Litchfield enquirer., 1879-05-01

the presidency in 1868, against Grant. The main stock of the family remained in Litch
 field, and were not without honors there. One of tine sons was sheriff of Litchfield coun. ty, and Origen Seymour, who was at the law school in my time, became Judge of the Su- preme Court of Connecticut and is yet on the political stage.
 Since 1 have given an account of the Litch- field law school, ,iH it's beginning and it's prime, may as well continue to the end. It was near by. Judge Gould becoming infirm in health, J. W. Huntington, Esq, who was a relative of the Wolcetts, became his coadjutator until Gould died Huntington who soon af- ter became judge and United States Senator, had other affairs on hand, and soon gave up the school. Practically the school died with Judge Gould. It was private enterprise, and when such really great men Tn law as Judge Reeve and Judge Gould ceased to live there were none both able and willing to conduct it. The mantles of such eminent lawyers could fall on few, and those few did not prefer this line of life.
 might mention other families in Litch- field, for there was scarcely any family whose sons and daughters might not be found on the fields of the West and South, building up this great Republic. At this time, Dr. Lyman Beecher was pastor of the Congregational Church in Litchfeld. Ills house was just across the street from Mrs. Lords, where boarded and, as my window was on that side of the house. I used often to see him and hear his violin, of which he was very fond, sending forth merry tones. It is said, that he would return from funeral and send forth the quick est airs from his fiddle He was of the most cheerful temperament, as l, who knew him for thirty years can we'll testify. Few clergy men-probably none-have been more noted, Y,,oro hla and I oaav add moro i1oafuI than Dr Beecher. He was then in his prime. It was in Litchfeld, the year after left there, that he delivered his celebrated lectures on temper ance. It was good place to begin work, for Ltchfeld had several able and distinguished men, who died or lost their influence by n- temperance Dr. Beecher was called the "great gun of Calvanism," and it seemed to me the irony of fate to see him tried ten years after by the Presbytery of Cincinnati tor here sy in Calvinistic Theology. In the mean while, he had been called to one of the princi- pal churches of Boston to combat Unitarian ism. Whether he had much to do in repress- ing it, know not. But it is certain Untari- anism has grown very slowly since that time, At the time was in Litchfield, the C0ngrega- tional Church on the little green embraced two-thirds of the people of the village, and more than that in the surrounding country. Dr. Beecher was SO far superior to all other preachers of that section, that all the students who went to church at all went to his church. was always regular attendant not loosing, think, more than two or three Sundays while I was there. Dr. Beecher was remarkable for great irregularity in what may be called the quality of his sermons. There was none in- ferior but there were times when he was dull A friend said to me once that he had heard much of Dr. Beecher and went to hear him, but he never heard duller sermon. can re- alze that might have been, but Dr. Beecher was at times exceedingly eloquent. His spells of eloquence seemed to come on by fits. One very hot day in summer, and in the afternoon, 1 was in church and Dr. Beecher was going on in sensible, but rather presy half sermon, when all at once he seemed to recollect that we had just heard of the death of Lord Byron. He was an admirer of Byron's poetry, as all who admire genius must be. He raised his spectacles, and began with an account of By ron, his genius, wonderful gifts, and then went on to his want of virtue, and his want of true religion, and finally described lost soul, and the spirit of Byron going off, wandering in the blackness of darkness forever It struck me as with an electric shock, and left an inn perishable memory.