This remarkable man, whose loss Europe and America have recently been called upon to deplore, is stated to have been of Scottish descent; hut it is believed that his family, a collateral branch of which produced the celebrated lexicographer, resided some time in England previously to 1636, about which year his direct progenitor settled in the town of Hampton, New Hampshire. The father of Webster appears to have been a man far above the ordinary level; and, doubtless, he imparted to his son more valuable traits than the jet-black hair, dark piercing eyes, gipsy-like skin, and sturdy frame, which distinguished both. When young, he enlisted as a soldier in the ranks of the provincial troops, under Sir Geoffrey Amherst, and accompanied that general in his invasion of Canada. Before the close of the war, his conduct and valour had raised him to the dignity of captain, and his services were rewarded with a grant of land at the head of the Merrimac River. Having thus fairly entitled himself to say militavi non sine gloria, he located himself at the extreme north of the town of Salisbury; so that, as his son afterwards declared, the smoke of his log-cabin ascended nearer the north star than that of any of his majesty's New England subjects. He commenced the process of clearing in 1764; and shortly afterwards he married a lady of Welsh extraction, built a frame-house, dug a well, and planted an elm-tree over it, after the patriarchal fashion. There, on. the 18th of January, 1782, Danial Webster was born; and though the frame-house and the original log-cabin have alike disappeared, the farm still remains in possession of the family. The tree under whose shade he sat and read, and mused as a boy, and the well which quenched his thirst and reflected his shadow, are still visible, and to the last were objects of as much interest and attraction, when he left for awhile the busy haunts of men to enjoy the inviting repose which the place of his nativity afforded, as they had been when, with open book, he contemplated Gray's beautiful "Elegy," whose stanzas he ever loved to repeat, and which, within a few hours of his death, conveyed pleasure and gratification to his heart, and solaced his depart-ing spirit.

The abilities that shone in Webster through life were encouraged and fostered in the earliest of those years, when human nature so easily takes impressions for good or evil, by his mother, who united a strong mind and a powerful intellect to an ardent ambition and a fearless spirit. He supposed that she must have commenced his lessons almost in infancy, as he was unable to recollect the time when he could not read his Bible; and, being naturally and justly proud of the extraordinary talents he displayed, she bent the whole force of her vigorous understanding to train and prepare him for that station which, she felt and foresaw, he would ere long occupy. The wild, thinly-populated country where his father dwelt, was not, as may be supposed, excessively tempting to those exercising pedagogic functions; and the op-portunities of education enjoyed by the future statesman and orator were, therefore, extremely limited in extent and indifferent in value. One itinerant teacher did, however, keep a school for a small portion of the year, at three miles' distance, and to it Webster trudged daily in mid-winter, often up to the ankles in mud and mire. The schoolmaster initiated him into all the knowledge he himself possessed; namely, reading, writing, and arithmetic; and the future senator began to manifest an evident love of books, which, as may be imagined, were somewhat scarce in the district. Fortunately, by the exertions of his father, combined with those of the clergyman and lawyer, a small circulating library was soon opened, and straight way Webster began to devour the contents, with the eagerness of a young tiger tearing its prey. He showed at this period a decided predilection for poetical works, and committed to memory a great deal of poetry, which in after years he turned to account with a judgment and felicity not always exhibited by Transatlantic orators. When not engaged in reading or study, the fishing-rod or the gun was his companion. He was fond of solitude, and of river and woodland scenery, under the inspiration of which he was, in later years, in the habit of composing and pondering the most remarkable passages in those orations which delighted the hearts, refined the taste, and elevated the tone of his countrymen.

At the age of fourteen he was sent to Exeter, and entered at the academy, where he learned the rudiments of English grammar, and made considerable progress in the learned languages. It is rather singular, that whilst there he manifested the strangest repugnance to declamation of every description; nor could all the encouragement or entreaties of the assistant tutor tempt or induce him to engage in it. He did, indeed, commit pieces to memory, and recite them in his own room, but when the time for delivering them arrived, he shrunk from a public display. The fact is so interesting, that it may not improperly be given in his own words:—

"I believe I made tolerable progress in most branches which I attended to while in this school; but there was one thing I could not do. I could not make a declamation. I could not speak before the school. The kind and excellent Buckminster sought especially to persuade me to perform the exercise of declamation, like other boys, but I could not do it. Many a piece did I commit to memory, and recite and rehearse in my own room, over and over again; yet when the day came, when the school collected to hear declamations, when my name was called, and all eyes were turned to my seat, I could not raise myself from it. Sometimes the instructors frowned, sometimes they smiled. But I never could command sufficient resolution."

This school was found more expensive than consisted with his father's means, and he was consequently removed from it after a few months, during which he had been unequalled for the extent and success of his study. He was then taken by his father to be placed under the care of a clergyman who received pupils into his family, and prepared them for college on moderate terms. On their way, the intention of giving him the unanticipated benefit of a college education was communicated, and seems to have elicited the finest feelings. "I remember," he says, "the very hill which we were ascending, through deep snows, in a New-England sleigh, when my father made known his purpose to me. I could not speak. How could he, I thought, with so large a family, and in such narrow circumstances, think of incurring so great an expense for me! A warm glow ran all over me, and I laid my head on my father's shoulder and wept."

His progress was rapid and wonderful; and now commenced that mental toil which never ceased to the end of his eventful life. Under the careful tuition of Dr. Woods, he, with but an imperfect knowledge of Latin, was in the habit of reading one hundred lines of Virgil at a lesson. He not only read, but understood and appreciated them. His recreations were the same as those which subsequently occupied his leisure hours, and in his rambles the rifle was his constant companion. Dr. Woods once ventured to hint that his example in this respect might exercise an injurious influence on the other boys. The suggestion, though delicately conveyed, acted on the mind of his sensitive pupil to such a degree, that he sat up and devoted the whole of the next night to study; and when the master appeared as usual in the morning, read his hundred lines without a mistake. As the worthy teacher was preparing to go, Webster requested him to hear a few more lines. Another hundred were read; and although breakfast was repeatedly announced, there was no prospect of the lesson coming to a conclusion. At length the impatient doctor asked him how much farther he could read? "To the end of the twelfth book of the Eneid," was the prompt and startling reply.

From this date his hours were so sacredly devoted to study, that in less than a year he read with his teacher Virgil and Cicero, and in private two books of Grotius and Puffendorff in Latin. Chance threw in his way an English copy of "The Adventures of Don Quixote," which produced its usual fascinating influence on his imagination, and was perused with eager interest. The "Spectator" also took his fancy, and received much of his attention.

ln the month of July, Webster was summoned tome to assist on the farm; but he was, at that time, so little qualified by physical strength for such labours, that a half-day's experience sent him home with blistered hands and wearied limbs. Next morning his father sent him back to his teacher, who received him with heartfelt joy; and assured him that with hard study he might be rendered fit to enter college at the opening of the next session. He set himself to grapple with Greek, of which he had not then learned even the alphabet, and was particularly successful in the effort, though he had only a couple of months to devote to it.

Fortified with such learning as he had acquired, Webster, in the summer of 1797, took the least valuable of his father's horses, and depositing his wardrobe and library in a pair of saddle-bags, set out for Hanover. Scarcely had he snatched the last fond look of his father's dwelling when a furious storm began to blow, and rendered his journey toil-some and disagreeable. However, by perseverance, he reached the place of destination on the second day; and forthwith entered the freshman class, at Dartmouth College, in which he was at once re-cognised as being superior to his associates. After a residence of two years, during which he displayed his wonted ardour and industry, he returned home to spend a vacation. He now felt keenly for the situation of his younger brother, who was destined to remain at home, and spend his energies in the vain effort to remove a mortgage from the homestead. Webster knew and appreciated his brother's intel-lectual endowments, and resolved that they should enjoy equal privileges. For a whole night they held earnest discourse of their prospects; and, next morning, Webster determined to break the matter to their father, who experienced no small pain at the thought of separation from both his sons, especially as he had set his heart upon having the younger as his helper. A family council was held, and Mrs. Webster's characteristic decision at once prevailed, and settled the question. "I have lived long in the world," she said, "and have been happy in my children. If Daniel and Ezekiel will promise to take care of me in my old age, I will consent to the sale of all our property; and they may enjoy the benefit of what remains after our debts are paid." The father yielded, and when the elder brother returned to college, the younger, with a staff in one hand and a bundle in the other, bent his way on foot to the scene of his preparatory studies. He attained some eminence at the American bar, and finally fell down dead while engaged in pleading a cause.

After graduating, at the age of nineteen, Webster entered the office of a lawyer in his native place; but, being pressed by poverty, he accepted an invitation to teach a school at Fryeburg, Maine, at a salary of three hundred and fifty dollars, or seventy-five pounds a-year. Such a position was certainly critical, and not a little perilous to his prospect of greatness: but he was resolved; and aut viam inveniam aut faciam might have been his exclamation as he toiled through the daily dull routine. Notwithstanding the severe labours of the school, he devoted his evenings to the irksome drudgery of recording deeds in the county register, for which he received a moderate remuneration, that enabled him to save his whole salary; and, besides, applied him-self to the study of Blackstone's "Commentaries." In 1802 he returned to the lawyer's office; but two years later went to Boston, and pursued his studies under a profound jurist and statesman of that city. In 1805 he was admitted to the bar, and won high legal fame.

In 1812 he was elected to Congress, where his first speech produced so striking an effect, that competent judges did not hesitate to predict that he would, some day, be one of the first statesmen in America. His succeeding efforts were so successful as to call forth the remark, that "the North had not his equal, nor the South his superior." He con-tinued to represent the town of Portsmouth till 1816, when he removed to Boston, and for some years devoted himself to his profession with complete success. In 1822 he was returned as member for Boston, which he continued to represent till elected to the Senate of the United States. In 1841 he became Secretary of State, under the Presidency of General Harrison; an office to which he was worthily recalled by Mr. Fillmore in 1850, and the duties of which he discharged with signal ability and success. On the 24th of October, 1852, he died at his mansion of Marshfield, near Boston, where he was interred in presence of a vast and mourning assemblage.

The youthful career of this remarkable man is full of instruction and encouragement to juvenile aspirants, in whatever circumstances they may be placed. Few men in pursuit of greatness have had more difficulties to encounter on their entrance into life; but he nobly surmounted them all by a determined will, indomitable perseverance, an industry that no labour could daunt, and by the exercise of the talents with which Providence had endowed him, for the purpose of conferring benefit on his fellow-men. Let the ambitious youth do likewise, and he will not be without his rewards — fame, respect, admiration, and the lofty consciousness of having resolutely don© his duty.