The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-12-14


ten years have gone by. but not one Of them
IL 30 amusing as il this record of people
who were trying to persuade themselN es
that they were great men, and even thought
they were. In Mr.. Adamss nine volumes.
II my young friends the historical novelists
OF to-day only knew it, there is material
for endless comedies which are not yet
written 1t may also he true, our
author adds, that. since Mr.. Adams's
volumes we're published, the old-fashioned
indiscriminate praise of Jefferson hos
almost ended but the third American
President has nothing to lose by discrmina-
ton. II II doubtful whether Jeferson's
| reputation as a statesman and a thinker
ever stood higher in this country than II
does to-day, although the grounds OF IL
are more accurately defined than they
used TO tie. Jefferson il one of the few
men mentioned in these volumes to whom
the author seems disposed TO render less
than justice. He seems to have Inherited
traces of the anti -JefYersonian prejudices
of the old Federast party
We find reproduced in the second volume
| OF this book memorandum Of "A CONVEX
sation with Charles Sumner. in which he
gave our author an account of President
| Lihcohs message proposing compen-
stated emancipation. IL seems that Lincoln
read the message in manuscript to Sum
ner. The latter found a sentence in it
which he thought ought to b. recast He
took his pencil and said, Let M write it
| thth; | don't want people saving you think
TINS ana So. Sumner was going Ia emas-
culate the sentence. but Lincoln said. I'm
! urop the whole sentence, and drew his pen
through il. 1t was characteristic of sum
iler 10 Imagine that he could improve the
la M
DR.. Hale tells us that he has related the
story, because II shows in way which
IL now as pathetic a. II il amusing wha,
his lSumner'sl quite unconscious haiti
vas OF patronizing the people with whom
he had To do. | have been told that h.
was the most Unpopular man who was
ever in the United States Senate. | am
afraid this II true II it is true, it il simply
because, without in the least meaning to
| do 50, he would speak with this air of super
iority which was really drull. do no, think
myself that he was an arrogant man. He
did sometimes think of himself more highly
thah ne ought To think. but that II Il fault
which most meInbars of most Senates
share with him. There was certain
IRA Knees of manner. almost rustic or
pagan, II one may say So, which rufiled
people. and made them cross when he
uid not even suspect that he was 'riling
! them. IL Is interesting to see how good
naturedly Lincoln took this. and how we'll
ne Understood Mr.. Sumner through and
through"
Tn"r. is no more interesting chapter in
these volumes than that which is based on
the racoiloctioNs Of the authors father
which describes Boston when il com
prlsed about 5000 inhabitants as il vas
IN lSs A. that date III" town contained
Just nine blocks of brick buildings, Of
which one or two were new Most of the
private houses In Washington street had
little yards or gardens on one or both sides
and on tn" street only windows the front
door Opening into the garden In many
Gases there wore orchards Of considerable
sl7" immediately adjoining the houses
on" OF tn. largest gardens Of that dav
was that of Gov. James B1wdoin who had
"A larg" hous" and extensive LOT of land
on Bacon street, Al the corner of BOvduin
street, reaching quite over m" hi--what
T. now Ashburton place This large garden
ab0unded in IN. finest fruits pears Peaches
arNas and grapes Our author adds that
Mr.. Kirk Bolts gardens wera - read around
tho present site Of h" Reverb House. Fruit
trres and vines, and foreign GRAPES, and
Other tender fruits, which now succeed
only under glass grew in the open air :"
In summon street tho gardens Of tho
Amorvs the Gerlnors and the S1lisb,rvs
ran back To Bedford street In some in
stances these gardens covered two. three
or even more acres OfCourl" the habit 81
even well-to-do people were far less con-
ventional then than they ar" now A
memorandum referring to 1903 or 1907
and now in our authors Possession. srcaks
OF Col T n. Perkins, for many years the
prince of Boston merchants as trudginu
HON" for his o'clock breakfast from i /
Fanouil Hall with a market basket contain
inc hi, o'clock dinner The memora nclum
saws that Harrison Gray Otis and William
GRAY P"t"r c. Brooks and Israel Thorn
dyke, who were among the richest men ia
New ENGLAND, might b" seen doing the
Same thing
The typographical changes which took
place in Roston during the last century
ara exeNplfed in the fate Of Beacon Nill
NV father used to saw" writes NJ Hale
when he was 10 years old that, when he
| came 10 Boston the enterprise Of internal
improvement which attracted the most
interest on tho part Of Boston people was
tha' by v ich thew should dig dov n Beacon
Hill and All IN the mill rond celebrated in
Frankln's early biograrhy, al the north
ern end o. the town This was succes sf,llv
done. so that Mr.. Thurston of the house in
Bowdoin street. DESTROYED only lately. used
to say that the chimney of his new hou.e
four stories high. was at the same spot In
space ~ who're the door stems had been
some wears bofore This condition Of things
lasted until the end of 1857. v hen II vas the
business Of my father as head of ,ho Water
| Commission OF that time. To rebuild Beacon
Hill in order 10 give sufficient height to the
reservoir which should supply the highest
levels in Boston With water. Time rolled
bv, and, IN the last wcok Of 1859. IL was
|
Ames, TO offer in words the prayers of the
| great assembly when We laid the corner
stone Of the annex to the State House, for
! which cornerstone nv father reservoir
had been pulled down and Beacon Eli
| again reduced in its altitude"
| II will be recognized bv even the most
cu~sorv INSPECTOR Of these volumes that they
differ essentially from much of the reminis-
cent literature for which we are indebted
10 men of advanced wears Far from
being garru'ous the author gives continual
| proofs Of sef-restraint and leaves us wish
inC that he would tell us more The anec-
dotes hav" been, rs rule. carefully verified:
| where they are based on hearsav the fact
| l. noted. The reflect ions are those Of an
acute and original observer. The whole
| book ahounds in evidences OF the authors
pene' ration, but. perhaps, the quality is
nowhere more conspicuous than in what the
| author has to saw about Andrew Jackson
| and Martin Van Buren,. and in his para
| doSical heStoval Of tho name "the four
| founders Of tho nation" upon Napolaon
Ronaparte, Robert ". Livingston, Eli Whit
new and Robert Fulton: the three epoch
making events associated with those names
| the invention of III" cotton gin, the Louisi-
ana Purchase and the application of steam
| To navigation. II has sometimes seemed 10
Us pity as we have turned over those
| wpl- stOrpI and m that W,