Show SENATOR SUMNER chanles CHARLES SUMNER was bo bom at boston mass jan 6 1811 bis hia father was a lawyer and for some timo time was sheriff of suffolk county charles went wont to the boston latin school and graduated at harvard college in 1830 ile he pursued his studies in private for a year and then entered the law school at cambridge where he contracted a tnt Int timao in linato fr friendship with his hia teacher judge story sumner was admitted to the boston bar in 1834 and soon obtained a most extensive practice As reporter of the circuit court of the united states lie published three volumes of judge storys decisions as reports and at the same time tinie edited the american jurist a quarterly law journal the first three winters after ills liis admission to the bar he be lectured to the law student sand part of the time had sole charge of tile the law school constitutional and international law being his bi favorite topics in 1836 1830 he declined professorships professor ships in the law school and the college and in 1837 visited europe travel ing in italy germany ermany an and aud d france and residing nearly a year in england returning to boston in 1840 he resumed practice in lie he published a twenty volume edition of eve IVe Ve jk reports ports 3 1 with annotations in 1845 5 he began to take an active part in politics his ath of july oration on the true truo grandeur ol of nations in which he denounced the war system and advocated peaceful arbitration for the adjudication of international questions attracted wide attention and was pronounced by richard cobden tiie tile the most noble contribution made by any modern writer to the cause of peace many other addresses on similar subjects rapidly followed he opposed the annexation of texas on the tho ground of slave siave slavery ry which caused his alienation from the whig party and his affiliation with the free rree sollers and democrats he lent efficient support to van buren and adams in the presidential contest of 1848 daniel webster entered president Fill mores cabinet in 1850 and after a heated contest mr sumner was elected to succeed mr webster in the U 8 senate his first important speech in congress was against the fugitive sl slave siave ave avo act I 1 which he held to be unconstitutional cruel and tyrannical mr doctrine being freedom 1 is 9 national and slavery sectional mr sumner took a prominent part in the nils Blis missouri souil compromise and the kansas questions his g great reat two days d ays speech upon tiie tile the crime in kansas so incensing the members from south carolina that preston S brooks may 1856 attacked him while sitting writing at his desk in the senate chamber and so brutally beat him on the head with a gutta percha cane that he fell to the floor insensible and was very seriously injured a severe and long disability following from which he did not wholly recover for three or four years in jany 1857 he was almost unanimously reelected elected re to the senate for the benefit of his health he visited europe in 1857 and again in 1858 returning in 1859 having submitted to severe medical treatment in 1 paris his first great speech afterward in the senate was on the barbarism of slavery in the presidential dental contest of 1860 he made speeches in behalf of lincoln and hamblin in the secession discussions he earnestly opposed in congress and out any compromise with slavery and claimed that his hia arguments and measures were based on strictly constitutional grounds ill in march 1861 1961 he be became chairman of the senate committee on foreign relations which office he retained until march 1871 then leaving it through a disagreement with president grant upon the santo domingo business in anjan jan 1862 he delivered a notable speech condemning the seizure of mason and Sli bil slidell dellon on board the steamer trent as unjustifiable on the principles of international law which had always been maintained by the united states mr sumner wrote a work on white white slavery in the barb narb barbary ar y states he also published dun laps treatise on Admira lity practice a defence of the american claim in the erth eastern boundary controversy A collection of ills his complete works life has haus been published of which a new edition will probably now be in demaud demand the lofty principles liberal statesmanlike views and sterling integrity of such men as fillmore and sumner could be emulated to advantage by living statesmen and politicians |