STEVENS, THADDEUS. 



STOCKTON, THOMAS H. 711 



STEVENS, TnADDETis, an American states- 

 man and reformer, born at Peacham, Caledonia 

 County, Vt., April 4, 1793 ; died in Washing- 

 ton, D. C., at midnight of Tuesday, August 11, 

 1868. His parents were poor. He was a 

 sickly child, and lame; but his strong intel- 

 lect was early detected by his mother, who 

 toiled with all her strength to secure for him 

 the benefit of an education. The boy was am- 

 bitious, and turned his few opportunities for 

 improvement to such good account that he 

 speedily succeeded in qualifying himself to en- 

 ter Dartmouth College, whence he graduated 

 with honor in 1814. Immediately after leav- 

 ing Dartmouth, he removed to York, Pa., 

 where he taught a school for a livelihood and 

 read law carefully and steadily through the in- 

 tervals of the day and night. Admitted, after 

 many discouragements, to the bar, he soon at- 

 tained a good practice and rose to eminence in 

 his profession, which for many years he fol- 

 lowed without participating in politics. The 

 election of John Quincy Adams to the presi- 

 dency, and the bitter contests which followed 

 the triumph of the Democrats in the election 

 of General Jackson in 1828, and his decided ac- 

 tion, aroused the political fervor of Mr. Stevens, 

 and he threw himself into the contest with all 

 the zeal and ardor of his nature. He took 

 sides with the Adams party, and when that 

 merged in the Whig party he became an 

 active Whig. In 1833 he was elected' to the 

 Legislature by the Whigs of Adams County, 

 and was returned by the same party during the 

 years 1834-'35-'37-'41. In 1836 he was a 

 member of the Pennsylvania State Constitu- 

 tional Convention, and took an active part in 

 all the important debates in the framing of 

 that instrument; but, being then, as always 

 since, 'hostile to slavery, he refused to sign the 

 document because it restricted suffrage on ac- 

 count of color. After the adoption of the con- 

 stitution, Mr. Stevens was again in the Legisla- 

 ture. This was a period of intense political 

 excitement. For a time two Legislatures 

 were in session, Mr. Stevens being the leading 

 spirit in one, and an equally ardent Democrat 

 in the other. They finally coalesced without 

 violence, and united in the choice of a Speaker, 

 and in other acts of legislation. In 1838 Mr. 

 Stevens was appointed a Canal Commissioner, 

 and managed, so far as he had the power, the 

 system of internal improvements of Pennsyl- 

 vania with skill and ability. In 1842 Mr. 

 Stevens removed to Lancaster, which, subse- 

 quently was his home. He immediately took 

 a front rank at the bar, and was engaged in 

 many important cases. The interval from 1842 

 to 1848 was devoted to his profession, but, in 

 the latter year, he was elected to the Thirty-sec- 

 ond Congress from the Lancaster district, and 

 ardently opposed the repeal of the Missouri 

 Compromise, the Fugitive Slave Law, and the 

 Kansas-Nebraska Bill. In 1859 Mr. Stevens 

 was again returned, and continued in Congress 

 by successive reflections, and at the time of 



his death was serving his seventh term. In all 

 these Congresses he was a recognized leader. 

 During three sessions he was chairman of the 

 important committee of Ways and Means, and 

 held the position of chairman of the Commit- 

 tee on Eeconstruction of the Thirty-ninth and 

 Fortieth Congresses. He also served on other 

 committees, his last important position being 

 chairman of the Board of Managers, on the 

 part of the House, in the impeachment of Presi- 

 dent Johnson before the Senate. Mr. Stevens 

 was also a member of the Baltimore Conven- 

 tion, in 1864, and voted with the Pennsylvania 

 delegation for Mr. Johnson for Vice-President. 

 Thoroughly radical in his views, hating slavery 

 with all the intensity of his nature, believing 

 it just, right, and expedient, not only to eman- 

 cipate, but to arm the negro and make him a 

 soldier, and, after the war, to make him a citi- 

 zen and give him the ballot, he led off in all 

 measures for effecting these ends. The Eman- 

 cipation Proclamation was urged upon the 

 President by him on all grounds of right, jus- 

 tice, and expediency ; the Fourteenth Amend- 

 ment to the Constitution was initiated and 

 pressed by him. He advocated and carried, 

 during the war, acts of confiscation, and pro- 

 posed the most rigid and stern measures against 

 the Southern people to the last day of his life. 

 STOCKTON, Rev. THOMAS HEWLINGS, D. D., 

 a Methodist clergyman, author, and poet, born 

 at Mount Holly, N. J., June 4, 1808 ; died in 

 Philadelphia, October 9, 1868. At the age of 

 eighteen, though in frail health, he essayed 

 to become a printer, but, finding himself dis- 

 qualified for this work, he studied medicine. 

 But, having become the subject of a religious 

 change, his attention was directed to the min- 

 istry, and, just before he was twenty-one years 

 of age, he preached his first sermon. He took 

 charge of a circuit the same year on the Eastern 

 Shore of Maryland, and his eloquence, fervor, 

 and remarkable command of language "drew 

 great congregations wherever he preached. In 

 1830 he was elected editor of the Methodist 

 Protestant, but declined the appointment. In 

 1833 he was stationed at Georgetown, D. C., 

 and in December of that year elected chaplain 

 of Congress. In 1835 and 1837 he was again 

 elected to the same position, and meantime 

 published two small volumes of poems, and 

 compiled a church hymn-book. In 1838 he re- 

 moved to Philadelphia. From 1847 to 1850 he 

 resided in Cincinnati, and while there was 

 unanimously elected president of the Miami Uni- 

 versity, but declined the position. In 1850 he 

 removed to Baltimore, where he remained six 

 years, pastor for most of the time of two 

 churches, one Methodist Protestant, the other 

 Associate Reformed Presbyterian, and en- 

 gaged also in literary labors. In 1856 he re- 

 turned to Philadelphia, which was thencefor- 

 ward his home, though he was in 1862 and 1863 

 again chaplain of Congress. He was for the 

 twelve years 1856-1868 almost constantly pas- 

 tor of the Church of the New Testament, and 



