Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1863-08-04
The First West Va. Legislature.
SENATE
Sketches Personal. Political and HI
ographical.
an
DANIEL D. II. FARNsWORTH.

BY AN OBSERVER


The personal appearance of Mr.. Farms
worth is progressing; he is tall and
somewhat spareIy built active and rapid
in his movements. He wears thin sandy
whiskers all over his face, and has not used
the razor for some lime his hair 10 thick
and black and does not correspond very well
with the color of the aforesaid whiskers
his head is round and we'll developed be
has bright, twinkling Intelligent grey eyes,
which when'he 10 engaged in animated dee
bate sparkle like diamonds and rIVet the
attention his features are regular and
when dressed in his elaborate and almost
m exquisitep style, as he usually 10, be 10 sure
to attract attention, and is really, laying
all Jokes aside, one of the handsomest men
in the Legislature. % .t
He is q rapid and sensible speaker; oc-
cupies the floor very frequently expresses
himself with great force aud freedom, never
lacking a word. and generally getting the
one which expresses exactly what he
means If he desires TO say that q man 10
butternut, copPerhesd, viper, or traitor
he does so in just that many words, with
out any suueanishuess upon the subject;
if he desires to hatter the " elderly gentle
man" on his right, (Mr. Haymondl who
loves to annoy Mr.: Farnsworth, he does it
in very fascinating way, but with very
little effect-Mr7 Raymond can't be won
over in that way. ~"
Il Mr.. FarnswoFth was a member of the
Convention which re.organized the State
Government OF Virginia, 10 June 1861, by
virtue of his election TO the House of Del
egates, which occurred at the regular May
election in 1861. His opponent was Ben.
Bassell, q former member Of the Legisla.
ture from Upshur county, and a noted and
| influential rebel leader. They stumped the
county, Mr. Farms worth being the only
man of any prominence who Cad the bold
ness to beard the lion iu his den. His et.
forts against the ordinance were unceastnRr
aud he was gloriously rewarded in seeing the
county of Upshur give more than 400 ma"
jority against that ordinance, aud was him.
self triumphAntly elected to the House OF
Delegates.
On the first day OF July, 1861, be took
bis seat in the Legislature at Wheeling,
where he remained useful and laborious
| member up to the time Of the organization
of the new State He was elected To tue
Senate as Que of tue representatives of the
9th District. by large majority over his
opponents. 'fHfs
| He has been an ardent and untiriug
worker III behalf Of the new State all the
time, aud was Chairman of the Committee
which reported the ordinance for the diTis-
ion of the State in August 1861.
OF his efforts ia behalf OF the Union It 10
almost needless to speak, for they are
part of the history of the State. / may
say that his devotion to the Union is un-
conditional,-ha been,-will be, IT am
not greatly mistaken. He was an old
! style Democrat, and voted with that party
/ in 1860, for Mr.. Douglas. Since then, he
has been unquaIifisdIy "ior Lincoln and
the Union" First, because Mr.. Lincoln
was coustitutionally elected. Second, be-
| cause the Union Is always right. He was
pro slavery in his feelings before the rebel
lion, does not care notr what becomes of
Il, nor OF anything else that stands IN the
way of the Union. He endorses the Presi-
dents Emancipation Proclamation, and
hopes it will bury slavery 80 deep that it's
resurrection will never come to pass is
opposed to every man that taVors the
4 patching up of slavery in any form in this
Government, to break out again like a
smothered volcano in coming years, as he
thinks, in another stream OF blood and
desolation. 'Irl. ~
Mr.. Farnsworth is the author of the re-
solution introduced into the Legislature,
proposing to ask the candidates for the
Uuited States Senate how far they will go
in support of the administration, in the
conduct of the war, &c, &C., which passed
the Senate, but has not yet passed the
House. N7@ -f'''.-
Mr.. FarnswoFth was born on Staten Is
! land, in New York, aud ia about 43 years
of age, though his appearance would indi-
cate that he was not more than 80 or 35.
Some of the ladies have indeed taken him
for much younger man than that, snp'
posing him TO be about %, and what is
more unfortunate for them, unmarried.
His ancestors removed at an early day
| and aafflan the
town of Buckhannon, when "Dan" was
about dozen and half mouths old. His
parents and grand parents were wealthy,
and he has a fair portion of this worlds
goods. In early life "Dau" learned the
trade of a tailor, but having by industry
aud perseverance, demonstrated that It did
not take seven tailors to constitute man,
he engaged In the mercantile business,
which he follows at present. He, however,
Is not ashamed to be known as a mechanic,
and feels proud of that class. BY reason
of rebel raids, and especially Jenkins and
Jones, he has been greet sufferer. The
: former broke open his store and stole about
a thousand dollars worth of goods, and
the latter about three thousand dollars
worth. E'
He has been member of the Baptist
Church for many years and hopes TO live
and die in the faith; and the writer believes
he lie, as be appears to be, man of cor
cect moral principles and of exemplary
habits. .1 p 100 t.a
He is member of the Committee on
Townships, and several other co mmittees.
vaIIandisham Gone into RetIrsment'
vallandigham has left the Clifton House
Niagara Falls, and retired to less expen-
siye retreat few miles distant from the
Falls. A correspondent of the Chicago
| T,.ih,lre saws. --------