His temper was even and his judgment was free
from feeling. He possessed those qualities which made him an
acceptable judge of the Court of Common Pleas, and afterwards, when he
became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, gave him a conspicuous and
almost eminent position as jurist.
George T. Curtis was fastidious, and sometimes he was supercilious, in
his speeches to the House. His influence was exceedingly limited, and
he carried on a constant but useless struggle in the hope of extending
it.
Samuel H. Walley, Jr., of Roxbury, was for a time, chairman of the
Committee on Finance, and one whose integrity and competence were never
doubted by anyone. The revenues and expenditure of the State were
then insignificant, relatively, in amount, but the people were poor as
compared with their condition in 1880 and subsequently. Every
appropriation was canvassed in every shop and on every farm. Mr.
Walley maintained a strict economy and the expenses of the State were
kept at the lowest point consistent with the wise administration of
affairs.
Nevertheless the Democratic Party, acting in error, attacked the
expenses, discussed the items in the canvass of 1842, and when they
came to power in 1843 they made serious reductions, especially in the
matter of salaries of public officers, and all, as I now think,
unwisely.
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