The temptation to stray and to mistake platitude for originality is almost always fatal.
Mr.Webster was better fitted than any man who has ever lived in this country for the perilous task of occasional oratory.

The freedom of movement which renders most speeches of this class diluted and commonplace was exactly what he needed.

He required abundant intellectual room for a proper display of his powers, and he had the rare quality of being able to range over vast spaces of time and thought without becoming attenuated in what he said.

Soaring easily, with a powerful sweep he returned again to earth without jar or shock.

He had dignity and grandeur of thought, expression, and manner, and a great subject never became small by his treatment of it.