He
immediately entered upon the office, and has continued ever
since to discharge its duties. Recently, as the reader knows,
he was appointed, by the unanimous request of our delegation
in Congress, to a seat upon the Bench of the Supreme Court of
the United States, and was confirmed, without opposition, by
the Senate.
"Like most men who have risen to distinction in the United
States, Judge Field commenced his career without the
advantages of wealth, and he prosecuted it without the
factitious aids of family influence or patronage. He had the
advantage, however--which served him better than wealth or
family influence--of an accomplished education, and careful
study and mental discipline. He brought to the practice of
his profession a mind stored with professional learning,
and embellished with rare scholarly attainments. He was
distinguished at the bar for his fidelity to his clients, for
untiring industry, great care and accuracy in the preparation
of his cases, uncommon legal acumen, and extraordinary
solidity of judgment. As an adviser, no man had more the
confidence of his clients, for he trusted nothing to chance
or accident when certainty could be attained, and felt his
way cautiously to his conclusions, which, once reached, rested
upon sure foundations, and to which he clung with remarkable
pertinacity.
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