n the Judiciary
Committee, and to him was committed the conduct of the bill to restore
the judges' salaries. He was a man of massive frame and of great vigor
of body. His voice was loud, but it lacked those elements that come
from cultivation. He had accumulated considerable wealth in the
country and he had come to Boston for ease and comfort in age. His
career was brief as he lived only a few years thereafter.

Of the affirmative measures of the Legislature of 1844 the most
important perhaps was the statute requiring the registration of births,
marriages, and deaths. Previous to that time there was no
authoritative records of births, marriages, or deaths. The books of
town clerks, the records of clergymen, and the entries in family Bibles
were the sources of information. The information was never complete,
and often that obtained was inaccurate. The promoters of the measure
were Dr. Edward Jarvis of Dorchester and Lemuel Shattuck of Concord.
They were both enthusiastic upon the subject and when they had created
in me an interest, they furnished me with books and documents including
reports of the English and French systems. The petition or memorial
was referred to the Judiciary Committee and it fell to me to prepare
the bill. This I did with the aid, and largely under the direction, of
Shattuck and Jarvis. Then for the first time I had practical use for
the small stock of knowledge that I had acquired of the French
language. Previous to my election to the Legislature I had purchased a
series of books on the French language, known as "French Without a
Teacher." My study of the language had been limited to fragments of
time that I could command while engaged in the business of the store.
Upon my election to the Legislature I made the acquaintance of Count
La Porte who had been a professor of the French language at Cambridge.
I took lessons from him during the sessions of 1842 and 1843.

In the year 1844 I received from the Democratic Party the nomination
for a seat in Congress. It was a barren honor. The district was in
the hands of the Whig Party by a respectable majority. In the canvass
of 1842 the Whigs had nominated John P. Robinson. He was not an
acceptable candidate, and the candidate of the Abolitionists received
a large vote. The Democratic candidate was Joseph W. Mansur of
Lowell. In the first contest he was near an election by a majority.
At the second trial his friends had high hopes of suc