6, some account of the character of that
distinguished person; and Mr. Smith, learning that I was engaged upon
the task, with morbid anxiety repeatedly begged me to show him what I
was writing, up to within a few weeks of his own decease: a request with
which, for reasons which will become obvious to the reader of this
sketch, I declined to comply. With Sir William Follett's name all the
world is acquainted: yet I venture to think that the name of John
William Smith has greater claims upon the attention of readers of
biography. His character and career will, it is believed, be found
permanently and intrinsically interesting,--at once affecting,
inspiriting, and admonitory. He fell a martyr to intense study, just as
that competent and severe body of judges, the English bench and bar, had
recognised his eminent talents and acquirements, and the shining and
substantial rewards of unremitting exertion were beginning to be
showered upon him. He came to the bar almost totally unknown, and was
destitute of any advantages of person, voice, or manner. His soul,
however, was noble, his feelings were refined and exalted; and, when he
departed from the scene of intense excitement and rivalry into which his
lot had been cast, those who had enjoyed the best opportunities for
forming a true judgment of him, knew not whether more to admire his
moral excellence or his intellectual eminence, which shone the more
brightly for the sensitive modesty which enshrouded them. Many have
expressed surprise and regret that so interesting a character should
fade from the public eye, without any attempt having been made by his
friends to give a full account of his character and career. I was one of
his very earliest friends; witnessed the whole of his professional
career, shared his hopes and fears, and, with two or three others,
attended upon him affectionately to the very last. During the year which
has since elapsed, I have reflected much upon his character, and had
many opportunities for ascertaining the respect with which his memory is
cherished in the highest quarters. I shall endeavour, therefore, though
with great misgivings as to my competency for the task, to present to
the reader an impartial account of my gifted friend: no one else, with
one exception,[2] having, up to this time, undertaken the task.

[1] This narrative was originally composed in the third person; but
so much of it consists of my own personal intercourse with Mr.