"As a lawyer, I think no man in N. H. stood higher in the confidence of the people than Mr. Bell. Never descending to any of those low acts which too often bring reproach upon an honorable profession, he was earnest and zealous in whatever business was committed to his charge, and exhibited a devotion to his profession, and an unwearied industry in the cause of his clients, such as is rarely equalled. If he was not what may be termed a popular orator, yet, as an advocate at the bar, he was strong, clear, and convincing, never failing to impress upon those who heard him the conviction of his own sincerity in the cause he advocated. He was not a mere politician, in the narrow sense of that term; and it has fallen to the lot of but few men, so prominent as Mr. Bell, in his own state, to share so largely in the confidence and respect of those who differed widely from him in their political views. In matters of principle, though always courteous, he was firm and unyielding, and while faithfully representing the wishes, and reflecting the sentiments of his own people, his patriotism was yet broad enough to embrace the entire country, with all its varied interests and conflicting opinions. "It is not, however, as a lawyer or a politician, that the loss of Mr. Bell will be most keenly felt or most deeply deplored. In private life, an obliging neighbor, a warm and sincere friend, an agreeable companion, and an honest, upright man, his death, in the community where he dwelt, has created a void which cannot soon be filled. "But it is upon the sanctuary of his own home, that this blow has fallen with most crushing weight. On the banks of the charming Winnipiseogee not inaptly named the Smile of the Great Spirit-the cultivated taste of Mr. Bell had reared and adorned his beautiful New England home. And it was here, in the midst of warm and devoted friends, and surrounded by his intelligent and interesting family, that he was best known, best appreciated, and most fondly loved. No words of mine can carry consolation to the hearth made desolate, or help to alleviate the sorrow of hearts stricken with anguish. I can only mingle a tear of sympathy with theirs, and assure them how deeply, in common with his numerous friends, I condole with them in their great bereavement. --- "This afflictive event is brought home with peculiar significance and impressiveness to the people of N. H., and her delegation in Congress. Within the short space of four years, three senators of the United States from that state Atherton, Norris, Bell - have, while yet in office, passed to 'that undiscovered country, from whose bourn no traveller returns.' The death of Mr. Bell, at a moment when his desires were as warm, and his hopes as eager as ours, has feelingly told us what shadows we are, and what shadows we pursue.' It should remind us how little there is which men toil and struggle for here, that can afford any lasting enjoyment. The wealth, the honors, the hopes and ambitions of this life are all hastening to one common goal, and will soon be buried in a common receptacle." 66 The following sketch of his character was drawn up by Chief Justice Perley, of the Supreme Court of New Hampshire: Mr. Bell was cut off in the midst of his years. His death was an event which necessarily produced a strong sensation in this community. He was an eminent man, filling a large space in the public eye, greatly distinguished in his profession of the law, occupying, with ability and integrity not denied or questioned, a high official station, very extensively known, and universally esteemed as a private citizen; and the circumstances of his death, in the full vigor of his intellectual powers, and at a time of life when it might be reasonably hoped that a long career of usefulness and honor was still before him, are deeply affecting, especially to those of us who have been so intimately associated with him as a friend and brother in the legal profession, and to his neighbors and acquaintances in this immediate vicinity. Such a death conveys a solemn warning to those who survive, and forcibly impresses on the mind the great lesson of vanity in human, and in all mere worldly pursuits. Mr. Bell was a man of large attainments, and great variety and versatility of powers. Considered as a lawyer, it would not be easy to name one more completely furnished for all exigencies in the different departments of the profession. He was an advocate fully equal to the conduct of the weightiest and most difficult cases. As a legal adviser, no man gave a sounder and safer opinion on a naked question of law. His prudence and excellent good sense, his sagacity and intimate knowledge of men and business, made his counsel of the highest value in all those numerous cases of a practical nature where a client has need of much more than a mere professional opinion upon his strictly legal rights. There was an even balance in his mind, and a just proportion in all the parts of his character. His power consisted not so much in the prominence of any individual faculties, as in the symmetry and united strength of the whole. He was as far removed as possible from all disposition to ostentatious display. No part of his strength was wasted in superfluous action; his effort always appeared to be nicely proportioned to the importance and difficulty of the work which he had in hand; he never seemed to do more on an ordinary occasion than the nature of the case appeared to require, and was always found fully equal to the heaviest and most difficult causes that fell to his management. "His manner, though by no means wanting in force and vivacity, was never boisterous or declamatory. He spoke directly to his cause, in language uncommonly pure and expressive, but wholly free from all affectation of smartness or ambitious ornament. He was seldom known to hesitate for a word, and spoke with great rapidity of articulation, but with so much distinctness, and with such admirable method, that no speaker was more easily or more perfectly understood. His arguments were logical and terse, not often extending into great length, though he was quite capable of minute and extended discussion, when, in his judgment, the nature of the case appeared to require it. "There was nothing for which he was more remarkable than the variety and amount of labor which he was able to perform. Without hurry or confusion, he disposed of his work with unrivalled ease and despatch. He was entirely free from all low craft and disingenuous artifice; yet his dexterity and fine tact in the handling of a cause have not been surpassed by any contemporary in this state. "He always resided, except when absent for purposes of education, in N. H., and was thoroughly acquainted with the course of business, the daily habits, and the prevailing sentiments and feelings of the people among whom he lived-a knowledge which was one principal source of his power and success. In his character, some qualities were united and harmoniously blended, which are not often seen to meet in the same individual. He was the most modest and unobtrusive of men, yet was never known to fail in self-possession, and in the perfect mastery and control of his faculties. With the greatest mildness and gentleness of manner, he was strenuous and unyielding in the assertion of all his client's substantial rights. The quickness of his perceptions was such as is usually supposed to imply something hasty and volatile in the disposition, not consistent with sound judgment and steadiness of character; yet few men could be more safely relied on for caution, prudence, and firmness of purpose, and for persevering industry in all that he undertook. No lawyer could desire to possess more entirely the confidence of his clients; and such were his habitual candor and fairness, that he seldom failed to conciliate the esteem and good will even of his opponents. He knew well how to be severe; but his disposi tion and his habits inclined him always to forbearance. In studied invective he never indulged, and even in the heat of the most animated discussion, was never betrayed by any amount of provocation into coarseness or harshness of remark. "Such a combination of qualities can only be found where excellent natural endowments have been improved by assiduous cultivation, and disciplined by long habits of labor and self-control. In Mr. Bell's case, it is to be apprehended that too severe and unremitted devotion to his various labors and duties hastened the termination of a life so dear to his friends, and so important to the public. "The bar of N. H. may well mourn the loss of a member who was an ornament and an honor to our profession; and the death of such a lawyer, in the midst of his years, of such commanding ability, so faithful to the interests of his clients, so honorable in all his dealings with the bar and the court, of such spotless purity in every relation of private life, must be regarded as a great public loss. I will not trust myself to speak here of the bereavement which the family of Mr. Bell, and the extensive circle of his family connections, have suffered in his death; nor will it be expected of me that I should dwell upon his character as a statesman and politician. It cannot, however, be improper for me to remark, that even in political life, Mr. Bell's courtesy, fairness, and candor appear to have disarmed the usual asperity of party feelings. I do not remember to have any where seen the slightest imputation cast upon his integrity and the purity of his personal motives, by those who differed most widely from the views that he entertained on questions that have so much agitated and divided the public mind. The grief of Mr. Bell's friends is sharp, and will be lasting; but their sorrow is not imbittered with the thought that any part of his too short life was wasted in idleness, misspent in vain and frivolous pursuits, or sullied by the indulgence of appetite and passion. His life was without a stain, and, to the last, most diligently devoted to useful and honorable labor in the way of his duty." In speaking of the legal attainments of Mr. Bell, mention has been made of the distinguished professional gentlemen in N. H. who were the strong men in the N. H. bar when Mr. Bell entered it, and whose attainments and power inspired him with great diligence and honorable emulation. It is also well to take a view of the family circle of Mr. Bell, to appreciate the social stimulus which contributed in no small degree to his upward and honorable progress in life. His grandfather Bell was a member of the N. H. Senate in the time of the revolutionary war. His father was judge of the Superior Court of N. H., governor of the state five years, and U. S. senator twelve years. His uncle, John Bell, also was governor of the state. Dr. Luther V. Bell, the distinguished superintendent of the McLean Hospital, Mass., and the Hon. S. D. Bell, one of the present judges of the Supreme Court of N. H., are his elder brothers. His wife's father, the late Hon. Nathaniel Upham, of Rochester, N. H., was many years a member of Congress, and father of Prof. Upham, of Bowdoin College, Me., and of Judge Upham, of N. H., late U. S. commissioner to England, and father-in-law of the late David Barker, Jr., of Rochester, who was several years a member of the U. S. House of Representatives, and a good lawyer. Mr. Bell, by his high and honorable attainments, reflected honor upon the men who early became models of his aspirations, and upon the distinguished household which, in so many of its members, was able to impart nurture and force to those aspirations. BELL, Dr. James, at Des Ark, Arkansas, April 14, œ. —. BELL, Mrs. Nancy, Boston, Mass., Feb. 4, æ. 55 yrs. 9 mos., widow of the late Dr. Bell, of Dorchester. BELL, William, Spottsylvania Co., Va., March 18, æ. 93. He was at Yorktown when Cornwallis surrendered. He had been a member of the Baptist church for more than 70 years. He was an honest man, and highly esteemed by his neighbors. BELLOWS, Abel, Walpole, N. H., April, æ. 81. BELLOWS, Rev. John N., Brattleboro', Vt., formerly of Wilton, N. H., , æ. 51. BEMAN, Miss Fannie H. S., Farmington, Conn., Feb. 6, æ. 14, daughter of Rev. A. G. Beman, of New Haven, Conn. BEMIS, James D., Brattleboro', Vt., Nov. 2, æ. 74, in the insane asylum of that place, formerly of Canandaigua, N. Y. He was among the foremost of that worthy class of older citizens, now nished, as far as was needful, with_pecuniary aid by its proprietor. This statement is due to Mr. Bemis as a deserved memorial of his generous liberality, and of the friendly and parental interest he took in the welfare of those reared under his instruction and care. In the "History of the Press of Western New York," read at the " Printers' Festival," in Rochester in Jan., 1847, a fitting tribute is paid to the professional and personal character of Mr. Bemis, as "the oldest representative of the newspaper press in Western New York then living, looked upon with no little veneration and regard by those actively engaged in that branch of business;" and the hope is expressed, that "he might long be spared as a noble monument of fair and upright dealing," and, when "gathered to his fathers," be welcomed with "well done, good and faithful servant." He commenced his apprenticeship, as a printer, in Boston, and completed it at Albany, in the office of Sol nearly all departed, to whom Canandaigua was largely indebted for the prosperity and success of its public institutions, and for its high moral and social position among the villages of Western New York. He took a lively and active interest in whatever might contribute to its improvement and welfare, and was ever 'ready to every good word and work." It was, however, in the character of conductor of a public journal, that Mr. Bemis was best known beyond the limits of his immediate community. The Ontario Repository, now almost the oldest newspaper in the state, was virtually established by him, and, until successive dismemberments curtailed the county whose name it bears to its present proportions, had a widely extended circulation. Under his judicious and able direction, it acquired a reputation and influence scarcely equalled by any public journal out of our largest cities. The uniform candor, truthfulness, and good sense which characterized its col-omon Southwick, at that time a promiumns, commanded implicit confidence in all its statements, and compelled the respect even of political opponents. The few of its early and constant readers and patrons now living will bear us out in the estimate here taken of the character of the paper while under his charge. Hence, amidst all the fluctuations of politics and parties, the Repository lost little of its popularity and influence, even with those who dissented from the views and sentiments expressed in its columns. The reputation of the paper and the character of its proprietor rendered a situation in the office of the Repository an object of ambition to those who were desirous of learning the printer's art; and the number of youths apprenticed to Mr. Bemis for that purpose, and trained under his instruction, is probably greater than has been sent forth from any other country office in the state. And it is a fact creditable both to him and to them, that in nearly every instance, they have turned out well, and been prosperous and successful in their chosen pursuit. Many of them he set up in business; and there was scarcely a village within the limits of the original county of Ontario, that did not owe the establishment of its first printing press and newspaper to graduates from the Repository office, fur nent member of the craft, and the conductor of one of the ablest political journals in the state. Mr. Bemis came to this place in Jan., 1804; and in the course of that year connected himself with Mr. John K. Gould, in the publication of what was then called the "Repository and Advertiser." He not long after purchased the interest of his partner in the establishment, and changed its name to that which it now bears. BENEDICT, Mrs. Anna, Manchester, Vt., Jan. 29, æ. 92, widow of Samuel Benedict. Those who were so happy as to enjoy a familiar acquaintance with this estimable person, feel that it is right for them to render her memory more than an ordinary tribute of respect and esteem. In her were united to a mind gifted by nature, and well cultivated by reading and observation, all those amiable and Christian graces which become her sex. As a mother, her devotion was untiring; as a friend and neighbor, her kindness and amiable deportment will be cherished as most dear recollections. BENN, Henry, Curllsville, Clarion Co., æ. 93. He emigrated to the part of Clarion Co. then Armstrong, about the year 1804, and the country being then pretty much of a wilderness, he, with other settlers, endured many diffi culties and privations. He was a kind, inoffensive neighbor, a good citizen, without enemies, and an honest man. BENNET, Dr. Abel, Ridgefield, Conn., Aug. 7, æ. -. Dr. B. was for many years a resident of West Bloomfield, Ontario Co., N. Y., and more recently of Le Roy, Genesee Co., N. Y. From there he removed, in 1853, to Ridgefield, Conn., the place of his nativity. BENNET, John, Newton township, O., Jan. 28, æ. 70. Deceased emigrated from Pa. to O. about 45 years ago. BENNETT, Brevet Col. A. G., U. S. army, at New Orleans, March —, æ. —. BENNETT, Mary, Burlington, Mass., March 30, æ. 98, widow of the late James Bennett. BENNETT, Mary, Portsmouth, Va., Jan. 6, æ. 40, wife of William Bennett, U.S. N. BENNETT, Sarah, New Bedford, N. J., Sept. 27, æ. 69, widow of Jeremiah Bennett. BENSELL, Mary, Germantown, N. J., Sept. 6, æ. 93. BENT, Dea. Adam, South Boston Point, March 22, æ. 81. BENTLEY, Thomas Spring, M. D., New Lexington, O., Sept. 2, æ. —. BENTON, Dr. A. W., near Delta, Coahoma Co., Miss., Jan. 26. BENTON, Reuben C., Rockford, Ill., Oct. 11, æ. 54; of Guildhall, Vt., senator elect at the time of his death. BERRY, James, Jacksonville, Ala., æ. 69. The deceased removed from Tenn. to Ala. some years ago, and has been engaged for the most part since then in mercantile business. He was much esteemed and beloved by a numerous train of friends and acquaintances, as a good citizen, a warm friend, an upright, honorable business man, and in short, estimable in all the relations of life. He had been for many years a faithful and consistent member of the Presbyterian church. BERRY, Rev. John M., Clinton, March 2, æ. about 68. BERRY, Rev. Philip, Richmond, Va., Jan. 23, æ., rector of St. Peter's Church, Kent Co., Va. BERRY, Hon. William, Concord, N. H., Jan. 23, æ. 57. He was born at Barnstead, where he lived, a respectable farmer the greater part of his life. In 1845, he was appointed deputy warden of the state prison, where he remained and faithfully performed his duty three or four years. In 1855, he was chosen state treasurer, and reelected for 1856. The duties of this office were performed by Mr. Berry with faithfulness and honesty. He was not a man of envious feelings, but rejoiced in the prosperity of those around him, when acquired through industry, sobriety, and honesty. BERRY, Zoheth, Brewster, Mass., Jan. 24, æ. 87. BEST, Hon. Valentine, Danville, Pa., Oct. 28, æ. 56. Mr. Best was born March 8, 1801, in Valley township, Pa. His father's family moved to Danville a year or two afterwards, and the subject of this notice had been a resident of Danville ever since, with the exception of a few years during his apprenticeship to the printing business, and when he worked as a compositor in the city of Washington and at Harrisburg. After July 15, 1828, he was the publisher and editor of the Danville Intelligencer, which was previously published by Mr. George Sweeney, under the title of the "Watchman." In 1839, he was appointed prothonotary of Columbia Co., and clerk of the different courts, by Gov. Porter. In 1847, he was elected to the state Senate, and in the last year of his senatorship, he was chosen as presiding officer of that honorable body. It was by his exertions mainly that the new county of Montour was established, during the memorable session of 1850. He also held several important municipal offices, all of which he filled with fidelity and honor to himself and the community. BETHUNE, Mary C., Robinson Co., N. C., March 20, æ. 27. BICKEL, Mrs. Savannah C., Hanging Rock, Lawrence Co., O., Sept. 25, æ. 44, wife of Rev. A. Bickel. BICKER, Mrs. Dorothy, N. Y. city, Jan. 3, æ. 76, widow of the late Capt. Nicholas Bicker, of the U. S. revenue cutter service. BICKFORD, Horace, Newburyport, Mass., May 17, æ. 40, of the Essex bar. BICKNELL, Capt. John, Beloit, Wis., March 3, æ. 77. Thus was there removed to another world one of the oldest inhabitants and original proprietors of that town. In the death of Capt. B., his family is called to mourn the loss of a devoted husband, and a kind and ten |