139
Quincy. Tuesday 27. October 1840.
27. V. Tuesday.
- Loring Ellis Gray
- Tappan Lewis
- Whitney Rev
d. Peter
- Lunt Rev
d. William P.
Sun rose 6:27. Set 5.2. Fahrenheit 21.— Arcturus 4.40
Boston, Warren Street Association. Lecture. Quincy.
Mr Ellis Gray
Loring of Boston, and Mr Lewis Tappan of New-York,
called on me this morning, and earnestly intreated of me to assume as
assistant Counsel to Mr Baldwin of Connecticut, the
defence of the Africans captured in the Amistad, before the Supreme
Court of the United States at Washington, at their next January term— I
endeavoured to excuse myself upon the plea of my age and inefficiency—of
the oppressive burden of my duties as a member of the House of
Representatives, and my inexperience after a lapse of more than thirty
years, in the forms, and technicals of argument, before judicial
tribunals, and said I would cheerfully do, what I had heretofore offered
that is give any assistance of Counsel and Advice to Mr Baldwin, and any other person charged with
the argument before the Court— But they urged me so much and represented
the case of those unfortunate men as so critical, it being a case of
life and death, that I yielded, and told them that, if by the blessing
of God my health and strength should permit, I would argue the case
before the Supreme Court; and I implore the mercy of Almighty God, to
controul my temper, to enlighten my Soul and to give me utterance that I
may prove myself in every respect equal to the task— They promised that
Mr Baldwin would furnish me with a
complete brief and Mr Tappan left with me
two scrap books, containing in slips from the Newspapers all the
publications relating to the trials from the time of the capture by
Lieutenant Gedney.— Mr Whitney
came to take leave of us previous to our departure for Washington—
Mr
Lunt came afterwards— He is about to compile a new
Hymn-book, for the use of the Church and Society here, and he asked me
for the loan of my version of the Psalms with liberty to select any of
them for publication in his book, to which I agreed, but could not find
my manuscript. I promised to look it up, and bring or send it to him— I
lent him Goode’s version of the
Psalms— We dined at 1. and immediately after dinner, I went with
my wife and Mrs John
Adams to Boston— They set me down at Mr James H.
Foster’s; after which they went shopping and returned to
Quincy at the dusk of Evening.— I went to Charles’s house, where I saw Catherine— Then to Mrs S. A. Otis’s, to see
Harriet Welsh; but she was
out. Then called at Samuel T.
Armstrong’s and Abbot
Lawrence’s— Neither of them at home— Then at Mrs Samuel
Dexter’s, and found her confined to her house with
Lumbago. She seemed however cheerful, and is always intelligent— I then
found the Warren Street chapel—went and spent an hour with Dr
Frothingham— Then at 7. to Mr
Foster’s, but he was gone. Charles
Foster went with me to the Chapel where I delivered my
Lecture upon Faith, from half past 7. to 9.— Then returned to Quincy in
a Hack provided for me, by the Committee of the Association— Home at
10.
