Commonwealth who in different parts of the State are engaged in Professional, Political, Mercantile, Agricultural and Industrial pursuits. These have been selected from those, who, from Press, Pulpit, Field, Bar and the Exchange control the destinies of finance and trade, and give Massachusetts her proud preeminence in Philanthropy, Literature, Science and Commercial Prosperity. The old Bay-State stands to-day among her sister states of the Nation seventh in population, fourth in wealth, third in manufactures, first in education, and foremost in the formation of the intelligent and patriotic public conscience so keenly alive to the welfare of the whole country.
It was intended in "One of a Thousand" to briefly portray the principal events of the lives of those who have contributed to this end.
How faithfully this task has been performed is for you to say. Few realize the amount of labor and volume of Correspondence requisite to prefect so exhaustive an enterprise. Multiply the pains taken to secure so full and accurate a record of your own life by one thousand and even then there remains a large margin of patient research and necessary verification, not
