the anti-slavery Democrats of
Massachusetts and the country. He was one of the three distinguished
men that the county of Essex has produced in his century: Choate,
Cushing and Rantoul. In oratorical power he could not be compared to
Choate. In learning he was of the three the least well equipped. In
logic he was superior to Cushing, and he was more direct, and more
easily comprehended than either Cushing or Choate. He had not much
imagination, and his illustrations were simple and rather commonplace.
As a debater he has had but few equals in our State. He was a radical,
a reformer by nature. He was opposed to capital punishment, an
advocate of temperance, of prison reform, and a zealous free trader.
He made war upon the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 contending that the
Constitution imposed upon the States the duty of returning fugitives
from labor. This theory seemed to me at the time, as the result of a
violent construction of the Constitution, and so it seems to me now.
Nevertheless it satisfied many who wised to oppose the Fugitive Slave
Law, and sustain the Constitution at the same time.

During the Senatorial contest I was urged by the supporters of Sumner
to aid his election, and by the "hunker" wing of the Democratic Party
--I was urged to bring the influence of the administration to bear
against Mr. Sumner. To all I made the same reply. I said: "I am not
pledged to elect Mr. Sumner, I am not pledged to defeat him. The
subject is in the control of the Legislature." I did, however, delay
making removals and appointments and upon the ground that the election
or defeat of Mr. Sumner would affect the appointments to office in the
State.

Mr. Cushing had a violent prejudice against shoemakers. Under the
coalition, Wilson became president of the Senate, Amasa Walker,
Secretary of the Commonwealth, John B. Alley, a Senator, and member of
the Council, all shoemakers, or interested in the shoe and leather
trade. In addition to these there were many persons of prominence and
influence in the party who were in the same business. The "shoe towns"
generally supported the Free-soil Party. One morning I received a call
from Mr. Cushing, before I had taken my breakfast. Evidently he had
had a conference with the leading "hunkers" who had deputed him to
state their case to me. After considerable conversation, which perhaps
was not satisfactory to Mr. Cushing, he put this question to me, and
with great emphasi