He was
too sensitive, and too dead-in-earnest to make much of an orator, but he
was an effective speaker, and if he had remained in the law he would no
doubt have made a success of it, and very likely would have become a
member of Congress.
His adventure with a drunken sea-captain, while crossing from England in
a sailing vessel has become proverbial. He probably saved the ship, and
the lives of all on board, for a terrific storm arose immediately
afterwards, the worst he had ever known, such as only a sober captain
could possibly have weathered. There never was a better seaman when he
was himself, so Wasson said. His judgment in regard to the investment of
money, buying or selling a house, or in most of the small affairs of
life, was excellent, and his advice in more serious matters so good that
wise men might well have gone far to obtain it. Wherever he lived his
house soon became conspicuous among all others for its refined air and
tasteful appearance. In his half acre of a garden, he raised as fine
fruit and vegetables as the most accomplished horticulturist, and even
made wine from his own grapes equal to the best Californian. No man ever
accomplished more with inadequate means. The interior of his house at
West Medford had a pleasant style peculiarly its own. It reminded one of
an old Dutch painting. In one of the last summers of his life he
hybridized a seedling grape of large size and excellent flavor.
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