He certainly was a strange mixture of good and bad qualities. He
seemed to be made up altogether of opposites. He was very bitter
against any one who had offended him, yet he was not permanently
vindictive. He was grasping in business, yet he was not ungenerous.
He was a most implacable enemy, yes he was capable of warm and most
disinterested friendship. He could descend to trickery in dealing,
yet as a magistrate he had a high and most inflexible ideal of
honour, honesty, and rectitude. He could be coarse in his conduct and
demeanour, and yet he could occasionally be as courteous and dignified
as the most polished gentleman. He was overbearing where he felt he
was safe, yet where he was met by courage and firmness he yielded
quietly and quickly.
My own introduction, and subsequent acquaintance, were strangely
characteristic of the peculiarly antithetic nature of the man. They
began in ill-temper, and resulted in commercial relations of a most
friendly nature, extending over many years, without a second unkindly
word.
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