A Discourse Delivered to the Faculty, Students, and Alumni of the Dartmouth College, on the Day Proceeding Commencement July 27, 1853, Commemorative of Daniel Webster by Rufus Choate - 1853

Boston & Cambridge, Mass: James Munroe And Co. Fair with No dust jacket as issued. 1853. First Edition. Pamphlet. This scarce vintage pamphlet is in fair to good condition . The front cover detached. Lacking rear cover. Light soiling and dampstaining to to title page. A 5 1/2 by 9 Inch, 100 page Pamphlet . See Photos; A colorful, somewhat eccentric figure, Rufus Choate earned his greatest renown in the courtrooms of his native Massachusetts. For over 30 years, he dazzled juries with his emotional, yet carefully-reasoned rhetoric, winning victories in some of the most celebrated criminal cases of his day. He combined a scholar's diligence with an actor's feel for drama and audience psychology. An early supporter of the Whig Party, Choate entered public life in the 1820s and went on to serve in both the U. S. House and Senate. Towards the end of his life, he became a forceful advocate of compromise between Northern abolitionists and Southern States Rights partisans. Politics, though, remained secondary to his abiding love for the law. While not identified with any landmark constitutional decisions, Choate was highly regarded for his exceptional intellect, oratorical powers, and personal graciousness. "with the Respects of R. D. Mussey Jr. " top corner title page. "Mussey was the son of the medical doctor Reuben D. Mussey and his wife Hettie Osgood. RD graduated from Dartmouth College in 1854. He campaigned for Abraham Lincoln in 1860 and by the outbreak of the Civil War was serving in the regular United States army. Mussey was an anti-slavery general in the Union Army who contributed to the end of slavery in Tennessee by his actions as a general there. Mussey was the commader of the 100th U. S. Colored Infantry. Mussey was a strong advocate of enlisting African-American soldiers and in correspondence with his superiors took issue with William T. Sherman's view on this issue. Mussey left the army in 1866 and soon after began a law practice. He had two daughters with his first wife. It was after her death he met and later married Ellen Spencer. Mussey also served as an adjunct professor of law at Howard University."; 8vo 8" - 9" tall; 100 pages .