that you and Judge Smith
argued it very greatly. If it was well argued at Washington, it is a proof that I was
right, because aU that I said at Washington was but those two arguments, clumsily
put together by me." (Ibid.> pp. 280-81.) Webster was doubtless overgenerous in
ascribing all the credit to Smith and Mason, but it is certain that their scholarly
researches made his own task much easier.

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 229

tion. In all which respects they are against the constitution of New
Hampshire. 1

Up to this point, Webster had devoted nearly three fourths
of the space later assigned to his printed argument to a plea for
abstract justice, supported by various precedents; he now
proceeded to use the last nine pages in demonstrating that the
acts in question directly violated that section of the Federal
Constitution already quoted. 2 In dealing with this topic,
which was that upon which the case was eventually decided,
Webster alleged that the charter of Dartmouth College pos-
sessed "all the essential parts of a con tract " ; that the college
was "a private, eleemosynary corporation"; and that, in this
instance, the sanctity of all similar institutions in this country
was at stake. With an assurance which increased as he drew
to a close, Webster said :

It will be a dangerous, a most dangerous experiment, to hold these
institutions subject to the rise and fall of popular parties, and the
fluctuations of political opinions. If the franchise may be at any time
taken away, or impaired, the property also may be taken away, or its
use perverted. Benefactors will have no certainty of effecting the
object of their bounty ; and learned men will be deterred from devot-
ing themselves to the service of such institutions, from the precarious
title of their offices. Colleges and halls will be deserted by all better
spirits, and become a theatre for the contentions of politics. Party
and faction will be cherished in the places consecrated to piety and
learning. These consequences are neither remote nor possible only.
They are certain and immediate. 3

The printed argument ended with a long quotation from
Cicero, 4 which must have been impressive as Webster rolled it

1 National Edition, X, 224. This speech, in the revised form approved by Webster,
is well worth reading as a specimen of his best legal style. So clear and straightforward
is the argument that even a layman can read it with pleasure and understanding.

2 At the present day, Webster would probably not have been allowed by the Court
to argue anything except the point of conflict with the United States Constitution.

8 National Edition, X 3 232.

4 The quotation was taken from the early part of Qcero's Pro L. Flacco, but Webster
omitted several phrases from the original passage in order to fit it to the situation. It
is the longest single passage of Latin used by Webster in any of his speeches. I am
indebted to Professor Charles H. Forbes, of Andover, for checking this quotation.

230 DANIEL WEBSTER

out in his deep and sonorous voice, but which probably not even
the Chief Justice understood.

This argument is a model of lucidity. We are told that it was
carried on, for the most part, "in the calm tone of easy con-
versation/* with a chain of reasoning so beautifully constructed
that the audience unconsciously were drawn along with him;
and even Justice Story., who had prepared himself, pen in hand,
to take notes, sat fixed in the same posture, absorbed in what
was being said* Ticknor underrated it when he said that those
who heard Webster wondered, as they read the printed version,
"how such dry bones could ever have lived with the power they
there witnessed and felt/' But Webster's native eloquence
must have added weight to his words.

Webster's plea on that March afternoon was not all logic.
In his Memorial Oration delivered on Webster in 1853, at Han-
over, Rufus Choate, that eccentric but silver-tongued genius,
quoted a version of Webster's peroration in his Dartmouth
College Argument, sent to him by Professor Chauncey A.
Goodrich, of Yale, who went to Washington in 1818 as the
representative of his institution, the interests of which were
likely to be affected. Between 1818 and 1853, thirty-five years
had gone by. Goodrich was a professor of oratory and a bril-
liant speaker. Choate had a vivid and romantic imagination.
It is highly improbable that either could have quoted Webster's
exact words. But the famous passage, as repeated by Choate
in the College Church on Hanover Green, is what Webster
might have said, even if he did not employ the precise phrasing
which Choate puts into his mouth. The story, moreover, has
become so bound up with Websterian tradition that it is almost
irreverent to cast doubt on its verbal authenticity.

According to the account which Goodrich, at the age of
sixty-three, gave of an incident which happened when he was
twenty-eight, Webster, after his main argument was completed,
stood for a time Goodrich said, "for a few moments" in
silence, as if wondering whether to cease. Then impulsively he
turned to the Chief Justice and addressed him in language which
seemed to flow spontaneously from his overburdened soul :

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 231

This, sir, is my case. It is the case* not merely of that humble
institution, it is the case of every college in our land. It is more. It
is the case of every eleemosynary institution throughout our country ,
of all those great charities founded by the piety of our ancestors to
alleviate human misery, and scatter blessings along the pathway of
human life. It is more. It is, in some sense, the case of every man
who has property of which he may be stripped, for the question is
simply this : Shall our state legislature be allowed to take that which
is not their own, to turn it from its original use, and apply it to such
ends or purposes as they, in their discretion, shall see fit ? Sir, you
may destroy this little institution ; it is weak ; it is in your hands !
You may put it out ; but if you do, you must carry on your work !
You must extinguish, one after another, all those great lights of
science, which, for more than a century, have thrown their radiance
over the land ! It is, sir, as I have said, a small college, and yet
there are those who love it. ...

Pathos in oratory has never been more intense than in these
lines. Even to write the words is to be stirred by their poign-
ancy. But we are told that Webster, his body rigid and his
outstretched hands shaking, as if striving to regain control of
his feelings, went on to refer to his own attachment to the
college. Very simply, he told of what his parents and his
brother had done to assure him an education. "Every one/'
said Goodrich, "saw that it was wholly unpremeditated, a
pressure on his heart which sought relief in words and tears/'
. . . This may be true. But there is a well-authenticated
story that Webster had said something of this kind to the
Superior Court of New Hampshire, at Exeter. It is no reflec-
tion on his sincerity to say that he was too consummate an
artist not to make the most of the situation. The orators of
that period Everett and Choate and Sumner, as well as
Webster often strove as consciously for an effect as Edwin
Booth or Henry Irving ever did in Hamlet.

As Goodrich described the scene, Chief Justice Marshall was
visibly stirred, and many persons in the room were weeping,
quite unashamed. Finally the speaker drew himself up to his
full height, and, after a scornful glance at the opponents of his
college, turned to the Chief Justice and concluded :

232 DANIEL WEBSTER

Sir* I know not how others may feel, but, for myself, when I see

my alma mater surrounded, like Caesar in the senate house, by those
who are reiterating stab upon stab, I would not, for this right hand,
have her turn to me and say, et tu quoque, mifili!, "and thou
tQOj my son!"

He sat down. It was a dramatic termination to what must
have been an amazing performance. Stranger still, however,
is the fact that, but for Goodrich's letter to Choate, the words
would have been lost to the world. 1 In the contemporary
accounts of the case, Webster's remarks are not referred to except
in very general terms. 2 Holmes, of the opposing counsel, con-
fessed that Webster's argument was "very able" ; and a repre-
sentative of the university trustees wrote back to President
Allen/ "Mr. Webster has delivered his speech, which made no
little impression." But the full significance of the occasion did
not appear until days and weeks had gone by.

1 In Wheeler's Daniel Webster^ The Expounder of the Constitution, published In 1905,
was printed for the first time a manuscript in the Congressional Library, apparently
prepared by Justice Story as a review of Webster's first volume of speeches, which
appeared in 1830. Describing Webster's argument, Story said: "There was an
earnestness of manner, and a depth of research, and a potency of phrase, which at once
convinced you that his whole soul was in the cause ; and that he had meditated over it
in the deep silence of the night and studied it in the broad sunshine of the day. . . .
And when he came to his peroration, there was in his whole air and manner, in the fiery
flashings of his eye, the darkness of his contracted brow, the sudden and flying flushes
of his cheeks, the quivering and scarcely manageable movements of his lips, in the deep
guttural tones of his voice, in the struggle to suppress his emotions, in the almost con-
vulsive clenchings of his hands without a seeming consciousness of the act, there was in
these things what gave to his oratory an almost superhuman influence. . . . There was
a painful anxiety towards the close. The whole audience had been wrought up to the
highest excitement ; many were dissolved in tears ; many betrayed the most agitating
mental struggles; many were sinking under exhausting efforts to conceal their own
emotion. When Mr. Webster ceased to speak, it was some minutes before anyone
seemed inclined to break the silence. The whole seemed but an agonizing dream, from
which the audience was slowly and almost unconsciously awakening." (Wheeler, pp.

30-31*)

2 The Washington correspondent of the Columbian Centinel wrote : " Our friend
Webster never made a happier effort. To a most elaborate and lucid argument he
united a dignified and pathetic peroration which charmed and melted his hearers."
The Boston Daily Advertiser said, March 23, 1818: " Mr. Webster opened the cause in
that clear, perspicuous, forcible, and impressive manner for which he is so much dis-
tinguished ; and for two or three hours enchained the Court and the audience with an
argument which, for weight of authority, force of reasoning, and power of eloquence,
has seldom been equalled in this or any court."

3 President John Wheelock had died, April 4, 1817, and had been succeeded as
president of the phantom university by Allen.

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 233

In April 1818, Webster prepared and printed several copies
of his argument, but he declared, in explaining his action to
Mason, "All the nonsense is left out." 1 Shirley, in his account
of the case, seized upon this phrase and surmised that Webster,
during his speech, had digressed for an hour in an attempt to
arouse Marshall's Federalist prejudices, and that this political
passage was the "nonsense" which Webster had in mind.
Lodge, in his biography of Webster, accepted this myth without
investigation and drew a picturesque but wholly fanciful sketch
of Webster as he stirred "the old war-horse" to action. There
is no evidence whatever to support Shirley's conjectures. The
"nonsense" which Webster left out in his printed version was
the peroration afterwards reported by Professor Goodrich. If
Webster had done what Shirley and Lodge suggested, it would
have been a gross breach of judicial decorum, which would
rightly have been resented by the Republican members on the
bench. 2 Such an appeal, furthermore, might very well have
been detrimental to his case, for a majority of the Court were
Republicans, and opposed to the Federalists.

Holmes, opening for the defendants, occupied an hour on the
first day, after Webster had finished, and also the following
morning. He was not in an enviable position, for Webster's
eloquence had dazzled both the Court and the audience, and
whatever he said was bound to seem inadequate. But the
Maine Congressman fell below the expectations of his friends.
He employed cheap rhetorical devices which might have been
well received in a stump speech but were inappropriate to an
argument before that exalted tribunal. Inwardly delighted
with Holmes's failure, Webster wrote Mason, "Upon the whole,
he gave us three hours of the merest stuff that was ever uttered
in a county court." 3

William Wirt then concluded for the defendants. He opened
on the afternoon of the second day, but, breaking down in the
middle of his presentation, requested an adjournment until the

1 Webster to Mason, April 23, 1818 (National Edition, XVII, 281).

2 Beveridge, John Marshall, IV, 259.

3 National Edition, XVII, 275.

234 DANIEL WEBSTER

next morning. Wirt was a very able man, who shares with
Caleb Gushing the distinction of being among the greatest of
our Attorney-Generals. But he was at the time much ex-
hausted, and he admitted that he had not really examined the
facts. Webster was not impressed with Wirt's contribution
to the case; l but later, when it was reported that he had said,
**The weaknesses in my argument were supplied by Wirt's
speech/' Webster repudiated this charge and wrote Wirt saying
that the latter's plea was a "a /////, able, and most eloquent
exposition of the rights of the Defendant." 2 It is indisputable,
however, that Wirt did not greatly strengthen the cause of his
clients.

The case for the plaintiffs was closed by Hopkinson, a
scholarly and experienced advocate, who " showed breeding
in every look, movement, word and intonation." 3 His speech,
which adhered closely to points of law, was delivered in a quiet
manner, very favorably contrasted with the noisy declamation
of Holmes and Wirt. 4 The argument of the case ended on
March 12, having occupied only three days.

The judgment of contemporary witnesses was that the
plaintiff's counsel were much superior to their opponents.
Holmes and Wirt obviously did not work in harmony, and their
reasoning had some striking discrepancies and inconsistencies.
William Sullivan, writing to Mrs. Webster, said: "In a letter

1 Writing to Mason, March 13, 1818, Webster said: " Wirt followed. He is a good
deal of a lawyer, and has very quick perceptions, and handsome power of argument ;
but he seemed to treat this case as if his side could furnish nothing but declamation.**
(National Edition, XVII, 275.) On March 14, Webster wrote Smith: "Wirt has
talents, is a competent lawyer, and argues a good cause well. In this case he said more
nonsensical things than became him.** (Ibid.> p. 277.) Wirt himself wrote, April 28,
1819, to Webster: " My argument was framed under great disadvantage, having to
prepare it very hastily and under the pressure of a load of official business which was
wholly new to me."

2 This letter to Wirt, April 5, 1818, was first printed by Wheeler in his Daniel Webster,
The Expounder of the Constitution^ pp. 32-33.

s Beveridge, Marshall, IV, 254.

4 Webster wrote President Brown, March 13, 1818: "Mr. Hopkinson understood
every part of the cause, and in his argument did it great justice." (National Edition,
XVII, 274.) He wrote to Mason on the same day : " Mr. Hopkinson made a most
satisfactory reply, keeping to the law, and not following Holmes and Wirt into the
fields of declamation and fine speaking/* (Ibid. y p. 276.)

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 235

which I have seen, it is said, c ln the College cause* Webster
shone like the sun, and Holmes like a sun fish.*" David
Daggett wrote to Mason : "Holmes went up like a rocket and
down like a stick. The opinion was universal that Webster
rose superior even to Wirt (though it is said that he appeared
very well) and infinitely so to Holmes." Rufus King who
was> of course, strongly prejudiced wrote to Gore ? "Webster
acquitted himself with the highest credit and produced the
strongest sentiments of respect and admiration. Mr. Holmes
fell below mediocrity/* Webster's own attitude after the com-
pletion of the argument was optimistic, but not complacent. 1

On March 13, the Chief Justice announced a continuance,
and on the next day the Supreme Court adjourned for that
term. No decision, therefore> could be expected for many
months. During the ensuing summer and autumn both sides
did their utmost to bring their views to the notice of the proper
people. The university trustees circulated widely the Opinion
delivered by Chief Justice Richardson in the New Hampshire
Superior Court. On the other hand, Webster's argument, care-
fully revised by him, was privately printed and distributed
judiciously, copies being sent even to some of the Supreme
Court Judges. 2 Chancellor James Kent, of New York, whose
influence with a few of them was known to be strong, seemed at
first to be for the university. But President Brown visited him
at Albany, conversed with him on various phases of the ques-
tion, and ascertained that a perusal of Webster's argument had
converted him. At least two members of the Supreme Court

1 Webster wrote to President Brown, March 13, <c You may say, however, to your
friends, and give the students to understand, as far as useful, that the cause looks well
here '* ; and he wrote to Mason on the same day, " In my opinion, the argument upon
the law of the case on our side is not answered." More explicitly, he wrote to
Smith, March 14: " The chief and Washington, I have no doubt are with us. Duval
and Todd perhaps against us ; the other three holding up. I cannot much doubt but
that Story will be with us in the end, and I think that we have much more than an
even chance for one of the others. I think we shall finally succeed." (National
Edition, XVII, 276.)

2 Webster wrote to Justice Story, September 9: "I send you five copies of our
argument. If you send one of them to each of such of the judges as you think proper,
you will of course do it in the manner least likely to lead to a feeling that any indecorum
has been committed by the plaintiffs." (National Edition, XVII,

236 DANIEL WEBSTER

Johnson and Livingston consulted Kent and were some-
what guided by his verdict. Although nothing unethical was
probably done by either disputant, every legitimate device was
employed to affect the decision, and the issues were even de-
bated in a few newspapers. President Brown^ who was inde-
fatigable, wrote to Webster in September regarding the latter's
argument :

It has already been, or shortly will be, read by all the commanding
men of New England and New York ; and so far as it has gone, it has
united them all, without a single exception within my knowledge, in
one broad and impenetrable phalanx for our defense and support.
New England and New York are gained. Will not this be sufficient
for our present purposes ?

Doubtless the reference to " New England " and " New York"
was a hint that Story and Livingston were felt to be supporters
of the college.

Commencement, in August 1818, was observed at Hanover
by both the college and the university, the exercises being held
a week apart. On August 9, Judge Woodward, against whom
the original suit in trover had been brought, died at the age of
forty-three. Meanwhile the supplementary cases brought in
the Circuit Court were carried along from one stage to another
in preparation for a possible emergency. 1 The university
trustees, dissatisfied with the presentation of their cause by
Holmes and Wirt, sought to gain an advantage by retaining
William Pinkney ; and he had familiarized himself with the
facts in the hope that the Supreme Court would allow him to
speak. 2 Webster informed Mason that Pinkney was planning
to base his argument on the ground that all the power belonging

1 Webster still retained his confidence in the argument based on the common law.
He wrote Mason, April 28, 1818 : " The question which we must raise in one of these
actions, is, ' whether, by the general principles of our governments, the State legislatures
be not restrained from divesting vested rights ? * This, of course, independent of the
constitutional provision respecting contracts. On this question I have great confidence
In a decision on the right side. This is the proposition with which you began your
argument at Exeter, and which I endeavored to state from your minutes at Washington."
(National Edition, XVII, 283.)

2 Hopkinson wrote Webster, November 17, 1818: "In my passage through
Baltimore, I fell in with Pinkney, who told me he was engaged in the cause by the present

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 237

to Parliament belonged to the New Hampshire Legislature.
Although he was not worried, Webster was by no means certain
what would happen, and he was philosophically prepared for
any eventuality. 1

Whatever doubts he had were soon to be dissipated. At the
February term, in 1819, the Supreme Court took possession of
its former quarters, which had been undergoing renovation since
the fire of 1814. This historic room, now used for the Law
Library of the Supreme Court, is to-day packed with books, and
seems much smaller than the present Supreme Court Chamber
directly above it; but the dimensions are exactly the same.
In 1819, it was fresh and newly finished, and each justice had
his own mahogany desk and chair on the raised dais along the
straight eastern side of the semi-circular room ; but they com-
plained that, in lieu of a retiring closet, they had to don their
silk robes in the presence of the spectators. It was described
by Senator Oliver Hampton Smith, of Indiana, as " the Judg-
ment hall, with its low-browed roof and short columns modelled
after the prison of Constance in Marmion." 2 Here most of
Webster's great legal arguments were delivered, and the
shadowy alcoves are haunted by the ghosts of Clay and Pink-
ney and Choate, as well as of the famous jurists, Marshall and
Story and Taney. 3

University, and that he is desirous to argue it, if the court will let him. I suppose fie
expects to do something very extraordinary in it, as he says Mr. Wirt * was not stroiag
enough for it, has not back enough/ " (Ibid. 9 p. 289.) Hopkinson and Webster were
agreed that they would not consent to let Pinkney reargue the case, but that, If the
Court did allow this, they would claim their right to reply.

1 On the day when the Supreme Court met, February i, 1819, Webster wrote to
Mason : " Wirt and Pinkney still talk of arguing one of the college causes. On our
side, we smile at this, not being able to suppose them serious. I hope they will not
attempt it, as it would only lead to embarrassment about the facts. I should have no
fears for the result." On the same day, he wrote Timothy Farrar: " Not a word has
yet fallen from any Judge on the cause. They keep their own counsel. All that I have
seen, however, looks rather favorable. I hope to be relieved of further anxiety by a
decision for or against us in five or six days."

2 Quoted by Warren, The Supreme Court in United States History , I, 460 from Early
Indiana Trials and Sketches (1858).

3 The room is on the ground floor, facing the east, and may be entered from the paved
court directly off the street. The fluted pillars, with capitals, the crude bas-relief,
by Franzoni, showing Justice awkwardly holding the scales, and the recessed windows
are still there, as they were in Webster's time.

238 DANIEL WEBSTER

Here, on the morning of Tuesday, February 2 3 as soon as his
colleagues had taken their seats, the Chief Justice, ignoring the
eager Pinkney, 1 announced that the Court, during its recess, had
reached a decision in Dartmouth College v. Woodward. He then
proceeded to read the momentous opinion giving a verdict for
the plaintiffs.

The Opinion promulgated by Marshall had been prepared by
him during some weeks of leisure while he was in the mountains
in the summer of 1818. Carefully reasoned and compactly
written, it is one of the ablest of his papers. 2 Opening with a
statement of the seriousness of the point at issue, " the
validity of a legislative act," he declared that in no doubtful
case would the Supreme Court "pronounce a legislative act to
be contrary to the constitution." After quoting the language
of the Federal Constitution regarding contracts, he held that a
private corporate charter was a contract within the meaning of
that clause. The real matter to be considered, then, was
whether the Dartmouth College Charter created a public
institution or a "private eleemosynary corporation." On this
question he had no doubt, after examining the evidence, that
the college was " incorporated for the purpose of perpetuating
. . . the bounty of the donors to the specified objects of that
bounty/* It was this which led to his conclusion that the
Dartmouth Charter was a contract, " the obligation of which
cannot be impaired without violating the Constitution of the
United States/* It was conceded that the legislative acts under
consideration did materially alter the Charter of Dartmouth
College ; hence they "are repugnant to the Constitution of the
United States/*

1 PInkney had prepared himself with zeal and thoroughness, and was ready to make
" the supreme effort of his brilliant career." (Beveridge, Marshall, IV, 260*) Every-
body in the Court was aware of his intention, and Marshall's failure to recognize him
was deliberate.

2 Beveridge, in his John Marshall, IV, 261 ff., gives an admirable summary of this
Opinion, but it is worth reading in full. Writing to Mason on February 4, 1819,
Webster said : " The Chief Justice's opinion was in his own peculiar way. He reasoned
along from step to step; and, not referring to the cases, adopted the principles of them,
and worked the whole into a close, connected, and very able argument." (National
Edition, XVI, 44.)

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 239

Webster, as has been pointed out, had the decision

to rest upon the theory that the legislative acts were in viola-
tion of the fundamental principles of government. Justice
Story, who also read an Opinion (4 Wheat., 666-713), concurred
with Marshall, but based his judgment on the assumption that
legislation destructive of contracts was against "natural
rights/' If the Supreme Court had passed upon the case with
this in mind, its decision would unquestionably have been the
same. But the Chief Justice, for reasons readily understood,
preferred to exalt the written Constitution of the United States.

That political affiliations had nothing to do with the decision
is shown by the fact that it was concurred in by five of the seven
justices, two of them Federalists and three Republicans. Todd,
a Republican, was absent, and Duval, also a Republican, was
the only dissenter. With remarkable independence, a Court,
the membership of which leaned towards Republicanism, had
agreed on an opinion which greatly strengthened the authority
and prestige of the Federal Government, had set aside the
legislative act of a sovereign state, and had undertaken, in the
words of Marshall, to protect, "from even Legislative violence,
those contracts which the Constitution of the country has
placed beyond Legislative control." The integrity and fair-
mindedness of the Supreme Court were unmistakably dem-
onstrated.

As soon as the Opinion was read, Webster withdrew and
wrote to Ezekiel :

All is safe. Judgment was rendered this morning, reversing the
judgment in New Hampshire. . . . The opinion was delivered by
the Chief Justice. It was very able and very elaborate ; it goes the
whole length, and leaves not an inch of ground for the University to
stand on. 1

By the same mail, Webster sent short notes to Mason and
President Brown, saying to the latter, in conclusion, "I feel
a load removed from my shoulders much heavier than they have
been accustomed to bear/' 2 Never in all his career was

1 National Edition, XVII, 300. 2 /#</., p. 300.

I 4 o DANIEL WEBSTER

Webster more boisterously exuberant than at winning the Dart-
mouth College Case. His personal reputation was, of course,
immensely enhanced, but even more important was the rescue
of Dartmouth College from annihilation. On that morning,
Joseph Hopkinson also sent to President Brown a letter which
Dartmouth men have quoted again and again :

Our triumph in the college cause has been complete. Five judges,
only six attending, concur not only in a decision in our favor, but in
placing it upon principles broad and deep, and which secure corpora-
tions of this description from legislative despotism and party violence
for the future. The Court goes all lengths with us, and whatever
trouble these gentlemen may give us in future, in their great and pious
zeal for the interests of learning, they cannot shake those principles
which must and will restore Dartmouth College to its true and orig-
inal owners. I would have an inscription over the door of your build-
ing, " Founded by Eleazar Wheelock, Refounded by Daniel Webster." *

The death of Woodward, the defendant in the original suit,
presented a few technical difficulties, but Webster promptly
moved for judgment nunc pro tune, which was entered at once
for the sum of twenty thousand dollars* On the last day of
February, he wrote Jeremiah Smith, "I have in my bag a man-
date to the Superior Court of Judicature of the State of New
Hampshire to carry this judgment into Execution." 2 The
victory was indeed complete and unalterable. There was, it is
true, some question as to the disposition of the auxiliary cases
instituted by the college trustees for an emergency. It was
whispered during the spring that new facts were available
which might wreck the college. It was even hinted that
Governor Wentworth had had no authority to grant the original
charter. But such rumors had no foundation. In their first
disappointment, Wirt and Pinkney evidently wished to carry
on the fight still farther. 3 But nothing of this kind was ever

i National Edition, XVII, 301, 2 Ibid., XVI, 45.

3 See Webster's letters to Jeremiah Mason, February 15 and February 23, 1818,
published in National Edition, XVI, 49-52. On February 28, however, Webster wrote
to Judge Smith, " Inter nos y I do not believe anybody expects the College Question
ever to come here again." (Ibid., p. 45.)

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 241

seriously undertaken. In the end, the decision had to be
accepted, and the auxiliary cases were dismissed at the Spring
Term of the Circuit Court.

The settlement of the Dartmouth College Case did not arouse
much attention in the contemporary press. The New Hamp-
shire Gazette y Portsmouth's Republican newspaper, asserted
that the facts had not been adequately presented to the Court; 1
while the Portsmouth Oracle, Federalist in its principles, sup-
ported the decision as wise and sound. The only New England
newspaper to appreciate its full significance was the Columbian
Cen finely in Boston, which, on February 10, 1819, referred to
Marshall's decision as "the most able and elaborate opinion
which, perhaps, has ever been pronounced in a Court of Judica-
ture.'* The North American Review, in 1820, said that "per-
haps no judicial proceeding in this country ever involved more
important consequences or excited a deeper interest in the public
mind/' 2 But it was not until several years had gone by that
the profound significance of the case began to be understood.

Justice Story, however, was not inclined to belittle what had
been done, and, in writing to Chancellor Kent, spoke "of the
vital importance, to the well-being of society and the security of
private rights, of the principles upon which that decision
rested." With the spread of business corporations during the
second quarter of the nineteenth century, it was perceived that
the doctrine laid down by Marshall had actually done more than
any other opinion to broaden the jurisdiction of the Supreme
Court. Chancellor Kent himself, speaking in his Commen-
taries, of the Dartmouth College Opinion, said :

It ... did more than any other single act proceeding from the
authority of the United States to throw an impregnable barrier around
all rights and franchises derived from the grant of government, and
to give solidity and inviolability to the literary, charitable, religious,
and commercial institutions of our country. 3

1 The exact words were : " Had the case been fairly laid before the Court, no man,
without impeaching their integrity or their common sense, can doubt but their decision
would have confirmed that of the Superior Court in this State/*

2 North American Review, X, 83.

3 Kent, Commentaries, I, 392.

242 DANIEL WEBSTER

It has been quoted again and again as a precedent and has
been upheld by the Supreme Court repeatedly from decade to
decade. Indeed, Chief Justice Waite, pronouncing an Opinion
in Stone v. Mississippi, in October 1879, stated that the prin-
ciples established in the Dartmouth College Case were "so
imbedded in the jurisprudence of the United States as to make
them to all intents and purposes a part of the Constitution
itself."

From an economic point of view the decision stabilized busi-
ness by guaranteeing to corporations and legitimate investors
immunity from partisan legislation. Sir Henry Maine per-
ceived very clearly that, because of it, the Constitutional clause
forbidding the impairment of contracts became "the bulwark
of American individualism against democratic impatience
and socialistic fantasy/* 1 Industry, relieved from the fear of
whimsical legislation or persecution, could proceed with more
orderly development, and, under the conditions which then
existed, the opinion was very salutary. Property owners are
bound to feel safer when they know that contracts cannot be
broken by irresponsible politicians.

There is, of course, another side to the matter. Corporations
in the more than a century since the opinion was rendered have
sometimes become dangerous to the public. Practical con-
siderations have necessitated certain modifications in the legis-
lative attitude towards charters : first by forbidding any
charter to grant rights which might be employed as a menace
to the community ; and second, by allowing any legislature to
alter or repeal a charter when such action is obviously con-
tributory to the protection of life, health, or morality. 2 Thus
certain states have exacted measures reserving to the legislature
the power, under certain circumstances, to modify corporate
charters. But the basic principle of good faith underlying
Webster's argument and Marshall's Opinion is just as vital to-
day as it was in 1819.

When the news reached Hanover, cannon were shot off by

1 Maine, Popular Government, pp. 247-48, quoted by Warren, Supreme Court, I, 491.

2 Warren, Supreme Court, 1, 490 ff. See also Beveridge, Marshall^ IV, 276 ff.

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 243

the students and townspeople* and the functions of the uni-
versity were at once suspended. Reoccupying the buildings
from which it had been ejected^ the college was soon running
as if its continuity had never been interrupted. Under the
direction of Webster's former law partner, Timothy Farrar, a
full report of the proceedings was prepared and printed in a
volume of over four hundred pages. 1 At Commencements in
August, Webster was present to receive the congratulations of
his friends., and was extended a formal vote of thanks at the Phi
Beta Kappa Dinner in the Dartmouth Hotel. The annual
Exhibition was rendered memorable by the dramatic Vale-
dictory Address of Rufus Choate, of the Senior Class, at which
Webster was one of the audience. 2 Thus in the College Church^
for the first time, were brought together perhaps the two most
eloquent of American statesmen.

Webster was paid fifty dollars for his plea before the State
Court and a thousand dollars for his appearance before the
Supreme Court. Hopkinson received five hundred dollars for
his services. The college trustees, conscious of the inadequacy
of the fees given to their counsel, voted to request them all
Mason, Smith, Hopkinson, and Webster to sit for their
portraits to Gilbert Stuart. 3 These were completed within a
year and are now in the possession of Dartmouth College*
They hang very appropriately in Webster Hall.

But these are sordid details. Daniel Webster gained from
the Dartmouth College Case something far more impor-
tant than money. His argument "established forever his

1 The tide was A Report of the Case of the Trustees of Dartmouth College against
William H. Woodward* Webster was much interested in this publication. He wrote
Mason, April 10, 1819: " But I am still inclined to have the Book. One reason is,
that you & Judge Smith may have the credit which belongs to you. Another is, I
believe, Judge Story is strongly of opinion it would be a useful work, that Whea ton's
Reports go only into the hands of Professional men, but that this Book might be read
by other Classes, &c. &c." (National Edition, XVI, 48.)

2 Fuess, Rufus Choate> pp. 36-38.

3 Gilbert Stuart (1755-1828), after long experience in Europe and in New York,
Philadelphia, and Washington, had come to Boston to reside in 1805, and lived there
during the remainder of his life. Webster wrote Mason, November 15, 1819 : 4< I have
seen Stuart. He says the pictures shall be completed this week, I think they may be,
perhaps, next." (National Edition, XVI, 55.)

DANIEL WEBSTER

reputation as a great jurist." l Justice Story, perhaps the best
authority, said: "This argument was decisive of the future
professional reputation of Mr. Webster. It elevated him at
once to the first rank, and to the foremost competitors in that
rank . . . It would not be too much to say, that It gave anew
direction to his own hopes and wishes/' 2 From that moment,
his legal ability was in constant demand by important clients,
and, whenever he desired, he could secure a lucrative practice in
the courts.

Cynical lawyers have sometimes declared that a speech such
as Webster delivered in the Dartmouth College Case, highly
charged with feeling and intensely dramatic, would not now be
tolerated by the Supreme Court, and that his sentimental
reference to his Alma Mater would be met with smiles rather
than tears. It is doubtless true that the Court to-day would
confine counsel more closely to the points at issue. But the
kind of eloquence which Webster displayed is always potent if
it seems sincere ; and no one could doubt that he was in deadly
earnest It was no mere florid rhetoric which Webster used.
He meant what he said. Furthermore, he was too sensitive an
orator not to make sure that his audience were in a receptive
mood. No one was better aware of the slender margin which
separates the sublime from the ridiculous. Finally, we must
not forget that the greater part of Webster's argument was
strictly logical, unified in its structure, and supported by a
wealth of precedent. The Dartmouth College Case was won,
not by Webster's famous plea for Dartmouth, but by the irre-
futable reasoning which had preceded that pathetic outburst.

Daniel Webster became at once a hero at Dartmouth, and
has remained one to this day. President William J. Tucker
rightly said : "Before the country had grasped the scope of his

1 Warren, Supreme Court, I, 480.

2 Quoted in Wheeler, Daniel Webster, The Expounder of the Constitution, p. 31.
Samuel W. McCall said : ** Although this was not the first cause argued by Webster
before the national high court, it especially marked the beginning of a career which
continued for more than a third of a century and stamps him on the whole as the greatest
figure who ever appeared at that august bar." (Proceedings of the Webster Centennial
at Dartmouth College, p. 118.)

THE DARTMOUTH COLLEGE CASE 245

argument, it was caught by the splendor of his courage, Some-
thing of this high distinction of courage fell upon the college."
At Hanover, the beautiful Webster Hall perpetuates his name
in brick and granite. But even more enduring are the rever-
ence with which he is regarded by Dartmouth alumni and the
respect paid to his name wherever they are assembled. They
know that his argument "served to nationalize the college.*'

More than thirty years later, in September 1850, Daniel
Webster, then an old man and Secretary of State for the second
time, gave a grand dinner in Washington to alumni of Dart-
mouth College. 1 A discussion arose as to which one of his
arguments had been the most remarkable; and, with that
childlike naivete which was one of his distinctive qualities, he
turned to his guests and asked: "What do you all say here,
to-day ? I ask the question of each and every one of you.
What has been my greatest effort ?" Various judgments were
expressed, and finally, after the dessert was removed, he was
called upon for his opinion. Then, rising and pushing back his
chair, Webster talked for a full hour, familiarly reviewing the
notable achievements of his life. "That is a man's greatest
effort," he began, "which brings to him the most opportunities
for other efforts and does the most towards securing to him
a permanent support for himself and family/* It was, he
declared, his Alma Mater, which gave him his real opportunity;
and ever afterwards he felt that his professional sign was
"Daniel Webster and the Dartmouth College Case." His
heart was in that cause, and his victory secured for him a
practice equal to that of any of his rivals in the law. "I am
poor," he concluded. "I have done for Dartmouth College all
that I can. Yet I feel indebted to her, indebted for my
early education, indebted for her early confidence, indebted for
an opportunity to show to men, whose support I was to need
for myself and family, that I was equal to the defense of vested
rights against state courts and sovereignties."

1 The story of this dinner is told by John Wentworth in his Congressional Reminis-
cences, an address delivered in Chicago, March 16, 1882, and published in the same year.

X
THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER

Side by side with the great name of Marshall should be placed that of
Webster. The arguments of the one were as necessary as the decisions of
the other,

EVERETT P. WHEELER, Daniel Webster^ the Expounder of the

Constitution

The great function of Daniel Webster's mind and of Daniel Webster's
tongue was to make the Constitution clear, applicable, and enduring.

GAMALIEL BRADFORD, Daniel Webster

LAWYERS, like actors, suffer In their fame because of the fleet-
ing nature of the spoken word. The most eloquent appeal
to a jury dies quickly upon the air. Even though the actual
phrases may be preserved in type, nothing can bring back the
subtle intonation, the unconscious gesture, which at the mo-
ment seemed so significant. Every attorney, moreover, in
the course of his routine business, disposes of litigation which
leaves no trace behind it. Thus in half a century the reputa-
tion of such a master as Rufus Choate is obscured, and his
genius is preserved only in those anecdotes, many of them
apocryphal, handed down by one legal generation to another.
Few but trials before the highest courts are fully reported. The
others may secure an evanescent publicity in the newspapers,
but they are soon forgotten. There are dozens of cases into
which Webster threw himself with ardor but which will remain
hidden until some curious and persistent scholar brushes the
cobwebs away.

Nevertheless, Webster was blessed beyond most of his rivals
in that a large proportion of his professional work was highly

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 247

constructive. It has been plausibly maintained that his
talents were never more marked than in his arguments on
Constitutional problems before the Supreme Court of the
United States. 1 His reasoning in the Dartmouth College case
won for him the title of Expounder of the Constitution.
It was his fortune, during the years which followed, to be en-
gaged in similar disputes which affected the whole future
development of this country.

What were his qualifications as a Constitutional lawyer?
He had long been a student of American history, especially
of the formative period between the close of the Revolution
and the inauguration of Washington. Extensive reading had
acquainted him with political and economic problems both in
ancient and modern times. He had supplemented this by
practical experience in Congress during debates on important
questions. He was not a profound scholar in legal precedents, 2
but he possessed a mind which ignored trivialities, and could
distinguish wheat from chaff. ' He had also the gift of clear
reasoning and straightforward speech, animated by a faith
derived from conviction. His intellectual and spiritual weak-
nesses, such as they were, were less evident in his work as a
lawyer than in his career as a statesman.

Thus admirably equipped, Webster came forward at a period
when vital issues had to be settled whether our written
Constitution was to be construed liberally or narrowly, whether
the individual state or the Federal Government was to be the
ultimate authority, whether a decision of the Supreme Court
was to be really supreme. The framers of the Constitution had
used language which was clear, but broadly general in its mean-

1 Webster was always proud of his achievements as a lawyer. Speaking in 1847,
)>efore the Charleston bar, he said: " If I am anything, it is the law, that noble
profession, that sublime science which we all pursue, that has made me what I am.
. . . The law has been my chief stimulus, my controlling and abiding hope, nay, I
might almost say, my presiding genius and guardian angel." (National Edition, IV,
88.)

2 Rufus Choate said to Parker in 1852: " Webster has never since he was thirty,
given himself to a scientific study of the law. He has been occupied in politics and
general reading a great deal. His mind is far richer than Story's more ideas ; though
Story is great." (Parker, Reminiscences, p. 263.)

248 DANIEL WEBSTER

ing; and when its clauses had to be applied to specific situa-
tions, an interpreter was required. As such an interpreter,
Webster exerted the full force of his eloquence* his reasoning,
and his personality on the side of a strong central government
and of a wise freedom in elucidating the provisions of the Con-
stitution. Before a Supreme Court the majority of whom had
originally been Republicans and "strict obstructionists" he
argued so convincingly that they adopted his position. Backed
always by Chief Justice Marshall, he never wavered at a period
when a concession to Jeffersonian doctrine might have left us a
loosely organized confederacy, the unity of which could have
been destroyed by any aggressive state which chose to run
wild. Majestic and oracular, Webster spoke like one of the
prophets. With a sound conservatism he enunciated and
reiterated certain fundamental principles. Our nation has
profited, both politically and economically, because Webster
said what he did when he did.

Within less than three weeks after the decision in Dartmouth
College v* Woodward^ Webster was facing the Supreme Court
in another epoch-making case, McCulloch v. Maryland
(4 Wheat., 316), in which, with Wirt and Pinkney, he was
retained by the Bank of the United States. That he should
be sought out by such a powerful client was a flattering recog-
nition of the distinction which he had acquired through the
Dartmouth College case. It had been almost inevitable that
he, a leading New Hampshire lawyer and a Dartmouth gradu-
ate, should be employed by his own Alma Mater. Senti-
mental reasons alone might have dictated the choice. But
only practical considerations could have brought about his
selection as counsel for the Bank of the United States. There
were other able lawyers resident in Washington and vicinity ;
yet the Bank turned to Daniel Webster, formerly of Ports-
mouth and now of Boston. It is true that he was a junior
counsel, but Webster was pleased to be a lieutenant under
William Pinkney as captain. Eighteen years older than Web-
ster, Pinkney was nearing the close of his colorful career, and
his argument in McCulloch v. Maryland was to be "the greatest

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 249

effort of his life." l It was an interesting coincidence which
brought together in this case the leader of the American bar
and his no less brilliant successor to that title. 2

McCulloch v. Maryland was called before the Supreme Court
at a time of widespread financial distress. Following the re-
fusal of Congress in 1812 to recharter the Bank of the United
States, a large number of small and under-capitalized banking
institutions had sprung up under the protection of the states,
and a period of unjustifiable expansion and credit extension
ensued. When the Second Bank of the United States was
created in 18165 some of its policies, particularly a drastic
curtailment of credits, made it unpopular, especially in the
South and West; and the public was inclined to blame the
Bank for poor business conditions, wherever they developed.
Several states, under pressure from their local financial insti-
tutions, had undertaken, by penalizing the Bank of the United
States, to drive it outside their borders. In Baltimore, where
a branch of the United States Bank was soon established, the
state banks, not relishing the prospect of a vigorous competitor,
induced the Maryland Legislature to pass, in February i8i8 3
an act taxing all banks not chartered by the state but doing
business within its confines. It was a measure aimed at the
Bank of the United States, the directors of which were not
slow to realize the danger which was confronting them.

The suit had originally been brought to determine whether
a sovereign state had the power to levy taxes on the Federal
Bank. A decision in favor of Maryland had been rendered
in the state courts, including the Maryland Court of Appeals,
and the case, by agreement between the parties concerned,
had been brought to the Supreme Court of the United States
on a writ of error for final adjudication. The course which it
had taken 1 was in several respects similar to that pursued in
Dartmouth College v. Woodward.

1 Warren, Supreme Court, I, 507.

2 Rufus Choate, a great admirer of Pinkney, often spoke of the latter's " splendid
stream of words and arguments, the rapid torrent of his overwhelming enthusiasm,
the grasp of his mind, and the glorious arrogance with which he carried all before him,"
(Parker, p. 31.)

25Q DANIEL WEBSTER

It was the immediate function of the Supreme Court to
decide whether the Maryland law, requiring all banks estab-
lished "without authority from the state" to issue notes only
on stamped paper and of specified denominations, was consti-
tutional ; but the broader issue, as Beveridge points out, was
"the supremacy of the National Government as against the
dominance of State Government." The case was simply
another skirmish in the bitter war between the theories of
Hamilton and those of Jefferson. Webster had taken part in
the Congressional debate over the establishment of the Bank.
The entire situation was familiar to him, and he had heard all
phases of it discussed, both on the floor of the House and at
private dinner tables. He was aware that the dispute between
Nationalism and Localism had never been more lucidly de-
limited. If any sovereign state could do what Maryland had
already done, the Federal Union was certain to be disrupted.
All this seems plain to us to-day. It was made clear by Daniel
Webster and John Marshall in 1819.

The argument in McCulloch v. Maryland covered nine full
days, during which the renovated Supreme Court Chamber
was "full almost to suffocation." 1 On Washington's Birth-
day, Daniel Webster, picturesquely attired in a blue dress
coat with large brass buttons, tight breeches, and a broad
expanse of starched shirt bosom and high soft collar, rose to
open for the plaintiff in error. Of his speech we have only
an abstract sufficient, however, to show that he spent
approximately one-half his time in demonstrating the right of
Congress to charter a National Bank and the other half in
showing that, since "an unlimited power to tax involves, neces-
sarily, the power to destroy," no bank established by Congress
can exist if the authority to tax it inheres in the state govern-
ments. "It is essential to the existence and preservation of
the" government," said Webster, in words which contain the

1 Story, Life and Letters of Joseph Story , 1, 325. The audience consisted of ladies as
well as gentlemen. The argument was carried on from February 22 to 27, and then,
after a short interim, from March i to 3. The Court during this session sat for the first
time since 1814 in its quarters in the basement of the Capitol, in the room now devoted
to the Library of the Supreme Court.

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 251

gist of his argument, "that Congress should be able to exercise
its constitutional powers, at its own discretion, without being
subject to the control of State legislation."

Webster's speech, which filled only part of one day, was
followed by that of Joseph Hopkinson, his former associate in
the Dartmouth College case, who, despite the fact that he was
opposing his own convictions, presented a powerful summary of
the cause of the State of Maryland. William Wirt continued
for the Bank and Walter Jones, of Washington, for the State.
The aged Luther Martin, one of the most versatile as well as
one of the most dissipated members of the American bar, 1
concluded for the defendant; and, on Monday, March I,
Pinkney began his greatest effort, occupying three full days
and enchanting his listeners by his brilliancy. 2

Regarding the decision, Webster seems to have had no
anxiety. 3 On the day after the proceedings were over, he set
out for Boston, virtually certain of victory. Chief Justice
Marshall had probably made a preliminary draft of his opin-
ion, in Richmond, during the preceding autumn and winter. 4
Only on some such supposition can the speed with which the
verdict was ready be explained, for it was given out on March 6,
only three days after Pinkney had finished his pleading.

Marshall's Opinion one of the longest which he ever
rendered has received the praise of the most eminent critics. 5
Beveridge has styled it " this epochal state paper among the

1 Luttier Martin (1748-1826) was, in 1819, Attorney-General of Maryland. He had
been a delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1787, but had opposed its actions
and had refused to sign the instrument. McCulloch v. Maryland was his last important
case. A year later he had a stroke of paralysis and was an invalid for the rest of his
life.

2 The best description of Pinkney's argument was written by Story in a letter,
saying : " I never, in my whole life, heard a greater speech ; it was worth a journey
from Salem to hear it ; his elocution was excessively vehement, but his eloquence was
overwhelming. ... All the cobwebs of sophistry and metaphysics about State rights
and State sovereignty he brushed away with a mighty besom." (Story, Story> I,
324-25.)

8 Writing to Mason, February 15, 1819, before the case was called, Webster said,
" I have no doubt of the result," and on February 23, after his argument had been
completed, he again wrote Mason, " Of the decision I have no doubt."

4 Beveridge, Marshall, IV, 290.

5 Todd was absent, but the other five justices concurred with Marshall

DANIEL WEBSTER

very first of the greatest judicial utterances of all time." 1
Lewis has called it "perhaps the most celebrated judicial utter-
ance in the annals of the English speaking world." 2 Justice
Story declared on the day when it was read that it established
the Constitution "upon its great original principles." From
the Federalist point of view, it was irrefutable.

The decision was indeed a splendid exposition of Hamil-
tonian principles. It condemned in vigorous language the
tendency to construe too narrowly the broad phrases of the
Constitution; it asserted that the Constitution was adopted
by the people and not by the "sovereign and independent
states." "The people," it contended, "were at perfect liberty
to accept or reject it ; and their act was final." It laid down
the sweeping doctrine "that the government of the Union,
though limited in its powers, is supreme within its sphere of
action/* Carrying this theory to its logical conclusion, it
said :

Let the end be legitimate, let it be within the scope of the Con-
stitution, and all means which are appropriate, which are plainly
adapted to that end, which are not prohibited, but consist with the
letter and spirit of the Constitution, are constitutional*

Borrowing Webster's phraseology, Marshall repeated that
a state, if it can tax a Federal Bank, can also destroy it. It is
all "a question of supremacy." If an individual state can tax
the instrumentalities of the National Government, then the
statement that the Constitution and the acts made under it
shall be the supreme law of the land is "empty and unmeaning
declamation." He announced, therefore, that the Maryland
law taxing the Baltimore Branch of the United States Bank was
"contrary to the Constitution . . . and void," and that the
judgment of the Supreme Court of Maryland was reversed.

It was fortunate that this Opinion came when it did. If
Maryland had won, it is probable, as Wheeler has said, " that
the whole character of the general government would have

1 Beveridge, Marshall, IV, 89. 2 Lewis, Great American Lawyers, II, 263.

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 253

been altered/ 1 * Beveridge was right in describing it as "that
opinion of John Marshall which has done more for the American
Nation than any single utterance of any other one man, except-
ing only the Farewell Address of Washington." 2

By his decision, John Marshall brought upon himself the
denunciation of all exponents of State rights. John Tayloe,
of Carolina, wrote his Construction Construed and Constitutions
Vindicated to refute Marshall's reasoning; and the venerable
Jefferson was roused into a condemnation of the Federal Judi-
ciary as "a subtle corps of sappers and miners constantly work-
ing underground to undermine the foundations of our confed-
erated fabric/' It must have been gallmg"to the Sage of Monti-
cello to realize that the success of his party in the Legislative
and Executive branches of the government was being neu-
tralized by the presence of the Federalist, John Marshall, on
the Supreme Bench.

It would be interesting if it could be shown that Marshall
relied upon Webster's argument for the logic of his own match-
less Opinion; but, while the Chief Justice occasionally em-
ployed phrasing which recalls the language of Webster's speech,
there is no evidence that he borrowed from the attorney for
the plaintiff. The two men thought along the same lines, and
it would have been strange if there had not been similarities
in what they had to say about a problem which had been so
carefully debated.

The four cases which Webster argued before the Supreme
Court in 1820 were of no special significance in constitutional
law. 3 In 1812,, however, he was engaged in the epochal suit
of Cohens v. Virginia (6 Wheat., 264), appearing for the state
against David B. Ogden and William Wirt for the plaintiffs.

1 Wheeler, p. 39.

2 Beveridge, Marshall^ IV, 327. The discussion of this famous case In Beveridge's
Marshall^ IV, 6, is worth reading with much care.

3 The four cases were The London Packet (5 Wheat., 132), a prize suit in which
Webster appeared, with Pitman, for the captors; United States v. Smith (5 Wheat.,
1 53), in which Webster, for the defendant, was opposed to Attorney-General William
Wirt; United States v. Pirates (5 Wheat., 184), in which Webster, with Winder, was
again against the Attorney-General; and United States v. Holmes y et al. (5 Wheat.,
412), in which Webster represented the defendant against Wirt, as Attorney-General.

DANIEL WEBSTER

The matter immediately at issue was the authority of the
State of Virginia to prosecute in its courts a man who had sold
within its borders tickets in a District of Columbia lottery,
contrary to the statutes of that state. Having been convicted
in Virginia, Cohens appealed to the Supreme Court of the
United States on a writ of error. The matter in itself was
trivial, but the Virginia Legislature took the ground that the
Supreme Court had no appellate jurisdiction in the case, and
Senator James Barbour made an impassioned appeal that the
writ of error be dismissed. Ogden and Pinkney, representing
the plaintiff in error, maintained that the authority of the
Supreme Court extended legally over "all cases arising under
the constitution, laws, and treaties of the United States/'
This view was sustained by the Chief Justice in one of the most
vigorous of his opinions > in which he held that the jurisdiction
of the Supreme Court "in all criminal cases arising in State
Courts in which a Federal question was involved, was undeni-
able and supreme." l He thus, according to Beveridge,
"stamped upon the brow of Localism the brand of illegality." 2

In this argument on jurisdiction which was the kernel
of Cohens v. Virginia Webster did not participate. When,
however, the Supreme Court, having asserted its authority,
proceeded to examine the merits of the original decision, Web-
ster took Barbour's place as attorney for Virginia. In spite
of the best efforts of Ogden and Wirt, his opponents, Webster
won for his client, the Court holding, in an Opinion delivered
on March 5, 1821, that the judgment of the State Court must
be affirmed. But Webster had nothing to do with the settle-
ment of the point which has made this case one of the land-
marks in our legal history.

In 1822, Webster had only three cases on the Supreme Court
docket One was Ricard v. Williams (7 Wheat,, 59), in which,
for the last time, he was pitted against William Pinkney, who

1 Warren, Supreme Court, II, 10. Warren calls this opinion " one of the chief
bulwarks of American unity."

2 Beveridge, Marshal^ IV, 353. Beveridge goes on to say that, while the practical
result of this appeal was nothing, " it afforded John Marshall the opportunity to tell
the Nation its duty in a crowning National emergency."

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 255

died suddenly only a few days after making his argument* 1
Another was that of The Santissima Trinidad (7 Wheat., 283),
the most important of several prize cases settled at that session,
in which it was decided that a public ship, engaged in priva-
teering and, in violation of our neutrality^ augmenting Its
crew in our ports, was bound to restore to their original owners
any ships or goods captured and brought into our harbors- As
a result, the captured vessel was ordered to be restored to its
Spanish owners, Webster's clients, Littleton Waller Taze-
well, 2 of Virginia, who was associated with Webster as counsel
for the defendants, is reported to have said to him, after the
argument was over, that "he was excessively clever but a
lazy dog." William Wirt, a competent judge, declared that,
as a result of this case, Webster was called superior by people
who dwelt north of the Potomac, but that Tazewell was the
favorite of the South,

Any list of noteworthy cases in which Webster participated
must include that of Le Jeune Eugenie (a Mason, 409), brought
before the First Circuit Court, in Boston, at the May term of
1822, after his busy weeks in Washington. A slave ship, fly-
ing the French flag, had been captured by an American frigate
and taken to the port of Boston. The slave trade was for-
bidden by the laws of France. It had also been prohibited
after June I, 1808, by act of Congress and had been made, in
1820, a capital offense. Webster, retained with George Blake
for the United States and the captors, declared that the slave
trade was simply piracy, "contrary to the conventional law of
nations," and that "it instigated and encouraged the most
atrocious crimes and barbarities." 5 Justice Story gave an

1 Ruliis Choate, describing this case, said: "I heard Pinkney in his last great
argument, when, by his overwork, he snapped the cord of life. His diction was
splendidly rich, copious, and flowing. Webster followed him, but I could not help
thinking that he was infinitely dry, barren, and jejune"

2 Littleton Waller Tazewell (1774-1860), of Norfolk, Virginia, was later United
States Senator (1824-33) and Governor of the state (1834-35). John Randolph said,
" Tazewell is second to no other man that ever breathed;^ but he has taken almost as
much pains to hide his light under a bushel as Pinkney did to set his upon a hill/*

3 An abstract of Webster's argument is given in National Edition, XV, 278-81.
Three years later, in the case of The dntekpe (10 Wheat, 66), the Supreme Court ruled

256 DANIEL WEBSTER

opinion in Webster's favor, but the vessel, by arrangement,
was surrendered to the French authorities. 1

Before the Supreme Court in 1823, Webster was retained in
eight suits the largest number in which he had yet appeared
in any single session. The death of Pinkney had placed Webster,
when he was only a little over forty, at the head of the American
bar. Charles J. Ingersoll recorded in his Diary for February 6,
1823, that Webster was "the most eminent practitioner in this
court " ; and William Lowndes, who had known him ever since
they had been in Congress together, said, u We in the South have
not his superior and you in the North have not his equal."

Few actions before the Supreme Court have stirred the
country more deeply than Gibbons v. Ogden (9 Wheat, i),
commonly called the Steamboat Case, which determined the
extent of the control of the Federal Government over internal
commerce. The New York Legislature had granted in 1798
to the influential Chancellor Robert R. Livingston the exclu-
sive right to navigate steamboats in New York waters. This
privilege had been renewed from time to time, the consequence
being that, after the spectacular success of Fulton's Clermont
in August 1807, Fulton and Livingston enjoyed a monopoly
so complete that no suit brought in the state courts had been
able to disturb it. Finally ex-Governor Aaron Ogden, of New
Jersey, having purchased from the monopoly the right to
operate a steamship line between New York and Elizabeth-
town, brought a test case against his former partner, Thomas
Gibbons, who had refused to work under the Livingston license
and had started an opposition line of his own. It would not be
profitable to review here the various trials which ensued. The
matter reached the Supreme Court in January 1822, with
Webster and Pinkney as opposing counsel, but it was not
argued until 1824, after Pinkney's death.

that, as international law was then defined, the slave trade was not piracy. The view-
point of Webster and Story was, however, upheld by public opinion. See Warren,
Supreme Court, II, 45, and Wheeler, pp. 63-66.

1 Webster's opponent in this case was William Sullivan, and Justice Story char-
acterized the arguments of the counsel on both sides as *' very able, eloquent, and
learned/*

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 257

From its inception, the Steamboat Case had attracted atten-
tion, and several eminent lawyers had been employed in con-
nection with it. Associated with Webster, as attorneys for
Gibbons, were Wirt and Ogden, whose abilities were out-
standing. For the monopoly, two distinguished New Yorkers
Thomas A. Emmet and Thomas J. Oakley had been
retained. Laymen as well as lawyers recognized that the
whole matter of the control of transportation was involved,
for the question, freed from legal technical ties, was perfectly
clear: "Did the New York laws granting a monopoly violate
that section of the Federal Constitution which leaves to Con-
gress the power 'to regulate commerce among the several
states' ?" It is not surprising that the Chamber was "exces-
sively crowded" on the morning of Wednesday, February 4,
1824, when Webster rose to make that one of his legal argu-
ments which Beveridge has pronounced "incontestably su-
preme." l

Several of Webster's biographers have repeated a dramatic
story, originally vouched for by George Ticknor, to the effect
that, on February 3, while Webster was speaking on a tariff
measure in the House of Representatives, he was unexpectedly
notified that Gibbons v. Ogden was to be called for the next
morning; that, caught unawares and not having looked at
his notes for more than a year, he at once concluded his speech,
hurried to his lodgings, swallowed some medicine, and went to
sleep until ten o'clock that evening ; that he was then awakened
and worked continuously until nine o'clock on the following
day, when he took a light breakfast of tea and crackers, was
shaved, looked once more over his brief, read the newspapers,
and then went into court, where, in a speech two hours and a
half long, he made the brilliant argument which, according to
Justice Wayne released "every creek and river, lake, bay,

1 The excitement which the case aroused may be judged from a letter written on
February i, 1824, by Wirt to his brother-in-law, in which he said : " To-morrow week
will come on the great steamboat question from New York. . . . Come on and hear it.
Emmet's whole soul is in the case and he will stretch all his powers. Oakley is said to
be one of the finest logicians of the age, as much a Phocion as Emmet is a Themistocles,
and Webster is as ambitious as Caesar. He will not be outdone by any man, if it be
within the compass of his power to avoid it."

258 DANIEL WEBSTER

and harbor, in our country, from the interference of monop-
olies/' l

This is an anecdote which, for the sake of the picturesque,
one could wish were verifiable. But Mr. Beveridge, with
that thoroughness which was perhaps the chief of his many
virtues as a biographer, investigated the facts, only to discover
that the story must be rejected. The debate on the tariff in
the House did not open until three days after the argument
in Gibbons v. Ogden was over; Webster's own speech on the
tariff was not delivered until a full month after the decision
in that case had been rendered ; and for at least a week before
the Steamboat Case began, Webster, if the House Records
may be trusted, took no part whatever in its proceedings. 2
It may be added that Webster's position at the bar was such
that every care would have been used to notify him as far as
possible in advance of the day when he was slated to appear.
The fanciful tale of Ticknor must be discarded for lack of evi-
dence to corroborate it,

No skeptic, however, can deny that Webster did open the
argument for the plaintiff in error, 3 Starting with the frank
admission that he must make out a "clear case*' in order to
succeed, he showed the extraordinary situation which would be
produced if each state made its own commercial restrictions.
Asserting that the acts granting a monopoly exceeded the
authority of the Legislature, he added that "the power of
Congress to regulate commerce is complete and entire, and, to
a certain extent, necessarily exclusive." "The people
intended/' he said, "in establishing the Constitution, to trans-
fer from the several States to a general government those high
and important powers over commerce, which, in their exer-
cise, were to maintain a uniform and general system/' Any
other doctrine, he declared, would end in chaos. In presenting

1 See Wayne's "Address of Welcome," May 26, 1847, at Savannah (National Edition,
IV, 97). The story is quoted in Curtis, I, 216-17.

2 Beveridge, Marshall^ IV, 424-25, note,

3 " The argument was opened by Webster; and never in Congress or court had that
surprising man prepared so carefully, and never so successfully." (Beveridge,
Marshatt> IV, 424.)

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 259

this broad principle, Webster was at his best, and he said later,

in commenting on the attention with which the Chief Justice
listened to him :

I think I never experienced more intellectual pleasure than in argu-
ing that novel question to a great man who could appreciate it, and
take it in; and he did take it in, as a baby takes in his mother's
milk. 1

Having reached the conclusion that Congressional regula-
tion of commerce must be "exclusive," and that individual
states cannot legislate upon the subject "without manifest
encroachment and confusion," Webster ended by pointing
out that the license which Gibbons had received under the
laws of the United States was inconsistent with the statutes
of the State of New York, and that the authority of Congress,
being supreme, necessarily overruled "all inconsistent or
repugnant state legislation."

Regarded as a whole, Webster's argument was probably
the most effective ever made by him before the Supreme Court.
He himself felt that he never did better than on that occasion, 2
and his view was sustained by Justice Story, who thought Web-
ster's speech to be a perfect illustration of the working of his
mind at its best and described it as equally remarkable "for
profoundness and sagacity, for the choice, and comprehensive-
ness of the topics, and for the delicacy and tact with which
they are handled." 3

The speech of Oakley, who followed Webster, was said by
the Washington correspondent of the New York Statesman
to be "one of the most ingenious and able arguments ever

1 Harvey, p. 142.

2 Webster said to Harvey : " My forensic efforts have been those which pleased
me most. The two arguments that have given me the most satisfaction were the
arguments in the 'steamboat case* and the Dartmouth College argument." (Harvey,
pp. 140-44.)

3 Justice Story, in an unpublished manuscript quoted by Wheeler, pp. 59-60, said
of Webster's argument : " We have here in as favorable a light as we could desire,
his clearness and downright simplicity of statement, his vast comprehensiveness of
topics, his fertility in illustrations drawn from practical sources; his keen analysis,
and suggestion of difficulties ; his power of disentangling a complicated proposition,
and resolving it into elements so plain as to reach the most common minds/*

260 DANIEL WEBSTER

made in this Court"; and the ardently Republican Emmet
outdid himself in an oration which was heard by so many
ladies that many of them had to be seated within the bar itself.
Wirt, speaking for two hours on February 7 and for four hours
on February % then closed the hearing in an argument which,
by one newspaper correspondent, was effusively called "the
finest effort of human genius ever exhibited in a Court of Jus-
tice," l and which seems to have impressed some of the audience
as being even more convincing than Webster's. There had
been a friendly disagreement between Webster and Wirt as
to the line of reasoning to be followed, and Wirt, the older
and more experienced man, had finally said, "Very well, let
us each argue it in his own way, and we will find out which,
If either, is right." 2 But it was not Wirt's speech though
he himself thought it "entirely conclusive" which won the
case for the plaintiff.

Webster had confidence that his side would be victorious, 3
and his optimism was justified by Marshall's decision, rendered
on March 2, after a short postponement on account of an acci-
dent to the Chief Justice's shoulder. In this Opinion,
which, to quote Senator Beveridge again, "has done more to
knit the American people into an indivisible Nation than any
other one force in our history, excepting only war," 4 Marshall,
with a logic which strikes us now as axiomatic, declared that
"the acts of New York must yield to the laws of Congress."
Fearlessly taking up the question of the relationship of the
several states to the Federal authority, he announced that,

1 Quoted in Warren's Supreme Court, II, p. 65 from the Richmond Enquirer^ for
March 2, 1824.

2 Harvey, p. 142. Many of the details in Harvey's account of the case are inaccurate,
as, for instance, the statement that Webster followed Wirt.

a On February 15, Webster wrote Ezekiel, " Our Steam Boat case is not yet decided,
but it can go but one way." (Van Tyne, p. 102.) On the same date, he wrote Mason :
" We have no opinion yet in the Steamboat Cause ; but I presume there can be no
question how it will go. The case of collision, is, I think, unquestionably made out ;
and I have no doubt the Court will decide, that so far as respects commerce between
different States (which is this case), the law of New York is inoperative." (National
Edition, XVI, 81.)

4 Beveridge, Marshall, IV, 429. Beveridge referred to it also as " the last but one
of those decisive opinions which vitalized the American Constitution."

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 261

when they "converted their league into a government/* their
whole character underwent a change^ the nature of which could
be determined only by " a fair consideration of the instrument
by which that change was effected." In vigorous language,
the Chief Justice asserted the supremacy, not only of the Con-
stitution, but of acts of Congress. He ended with a passage
which undermined all the theorizing of the "strict constrac-
tionists":

Powerful and ingenious minds, taking as postulates that the powers
expressly granted to the government of the Union are to be contracted
by construction into the narrowest possible compass 3 and that the
original powers of the States are retained, if any possible construction
will retain them, may, by a course of well-digested but refined and
metaphysical reasoning founded on these premises, explain away the
Constitution of our country, and leave it a magnificent structure,
indeed, to look at, but totally unfit for use. They may so entangle
and perplex the understanding, as to obscure principles which were
before thought quite plain, and induce doubts where, if the mind were
to pursue its own course, none would be perceived. In such a case, it
is peculiarly necessary to recur to safe and fundamental principles
to sustain these principles, and, when sustained, to make them the
tests of the arguments to be examined.

Webster's satisfaction in this exposition of Federalistic prin-
ciples was heightened by the knowledge that Marshall had
based his Opinion almost exclusively on Webster's argument,
ignoring Wirt's elaborate dialectics. 1 The decision of the Chief
Justice adhered closely to the reasoning in which Webster had
demonstrated that the laws passed by the Legislature of New
York were inconsistent with certain statutes of Congress.

The Opinion in Gibbons v. Ogden was, as Charles Warren

1 Webster is reported by Harvey to have said : " The result of the case was just
this : the opinion of the court, as rendered by the chief justice was little else than a
recital of my argument. The chief justice told me that he had little to do but to repeat
that argument, as that covered the whole ground. And, which was a little curious, he
never referred to the fact that Mr. Wirt had made an argument." (Harvey, p. 142.)
Webster wrote Everett, October 30, 1851 : " The argument is a pretty good one, and
was on a new question. ... It has often been observed that the Opinion of the Court,
delivered by Chief Justice Marshall, follows closely the track of the argument."
(National Edition, XVIII, 482.)

262 DANIEL WEBSTER

has pointed out, the first great " trust" decision in our history,
and made the Chief Justice momentarily a popular figure. It
must have astonished the sturdy old Federalist to be hailed
as the champion of the rights of the common people. The
results of his ruling were discernible almost immediately in
an increased number of steamboats licensed to ply the New
York waters and also the more remote Mississippi River.
More important still was the encouragement offered, because
of Marshall's courageous insistence on a broad interpretation
of the Constitution, to those statesmen who believed in the
policy of "internal improvements'* and the centralization of
power. Jefferson, in seclusion at Monticello, viewed with
alarm "the rapid strides with which the Federal branch of
our Government is advancing towards the usurpation of all
the rights reserved to the States," We may be sure that Daniel
Webster felt no regret at the reassertion of what to him had
always been sound doctrine a doctrine which he had helped
In no small degree to expound and defend.

At this same crowded winter term of 1824, Webster was
associated with Henry Clay and John Sergeant for the defend-
ant in Osborn v. Bank of the United States (9 Wheat., 738),
which, like McCulloch v. Maryland, had arisen from the attempt
of a sovereign state to drive the United States Bank outside
its borders. The Ohio Legislature, after levying a tax of fifty
thousand dollars on the branches of the United States Bank in
Cincinnati and Chillicothe, had followed this drastic action
with punitive measures indicating a contempt for both the
Bank and the Federal Government. Finally, by an order of
the State Auditor, Ralph Osborn, the vaults of the Bank at
Chillicothe were opened and the money, securities, and bank
notes seized and carried off. The resulting action at law,
begun in 1821, had been carried along for three years and had
come before the Supreme Court in 1823.

In 1824, the Court wished to have it reargued in conjunction
with Bank of the United States v. Planters Bank of Georgia
(9 Wheat., 904), another suit involving similar issues. The
same attorneys argued both cases, the counsel for the individual

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 263

states being Robert Goodloe Harper, of Maryland, ex-Gov-
ernor Ethan Allen Brown, of Ohio, and the facetious Con-
gressman John C. Wright, also of Ohio. No full report of
Webster's argument was ever edited, but his reasoning could
not have differed materially from that in McCulloch v. Mary-
land. The Opinion delivered by the Chief Justice on March 19,
1824, insisted that the vital question to be settled was "whether
the Constitution of the United States has provided a tribunal
which can peacefully and rightfully protect those who are em-
ployed in carrying into execution the laws of the Union, from
the attempts of a particular state to resist the execution of
those laws." After an analysis of the arguments, Marshall
held that the act of the Ohio Legislature taxing the Bank of
the United States was unconstitutional, and that the money
thus confiscated must be returned to the Bank; and he also
ruled that Ohio was unjustified in her claim that the suit against
Osborn was a case in which that state was a party.

Still another case of an unusual nature made the winter
term of 1824 a memorable one for Webster. Ogden v. Saunders
(12 Wheat., 213), the hearing for which was opened on March 3,
introduced the question as to the validity of bankrupt laws
passed by various states, there being then no national bank-
ruptcy act. Webster and Wheaton were retained for the
defendant, opposed to a strong trio Charles G. Haines,
David B. Ogden, and Henry Clay. Webster, who strongly
advocated the passage of a national bankruptcy act by Con-
gress, contended that the Constitution did not permit indi-
vidual states to legislate upon this subject. The Supreme
Court, divided in its views, adjourned without reaching a
decision ; nor was it possible for it to come to an agreement in
1825 and 1826. In January 1827, however, it was reargued,
with Webster and Wheaton against the validity of the state
law and William Wirt, Edward Livingston, David B. Ogden,
Walter Jones, and William Sampson a formidable array of
talent representing the plaintiff. The Court, on Febru-
ary 1 8, 1827, rendered an opinion adverse to Webster's client,
by vote of four to three, with the Chief Justice dissenting.

a6 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

It was the first time in twenty-seven years that a majority of
the Supreme Court differed from Marshall on a question of
constitutional law. 1 Although defeated, Webster had the conso-
lation that Marshall was in agreement with him; and the
passage some years later of a national bankruptcy act was for
him a form of vindication.

The attention which Webster devoted to his Supreme Court
practice can be shown by cold statistics. He appeared in
fifteen cases in 1826; in sixteen in 1827; in eight in 1828;
in five in 1829; and in thirteen in 1830. Up to the year 1831,
he had argued before that bench in 103 separate suits, many
of them of the highest importance ; and it has been computed
that, during his lifetime, he was retained there in 170 cases
a record probably unequaled by any other lawyer in our his-
tory. While he was doing this, he was frequently busy in
Congress, and often withdrew from the floor of the House or
the Senate in order to meet an engagement downstairs in the
Supreme Court Chamber. He usually finished the winter
term much debilitated. In the spring of 1824, after a strenuous
session, he wrote to Justice Story : "We have had a busy time
of it since you left us. For myself, I am exhausted. When I
look in a glass, I think of our old New England saying, 'As thin
as a shad/ I have not vigor enough left, either mental or
physical, to try an action for assault and battery/' 2 The
correspondent of the Boston Courier wrote, on March 3, 1827 :
"Mr. Webster, since I have been here, has been occupied almost
every day in the Supreme Court. He is engaged in nearly all
the important cases on the opposite side to Mr. Wirt. . . .
Mr. Webster is, therefore, very little in the House and has not
made any speech there of much importance since my arrival." 3
At the January term of the Supreme Court in 1830, while he
was preparing and delivering his great speeches on Foot's
Resolution in the Senate, Webster appeared in thirteen cases,
involving a variety of complicated questions. 4

1 Beveridge, Marshall, IV, 481.

2 National Edition, XVII, 348.

8 Quoted in Warren, Supreme Court, II, 157, note.

4 Two of the most interesting cases were those of the Marianna Flora (n Wheat., i),

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 265

The tradition as to Webster's invulnerability as a lawyer is
one not easily overthrown. Mr. Charles Warren, however,
after a thorough examination of the records, discovered that,
between 1814 and 1851, Webster won 81 and lost 87 of his
cases before the Supreme Court of the United States, there
being two in which no decision was rendered. Between 1818
and 1823, Webster was retained in 37 cases before the Supreme
Judicial Court of Massachusetts, winning 15 and losing 22.
Mr. Warren makes the interesting point that a really great
attorney is likely to fail more often than he wins before a final
appellate court. In the first place, he is frequently called
into a litigation in a last desperate struggle for victory. In the
second place, he often appears only in the ultimate stages of
the controversy, and, not "growing up" with it, is manifestly
under a handicap. 1 The statistics prove beyond question
that Webster was not only occasionally but frequently on the
defeated side. It is true, however, that he was successful in
the questions which were of the most importance. Probably
it took a really momentous issue to draw forth all his powers.
Rufus Choate once declared that Webster was not very for-
midable in a weak case. " But if it was strong/' added Choate,
"he was invincible ; no man could take his verdict from him."

Webster's ability as a constitutional lawyer was due to an
exceptional combination of qualities or, rather, to ordinary
qualities highly developed and skillfully blended. First of
all, he thought clearly, discerning what was essential and ignor-
ing what was trivial. He had the rare gift of being able, in
his reasoning, to seize upon the vital issue and to cling to it.
Once he had found the main road, he was not to be lured into
any bypath. In the second place, he was simple in his lan-
guage, avoiding the ambiguities and circumlocutions and
technical jargon which so mar the style of otherwise good
lawyers. He had learned from Jeremiah Mason that judges
and juries turn a deaf ear to a vocabulary which they do not

in 1826, described by Quincy in his Figures of the Past, p. 246 ff., and Bank of the United
States v. Dandridge (12 Wheat., 64), in 1827, analyzed by Warren in his Supreme Court
in United States History y II, 156 ff.

1 Letter to the author, November 26, 1929, from Charles Warren.

266 DANIEL WEBSTER

understand. In the third place, he had the utmost confidence
in the power of common sense. Before his ruthless practicality,
sophistry and evasion vanished, like dead leaves before a No-
vember wind. To him, precedents, no matter how numerous,
were not as convincing as logic. He was seeking the wise and
just solution, whether there was any past decision to sustain
it or not. Then there was his personality his voice, his
gestures, his fascinating manner. By sheer magnetism, he
secured men's attention, and, as they listened, they were per-
suaded. His method seemed unstudied, but it was the product
of a consummate art. Finally, of course, there was his genius,
always inexplicable, but always unmistakable. There were
moments when he seemed inspired, when he seemed the mouth-
piece of some mysterious force. Those who heard him on
such occasions never forgot the experience.

A crowd of competent witnesses have testified to the impres-
sion which Webster made upon his contemporaries. Salmon
P. Chase, a student in the office of William Wirt, wrote in his
Diary for February 14, 1829, describing Webster's procedure
in Wilkinson v. Leland (2 Pet., 627) : "He states his case with
great clearness and draws his inferences with exceeding sagacity.
His language is rich and copious; his manner, dignified and
impressive; his voice, deep and sonorous; and his senti-
ments high and often sublime. He argues generally from
general principles, seldom descending into minute analysis
where intricacy is apt to embarrass and analogy to mislead. . . .
If I could carry my faith in the possibility of all things to labor
so far as to suppose that any degree of industry would enable
me to reach his height, how day and night should testify to
my toils !" * Now and then we get a vivid sketch of him in
court, like the one given by Harriet Martineau, in her Retro-
spect of Western Travel, in which she refers to "Webster stand-
ing firm as a rock, his large, deep-set eyes wide-awake, his lips
compressed, and his whole countenance in that intense still-
ness which easily fixes the eye of the stranger/* It amused
her to see how the Supreme Court Chamber would fill after

1 Warden, Private Life and Public Services of Salmon Portland Chase (1847), p. 166.

THE CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER 267

Webster's entrance, and empty as soon as he returned to the
Senate. It was Webster, and only Webster, whom visitors
wished to hear. Young men, like Caleb Gushing and Rufus
Choate, were strongly drawn to him, and even tried to model
their methods on his. Charles Warren does not exaggerate
when he says that Webster, after the death of Pinkney in
1822, "overshadowed all others in the importance of cases
argued, and in the mastery of the great principles of consti-
tutional law." *

Professor Channing has referred to seven leading cases in
which, from 1803 to 1824, Marshall and his colleagues "an-
nounced the supremacy of the federal government over the
States of the Union so far as powers had been delegated to it
by the sovereign people through the medium of the Constitu-
tion." 2 The first three of these Marbury v. Madison (1803),
Fletcher v. Peck (1810), and Martin v. Hunter's Lessee (1816)
came up before Webster had entered upon his career before
the Supreme Court. In each of the remaining four Me-
Culloch v. Mary land y Cohens v. Virginia, Osborn v. Bank of the
United States, and Gibbons v. Ogden Webster had an im-
portant part, to say nothing of Dartmouth College v. Woodward,
which Channing does not mention. The stand which Web-
ster, in these and other cases, took in favor of a liberal con-
struction of Constitutional phraseology and a strong central
government made him the legitimate successor to those men
who, during the Federal Convention and afterwards, had in-
sisted that the individual states must yield many of their
earlier privileges to a higher authority. Webster's function
as interpreter of the Constitution is, from the point of view
of the historian, of hardly less importance than that of its
framers. If he had done nothing more than this, he would
have earned the eternal gratitude of his country.

1 Warren, History of the American Bar, pp. 267-68.

2 Channing, History of the United States, V, 309.

XI
IN THE PUBLIC EYE

Deep in the man sits fast his fate
To mould his fortunes, mean or great.

EMERSON, "Fate"

We have a strong feeling of the injustice of any toleration of slavery.

WEBSTER, Memorial on Slavery (1819)

A system of artificial government protection leads the people to too much
reliance on government.

WEBSTER, Speech on the Tariff (1820)

THE youthful Ralph Waldo Emerson once set down in his
Journal an estimate of Daniel Webster given to him by a Bos-
ton lawyer. 1 "Webster," said Emerson's informant, a mys-
terious "Mr. 1C," "has a long head, very large black eyes,
bushy eyebrows, a commanding expression, and his hair
is coal-black, and coarse as a crow's nest. His voice is sepul-
chral there is not the least variety or the least harmony of
tone it commands, it fills, it echoes, but is harsh and dis-
cordant." Speaking more specifically of Webster's character,
he continued: "He possesses an admirable readiness, a fine
memory and a faculty of perfect abstraction, an unparalleled
impudence and a tremendous power of concentration. . . .
He knows his own strength, has a perfect confidence in his
own powers, and is distinguished by a spirit of fixed determina-
tion ; he marks his path out, and will cut off fifty heads rather
than turn out of it; but is generous and free from malice,
and will never move a step to make a severe remark." Such
was Daniel Webster in 1820 to a none too sympathetic observer,
who must have watched him striding across the Common or
chatted with him at "Change Hour" a Webster who was

1 Emerson's Journal^ 1, 16-17, entry for February 7, 1820.

IN THE PUBLIC EYE 269

dynamic, ambitious, and determined, a personality to seize
and hold the imagination. Already he was as much a part of
Boston as if he had been cradled within sight of Faneuil Hall.

So interwoven were Webster's many activities at this stage
of his career that it is difficult to trace his progress. As a
lawyer, he soon made his name known in sections remote from
New England. But during years when his legal engagements
might well have been engrossing, he had energy left for various
avocations. He was, for instance, an occasional contributor
to the North American Review , and one of his articles, "The
Battle of Bunker Hill and General Putnam/' printed in the
issue for July iSiS, 1 required an immense amount of research.
It did, however, furnish him with much of the material for
his Bunker Hill Oration in i8a6. 2

In the spring of 1817, at the close of the Congressional ses-
sion, Webster called upon President James Monroe and urged
him, in the interests of political harmony, to make a tour of
the North. Partly as a result of this conversation, Monroe
set out on May 31, reaching Boston in early July. 3 There
he was received cordially, even by such irreconcilable Federal-
ists as Harrison Gray Otis ; and, as he dined with prominent
citizens in the Exchange Coffee House or visited Harvard Col-
lege, he was satisfied that the majority of people in the North-
east were attached to republican government.

Webster was not a member of the committee appointed to
welcome Monroe in Boston, nor did he take any official part
in his reception. He wrote Mason, on June 28, "We think

1 National Edition, XV, 14 ff.

2 Among Webster's other contributions to the North American Review were a
criticism, in December 1816, of the Extraordinary Red Book, a volume giving statistics
regarding the disbursements of the British Government for pensions, sinecures, and
other unnecessary expenses; a review, in December 1818, of Vol. Ill of Wheaton's
Reports, which he praised very highly; and a discussion, in July 1820, on " The Law of
Creditor and Debtor," in which he took as his text some observations made on laws
of creditor and debtor in the United States by British travelers. These three articles
are reprinted in the National Edition, Vol. XV.

3 For a description of this journey, see The Tour of James Monroe , President of the
United States, through the Northern and Eastern States in 1817, by S. Putnam Waldo
(1820), Monroe spent six days in Boston, receiving the degree of Doctor of Laws from
Harvard and attending many parties at the homes of Webster's friends. At Ports-
mouth, on July 10, Mason delivered the address of welcome.

2 7 o DANIEL WEBSTER

of nothing but the President's visit," but there is no other
mention of it in his correspondence. Possibly he had so re-
cently become a citizen of Boston that it was not deemed proper
to include him among the hosts of the occasion. Then, too,
he was as yet only a lesser luminary. . . . But when John C.
Calhoun, the Secretary of War, came to the city in 1820, he
was Webster's guest and dined with him at his house in Summer
Street. It was Webster who accompanied him to the Charles-
town Arsenal and drove with him through the suburbs; and
the town fathers were willing to concede that Webster was
perhaps the one best qualified by experience to entertain a
member of the cabinet. By 1820, it had become a matter of
importance in State Street that Webster was supporting Cal-
houn for the Presidency.

During the years between the visits of Monroe and Cal-
houn, Webster's reputation had grown locally through his
participation in town affairs. In December 1819, a meeting
of citizens was called at the State House to protest against the
admission of Missouri to the Union as a slave state. Most
of Boston *s aristocracy attended, and "the galleries were
adorned with circles of ladies, who appeared to take a lively
interest in a subject in which the Rights of Humanity were so
deeply involved." * In this gathering, Webster was recognized
as a leader. At his motion, James Prince, United States
Marshall for the District, was named as Chairman. Placed
on a large committee to consider what measures the assemblage
should take, 2 Webster joined in reporting a resolve that Con-
gress possessed the constitutional power to prohibit negro
servitude in a territory. Finally, he was appointed Chair-
man of a Committee of Five to draft a Memorial to Congress
expresssing the views of Massachusetts regarding the exclusion
of slavery from the states about to be formed across the Mis-
sissippi. During the discussion, Webster spoke at some length,
emphasizing his conviction that Congress was called upon by

1 Columbian Centlnel^ December 4, 1819.

2 Among the other members of this committee were William Gray, Josiah Quincy,
John Phillips, William Prescott, Thomas Handasyd Perkins, and William Eustis a
distinguished group, representing all shades of political belief.

IN THE PUBLIC EYE 271

ill the principles of humanity and morality to keep slavery
>ut of Missouri.

This speech which was unfortunately not preserved
?as Webster's earliest public utterance on slavery. That he
ilso wrote most of the Memorial is probable from its style and
:ontent 5 although its authorship cannot be positively proved. 1
iven though the language may not have been his, the senti-
nents which were expressed were those which he favored,
t presented a carefully developed argument to show that,
inder the terms of the Constitution, Congress could make
he prohibition of slavery a condition of the admission of any
lew state. That such a policy was fair and wise was unques-
ionable: first, because it was unjust to existing states to
idmit a new state which would be entitled to the basis of repre-
entation in Congress already established by the Constitution
or slaveholding states; second, because Congress ought "to
)revent the further progress of a great and serious evil." The
including words of the Memorial had a noble ring :

We have a strong feeling of the injustice of any toleration of slav-
ry. Circumstances have entailed it on a portion of our community
/hich cannot be immediately relieved from it without consequences
ciore injurious than the suffering of the evil. But to permit it in a
iew country, where yet no habits are formed which render it indis-
>ensable, what is it but to encourage that rapacity, fraud, and vio-
*nce against which we have so long pointed the denunciations of our
>enal code ?

Other protests of a similar tenor were sent to Congress from
lifferent sections of New England, and it looked as if the North-
ast might be united on this question as it had been on the

1 See National Edition, XV, 72-73, and Pierce's Sumner, III, 215, for the authorship
f the Memorial. The other members of the committee were George Blake, Josiah
[uincy, James T. Austin, and John Gallison, but Webster, doubtless because of his
;putation as a constitutional lawyer, was designated as Chairman. A pamphlet copy
f the Memorial in the Library of the Massachusetts Historical Society has a note in
reorge Ticknor's handwriting stating that it was prepared by Gallison ; but, if this
i true, it must have been revised by Webster. The tone and argument of the Memorial
^rrespond closely to the summary of Webster's speech printed in the Boston news-
apers; and Sumner felt that the closing paragraph was "marked by his clear and
agent statement."

272 DANIEL WEBSTER

Embargo. But practical considerations mollified the
indignatio of the Boston moralists. Massachusetts wanted
Maine to be a separate state, and this plan could be accom-
plished only by concessions to the South. Thus, after spirited
debates in Congress and frequent threats of secession from
Southern members, the Missouri Compromise providing that
slavery should be prohibited in the territory of the Louisiana
Purchase, except in Missouri, north of the line of 36
degrees and 30 minutes, was passed* The protests of Web-
ster and his friends had been neutralized by the zeal and polit-
ical strategy of Henry Clay, who at this time won the title of
the "Great Pacificator/' Maine was soon admitted to the
Union by a separate act, and the crisis passed, as a threatening
cloud sometimes blows by without a storm*

On one other matter which, to Massachusetts shipowners
and importers, seemed then more important than the contro-
versy over slavery, Webster also spoke his mind. It seemed
likely in the autumn of 1820 that Congress, for the purpose
of encouraging domestic manufactures, would raise certain
tariff duties. Naturally the importers of New England saw
in such a procedure a menace to their prosperity. In accord-
ance with tradition, a meeting was called in Faneuil Hall,
with "Billy" Gray, a wealthy merchant and retired shipowner,
as Chairman; and Daniel Webster, whose economic ideas
were well known, was invited to deliver the "keynote'' address.
It was his first appearance on that platform where, be-
fore many years had gone by, he was to feel very much at
home. 1

When the tariff measure of 1816 was under discussion in
Congress, Webster had neither advocated nor opposed a pro-
tective policy, but had devoted himself chiefly to guarding the
interests of his constituents in Rockingham County. Since
then, manufacturing, especially in textiles, had been spread-
ing, and mill-owners were calling for higher duties. Then,
as to-day, the tariff was a selfish scramble for governmental

1 Boston Daily Advertiser, October n, 1820. The speech was delivered on Monday
evening, October a.

IN THE PUBLIC EYE 273

assistance, in which "logrolling" and lobbying were important
factors.

Webster, in 1820, was, in theory and practice, a free trader. 1
While disclaiming any unfriendliness towards manufacturers,
he questioned whether Congress had the right to enact revenue
laws "with the avowed object of giving preference to particular
manufactures." In his speech, he doubted whether It was
wise or expedient for any government to grant special privi-
leges, adding that all modes "of giving great preferences to
some occupations and some modes of invested capital over
others" had usually stirred up jealousies and animosities. The
consequences of pampering certain industries have never been
better brought out than in the following sentences :

A system of artificial government protection leads the people to too
much reliance on government. If left to their own choice of pursuits,
they depend on their own skill and their own industry. But if gov-
ernment essentially affects their occupations by its systems of boun-
ties and preferences, it is natural, when in distress, that they should
call on government for relief.

This is an excellent exposition of the familiar doctrine of
laissez faire. "To leave men to their own discretion, to con-
duct their own concerns by their own skill and prudence, and
to employ their capital and labor in such occupations as they
themselves found most expedient," he said, "has been found
the wisest, as it is the simplest, course of political legislation."
In 1820, the pressure from manufacturers was not sufficiently
strong to compel Congress to raise the duties. Webster's
views were those of the orthodox Federalism of that period.
He and his merchant friends had their way, and nothing was
done to change the system until the passage of the tariff of
1824.

The autumn of 1820 was a busy period for Webster, The
setting off of Maine as a separate state during the preceding
spring had led thoughtful citizens to propose the holding of a
convention for the revision of the Constitution, under which

1 For a discussion of Webster's free trade ideas, see Carey, Daniel Webster as an
Economist, pp. 127-34.

DANIEL WEBSTER

the Commonwealth had been administered since 1780.* It
was a time when the old divisions between Federalists and
Republicans were rapidly being blotted out, 2 and it was pos-
sible to debate principles rather than party policies. The
convention was called to order on Wednesday, November 15,
at the State House, in the Hall of Representatives, by Lieu ten-
ant-Governor William Phillips. Among the five hundred
delegates were included leaders from various sections of the
Commonwealth, representing all classes and interests. 3

At the opening of the convention, the patriarchal John
Adams, who had drafted the original State Constitution in
1780, was complimented by an election as Presiding Office^
but he pleaded his eighty-five years, and Chief Justice Parker
was made Permanent Chairman. From the beginning, Web-
ster took a conspicuous part in the proceedings. His acquaint-
ance with parliamentary procedure was a valuable asset, and
he was frequently called upon to preside over the Committee
of the Whole. His personality dominated the assembly, and
he was constantly on the alert to see that business was properly
conducted. On the floor, he acted with the moderate conser-
vatives, keeping a critical eye on any radical changes in an
instrument which, on the whole, had not worked badly. 4

1 The people voted, 11,756 to 6593, on August 21, 1820, in favor of holding a con-
vention. Delegates were chosen at a special election on October 16. The highest vote
In Boston was cast for William Phillips, who received 1694, as compared with 1689
for John Phillips and 1682 for William Gray. Webster was chosen, but received only
1223 votes.

2 Federalism persisted in Massachusetts longer than in any other state. A Federalist
Governor, the popular John Brooks, was elected for seven successive years, from 1816
to 1822. In 1823, however, Governor Brooks, then over seventy, refused to run, and
the Federalist candidate, Harrison Gray Otis, bearing the burden of the Hartford
Convention, was beaten by the Republican, Dr. William Eustis. After 1824, the
Federalists nominated no candidate for Governor, and the party was virtually dead.
A ticket of presidential electors, headed by Otis, received 156 votes in 1828, and was
the last Federalist ticket ever voted for in the United States. See Morison's Harrison
Gray Otis, pp. 246-48.

3 The list of delegates included Isaac Parker, Joseph Story, John Phillips, Josiah
Quincy, John Davis, Artemas Ward, Israel Thorndike, William Sullivan, George Blake,
Lemuel Shaw, Samuel Hubbard, Leverett Saltonstall, John C. Warren, Levi Lincoln,
the two Samuel Hoars, Peter C. Brooks, Joseph B. Varnum, and John Adams.

4 Webster wrote Mason, January 12, 1821 : " It was a great body in numbers, and
though I think it generally was well disposed, there was a good deal of inflammable
matter, and some radicalism in it. We were extremely fortunate in finding a con-

IN THE PUBLIC EYE 275

When anybody tried to rock the Ship of State, his was the
voice to cry, "Steady! Steady !" Among those who wished
to hold fast to that which was good, Webster was conceded
the post of commander, and the course of the Convention was
directed largely by a small group of experienced parliamen-
tarians, of whom he was one.

In expediting routine business, Webster's assistance was
indispensable to the Chairman. He was invariably ready
with the correct motion, and even his opponents came to trust
him on technical details. His first important speech was in
favor of the system of proceeding by committees ; and, when
he had won a victory on that point, he argued very sensibly
for having the committees named by the Chair instead of by
ballot. He himself was Chairman of the committee instructed
to consider alterations in the section relating to oaths of office.
The sessions of the Convention were long, and often two were
held in a day; but Webster showed no fatigue, and his en-
thusiasm was inspiring to others.

Webster's breadth of mind was shown in his successful effort
to remove from the Constitution that clause specifying the
necessity of a declaration of a belief in Christianity as a part
of the oath of office. He himself had an orthodox religious
faith, which he did not hesitate to confess whenever such a
declaration seemed called for. His disapproval of a religious
test was based on expediency, but it was a demonstration of
tolerance. Most of the citizens of Massachusetts being, at
least nominally, Christians, it was unlikely that anyone not a
Christian would be elected to public office; furthermore,
there were some respectable persons who had been offended
by being required to make a declaration of faith.

In presenting the resolutions to his committee, which
recommended a simple oath of allegiance to the Common-
wealth in lieu of the religious oaths and subscriptions formerly
demanded, Webster spoke very cogently in its behalf. 1

siderable number of gentlemen well disposed, who might otherwise have occasioned
much trouble." (National Edition, XVI, 60.) Joseph Story was much alarmed by
the extreme views of some of the delegates who sat near him.
1 Webster's remarks appear in National Edition, V, 4-7.

276 DANIEL WEBSTER

He was followed by the United States Marshal, James Prince,
who read a long argument upholding the report. John Phillips
and the Reverend Joseph Tuckerman espoused the cause of
orthodoxy, and a prolonged and rather pointless debate ensued,
in which many delegates participated and some temper was
shown. Indeed this apparently minor matter aroused as
much acrimony as any question raised in the Convention.
Eventually, however, liberalism prevailed, and the recom-
mendation was accepted by a good-sized majority.

Webster's tolerance was also shown in his work as Chair-
man of a Select Committee to inquire into and report upon the
constitution, rights, and privileges of the Corporation of Har-
vard College. As a graduate of another college, Webster was
not likely to be prejudiced in his investigation. In a care-
fully prepared report, the Committee suggested no important
changes in the administration of Harvard except that the over-
seers, in electing clergymen to their board, should not confine
themselves, as in the past, to only one denomination the
Congregational. The report was accepted after a discussion
in which Webster, holding his own against the criticism of
illiberal clerics, brought their bigotry into the open.

The restraining influence exerted by Webster was especially
noticeable in connection with an amendment proposed by
James T. Austin requiring the General Court to arrange for
the choice of presidential electors by direct vote of the people.
This was, of course, a measure favored by the Jeffersonian,
or Republican, element among the delegates. To us it seems
innocuous and logical. But Webster made a powerful extem-
poraneous argument against the plan, and was upheld on the
floor by Justice Joseph Story. The opposition of these two
conservatives was sufficient to persuade the more cautious
members, who rejected the suggested innovation; and it was
not for nearly a century that it was put into operation in
Massachusetts.

Webster's resistance to change was even more apparent
during the prolonged discussion regarding the basis of repre-
sentation in the Senate the upper house of the General

IN THE PUBLIC EYE 277

Court, There was no question about the House of Repre-
sentatives, the members of which were chosen in proportion
to the population of the towns represented, as they are to-day.
The Constitution of 1780, however, had given to each district
a number of Senators proportioned to the amount of its public
taxes, 1 and Webster felt that this plan should stand unaltered.
No one questioned the desirability of keeping the qualifications
for voters the same for both branches. But men of progressive
tendencies maintained that the practice of basing senatorial
representation on the taxable property in a district was un-
democratic and urged that the Senate be formed like the
House, the only distinction being that a Senator should have
a larger constituency than a Representative.

Like most of the New England Federalists, Webster had
been educated in the conviction that the British parliamentary
organization furnished the best working model, in many re-
spects, for our own government. He had in mind always the
different theories of representation in the House of Lords and
the House of Commons, which afforded a check by one upon
the other. Obviously it was neither practical nor expedient
to adopt in the United States the system of hereditary and
appointive rank upon which membership in the House of Lords
depends. Nor was it advisable to revive property qualifica-
tions either for voters or for officeholders. But Webster did
feel that property, as such, should be conceded some influence
and power in government. Accordingly, he disliked to abandon
a plan which had survived for forty years, and which^ in opera-
tion, had not been injurious or inconvenient.

The debate on this question which Webster considered
to be the most important before the Convention was opened
on December 13, by Chief Justice Parker, and was continued
by other leading citizens, including Levi Lincoln, William Sulli-
van, and Samuel S. Wilde. On the following day, contention
was ably kept up by George Blake, Leverett Saltonstall, and

1 On this basis, a section small in population but with a heavy property valuation
might have more Senators than one with a large population but small property assess-
ment. In theory, it gave an advantage to the rich over the poor.

278 DANIEL WEBSTER

the venerable John Adams, who, for the first time since 1780,
participated in a public debate. Justice Story then read a long
and carefully prepared address ; and Webster, on December 15,
made his most elaborate speech from the floor an argu-
ment which virtually concluded the discussion. 1

Throughout his life, Webster attached perhaps an undue
importance to material possessions. As Carey has well said,
he made "private property and the self interest incentive the
foundation of his program of economic thought and action."
His association with wealthy people undoubtedly had its
effect on his attitude towards governmental problems. With
astonishing courage, he asserted that "in the absence of mili-
tary force, political power naturally and necessarily goes into
the hands which hold the property" a doctrine which very
few statesmen would care to sponsor to-day. "If the nature
of Our institutions be to found government on property,"
he went on, " and that it should look to those who hold prop-
erty for its protection, it is entirely just that property should
have its due weight and consideration in political arrange-
ments." Taking it for granted that a system of "checks and
balances" is desirable, he pointed out that the plan which
had long been in use was a simple and harmless device for bring-
ing it about. His reasoning was adroit and plausible rather
than sound, but it carried the day, in spite of the fact that
General Henry Dearborn had reported from his committee
an amendment apportioning Senators to each district in pro-
portion to population.

In this case, it was the force of Webster's personality rather
than the strength of his cause which won the victory. It was
not long before both branches of the General Court were placed
on the same basis, the only difference being that the Senators
were fewer in number, each one representing a larger district.
From a practical point of view to-day, the two chambers have
much the same viewpoint and are actuated by similar motives,
although traditionally the Senate, probably because of its
smaller size, is rather more conservative. The whole ques-

1 National Edition, V, 8 ff.

IN THE PUBLIC EYE 279

tion stirred up in 1820 no inconsiderable excitement, and pro-
vided an issue upon which two types of mind could clash.

In the disputes so far mentioned, Webster was able to swing
the Convention in his direction. He was less successful in a
matter which was really of more importance than any other
brought up for consideration that of the independence of
the judiciary. In its original form, the Constitution permitted
the removal of a judge by the Governor, with the consent of
the Council, on the address of the two branches of the Legis-
lature. Webster wished to introduce certain bars against
hasty or ill-considered action by requiring a two-thirds vote
in the Legislature, by insisting on adequate reasons for any
proposal of removal, and by allowing the accused judge to
claim a hearing. His remarks on this subject were listened
to with attention and seem to be unanswerable. 1 But the
vote was against him, probably because the delegates hesitated
to entrust too much authority to judges.

The Constitutional Convention adjourned on January 9,
1821, after having made fewer alterations than had been prog-
nosticated. 2 The net results were, in the end, rather dis-
appointing. Fourteen amendments in all were recommended,
but, when the referendum was taken on April 9, 1821, only nine
were approved by the people and incorporated in the Constitu-
tion. The removal from the oath of office of a declaration of a
belief in Christianity was carried by a substantial majority;
but Webster's plan for liberalizing the Board of Overseers at
Harvard was rejected. The voters also refused to sanction
an amendment reducing the number of Senators and making
changes in the method of their election, and another providing
that no judicial officer should be removed until the alleged
charges were stated on the Legislative Records and the accused
man had had an opportunity to be heard. Much of Web-

1 Webster's speech, made on December 30, 1820, appears in National Edition, V,
26-32.

2 The action of the assembly was fully reported in the Journal of Debates and Pro-
ceedings in the Convention of Delegates Chosen to Revise the Constitution of Massachusetts
(New Edition, 1853), which, in 670 closely printed pages, gives the discussions in detail.
The debates, generally speaking, were intelligent and can still be read with interest.

2 8o DANIEL WEBSTER

star's good work on the Convention floor was futile. The fact
that he and his coadjutors accomplished so little is seldom
brought out by historians of that period.

It was Webster's feeling, as the Convention drew to a close,
that enough had been achieved to justify the hard labor which
he had devoted to it. 1 It is probable that no abler body of
men has ever gathered within the boundaries of the Common-
weak^ and they were very much in earnest. There was a
feeling among Webster's friends that he had added greatly to
his fame by the useful service which he had rendered. 2 Aside
from the tangible results of the Convention, it was good that
leaders of diverging opinions should become acquainted.

Webster's finest contribution to the Convention had been
as a preserver, not as a creator. He had been audacious
but always in assailing those who criticized the established
order. He had been bold but it was the boldness of the
captain who holds the fort gallantly against a charge of the
enemy. A more original mind would have seized the oppor-
tunity to put theories of government into operation. But
Webster's function was to resist dangerous innovations and to
retain as much of the old Constitution as had been tested and
found good. He succeeded, and the conservatives were happy.

Not long after the adjournment of the Convention, Web-

1 Webster summed up the results in a letter to Jeremiah Mason, January 12, 1821 :
" We think three good things are done : the Judiciary, the College, and the future
amendment articles. As to the rest, there may be different opinions. The House
of Representatives is not enough reduced ; but we could go no further without de-
parting altogether from town representation. The Senate stands pretty well.
Whether the Religious Article is helped or hurt, its friends hardly know; so I sup-
pose no great injury has probably been done it Some smaller amendments about
the militia, etc., have passed, which it would have been better to have omitted."
(National Edition, XVI, 61.)

2 Justice Story, who had sat on the floor with him, wrote, January 21, 1821, to
Mason : " Our friend Webster has gained a noble reputation. He was before known
as a lawyer ; but he has now secured the title of an eminent and enlightened statesman.
It was glorious field for him, and he has had an ample harvest. The whole force of
his great mind was brought out, and in several speeches he commanded universal
admiration. He always led the van-, and was most skilful and instantaneous in attack
and retreat. . . . On the whole, I never was more proud of any display than his in my
life, and I am much deceived, if the well-earned popularity so justly and so boldly
acquired by him on this occasion, does not carry him, if he lives, to the Presidency."
(Story, I,

IN THE PUBLIC EYE 281

ster was a principal figure in a trial which, at the time, was
compared to that of Warren Hastings. James Prescott, Judge
of Probate for the County of Middlesex, had been impeached
on the charge of holding courts at other times than those au-
thorized by law, of receiving illegal fees, and of acting as coun-
sel in cases pending in his own court, before himself as judge.
In accordance with the prescribed procedure, Judge Prescott
was duly accused by the House of Representatives of "mis-
conduct and maladministration in office/' and the Senate was
ordered to take measures for his impeachment. Seven men
were then designated as Managers, to prosecute the case before
the Senate.

The trial took place in April 1821, in the Senate Chamber,
with Samuel Hoar, William Prescott, Samuel Hubbard, George
Blake, Augustus Peabody, and Daniel Webster six of Bos-
ton's leading attorneys representing the respondent. The
case had aroused such interest that the House of Representa-
tives adjourned, and no legislative business was transacted
until a verdict was rendered. The twenty-six Senators con-
stituting the court took their responsibility very solemnly,
and the scene was most impressive. After the witnesses for
both sides had been called, Hoar and Blake each occupied
parts of two days for the defense. Webster, who, because of
the reputation which he had acquired by his pleas before the
Supreme Court, was the central figure, opened for an hour on
the afternoon of April 24. On the following afternoon, when
he was to continue, the hall was jammed with curious people,
and the galleries were filled with ladies from Summer Street
and Beacon Hill. "It might almost be said," wrote Josiah
Quincy, " that the pulse of the community had stopped, from
the excitement of the moment." 1

No orator ever met expectations more fully than Daniel
Webster. He needed an audience and a crisis to bring out
all his latent powers ; and, when these were provided, he seldom

1 Figures of the Past, pp. 46-48. Josiah Quincy (1802-82) was then a Senior at
Harvard. At the trial he sat between President John Thornton Kirkland and Harrison
Gray Otis.

282 DANIEL WEBSTER

failed. On this occasion, he refrained from melodrama, but,
in a long and persuasive argument, maintained that the charges
were not proved. No one had charged Judge Prescott with
bribery or corruption, but it was alleged that he had accepted
fees for official services to which no fee was attached by law.
In his analysis, Webster stressed what seemed to him to be
the real issue: whether, as the Managers contended, Judge
Prescott was entitled to fees in office only by express grant of
the Legislature ; or whether, as the defense insisted, he had a
general right "to receive reasonable compensation for services
rendered and labor performed." Webster was insisting on
a liberal interpretation of the functions and perquisites of a
public official.

When his presentation of his client's cause was finished,
Webster gratified his listeners by an appeal to their feelings.
Turning to the presiding officer, he broke out:

Sir, the prejudices of the day will soon be forgotten ; the passions,
if any there be, which have excited or favored this prosecution will
subside ; but the consequences of the judgment you are about to ren-
der will outlive both you and them. The respondent is now brought,
a single, unprotected individual, to this formidable bar of judgment,
to stand against the power and authority of the state. I know you
can crush him, as he stands before you, and clothed as you now are
with the sovereignty of the state. You have the power "to change
his countenance and to send him away." Nor do I remind you,
that your judgment is to be rejudged by the community; and, as you
have summoned him for trial to this high tribunal, that you are soon
to descend yourselves from these seats of justice, and stand before the
higher tribunal of the world. ... If you send away the respondent,
condemned and sentenced, from your bar, you are yet to meet him in
the world on which you cast him out. You will be called upon to
behold him a disgrace to his family, a sorrow and shame to his chil-
dren, a living fountain of grief and agony to himself.

No man could have done that kind of thing more effectively
than Daniel Webster. The sentimental reference to family
pride ; the suggestion of the helplessness of the victim ; the re-
minder that soon their own reputations would be at stake all

IN THE PUBLIC EYE 283

these were subtly conveyed to the senatorial conclave. Josiah
Quincy declared that Webster's burning words gave him his
"first idea of the electric force which might be wielded by a
master of human speech." He added that, while the orator
was concluding, his eloquence "seemed to sweep away all
adverse testimony, and to render an acquittal by acclamation
a simple necessity."

Judges, however, must be dispassionate, and they showed
themselves unmoved by Webster's fervor. There were fifteen
articles of impeachment against Prescott, on thirteen of which
he was acquitted. On Number III, charging him with having
received fees illegally from Benjamin Dix, and on Number XII,
alleging corrupt practice in the case of the guardianship of an
insane person, he was declared guilty, by votes of 1 6 to 9 and
19 to 6. Judgment was pronounced on April 27, removing
him from his judicial position.

Spectacular incidents like Webster's speech in defense of
Judge Prescott kept him before the public, and he was soon
one of the most conspicuous figures in Boston. Within five
years after his arrival, he would have been placed by unanimous
consent among the foremost citizens of the town, and he was
tacitly admitted to that inner circle of patricians who then
actually directed the destinies of the community. There was
nothing commonplace or drab about Daniel Webster. His
dramatic qualities caught the fancy of the people, and he was,
from then until his death, Boston's favorite son.

XII
THE GREAT ORATOR

New England's stateliest type of man,
In port and speech Olympian ;
Whom no one met, at first, but took
A second awed and wondering look
(As turned, perchance, the eyes of Greece
On Phidias* unveiled masterpiece).

WHITTIER, "The Lost Occasion'*

Mr. Burke is no longer entitled to the praise, the most consummate
orator of modern times. . . . This oration will be read five hundred years
hence with as much rapture as it was heard. It ought to be read at the end
of every century, and indeed at the end of every year, for ever and ever.

JOHN ADAMS to DANIEL WEBSTER, December 23, 1820

ON an unseasonably warm day just before Christmas, in 1820,
the roads towards Cape Cod from the north and west had far
more than the usual number of travelers, some ambling on
horseback, but most of them comfortably seated in chaises or
coaches. Just as Canterbury is located some sixty miles south-
east of London, so Plymouth lies forty miles distant in the
same direction from Boston ; and the farmers along the route,
in Quincy and Marshfield and Kingston, were not far wrong in
thinking that they were watching a modern pilgrimage. But
these devotees were on their way, not to visit the shrine of a
saint, but to hear an address by the Honorable Daniel Webster,
whose fame as an orator had aroused their curiosity.

Earlier in that year, with the approach of the two-hundredth
anniversary of the arrival of the May flower > a "Pilgrim Society "
had been formed by a group of patriots, who wished, as they
said, " to commemorate the landing and to honor the memory
of the intrepid men who first set foot on Plymouth Rock." A
committee secured Webster's consent to be the chief speaker ;

THE GREAT ORATOR 285

and, when December 22 drew near, although the Constitutional
Convention was still sitting at the State House, he left its
sessions and took the journey to Plymouth, where he delivered
the discourse to which he himself gave the title, "The First
Settlement of New England."

Webster was well aware of the opportunity presented to one
of his peculiar gifts and latent ambitions. The argument in
the Dartmouth College Case had established his prestige as an
orator, but on a legal subject and before a limited audience.
In Congress, too, he had been noticed for his forensic eloquence,
which, however, had been logical rather than emotional He
was now, however, to compose and to deliver the first of those
occasional addresses which have become classics in our language
and which have led sound critics to rate him with Demosthenes,
Cicero, and Burke.

Knowing that much was expected of him, Webster made
careful preparation. His experience in Congress and in the
courts had increased his self-confidence. Many years had
passed since, as a Dartmouth Senior, he had spoken his first
oration before a group of his fellow citizens. Now, in his
prime, he was to thrill a larger public on a more exalted theme.
In the edition of his works to which he himself gave his ap-
proval, this oration is placed at the beginning, as if he cherished
it most of all.

With a small group of friends, among whom was George
Ticknor, Mr. and Mrs. Webster set out, on Thursday, Decem-
ber 21, for Plymouth. Even behind fast horses, the trip filled
most of a day, and the members of the party, with others who
were also on the road, including Colonel Thomas Handasyd
Perkins and young Edward Everett, had luncheon at "a little
half-way house/* where they were crowded uncomplainingly
into two or three tiny rooms. After a morning spent in
meditation, Webster became "as gay as any one." As they
drove into historic Plymouth, the houses were illuminated, and
a band of music was parading up and down the Main Street,
serenading the distinguished guests, who had packed the three
hotels. In the evening Webster received visitors at the home

286 DANIEL WEBSTER

of Ms host, Barnabas Hedge, although he appeared <c consider-
ably agitated and oppressed/'

The next morning dawned clear and mild, and it was later so
warm that at least one Plymouth resident sat by his open
window in his shirt sleeves. 1 The day was ushered in with a
military salute, and flags waved from every porch. Long
before noon, an expectant audience had gathered in the old
First Church, filling it to the doors and even packing the
aisles. 2 It was a square wooden structure, with a spire, hold-
ing about twelve hundred on the floor and three hundred in
the gallery. After some preliminary experiments with the
acoustics, Webster elected to stand on a table covered with a
green baize cloth and placed in the "deaf pew" directly in front
of and below the pulpit. He wore small clothes, with black
silk stockings and buckled shoes, and a silk gown over all.
He was briefly introduced by the Presiding Officer, President
John Thornton Kirkland, of Harvard College, and spoke for
an hour and fifty minutes, omitting some of the paragraphs
which were later included in the published version.

When he had returned to his rooms, he was besieged by
admiring friends, and seemed "full of animation and radiant
with happiness." At the public dinner which followed later in
the afternoon, at the Court House, more than five hundred
guests sat down. 3 The Chairman, John Watson, Esquire,
called for toasts, and Webster, in his turn, responded with,
"The Rock of Plymouth, May it be trodden two thousand
years hence, by as worthy feet as leaped upon it two hundred
years ago!" When the speakers, among whom were Levi

1 See Davis's Plymouth Memories of an Octogenarian (1906) p. 358.

2 This church building, erected about 1740, stood at the head of the Town Square,
on approximately the same site as the present stone structure. The church in which
Webster spoke was torn down in 1830, but the plans show that the ground floor was
71 feet by 67 feet, 8 inches, and that it had the usual oblong enclosed pews so common
in colonial days. The parish is the oldest in New England. The pastor in 1820 was
the Reverend James Kendall, D.D., who had been ordained January i, 1800. The
present pastor is the Reverend Alfred Rodman Hussey, who has greatly assisted my
researches.

8 At this dinner, parchment sheets were passed around for the signatures of the
guests. These are now framed in Pilgrim Hall, in Plymouth.

THE GREAT ORATOR 287

Lincoln and Edward Everett., 1 had finished, there was a grand
ball, which Webster also attended; and, at his host's after-
wards, he was "as frolicsome as a schoolboy, laughing and
talking, and making merry with Mrs. Webster, Mrs* Davis, and
Mrs. Rotch, the daughter of his old friend Stockton, till two
o'clock in the morning/* 2 On the following Monday
Christmas Day Webster was back in his seat at the Con-
stitutional Convention, which held its sessions as usual, regard-
less of the holiday.

The effect which the oration produced upon the listeners was
something which many of them remembered all their lives.
Although Webster had been nervous during the morning, his
preoccupation left him as he faced the audience, and he hardly
glanced at his notes from beginning to end. The Boston Daily
Advertiser reported that his address "filled the crowded audi-
ence with alternate emotions of sympathy, delight, and admi-
ration/* This might have been mere conventional eulogy, but
there were other witnesses whose discrimination could not be
questioned. George Ticknor, a man of cool judgment, not
addicted to extravagance of statement, said, in a letter written
that evening :

I was never so excited by public speaking before in my life. Three
or four times I thought my temples would burst with the gush of
blood ; for, after all, you must know that I am aware that it is no con-
nected and compacted whole, but a collection of wonderful fragments
of burning eloquence, to which his whole manner gave tenfold force.
When I came out, I was almost afraid to come near him. It seemed
to me as if he was like the mount that might not be touched and that
burned with fire. I was beside myself, and am so still,

Edward Everett declared in his Memoir of Webster that it was
"in some respects the most remarkable of his performances,"

1 It had at first been planned to invite Everett to read a poem, and he had accepted.
Webster, however, was not enthusiastic over the idea, and Everett eventually withdrew
his acceptance, promising, at the same time, to deliver the oration in 1821.

2 The quoted passages are taken from a manuscript account of the trip to Plymouth
prepared by George Ticknor and quoted in Curtis's Life of Daniel Webster, I, 192-93.
The other members of the Webster party were Mr. and Mrs. Isaac P. Davis, Miss
Stockton, Mr. F. C. Gray, and Miss Mary Mason.

288 DANIEL WEBSTER

and added, "It is doubtful whether any extra-professional
literary effort by a public man has attained equal celeb-
rity."

There was in Webster's personality something which com-
manded the admiration, and even the awe, of those who saw
and talked with him. Since his boyhood he had been striking
in his physical appearance ; but now, under the approbation of
his friends, he seemed to expand to even larger proportions.
That Olympian quality of which so many of his contempo-
raries speak apparently dates from the period of the Plymouth
Oration, when he first became fully aware of his ability to sway
masses of men. It was not merely his erect and imperial
bearing, or his dome-like forehead, or his rich and glowing
eyes. It was not altogether his mas tiff jaw, set as if no obstacle
could resist his will. 1 He seemed to radiate magnetism from a
physique as rugged and tireless as granite Mount Cardigan

The hope of unaccomplished years
Seemed large and lucid round his brow.

Not yet forty years old, Webster was at the zenith of his
strength. "I never saw him at any time when he seemed to
me to be more conscious of his powers, or to have a more true
and natural enjoyment from their possession," wrote Ticknor.
The adjectives which were applied to him, such as "grand,"
"imposing," "noble," "magnificent," "splendid," and "regal,"
would be ridiculously inappropriate for most statesmen, but
they seemed to fit Webster. Nor did anyone smile when he
was described in Hamlet's lines about his murdered father :

Hyperion's curls, the front of Jove himself,
An eye like Mars, to threaten or command ;
A station like the herald Mercury
New-lighted on a heaven-kissing hill ;
A combination and a form indeed,
Where every god did seem to set his seal
To give the world assurance of a man.

1 Rufus Choate pointed out that Webster had " the large mouth which eloquence
almost always gives its possessor."

THE GREAT ORATOR 289

It is impossible for us to-day to reproduce the voice and
manner of the orator. The mellifluous cadences, the shifts of
emphasis, the variety of gestures, have vanished like a summer's
cloud. Only in imagination can we visualize his burning glance
and the proud poise of the head. But from the words them-
selves an impression may be gained. We live in an age when
many intelligent men are impatient of eloquence, feeling that
most of it is "sound and fury, signifying nothing." It is so
easy to lapse into platitudes and to disguise commonplaces
with rhetoric, and the temptation to resort to buncombe is one
which few public men can resist. Webster himself, especially
in his later years, was not guiltless in this respect, and stock
phrases appear again and again in his speeches. But the
advantage which his greatest efforts have over the productions
of lesser imitators is that they are animated by an unmis-
takable sincerity.

It is the special quality of the oration as a type of literary
art that its appeal is rather to the emotions than to the reason.
But Webster had something to say. He had been a careful
student of history, both European and American, as well as
Greek and Roman ; his brain was for the moment replete with
knowledge acquired in preparation for the Constitutional
Convention; and the occasion itself led him naturally to
meditate on the events of two centuries. Logically, the
Plymouth Oration is a series of brilliant passages, strung like
pearls upon an almost invisible cord. But it gives the impres-
sion of unity. Webster wisely did not attempt a systematic
development of an elaborate theme. His ability to do that
well had already been shown before the Supreme Court of
the United States. At Plymouth, he had another plan, in
mind.

Beginning simply, he touched briefly on the momentous
nature of the anniversary, analyzed the motives which drove
the Pilgrims to our shores, described the history and character
of the early settlements, dwelt at some length on the govern-
ment and society of our country, introducing several
paragraphs on the importance of property repeated from

290 DANIEL WEBSTER

his recent speech in the Constitutional Convention, 1 empha-
sized the importance of free schools, denounced the African
slave trade, called attention to " the religious character of our
origin," and concluded with a greeting to future generations.
In his early paragraphs, he reverted to the past ; at the end, he
seemed to be talking to posterity. Outlined in this fashion, the
Oration seems to lack continuity. But those who heard him
did not recognize this as a defect. They experienced the same
delight which they might have received from a performance
of Hamlet or an adequate rendition of Beethoven's Fifth
Symphony. It was the emotional stimulus which afforded
them pleasure. Such glorious "purple patches" as that pic-
turing the debarkation of the Pilgrims or that paying a tribute to
John Adams 2 were to them sufficient to make the Oration great.
Perhaps the climax was reached in those paragraphs towards
the close, when Webster, in the midst of a discussion of the
moral and religious aspect of the Puritan system of government,
turned aside deliberately to assail the traffic in negro slaves.
"The passage about the slave-trade/' said Ticknor, "was
delivered with a power of indignation such as I never witnessed
on any other occasion." Even to-day, in cold type, the
language seems to glow with the ardor of the speaker :

Neither public sentiment, nor the law, has hitherto been able
entirely to put an end to this odious and abominable trade. ... In
the sight of our law, the African slave-trader is a pirate and a felon ;
and in the sight of Heaven, an offender far beyond the ordinary depth
of human guilt. ... I pursue this topic no further, except again to
say, that all Christendom, being now blest with peace, is bound by
everything which belongs to its character, and to the character of the
present age, to put a stop to this inhuman and disgraceful traffic.

There was no reason connected with the Pilgrim anniversary
why Webster should thus have declared himself. It was
because his heart was full that he burst out in these impassioned

1 An interesting monograph might be written on the repetitions of the same idea,
sometimes in the same phraseology, in Webster's public utterances. It was impossible
for him, speaking as frequently as he did, to avoid saying the same thing more than once.

2 Webster doubtless had in mind Adams's recent appearance at the Constitutional
Convention.

THE GREAT ORATOR 291

phrases. That this section was the most stirring part of his
address was due to the fact that he felt it the most strongly.
In the Plymouth Oration are to be found nearly ail the
stylistic qualities which, taken together, have set Webster
above all other American orators. He understood, in the first
place, the effective use of short and incisive sentences. Before
Macaulay had published his Essay on Milton^ Webster had
learned the value of following a long periodic sentence with
curt phrases, which fall upon the ear like the crack of gunshots.
Here, for example, is an illustration of the peculiarity:

But the great and leading observation, relative to these establish-
ments, remains to be made. It is, that the owners of the soil and of
the capital seldom consider themselves at home in the colony. A very
great portion of the soil itself is usually owned in the mother coun-
try ; a still greater is mortgaged for capital obtained there ; and, in
general, those who are to derive an interest from the products look
to the parent country as the place for the enjoyment of their wealth.
The population is therefore constantly fluctuating. Nobody comes
but to return. A constant succession of owners, agents, and factors,
takes place.

Secondly, Webster made a most effective use of verbal
repetition a device which may be overdone, but which, in
the Plymouth Oration, seems to be the natural outcome of the
speaker's desire to gain emphasis. He likes to open a series of
sentences in the same manner "They left behind them,"
or "They broke away," or "They came." The effect is like
that in the refrain of such a poem as Tennyson's "Tears, Idle
Tears." The mere recurrence of the same group of sounds
provides an aesthetic pleasure like the delight of recognition
which makes certain forms of musical composition the
fugue, for instance attractive. Akin to this device is the
piling up of phrases or clauses of much the same structure until
the cumulative result almost overwhelms the listener. The
paragraph near the beginning, opening, "There is a local feeling
connected with this occasion too strong to be resisted," x shows
the vividness achieved by this method of repetition.
1 National Edition, I, 183-84.

292 DANIEL WEBSTER

Understanding the virtue which lies in variety, Webster
seldom allowed his auditors to be wearied by sameness. With a
skill none the less admirable because of its artifice, he alternated
the commonplace with the dramatic and shifted from one com-
bination of words to another, varying his normal exposition
with rhetorical questions and exclamations and instinctively
following a compound sentence with one which was complex
or simple. Even in its printed version, the oration bears the
reader along without fatigue.

Webster had a strong, but not very subtle, sense of rhythm,
and an ear for melodious cadences. At his best, the orator is
akin to the poet, and Webster's sentences, if they lack the
delicate music of Shelley, have the stately rhetoric of Byron or
of Kipling. Consider, for instance, the swing of the following
sentence :

No sculptured marble, no enduring monument, no honorable in-
scription, no ever-burning taper that would drive away the darkness
of the tomb, can soften our sense of the reality of death, and hallow
to our feelings the ground that is to cover us, like the consciousness
that we shall sleep, dust to dust, with the objects of our affections.

It is, of course, dangerous for an orator to become the
slave of sound. Some speakers have been so entranced with
the sweetness of their own voices that they have forgotten to
say anything. With them, to quote E. P. Whipple, "thought
and expression are supplanted by the lungs and the dictionary."
This fault Webster usually, if not always, avoided, and it is not
one of the defects of the Plymouth Oration.

Finally, there is Webster's diction, more Anglo-Saxon than
Latin, all opinions to the contrary notwithstanding. He
appreciated the magic of simple words, fraught with the con-
notation lent by ages of human experience. 1 In the entire
oration, there is hardly a word which strikes us as rare. Often

1 Henry Cabot Lodge, in an essay on " Daniel Webster " in the Cambridge History
of American Literature (Vol. II, Chap. 16), said, '* He cared for style and had strong
preferences in the choice of words he used to express his thoughts." Lodge said also,
" His rhetoric was always unimpeachable, but his peculiar power lay in the fact that
he was able to give to it with ever-increasing ease the imperishable literary quality."

THE GREAT ORATOR 293

the phrasing is reminiscent of the Bible or Shakespeare or
Milton, as in the sentence :

Some actual tears they shed, as they left the pleasant abodes of
their fathers, and some emotions they suppressed, when the white
cliffs of their native country, now seen for the last time, grew dim to
their sight.

His imagery, though not profuse, is discreetly employed, and
is often peculiarly vivid, as in such phrases as "a glory as
bright and as durable as the stars/' or "whiten this coast with
the canvas of a prosperous commerce." The quotations which
he uses are such as clarify the thought, and are never for the
ostentatious display of learning. He did not hesitate to cite
the Roman classics, in a manner now obsolete even before
scholarly gatherings, and he had no fear of being too literary for
his audience. Latinists find in his manner many reminiscences
of Cicero, but Webster is no servile imitator. Here and there
are passages which seem turgid or verbose; but Chancellor
Kent was generally right when he referred to the Plymouth
Oration as marked by "purity, taste, and simplicity/*

Exactly a century later, on December 21, 1920, there was a
similar celebration at Plymouth. Senator Henry Cabot
Lodge, Webster's biographer, was the orator of the day> and
naturally referred frequently to his illustrious predecessor;
thus historians and literary men had a favorable opportunity
for comparing the utterances of two widely separated gener-
ations. Webster, buoyant and hopeful, had looked forward to
a period of marvelous accomplishment ; l Lodge, in a despond-
ent mood, pointed out that "Webster expected too much;
that the men of the nineteenth century thought they could at
once effect changes which really might require ages for their
fulfillment." In material progress, the United States had
surpassed Webster's colorful dreams ; but Lodge, listless in the
shadow of the World War, could not feel that the country had

1 Rufus Choate said, " One of the great characteristics of Webster's eloquence is
that he glows and burns and rises with the tide of hopeful passion of a great young
nation." (Parker, p, 294.)

L 9 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

>rogressed either morally or spiritually since Webster's time.
Webster's was the utterance of youth. Lodge's of sophistication
md disillusionment. In style also, the two were of course
iifferent. Webster spoke grandiloquently, in generalities
diich were not merely glittering, but golden; Lodge was
straightforward, specific, and prosaic. 1

Webster was perhaps the first man to make occasional oratory
x>pular in the United States. At the date when the Plymouth
)ration was delivered, there were no satisfactory models for
iim to follow. It is easy to forget how original in conception
he address must have seemed to a scholar like George Ticknor.
The almost unanimous praise of critics established his reputa-
ion as an orator a reputation which he maintained for the
lext thirty years. He had numerous imitators, but no one in
iiat field could vie with him successfully, Edward Everett,
iufus Choate, Caleb Gushing, and Wendell Phillips had
Jieir inspired moods, and Charles Sumner, in his florid and
exasperating speech on "The True Grandeur of Nations,"
lelivered in 1845, caused a sensation which made him seem a
promising rival. But in spite of brilliant individual efforts by
younger men, they all looked up to Webster. By universal
igreement, he was called upon whenever it was necessary to
roice the spirit of some great historic anniversary. And he
lid not fail those who trusted him. Not all of his orations were
nasterpieces, any more than all Shakespeare's tragedies were
~)thellos. But he rarely dropped below a high level of per-
ormance, and there were vivid moments, even in his old age,
phen the mantle of Burke seemed to have fallen on his capa-
ious shoulders, and he spoke like a prophet swayed by a divine
cstasy.

Such a glorious moment was provided for Webster on June
7, 1825, at the laying of the corner stone of the Bunker Hill

day in 1920 was bitterly cold, and Senator Lodge, on the stage of the Old
blony Theatre, wore his overcoat and muffler until he rose to speak. Governor Calvin
bolidge was present, sitting in the chair of Governor Bradford, and, at a dramatic
loment, was called on the telephone from San Francisco by Governor Stephens of
California. With the audience listening intently, he replied, ** Massachusetts and
lymouth Rock greet California and the Golden Gate."

THE GREAT ORATOR 295

Monument, at Charlestown, then just outside the limits of
Boston. At Plymouth, Webster's immediate audience had
been limited to the small number about fifteen hundred
who were privileged to have seats in the First Parish Church ;
at Bunker Hill, the listeners included all those who could get
within the range of his powerful voice. Furthermore, the
proximity to Boston increased not only the crowd but also the
publicity which he received. Everybody who heard Webster
at Plymouth realized his preeminence as an orator, but his
supremacy was perhaps not universally conceded* until after
the Bunker Hill Address.

When the project of a memorial at Bunker Hill was being
considered, Webster was chosen as a trustee of the Bunker
Hill Monument Association, and later succeeded Governor
John Brooks as its President. After funds had been collected
and a design prepared by the sculptor, Horatio Greenough, had
been approved, it was decided to lay the corner stone on the
fiftieth anniversary of the battle, and Webster's fellow trustees
unanimously requested him to deliver the address. The
importance of the event was heightened by the assurance of the
Marquis de Lafayette that he would be a guest.

Webster prepared himself with unusual care. Until the first
week in May he was detained in Washington on Congressional
business, but he had previously been aware of the honor which
was to be his. He was somewhat disturbed at learning that
Edward Everett was to speak at Concord on the same day, but
the conflict was easily adjusted, and Webster sought refuge on
Cape Cod in order to be free from interruption. There, while
walking about the countryside and fishing for trout, he com-
posed the sentences with which so many generations of school-
boys have become familiar. Fletcher Webster, then almost
thirteen, remembered how, as they waded down the Mashpee
River, a turbulent little brook in Barnstable County,
his father, seeming quite abstracted and indifferent to his
sport, would sometimes let his line float carelessly over the
pebbles ; and once, as the boy turned a bend, he saw him, as he
stood knee-high in midstream, advance one foot, extend his

296 DANIEL WEBSTER

right hand, and begin, "Venerable Men!" 1 It was his
method of getting ready for the touching reference to the sur-
viving veterans of the fight at Bunker Hill. Although he
finished the speech in good season, he was far from being
well satisfied with it, and wrote to Ticknor, "There is no more
tone in it than in the weather in which it has been written." 2

Showers on the preceding evening had laid the dust and
cooled the air, and the morning of Friday, June 17, dawned
with an unclouded sun. The day proved to be ideal for an
outdoor ceremony. The city was thronged with visitors. At
ten o'clock, from the State House, a colorful civil and military
procession left for Charlestown, headed by a company of
militia escorting about two hundred former soldiers of the
Revolution in open barouches, followed by the Bunker Hill
Monument Association, the Masonic Fraternity, in full regalia,
with white aprons and blue scarfs, and General Lafayette, who
was kept busy waving salutations to people on the sidewalks.
Behind him came a long array of patriotic societies, dressed in
gorgeous uniforms and carrying banners, Webster him-
self was in a carriage with the officers of the Bunker Hill Monu-
ment Association. So long was the parade that the van had
reached the Charlestown Bridge before the rear had left the
Common. 3

The proceedings opened with the laying of the corner stone
on the other side of the Hill. There, in accordance with
Masonic tradition, the corn, wine, and oil were strewn, and
Lafayette spread the cement over the stone, assisted by John
Abbot, the Grand Master of the Order. The procession then
continued to the other slope, at the foot of which was the
platform. On either side, in a semicircle, were seats with
awnings, reserved for more than a thousand ladies. On the
hillside directly in front were places for the Revolutionary

1 In his later life, Webster frequently made jocular references to this incident.
See National Edition, XVIII, 375.

2 Curtis, I, 251. Some of Webster's dissatisfaction was doubtless due to his fatigue,
for he was a tired man.

3 The route followed Park, Common, School, Washington, Union, Hanover, and
Prince Streets to the Charles River Bridge.

THE GREAT ORATOR 297

veterans and for the multitude who had marched in the parade.
Beyond the benches, in a mass extending to the top, stood
countless men and women, eager to catch something, if only a
few words, of what was being said. The spectacle was not
unlike that which could have been observed in a Greek amphi-
theatre in the days of Athenian glory. At a conservative
estimate there were twenty thousand people assembled on the
elevation. Seldom has an orator had a finer audience. To-day,
under similar conditions, amplifiers would carry the speaker's
words to everybody within a radius of half a mile. Fortu-
nately, Webster's voice had unusual volume and was pitched
in a high key, so that it was audible for a considerable dis-
tance. George Ticknor Curtis, who, as a small boy, had a
position on the outskirts of the throng, remembered that he
could hear Webster distinctly.

When silence had been secured, the Reverend Joseph Thaxter,
who had been chaplain of Prescott's regiment fifty years before,
offered prayer in a tremulous and feeble voice ; and then the
vast throng, accompanied by a band, sang a hymn written by
the Reverend John Pierpont, to the tune of "Old Hundred/*
beginning :

O, is not this a holy spot !

'T is the high place of Freedom's birth,
God of our Fathers ! Is it not

The holiest spot on all the earth ?

Then Webster stepped forward, seeming to tower above those
around him and to dominate the multitude. As he was about
to begin, some of the hastily built seats gave way, and, in spite
of all the ushers could do, there was a tumult of confusion.
"It is impossible to restore order," said one of the committee
in response to Webster's protests. "Nothing is impossible,
sir!" thundered Webster, with lowering brow. "Let it be
done!" Then, advancing to the front of the platform, he
cried in stentorian tones to the marshals, "Be silent yourselves,
and the people will obey!" It was as if Zeus had spoken.
The edict had gone forth, "Let there be order" and there

298 DANIEL WEBSTER

was order! The commotion ceased. 1 When silence was
restored, Webster, with that simplicity which he knew how to

make so effective, opened his oration :

This uncounted multitude before me and around me proves the
feeling which the occasion has excited. These thousands of human
faces, glowing with sympathy and joy, and from the impulses of a
common gratitude turned reverently to heaven in this spacious temple
of the firmament, proclaim that the day, the place, and the purpose
of our assembling have made a deep impression on our hearts.

It was eminently fitting that Daniel Webster, the son of a
Revolutionary veteran, should commemorate the achievements
at Bunker Hill. As he confronted that surging mass of human-
ity> his mind must have turned back to winter evenings in the
tavern on the upper Merrimack, when Captain Webster told
stories of his campaigns under Washington. 2 Never had he
spoken with more sincere emotion than when, with tears in his
eyes, he paid his tribute of reverent praise, first to the sur-
vivors of Bunker Hill, of whom forty were present, then
to the veterans of other Revolutionary battles, and finally to
Lafayette, who, refusing to take a seat under the pavilion, had
joined the old soldiers on their benches in front of the platform.
Some of his impassioned sentences were followed by prolonged
cheers from the audience, but few could refrain from weeping as
he turned dramatically to the "Venerable Men" of Bunker
Hill and said, " But, alas ! you are not all here. Time and the
sword have thinned your ranks," Then came the vivid
summary of the changes during the preceding half-century. He
closed with the familiar exhortation to his countrymen to enter
courageously upon the tasks of defense, preservation, and im-
provement, and to cultivate a " true spirit of union and harmony."

1 There are several different versions of this incident, the best of which is that given
by Josiah Quincy in his Figures of the Pasty pp. 136-37. Quincy's chapter entitled
" Lafayette on Bunker Hill " is an admirable account of the events connected with the
celebration as seen by a participant.

2 Webster said to Quincy after the speech : " I never desire to behold again the
awful spectacle of so many human faces all turned towards me. As I looked at them,
a strange idea came into my mind. I thought of what Effie Deans said, in contemplat-
ing her execution, that there would be *seas of faces' looking up at her. There was,
indeed, a sea effaces before me at that moment." (Ibid., p. 139.)

THE GREAT ORATOR 299

As he sat down, there was an impressive interval of silence.
Then the applause seemed to come in waves from countless
hands. The invited guests, to the number of four thousand,
adjourned to a dinner under a broad pavilion at the summit of
the hill, sitting at twelve tables each four hundred feet long.
Amid noise and confusion, Lafayette, Webster, and many
directors of the Bunker Hill Monument Association made brief
speeches, and Webster gracefully proposed a toast, "Health
and Long Life to General Lafayette !"

In the evening, at their house in Summer Street, the Websters
held a grand reception , at which all the notabilities of Boston
were present. Colonel Israel Thorndike, Webster's neighbor
and friend, had cut a passage through the brick walls which
separated the two mansions, and the guests passed freely from
one to the other. The street was bright with illuminations, and
a military band played selections in what is now called Webster
Square. "It was deemed a happy circumstance," wrote
Josiah Quincy, "that the intellect of the community in one of
these adjoining houses should be backed by its purse in the
other." * Strangers were there from all over the country the
eccentric Dr. Mitchell, from New York, the poet Hillhouse,
author of the forgotten Hadad, and the reformer, Fanny
Wright, with her bobbed hair and feminist theories. Mrs.
Webster, although she was evidently pleased at the honors
heaped upon her husband, "showed not the slightest symp-
tom of vanity or elation." The costume which she wore on
this occasion was the one in which she was painted by Chester
Harding in 1827. Webster himself seemed to be the central
figure. There may have been for him greater moments in his
later life, but never one when his mind was less troubled by
apprehension and his personality displayed to better advantage.
It seemed a long way back to the intervale at Salisbury and
the days when, as a farmer's lad, he had walked barefooted
through the meadows.

However dubious Webster may have been at one time regard-

1 Figures of the Past,, p. 140. The chapter entitled " Daniel Webster at Home "
gives a vivid description of Webster's reception.

300 DANIEL WEBSTER

ing the quality of the oration, he must have been pleased with
its reception. Within a few days he went on a vacation trip
with his wife and Justice and Mrs. Story to Niagara Falls, but,
before he left, he turned over the manuscript to George Ticknor,
who sold it to a publishing house for three hundred dollars,
giving the proceeds to the Bunker Hill Monument Association.
To its revision in galley proof he devoted much care, making
many alterations in phraseology and completely remodeling the
section relating to Colonel Prescott. When it finally appeared
in a thin octavo volume, it was widely distributed and was
later translated into French and other European languages.

Some critics have complained that the Bunker Hill Oration
has no originality. One might, with equal justice, object to
Paradise Lost or to Macbeth on the same ground. Webster was
not aiming to produce a scholarly treatise, but rather a "patri-
otic discourse," in which he might sum up the natural emotions
of his fellow citizens at a moment when national pride was at its
height. It was not a fitting occasion for expounding new
theories of government, or for assailing party policies. The
references to the revolutions in Greece and in South America,
with the suggestion of our sympathy with those downtrodden
countries, were most timely and appropriate. Beyond that,
Webster wisely did not care to go.

It has also been claimed that the Oration lacks unity that
the speaker wanders from one idea to another, with the result
that his remarks have no continuity. But a careful study of
Webster's thought and of his skillful methods of transition will
show that he had constantly in his mind one central theme
the significance of the Battle of Bunker Hill, with peculiar
emphasis on the duty of loyalty to the principles for which it
was fought. Again, as in the Plymouth Oration, his optimism
and his conservatism were conspicuous. He is sure that "if the
true spark of religious and civil liberty be kindled, it will burn."
He boasts of the benefit which the example of the United States
"has produced, and is likely to produce, on human freedom and
human happiness/* and adds, with a complacency which is
almost amusing, "The last hopes of mankind, therefore, rest

THE GREAT ORATOR 301

with us." He does not urge reforms In our institutions but
enjoins upon his fellow countrymen " the great duty of defense
and preservation/'

Webster's own preference for the Plymouth Oration has not
been shared by his biographers, most of whom regard the
Bunker Hill Oration as, on the whole, the finest of his occasional
addresses. It has a massive grandeur and sweep of imagination
which, together with its frequently intense emotional quality,
place it beside the great speech of Demosthenes On the Crown.
In style, also, it is not inferior to the earlier oration. The
sentences are not merely rhetoric; "they are rhetoric" to
quote Lodge "lifted up and illuminated/' It is the rolling
cadences of his periods, the precision and beauty of his diction,
the splendor of his imagery, which have given Webster a
legitimate place in American literature.

The Bunker Hill Oration, long studied and recited by
children in our public schools, has been used also as a model by
innumerable speakers on similar occasions. Some of its phrases
have reached the dignity of "familiar quotations." But the
fact that it is hackneyed must not obscure its vigor and charm.
Although Webster did set the standard for a long succession of
imitators, he has yet to be surpassed.

One more noteworthy oration was to round out the series of
Webster's occasional addresses during this period of his career.
By what was, perhaps, the most astounding coincidence in
history, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died within a few
hours of one another on July 4, 1826, exactly half a century
after that Declaration of Independence in the framing of which
the two men had been inseparably joined. An event so
remarkable could not be left uncommemorated ; and it was
inevitable that the municipality of Boston should turn to the
orator of Bunker Hill as the citizen best qualified to do justice
to the two Presidents whose almost simultaneous demise had
stirred such emotions.

As the date of the ceremonies had been set for August 2, not
much time was available, but Webster, under pressure, could
work with unflagging rapidity. Again, as in die case of the

302 DANIEL WEBSTER

Bunker Hill Oration, he was far from pleased with the early
drafts. The speech attributed to an opponent of the Declara-
tion, and the supposititious reply made by John Adams, were
written, according to Ticknor, on the forenoon of the day
before the address was to be delivered. Webster summoned
Ticknor to his Summer Street house and declaimed them to him^
saying that he was not sure whether they were good enough to
be kept. Reassured by his friend's favorable comments,
Webster decided not to leave out the passages in question. To-
day they are the most frequently quoted sections of the address.
In the morning there was a procession of the Young Men
from the State House to the first Church, in Chauncy Street,
where Samuel L. Knapp pronounced a discourse. 1 The hour of
the chief meeting was twelve o'clock. For the first time in
history, Faneuil Hall was draped in mourning, and, in the
dim light which seeped through the shaded windows, the
auditorium looked like a tomb. An official holiday had been
declared, and all places of business were closed. On the plat-
form were President John Quincy Adams, Governor Levi
Lincoln, Mayor Josiah Quincy, President Kirkland, of Harvard,
and representatives of learned and patriotic societies a
group of remarkably distinguished men. The seats in the body
of the auditorium were soon filled, and the doors were closed.
But the importunate crowd still left outside became so obstrep-
erous that the programme was interrupted, in spite of all that
the constables could do* At this embarrassing moment,
Webster repeated what he had done at Bunker Hill. Acting
promptly and decisively, he stepped to the front of the stage,
and, in tones which carried to the farthest corners of the hall,
cried, "Let the doors be opened !" Once again his commands
were obeyed, and the portals were swung upon their hinges.
The mob surged through, saw that no seats were available, and
at once became calm.

1 Samuel Lorenzo Knapp (1783-1838), a graduate of Dartmouth in 1804, studied
law with Chief Justice Theophilus Parsons, and, after making a success in his profession,
became an editor and author, chiefly of biographical subjects. He published a Memoir
of the Life of Daniel Webster in 1835, and also wrote lives of De Witt Clinton, Aaron
Burr, and Andrew Jackson,

THE GREAT ORATOR 303

It has been suggested that much of the effect of this and other
similar orations of Webster can be explained by the fact that
historians and biographers had not as yet covered adequately
the early annals of the country. In a sense., Webster was the
first in the field. Bancroft and Hildreth and Fiske and
Channing were still to come. Incidents which to schoolboys
to-day are commonplace had then the aspect of newly dis-
covered truths. It was Webster's distinction in this case to be
among the first in New England to summarize the dramatic
careers of these two founders of our nation. In some degree,
he had been acquainted with both statesmen. With Adams, he
had conversed and corresponded on political topics. He had
spent several days in December 1824 with George Ticknor as
the guest of the venerable Jefferson at Monticello. He knew
how each had looked and what views each had held. The
account which he gave of their contribution to history was
accurate and, allowing for his prejudices, complete and just.

But the address is not remembered mainly because of its
value as biography. The sections with the most vitality are
those in which Webster, with his creative imagination, carried
his listeners back to the days of 1776, when Hancock was presid-
ing over the gathering in Philadelphia. With no authority to
justify him, but acting on his acquaintance with conditions as
they were in the Continental Congress, he pictured an opponent
of the Declaration as he rose to his place and began : "Let us
pause! This step, once taken, cannot be retraced. This
resolution, once passed, will cut off hope of reconciliation/*
And then he depicted John Adams, replying in a sentence
which every American now knows, "Sink or swim, live or die,
survive or perish, I give my hand and heart to this vote."
It was this entirely fanciful speech attributed to John Adams
which formed the climax of Webster's eloquence and thrilled
the audience in Faneuil Hall.

In after days, people came to believe that Adams had actually
made the speech which Webster attributed to him, and the
latter was frequently obliged to explain the true circumstances.
Answering a letter of inquiry on the matter, he said, on January

304 DANIEL WEBSTER

22, 1846: "So far as I know, there is not existing, in print or
manuscript, the speech, or any part or fragment of the speech,
delivered by Mr. Adams on the question of the Declaration of
Independence. We only know, from the testimony of his
auditors, that he spoke with remarkable ability and character-
istic earnestness." 1 He once, in a moment of confession, said
to President Millard Fillmore: "I will tell you what is not
generally known. I wrote that speech one morning before
breakfast, in my library, and when it was finished my paper
was wet with my tears." 2

Joseph Hopkinson, Webster's colleague in the Dartmouth
College Case and other important legal causes, after praising
the "Commemorative Discourse" highly, pointed out that
Webster's imaginary argument against the adoption of the
Declaration of Independence, though brief, was stronger in
reasoning than Adams's supposed plea in its favor. In this
shrewd comment, there was much truth. The caution which
could lead a statesman to hesitate before venturing on a
breach with the mother country was a feeling which Webster
could understand. The thoughts which he placed in the
mouth of the nameless objector were precisely those which
would, under similar circumstances, have occurred to Webster.
Just what course Webster would have followed if he had been in
Philadelphia in 1776 it is, of course, impossible to surmise, but
his conservatism might well have led him to say, "This step,
once taken, cannot be retraced," and to add, "I shudder before
this responsibility."

Before the end of August, the Discourse on Adams and
Jefferson was printed in pamphlet form, and Webstef was
receiving the congratulations of his admirers. On August 3,
Josiah Quincy wrote: "Your perfect success yesterday ought
to be as satisfactory to you as it is to your friends. I think
nothing has ever exceeded or perhaps equalled it," 3 Richard

1 National Edition, I, 326. 2 Curtis, I, 276.

3 National Edition, XVII, 408. Quincy reported that some of Webster's auditors
had gained the impression that the speech against the Declaration had been attributed
to Hancock which was not, of course, the case. Quincy himself devoted some space
to showing that Hancock was probably not opposed to the Declaration.

THE GREAT ORATOR 305

Rush wrote a complimentary letter describing his delight in the
perusal "of so admirable a specimen of discriminating and
philosophical eulogy." l Jeremiah Mason added his praise to
that of many others.

From the very nature of the subject, the Discourse was bound
to be inferior to the two great orations which had preceded it. 2
The biographical sketches of the two men, outlining the chief
facts in their careers, could not be highly emotional. But the
eulogy contained one striking passage, which, coming from the
most eloquent of Americans, was probably his own definition of
what he was trying to do :

True eloquence, indeed, does not consist in speech. It cannot be
brought from far. Labor and learning may toil for it, but they will
toil in vain. Words and phrases may be marshalled in every way,
but they cannot compass it. It must exist in the man, the subject,
and the occasion. Affected passion, intense expression, the pomp
of declamation, all may aspire to it ; they cannot reach it. It comes,
if it comes at all, like the outbreaking of a fountain from the earth,
or the bursting forth of volcanic fires, with spontaneous, original,
native force. The graces taught in the schools, the costly ornaments
and studied contrivances of speech, shock and disgust men, when
their own lives, and the fate of their wives, their children, and their
country, hang on the decision of the hour. 3

As an exposition of the qualities of true oratory, this will
stand for all time ; and, in so far as oratory is an art, these are
the attributes which it must possess. It is but just to Webster
to add further that, in each of the three orations considered in
this chapter, the man was fully equal to the subject and the
occasion, great though they were. Ticknor, that invaluable
reporter, tells us that on August 2, in Faneuil Hall, "he was in

1 Curtis, I, 280.

2 Rufus Choate, however, said to Parker: "Mr. Webster's best oratorical effort
was the Adams and Jefferson eulogy. That produced an extraordinary effect."
(Parker, p. 252.)

3 Not long before, on January 17, 1825, Webster had written to Mrs. Ticknor:
" The highest enjoyment, almost, which I have in life, is in hearing an able argument
or speech. The development of mind y in those modes, is delightful. In books, we see
the result of thought and of fancy. In the living speaker, we see the thought itself,
as it rises in the speaker's own mind.*' (Curtis, 1, 231.)

306 DANIEL WEBSTER

the perfection of his manly beauty and strength " and that
his bearing was that "of absolute dignity and power/ 1 "I
have never heard him/' added Ticknor, "when his manner was
so grand and appropriate/* He himself did display " the high
purpose, the firm resolve, the dauntless spirit, speaking on the
tongue, beaming from the eye, informing every feature, and
urging the whole man onward, right onward to his subject"
that eloquence of which he said, "It is something greater and
higher than eloquence, it is action, noble, sublime, godlike
action/*

The Commemorative Discourse was the last for some years of
Webster's formal occas'onal addresses. After he became con-
spicuous in politics, he spoke more frequently in Congress, and,
as a campaign "spellbinder," developed an informality which
gave him a different style less serious, more colloquial, and
calculated by its ease and humor to appeal to the average voter.
He could still, as in the replies to Hayne and Calhoun, display
the grandeur of the Plymouth Oration, but he was more likely
to trust to spontaneity and to the happy inspiration of the
moment. The three orations considered in this chapter would,
however, be sufficient in themselves to establish him as the
foremost of modern American orators.

XIII
A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR

In the year 1820 he [Webster] was a frank disciple of Adam Smith and the
laissezjaire school. . . . His sympathies went strongly for free trade, indi-
vidual initiative, and a competitive order, sympathies which to the end
of his life he never wholly outgrew.

PARRINGTON, The Romantic Revolution in America

I never felt more down sick on all subjects connected with the public, than
at the present moment.

WEBSTER to JOSEPH STORY, May 12, 1823

WEBSTER was now forty years old. He had a large income,
he was healthy and happy, and he had won an enviable pro-
fessional reputation. Both as lawyer and orator, he was
already famous. Yet, out of this contentment, he was slowly
drawn into the hazardous vortex of politics. The merchants
and bankers who were his clients respected his facile eloquence
and insisted that it should not be lost to the community. He
was personally so popular in his own neighborhood that he was
never defeated for office until he became a candidate for the
Presidency and even then Massachusetts stood by him
to the end.

In the autumn of 1820, Webster was chosen as a presidential
elector from his district. 1 The electors from Massachusetts,
although rated nominally as eight Federalists and seven Repub-
licans, voted as a body for James Monroe. On the Vice
Presidency, however, party differences were manifest. Webster

*At the election, on November 6, 1820, Webster received 3404 votes against 2,09
for his opponent, the venerable General Henry Dearborn (1751-1829), an uncom-
promising Democrat, who had a fine Revolutionary record and had been Jefferson's
Secretary of War. The Massachusetts delegation, headed by William Phillips and
William Gray as delegates-at-large, included John Adams, Benjamin W. Crowninshield,
and Asahel Stearns.

308 DANIEL WEBSTER

and his seven Federalist colleagues refused to cast their ballots
for the recognized Republican candidate^ Daniel D. Tompkins, 1
but instead supported Richard Stockton, of New Jersey. It
was a futile gesture, for Stockton received no other votes,

In 1822, Webster served for a few days in the Massachusetts
House of Representatives, as a member from Suffolk County.
When the session opened on May 29, Levi Lincoln 2 was
elected Speaker. Webster qualified for his seat on the follow-
ing day, but was appointed to no committees. While the
General Court was sitting, he did not participate in the regular
business, except by introducing and carrying through a bill
making it illegal "to take or catch any pickerel or trout, in any
of the rivers, streams, or ponds within this Commonwealth,
by day or by night, in any other way or manner, than by hooks
and lines/* 3 When the Legislature assembled for its second
session, Webster, having been elected to Congress, had resigned
his place in the Lower House.

Meanwhile he had promoted the transformation of Boston
into a city. During the Constitutional Convention of 1820,
a resolution had been passed for an inquiry into the expediency
of authorizing the Legislature to grant to towns charters of
incorporation, with all the forms and privileges of municipal
government. As chairman of the committee to which the
matter was referred, Webster reported on it favorably. An

1 Daniel D. Tompkins (1774-1825) had been Republican Governor of New York
(1807-17) and represented a school of political thought with which Webster had no
sympathy. The latter wrote Mason, November 12, 1820: " I have not been able to
come to any definite conclusion, on the subject of votes for vice President. . . . There
will be a number of us, of course, in this state, who will not vote for Mr. Tompkins,
& we must therefore look up somebody to vote for." (National Edition, XVI, 59-60.)

2 Levi Lincoln (1782-1868), of Worcester, after graduating from Harvard in 1802,
had been admitted to the bar and had gradually entered politics, having served in both
branches of the Legislature since 1 8 1 2. He was to be Governor of Massachusetts from
1825 to 1834. He and Webster were almost exact contemporaries and were often
thrown together.

8 See Laws of Massachusetts^ 1822, Chap. XXI. The measure was approved by
Governor John Brooks on June 15. In responding to a toast at Syracuse, New York,
in May 1851, Webster alluded to his service in the Massachusetts Legislature and to
the bill ^hich he had sponsored regarding fishing. " With that exception," he said,
" I never was connected, for an hour, with any State Government ki my life. I never
held office, high or low, under any State Government." (National Edition, XIII, 422.)

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 309

amendment was promptly drafted, adopted by the Convention,
and ratified within a few months by the people. It was time,
for the census of 1820 gave Boston 43,298 inhabitants, and the
rough-and-ready town meeting system was ridiculous for a
population of that size. Webster next headed a committee
for filing the necessary application to the General Court ; and
an act making Boston a city was signed by the Governor early
in 1822. The charter was accepted on March 4, by a vote of
2797 to 1 88 1. After some bickering between the adherents
of Harrison Gray Otis and those of Josiah Quincy, a compromise
candidate, John Phillips, was chosen Mayor, and the municipal
government was formally inaugurated.

Webster's election to Congress in the autumn of 1822 is
proof that, even in a democracy, the office sometimes seeks the
man. Representative Benjamin Gorham, 1 tired of Washing-
ton life, had refused to accept the honor again, and the Boston
journals were assailed with letters calling for the choice of the
right person to represent "this commercial and wealthy
district." A convention of the "Middling Interest" com-
posed of small shopkeepers and mechanics, in revolt against
the Federalist machine named Jesse Putnam as their
candidate ; and three days later, a group of regular Federalist
delegates from all the wards in the new city gave Webster a
unanimous nomination. A committee, with the influential
Colonel Thomas Handasyd Perkins 2 as chairman, and com-
posed also of four other intimate friends of Webster, William
Sullivan, Benjamin Russell, William Sturgis, and J. W. T.
Apthorp, was designated to notify him. One of them,
calling on him at his office, said : "Mr. Webster, I come to ask
you to throw down your law books and enter the service of the
public ; for to the public you belong. I know what sacrifices

1 Benjamin Gorham (1775-1855), son of the patriot, Nathaniel Gorham, had been
drafted in 1820 to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of Jonathan Mason, and
somewhat unwillingly, had allowed himself to be reelected to the Seventeenth Congress.

2 Thomas Handasyd Perkins (1764-1854), one of the most successful of Boston
merchants, sat in the Massachusetts General Court for many years and exerted an
immense influence on state politics. He was later especially distinguished for his
generous philanthropies, including gifts to the Perkins Institute for the Blind, the
Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Boston Athenaeum.

3 io DANIEL WEBSTER

we demand of you, but we must rely upon your patriotism.
We cannot take a refusal." 1

Such an appeal, from such men, was flattering and irresistible.
For Webster, it was the parting of the ways. He had been
paying off his father's debts, and his expenses had been heavy.
To reenter Congress meant a large monetary sacrifice, for his
salary would be only $1800. He liked the law, and was
reluctant to abandon his lucrative practice; but with many
misgivings, he yielded, and, in the exciting campaign which
ensued, heard himself described as an "aristocrat" and a
"theorist/ 5 On November 4, however, he received 2638 votes
against 1557 for Putnam. 2 He was the only one of the thirteen
Congressmen from Massachusetts who rose above mediocrity.

The months between his election and the opening of the
Eighteenth Congress in December 1823 were, for Webster,
a period of despondency on political matters. The success
for the first time in many years of a Republican candidate for
Governor, William Eustis, over the Nestor of the Federalists,
Harrison Gray Otis, did not discourage him, for he had expected
that result. But he was chagrined at the failure of Massa-
chusetts leaders to unite on important issues. The Federalist
Party had been lifeless since the War of 1812, and its flurried
adherents were seeking a new allegiance. The Era of Good
Feelings was degenerating into an Era of Discord, out of which
a new party alignment was soon to develop. "There is,"
Webster wrote to Justice Story, "a Federal interest, a Demo-
cratic interest, a Bankrupt interest, an Orthodox interest, and
a Middling interest, but I see no national interest, nor any
national feeling in the whole matter/' 3

Webster, searching during the summer of 1823 for an issue on
which he might make himself felt, turned, not to a domestic
problem, but to foreign affairs. The revolt of the Greek
patriots in 1821 against the tyranny of the Turkish Empire

1 Curtis, I, 198.

2 Emerson wrote prophetically in his Diary for that day, " A victory is achieved
to-day for one, whose name perchance is written highest in the volume of futurity."
(Journals, I, 175.)

3 National Edition, XVII, 325.

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR

had naturally aroused the sympathy of the American people,
who were eager that the Hellenes should gain their independ-
ence. Seeing an opportunity for a great speech, Webster
prepared himself thoroughly, especially by conferring with
Edward Everett, who had recently been in Greece and had
written an excellent article on that country in the North
American Review. 1 Everett, who aspired to be our com-
missioner to Athens, helped Webster with statistical material
and encouraged him to champion the Greek cause. 2

Mrs. Webster and the children went to Washington and were
with him through a winter " as mild as October." The Hall of
Representatives had been reopened in the South Wing of the
Capitol in 1819, after a complete renovation under the architect,
Charles Bulfinch. It was a domed, semicircular chamber, 3
bordered with handsome pillars of Potomac marble, between
which, in recesses, were sofas for the relaxation of the members.
The canopied throne of the Speaker dominated the auditorium
on the straight side. Representatives were furnished with
mahogany desks, armchairs, and plenty of writing materials.

October 1823.

2 Since Webster had taught Everett in the Short Street School in the summer of
1804, the latter had shown an amazing precocity. After graduating from Harvard in
1811 as Valedictorian, he had become a clergyman, and, at nineteen, was elected pastor
of the Church in Brattle Square. In 1 8 1 5, he shifted his profession and was inaugurated
as Professor of Greek Literature at Harvard, and set out at once for Europe, where he
spent four years and seven months in travel and study. The first person to call upon
him after his return to Cambridge in 1819 was Daniel Webster. He was a successful
college lecturer, but his restlessness led him to assume, in 1820, the editorship of the
North American Review. In 1822, he married Charlotte Gray Brooks, daughter of one
of the most opulent merchants of Boston, and thus achieved financial independence.
In the autumn of 1823, he was nervous and ambitious, eager to go to Greece if possible,
and weary of the monotony of academic life. He had written to John Quincy Adams,
then Secretary of State, soliciting his aid (Frothingham, Edward Everett, p. 77), and
Webster himself had spoken about the appointment to Adams (Adams, Memoirs, VI,
227). Webster wrote Everett, in November 1823, " If nobody does it who can do it
better, I shall certainly say something of the Greeks." (National Edition, XVII,

327.)

3 This room, now called Statuary Hall, was abandoned for legislative purposes on
September 16, 1857, when the present South Wing was completed. It is now filled
with statues of more or less famous Americans, each state being allowed to contribute
two. Webster's statue, a copy in marble by Carl Conrads of the original by Ball, in
the State House Park at Concord, New Hampshire, stands by the door leading to the
Capitol Rotunda, with that of General John Stark, New Hampshire's other worthy,
on the opposite side of the entrance.

3 i a DANIEL WEBSTER

Although each had his individual spittoon, the fine carpet on
the floor was streaked and blotched by tobacco juice. 1 The
gallery was simply a platform raised a foot or two, with a
section reserved for ladies. The acoustics of the hall were very
poor, in spite of the experiments of physicists, and the room is
still remarkable for its peculiar echoes.

Henry Clay, who had retired from public life in 1821, in order
to rehabilitate his finances, had been chosen unopposed from
the Lexington district and was elected Speaker. With a desire
to propitiate former Federalists and to promote harmony, he
named Webster as Chairman of the Committee on the Judi-
ciary. 2 The latter 's opportunity came very soon. President
Monroe, in his Message, had expressed officially the hope of the
United States that Greece might ** become an independent
power." On December 8, Webster moved a resolution that
the expenses of a Commissioner to Greece ought to be defrayed
whenever the President should deem it expedient to make such
an appointment.

Gossip in the capital had predicted that Webster would
signalize his reappearance in the House of Representatives by a
brilliant oration ; consequently a large and fashionable audience
had packed the galleries on the morning of January 19, when
he was scheduled to speak. Among them was Everett himself,
with whom Webster had been corresponding 3 and who had
taken the trip to Washington with his heart full of vague hopes.

The United States, after its altercations with France and
England, had developed a strong national self-consciousness,

1 Charles Dickens was astonished, in 1842, " to see an honorable gentleman leaning
back in his tilted chair with his legs on the desk before him, shaping a convenient ' plug '
with his pen-knife, and when it is quite ready for use, shooting the old one with his
mouth as from a pop-gun, and clapping the new one in its place."

2 William Plumer, who had been Chairman during the previous session, himself
voluntarily withdrew and urged Clay to appoint Webster. (Plumer's " Reminiscences,"
National Edition, XVII, 549.)

3 Webster wrote Everett, December 21, 1823 : " I find your communications of the
utmost utility. In regard to the history of the campaigns, I could have done nothing
without your aid." (National Edition, XVII, 336.) On several occasions Webster
made a handsome acknowledgment of his obligation to Everett for information. On
December 6, Webster wrote Everett : " It was, or I am not well informed, stated,
yesterday, that there ought to be a commission, and that you ought to be persuaded
to go. Go you will and go you shall if you choose to do so." (Frothingham, p. 78.)

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 3*3

which sometimes broke out in bluster and braggadocio. Only
a few weeks had gone by since Monroe, in the historic doctrine
associated with his name, had asserted "that the American
continents, by the free and independent condition which they
have assumed and maintain, are henceforth not to be con-
sidered as subjects for future colonization by any European
powers." In plain language, he had warned Europe away from
the Western Hemisphere. It was this moment which Daniel
Webster selected to denounce the edicts of Old World monarchs.
For a young country we were doing very well.

So obvious were the expectations of his hearers that Webster
at once disclaimed any intention of dazzling them by rhetoric.
Ignoring the temptation to sentimental appeal, he entered upon
an analysis of the nature, extent, and motives of the Holy
Alliance, pointing out that it had advanced two very dangerous
principles: first, "that all popular or constitutional rights are
held no otherwise than as grants from the crown "; and
second, " the right of forcible interference in the affairs of other
states." With regard to the specific issues involved in the
Hellenic uprising, Webster declared that the Greeks had
"awakened a sympathy throughout Europe and throughout
America." He insisted that his resolution involved no breach
of neutrality, but was intended solely to gain information.
His object was not only to encourage the Greeks, but also to
make a protest against "the doctrines of the Allied Powers.
. . ." The really significant portion of the speech, however,
was his contrast between our "regulated" government with the
"absolute" governments of Europe, to the appalling dis-
advantage of the latter. The complacency which he all
unconsciously displayed was a buoyant manifestation of our
growing nationalism. It was the cry of a youthful and assertive
people insisting on being heard. 1

In his missionary zeal for guiding the world towards democ-
racy, Webster glowed with romantic idealism. The theory
that we should "stand aloof" while the Greeks struggled
heroically against tyranny seemed to him unworthy of an

1 The speech is printed in National Edition, V, 60-93.

3 i 4 DANIEL WEBSTER

enlightened government. 1 It would be injudicious to inter-
fere by means of armies or warships, but we could at least
bring to bear the mighty force of public opinion a force
which military duress may silence, but which cannot be
permanently crushed. Such was Webster's confident optimism
in 1824.

Webster *s speech provoked a brisk discussion^ in the course
of which he enjoyed the satisfaction of being supported by
Henry Clay. Chivalry and humanitarianism and romance
were on his side, but the administration was against the
proposal. John Randolph commented caustically on the
"Quixotism " of Webster and Clay, and the cooler heads in
the House shrank from bringing the question to vote. Soon
the matter was quietly dropped. But Webster, acting on the
advice of his friend, Joseph Hopkinson, 2 and others, revised
the proofs of his address, and it was translated into several
modern languages, including Greek and Spanish. Webster
once declared that he was "more fond of this child than of any
of the family." 3

The matter of the Greeks produced a torrent of oratory, but
the issue which precipitated the most lively discussion was
much less glamorous. According to some gloomy observers,
the United States was undergoing a commercial depression,
from which the only relief was through higher tariff duties for
the creation of home markets and the stimulation of domestic
industry. Under Clay's direction, what he called the "Ameri-
can System" was brought before Congress, its chief features
being increases in the duties on iron, hemp, and cotton and

l The Greeks had received outside assistance. Lord Byron had landed on the
peninsula on August 3, 1823, and his actions received wide publicity. He reached
Missolonghi on January 5, 1824, and died there of fever on April 19, 1824.

2 Hopkinson wrote Webster, February i, 1824: "You are generally too careless
of yourself and your reputation ; and, content with doing a thing well, you have too
little solicitude about the proof of it to the world." (National Edition, XVII, 343.)

3 Curtis, I, 205. Jeremiah Mason wrote to Webster, February I, 1824: "In my
opinion your first speech is the best example of Parliamentary eloquence and statesman-
like reasoning that our country can show. You were eminently judicious in avoiding
all declamation on the ancient glories of Greece, to which the subject so obviously
led," (Cong. Lib. MSS. I.)

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 315

woolen goods. The avowed object was the special encourage-
ment of manufacturing ; and those districts devoted principally
to shipping or to agriculture were alarmed. Since 1789, the
needs of shipowners and importers had determined, in a large
degree, our economic policy. The proposed change of benefi-
ciaries, affecting the pocketbooks of both laborers and capitalist,
was bound to stir up trouble. Ultimately although such a
result was probably not foreseen it brought about a sectional
division culminating in a serious breach between North and
South.

Webster was a philosophical realist, with an intensely
practical mind. His conviction that sound business prosperity
is produced mainly by "freedom of commercial intercourse
and unrestrained individual action" led him early to espouse
the doctrine of lazssez faire, and to make a public confession
of his faith in 1820, at Faneuil Hall. Since then, he had seen
no reason for modifying his views. Belief in free trade was,
with him, less the consequence of idealistic speculation than
of a feeling that enterprise should be untrammeled, dependent
only upon certain well-understood natural laws, such as that of
supply and demand. Webster was rarely a theorist. We do
not find him consorting with the visionaries and prophets of
Concord or Brook Farm. He and Emerson were, in their
meditations, as far apart as Hamilton and Jefferson. Accepting
mundane affairs as he found them, Webster exercised his
statesmanship in ameliorating conditions in industry, improving
methods of government, and framing a wiser code of laws.
Furthermore he had a strong sense of the importance of private
property and of its rights and privileges. Sitting around the
shining mahogany of State Street financiers, he developed
perhaps an exaggerated sense of their proportionate significance
in our scheme of things. The tariff was to him a question not
of morals but of expediency, and he was ready to shift his views
with changed conditions. For the moment he was concerned
about the disastrous consequences to the caulkers and riggers
and rope-makers, as well as to the merchants and importers,
of New England. His sense of its injustice to his constituents

3i6 DANIEL WEBSTER

led him to assail Clay's "American System'* wherever it was
vulnerable.

Like most tariff measures, this was built up by concession
and compromisej in an attempt to secure enough votes for its
passage. Over its technical details the House battled week
after week, with Webster entering only seldom into the debate. 1
Finally, on the last two days of March, Henry Clay, descending
from the Speaker's rostrum, addressed the Committee of the
Whole at some length, emphasizing the economic distress
through the land and maintaining that it could easily be relieved
if we would follow the example of England and adopt system-
atic protection. Such a policy would, he claimed, benefit all
the diverse interests in the United States. His speech was
ingenious, brilliant, and plausible, in spite of its superficiality
and the speciousness of his reasoning, and Webster was aware
that he was expected to answer it. 2

No orator can be expected to become lyric over the tariff,
but Webster, having displayed his emotional powers in his
address on the Greeks, now showed that he was capable of
close-knit, statistical argument. His speech, delivered on
April I and 2, not only exposed Clay's sophistry, but also
correlated all the most forceful evidence against the protective
theory. 3 He asserted that it was absurd to describe as an
"American policy" a practice which America had never

1 In a letter to Everett, February 13, 1804, Webster described the tariff as " a tedious,
disagreeable subject," and added, " I am aware that something is expected of me, much
more than I shall perform." (National Edition, XVII, 345.) On March 14, he wrote
to Ezekiel: "The tariff is yet undecided. It will not pass, I think, in its present
shape, and I doubt if it will pass at all. As yet I have not interfered much in the
debate, partly because there were others more desirous to discuss the details than I am,
and partly because I have been so much in the court." (Ibid., p. 347.) On April lo,
he wrote to Justice Story, " My impression rather is, that the bill will hardly get
through our House." (Ibid., p. 349.)

2 Afterwards, Webster wrote Mason, " I was not expecting to speak at that time,
nor ready to do so. And from Mr. Clay's ending, I had but one night to prepare."
(Ibid., XVI, 84,)

3 As soon as the bill was printed, Webster sent fifty copies to the best-informed
merchants, manufacturers, and business men among his acquaintance, asking for their
detailed criticism. From the statistics and comments which he received he derived the
material for his argument. (Plumer's " Reminiscences," National Edition, XVII,
550.)

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 317

tried; that Clay's melancholy picture of business depression
was much exaggerated ; that British authorities were beginning
to question the wisdom of high protective duties; and that
there was a fundamental difference between affording "reason-
able encouragement " to existing manufactures and, by the
virtual prohibition of imports, raising up an artificial production
of goods which would not normally be made. He closed by
presenting specific objections to the proposed duties on iron,
hemp, and copper, which were bound to augment greatly the
cost of building ships. This speech, replete with statistics,
showed a comprehensive understanding of the situation and
established him as an authority on economic problems* 1 In
his final sentence, he summed up his conclusions :

There are some parts of this bill which I highly approve ; there are
others in which I should acquiesce ; but those to which I have now
stated my objections appear to me so destitute of all justice, so bur-
densome and so dangerous to that interest which has steadily enriched,
gallantly defended, and proudly distinguished us, that nothing can
prevail upon me to give it my support.

As in every tariff debate, the disputants were actuated
chiefly by their own selfish interests, or those of their constit-
uents. The bill of 1824 was strongly assailed by Southern
Congressmen and defended by those from New York, Pennsyl-
vania, and Ohio. When, after a discussion lasting ten weeks,
the matter was finally brought to a vote, several sick members
were carried in on stretchers, and keen excitement reigned.
It passed on April 16 by a vote of 107 to 102. A careful analysis
made by Frederick J. Turner 2 shows that the Ohio Valley and
the Middle states, where manufacturing flourished, were in

1 Carl Schurz, In his Henry Clay, declared that Webster's speech " stands to-day
as his strongest utterance upon economic subjects.'* Webster was not himself very
proud of what he had done. He wrote Mason, April 19, 1824: " My speech will be
printed, and you will get it. Whatever I have done in other cases, I must say that in
this I have published it against my own judgment. . . , The ideas are right enough,
I hope, but as a speech it is clumsy, wanting in method, and tedious." (National
Edition, XVI, 84.) There is an excellent analysis of Webster's argument in Carey's
Daniel Webster as an Economist, p. 134 ff.

2 Turner, The Rise ojthe New West, p. 242.

3 i8 DANIEL WEBSTER

alliance against the Southern states and New England. Massa-
chusetts was in an anomalous position. Although textile
production had developed amazingly, the manufacturers
themselves were not yet active in demanding protection.
Shipowners and traders were, however, zealously guarding
their own interests, and it was for them that Webster was most
concerned. In the end, he voted against the bill, as did all
but one of the Massachusetts delegation. In spite of his
prediction, it was also approved by a small majority in the
Senate, although somewhat modified through the efforts of
the friends of navigation.

Daniel Webster had never had a busier spring. His Com-
mittee on the Judiciary held protracted meetings, at which he
was always prepared for the business on hand, and he argued
several cases before the Supreme Court, including Gibbons v.
Ogden and some important causes involving the Bank of the
United States. According to Plumer, he exerted on all impor-
tant questions "a controlling influence which was felt and
acknowledged in every part of the House." The "great busi-
ness of the session" for him, however, was securing the passage
of an act for the payment, under the Florida Treaty of 1819,
of claims against Spain because of the depredations of Spanish
cruisers on American commerce in 1788-89. Webster was chief
counsel for the claimants, and, when settlement was finally
made, he received fees amounting to more than lyOjOoo. 1 Even
after Congress adjourned on May 27, 2 he was detained as a

1 Webster had made, on July 27, 1821, an agreement with several claimants, includ-
ing Peter C. Brooks, Gorham Brooks, Stephen Higginson, and other well-known
Bostonians, stipulating that he should receive 5 per cent of the amount actually awarded,
provided this should not exceed $20,000. This agreement was waived in 1823 so that
Webster's compensation would be increased. The bill was opposed in the House by
Clay and Randolph, but was finally passed. See National Edition, XVI, 84, 86, and 88,
and Curtis, I, 287. Webster, in part payment of the claims, received a draft for
$777,426.29, dated June 12, 1824, and made out to him as attorney for the Boston
Marine Insurance Company and forty-two other claimants with whom settlement
was being made (Senate Exec. Doc. No. 74, 49th Congress, 1st Session).

2 On the last evening of the session, Congressman Enoch. Lincoln, of Maine 3 com-
posed some verse couplets, beginning :

What guardian power my country's glory keeps,
When Senates doze, and e'en her Webster sleeps ?
For the full version, see National Edition, XVII, 337,

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 319

member of the Special Committee to investigate charges of
official misconduct brought by Ninian Edwards, just appointed
Minister to Mexico, against William H. Crawford,, the Secretary
of the Treasury. 1 Webster sent his family north in early
June, and, on June 16, wrote to George Blake, "I trust I shall
get away before the week is out. I am homesick homesick
homesick.'* 2 He did not reach Boston, however, until
the month was nearly over.

The complicated presidential contest of 1824, the entry list
for which had been thrown open as soon as Monroe entered
upon his second term, was now drawing to a close. The
candidates, by a process of elimination, had been reduced to
four Republicans : Henry Clay, John Quincy Adams (then
Secretary of State), the imposing William H. Crawford, and
General Andrew Jackson, a turbulent and ominous figure on
the political horizoni Webster's first choice had been Calhoun,
and, even after the latter's withdrawal, Webster advocated his
nomination for second place on the ticket. 3

It might have been supposed that Webster would turn
naturally to Adams, as a fellow Massachusetts man. But the
New England Federalists distrusted and disliked John Quincy
Adams. 4 One of them by inheritance, he had turned Republi-
can at the time of the Embargo, and, for this apostasy, had
never been forgiven. Temperamentally the austere and
unamiable Adams was far apart from Webster, and each was
uncomfortable with the other. Webster and the Federalists

1 On this committee was John Randolph, who, before its sittings were over, sailed
for Europe, leaving an open letter addressed to his constituents hi which he claimed
the credit for having persuaded the committee to give Crawford an opportunity of
replying to Edwards's accusations. When this was published, each member declared
its statements to be unfounded. This episode led to Randolph's challenge to Webster
in the following session. For fuller details see Benton, Thirty Years in the U. S. Senate,
I, 34. Crawford was completely exonerated.

2 National Edition, XVII, 353.

3 Webster wrote Ezekiel, " I hope all New England will support Mr. Calhoun for the
Vice-Presidency."

4 Webster wrote Jeremiah Mason, in 1823, regarding Adams: M My impression of
that Gentleman's character, though high and favorable, in some respects, is, in others,
so little satisfactory, that I hardly know what to wish, in regard to the future."
(National Edition, XVI, 75.)

320 DANIEL WEBSTER

had no intention of declaring for Adams unless they could be
sure of generous treatment. The backing of the administration
belonged to Crawford, but his attack of paralysis in September
1823 had made it seem doubtful whether he could endure a
campaign. Webster seems not to have thought seriously of
Clay's chances^ and he regarded Jackson as wild and irre-
sponsible.

Webster was not present at the Congressional caucus at
which, on February 14, 1824, a small group of Republican
members came out openly for Crawford and Gallatin. Although
Adams suspected him to be quietly working for Crawford, 1
Webster was really moving with caution, taking pains not to
commit himself. He was coming to realize that it would be
fatal to his political future not to join the Adams ranks, 2 but
he held back from any public declaration. At the election
in November, he was chosen with no opposition for a second
term in Congress, and the Adams ticket swept Massachusetts,
30,687 to 6616. In the nation at large, however, Jackson, to
the dismay of incredulous conservatives, had the largest popular
support, and could count on 99 electoral votes, against 84 for
Adams, 41 for Crawford, and 37 for Clay.

The battle was now carried to the House of Representatives,
where, with Clay automatically eliminated, it was narrowed
to a three-cornered fight, with Jackson and Adams in the lead.
Between these two, Webster could not long be in doubt, but
he did not intend to announce his preference without securing
from Adams some sort of pledge. He took care, through
William Plumer, to let Adams know of his desire to be appointed
Minister to England, but the Secretary of State did not warm
to the suggestion. 3 In late January, Clay and Adams had a

1 Adams, Memoirs , VI, 391.

2 On June 5, 1824, Webster wrote Ezekiel: "Mr. Crawford is sick very sick.
And recent events have appeared very favorable to Mr. Adams. In the event of Mr.
C's death, (which I anticipate) Mr. Adams will be chosen by the people & by a great
vote. If Mr. Crawford survives, I still think Mr. Adams's chance the best, at present,
greatly. Genl. Jackson's interest is evidently on the wane." (National Edition,
XVI, 88.)

3 On December 14, 1824, Adams wrote, "Plumer mentioned to me a late con-
versation that he had had with Webster, who is panting for the Mission to London,

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 321

conference, at which the former urged the propitiation of
Webster. 1 At last Webster himself took a decisive step.
When he was consulted by Henry R. Warfield, who held the
determining vote in the Maryland delegation, Webster advised
him to stand by Adams, saying :

For myself, I am satisfied, and shall give him my support, cheer-
fully and steadily. And I am ready to say that I should not do so,
if I did not believe that he would administer the government on lib-
eral principles, not excluding Federalists, as such, from his regard and
confidence. 2

Webster next showed the above paragraph to Adams and
extracted from him the vague promise that, if elected President,
he should feel it his duty, by some appointment, to indicate his
disregard of party distinctions. At once Webster became
ardent in Adams's behalf. 3 Immediately after his interview,
he wrote to Ticknor, "It is confidently believed that New
England will give a President, Kentucky concurrents" this
last phrase referring to the probability that Clay would throw
his votes to Adams.

The result was apparent in the House of Representatives,
where the New Englander was chosen on the first ballot, carry-
ing thirteen states, against seven for Jackson and four for
Crawford. Webster voted for Adams, as did twelve of the
thirteen in the Massachusetts delegation; he was one of the
tellers, with John Randolph, of Roanoke, and was deputed
to make the announcement of the election; and he was

and sounding Plumer's hopes and purposes"; and, on January 17, 1825, he made
another entry : " Plumer spoke again about Webster, and his ambition to go as Minister
to England, which I thought might be gratified, but not immediately." (Adams, VI,
442.) Plumer, in his Diary for December 7, 1824, recorded his conversation with
Webster, and added : " I have known for the last eight months his wish to succeed
Mr. Rush at the Court of London, though he never told me of it before. He would
make an excellent minister; and I would gladly see him there; but he is not very
likely to get the appointment." (National Edition, XVII, 553.)

8 On February 16, Adams had a long talk with Webster, and made the entry: " He
will serve the next Congress as a member, and not stand against J. W. Taylor as
Speaker. Will be glad, at a proper time, to go abroad." (Adams, VI, 511.)

322 DANIEL WEBSTER

appointed chairman of the committee to notify Adams of the
decision. Thus Daniel Webster was early identified with the
new administration and became its recognized supporter.

In early December 1824, Webster was back in Washington,
this time without his family, and took lodgings on Pennsylvania
Avenue, where he rented two rooms and had a servant, Charles,
to look after his needs. He at once set out, with Mr. and Mrs.
George Ticknor, on a trip to the homes of Madison and Jeffer-
son. They left the capital on December 9, by steamboat to
Fredericksburg, and then by a carriage and four horses to
Madison's estate, where they were received hospitably and
remained four days. Madison and Webster, reconciled since
their antagonism during the War of 1812, had much to discuss,
and the latter was confirmed in his opinion that Madison was
"the wisest of our Presidents, except Washington."

The travelers next rode thirty-two miles to Monticello,
being greeted not far from the hill by Jefferson himself, on
horseback, his appearance indicating "an extraordinary degree
of health, vivacity, and spirit/' There they lingered for five
days, detained by heavy rains, which swelled the streams.
The Ticknors and Webster joined in preparing a careful record
of Jefferson's conversation, which was written down by Mrs.
Ticknor, as amanuensis, at a tavern, on the night after leaving
Monticello. 1 Jefferson was nearly eighty-one, but his mind
was clear and his memory unimpaired.

Of all history's strange contrasts, few are more striking than
that between Thomas Jefferson, Republican, of Virginia, and
Daniel Webster, Federalist, of Massachusetts. The one was
tall, rangy, and stooping, with protruding neck and long arms
and legs ; the other, while not short, was stocky, with broad
chest and massive body. Jefferson was slovenly in dress, with
a gray surtout coat, a kersey waistcoat, long and loose panta-
loons, woolen stockings, and shoes run down at the heel;

1 The original " Notes of Mr. Jefferson's Conversation " are extant in a neatly
written pamphlet preserved in the archives of the New Hampshire Historical Society.
George Ticknor, after Webster's death, furnished an account of the journey in a
memorandum to George Ticknor Curtis. (Curtis, T, 222-26.)

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 323

Webster was the well-groomed and immaculate man of affairs.
The older man was the representative of a group of idealistic
founders of a new nation; the other, in his prime, was the
leading figure of a generation facing problems undreamed of
by the men of 1776 and 1789. Jefferson, the owner of countless
acres, was the country gentleman, the spokesman of agrarian
interests ; Webster, the son of an impoverished farmer, owed
his place in Congress and his financial welfare to bankers and
merchants. Jefferson, an aristocrat by birth, had become the
champion of the people ; Webster, of humbler origin, was the
favorite of the "upper classes.'' Jefferson had spent much of
his career in defending the rights of the individual states;
while Webster was the equally zealous advocate of the authority
of the Federal Union.

Next to John Marshall, Webster had done, and was to do,
more to overthrow Jefferson's theories than any one man.
Their views on the Dartmouth College Case had been dia-
metrically opposed; later, in several momentous causes,
Webster had argued successfully for the supremacy of the
Federal government over the states; and he was to assail
doctrines which, to the Virginian, seemed vital. It was the
first and last meeting between the two great Americans. They
did not converse much on contemporary affairs, although
Jefferson did declare that General Jackson was unfit for the
Presidency. 1 But they discussed Revolutionary times, French
society and literature, and particularly Jefferson's experiment
with the University of Virginia, which they rode over to
Charlottesville to see. Webster left with a genuine respect for
the older statesman 2 a respect which he was soon to express
in his Eulogy on Adams and Jefferson.

While he was on this journey, Webster received news of the

1 Jefferson's exact words were : ** I feel much alarmed at the prospect of seeing
General Jackson President. He is one of the most unfit men I know of for such a place.
He has had very little respect for laws or constitutions and is, in fact, an able military
chieftain. His passions are terrible." (National Edition, XVII, 371.)

2 Writing to William Plumer, December 18, from Monticello, Webster said: "I
have found my visit here very pleasant. It has not only gratified a natural desire to
see a distinguished & extraordinary man, but allowed an opportunity for much interest-
ing & instructive conversation." (Ibid*, XVI, 92.)

324 DANIEL WEBSTER

illness of his youngest son, Charles, 1 who was not quite two
years old. The boy died on December 18, while Webster was
detained at Monticello by the bad weather, and he found the
sad tidings awaiting him on his return. It was a terrible shock,
for, when he left Boston, the child was in normal health. In
his loneliness and gloom, he wrote, on a Saturday evening in
January, some verses which are pathetically sincere :

The staff, on which my years should lean,
Is broken, ere those years come o'er me ;
My funeral rites thou should'st have seen,
But thou art in the tomb before me.

Thou rear'st to me no filial stone.

No parent's grave with tears beholdest ;

Thou art my ancestor, my son !

And stand'st in Heaven's account the oldest. 2

It was fortunate that Webster, oppressed by grief, 3 had his
Congressional duties to occupy his mind. The criminal code
of the United States, unaltered since the First Congress, was
badly in need of revision. Justice Story had prepared in 1818
a bill which had been introduced in the House but not passed ;
and he now, with his friend, Webster, as Chairman of the
Judiciary Committee, hoped for better results. Apparently
he drew up the necessary code and submitted it to Webster,
who, after it had been somewhat modified in the Committee
on the Judiciary, reported it to the House. 4 The act "more

1 Charles was said to bear a marked physical resemblance to his father.

2 The entire nine stanzas are printed in the National Edition, XVII, 376-77.

3 Webster missed the companionship of Mr. and Mrs. Ticknor, who left Washington
in January 1825. He wrote the latter, February 4, " I begin to see home at the end
of no long prospect, and all these things create a little activity and bustle, which serve,
in some poor measure, to fill up such portions of time as I usually passed in your house,
while you remained here." (lUd.y XVI, 97.)

4 According to William Wetmore Story, the entire 26 sections were drafted by
Joseph Story (Story, I, 439-40), to whom Webster never assigned proper credit. The
fact that Justice Story and Webster remained intimate friends long after 1825 would
seem to dispose of the idea that the former was unjustly treated. Abner A. Goodell,
in the Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, June 1901, wrote : " Webster
did well to appreciate the erudition of this friend, not much his senior, and better still
to cultivate a friendship by which he could readily avail himself of it."

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 325

effectually to provide for the punishment of certain crimes
against the United States, and for other purposes,*' was passed
and signed by the President on March 3, 18255 after Webster
had guided it skillfully through Congress. A few amendments
were made, making it more palatable to those who were jealous
of the authority of the individual states, and it finally emerged
as "one of the great monuments of constructive legislation,"
the merits of which have been especially appreciated by
lawyers. 1 There need be no dispute regarding the responsi-
bility for this measure. There is honor sufficient both for
Story, who probably created it, and for Webster, who secured
its passage.

Webster's conception of the Constitution led him to the
conclusion that Congress had full power to carry out a policy
of "internal improvements," and he had an opportunity to
express himself on the subject in the course of a debate over a
project for continuing the Cumberland Road a great national
highway starting at Baltimore and extending west from
Wheeling to Zanesville, Ohio. Interpreting the Constitution
liberally, he maintained that it was the business of Congress to
consider what would be of most benefit to the country as a
whole. His object in urging the construction of the great
highway was to open up the public lands of the West to Eastern
settlement; and when McDuffie, of South Carolina, drew a
doleful picture of the depletion of the population along the
Atlantic Coast, Webster announced himself in favor of letting
economic movements take their natural course. If any of his
constituents wished to settle on the Kansas or the Missouri,
they should be encouraged to go. Such doctrines raised
Webster's prestige beyond the Alleghenies, and it was not long
before he was identified in a financial way with the develop-
ment of the Northwest. Plumer declared that Webster's
influence exerted against this project would have been fatal to
its success,

1 Until this code was adopted, many crimes, including rape, burglary, and arson,
were beyond the reach of punishment in the federal courts. Story and Webster, be-
cause of their practical experience in the courts, were exceptionally well qualified to
know what the situation required.

326 DANIEL WEBSTER

In February, Webster was again drawn into a quarrel with
that half-insane fanatic, John Randolph. Webster, on the
floor of Congress, had denied the truth of Randolph's aspersions
on the Special Committee for the investigation of the charges
against Crawford; whereupon Randolph, on February 20,
sent Colonel Thomas H. Ben ton to Webster, bearing a chal-
lenge to a duel. 1 The details of the affair were later mysteri-
ously concealed, by agreement between the principals. Appar-
ently, however, Webster drafted a reply in which he declined
a meeting, and later Benton was able to effect an amicable
adjustment, as a consequence of which Randolph's challenge
was returned to Benton and Webster's answer was burned.
Webster conducted himself with dignity and lost no credit in
the affair. The matter was kept out of the newspapers, but
was revived in 1831 through a gossipy letter sent to the New
York Commercial Advertiser by its Washington correspondent,
recounting the story of the original challenge. Randolph had
evidently talked too much, and the facts had leaked out.
Benton at once wrote to Webster, who disclaimed any re-
sponsibility for the published version, and, after Benton had
sent to Webster two or three verbose and pompous communi-
cations, the latter declared that the correspondence was closed.
The incident has received far more attention than it deserves. 2

There was some talk of Webster as a member of Adams's
cabinet, but he was only too well aware that it was baseless. 3
The place which he wanted was the English Mission, 4 but

1 William Plumer saw Senator Benton deliver the challenge to Webster while the
House was in session. Webster, who was sitting on a sofa in one of the recesses, read
the letter, folded it up, paused a moment, and then opened it and perused it again,
as if doubtful of it<s import. He answered Benton in a grave manner, and after a few
moments of deep meditation returned to his desk as if nothing had happened. (Plumer's
" Reminiscences," National Edition, XVII, 553.)

2 Fisher, The True Daniel Webster y Preface, pp. viii-xii. For Webster's letters to
Benton in 1832, see National Edition, XVI, 102-7.

8 Webster wrote to Mason, February 14, 1825 : " It is not necessary, in writing to
you, to deny the rumor, or rumors, which the press has circulated, of a place provided
for me. There is not a particle of probability of any such offer." (Ibid,, p. 100.)

4 Webster wrote Clay, April 7, 1825 : " I have heard nothing, since I left Washington,
respecting the English mission. If any thing has occurred, not improper for me to
know, I should be glad to learn it from you at your leisure ; and I shall be gratified also
to hear from you on other subjects and occasions," (Ibid t> p. 109.)

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 327

Adams never really trusted Webster and was not inclined to
gratify his aspirations. When the cabinet was announced, the
President retained Southard, McLean, and Wirt of the previous
administration, and named Richard Rush as Secretary of the
Treasury, Barbour as Secretary of War, and to the delight
of Jacksonian scandalmongers Clay as Secretary of State.
The charge of a corrupt coalition between Adams and Clay
aroused no small amount of excitement in Washington, but
Webster was not involved. He remained long enough in the
capital to hear Adams read his inaugural address from the
Speaker's desk, and then returned North, to prepare and deliver
his Bunker Hill Oration and take a recreation trip to Niagara
Falls. When he went back to Congress in the late autumn,
he was accompanied by Mrs. Webster and their three children,
Daniel, Julia, and Edward. Edward Everett had been elected
to the Nineteenth Congress, and he and his wife were friendly
with the Websters, who took them under their wing, and
instructed them in the niceties of Washington etiquette.

Webster wanted to succeed Henry Clay as Speaker, and
probably could have been elected if he had but said the word. 1
He had already, however, promised Adams that he would not
be a candidate. The President apparently wished Webster to
remain on the floor, where his ability in debate would be of
service to the administration. Until the v^ry day when
Congress met, Webster was undecided what course to take, for
he did not trust Adams's rather vague promises; but he
finally decided not to begin by antagonizing the President, and
John W. Taylor, a New York statesman opposed to the exten-
sion of slavery, was elected on the second ballot. It was soon
apparent that party lines, almost obliterated since the war
with England, were once more forming, and that the Adams
administration was to have strong opposition. The President
himself precipitated a battle by somewhat unnecessarily
asserting, in his first message, his conviction that the Con-

1 Webster wrote Mason, December 11, 1825: "Some of my friends thought that
I might have obtained some votes for that place, but I wholly declined the attempt.
If practicable to place me there, it would not have been prudent." (National Edition,
XVI, 117.)

3 a8 DANIEL WEBSTER

stitution should be liberally interpreted and that "internal
improvements" were desirable. These were doctrines of
which Webster approved, but their promulgation at that
moment was not shrewd political strategy.

The judiciary system of the United States had long been in
need of revision, and various efforts had been made, without
success, in earlier Congresses to bring about some reform.
As Chairman of the Judiciary Committee in the House, Webster
now resolved to see what he could do. For many months
Justice Story and he had discussed the matter, both in private
conversation and by correspondence, 1 and they had un-
doubtedly talked it over fully during their journey to Niagara
Falls during the preceding summer. Their familiarity with
the procedure and personnel of the Federal Courts gave them
an advantage over others who had undertaken the task ; and
Webster brought back with him to Washington a bill which
they had carefully prepared.

There had been since 1807 seven justices on the Supreme
Bench, each of whom was allotted to one of the circuit districts.
As only one of these districts was outside the Atlantic states,
Webster proposed to increase the number of judges to ten and
to create three new circuits covering the Western states. So
far as he could tell, the system was satisfactory in the East,
but the West was not adequately served. He was also in favor
of having the justices continue with their circuit duties, feeling
that it offered them an opportunity of testing the nation's pulse.

Webster introduced his measure just before Christmas in
1825, and spoke for it on January 4, 1826, in an argument
which, for fairness, lucidity, and frankness, shows him at his
best. It was not a question on which party lines should have
been drawn, and logic was of some avail. By sheer force of
reason and the exercise of conciliation, he carried the plan

1 Replying to queries, Story wrote Webster, January 4, 1824, giving him some
excellent advice (Story, I, 435-37). On January 10 he continued his suggestions,
saying, " The more I reflect, with regard to the dignity of the Court duty, and the
permanent interest of the nation, the more I am satisfied that the best change will be
by adding two Judges to the Supreme Court." (Story, 1, 438-39.) Webster, who had
the highest respect for Story's attainments and judgment, consulted him on all the
details of the proposed measure.

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 319

through the House, 1 and, in his elation, felt confident that it
would also pass the Senate, 2 But its progress was halted in
the Upper House. The Jacksonians, distrusting any project
from an administration source, were suspicious; they may,
furthermore, have been reluctant to entrust Adams with the
appointment of three additional Supreme Court justices.
Even the Western Senators, representing the section which
would chiefly benefit by the reorganization, were only lukewarm
in their support. In his optimism, Webster underestimated
the growing antagonism to Adams. 3 Certain amendments
were proposed in the Senate to which the House would not
agree ; 4 no plan of compromise was feasible, and Webster's
hopes of reform were frustrated by the obstinacy of politicians.
The smouldering flame of animosity between the Jacksonians
and the President was fanned into a conflagration by what at
first seemed a gentle breeze from the South. An invitation had
been received from some of the Central American states to
attend a Congress at Panama, one object of which, although
not specifically announced, was a union of the new republics
against a possible European foe. Clay, who had dreams of a
league of American nations, believed that it was sound policy
for us to send delegates ; and he won over the President to his
point of view. It was indeed an opportunity for the United
States to assume the leadership in a Pan-American Alliance
which should counterbalance the European "Holy Alliance."
On December 26, 1825, Adams, in a Special Message to the
Senate, announced that he had accepted the invitation and had
nominated Richard C. Anderson, of Kentucky, and John
Sergeant, of Pennsylvania, both well-qualified men, as

1 Story wrote to Denison, March 15, 1826, regarding Webster's speeches, "Our
friend Webster greatly distinguished himself on this occasion, and in the estimation of
all competent judges, was primus inter fares" (Story, I, 494.)

2 Webster wrote, January 29, 1826, to Ezekiel: " The judiciary bill will probably
pass the Senate, as it left our House. There will be no difficulty in finding perfectly
safe men for the new appointments." (National Edition, XVII, 401.)

3 On May 2, Webster wrote Mason regarding the Judiciary Bill, "It may possibly
be lost, but I think it will not be." (National Edition, XVI, 128.)

4 On May 9, Webster wrote Edward Cutts : " The Judiciary Bill will be lost, I have
no doubt. The Senate adhere to their amendments, & I have no expectation the H. R.
will agree to them." (Ibid., p. 132.)

330 DANIEL WEBSTER

envoys to Panama. Adams's statement was perfectly regular,
and, for him, unusually tactful. It was an Item of business
which would ordinarily have passed without comment. But
watchful eyes were seeking a possible issue. Webster saw the
clash coming, for he wrote Justice Story, as the year ended :
"An opposition is evidently brewing. It will show itself on the
Panama question." 1 Soon it became to quote Thomas H.
Ben ton "a master subject on the political theatre during
its day." 2

The true motives of the opposition are somewhat difficult to
disentangle. Many Southerners wished our government to
have nothing to do with the new republics, which had abolished
negro servitude, were endeavoring to suppress the slave trade,
and were even considering the recognition of the " black
republic" of Haiti. Some statesmen felt quite honestly that
we ought not to involve ourselves in the affairs of other nations,
even upon this continent. There were also strategists who
merely seized upon the occasion as favorable for bringing the
administration into ill-repute. These divergent groups, united
in their antagonism towards John Quincy Adams, made a
considerable show of strength. They controlled the Committee
on Foreign Relations in the Senate, but that body itself refused
to concur in the Committee's adverse report, and the nomi-
nations of Anderson, Sergeant, and Rochester (the Secretary)
were approved by a strict party vote of 24 to 19. The matter
of an appropriation for expenses now reached the House, where
it led to a prolonged debate. 3 The one topic which engrossed
the attention of the Congressmen seemed to be Panama.

1 National Edition, XVII, 401.

2 Of its disastrous results, Benton wrote : " It agitated the people, made a violent
debate in the two Houses of Congress, inflamed the passions of parties and individuals,
raised a tempest before which Congress bent, made bad feeling between the President
and the Senate ; and led to the duel between Mr. Randolph and Mr. Clay." (Benton,
Thirty Years, I, 65.)

8 Webster wrote Tkknor, March i, 1826: ** All goes smoothly except the Panama
Mission ; that sticks in the Senate. The incongruous materials of opposition assimilate
better on that subject than they are likely to on most others. ... In our House we
shall have a debate on it, and I shall make a short speech, for certain reasons, provided
I can get out of court, and provided better reflection should not change my purpose."
(National Edition, XVI, 120.)

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 331

Webster detected a conspiracy, headed by Calhoun, of which
the object was the dismissal of Clay as Secretary of State. 1
Modern historians look upon the affair as an early phase of the
struggle over slavery between the North and South. 2 Webster
called the session a "talking winter" 3

Webster's own contribution to the discussion was made on
April 14. To the resolution appropriating funds, amendments
had been proposed, instructing our delegates as to what topics
they should or should not discuss. Webster now arose to point
out that the House had no constitutional right to advise or
direct our envoys, and that there were certain matters which
the latter could not help debating if they were brought before
the Panama Congress. He characterized Monroe's message
of December 1823, enunciating the "Monroe Doctrine/'
as "wise, seasonable, and patriotic." He closed with an
eloquent appeal to the generosity of his countrymen, and said
of the Latin-American republics :

In their emergencies, they have looked to our experience ; in their
political institutions, they have followed our models ; in their deliber-
ations, they have invoked the presiding spirit of our own liberty.
They have looked steadily, in every adversity, to the great Northern
light. In the hour of bloody conflict, they have remembered the fields
which have been consecrated by the blood of our own fathers ; and
when they have fallen, they have wished only to be remembered
with them, as men who had acted their parts bravely for the cause
of liberty in the Western World.

Webster's speech which was really an authoritative
treatise on international affairs undoubtedly had its influ-

1 Webster wrote an interesting letter to Mason on March 27, summarizing the
conditions and prophesying, " In the House of Representatives it is likely the necessary
money will be voted by thirty or forty majority." (Ibid., p. 1:26.)

2 See Morse, John Quincy Adams y pp. 188-92, and Turner, The Rise of the New
West, pp. 284-85.

3 Webster, on May 3, sent his English friend, J. Evelyn Denison, a summary of the
facts, saying: "The measure has met with much opposition, by which more was
intended than the defeat of the measure itself. Various parties, not likely to act
together often, united, on this occasion, in a close phalanx of opposition" (National
Edition, XVI, 129.) Story wrote Fay, March 15, " The Panama Mission is the great
point on which the opposition now hinges, and it has met with every sort of delay."
(Story, I, 492.)

332 DANIEL WEBSTER

ence in the House, which passed the appropriation by the
decisive vote of 134 to 60 a larger majority than he had
expected. 1 The controversy, however, proved to be "much
ado about nothing/* Anderson, one of our envoys, died on
his journey south, and Sergeant, on reaching Panama, dis-
covered that the conference had adjourned. At the date when
the delegates were to reassemble at Tacubaya, Mexico, new
quarrels had broken out in Central America, and nobody
appeared. The dream of a Pan-American Conclave was still
to be nothing but a dream.

Webster had certainly by this time merited some recognition
by the administration. Yet, when the venerable Rufus King,
who had been induced by Adams to accept the Ministry to the
Court of St. James's, broke down in health and was obliged
to resign, the President refrained from offering the vacant post
to Webster, who wanted it badly. He was told that he could
not be spared from the House of Representatives, 2 but this
was small solace to his thwarted ambition.

In August, Webster delivered his masterly Eulogy on Adams
and JeffersoHy and, in November, he was almost unanimously
reflected to Congress, a few scattered votes being wasted on
E. B. Smith, who called himself the "democratic" candidate.
Shortly after his return to Washington, he reported, as Chair-
man of the Judiciary Committee, a bill providing for a uniform
national system of bankruptcy. It was a period when the
problem was being considered by the Supreme Court, and
Webster had hoped, while there was some public interest in

1 Throughout this debate, Webster was a leading factor. Story wrote Denison,
March 15, "A majority, powerful in talents, numbers, and public confidence, aids the
administration in the most unequivocal manner, and you may depend that Mr. Webster
is, and will continue to be, their leader." (Story, I, 494.) Regarding Webster's great
speech, Sergeant wrote. May 2, " Mr. Clay owes you a great deal for bringing out the
true colours of his conduct from under the dust and cobwebs they have been covered
with by his opponents." (Cong. Lib. MSS. II.)

2 Webster consulted several of his friends as to the policy which he should follow.
Mason, writing on May 7, replied : " It seems to me that you cannot, under existing
circumstances, assert your claim at the present time. Should the Government offer
you the appointment, I think you ought not to refuse it. But, if I mistake not, it will
be thought you cannot at this time be spared from the House of Representatives."
(Curtis, I, 273.)

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 333

the matter, to settle it by appropriate legislation. 1 But the
House was not disposed to debate the question, and Webster's
well-drawn act, although read for a second time, was never
brought to a vote.

On the vital issue of the conflict of authority between an
individual state and the Federal Government, Webster, who
had already expressed himself in arguments before the Supreme
Court, had an opportunity to speak during the violent con-
troversy which developed during the spring of 1827 between
the State of Georgia and the United States. Through its
fiery Governor, George M. Troup, Georgia had asserted its
claim to certain lands originally the property of the Cherokee
Indians. Georgia had threatened to use military force in
seizing the territory in dispute, had defied the President, and
had declared herself prepared to resist the Federal Government.
Adams, after warning the Governor that he should not hesitate
to employ all the means under his control to "maintain the
faith of the nation," sent a special message to Congress on
February 5, 1827.

This shameful bickering was allowed to drag along, while the
Georgians took possession of the Indian lands in defiance of
protests from Washington. Webster courageously undertook
to rise in the House as the spokesman of the President. When
Adams's Message was read, certain Southern members, headed
by Forsyth, of Georgia, tried to block its reference to any
committee, but especially to the Judiciary Committee, of which
Webster was still Chairman. Having been denounced as the
tool of the administration, Webster declared that he was not
to be frightened by "high words" or "loud declamation";
that he would not submit to dictation from any state or its
Representative; that states would act on their own responsi-

1 Ever since his reappearance in Congress in 1823, Webster had had this matter on
his mind. During the preceding session, he had actually prepared a suitable measure,
but Congress was lethargic. On December 31, 1825, he wrote Justice Story: " By
direction of our committee I brought in to-day a resolution for a bankrupt law. I think
there is some chance for it if we get a good bill.'* (National Edition, XVII, 400.) He
was even more confident a month later, when he wrote Ezekiel, " The bankrupt bill
will be introduced, and has a fair chance of being passed." (Ibid., p. 402.)

334 DANIEL WEBSTER

bility, and at their own peril, if they undertook to extend their
legislation to lands where the Indian title had not been extin-
guished; and that there were numerous citizens, both in the
House and the country at large, who would take the part of
the Indians if their rights needed defense. The debate was
bitter. 1 Adams, however, was not prepared to back up his
threatening words. The ground in dispute was seized by
Georgia in spite of all the administration could do. But
Webster had at least told Congress where he stood. The
voice had spoken which was soon to reverberate through the
nation in the Reply to Hayne.

In the late spring of 1827, Daniel Webster was elected to the
United States Senate, with which he was to be identified for
many years. The circumstances leading to this promotion
are not easy to trace. An analysis of the mental processes of
an ambitious statesman is difficult, and it is possible to inter-
pret Webster's conduct as that of either an unselfish patriot or
a self-seeking politician. Probably his underlying motives,
like those of most mortals, were confused, and he was frequently
perplexed and irresolute.

As we have seen, Massachusetts, in the autumn of 1824, was
overwhelmingly for Adams. The once respectable Federalist
Party had dwindled to a shadow, and its spirit survived only in
scattered local elections. In 1825, Levi Lincoln, an Adams
Republican, was chosen Governor by a vote almost unanimous ;
and in the following year, when the Federalists, in a dying
outburst of vitality, decided to give Lincoln a battle, he received
27,884 votes as against 12,108 for all his opponents combined. 2
Although the anti-administration men were elsewhere enlisting
under the Democratic-Republican banner, 3 Jacksonism made

1 Webster wrote Plumer, February 11, 1827 : " In my little experience, I have never
witnessed such extreme heat and violence of opposition, as now exists in Congress.
Our war debates were cool and temperate compared to the manner of our discussions
now." (Cong. Lib. MSS. II.)

2 The vicissitudes of Massachusetts politics during this period are covered in Pro-
fessor Arthur B. Darling's Political Changes in Massachusetts y 1824-48, an interesting
and scholarly monograph emphasizing the trend towards Jacksonism and the rise of the
Democratic Party.

3 Clay wrote to Webster, November 10, 1826, from Washington, " Names may be
gotten up or kept up in particular states for local or personal purposes, but at this time

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 335

slow progress in Massachusetts. Even in 18283 when Adams
was so badly beaten in the country at large, Lincoln was con-
tinued in office, with 27,981 votes against 4423 for Marcus
Morton, the Democratic candidate. The National Republicans
were still dominant in the Old Bay State.

During the winter of 1826-27, there was much doubt as to
whether the health of Senator Elijah H. Mills l would allow
him to be a candidate to succeed himself. Mills, who was a
Federalist, would not commit himself openly, but appeared
in the Senate in early January, and it was reported in the press
that he was daily attending to his legislative duties. As the
hour drew near for the General Court to choose a Senator,
Webster was approached from several quarters, but he replied
to Joseph E. Sprague recommending Mills, on the ground that
the latter was "second to no man in the Senate among our
friends.'* The Legislature was unable to agree. The House,
on January 16, gave Senator Mills 106 votes against 67 for
William C. Jarvis (the Jacksonian candidate), 21 for John Mills
(a Springfield politician), and 3 for Levi Lincoln. On the
following day, the Senate cast 26 votes for John Mills, 9 for
Elijah Mills, 2 for Jarvis, and I for Lincoln. As the branches
had to concur, the deadlock continued from week to week, the
Senate doing its best to break it by turning first to James T.
Austin and then to Lincoln. Neither man, however, was
agreeable to the House, which persisted, by varying majorities,
in standing by Senator Mills. At last, on February 16, the
House voted to postpone the election indefinitely, and the
matter was left to the incoming Legislature, which was to meet
in May. Meanwhile Governor Lincoln had publicly declined
to let his name be considered, and the politicians, bewildered,

there are but two parties in the Union, that of the Administration and the opposition."
(Cong. Lib. MSS. II.)

Elijah Hunt Mills (1776-1829), a graduate of Williams College, studied law and
settled in Northampton, from which district he served two terms in Congress. He was
then appointed to a vacancy in the United States Senate and was reflected, his entire
period in that body extending from December I, 1820, to March 3, 1827. The word
" venerable " applied to him by one of Webster's biographers is not precisely accurate,
for he died at fifty-three. Politically he was an old-school Federalist and a supporter
of Adams.

336 DANIEL WEBSTER

sat down to talk the situation over. During this long period of
balloting, not a single vote was cast for Daniel Webster.

Senator Mills now decided to withdraw from the contest, and
renewed pressure was brought to bear upon Lincoln. For the
first time, also, Webster was openly mentioned as a candidate
on whom all could unite. Henry Clay wrote Webster that
President Adams preferred Lincoln, but was ready to accept
Webster as his second choice. Nathaniel Silsbee, 1 the other
Senator from Massachusetts, informed Clay that the majority
of the Bostonians preferred Lincoln, mainly on the ground
that they were afraid that they could not find the right kind
of man to replace Webster in the House of Representatives.
Doubtless Webster had now reached the conclusion that he had
done a great deal for Adams without receiving any reward,
and he made up his mind that he and Lincoln could settle the
matter without outside interference. With what seemed to be
perfect candor, he wrote to the Governor, urging the latter to
accept the Senatorship, and saying that there were many
reasons why he himself ought to decline the place if it were
offered to him. Lincoln replied with equal courtesy, regretting
that he could not yield to Webster's importunities, and declar-
ing that the latter must sacrifice his private affairs, if necessary,
in order to go into the Senate. 2 After this interchange of
civilities, Webster responded, admitting that Lincoln's argu-
ments were not without weight, and concluding, "Under
existing circumstances, I feel it my duty to leave it to others to
decide how the place shall be filled." 3 This meant simply
that Daniel Webster wanted to be Senator from Massachusetts.

From that moment, all went smoothly with Webster,
Edward Everett, it is true, had Senatorial ambitions and had
sounded the President on the subject without receiving encour-

1 Nathaniel Silsbee (1773-1850), a shipowner of Salem, after building up a fortune in
foreign trade, entered politics as a Republican, serving in the State Legislature, then for
two terms in Congress (1817-21), and again in the State Senate. He had become a
vigorous supporter of the Adams administration and was elected to the United States
Senate, taking his seat on December 4, 1826. Later he was an influential Whig. He
sat in the Senate until March 2, 1835.

2 Curtis, I, 295.

<*., 296.

A RESTLESS LEGISLATOR 337

agement. 1 He had also discussed the situation with Webster
in early May, at which time the latter had ostensibly favored
Lincoln. To a friend in Boston, Everett wrote, "The opinion
is 3 so far as I know, universal here, that Webster ought not to
leave the House of Representatives. It is also, however, a
prevalent impression, that he wishes to go into the Senate." 2
This view was undoubtedly correct. On June 7, the new House
declared overwhelmingly for Webster, and, on the following
day, the Senate concurred. 3

If we accept Webster's language literally, he was not alto-
gether happy over his promotion. 4 As a Senator, he would
have less opportunity for practice in the Supreme Court.
Furthermore he was abandoning a position of leadership and
influence in the House of Representatives for the doubtful
vicissitudes of the Upper Chamber. But he could not ignore
the prestige attached to the Senatorship. He was succeeded
in the House of Representatives by Benjamin Gorham, who
had also been his predecessor; and he was sworn into the
Senate in December, having served no portion of the third
term in the House to which he had been elected.

It cannot be said that Webster, during his second period in
the House, had achieved much in the way of constructive
legislation. Some of the matters to which he had devoted
himself most assiduously, such as the cause of the Greeks, the
Panama Mission, and the reform of the judiciary, had resulted

1 With delightful disingenuousness, Everett had managed, in this communication,
to suggest his own name, hoping undoubtedly for a favorable reaction from Adams.
Everett, one of the most ambitious statesmen of his generation, was not above artful
methods in attempting to gratify his aims.

2 Frothingham, p. 112.

3 The vote in the House was: Webster, 282; John Mills, 82; Elijah HL Mills, 22;
Jarvis, 8 ; Everett, 6 ; and Lincoln, 3. In the Senate, it was : Webster, 26 ; John Mills,
11; Lincoln, i; and Everett, I. The Boston Centinel y on June 9, said editorially:
" This appointment affords additional evidence of the patriotic policy which distin-
guishes the majorities of the two Houses; and is honorable to the gentleman who has
received this new proof of the high confidence of the immediate Representatives of the
people."

4 Webster wrote Denison, July 28 : " The good people here have seen fit to transfer
me from the House of Representatives to the Senate. This was not according to my
wishes ; but a state of things had arisen which, in the judgment of friends, rendered the
measure expedient, and I yielded to their will. I do not expect to find the situation
as agreeable as that which I left" (National Edition, XVI, 169.)

338 DANIEL WEBSTER

unsatisfactorily. He had the Crimes Act to his credit, but
he had been defeated on the tariff. If he had succeeded on the
Cumberland Road, he had failed on the Bankruptcy Act, . . .
Nevertheless he was regarded in 1827 as one of the most
promising young statesmen in the country. Josiah Quincy,
visiting Washington in 1826, heard Webster speak extempo-
raneously in the House on a movement for putting a breakwater
In the Delaware River, and was astonished at the ease with
which he exposed the selfish localism of the supporters of the
measure. 1 William Plumer, once his bitter critic, now con-
fessed that Webster was "forcible and authoritative," and
that, on the issue of the tariff, he "in the pride of conscious
power came into the field beating down as with a giant's club,
the whole array of his opponents' force." 2 Barbour, once the
Speaker of the House, told Plumer that he considered Webster
the most powerful man "ever sent from the North." 3 He had
helped to raise money for the anti-administration forces, at
Clay's personal request, 4 and, although he had failed to secure
the Mission to England, the party leaders knew that he could
not be ignored.

Once, under the silvery moonlight in the Capitol grounds,
Webster, walking with William Plumer, broke out into a
passionate confession of his desire for fame. In one of those
rare moments when a man bares his soul, he admitted that his
hope was to say or do something which would be remembered.
When Plumer reminded him of his accomplishment, Webster
cried, " I have done absolutely nothing ! " Later, as Webster's
enthusiasm swept him on, Plumer smiled, and his companion
said : "You laugh at me, Plumer ! Your quiet way of looking
at things may be the best, after all; but I have sometimes
such glorious dreams! And sometimes too, I half believe
that they will one day wake into glorious realities." Here
was the true Daniel Webster restless, unsatisfied, ambitious,
craving always an immortality in the hearts of his countrymen.

1 Qmncy, pp. 280-83.

2 Plumer's " Reminiscences," National Edition, XVII, 549-50.

* im.> p. 549-

* Cong. Lib. MSS. II.

XIV
SLINGS AND ARROWS

He [Webster] was on the happiest terms with the world, which had crowned
him with its choicest blessing, and stood forth in all respects as an example and
a hero among men.
JOSIAH QUINCY, "Washington Society in 1826," from Figures of the Past

I confess the world, at present, has for me an aspect anything but cheer-
ful. With a multitude of acquaintance, I have few friends ; my nearest in-
timacies are broken, and a sad void is made in the objects of affection.

DANIEL WEBSTER, Letter to Mason, April 19, 1829

RESIDENTS of Summer Street, in Boston, saw on a dismal
Saturday morning in January, 1829, a "touching and solemn
procession " setting out from Mr. Paige's house. Close be-
hind a funeral hearse, there walked through the mist and
melting snow a proud man bowed with grief, with a boy and
girl by his side, all three garbed in black. Although he had
been urged to ride in one of the carriages provided for the
mourners* he refused, saying, " My children and I must follow
their mother to the grave on foot." They were proceeding to
St. Paul's Church, where Daniel Webster, excessively pale,
was to watch while his beloved wife was laid in the crypt near
the son and daughter who had preceded her. It was one of the
saddest moments of his life, the sadder because the blow had
fallen at a time when he had seemed to be a favorite of fortune.
As a Congressman from Massachusetts, Webster had been
a happy man, with a reputation steadily growing and con-
genial work to keep him busy. His health was excellent, his
only illnesses being the catarrhal ailments so prevalent in our
northern climate during the winter months. His habits were
temperate, even when he was in bachelor's quarters in the
convivial capital. Under prosperity, he had acquired poise

34 o DANIEL WEBSTER

and assurance, and he bore himself with dignity. "No man
of mark ever satisfied the imagination so completely," wrote
Josiah Quincy of the Webster of 1826. He had a host of
admiring friends, and as yet had made few enemies. If suc-
cess can bring contentment, Daniel Webster must have been
at peace.

There were moments, however, when he was troubled by
financial embarrassments. The story of his money affairs
will always be somewhat of a mystery. He first became a
capitalist, apparently, in 1807, when he bought two shares of
the Concord Bank. After his marriage, his income was
ample to provide for his family all the comforts and many of
the luxuries of existence, and they lived modestly both in
Portsmouth and Boston; yet, even in his Portsmouth days,
he was notoriously dilatory about paying his bills. He was
temperamentally incapable not only of saving money but even
of keeping a regular account of receipts and disbursements, and
his investments, usually selected on the advice of acquaintances,
were seldom profitable. He liked to deal with money in a
large and lavish way, as if it were a negligible commodity,
easily obtainable and intended to be spent. His wife, brought
up in a clergyman's frugal household, exercised a restraining
influence upon him while she lived, but he never regarded
thrift as a virtue.

After he settled in Boston, his professional income in-
creased, and he behaved as if its source were inexhaustible.
He was not yet a landowner, and it is difficult to see how his
routine expenditures could have been very large ; but he was
both generous and careless, and he made no effort to set aside
a fund for the future. When, at the solicitation of his friends,
he entered Congress, he had less time for the law, and was
obliged to resort to loans from his supporters to compensate
for his reduced revenue. Among his papers are documents
showing that, in 1823, he borrowed $3254.25 from Alfred
Curtis, and that Curtis lent him in the following year $6030.33,
in two separate drafts. From then on, there was no period in
his career when he was not under financial obligation to friends.

SLINGS AND ARROWS 341

He accepted their help as a feudal lord received tribute from
his retainers, and he was not punctilious about repaying his
debts.

More and more in the 1820*3 Webster was allying himself
with the bankers and mill-owners of Boston and its vicinity.
The Lawrences and the Lowells were among his intimate
associates, as were many of the other entrepreneurs who were
presciently turning their capital into manufacturing, especially
the making of textiles. When the Merrimack Manufacturing
Company was incorporated at Lowell in 1822, Webster was
allowed to subscribe to four shares, 1 and the desirability of
a protective tariff for New England industry was thus brought
home to him through his pocketbook. Both capital and
labor in Massachusetts were convinced of the efficacy of
protection as a basic economic principle, and they had sound
practical reasons for wishing to retain Daniel Webster in
Congress.

Beset with maternal cares, Mrs. Webster often found it diffi-
cult to leave her home. She did, however, take Julia and
Edward with her to Washington during the winter of 182324,
leaving Daniel and Charles at "Mr. Green's," in Jamaica
Plain. In November 1825, the entire family made the journey
to Washington. It was a fatiguing experience, for the trip
by stagecoach from Boston to New York occupied from Fri-
day morning to Monday evening, with stops for the night at
Ashford, New Haven, and Stamford.

The Washington season of 1826 was exceedingly gay, and
Webster wrote, "As to parties, dinners, etc., we have enough
and to spare. My wife is a good deal dissipated/* 2 In
January, they dined at the White House, where they had
"a very good dinner and a very good time," although Webster
confessed that he did not like such large parties. He was
much less constrained at informal dinners in his own house,
such as one described by Josiah Quincy, when Henry R.

1 Appleton, Introduction of the Power Loom, and Origin of Lowell (1858). The first
power loom in Massachusetts was set up at Waltham in 1814.

2 Webster to Ticknor, National Edition, XVI, 120.

342 DANIEL WEBSTER

Storrs, Rufus Greene Amory, and Quincy were the only guests,
and Webster himself carved the roast and passed the wine. 1
Webster is quoted by Quincy as having said that "dinners
were agreeable in inverse ratio to their state and formality/'
and the latter mentioned, as illustrating this point, a dinner
which he attended given by the gentlemen lodgers at "Miss
Hyer's boarding-house/' at which Webster was a guest, and,
after the Bordeaux wine was added to the customary Madeira,
the conversation was "easy and animated." 2 There were
many balls during the winter, and Quincy saw the waltz intro-
duced into society for the first time. Webster seems to have
cared nothing for gambling, one of the favorite pastimes of his
political contemporaries, and he danced only under compul-
sion.

It was a time when fashionable assemblies opened at eight
o'clock ; when gentlemen wore ruffled linen, and frock coats, of
gay colors, with large gilded buttons, over voluminous trousers
tucked into high Hessian boots ; when ladies had ball dresses
of white India silk and wide flounced skirts revealing a bit of
ankle; when Senators took snuff, and punch was plentiful
at every home in Washington ; when quarrels between states-
men often resulted in fisticuffs and sometimes in bloodshed;
when negro girls were sold by the auctioneer in the open
market; and when rooms were lighted by gas and heated by
stoves, and modern plumbing was unknown.

To Daniel Webster's ancestors, men and women who spent
their lives in manual toil, the idea of a recreative vacation would
have seemed preposterous. But, after the heavy office and
court work of the winter, he found fresh air and physical
exercise essential, and he restored his energy by getting back
to mother earth. For several years he sought diversion by
short journeys in New England. In the summer of 1817, he
accompanied his wife and her brother, William Paige, on a
visit to their mother, Mrs. Paige, at Roxbury, New Hamp-

1 Figures of the Past, pp. 254-60. Webster was " in a charming humor " and told
"some good lawyer's stories."
bid.y p. 265;

SLINGS AND ARROWS 343

shire, 1 where he climbed Monadnock, the mountain to which
he was compared by Emerson in the latter *s Phi Beta Kappa
poem in 1 834 :

Not on its base Monadnoc surer stood.
Than he to common sense and common good.

Not long after the birth of Edward Webster, on July 20,
1820, Webster took his wife to recuperate at Sandwich, a small
coast village on Cape Cod. Here he found a comfortable
boarding place, with a delightful climate, convenient sea
bathing, and excellent fishing and hunting, and they returned
for a few weeks during seven consecutive summers. 2 Often
he made up parties of his friends, such as George Blake 3 and
Isaac P. Davis/ and others, who enjoyed with him the pursuit

1 Roxbury, a few miles east of Keene, was then a prosperous farming community,
but is now an almost abandoned township, in which the roads have grown up to grass
and the pastures have reverted to forest.

2 The experiences of the Websters during the summer vacation periods can be
followed from notes which Webster himself kept. In July 1821, Mrs, Paige died, and,
after the funeral, the Websters went with the Storys to Portsmouth, where they joined
the Masons, and the entire party drove to Lake Winnepesaukee, stopping for a night
or two at The Elms. Later they were at Sandwich, and they spent some weeks in the
late autumn at " Mr. Hall's/* in Brookline. Not having settled as yet at any per-
manent home in Boston, Webster was free to move where he pleased. In 1822, leaving
Edward and Charles with their aunt, Nancy Paige, in Dorchester, he and Mrs. Webster
took Daniel and Julia, the older children, with them to the Cape. In 1823, both Grace
and Daniel Webster attended the two-hundredth anniversary of the settlement of
Portsmouth, observed on May ai, and signed their names to a guest register which is
one of the treasures of the Portsmouth Athenaeum. Webster responded to the first
volunteer toast :

" New Hampshire :

Where'er I roam, whatever realms I see,
My heart untravelled fondly turns to thee !'*

3 George Blake, a Boston lawyer somewhat Webster's senior, had a reputation for
humorous exaggeration which made him famous among his contemporaries. Mrs.
Blake was a charming woman, of whom Mrs. Webster was very fond, and the two
families liked to be together. Blake, who had accumulated a comfortable fortune,
had virtually retired from his profession, and could usually be counted upon for a
hunting expedition. On June 9, 1824, Webster wrote to Mrs. Blake: "I pray you
tell Mr. Blake, that after I get home, if I ever should do so, I expect to find him ready
for play the residue of the summer. I am not yet so reduced but that I could walk
with a bit of iron on my shoulder. Truth to tell I am extremely homesick; and I
shall reckon it a happy day, when I set my face northward." (National Edition, XVII,
352.)

4 Isaac P. Davis, at this period of Webster's life, was one of his most intimate friends,
and they were often together. It was evidently Davis who first drew the attention of
the Websters to the Thomas house, at Marshfield. (Harvey, p. 264.)

344 DANIEL WEBSTER

of deer and trout. The establishment of a large glass manu-
factory at Sandwich, however, brought to that district numer-
ous workmen who, on their holidays, covered the neighborhood
with dog and gun, and reduced the opportunities for good
sport.

In September 1824, after Ezekiel Webster and his wife had
spent a month with them at Sandwich, Daniel and Grace
Webster, driving back to Boston, by chaise, in a leisurely fash-
ion, happened to take a back road which ran by the farmhouse
of Captain John Thomas, in the town of Marshfield. It was
a picturesque old residence, built in 1774 by Nathaniel Roy
Thomas, a Royalist during the Revolution, who had fled to
Nova Scotia and whose property had been confiscated by the
Massachusetts General Court. After the war, his youngest
son, John Thomas, a staunch patriot, was able to establish a
claim to his mother's dowry, and, in this way, secured a title
to the homestead.

Mrs. Webster, impressed by the attractive location of the
Thomas farm, only about a mile from the sea, urged her hus-
band to drive in for a call on the owner. The hospitality of
the Captain was so unstinted that the Websters remained for
two or three days; and after that they stopped there every
summer on the road to and from Sandwich. Webster, learning
that Captain Thomas's estate was mortgaged and that he was
without funds, did what he could to make the old gentleman's
lot less arduous; and, in 1832, after his second marriage, he
purchased the entire property under an arrangement which
permitted Captain Thomas and his wife to occupy the house
as long as they lived. Eventually it became Webster's real
home the place on earth which he loved best.

As soon as the Bunker Hill Oration was over, in 1825, the
Websters joined Justice and Mrs. Story and Miss Eliza Buck-
minster l on an excursion to Niagara Falls. They drove from

1 Eliza Buckminster, then thirty-two years old, was a sentimental but intelligent
spinster, who idolized Webster. Her unpublished letters in the New Hampshire
Historical Society Collection show that she regarded herself as occupying a very special,
although entirely platonic, relationship towards him. She wrote Mrs, Webster, April
13, 1817: "Remember me affectionately to Mr. Webster. Perhaps I should say

SLINGS AND ARROWS 345

Boston to Worcester, where Webster called on Governor Lin-
coln, and then to Northampton, where he climbed Mount
Holyoke. At Albany, they enjoyed a brief reunion with the
tired General Lafayette. They visited the Catskills and
Saratoga, and rode on a towboat from Canajoharie to Utica,
on the Erie Canal, at a speed which made them dizzy. The
Mohawk Valley seemed very much alive, "new, growing,
and highly excited," and the inns and roads were crowded
with travelers. After a few hours at Trenton Falls, they took
a route by Onondaga Lake and through Geneva and Canan-
daigua to Buffalo. At Niagara Falls, Webster sent a long
literary description in a letter to Mrs. George Blake. 1 They
were thoroughgoing sight-seers. "We have been here now
the whole or a part of three days," he said, "and although our
eyes are not satisfied with seeing, yet some of us complain of
weary limbs, from walking about so much, and going down and
climbing up the banks so often." With the enthusiasm of the
true angler, he even tried casting a line at the foot of the falls.
Through almost insufferable July heat, the party returned,
by a route which included Rochester, Palmyra, Syracuse,
Schoharie Bridge, Schenectady, Bennington, Brattleboro,
and Concord. Justice Story was taken ill, and was obliged
to rest along the way. 2 In a letter to Denison, he said, "We
toiled very hard in order to see everything, and were amply
repaid for our labor. . . . Mr. Webster has a giant's constitu-
tion, and can bear every sort of fatigue; but I was a good
deal overcome and exhausted, and returned in very indifferent
health." 3 The Websters sought retirement at Sandwich,

respectfully > but since I have known him so well I have seen so much to love I venture
to say so." As late as 1827, she wrote to Webster, " Is it possible I am so absurd as
to be writing sentiment to you, a statesman and a member of Congress ? ** She was
accepted by the Webster children as a kind of maiden aunt, and was often very helpful
to Mrs. Webster. In 1827, she was married to Thomas Lee.

1 National Edition, XVII, 385-92. This letter was evidently intended to be passed
around among Webster's friends.

2 Story wrote July 16, 1825: " I have not time to write more, being exhausted in
mind and body by the excessive heats. I long to be at home, to get some repose and
some appetite, for I can truly say that I never felt so little of the one nor possessed
so little of the other."

3 Story, I, p. 487.

346 DANIEL WEBSTER

which Mrs. Webster described to her brother as "the most
tranquil looking place in the world/' 1 and where Daniel was
out hunting almost every day with George Blake. On the
last day in 1825, he wrote from Washington, "My health is
good> never better, not having worked off the strength obtained
at Niagara, and at Sandwich." 2 The enervated Story must
have read this sentence with an ironic smile upon his lips.

Webster's magnetism drew friends about him wherever
he went. The Masons, the Storys, the Ticknors, and the
Blakes often visited him, and the death of Mrs. Blake, on May
10, 1826, was mourned by the Websters as if she had been one
of the family. Young men were peculiarly attracted to
Webster. Edward Everett, emboldened by his encourage-
ment, looked upon himself as his successor in the Massachu-
setts political dynasty. Caleb Gushing, of Newburyport,
also had aspirations and became one of the great statesman's
satellites. 3 Rufus Choate, who had first seen Webster at Dart-
mouth College in 1819, had chosen him as his model in law and
oratory. These were, of course, his disciples. He also cor-
responded with most of the leading public men of his time,
including Chancellor James Kent, James Madison, General
Lafayette, Chief Justice Marshall, Henry Clay, and President
John Quincy Adams. His letters, even to his closest friends,
invariably opened with a stiff "My dear Sir," in the formal
fashion of that age, but this conventionality did not persist
beyond the salutation.

To foreigners, Webster was uniformly gracious. One of his
boon companions in Washington was Julius von Wallenstein,
an attache in the Russian legation. In 1824, a party of young
Englishmen Mr. Stanley (later Earl of Derby), Mr. Stuart
Wortley (later Lord Wharncliffe), Mr. Labouchere (after-

g. Lib. MSS. II.

2 National Edition, XVII, 401.

3 Caleb Gushing (180079), a ft er graduating at Harvard in 1817 and studying law,
settled in his native town of Newburyport, where he quickly built up a large practice.
In his Diary he records meeting Webster first at Ipswich in 1825, where he was opposed
to him in a case and was much flattered when the latter invited him to walk and offered
him some valuable advice,

SLINGS AND ARROWS 347

wards Lord Taunton), and Mr. John Evelyn Denison (who
was to become Speaker of the House of Commons) came
to the United States, recommended to Webster by Mr. Strat-
ford Canning. 1 Webster entertained them during their visit,
arranged for the necessary introductions, and acquainted them
with the intricacies of American politics. After their depar-
ture, he corresponded with Denison, and resolved that he would
go shortly to Europe as the latter's guest. 2 Not for fifteen
years, however, was he able to renew his intimacy with his
English friend.

Webster's married life was untroubled and happy. After
seeing him in Washington in 1826, Josiah Quincy wrote:

A congenial marriage seems to be essential to the best development
of a man of genius, and this blessing rested upon that household. It
was like organ-music to hear Webster speak to or of the being upon
whom his affections reposed, and whom, alas ! he was so soon to lose.
I am sure that those who knew the man only when this tenderest rela-
tion had been terminated by death never knew him in his perfect
symmetry. Whatever evil-speakers might choose to say about the
subsequent career of Daniel Webster, he was at that time "whole as
the marble, founded as the rock." 3

He liked to have Mrs. Webster as his companion wherever
he went, and, when they were parted, he wrote her most
affectionate letters. Growing intellectually along with him,
she could comprehend his problems and his needs, and she
subordinated herself to her husband and rejoiced in his suc-
cesses; but she had a mind and character entirely her own.
Her influence upon him was salutary, both as a restraint and
as an inspiration.

After a winter in bachelor's quarters at Washington, Web-
ster returned to Boston in the late March of 1827. In June,
Mrs. Webster fell ill with what was diagnosed as erysipelas,

1 National Edition, XVI, m.

2 Webster wrote Denison, May 2, 1825 : " I assure you, my dear sir, it is my fixed
intention to see England within two or three years. No disappointment, not connected
with my own health, or that of my family, can be allowed to prevent the accomplish-
ment of this purpose." (Ibid.> p. 1 10.)

3 Figures of the Past, p. 256.

34 8 DANIEL WEBSTER

but had recovered sufficiently on June 20 to be able to ride ;
and she went with her husband and their daughter, Julia, in
early July to the island of Nantucket, where he had business
at court. On July 20, he wrote Ezekiel that she was " getting
well/* and a few days later she drove with him in their chaise
to Sandwich. There they spent a happy autumn, and planned
to go with the Story s to Washington for the following winter.

On November 23, accompanied by Julia and Edward, the
Websters started south. Their misfortunes now began, pre-
cipitated, no doubt, by the fatiguing stage journey. Mrs.
Webster reached New York very ill and weak, and Webster
was crippled by a painful attack of rheumatism, which con-
fined him to his room in the house of his old college friend,
Dr. Cyrus Perkins, at 176 Fulton Street, where they were
staying. A consultation between Dr. Perkins and another
eminent practitioner, Dr. Post, disclosed the fact that Mrs.
Webster had an abdominal tumor, so extensive that it was
inoperable. Webster immediately wrote to Mrs. Webster's
brother, James W. Paige, asking him to come, if possible, to
New York. Paige arrived on December 1 1 ; and Webster,
although by no means recovered from his own illness, felt called
upon by duty to set out for the capital. At the time when he
left New York, Mrs. Webster's health was bad, but much
better than it had been since her arrival in that city.

Apprehensive, weak, and sad at heart, Webster took his seat
in the Senate Chamber, where he felt "new and strange" and
where he drew a desk "nearest the chair on its left hand." l
His rheumatism still persisted, and his Christmas dinner was
"a handful of magnesia, a bowl of gruel." 2 In his despond-
ency, he considered resigning from the Senate, 3 for he did
not wish to remain away from Mrs. Webster. The reports
became so alarming that he returned to New York after the
New Year, to find her much more cheerful and comparatively
free from pain. She had, however, lost flesh, and was very
feeble. Webster now devoted himself entirely to her com-
fort, reading to her, buying her little delicacies, and sitting

1 National Edition, XVII, 428. 2 Ibid., p. 430. 3 Ibid., pp. 430-31.

SLINGS AND ARROWS 349

constantly by her side. 1 The case was hopeless, and she died
on Monday, January 21, 1828, at quarter past two o'clock.
Webster wrote to Mason, "The manner of the death . . . was,
in all respects, such as her dearest friends would have wished." 2
Those to whom Webster wrote first were his brother, Ezekiel,
George Ticknor, and Mrs. Lee.

Webster was reminded by his wise friend, Justice Story,
"that the great secret of comfort must be sought, so far as
human aid can go, in employment." 3 After the body had
been placed in St. Paul's Church, arrangements had to be
made for the care of his children. Daniel Fletcher Webster
was a student in the Boston Latin School, and could safely be
allowed to continue there, residing meanwhile with the Paiges.
Julia went to the home of the kindly Mrs. Lee, and Edward
was placed in the family of Mrs. Hale. It was understood
that 'the three would dine on Sundays with their uncle, James
W. Paige ; and the Ticknors also promised to watch over their
welfare. When these plans were completed, Webster, after a
few days with George Blake, went back to Washington.

Bent beneath his sorrow, Webster for the first time showed
signs of age. He seemed overcome by lassitude, 4 and even
the suggestion, now renewed, that he go as Minister to England
barely roused him from his melancholy lethargy. Whether
or not the position was ever positively offered to Webster is
doubtful. He had, of course, his children to consider ; 5 and
he wrote Ticknor in April that he could not afford the expense

1 Harvey, pp. 320-22. Webster was himself taken ill, as a result of anxiety and
exertion, and was obliged to keep to his room for some days.

2 National Edition, XVII, 448,

3 Ibid., p. 446.

4 He wrote Ticknor on February 22, from the Supreme Court : " I feel very little
zeal or spirit in regard to the passing affairs. My most strong propensity is to sit
down, and sit still ; and, if I could have my wish, I think the writing of a letter would
be the greatest effort I should put forth for the residue of the winter." (Ibid., XVI,
172.)

5 When Mrs. Lee wrote him, assuring him that, if he should wish to " cross the
water," Julia would be taken care of in her household, Webster could only answer,
" Even if what you allude to were supposed to be at my option, and however desirable
it might be in itself, times and circumstances may nevertheless be such as ' give me
pause/ That is all I can say about it at present ; except that I am now too old to do
anything in a hurry." (National Edition, XVII, 452.)

350

DANIEL WEBSTER

of maintaining the Legation. He did, however, consult
Ezekiel Webster and Jeremiah Mason on the matter. 1 As
conditions turned out, Webster's voice was badly needed in
the Senate, and it was probably fortunate for him and for the
country that he was not diverted into a diplomatic career.

Webster was now to make his debut in the Senate Chamber,
to-day the room assigned to the Supreme Court, with
which his name will always be connected. It was a domed,
semicircular auditorium, shaped as if a rotunda had been
ruthlessly carved in half. Along the straight side were heavy
marble pillars, some cylindrical, some square, and there were
galleries above running completely around. It was not a
large hall, but, when it was crowded on the floor and in the
galleries, it could hold five or six hundred people. Along the
straight side were the seats for the presiding officer and the
clerks; while the Senators themselves sat at desks in three
rows, each of which was divided by a centre aisle extending
from the entrance, in the middle of the curved side, to the
Vice President's platform. Behind this platform was a re-
tiring vestibule, with a marble fireplace at either end, where
the Senators might stroll when restless and from which win-
dows overlooked the eastern end of the Capitol. It was a room
in which even a light voice seemed loud, and in which Web-
ster's deep tones resounded to the farthest corner.
1 On Monday, February 18, Webster resumed his seat in the
Senate and received the condolences of his friends. Almost
by accident, his attention was attracted to a bill, originally
introduced by Hugh L. White, of Tennessee, regulating the
supreme judicial process in the states admitted to the Union
since 1789. Webster, hearing it read for the third time, went
to the Clerk's desk and examined the details of the measure.
He then gained the floor and explained in a few words why
he was opposed to its provisions. When he sat down, he was
attacked by Tazewell, Rowan, Hayne, McKinley, White, and
others. He at once moved an adjournment, and, on the follow-
ing day, was ready for his adversaries.

1 National Edition, XVII, p. 453, and XVI, 175. See also Curtis, 1, 323.

SLINGS AND ARROWS 351

As soon as it was noised abroad that Senator Webster was
to make his first speech in the Upper Chamber, official Wash-
ington was on edge with excitement. The hall was packed at
an early hour, and he rose in an atmosphere of silent expecta-
tion. What he said was of no great importance, but his voice
was far more impressive than it had been in the Hall of Rep-
resentatives, where the acoustics were so inadequate. He
spoke at some length, protesting against White's bill because
it would disorganize and destroy the federal process in the
original states ; and, in the opinion of the reporters, he com-
pletely overthrew the arguments of Tazewell and Rowan.
The latter attempted to answer, but the victory was clearly
with Webster, and the measure was modified to meet his crit-
icisms.

Around Webster in the Senate were some men with whose
abilities he was to become well acquainted. The presiding
officer was, of course, the Vice President, John C. Calhoun,
who listened with an air of boredom to debates in which he
would gladly have participated. From Missouri carne Colonel
Thomas H. Benton, 1 with his profusion of black curly hair and
side whiskers and his thunderous voice, who was to be Webster's
garrulous foe. Another of Webster's opponents was Martin
Van Buren, 2 of New York, who concealed beneath his suave
exterior a lofty ambition. Two other future Presidents were
also among Webster's colleagues: William Henry Harrison^
a tall, rather bewildered soldier, from Ohio ; and John Tyler,
with his long nose and obstinate chin, from Virginia. Levi
Woodbury "the rock of the New England Democracy
was there from New Hampshire. There also were two men
whose names were soon to be linked with Webster's through a

1 Thomas Hart Benton (1782-1858), Webster's almost exact contemporary, served
in the War of 1812, and was elected in 1820 as one of the first two Senators from the
newly formed State of Missouri. A strong Democrat, he remained in the Senate for
thirty consecutive years, the longest continuous service in that body up to that time.
His Thirty Years in the U. S. Senate (1854) will be frequently quoted in this biography
to show the Jacksonian point of view.

2 Martin Van Buren (1782-1862) had entered the Senate on March 4, 1821, as a
Democrat, and resigned December 20, 1828, to become Governor of New York.

352 DANIEL WEBSTER

great debate : Samuel A. Foote, of Connecticut, and Robert
Y. Hayne, a slender patrician, from South Carolina.

Webster did not seek other occasions for speaking, but he
was far from being silent during the remainder of the session.
On March 21, he discussed the not very vital matter of grant-
ing the franking privilege to the Speaker of the House in the
same degree as to the Vice President. On April 17, he had
something to say in connection with Benton's bill for graduat-
ing the price of the public lands. He favored the graduation
plan, but wished to apply it only to lands which had been on
sale for ten years. A week later, when it looked as if a bill to
provide pensions for the surviving officers of the Revolution
were likely to be defeated, he spoke convincingly in its support,
stating that it was "an act of discreet and careful bounty,
drawn forth by meritorious services and by personal necessi-
ties." Mainly because of his impressive plea, the measure
became a law.

Since 1824, active propaganda had been carried on, espe-
cially by the woolen industry, for further tariff protection.
A vast amount of literature on the subject had been distrib-
uted; the Harrisburg Convention, held in the summer of
1827, had recommended a broad protective policy; 1 and the
Twentieth Congress was soon engaged in a furious discussion
of rates and schedules. Politicians, especially supporters of
Andrew Jackson, saw an opportunity for causing trouble.
A bill which upheld the theory of protection but which satis-
fied very few of its supposed beneficiaries was introduced in
the House and advocated by leaders who were sure that it
could not pass. Styled by its critics the "tariff of abomina-
tions," the measure was really a thing of "shreds and patches,"
framed unscientifically and with little regard to industrial
needs. To the surprise even of its proponents, it passed the

l The Convention was called at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on July 30, 1827, and
lasted five days. Among the delegates was Ezekiel Webster, who had been urged by
Daniel to attend. (National Edition, XVII, 421, 422.) Abbott Lawrence, then one
of Webster's closest friends, was a delegate from Massachusetts. For the proceedings
of the Convention, see Stanwood, American Tariff Controversies in the Nineteenth
Century y I, 264-68.

SLINGS AND ARROWS 353

House on April 22, by a vote of 105 to 94, with eleven of the
thirteen Massachusetts Congressmen in the opposition.

Webster had had nothing to do with the originating of the
bill. Nevertheless he did, on May 9, make a brief and straight-
forward speech in its defense, and, in doing so, virtually aban-
doned free trade and accepted the protective theory. His
explanation was interesting. He had fought the tariff in 1824
because he did not believe in its principles. But, when it was
passed, New England investors wisely adjusted their plans to
the new situation. Assured of protection, Massachusetts
capitalists had invested their money in manufacturing, and it
would be unjust to them if the system adopted in 1824 were
unexpectedly reversed. The tariff of 1828, with all its weak-
nesses, did accord to woolens the protection which Congress
had practically guaranteed four years previously, and Webster
was unwilling to oppose a measure so beneficial to the indus-
trial communities of his section.

Because he had, in 1814 and in 1820, questioned the con-
stitutional power of Congress to enact duties for the protec-
tion of particular manufactures, Webster was now exposed
to the charge of inconsistency. He himself, however, did not
admit having changed his opinions. He pictured himself as
a free trader, compelled by force of circumstances to yield
to a policy which was for the good of his constituents. The
simplest statement of what had happened was written by
him, May 10, 1830, in a letter to his English friend, Denison :

The New-England States, though not originally in favor of the
protecting policy, having now become deeply interested in manufac-
turing establishments, are not inclined to change back again. All
New England, or all with few exceptions, voted against the tariff of
1824. It is now nearly unanimous against repeal or reduction. 1

Webster's conversion added a powerful ally to the sup-
porters of the measure. In the end, a bill designed by schem-
ing politicians, in the hope that it might affect the campaign
of 1828, was passed by the Senate, 26 to 21, and signed by

1 National Edition, XVI, 203.

354 DANIEL WEBSTER

President Adams six days later. Webster's Massachusetts
colleague, Nathaniel Silsbee, who was identified with shipping
rather than with manufacturing, voted against it.

The importance of this tariff controversy lies in the sec-
tional struggle which it occasioned. Southern leaders saw
in it a complete disregard of the interests of their part of the
country. They regarded it as a device for transferring wealth
arid prosperity from the South to the North. Within a few
months, the South Carolina Exposition, written by John C.
Calhoun, was to declare that the Tariff of 1828 was uncon-
stitutional, unjust, oppressive, and destructive of liberty, 1
and Calhoun, hitherto Webster's personal friend and political
ally, was now to become his foe. In their attitude towards the
tariff, both men were sectionalists, and local selfishness was
behind the position which each one assumed.

In late May, Webster, still very despondent, returned to
Boston. On May 18, he had written to Mrs. Lee: "You say
Mr. Sullivan thought me depressed. It is true. I fear I
grow more and more so. I feel a vacuum, an indifference, a
want of motive, which I cannot well describe. I hope my
children, and the society of my best friends, may rouse me ;
but I can never see such days as I have seen." 2 He was
cheered by a public dinner held in his honor on June 5, in
Faneuil Hall. 3 Most of Boston's prominent citizens were
there to welcome their Senator, who was described by the
chairman, Colonel Thomas H. Perkins, as "our distinguished
guest, worthy the noblest homage which freemen can give
or a freeman receive, the homage of their hearts." Webster,
in response, defended his vote on the tariff, on the ground
that he was obliged to consider "the aggregate of all the

1 Calhoun's original Exposition appears in his JForks y VI, 1-57. It was later adopted,
with some modifications, by the South Carolina Legislature. Webster wrote to Perry,
April 10, 1833, " In December., 1828, 1 became thoroughly convinced that the plan of a
southern confederacy had been received with favor, by a great many of the political
men of the South." (National Edition, XVII, 535.)

2 Ibid., p. 458.

3 Writing to Clay three days later, Webster said, " I do not think I have ever seen,
in Boston, a meeting comprising so much character, talent, influence, and respectability.

Hd., XVI, 180,)

SLINGS AND ARROWS 355

interests of the Commonwealth." l He drew attention also
to his advocacy of Revolutionary pensions, to his support of
"internal improvements/* and to his vindication of New
England. His audience was with him, and responded with
applause when he declared that the government of the United
States could not be maintained "but by administering it on
principles as wide and broad as the country over which it
extends."

During the summer, Webster devoted himself to his mother-
less children, first at Boscawen, at EzekiePs home, and later
at Sandwich, to which place his brother and his wife accom-
panied him. He attended the Dartmouth Commencement
and made a brief address, on July 28, to the faculty and the
graduating class. 2 It was, of course, a presidential year, but
Webster took no part in the campaign, although his influence
was given to Adams or rather, against Jackson. As he
well knew, Adams was foredoomed to defeat. Inexpert in the
art of conciliation, the President had made many enemies,
and they had all joined in the cry, "Hurrah for Jackson!"
Conservative Massachusetts still stood firm, casting approxi-
mately 30,000 votes for Adams as compared with 6000 for
Jackson. But in the nation at large there was a different story.
Jackson received 178 votes out of 261 and was swept into
office on a wave of popular favor which did not pause to con-
sider his qualifications. 3

After delivering an introductory lecture on November 12
before the Boston Mechanics' Association and presiding a few
days later at a meeting for the organization of the Boston

1 In referring to the fact that his colleague, Senator Silsbee, had voted on the opposite
side, Webster said : " We both saw in the measure something to approve, and something
to disapprove. . . . The only difference was, when the measure had assumed its final
shape, whether the good it contained so far preponderated over its acknowledged evil,
as to justify the reception and support of the whole altogether." (National Edition,
II, 15.)

2 Ibid. y XIII, 31-34-

3 Clay wrote Webster, November 30, 1828 : " We are beaten. It is useless to dwell
on the causes. It is useless to repine at the result. ... I think, in regard to the New
Administration, we should alike avoid profession of support or declarations of opposi-
tion, in advance. . . . Above all, I think we ought not to prematurely agitate the
question of the succession. The nation wants repose." (Cong. Lib. MSS. II.)

356 DANIEL WEBSTER

Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge 3 Webster de-
voted himself assiduously to legal work, and did not return
to Washington until January 12, 1829. 1 Little could be ac-
complished in Congress, for everybody was looking forward
to the inauguration of General Jackson. On January 20,
Webster reported from the Committee on the Judiciary a bill
to relieve the Supreme Court, providing that, if fewer than
four justices were present at the sitting of the Court, they
might adjourn from day to day for twenty days from the open-
ing of the term, at which time, if no quorum were present,
they might adjourn for a year. Webster's common-sense
solution of the problem commended itself to Congress and was
quickly passed. He was in Washington for the inauguration,
saw Jackson take the oath of office, and noted the "monstrous
crowd " and the "thousand expectants for office" who thronged
the city. 2 Although he confessed that he was indolent and
"growing old," he remained in the capital until March 16,
when the short special session closed and he was released for
what he hoped would be a happy vacation with his children,
who had been spending the winter with their uncle, Ezekiel,
in Boscawen.

Ezekiel Webster had now gained distinction at the New
Hampshire bar, and, though never ambitious as a public
speaker, was highly thought of as a pleader in the courtroom.
His wife, Alice Bridge, had died in 1821, leaving him with two
daughters, Alice and Mary Ann. 3 On August 2, 1825, he
married Achasa Ballard, of Concord, of whom Daniel Webster
soon became very fond. Ezekiel had accumulated a consider-
able property and owned a fine mansion on the Main Street

1 Webster to Ezekiel, January 17, 1829 (National Edition, XVII, 466).

2 Webster wrote, February 5, 1829, that Jackson's health was so feeble that there
was little chance of his " lasting long " (National Edition, XVI, 187), and he added, in
writing to Ezekiel, February 23, the somewhat amusing prophecy : " My private
opinion is, tho* I do not wish to be quoted for that, at present, that Genl. J. has not
character enough to conduct his measures by his own strength. Somebody must and
will lead him." (Ibid., p. 188.)

3 Alice married for her first husband Professor Jarvis Gregg, of Boscawen Academy,
and, after his death, was married to the Reverend George Whipple, of Oberlin, Ohio.
She died November 6, 1876. Mary Ann married Edwin D. Sanborn, later professor
at Dartmouth College, and died in Hanover, December 30, 1864.

SLINGS AND ARROWS 357

of Boscawen, of which village he was indisputably in 1829 the
leading citizen. On his judgment Daniel Webster had learned
to rely when decisions had to be made, and a sincere affection
existed between the two brothers.

In the spring of 1829 Ezekiel Webster had been persuaded to
accept a nomination for Congress by Daniel^ who wanted him
at Washington. 1 Ezekiel 3 however, was still an uncompromis-
ing Federalist., out of touch with the political spirit of the age,
and he was, as Daniel expected, badly beaten. A few weeks
later, on April 10, while he was addressing a jury at the Court
House, in Concord, Ezekiel finished one section of his argu-
ment, and then, erect, and with his arms straight down at
his sides, fell backwards without any attempt to save himself,
evidently losing consciousness instantaneously. Although he
was only forty-nine years old and in the prime of life, he had
long been aware of a disease of the heart, and had told Daniel
of his fears.

Daniel Webster had just arrived in Boston from Washing-
ton, and had been met there by Mrs. Ezekiel Webster. The
news, carried by a messenger from Concord, reached Webster
at three o'clock on the next morning, 2 and he set out immedi-
ately, with Mrs. Webster, for Boscawen. He saw his brother
buried in the old Boscawen churchyard, overlooking the
Merrimack River. With his sorrow unassuaged, he wrote to
Dr. Perkins: "This event . . . has affected me very much.
Coming so soon after another awful stroke, it seems to fall
with double weight. He has been my reliance, through life,
and I have derived much of its happiness from his fraternal
affection. I am left the sole survivor of my family/* 3

Fortunately Webster had much to do in settling his brother's

1 Webster wrote to Ezekiel, March 15, 1829: " If no change takes place in my own
condition, of which I have not the slightest expectation, and if you are not elected,
I shall not return. . . . Your company and that of your wife, would make a great
difference." (National Edition, XVII, 474.)

2 For an interesting description of how the news was earned to Boston by Ephraim
Hutchins, see the address by Henry P. Rolfe printed in Dearborn's History of Salisbury ,
p. 865 ff. When notified, Webster said, " I thought that must be the errand you came
on when I heard the wheels of your carriage stop in front of my door."

3 National Edition, XVII, 476.

358 DANIEL WEBSTER

affairs. Edward Webster was left in Boscawen, with his
cousins ; Julia was entirely happy with Mrs. Lee ; and Fletcher
remained with his father, pursuing studies preparatory to
entering college in August. Meanwhile Webster spent several
weeks in Boscawen. Ultimately he purchased EzekieFs
interest in The Elms farm from Charles B. Haddock, who had
been made guardian of EzekieFs children, and thus became
the sole owner of the old family homestead. 1

During the summer and early autumn, Webster seriously
contemplated withdrawing from public life. 2 Letters to his
friends show that he was profoundly pessimistic, and that the
future to him looked very dark. His wife and brother, on
whom he had relied so much, were gone; the accession of
President Jackson effectually blocked his hopes of an ambassa-
dorship; and he could see no refuge except in devotion to a
professional career. 3 He did not, however, take any decisive
step, and the autumn of 1829 found him in New York very
much occupied with legal work.

It was natural that Webster's friends should look with satis-
faction upon a possible second marriage. His children were
still in need of a mother's attention, and it was impossible
for him to be with them throughout the year. One of his
correspondents, William Tudor, wrote him from Rio Janeiro,
suggesting "a young native woman of New Hampshire" as
a desirable mate. Webster himself was lonely, and he went

1 Of EzekieFs affairs, Webster wrote, '* He has left a competency to those dependent
upon him ; but it will require care and oversight to preserve it, and make the most of
it." (National Edition, XVII, 476.) See also Ibid., pp. 485-86.

2 During this period he eagerly sought any opportunity for diversion. He was
present at the dinner of Boston merchants given on October 16, on the occasion of the
opening of Boston's new and luxurious hostelry, the Tremont House, at which every
kind of delicacy, from terrapin soup to Chasselas grapes, was served. The Mayor of
the city presided, and both Everett and Webster responded to toasts.

3 On April 19, Webster wrote to Mason, " This occurrence is calculated to have
effect on the future course of my own life, and to add to the inducements, already felt,
to retire from a situation in which I am making daily sacrifices and doing little good
to myself or others." (National Edition, XVII, 477.) To Mrs. Langdon Elwyn, he
wrote in September : ** I have lived to be the last of a pretty large circle of brothers and
sisters. It not only fills me with wonder, but with melancholy, to look round about
the places of my early acquaintance. Everybody is gone. While my brother lived,
there was yet something to hold to; but now, the last attraction is gone."

p. 480.)

SLINGS AND ARROWS 359

into society in New York in order to forget his misery* There
he was thrown into the company of Miss Caroline Le Roy 3
daughter of Herman Le Roy, 1 formerly Dutch Consul at New
York and later one of the founders of the firm^ of Le Roy,
Bayard, and McEvers, from which, in 1828, he had retired.
When and where Webster met her is not known. The court-
ship, however, must have progressed with some rapidity* for
Webster wrote on November 18 to his old friend, Jacob McGaw,
announcing his engagement, 2 and the marriage took place
on Saturday, December 12, in the parlor of the Eastern Hotel,
near the Battery, before only the bride's immediate family,
and Julia Webster. 3 On the following Monday, Webster
wrote to Fletcher announcing the event and sending an "ele-
gant gold watch," a gift to the boy from his new mother. 4
Webster was cautiously restrained in his descriptions of his
new wife. He said of her to McGaw that she was "amiable,
discreet, prudent, with enough of personal comeliness to satisfy
me, and of the most excellent character and principles." He
depicted her to Mrs. Ezekiel Webster as "amiable, affectionate,
prudent, and agreeable," and he wrote to Fletcher, "The
lady who is now to bear the relation of mother to you, and
Julia, and Edward, I am sure will be found worthy of all your

1 Herman Le Roy (1758-1841), son of Jacob Le Roy, married, October 19, 1786,
Hannah Cornell, by whom he had twelve children, of whom Caroline, born September
28, 1797, was the eighth. Caroline's mother had died, December 25, 1818. Among
her brothers was Daniel Le Roy (1799-1885), who was long engaged in business in
New York City. The Le Roys were substantial people, who moved in the best social
circles of the city.

2 " I must tell you and Mrs. McGaw (in confidence) a little news, nothing less
than my expectation of being again married. The affair is not of long standing, but
it looks so much like terminating in a marriage that I may venture to mention it to you,
4 tD go no further until you shall hear it from other quarters. The lady is Miss
Caroline Le Roy of New York, aged 31 years or thereabouts. She is the daughter of a
highly reputable gentleman, now some years retired from the mercantile business."
(National Edition, XVI, 191.)

3 Announcement of the wedding was made in the New York Evening Post for
Monday, December 14, and stated that the ceremony was performed by the *' Rev. Dr.
Wainwright." A similar notice was printed in the Columbian Centinel^ in Boston, on
December 16.

4 Webster diplomatically enclosed in his letter a note from the new Mrs. Webster
to Fletcher, and said himself, " The enclosed note you will of course answer. . . . Let
it come enclosed to me." (National Edition, XVII, 482.)

360 DANIEL

affection and regard." If we are to judge from her portraits,
she was slender and graceful but not beautiful. Her letters
indicate that she was clever and witty, but we know nothing
of her formal education. Skilled in social matters* she made
an admirable hostess for Webster's household* but she never
replaced in his heart the plain New Hampshire schoolmistress
whom he had loved and lost.

His second marriage had a subtle but nevertheless pro-
found effect upon Webster's character. Intellectually and
politically, he continued to make steady advances; indeed*
his ablest speeches were still to be delivered. But Caroline
Webster* seventeen years younger than her husband* could
not exercise any restraining influence upon him. She was a
city woman* accustomed to receptions and balls, and pleased
with the idea of being a leader in Washington society. With
no one to warn him against extravagance* Webster lapsed
deeper and deeper into debt. He indulged more freely in
the pleasures of the table. He developed into a man of the
world* who was tempted by good food and good drink. The
effect was shown in certain physical and temperamental
changes. He grew portly and slow in his movements; his
solemnity became almost portentous ; and he was accused
by his enemies of pomposity. The old Webster was there*
but the adulation of sycophants and his own realization of
his importance to party and nation were corroding elements.
Webster* after 1829* was both greater and smaller than he had
been in 1825.

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION

God fills the gaps of human need,
Each crisis brings its word and deed.

WHITTIER, "The Lost Occasion"

The great rebellion of 1861 went down hardly more before the cannons of
Grant and Farragut than the thunder of Webster's Reply to Hay ne.

JOHN D. LONG, February 15, 1882

I say, the right of a State to annul a law of Congress cannot be main-
tained, but on the ground of the inalienable right of man to resist oppression ;
that is to say, upon the ground of revolution.

WEBSTER, Second Speech on Footers Resolution

ON a cold and blustery morning in January 1830, little groups
of people were hurrying up the steps of the Capitol. When
the noon hour struck, the Senate Chamber was packed, not
only with legislators, but with society ladies, many of whom
had audaciously monopolized seats upon the floor, and, with
their gay bonnets and colored gowns, gave the assembly a
kaleidoscopic tinge. A stranger would have perceived that
some event of importance was expected. After some routine
business, the presiding officer the spare, shaggy-haired,
bushy-browed Calhoun pounded with his gavel, and every
eye was fixed on a robust figure who rose to address the con-
clave. He wore a long-tailed coat, with shiny gilt buttons,
a buff waistcoat, and a high white cravat l an old-fashioned
uniform which distinguished him from his neighbors, but
which nobody felt to be incongruous. With his proud head
and deep-set, glowing eyes, he had the calmness of superior

1 Poore, 1, 1 1 6. Sargent, Public Men and Events, 1, 172. Charles W. March, Daniel
Webster and His Contemporaries,, p. 135. Speaking of Webster's appearance on this
occasion, Sargent referred to ** his forehead broad and massive, towering above his
large, dark, deep-set, wonderfully-powerful eyes."

362 DANIEL

strength. Daniel Webster, in the most crucial moment of
his career, was about to answer Hayne, of South Carolina.

Although much had predicted of Webster in the Senate,
he had hitherto done little to justify his reputation. His
double bereavement had left him listless, with his ambition
cooled. When the Twenty-first Congress was called to order,
he was among those recorded as absent. But he had a legit-
imate excuse, for he was then on Ms honeymoon, which
he spent in New York City, and he did not leave until the
day after Christmas. As he formally took his seat in the
Senate on the last day of the year, his friends commented on
his improved appearance. His marriage had banished his
melancholy and made him healthier in body and spirits than
he had been for many months. Tranquil, even buoyant, he
was again the Webster who had declaimed so eloquently at
Plymouth and Bunker HS1L It was a man in his prime, with
all Ms splendid faculties unimpaired, who was roused to action
in 1830.

For a few days, Webster was occupied with important cases
before the Supreme Court. He had been assigned to the
Committee on Naval Affairs, and to a Special Committee on
Roads and Canals, but little business came before them. On
January 6, he moved the consideration of a bill "to establish
an uniform rule for the computation of the mileage of members
of Congress" a matter of slight importance. On the
eighteenth, he presented a petition from the South Carolina
Canal and Railroad Company, praying the Federal Govern-
ment to subscribe to its capital stock, on the ground that
the railroad which it was planning would promote the national
welfare. Hayne and Smith, the Senators from South Carolina,
who were opposed on constitutional principles to a internal
improvements," would not sponsor the petition ; and it was
for this reason that Webster had been asked to become its ad-
vocate before the Senate. After brief explanatory remarks, he
secured its reference to the Committee on Roads and Canals. 1

1 The petition was apparently handed to Webster by Hayne himself, at the request
of the latter*s constituents. (Curtis, 1, 367.)

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 363

Meanwhile a crisis was approaching which was to bring
Hayne and Webster into hostile relationship- Two days
before the latter reached Washington, Senator Samuel A.
Foote, 1 of Connecticut, had introduced a resolution on the
subject of the public lands :

Resolved, that the Committee on Public Lands be instructed to
inquire into the expediency of limiting* for a certain period, the sales
of the Public Lands to such lands as have heretofore been offered for
sale, and are subject to entry at the minimum price. And also,
whether the office of Surveyor General may not be abolished, with-
out detriment to the public interest.

The West had been peculiarly sensitive regarding the man-
agement of the vast areas in the Mississippi Valley, and the
topic had frequently been brought up in earlier Congresses.
The general policy had been to dispose of them to the highest
bidder, with a minimum price (since 1820) of $1.25 an acre;
but, as Foote pointed out in explaining the motive for his
resolution, the annual demand had never exceeded a million
acres, and there were still many millions undistributed. West-
erners, eager for an increase of population in their section^
felt that the government should be more liberal in its attitude
towards industrious pioneers and allow them to acquire lands
at a low rate ; and Congressmen from beyond the Alleghenies
were quick to resent and denounce any legislation tending
to discourage desirable settlers/ The problem was delicate
and complex, and 4x:ttd^*entangled with such dangerous
issues as internal improvements, the tariff, and negro slavery.

Foote's resolution met with opposition from Senator Thomas
H. Benton, and a wrangle ensued, resulting in a postponement

1 Samuel Augustus Foote (1780-1846), a Yale graduate and later a merchant in
New Haven and a farmer in Cheshire, Connecticut, served for some years in the Legis-
lature and also in the national House of Representatives. He was a Senator from
Connecticut for one term, but was defeated for reelection and was later Governor.
His name is often printed as Foot, but the Biographical Dictionary of the American
Congress uses the spelling Foote. March described him* as " incapable of any particular
distinction," and added, " Amiable in private life, respectable but never eminent in
public, of no ill-regulated ambition, nor eccentric vanity, he was one of the last to have
been suspected of designing to give character or intellectual vitality to thought or
action." (March, p. 158.)

364

of its consideration. It was taken up on January 13, as a
special order of the day^ and the excitement could have been
allayed but for the irrepressible Benton, 1 who, on January
1 8, in a carefully prepared speech* deliberately aimed to com-
bine the West and the South against the Northeast He
declared that Foote's resolution was another manifestation of
Eastern hostility towards the West an attempt of Atlantic
coast cities to block emigration to the interior river valleys.
Accepting it as inimical to himself and his cherished Gradua-
tion Bill/ he searched history for grievances against New
England and sought to inflame sectional animosities. It was
Benton's speech so fanatical and so provocative which
was responsible for the tone which the debate was to assume.
His denunciation of New England for endeavoring " to prevent
the settlement of the West" could not be left unanswered.

On the afternoon when Benton thus ignited the conflagra-
tion, Webster was in the Supreme Court Room below, awaiting
the calling of the case of Carver v. Jackson ex dem* Astor (4
Pet. i)/ involving some highly technical points of law. His
correspondence shows that, up to this time^ he had paid little
attention to Senate business. On the following day, however,
as Senator Hayne 4 was rising to continue the discussion,

1 Thomas Hart Benton (1782-1858), born in North Carolina, early moved with
his mother to Tennessee, where he became the voice of the pioneer spirit. In 1815,
he moved to Missouri, and, five years later, was elected one of the first Senators from
that state. He retired in 1850, after thirty years in the Senate. He was a strong
supporter of sound money and of Andrew Jackson. His fiery utterances, his inflated
manner, and his incorruptible honesty made " Old Bullion," as he was called, a con-
spicuous figure in Congress, In spite of the interminable length of his speeches and
of his self-conceit, he was respected, and was " a constructive force in legislation."

2 Benton's Graduation Bill proposed to reduce the price of unsold waste land by
twenty-five cents an acre each year until it was bought or reached the low limit of
twenty-five cents.

3 This case, pending over many years, determined the title to a vast area of more
than 50,000 acres in New York State. Webster's argument is printed in National
Edition, XV, 290 ff.

4 Robert Young Hayne (1791-1839), grandnephew of a Revolutionary hero, began
the practice of law in Charleston, served in the army during the Second War with
England, and early became conspicuous in state politics. After several terms in the
Legislature, he was chosen as United States Senator in 1823, when barely of legal age
for that office. He became a friend and supporter of Calhoun and an able critic of the
Tariff of 1828. In 1830, he was a tall and slender figure, of the patrician type, with

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 365

Webster, after the adjournment of the Supreme Court, dropped
Into the Senate Chamber. 1 He was just in season to hear the
Carolinian announce that "the South would always sympathize
with the West' 1 and that the attitude of the Eastern states
regarding the public lands was "selfish and unprincipled/*
Hayne advocated an alliance between the West and the South
in opposition to the protective tariff. For the most part^ he
reiterated the ideas already advanced by Benton. As he
drew to a close, however, he confessed to a fear lest the revenue
accumulated from the sale of the public lands might tend to
"consolidate the government" and be "fatal to the sovereignty
and independence of the States/' With a significance which
Webster did not miss, he said, "Sir, I am one of those who
believe that the very life of our system is the independence
of the States, and that there is no evil more to be deprecated
than the consolidation of this government." During Hayne's
remarks, Webster listened attentively. He was urged by his
friends to make an immediate reply, and he did secure the
floor as soon as the South Carolinian had sat down. But
darkness was falling, and Benton ? s motion to adjourn post-
poned the debate until the next day.

Those who had observed events could see what was coming.
Sectionalism so dreaded by leaders like Washington and
Hamilton was about to break out once more, and from its
usual causes economic need and greed. The South, made
apprehensive by its declining commerce and its dwindling
wealth and population, was jealous of the more prosperous
North. Negro slavery, economically so wasteful and so
obstructive to industry, was hampering progress south of the
Potomac. The imposition of the protective tariff, beneficial
to New England manufacturing, was not welcomed by planters

vivacious and captivating manners, and was described by Everett as ** fluent, graceful
and persuasive as a debater." In December 1831, he left the Senate to become Gov-
ernor of South Carolina, in which position he openly defied the Federal Govern-
ment. After retiring two years later, he was Mayor of Charleston and President of
the Cincinnati and Charleston Railroad.

1 Webster to Mason, February 27, 1830 (National Edition, XVII 3 488), and Webster
to Button, March 8, 1830 (Ibid. y p. 493).

366 DANIEL WEBSTER

and importers. Two civilizations, one industrial and the
other agrarian, were face to face, the former having the whip
hand. Chafing under the tyranny of a relentless majority,
South Carolina took refuge in a theory of the Union through
which she could defend her interests and resist encroachment
by the Federal Government. It was economic pressure which
was responsible for the doctrines taught by Hayne and Cal-
houn. The position adopted by South Carolina in 1830
differed only slightly from that assumed by the New England
Federalists in 1808 and 1812, when Massachusetts and New
Hampshire saw their commerce slipping away through embargo
and war. Then the Northeast had been sectional, and the South
and West had been national. Now the roles were reversed.
I The Great Debate of 1830, started over the public lands,
-was quickly carried into other fields, the tariff, local pa-
triotism, the Ordinance of 1787, and slavery, but it even-
tually narrowed down, through Webster's clever strategy, to
one question which every citizen could understand: "Where
does the authority of a sovereign state cease and that of the
national government begin ?J| Whatever may be the opinion
to-day, this was not, in 1830, a one-sided controversy. It
has been easy for Northern historians to insist that Webster's
position was impregnable. But the practical men who sat
in the Constitutional Convention of 1787 were not themselves
sure about the intentions of that body. Some leading Ameri-
can statesmen had accepted different theories at different
periods. Webster himself was assailable in this respect, and
his sensitiveness to attack betrayed misgivings about his past.
There was a pleasing irony in the spectacle of a Northern
Federalist instructing a Charlestonian regarding the suprem-
acy of the Union.

Thus the discussion, although participated in by lesser men,
became in the eyes of the people a duel between Hayne and
Webster, as gladiators of their respective sections. Benton,
who had precipitated the clash, was ignored by Webster, who
saw that he could succeed best by directly challenging the
representative of the South. Benton was annoying, but

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 367

Hayne was the more dangerous enemy. The issue of nullifica-
tion had been raised, not by Missouri, but by South Carolina;
and behind the voice of Robert Y. Hayne was the acute in-
telligence and ingenious sophistry of John C. Calhoun.

The debate was fair and open, a collision of opinions in which
each combatant had his opportunity for defense and rebuttal,
and neither sought to evade the issue. Never had the pro-
ceedings of the Senate been of more positive educational
value. The protagonists exemplified contrasted schools of
political thought, and, although Webster's intellectual re-
sources were richer than Hayne's, the two were not unevenly
matched. The fair-complexioned Hayne was intrepid, mer-
curial, and resourceful ; the swarthy Webster was firm, slow-
moving, and phlegmatic. 1 They had already had an alterca-
tion during the closing hours of the preceding Congress, 2 and
Hayne had won a victory. Now it was to be Cavalier against
Roundhead, the fluid sea against the immovable rock Each
was a perfect product of the type of culture from which he had
sprung.

On Wednesday, January 20, when the Foote Resolution
was called, it was modified by the addition of the following
clause :

Or whether it be expedient to adopt measures to hasten the sales
and extend more rapidly the surveys of the public lands. 3

Webster then addressed the Senate in a speech which,
filling only twenty-one pages in the collected edition of his

1 A correspondent of the Philadelphia Gazette noted: *' Mr. Webster's countenance
is generally cold, severe, and impressive, which makes the occasional sarcasm when
accompanied by a sneer or a smile exceedingly effective. The face of Mr. Hayne, on
the contrary, is constantly in play ; every varying emotion rushes to his countenance,
and is there distinctly legible."

2 The controversy had arisen over a resolution offered by Webster on February 27,
1829, calling on the President to communicate to the Senate copies of instructions given
to our representatives to the abortive Panama Congress. Hayne's opposition pre-
vented its passage, and the two men exchanged words on the floor of the Senate.
(Jervey, Hayne, pp. 224-25.)

3 Senator Levi Woodbury, of New Hampshire, had moved to strike out the original
resolution and insert the new clause ; and then Senator Peleg Sprague had suggested
the addition of it as an amendment. (National Edition, VI, 18-19.) These technical
parliamentary details did not affect the real issue.

3 68 DANIEL WEBSTER

works, 1 was principally a refutation of the charge that the
policy of the Federal Government towards the new states of the
West had been harsh and severe. { Hayne's biographer has
declared that Webster's remarks were "clever, disingenuous,
provocative," couched in a style which was "nonchalant,
flippant, offensive/' 2 Although he had been given almost
no opportunity for preparation, 3 he ranged with ease over our
national history. Answering specifically the attacks on his
own section, he asserted that not a measure for the benefit
of the West could have been passed in Congress without the
backing of New England ; and he pointed to the Ordinance
of 1787;* drafted by Nathan Dane, 5 of Massachusetts, as a
measure which must have failed without the support of North-
ern votes. His most eloquent passage was a contrast between
Ohio, in 1794, a "fresh, untouched, unbounded, magnificent
wilderness," and the same section in 1830, and he attrib-
uted its marked prosperity to the exclusion of negro slavery
from its soil. Commenting on Hayne's fear that a permanent
revenue might "consolidate" the government, Webster de-
fended "constitutional consolidation," saying:

I wish to see no new powers drawn to the general government ; but
I confess I rejoice in whatever tends to strengthen the bond that unites
us, and encourages the hope that our Union may be perpetual.

1 For the complete text of this speech, see National Edition, V, 248 flf.

2 Jervey, pp. 238-39. Jervey adds: "It was an irritating speech, and doubtless
meant to be. It was to tempt the one attacked to a reply, after which he would be
overwhelmed by the real speech, with regard to which, as Benton might have expressed
it, as he does insinuate, Webster was lying in, to be delivered of."

3 As if in extenuation, Webster said, " Owing to other engagements, I could not
employ even the interval between the adjournment of the Senate and its meeting the
next morning, in attention to the subject of this debate." (National Edition, VI, 6.)
He did, however, have time to fill three sheets of ordinary letter paper with notes
which, however, he did not follow very carefully. (Curtis, I, 356.)

4 The Ordinance of 1787, providing for the administration of the section north of
the Ohio and east of the Mississippi, had included a prohibition of negro servitude in
that district. In stressing the responsibility of New England for this important act,
Webster was led into minor errors, which Benton, with some glee, later corrected.
When the Ordinance was finally passed, it was carried by the votes of three Northern
and five Southern states.

6 Dane, nearly eighty years old and almost totally deaf, was still living in Beverly,
Massachusetts, at the time of Webster's speech.

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 369

He closed effectively by quoting from a speech in 1825, by the
truculent George McDuffie, who had complained because
Webster had advocated the construction of highways to the
West. Before sitting down, he moved the indefinite post-
ponement of Foote's amended resolution, which seemed to
him unnecessary.

Thus far, the discussion had been like the manoeuvring of
skillful fencers, each endeavoring to place the other in an un-
favorable position. Benton, unwilling to be disregarded,
followed Webster in an able speech, claiming a victory on the
ground that the latter's motion for an indefinite postponement
was a confession of weakness. 1 On Thursday morning, Janu-
ary 21, Webster was to appear for his clients in the Supreme
Court, and his friend, Senator Chambers, of Maryland, ac-
cordingly requested that the debate be deferred. Hayne,
offended by some of Webster's remarks and burning to reply,
refused, saying that he saw the gentleman from Massachusetts
before him and presumed that the latter could be present
through the day. 2 Webster, his arms folded across his chest,
haughtily declared himself ready to receive his adversary's
fire. The indefatigable Benton then spent an hour continuing
the address which he had begun on the preceding afternoon,
during which Webster, going downstairs, secured a postpone-
ment of his business in court. Benton at last sat down, and,
after the Senate had rejected another motion to adjourn,
Hayne opened his reply to Webster, speaking for about an
hour and then stopping so that Webster could keep his engage-
ment with his client. On the following Monday, Hayne con-
tinued his speech in the Senate, occupying two and one-half
hours more. 3

1 Isaac Hill's New Hampshire Patriot published a letter from Washington dated
January 23, which said, " Mr. Benton's speech was a splendid display of eloquence,
and every way superior to Mr. Webster's."

2 Describing these events to Button in a letter of March 8, 1830, Webster wrote of
Hayne, " He was very angry, and when he rose to oppose a day or two's postponement,
as I wished to be in the court, talked perhaps a little too largely of what he was going to
do." (National Edition, XVII, 494.)

3 Hayne's speech is printed in full in The Great Debate^ edited by Lindsay Swift,
in the Riverside Literature Series. The break in his argument is clearly indicated in

370 DANIEL WEBSTER

Hayne was above the average height, with light-brown hair,
a sallow complexion, and grey eyes, full of animation and fire*
Although he was not distinguished-looking, his features were
expressive, his voice was well modulated, and his gestures
were graceful and appropriate. His manner was impassioned,
even vehement, and a jaunty air of self-confidence lent weight
to his impetuous utterance. He had taken pains to study
Webster *s record, and he dealt some telling blows. In spite
of its personalities, it was a brilliant performance, and, to his
adherents, Hayne seemed unanswerable. As a public speaker,
he was more pleasing and convincing than Calhoun.
f Ir-UyneJwas especially formidable in his criticism of Webster's
conversion to protectionism and in his exposure of the hostility
of Northern Federalists towards the Second War with Eng-
land. With stinging sarcasm^Jie contrasted the patriotism of
South Carolina with the reeakitratey of Massachusetts, and
quoted from Carey's Olive Branch^ expressions of disunion^
sentiment 35 the Federalists of 1812-14. Hayne's arraign-
ment 0f 'New England's disloyalty delighted the Democrats,
who smiled their approval as the orator uncovered the iftctOTr^
sistencles of Webster's past. The latter sat through the tirade
like a sphinx, his face completely immobile. 2

Hayne would have been wiser if he had confined himself
to destructive criticism, at which he was not markedly inferior
to his rival. But, encouraged by Vice President Calhoun,
who, from his desk^ent him rather ostentatiously some
notes of suggestion, ~4 Hayne entered upon an explanation
of the South Carolina theory of nullification, which he based

the text by the reading, on January 11 , of a paragraph from Burke's Speech on Con-
ciliation. When Hayne resumed, on January 25, he took up at once the matter of
" the consolidation of -this government." (The Great Debate, p. 53.)

1 Mathew Carey (1760-1839), a Philadelphia editor, published in 1814 The Olive
Branch, or Faults on Both Sides, Federal and Democratic, in which he undertook to
reconcile the opposing parties during the War of 1812. It passed through ten editions
and was widely read.

2 Evidence on this point is conflicting. The reporter of the New York Courier and
Enquirer said : " I will not pretend to give you even a hint of the tremendous punish-
ment which, for one hour, Mr. Hayne inflicted on the * god-like * man. ... He turned,
he twisted, he leaned back, leaned forward, took notes, sometimes audibly dissented,
and appeared indeed to be put to the rack."

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 371

principally upon the language and the authority of the Vir-
ginia and Kentucky Resolutions of 1798. Some features of
the doctrine were never quite clear, and its defenders hesitated
to carry it to its logical conclusion. Fundamentally, however^
it claimed that each state, in assenting to the Federal Con-
stitution, reserved the right to interpret that document within
its own borders. The people of any state, if they felt them-
selves aggrieved, could declare an act of the Federal Govern-
ment not binding upon themselves ; in other words, they could
nullify Congressional legislation: Hayne, following Calhoun,
directly denied the power of tKe Federal Judiciary l to settle
problems in which a "sovereign state" was involved, and
said explicitly :

As to the doctrine that the federal government is the exclusive
judge of the extent as well as the limitations of its powers, it seems to
me utterly subversive of the sovereignty and independence of the
States. It makes but little difference, in my estimation, whether
Congress or the Supreme Court are invested with this power.

iThe doctrine of nullification, *which for many months had
occupied the minds of certain groups of South -Carolinians,^
was thus introduced on the floor of CongressJ and upheld as
having been first promulgated by "the fathers of the faith."
Hayne said, "The South is acting on a principle she has always
held sacred, resistance to unauthorized taxation," and
asserted then and later that his theory was that on which the
Federal Government of 1789 was established. He did not,

1 Attacks on the Supreme Court, both covert and open, had been made in Congress
for some years. (Warren, Supreme Court, II, 112, ff.) The authority of that tribunal
had been enhanced by sweeping decisions, and it was alleged by Democrats that it had
encroached on the states and assumed a jurisdiction to which it was not entitled. In
the Cherokee Land Cases, Georgia had openly flouted a mandate of the Supreme Court.
(Beveridge, Marshall, IV, 539 rT.) On March 12, while the Great Debate was still in
progress, the Court, in Craig v. Missouri (4 Pet. 410), held a Missouri statute to be
invalid, to the disgust of Benton, who was the attorney for his state.

2 The fact that there was, in 1830, a strong Unionist Party in South Carolina, headed
by such statesmen as Joel R. Poinsett, Hugh S. Legare", William Dray ton, and James L.
Petigru, has not always been brought out by historians. See Frederic Bancroft,
Calhoun and the South Carolina Nullification Movement, pp. 90-126.

3 Benton, who had been in the Senate for a decade, said that the topic of nullification
was then (1830) " first broached in our national legislature."

372 DANIEL WEBSTER

however, advocate disunion, 1 but rather "a firm, manly, and
steady resistance against usurpation/' 2 As to what South
Carolina would do in case force were employed by the national
authorities, Hayne was silent ; but he did plead that, if the
South should be "hurried beyond the bounds of a cool and
calculating prudence," something should be pardoned to the
spirit of liberty-J

Hayne's speedi was regarded as exceedingly effective, and,
unless its impression could be counteracted, the prestige of
New England was sure to suffer. Webster could not, of course,
allow the charges made against him to stand without a protest.
As soon as Hayne had concluded, he rose to reply ; but, since
it was then almost dark, he consented to an adjournment, and
the stage was thus properly set for the next day. 1
I On tb.at Monday evening Southerners were elated. Their
champion! had measured up to their hopes. 1 Northerners, we
are told, walked about with " timid anxiousTeyes and depressed
bearing." 3 ?But Webster was little perturbed. When Story
called on him and offered to help in looking up material, the
latter replied: "Give yourself no uneasiness, Judge Story!
I will grind him as fine as a pinch of snufEJJ* 4 After dinner,
he talked the situation over with Edward Everett, who re-
marked that he had never seen Webster "more calm and self-
possessed, or in better spirits." * Everett asked him if he had

1 Speaking of Hayne's attitude, Benton wrote, " Nor have I ever believed that Mr.
Hayne contemplated disunion, m any contingency, as one of its results." (Thirty
Years, I, 138.)

2 According to Hayne's theory, a state deciding against Congress could compel that
body to ask for an amendment to the Constitution, requiring the consent of three-
fourths of the states. Thus one-quarter of the states could make any legislation
invalid. Hayne's plan would, in operation, have made the Union no more closely
knit than the old Confederation of 1781-89.

3 Most accounts of the Great Debate rely to a large extent on the excellent but too
highly colored narrative given by Charles W. March in his book, Daniel Webster and
His Contemporaries. March was present in the Senate and gave vivid descriptions of
the various personages in the audience as well as of the speakers themselves.

4 Harvey, p. 156.

6 March, p. 126. On the authority of one of his friends, March said that Webster,
who had lain down on his sofa for a. rest, was overheard laughing to himself. When
somebody asked him why he was amused, he replied, '* I have been thinking of what
CoL Hayne said to-day about Banquo's ghost ; and I am going to get up and make a
note of it"

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 373

taken notes* "Yes/* answered Webster, taking from his
vest pocket a slip of paper no bigger than the palm of his hand,
"I have it all : that is his speech," 1 Shrewd observers knew
what was coming. To a friend of Hayne's, who was praising
the latter's speech, Senator Iredell, of North Carolina, said,
"He has started the lion, but wait till we hear his roar, and
feel his claws."

Although he had received but little warning, Webster found
time to prepare twelve pages of notes, on loose unnumbered
sheets, answering some of Hayne's specific accusations. 2 :: He
could not have been caught unaware, for he was saturated
with the subject. Ever since the Dartmouth College Case
he had been expounding in the Supreme Court the authority
of the Federal Constitution over individual states, and had
declared that, as a last resort, the national government was
dominant. Webster's arguments in McCulloch v. Maryland
and Gibbons v. Ogden were the genesis of the Reply to Hayne.
He merely adapted to legislative chambers and to a lay audi-
ence what he had said repeatedly in * tjie presence of jurists
and to friends of his own fireside. 3 ; He once told a clergyman,
"The materials of that speech had" been lying in my mind for
eighteen months, though I had never committed my thoughts
to paper^ or ^ranged them in my memory^J^) To an admirer
who &3^raW whether the Reply to Hayne was extemporaneous,
Webster replied, in his oracular manner, "Young man, there
is no such thing as extemporaneous acquisition." Benton
thought that Webster had planned for the encounter long in

1 Harvey, pp. 150-51.

2 These notes are printed in the National Edition, VI, 287-92, from a manuscript,
mainly in Webster's handwriting, in the archives of the New Hampshire Historical
Society. They are difficult to decipher, and do not correspond to the order of thought
in the speech itself. Some of them were not used.

3 John Whipple, a lawyer from Providence, Rhode Island, while reading Webster's
speech, was haunted by the feeling that he had heard it before. When he spoke of this
to Webster, the latter replied, " Don't you remember our conversation during the long
walks we took together last summer at Newport, while in attendance at Story's court ? "

4 Harvey, p. 154. Webster told Harvey in 1846 that he had prepared material
on several of Hayne's topics, and added : "If he had tried to make a speech to fit my
notes, he could not have hit it better. No man is inspired with the occasion. I never
was."

374 DANIEL WEBSTER

advance, but the latter himself at a public dinner in New York 1
said :

Seeing the true grounds of the Constitution thus attacked, I raised
my voice in its favor, I must confess with no preparation or previous
intention. I can hardly say that I embarked in the contest from a
sense of duty. It was an instantaneous impulse of inclination, not
acting against duty, I trust, but hardly waiting for its suggestions. I
felt it to be a contest for the integrity of the Constitution, and I was
ready to enter into it, not thinking, or caring, personally, how it
might come out.

Like a warrior clad in full panoply, Webster, on the morning
of Tuesday, January 26, walked up the steps of the Capitol.
Calling Senator Bell into the robing room, he said, according
to the long-established legend: "You know my constitutional
opinions. There are, among my friends in the Senate, some
who may not concur in them. What shall I do ?" Bell, with
much vigor, urged him to speak out. " I tj.jL critical .mo-
ment," he added, "and it is time, it is high time, that the peo-
ple o this country should know what this Constitution }s"
"Then, "By" "Hie blessing of Heaven," responded Webster
solemnly, "they shall learn, this day, before the sun goes
down, whatX understand it to^be." 2 Senator Clayton, wKo
had dined with him on the previous evening, watched him as
he entered, and, approaching him, asked, "Are you well
charged?" "Seven fingers!" was the reply a reference to
the charge of a muzzle-loading gun, for which four fingers of
powder were generally considered sufficient.

Under such circumstances, then, and before an audience
which was well disposed towards him, 3 Webster rose for what
was to be the noblest effort of his career a speech of which

1 The occasion was a dinner tendered to Webster on March 10, 1831. See National
Edition, II, 61.

2 March, p. 132. Harvey, pp. 150-51.

3 It had been known for some days that a great speech was expected from Webster,
and people had come even from as far as Boston especially for the occasion. Writing
to Button, March 8, 1830, Webster said: "One thing is singular enough, and I can
mention it to you without danger of your ascribing it to any wrong cause. I never
spoke in the presence of an audience so eager and so sympathetic. The public feeling
here was on our side almost universally." (National Edition, XVII, 494.)

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 375

Lodge said, "He never surpassed It, he never equalled it after-
wards/* With due regard to the importance of the occasion,
WeBster had arranged to have his friend^ Joseph Gales, take
down his words in shorthand. Although his meagre notes
lay on the desk by his side, he seldom referred to them, but
went steadily on, his feet firmly set and his only gestures the
up and down motions of his right arm. Characteristically,
he set everybody at ease by calling, in a low, impressive tone,
for a reading of the original resolution. He then spoke for
three hours without a pause. At a fitting point, he stopped,
and asked for an adjournment, and he concluded his speech
on the following afternoon.

The scene in the Senate Chamber during those two days
has been made familiar to most Americans through Healy's
colossal painting, "Webster Replying to Hayne," now hang-
ing over the platform in Faneuil Hall. 1 On this canvas, sixteen
feet by thirty feet in size, appear portraits of more than one
hundred and fifty persons, most of them drawn from life. 2
Webster himself stands erect, his left hand on his desk, staring
fearlessly at Calhoun, with Hayne not far away, in front and
on his right. It has not been possible to identify all the faces,
but among them, besides Mrs. Webster, are those of Mr. and
Mrs. Ticknor, Justice Story, Mr. and Mrs. Paige, Harrison
Gray Otis, John Quincy Adams, Franklin Haven, Colonel
Thomas H. Perkins, Isaac P. Davis, and Samuel Appleton
all Webster's personal friends. Among the Senators are the

1 George P. A. Healy painted this picture in Paris, devoting to 5t most of seven
years. It was exhibited in the United States in 1851, and was finally sold to the City
of Boston for $40,000. In commenting on it, Healy wrote : " Webster was the very
man for the center of a large picture. His friends and enemies, in various attitudes of
attention, of admiration, or of indignation, set him off very well, and in the galleries
I grouped all the prettiest women of the day, with their big bonnets trimmed with
drooping plumes, and their oddly made dresses." (Healy, Reminiscences of a Portrait
Painter.) Healy made several portraits of Webster, the last being at Marshfield in
1848.

2 Healy wrote, " Each head on the vast canvas is a portrait," but he was not careful
about historical accuracy, and did not scruple to introduce the faces of Thomas Couture,
his artist friend, who never visited America ; of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who
was, in 1830, a professor in Bowdoin College, and did not attend the Debate; and of
M. de TocqueviUe, who did not arrive in the United States until 1831.

376 DANIEL WEBSTER

refined and scholarly Forsyth, the self-important Benton and
his colleague, the dogmatic Barton, the thoughtful Wood-
bury, the majestic Clayton, and the austere John Tyler. 1
The artistic merit of the composition has been questioned, and
its accuracy is not above criticism, 2 but it does perpetuate one
of the most dramatic moments in our history.
"Webster's speech fills seventy-three pages in the National
Edition of his works. 3 In the presentation of his cause he
resorted to virtually every oratorical device, including banter,
irony, scorn, sarcasm, and pathos. With -vams&tE^
he would not allow his audience to be bored, -fibT entertained
them by his infinite variety. During two-thirds of his remarks,
filling the first day, he devoted himself to the vindication of
himself and his section against the slurs of Hayne. 4 He had
little difficulty in showing that the policy of New England had
been, on the whole, favorable to the development of the West,
and that there had been no deliberate attempt to retard emi-
gration to the Mississippi Valley. Nor was it hard for him to
demonstrate "when, and how, and why New England had
supported measures favorable to the West." He also proved
that he had advocated internal improvements and had argued
for their constitutionality. Without violating parliamentary
etiquette, he retaliated m^t^ffectively upon his opponent.
With th^o^^x^j^^Km of negro slavery, neither speaker

1 There were, in 1030, forty-eight Senators : and we are told that, during the Debate,
almost no business was transacted in the House.

2 According to a letter from L. H. Machen to W. Slade, January 30, 1830 (Letters
of A. W. Machen^ p. 52), " to accommodate the ladies who thronged the vestibules, not
only the lobbies and passages below were filled with chairs, but even Senators had the
gallantry to yield their seats/* The National Intelligencer said, January 27, " Already
the Ladies, too numerous for the ordinary accommodation, have usurped the places
of the members of the Senate." It was even stated that Webster, when he arose, gave
his seat to a lady, but Healy's painting shows no women on the floor. According to
March, Representative Dixon H. Lewis, of Alabama, who weighed almost five hundred
pounds, was wedged in the crowd behind the Vice President's chair, and finally forced
his way to a place behind one of the windows flanking the presiding officer's desk.
Healy, however, put him on the opposite side of the hall.

8 National Edition, VI, 3-75.

4 Many of Calhoun's friends saw the injudiciousness of Hayne's attack on New
England. Judge Richard Peters wrote Joseph Hopkinson, January 24, " There never
was a course so ruinous as that which is now pursued by the Calhoun party in this
violence towards Webster." (Meigs, 1, 397.)

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 377

had been eager to deal. Webster had mentioned it casually
during his earlier remarks upon the Ordinance of 1787; and
Hayne, sensitive at one or two phrases, had requited him in a
lengthy statement, explaining the Southern attitude. Now
Webster spoke out more boldly, declaring domestic slavery to
be "one of the greatest evils, both moral and political/' but
maintaining that there never had been "a disposition in the
North to interfere with these interests of the South."

As Webster approached the question of the tariff, he as-
sumed an air of confidence, and-did his utmost to repel the
accusations of inconsistency ; but his defense wasr disingenuous
rath^er than convincing. He admitted that he regarded the
tariff as a matter of Jli^dieiicy, *on which he had voted in
accordance with the economic interests of his constituents,
and that his conversion to protectionism had been simply " a
change of position to meet new circumstances.' 5 But this
plea could not eradicate his brilliant free trade speech of 1824,
in which he had argued, on broad philosophical and social
grounds, against the principle of protection.

In the midst of his discussion of the tariff, Webster broke
off, and the Senate adjourned until the' following day. 1 So
far, his speech, although interesting, had not been remarkable,
and he had displayed none of that power of uplifting an audi-
ence for which he was famous. Those who had hoped for

1 The shorthand report of Joseph Gales indicates that Webster closed with a passage
afterwards omitted from the published version. Gales's account for Tuesday ended:
'* Mr. Webster here illustrated his situation by that of his going a journey (say George-
town) with another person, they differing as to the mode of travelling, he preferring
to walk and the other to ride, and he yielding to his companion, suppose a wheel was
to run off the carriage, was he to persist in attempting to go on with three wheels because
he had been opposed to going at all ? v Or was he to lend a hand to repair the defect
that they might at least go safely on ? " No such analogy occurs in the speech as
printed by the National Intelligencer from the manuscript corrected and rewritten by
Webster himself. The point at which Webster broke off occurs in the published version
at the close of the paragraph ending with the sentence, " And there is another sort to
which I lay as little, and that is, a kind of consistency by which persons feel themselves
as much bound to oppose a proposition after it has become a law of the land as before."
(National Edition, VI, 39.) There is nothing whatever to indicate why Webster chose
to omit the illustration of the carriage wheel or why he left off speaking in the very
midst of his discussion of the tariff. For a full and interesting discussion of this prob-
lem see a letter by C. W. Lewis in the Boston Evening Transcript, July 13, 1882.

378 DANIEL WEBSTER

passages of highly emotional oratory had been decidedly dis-
appointed.

At noon, on January 27, before a throng hushed with ex-
pectancy, Webster resumed his consideration of the tariff.
Summing up his position in a few crisp sentences, he turned
to the defense of New England Federalism. He had to move
discreetly and cautiously, for he knew how vulnerable he was.
While acknowledging that individuals had showed disunionist
tendencies, he denied that the Federalists as a group, even
in the fury of party antagonism, had advocated nullification, 1
and he suggested that disloyal utterances could be assembled
from south of the Potomac as well as from east of the Hudson.
He wisely did not attempt to justify the Hartford Convention,
contenting himself by granting that, if that gathering had come
together for "breaking up the Union," it was "obnoxious to
censure." This section of the speech was not impressive and
showed signs of heavy labor.

But, whatever its deficiencies, Webster, with intuitive
psychology, offset them by the glorious paragraphs which
followed. He had been dealing with prosaic facts. Now, as if
set free from shackles, he turned to sentiment, and uttered
the still remembered words, "Mr. President, I shall enter on no
encomium upon Massachusetts; she needs none," As he
continued, he glanced towards a little knot of Bay State men
in a corner of the gallery, as if seeking their support; and,
while they listened, they "shed tears like girls." 2 March
has left a description probably too highly colored of the
orator as he stood "swaying his right arm, like a huge tilt-
hammer, up and down, his swarthy countenance lighted up
with excitement . . . like Vulcan in his armory forging
thoughts for the gods." 3 Emerson spoke of him as being in
a "galvanized state," and he certainly seemed like a man

1 Webster chose to leave unmentioned the Faneuil Hall Resolutions of March 30,
1 8 n, which declared the Act of March a, 1811, "ex post facto, and void, unjust and
tyrannical," and which were as strongly against the Federal Government as any of the
resolves of South Carolina.

2 March, p. 142. Ly/m,an, I, 59.

3 March, p. 144; quoted also in Lyman, I, 61.

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 379

inspired. Those who had come hoping for " purple patches " had
what they wanted in Webster's eulogy of his Commonwealth.

As if relieved by what seemed a spontaneous outburst, Web-
ster now devoted himself with impressive seriousness to an
explanation of the nature of the Federal Union. He first out-
lined what he conceived to be the "South Carolina doctrine"
that state legislatures had, under the Constitution, a right
to interfere whenever, in their judgment, the Federal Govern-
ment transcended its constitutional limits, and that any state
could not only lawfully decide for itself whether a given act of
the Federal Government was illegal, but could also, "by its
own sovereign authority, annul an act of the general govern-
ment which it deems plainly and palpably unconstitutional."
In answer, Webster declared that the right of a state to annul
an act of Congress could not be upheld except "upon the
ground of revolution." The issue was drawn much more
sharply than is usual in such public controversies, and neither
contestant sought to evade it.

Webster's legalistic mind led him to a peculiar and too literal
interpretation of the language of the^ Constitution. He con-
tended that it was " the creature of the people," not of the state
legislatures; that its Preamble, opening, "We, the people of
the United States," indicated that it was not established by
each of the states severally ; but that the people, by ratifying
the Constitution, had created a new governmental unit, with
certain specified and restricted powers, superior in various
respects to the state governments. His conception is best
summarized in his own words :

I hold it to be a popular government, erected by the people; those
who administer it, responsible to the people ; and itself capable of
being amended and modified, just as the people may choose it should
be. It is as popular, just as truly emanating from the people, as the
State Governments. It is created for one purpose ; the State govern-
ments for another. It has its own powers ; they have theirs.

Webster did not deny that the people have the right of
revolution against an oppressive or intolerable overlord ; nor

380 DANIEL WEBSTER

did he gainsay the privilege of any one citizen, or group of
citizens, to assert that a law is unconstitutional. The real
question was, "Whose prerogative is it to decide on the con-
stitutionality or unconstitutional! ty of the laws ?" Webster's
answer and with his record he could have made no other
was that the Constitution is supreme and that the final appeal
lies with the judicial branch of the Federal Government. He
believed in the ultimate authority of that Supreme Court
before which he had so often argued and which had so often
decided in his favor.

To illustrate the proper procedure in disputed cases, Webster
showed that New England, feeling herself maltreated by the
Embargo, had declared it to be unconstitutional and had,
through memorials, vigorously protested to Congress. But,
when the United States District Court pronounced this law
constitutional, New England had acquiesced. For purposes
of dramatic contrast, he sketched a picture of what would
happen if South Carolina, convinced of the unconstitutionality
of the protective tariff, should refuse to recognize the ruling
of the Supreme Court and should instead resist the collection
of customs duties. This, said Webster, would be treason;
and, if South Carolina persisted, the result would be civil war.

It has been forcefully and correctly maintained that Web-
ster's argument from history is untenable. 1 He was certainly
wrong in his interpretation of the words "We, the people,"
and, although his view strengthened our government politically,
it had no foundation in fact. Separate states, like New
Hampshire and South Carolina, undoubtedly felt, when they
voted to form the Union, that they were entering an improved
confederacy, from which, if dissatisfied, they could withdraw.
The new government was primarily an agreement for mutual
convenience and benefit, in which each state retained its auton-
omy. Utterances of public men during the first quarter-
century of the republic assumed that secession was within

1 Warren, The Making of the Constitution, pp. 394-95. In a letter to the author,
Warren makes the plausible suggestion that Webster's ideas were derived mainly from
Judge Joseph Story, who developed this theory in his Commentaries.

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 381

the province of any state government. The facts indicate that
the Constitution was by many tacitly regarded as a compact
between the states; that the advisability of secession was
more than once considered, not only by Virginia and Kentucky,
but by Connecticut and Massachusetts; and that nothing
but expediency prevented the breaking up of the United States
into smaller units.

Gradually, however, a revised conception of the Federal
Union had become popular. The admission of new states;
the acquisition of Louisiana ; the sense of harmony developed
during the struggles with France and Great Britain ; the growth
of a healthy national self-consciousness all these had con-
tributed to weld the sections together. But more important
than any of these had been the influence of Chief Justice John
Marshall, aided by Joseph Story and Daniel Webster, in em-
phasizing the authority of the Constitution and the Supreme
Court. In 1830, sensible Americans were less concerned with
the question, "What did the framers of the Constitution
intend?" than "with the more pertinent query, "What is best
for the United States to-day ?" It was easy to demonstrate
that the compact theory of the government held by Hayne,
no matter how logical it might be, would, if persisted in, undo
the progress of forty years. It was for this reason that the
splendid peroration beginning, "I have not allowed myself,
sir, to look beyond the Union, to see what might be hidden in
the dark recess behind," is the most convincing passage in
Webster's speech. His appeal to the sentiment of Union
met with a spontaneous response from patriotic hearts. But
it was its emotional quality, not its reasoning, which made it
of historic significance. Whatever the Constitution makers
had in their minds, it was Webster's conception of the govern-
ment which was to prevail. Any other theory, no matter how
well supported by precedent, would have been fatal.

As he drew to a climax, Webster's rich voice deepened, and
his manner became more solemn. After his concluding words,
"Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable!"
his audience sat as if held by some mesmeric witchery. Then

382 DANIEL WEBSTER

the gavel of John C Calhoun broke the spell. The Senate
resumed its normal routine, and the guests walked out into the
gusty winter afternoon, conscious that they had been present
at a dramatic moment in American history.

When quiet had been restored, Hayne made a brief reply,
adhering closely to the constitutional question ; and Webster,
in his turn, entered upon a short rebuttal. 1 Nothing novel,
however, was brought out. Hayne still regarded the Con-
stitution as a "compact between the states." Webster once
more described it as " a popular government, founded in popu-
lar election, directly responsible to the people themselves"
"not a confederacy, not a league, not a compact between the
States, but a Constitution." Of this reply, Edward Everett
said that "for condensation, precision, and force" it was a
specimen of parliamentary logic never surpassed.

In the evening, at a fashionable levee in the White House,
Hayne and Webster were both present, attracting far more
attention than "Old Hickory" himself. With characteristic
courtesy, Hayne approached his rival to extend his congratula-
tions. "How are you this evening, Colonel Hayne?" asked
Webster, extending his hand. "None the better for you, sir,"
was the gallant response. 2 On the next morning, Webster was
back in the Supreme Court Chamber, delivering his argument
in Bell v. Cunningham, as if his legal career had been only
temporarily interrupted.

The immediate effect of Webster's speech upon his listeners
was, of course, evident, 3 but it took some time for his words

1 Hayne's remarks filled nineteen pages of the Congressional Debates ; Webster's
only three.

2 March, p. 151.

3 John Quincy Adams described the speech as " a remarkable instance of readiness
in debate, a reply of at least four hours to a speech of equal length. It demolishes
the whole fabric of Hayne's speech, so that it leaves scarcely the wreck to be seen."
(Memoirs, VIII, 193.) Another listener wrote: " At the close of his speech, but one
sentiment of unmixed admiration pervaded the most numerous assemblage I had ever
witnessed at any debate in the Senate. ... A gentleman of great natural endowments,
whose opinions are entitled to great respect as a scholar and a Christian, assured me
that he had formed no just conception, until he heard Mr. Webster, of the capacity
of the human mind." (Letters of A. W. Machen, p. 55.) A Virginian, hearing the
speech, felt as " if looking at a mammoth treading his native canebrake, and, without
apparent consciousness, crushing obstacles which nature had never designed as impedi-
ments to him." (Parker, p. 43.)

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 383

to reach the general public. Mrs. Joseph Gales> using her
husband's very neat stenographic notes, prepared a transcript
in longhand for Webster, who revised it with great care and
with so many alterations that the published form was very
different from that which he had spoken. 1 The Reply was
first printed in the National Intelligencer in three installments,
on February 23, 25, and 27. It was not published in Phila-
delphia until February 26 and in Boston until February 27
almost exactly a month after its delivery. Soon it was being
circulated everywhere. At the office of the National Intelli-
gencer alone, forty thousand copies had been sent out before
the close of May. Never before had a Congressional speech
been in such great demand.

Meanwhile Webster, unwilling that posterity should receive
a distorted or biased account of what had happened, pre-
pared a narrative of the entire proceedings, which was later fol-
lowed, with only slight modifications, by Edward Everett in
his Memoir?

In Boston and in Charleston, the debate was the big news of
the day, and citizens awaited impatiently the arrival of com-
plete reports. 3 It was at first regarded merely as a phase of

1 In the Boston Public Library is a bound volume including the original shorthand
report made by Gales, in double column on folio sheets ; the speech as transcribed by
Mrs. Gales, on one hundred folio pages ; Webster's revised draft of eighty-five pages,
mostly in his own handwriting, with many changes and interlineations ; and various
notes and newspaper clippings. This volume was purchased, April 26, 1877, from
Mrs. Gales by Robert C. Winthrop, representing a group of Boston citizens, and
presented by him to the Public Library. A detailed comparison between Mrs. Gale's
version and that finally perfected by Webster shows that the latter, in preparing the
speech for the press, omitted many sentences, added others, and modified his phraseology
so that it was very different from the original. The concluding sentence, as taken down
by Gales, was as follows : " I hope to see spread all over it, blazoned in letters of light,
and proudly floating over land and sea, that other sentiment, dear to my heart, Union
and Liberty, now and forever, one and inseparable.' " Even when allowance is made
for the inevitable inaccuracies of the stenographer, it is obvious that the speech, in its
generally accepted phrasing, is not that which was delivered on the floor of the Senate.
See the letter of C. W. Lewis, Boston Evening Transcript, July 13, 1882.

2 For this manuscript, now in the Congressional Library, see National Edition, VI,
293 ff.

8 A correspondent of the Columbian Centind y in a letter printed on January 30, 1830,
said : " The debate in the Senate exceeds in interest every thing of the kind I have
heard. ... I hazard nothing in saying that Mr. W. will fully vindicate the East,
throw Mr. H. on his back. Messrs. H. and B. combined are but a handful for him,
a bonne bouche that he can take on any time after dinner." On March 10, the same
paper said, " The moral effect of the late speeches of Mr. Webster will probably be

384 DANIEL WEBSTER

the straggle between Federalists and Democrats, and, even
in New England, strong groups of Democrats openly applauded
Hayne ; l while the Federalists of Charleston, guided by the
Courier, thought Webster to be the victor and toasted him as a
"true patriot." 2 It took some weeks for his indictment of
nullification to be fully understood.

By the majority of Northerners, however, it was felt that
Webster had been valiant for truth. The odds at first seemed
much against him, and it was feared that he might be not only
outnumbered but outclassed. Peter Harvey described the
anxiety of old Captain Thomas at Marshfield regarding the
result. After perusing Hayne's second brilliant speech, the
Captain retired to his bed, convinced that its arguments were
irrefutable. When Webster's Reply appeared as an "extra"
in the Centmel, he dreaded to glance at it. Finally the other
members of the household placed the newspaper and a candle
in his chamber and retreated to the glow of the fire. Suddenly
they were aroused by a cry from the bedroom and, rushing up,
found the elderly gentleman sitting on the edge of his couch,
the Centinel in one hand and the candle in the other, shouting,
"Bring me my boots!" His confidence in his hero's prowess
was restored. 3

The Reply to Hayne made Webster one of the three or four
leading statesmen of the nation. Hundreds of congratulatory
letters piled up on his desk. Monroe and Madison and Clay
wrote praising him for his patriotism. Ralph Waldo Emerson
entered in his Diary for March 3, "Read with admiration and
delight Mr. Webster's noble speech in answer to Hayne," and

greater and more salutary than anything of the kind since the days of the Revolution."
In Charleston, on the other hand, the Mercury denounced Webster bitterly, charging
that he had been a member of the Hartford Convention and declaring that he had been
the aggressor. Its correspondent wrote, February 4, 1830, *' I am anxious that in
Carolina at least it should be well understood that this personal contest was commenced
by Webster."

1 The Democratic members of the Maine Legislature ordered the publication and
distribution of 2000 copies of Hayne's Speech in pamphlet form. The New Hampshire
Patriot^ Isaac Hill's organ, was almost the only Northern journal not to print Webster's
Speech in full. (Bowers, Party Batiks of the Jackson Period, pp. 98-99.)

2 Jervey, p. 269.

8 Harvey, p. 269 ff.

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 385

he wrote to Carlyle four years later that it was " a speech which
the Americans have never done praising." To meet a demand,
a volume of his speeches, prepared by his nephew. Professor
Haddock, was published, with his consent, within a year. 1
Early in 1831, a short biography, written by the versatile
Samuel L. Knapp, appeared in Boston and had a considerable
sale. 2 After 1830, the hope of becoming President was con-
stantly in the back of Webster's mind. 3

Although Hayne and Webster had ended their skirmish, the
battle over Footers Resolution continued through the winter
and early spring, offering an opportunity for one Senator after
another to express his views on a variety of controversial
subjects. Webster himself was not often in the Senate Cham-
ber, 4 but he did rise on January 28 to protest against an er-
roneous report in the United States Telegraph edited by
Duff Green, printer to the Senate of what he had said on
the preceding day. 5 Most of the speeches are now forgotten,
but one delivered by Edward Livingston was historically more

1 Charles Brickett Haddock (1796-1861), son of Webster's sister, Abigail, was Ms
favorite nephew, over whose education he watched with much care. After graduating
from Dartmouth in 1816 with high honors. Haddock returned to Hanover as Professor
of Rhetoric (1819-38), and as Professor of Intellectual Philosophy (1826-51). He was
United States charge" d'affaires in Portugal from 1850 to 1855. He was named as
trustee of Ezekiel Webster's estate, and the latter's children were his wards. (National
Edition, XVII, 485-86.) Regarding the volume of speeches, Webster wrote to
Haddock: " The book, I have seen. It is well enough except the awful face, which
seems to be placed in the front of the volume, like a scarecrow in a cornfield, to frighten
off all intruders." (Ibid., p. 508-9.)

2 This book, published by Stimpson and Clapp, was a neat volume of 234 pages,
bound in boards. Knapp, a graduate of Dartmouth in the class of 1 804, had been a
lawyer and journalist, and had written several biographies. Webster assisted Knapp
in the project by supplying him with reminiscences.

3 McMaster has well said, in speaking of Webster, " He became at once a truly
national figure, saw the Presidency almost within his grasp, and from that day forth
was animated by a ceaseless longing to become one of the temporary rulers of his
country." (McMaster, Webster, p. 189.)

4 On February 20, the Centind's Washington correspondent wrote: " Mr. Webster
has been engaged in the Supreme Court ever since he delivered his admirable speech ;
he is prepared to go into the Senate at a moment's warning to vote in case of emergency.
What with his efforts in the Senate and his unwearied labor in Court, he looks almost
overcome with mental fatigue; for the last four weeks his labor has been that of
Hercules."

5 Green had quoted Webster erroneously as having said that " the National Govern-
ment was established by the people, who had imparted to it unlimited powers over the
States and the Constitution." (March, pp. 161-62.)

386 DANIEL WEBSTER

accurate than Webster's, and was a powerful repudiation by a
Southern Senator of the nullification doctrine. 1 Among the
supporters of Hayne were Rowan, of Kentucky,, Woodbury,
of New Hampshire, Smith, of South Carolina, and Grundy,
of Tennessee; while nationalism was upheld by Barton, of
Missouri, Clayton, of Delaware, Johnston, of Louisiana, and
Robbins, of Rhode Island, Each of these men spoke for parts
at least of two days. Finally, on May 21, Ben ton and Hayne
said a few concluding words; and then, on motion of Bell,
Footers Resolution was laid on the table. No legislation on
the subject had been achieved, but Webster's theory of the
Union had been sinking into the consciousness of thoughtful
Americans, including the impulsive, dynamic figure who then
occupied the White House and on whose support Calhoun and
Hayne had probably relied.

After Hayne's first speech, Jackson had sent him a note of
congratulation, but without mentioning the matter of State
rights. When his "scout," Major Lewis, rushed from the
Capitol to Lafayette Square to announce that Webster had
overwhelmed Hayne, the President declared that he had ex-
pected that outcome. Jackson, whose direct mind swept aside
the subtleties of Calhoun and Hayne, saw only one fact,
that the Union was in danger, and prepared himself for
action. Meanwhile certain astute Democrats had arranged
for a subscription dinner, at Brown's Hotel, on April 13, the
birthday of Thomas Jefferson, and had agreed in advance
upon a series of toasts, nearly all bearing on the relationship
of the individual states to the Federal Government. One
was drunk to the Kentucky Resolutions of 1798 ; another to
the Virginia Resolutions, which were carefully elucidated by
Senator Barbour; and finally the grim-faced President, who
had not betrayed what he was thinking, rose and, amid pro-
found silence, read the significant words, "Our Federal Union :
It must be preserved." 2 The shock to the conspirators, who

1 See Bancroft, pp. 70-71. Livingston's speech, witty and cleverly phrased, was
especially effective in overthrowing the theory that a state could veto an act of Congress
which had been upheld by the Supreme Court.

2 For an excellent description of this intensely dramatic occasion, see Bowers, Jackson

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 387

had hoped to force Jackson openly into their ranks, was stupen-
dous. The toast was drunk standing, while "Old Hickory"
remained erect and inscrutable, completely master of the
situation. Calhoun, obviously discomfited, had risen with
the others, and, when they were seated, did his best to counter-
act the President's influence by proposing as a toast, "The
Union : next to our liberty, the most dear," following it in a
few seconds with, "May we all remember that it can only be
preserved by respecting the rights of the States and distrib-
uting equally the benefits and burdens of the Union."

But the damage was done. Many years later, when Van
Buren's Autobiography saw the light, it was revealed that he
had talked the whole situation over with the President, and that
the two schemers had deliberately planned the sensational
climax to the evening's proceedings. 1 As the assemblage
slowly dwindled away after the fiasco, the artful Van Buren
knew that his enemies were scattered. Jackson's utterance
was the prelude to his open break with Calhoun in the follow-
ing year. Webster, who was soon informed of what had oc-
curred, wrote to Mason : "The thing did not go off very well.
Many, very many of the party, found themselves taken in." 2
With Jackson as his ally, Webster was secure.

It was apparent that he had the support of the people. He
declined an invitation to a public dinner in Baltimore, 3 and
wrote that he preferred not to be tendered a banquet or a ball
in Boston. 4 But the Massachusetts General Court passed
resolutions of approval ; Amos Lawrence, a Boston merchant,
sent him in the autumn a service plate, as a testimony of his
personal gratitude ; 5 and a group of his friends joined in present-

Period, pp. 101-3. For a discussion of the exact phrasing of the toast, see Van Buren,
Autobiography , pp. 414-17, and Bassett, Andrew Jackson, II, 255. The National
Intelligencer for April 20, 1830, gives it as " Our Federal Union : // must be -preserved"
There is a full contemporary account of the episode in the "United States Telegraph for
April 17.

*-Van Buren, Autobiography, pp. 414-15. At the meeting at which the plot was
determined upon, Major Donelson was also present.

2 Webster to Mason, April 14, 1830 (National Edition, XVI, ooi).

8 National Intelligencer, June 5, 1830.

4 National Edition, XVII, 502-3.

6 Lawrence to Webster, October 23, 1830 (Ibid., p. 507).

388 DANIEL WEBSTER

ing him with a chest of silver, appropriately engraved. By this
time, he was accustomed to the homage which is the inevitable
accompaniment of greatness. At a public dinner in New York,
on March 10, 1831, with Chancellor Kent presiding, Webster
expressed satisfaction that " the doctrines of nullification have
received a severe and stern rebuke from public opinion." l

The controversy, however, had not as yet been adjusted.
Ever since the passage of the Tariff of 1828, nullification had
been threatened by South Carolina extremists. Jackson's
toast at the Jefferson Dinner temporarily halted the move-
ment, but soon Calhoun's quarrel with the President drove the
former into a position where he was glad of an issue. During
the summer of 1831, he published an Address to the People of
South Carolina, in which he vigorously reiterated his concep-
tion of the relationship between the states and the nation.
Calhoun, once the aggressive nationalistic leader, had now
been forced by circumstances into a viewpoint which was
wholly sectional.

Because of the shrinking of the national debt, it seemed
advisable, during the session of 1831-32, to take steps towards
the reduction of the revenue rather than to permit a treasury
surplus to accumulate. In response to a suggestion from Jack-
son, Congress, after a prolonged debate in which Webster took
little part, passed, in July 1832, a measure by which the revenue
was to be lowered but the protective principle still preserved.
South Carolina steadily opposed this bill, and Calhoun released
his Fort Hill Letter? dated August 28, 1832, to Governor James
Hamilton of that state, in which he once more defended the
rights of his section.

Under the guidance of Calhoun, South Carolina proceeded
to turn theories into actions. A State Convention, called on

1 National Edition, II, 43-65. In this address, Webster also dwelt optimistically on
the influence of popular government and education in promoting civilization.

2 Webster considered Calhoun's letter as " far the ablest and most plausible, and
therefore the most dangerous vindication of that particular form of revolution, which
has yet appeared," and planned to answer Calhoun in a letter addressed to Chancellor
Kent. Kent readily granted his permission, but Webster never carried through his
plan.

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 389

November 19, at Columbia, passed an Ordinance of Nullifica-
tion, declaring that the tariff measures of 1829 and 1832 were
"null, void, and no law" and that the people would "not
submit to the application of force on the part of the federal
government to reduce this state to obedience." The Legisla-
ture, assembling shortly afterwards, took steps to carry out
this Ordinance. Calhoun was elected United States Senator/
and Hayne was chosen as Governor. A respectable minority
of South Carolina Unionists was ignored, and medals were
struck bearing the legend, "John C. Calhoun, First President
of the Southern Confederacy." The Palmetto State was
mustering its strongest men for defiance of Andrew Jackson.

Meanwhile, at a National Republican Convention held on
October 12, at Worcester, Webster dwelt on current political
issues, criticizing the President for his sins of omission and
commission. 2 While condemning nullification, Webster re-
jected the suggestion that military force be employed to bring
South Carolina to terms. He was indeed in an embarrassing
position. As a National Republican, he must stand by Henry
Clay, then the candidate of that party for the Presidency;
but, deep in Webster's heart, there must have been the con-
viction that "Old Hickory," with all his defects, was the man
to be relied upon in a crisis.

What Jackson proposed to do was not long left in doubt.
After his triumphant election in November, he made prepara-
tions in case South Carolina resisted the operation of the tariff,
and, on December 10, after receiving the news of the Ordinance
of Nullification, he issued a proclamation, written mainly by
Secretary of State Livingston, in which, after denying the right
of any state to nullify a federal law, he asserted without quali-
fication his intention of suppressing any resistance to national
authority by arms, if necessary. Jackson's proclamation,
the longest ever issued by a President, had a clarion ring in
the words, "To say that any state may at pleasure recede from

1 Calhoun was elected Senator on December 10, but did not resign as Vice President
until December 28. He sent his resignation to the Secretary of State, Edward Living-
ston, not knowing to what authority it should be presented.

2 National Edition, II, 87 ff.

390 DANIEL WEBSTER

the Union, is to say that the United States are not a nation."
Livingston's common sense was revealed by the sentence,
"The Constitution of the United States forms a government,
not a league; and whether it be formed by compact between
the states or in any other manner, its character is the same."
Everybody who knew Andrew Jackson was sure that he
meant precisely what he said. The Ordinance of Nullifica-
tion was to take effect on February I, 1833, and the critical
moment could not be long delayed.

When Jackson's Proclamation reached Boston, Webster
was still in that city, having been kept by private business from
setting out for Washington. 1 A meeting was at once held, on
December 17, in Faneuil Hall, with Mayor Charles Wells
presiding. It was a Monday morning, and bankers and
tradespeople in the downtown district abandoned their offices
to assemble in this historic room and listen to the venerable
Harrison Gray Otis, Attorney-General James T. Austin,
Colonel Thomas H. Perkins, and Daniel Webster, the last of
whom declared that nullification had now become "secession
by force," equivalent to civil war, and that he should give the
President his "entire and cordial support" 2

On his way south a day or two later, Webster met Clay in
Philadelphia, 3 and learned that the latter, in his r61e of the

1 Charles W. March, in his Daniel Webster and His Contemporaries, pp. 187-88 is
responsible for the legend that Webster first heard of Jackson's Proclamation while he
was on his way to Washington, from a passing traveler in New Jersey, who told him
that the President had just issued a Proclamation against nullification " taken altogether
from Webster's speech at Worcester." The same story is used in Curtis, I, 434, al-
though the author does not mention the Worcester speech, and, in a variant form, in
Poore, 1, 139-40, to say nothing of more recent biographies of Webster, which repeat it
without investigation. The facts prove that Webster had seen the Proclamation before
leaving Boston, and that March's tale is merely another Webster myth.

2 According to the reminiscences of Dr. Thomas Ruggles Pincheon, of New Haven,
who was in 1832 a student at the Boston Latin School and attended this meeting,
Webster wore " black trousers, buff vest, blue coat with gilt buttons, buttoned from
the waist up pretty high," and his gestures " were numerous, but vertical, up and
down, not flowing from side to side." The day was very wet and dark. For Pincheon's
letter to Edward Everett Hale, see National Edition, XIII, 43. Writing seventy years
later, Pincheon not unnaturally confused the months and placed Webster's speech in
March instead of September.

3 Curtis, I, 434. Clay was in Philadelphia on December 17, following a business
trip to NeW York, and probably remained there to meet Webster in conference.

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 391

" Great Compromiser/* was preparing a plan for appeasing
South Carolina by making concessions on the tariff. Shortly
after he reached the capital, a bill providing for the gradual
lowering of duties was introduced in the House by Verplanck,
of New York, and, when it failed. Clay himself, on February
12, proposed a compromise measure which would, over a period
of ten years, gradually reduce all duties of over ao per cent and
would place some articles immediately on the free list. As a
virtual abandonment of the principle of protection, the measure
was distasteful to Webster, who also felt that it was not a time
for yielding to the threats of a state. Meanwhile, Jackson
had asked Congress for authority to employ the military power
in executing the revenue laws; and a Special Committee in-
troduced, on January 21, what was commonly called the "Force
Bill." South Carolinians watched these preparations with
some alarm, and a public meeting in Charleston voted to sus-
pend the Ordinance of Nullification until after the adjourn-
ment of Congress.

Calhoun, who seemed to his enemies like a defiant Catiline,
took his oath as Senator on January 4, 1 833, in a voice which was
"serious and solemn." He was aware that he was in serious
danger of arrest for treason. His anxiety showed itself in his
feverish excitement and in the agitation of his manner when,
after fifteen years of absence from legislative deliberations, he
once more resumed public speaking. Webster also had been
late in reporting, and, after his arrival in late December, had
spent most of his time before the Supreme Court. The course
which he would follow with regard to South Carolina was still a
mystery, and the New York Journal of Commerce, in printing the
political affiliations of the Senators, said : "Mr. Webster we do
not mark at all. He belongs to no party." He himself, how-
ever, had already drafted a series of eight "Principles" which
were to govern his conduct, the first of which was " to sustain the
administration in executing the laws" and the second "not to
give up, or compromise, the principle of protection." * Living-

1 For the full text of these " Principles," preserved in Webster's handwriting, see
National Edition, XV, 104-5.

392 DANIEL WEBSTER

ston, as an emissary of the administration, called at his house,
asked for Webster's help, and left with the assurance that he
could be relied upon. When Webster warned Clay that the
Compromise Tariff would be "yielding great principles to
faction," the former was dropped from Clay's councils, and
later Calhoun and Clay were obviously working together.
Soon it appeared as if an alliance between Jackson and Webster
were imminent, and such a Democratic organ as the Boston Post
was praising the latter for his conversion to administration
policies.

On the day after the introduction of the "Force Bill," Cal-
houn proposed certain resolutions justifying nullification. 1
Webster, hitherto passive, was now stirred to action, and, on
January 28, rose to deny Calhoun's allegations that the "Force
Bill" created a dictator and established a military despotism
and to announce that he planned, "at a proper time, to try
conclusions with the gentleman on this point." On February
8, Webster entered the debate, pointing out that the dispute
was between the Executive and his enemies, ridiculing the
Democrats for opposing their own President, and adding that,
for himself, "he was not at liberty to look on and be silent, while
dangers threatened the Union, which existing laws were not
competent, in his judgment, to avert." 2 When Clay, four
days later, submitted the "Compromise Tariff," Webster an-
nounced himself as opposed to it, 3 Thus no one in Congress
could have been in any doubt as to what course Webster in-
tended to pursue. He was prepared to fight Calhoun as he
had already fought Hayne.

Webster, with his customary thoroughness, had prepared
an elaborate argument, but held back, hoping that Calhoun
would take the offensive. 4 The latter, impatient of delay,

1 These resolutions are printed in the National Edition, VI, 180-81.
* md.> XI V, 1 52-55-

3 Ibid., pp, 156-59.

4 Webster was inclined to underrate Calhoun. On February 9, he wrote Hopkinson,
" He cannot, I am fully persuaded, make a coherent, able, argumentative speech " ;
and, on the evening following the first section of Calhoun's speech, he again wrote
Hopkinson : ** As a Constitutional argument, it is too inconsiderable for an answer,
truly there is nothing in it. Mr. Calhoun may say, ' Non sum qualis eram. * "

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 393

finally rose on February 15, and, over two days, made the most
ingenious justification of nullification ever made in the United
States. He was an object of "fearful curiosity" a spectral
figure, with his hair, "not reposing on his head, but starting
from it, like the Gorgon's," his inquisitive, penetrating eyes,
his thin lips, and his pale, intellectual countenance. As an
orator, he disappointed his friends, for he was hoarse, even
indistinct, in his utterance; but his argument was carefully
reasoned and much superior to that of Hayne. 1 With threaten-
ing tones, he announced that, should the bill pass and an
attempt be made to enforce it, "it will be resisted at every
hazard, even that of death itself." 2

Calhoun's theory differed only in minor details from that of
Hayne. His method of reasoning was speculative, not practical,
and very unlike Webster's reliance on history and law. Cal-
houn's speech has been called "metaphysical," and the adjec-
tive is not inapplicable. His deductions were sound, but his
premises were untenable.

On that morning the White House carriage had called at
Webster's lodgings, probably with a message from the Presi-
dent; and Webster rode to the Capitol in Andrew Jackson's
equipage. The incident was ironic, but also symbolic. When
Calhoun sat down, shortly after one o'clock, Webster secured
the floor and began the speech which he entitled "The Constitu-
tion not a Compact between Sovereign States," covering fifty-
six pages in the National Edition. 3 After he had spoken for
an hour, the Senate declared a recess until five o'clock. In the
interval on that Saturday afternoon, the news that Webster

1 March said, " In his tempestuous eloquence, he tore to pieces the arguments of his
opponents, as a hurricane rends the sails."

2 The scene was enlivened by a ludicrous incident. In the midst of Calhoun's
tirade, a man in the gallery shouted, " Mr. President," and, in the ensuing silence,
continued, " Mr. President, something must be done, or I shall be squeezed to death ! "
He was hustled out by the guards, while the audience could not help smiling. But
Calhoun, who had no sense of humor, remained with his features rigid and grave, and,
after the interruption, continued as if nothing unusual had occurred. (March, p. 234.)

3 For the full text of this speech, see National Edition, VI, 181-238. There is an
excellent description of the Calhoun-Webster debate in March's Daniel Webster and
His Contemporaries, Chap. XI.

394 DANIEL WEBSTER

was up spread around Washington, and, when the Senate
reassembled, he faced one of those brilliant audiences which
invariably stirred him to exert all his reserve powers. Justices
of the Supreme Court, cabinet members, Representatives
all were there, including Major William B. Lewis, the "great
father of wire-pullers," who was unofficial newsmonger to
Andrew Jackson. For three hours more Webster went on,
holding the attention of his auditors even when his argument
was abstruse and technical. He closed with the words :

I shall exert every faculty I possess in aiding to prevent the Con-
stitution from being nullified, destroyed, or impaired; and even
should I see it fall, I will still, with a voice feeble, perhaps, but earnest
as ever issued from human lips, and with fidelity and zeal which
nothing shall extinguish, call on the PEOPLE to come to its rescue.

As he finished at eight o'clock, the galleries burst spontane-
ously into applause an unusual demonstration in the Senate.
The presiding officer ordered them to be cleared, and, when
order had been restored, the Chamber adjourned, and Major
Lewis went back to explain to the old man in the White House
how Webster had come to the defense of the administration.

Webster's Reply to Calhoun lacked the picturesqueness, the
variety, and the rhetorical fervor of the Reply to Hayne.
Calhoun had undertaken, by the exercise of logic, to demon-
strate that the Constitution was a compact among the separate
states, and that each state had a legal right to judge for itself
of any violation of the Constitution by Congress, and, when
offended, to choose its own method of redress. Webster met
him squarely by asserting that the makers of the Constitution
had no such theory in their minds. After dealing with the
historical aspect of the matter, Webster contended that Cal-
houn's doctrine, if consistently followed out, would make the
Union no better than the Confederacy which had preceded
it, and would send the republic down to ruin. Calhoun's
reasoning, in so far as it relied upon history, had been clever,
subtle, and even plausible. But it fell to pieces under the
discomposing blows of Webster's common sense. He asked,

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 395

"What will happen when nullification actually takes place?"
and his hearers, in their hearts, answered, "The Federal Gov-
ernment must either crush it out or perish*" Fundamentally
a realist, Webster saw clearly what would happen if Calhoun
and his adherents were not checked. He had touched on the
emotional phase of the dispute in his Reply to Hayne. Now
he made an appeal to the intelligence of the Senate and of the
constituency which it represented. It was generally conceded
that he had won another triumph. 1

Although the debate still lingered, nothing new was added
to the evidence. Calhoun, after a week of meditation, made a
sharp response ; and Webster answered him a few days later,
prefacing his remarks with a tactful reference to the friendly
private relations between himself and his rival. As he closed,
Webster summed up the issues by saying, "According to the
gentleman's view of the matter, the Constitution is a league ;
according to mine, it is a regular popular government," 2
Feeling was running very high. John Quincy Adams wrote
on Washington's Birthday that he doubted the continuance of
"this federative Union" for five years. 3 On the floor of the
Senate, Poindexter, of Mississippi, made a violent attack on
Webster for his record during the War of 1812, and, when
Webster scornfully declined to take any notice of him, his
assailant declared that he "felt the most perfect contempt for
the Senator from Massachusetts." 4 Not until the last hour
of the session was a reconciliation effected through the media-
tion of Henry Clay.

Two days before Webster's second speech, the Senate had
passed the "Force Bill." Before the roll call, all those opposed
to the measure had filed out of the Senate Chamber except the
courageous John Tyler, whose vote was the only one recorded

1 Jackson wrote to Poinsett, February 17 ; " Mr. Webster replied to Mr. Calhoun
yesterday, and, it is said, demolished him. It is believed by more than one that Mr.
Calhoun is in a state of dementation, his speech was a perfect failure; and Mr.
Webster handled him as a child." (Stille, Life of Poinsett.)

2 This speech, printed in National Edition, XIV, 166-71, was Webster's last
important utterance of the session.

3 Adams, VIII, 479.

4 Van Buren, p. 685.

396 DANIEL WEBSTER

in the negative. The Compromise Tariff was then taken up
and passed, on March i, by a vote of 29 to 16, Webster voting,
as he had declared he would do, with the opposition. Both
acts then passed the Lower House and were signed by the Presi-
dent as his first administration closed. Thus, in the imagina-
tive language of Professor Sumner, "the olive branch and the
rod were bound up together." l

The South Carolina Convention, meeting at Columbia as
soon as the news arrived, rescinded the Ordinance of Nullifica-
tion by an overwhelming vote, but, with a final gesture of
defiance, adopted a resolution nullifying the "Force Bill" and
requesting the Legislature to take steps to prevent its execu-
tion. Calhoun and his followers maintained that their policy
had been a success. To their jaundiced eyes, it appeared as
if the alarmed Federal Government had yielded to their threats
by modifying the objectionable tariff. 2 Through their resist-
ance, they had compelled Clay to renounce his "American
System." They had not been persuaded by the reasoning
of Webster or coerced by the strong right arm of Andrew
Jackson.

Actually, however, although Calhoun did not realize it, the
presentation of opposing arguments had resulted in a victory
for Webster. At a moment when we, as a people, were be-
coming more conscious of our strength and more eager to take
our proper rank in world affairs, he had given adequate expres-
sion to our nationalistic longings and ideals. The casuistry
of Calhoun could never convince the average American that

1 Webster was fairly well satisfied with the result. He wrote William Sullivan,
April 19, 1833, "All things have not happened as I could wish; but on the whole,
I think the events of the winter have tended to strengthen the union of the States,
and to uphold the government." (National Edition, XVII, 537.) Jackson, also
content, wrote, March 21, to Buchanan : " I met nullification at its threshold. My
proclamation was well-timed. It opened the eyes of the people to wicked designs of the
nullifiers aided by the union of Clay, Calhoun, the Bank, and the corrupt of all parties/*

2 Calhoun wrote, March 27, 1833 : " We have upheld and successfully asserted our
doctrine, and proved by actual experience, that the rejected and reviled right of nulli-
fication, is not, as its opponents asserted, revolution or disunion." (Meigs, Calhoun^
II, 31-32.) On the other hand, Calhoun's biographer admits that, " outside of his
own immediate section, the almost universal detestation of Nullification put a sort
of stain on him henceforth as a public man." (Ibid., p. 38.)

THE BATTLE AGAINST NULLIFICATION 397

any Issue could possibly arise which would justify breaking
up our Union. It was under the inspiration of Webster's
eloquence that the North, thirty years later, entered the con-
flict which settled by force of arms the doctrine which he ad-
vocated.

Politics were much jumbled during that winter of 1833, when
the anti-Jackson forces were slowly moulding themselves into
that amorphous body which was to constitute the Whig Party.
The leaders were not sure what turn events might take, and
each was playing his own game. Only the President, strongly
entrenched in the White House, had a position of real security,
for he knew that the people were behind him. Whatever al-
liances were formed, he, at least, was safe.

From the turmoil Webster emerged with honor and the
title of "Defender of the Constitution." The debate on
nullification was his supreme contribution to statesmanship.
Abandoning all his other interests, 1 he came forward in an hour
when the Constitution needed a new interpretation, and he
fulfilled a function hardly less important than that performed
by those who framed the original document. Everett did not
exaggerate when he wrote, "The student of Constitutional
law will ever resort to the speeches of Mr. Webster with the
same deference that he pays to the numbers of the Federalist,
and the opinions of Chief Justice Marshall." Against the
plausible theories of Hayne and Calhoun, his was the most
influential voice to be raised. He was not alone in upholding
the integrity of the Union, but, by the sheer magnetism of his
personality, he wrote his beliefs into the Constitution, irrev-
ocably and forever. Those who feel, with Carlyle, that
individual men settle the destinies of nations may well shudder
as they try to imagine what might have happened if there had
been no Daniel Webster in 1830. His arguments supported
Andrew Jackson in his noble public declaration that the Union
must be preserved. It was Webster's words which, three decades

1 During the session of 1833, Webster almost forsook the law. In a memorandum
of his fees, he wrote, September 9, 1833: "A very poor year's work. Nullification
kept me out of the Supreme Court all last winter." (National Edition, XIII, 42.)

398 DANIEL WEBSTER

later, led Abraham Lincoln to say that it was his primary aim
to save the Union. And his utterances during the thrilling
months of the Great Debate are rightly cherished by Americans
as the finest statement of the true basis of our nationalism.

END OF VOLUME I

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