Joseph was possessed of 'great muscular strength in the arms' and an equal strength of character in the face of oppression which led to his becoming Auld Reekie's foremost and best-respected grassroots organiser. At the time the city's entire population was less than 80,000 and considering that the beat of Bowed Joseph's drum could muster 10,000 in an hour, that's quite a rabble. Robert Chambers was a respectable businessman whose brother later became Lord Provost so his bias is understandable. When word of council corruption or decisions adversely affecting the poor folk of Edinburgh leaked out it wasn't long before Bowed Joseph's drum could be heard beating out its tattoo of resistance beneath the town's towering 'lands' and up and down its fetid closes, while the townsfolk rallied to its call and besieged the Council chamber. The ale was shared around.
Direct action gets the goods.
But Joseph was no ego-tripping, careerist politician riding on the backs of the people. When the demo was over, and the cause won, Joseph would return to his Cowgate cobbling. He never sought any office or financial gain. He was a focus, a rallying-point of popular protest, nothing more. Nor did he need a crowd with him to make a point.