Poverty was his mother--Necessity his master. He had more brains than
books; more sense than education; more courage than politeness;
more strength than polish. He had no veneration for old mistakes--no
admiration for ancient lies. He loved the truth for the truth's
sake, and for man's sake. He saw oppression on every hand; injustice
everywhere; hypocrisy at the altar, venality on the bench, tyranny on
the throne; and with a splendid courage he espoused the cause of the
weak against the strong--of the enslaved many against the titled few.