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��Hon. Williani E. Chandler.
��judgment, a conciseness of statement, and an almost supernatural aptitude for leadership, that have at once pressed him into the front ranks of those with whom he has been asso- ciated.
"With unflinching integrity and surpassing ability Mr. Chandler has combined the very best practical sense, and a thorough knowledge of human nature in all its different phases. His circle of acquaintances is very extensive ; he has friends in every clime, and knows more men person- ally, probably, than any other man in America.
"Mr. Chandler has made mistakes. Who has not? But they did not crush him, nor subdue his enthusiasm. He rose triumphant above them, and profited by their experience. He has faults. Who has not? But he wears them all upon his sleeve. His pri- vate chai-acter is unassailable and above reproach. There is no shade of suspicion upon the sterling quali- ties of his high manhood, and the de- tractors of his public career have been few, and quickly discredited, even without the pretence of a de- nial.
"He is a contentious man, — conten- tious for what he believes to be right. If you have him with you, he is a host in himself ; but if he is arrayed against your cause, he is sure to be the central figure of the opposition, and you nuist beware of his bold, rapid advances. Such is the vehe- mence of his impulsive nature and the ardor of his temperament that he is a partisan to any cause that wins his sympathy ; but no man is quicker to bury the hatchet, and to forgive and forget when the contest is over.
��He is a splendid fighter, but is su- preme at reconciliation.
" His characteristic frankness is a charm that contributes more than a little to his personal popularity. He has a directness of purpose and a firmness "of execution that does not mislead you as to his objects. He is not politic, he never strove to bask in the sunshine of popular favor, he is not easily swayed by the clamor of a crowd : but he has kept steadily on in the straight path of his own con- victions of duty. More than once he has seemed to stand in his own light, and more than once the people have returned to his leadership, after wan- dering; from what he had defined to be the right course. He is no mere place-hunter. Whenever he has held offices, it was the offices that sought the man. He never was enamored of sounding titles and official posi- tions, and has held only few, and solicited none. As a public man only, his wide-reaching influence has been felt, and his present elevation was attained by force of sheer ability and by acknowledged integrity, rath- er than by the regular course of pro- motion, round by round, up the ladder of political eminence."
We quote the following from Jp- pleton's Ci/dopcedia of American i't- ography :
"Chandler, William Eaton, cabinet minister, born in Concord, N. H., 28 Dec, 1835. He studied law in Con- cord, and at the Harvard Law School, where he was graduated in 1855. For several years after his admission to the bar in 1856 he practised in Concord, and in 1859 was appointed reporter of the New Hampshire su- preme court, and published five vol-
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