Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 9.djvu/270

246 seems to be taxed to its full capacity; there is always an appearance of reserve strength beyond. He has a large way of estimating men and things. No petty prejudices obscure the clearness of his vision, or weaken the soundness of his judgment. He has the courage of his convictions, and does not shrink from telling an unpalatable truth when necessary; but he has the rare faculty of giving no needless offence. In the wide round of his occupations he must needs have caused some disappointments; but his character for justice and square dealing is so universally understood, that censure finds no vulnerable spot to fasten on. Few prominent men are so free from enemies.

The imperturbable poise of character which Col. Sawyer exhibits is one of his distinguishing features. Nothing throws him off his balance. He keeps entire control of his temper; he allows neither success to elate him, nor failure to depress him. As the western people say, he is "a man to tie to." This is the result of natural equanimity, supplemented by careful self-discipline. His powers are so cultivated that they are evenly developed; his character is matured, well-rounded, and symmetrical.

Moreover, he is, in the expressive phrase of the day, a "clean" man. His life has been soiled by no mean or sordid action. Amidst many temptations to self-indulgence, he has preserved himself pure and unspoiled. In the several relations of son and husband and father, of friend and of citizen, he has been faithful and true to his duty. At twenty-five years of age he married Susan E., daughter of Dr. James W. Cowan. Their home is on the bank of the stream whose waters turn the wheels of Sawyer's Mills. It is the unostentatious abode of genuine comfort and refinement. It is there that Col. Sawyer finds, in the society of his wife and children, rest from the cares of his business, and the truest enjoyment of his life.

For several years past those who knew Col. Sawyer best have felt that he was destined ere long to fill the chief executive office in the gift of the people of New Hampshire; and when, a few months since, his name was publicly mentioned for the gubernatorial nomination by the Republican party, it was received with enthusiasm by people in all parts of the State. The Convention, when assembled, ratified what appeared to be the popular voice, and nominated him as their candidate for the governorship by a vote of nearly three-fourths of their whole number.

Gratifying to the nominee as this spontaneous mark of the confidence of his party must have been, his reception by the people of his city, without distinction of party, must have been even more so. He was met on his return from the Convention to Dover, by a great procession, civic and military, of men of all opinions and callings, and escorted to his home amid cheers and music and illuminations all along the way. It was an ovation that testified more eloquently than words to the high estimation in which his character is held by his neighbors and townsmen.

Col. Sawyer is yet in his prime. It is probable that one-half of his adult life is still before him. The qualities that have already made him one of our foremost men will guide and govern him throughout the remainder of his career. And all that he has thus far accomplished is not unlikely to prove but the vestibule to the noble edifice of his completed life.