GEORGE SEWALL BOUTWELL. I3 



books of Massachusetts to this day, and the United States 

 Bankrupt Law was modeled upon it. Indeed, there can 

 never be any wide departure from the provisions of that 

 statute, and from its principles no departure whatever can 

 be made. 



A leading man, and a character in town, was Thomas A. 

 Staples. He was a native of the neighboring town of Shirley. 

 He was a man of large size, handsome figure, resolute in his 

 purposes, and vindictive in his enmities. His chief business 

 was that of stage proprietor, and mail contractor. He was 

 always in debt, and tardy, of course, in his payments. He 

 was involved in lawsuits, and many of his debts were paid 

 upon executions. His mail contracts were so large that he 

 sublet many of the routes, and he was always in debt to sub- 

 contractors. He had a stage office in Boston for a time at the 

 Hanover House, and after that at No. 9 Court Street. His 

 office was the headquarters of country traders and others who 

 patronized his lines of stages. In the year 1838 or later, I 

 was in his office when Alvin Adams, the founder of the Adams 

 Express Company, made his first trip to New York as an ex- 

 press messenger. Staples afterward stated in conversation 

 that Adams had but one parcel, and that he loaned him five 

 dollars to meet his expenses. At that time Harnden's express 

 was in operation with an office at No. 8 Court Street. Harn- 

 den's company disappeared in a few years, and the Adams 

 Express Company became an institution that has the appear- 

 ance of perpetuity. At a time perhaps as late as 1850, I met 

 Adams on Washington Street, when he expressed the opinion 

 that his business was as profitable as any business in the 

 country. 



Staples was engaged also in paper making with mills upon 

 the upper falls of the Squannacook River. This branch of 

 his business was especially unfortunate, and in 1836 he 

 assigned his property to Henry Woods, Daniel Shattuck, and 

 Joshua B. Fowle. Mr. Woods was a trader in whose employ- 

 ment I then was, having let myself to him when I left the 

 Dix store December i, 1835, for my board and ^150 a year. 

 Agreement for one year. The assignees were all friends of 



