Statesmen . ess, therefore, had acertain official character which gave it impor-tance. The oration was delivered in Faneuil Hall,and was a remarkable occasion. The audiencewas large, expectation was high, and everybodyappeared to apprehend that something was aboutto happen. Peleg W. Chandler writes of thispicture presented in Faneuil Hall: Sumnerspresence as he came forward drew undivided at-tention. The prominent citizens in the audiencehad met him in society or in the routine of hisprofession, and others had noted him on thestreet, but probably the greater number of hishearers now saw him fo
Statesmen . ess, therefore, had acertain official character which gave it impor-tance. The oration was delivered in Faneuil Hall,and was a remarkable occasion. The audiencewas large, expectation was high, and everybodyappeared to apprehend that something was aboutto happen. Peleg W. Chandler writes of thispicture presented in Faneuil Hall: Sumnerspresence as he came forward drew undivided at-tention. The prominent citizens in the audiencehad met him in society or in the routine of hisprofession, and others had noted him on thestreet, but probably the greater number of hishearers now saw him for the first time. He wasthen the impersonation of manly beauty andpower, of commanding stature, his figure nolonger slender, as in student days, but well de-veloped ; his features finely cut, his dark hairhanging in masses over his well-formed brow,his face lighting with the smile which alwayswon him friends at first sight. He wore a dress-coat with gilt buttons, a fancy of lawyers at that ?BUHL :: r :. Charles Sumner. 238 STATESMEN period, and white waistcoat and trousers. Hisgestures were unstudied and followed no rules;the most frequent one was the swinging of thearm above the head. His voice was clear andstrong, resounding through the hall, but at timesfalling in cadences hollow and pathetic. Seldomhas there been seen on the platform a more at-tractive presence than his as now, at the age ofthirty-four, he stood for the first time before thepeople assembled to hear him. On this occasion the officers, sailors, and raa^rines from a United States man-of-war lying inthe harbor, and portions of the State militia in alltheir glory, were present. Sumners speech wasa plea for peace, and these questions were ut-tered in the course of his oration: What is theuse of the standing army ? What is the use ofthe navy ? What is the use of the fortifications ?What is the use of a militia of the United States ? He also employed such phrases as Farcicaldiscipline; Shouldering arms and carr
Size: 1425px × 1753px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookpublis, booksubjectstatesmen
