classes and conditions, and of every shade of political opinion.

The high estimation in which he was held by the citizens of Liverpool
was especially manifest October 18, 1824, when they presented him with a
testimonial, consisting of a magnificent service of plate, of
twenty-eight pieces, and bearing the following inscription: "_To John
Gladstone, Esq., M.P., this service of plate was presented MDCCCXXIV, by
his fellow townsmen and friends, to mark their high sense of his
successful exertions for the promotion of trade and commerce, and in
acknowledgment of his most important services rendered to the town of
Liverpool_."

John Gladstone, though devoted to commerce, had time for literary
pursuits. He wrote a pamphlet, "On the Present State of Slavery in the
British West Indies and in the United States of America; and on the
Importation of Sugar from British Settlements in India." He also
published, in 1830, another pamphlet, containing a statement of facts
connected with the same general subject, "in a letter addressed to Sir
Robert Peel." In 1846 he published a pamphlet, entitled "Plain facts
intimately connected with the intended Repeal of the Corn Laws; or
Probable Effects on the Public Revenue and the Prosperity of
the Country."

From the subject discussed it can be readily and truly imagined that
John Gladstone had given thought to political subjects. He was in favor
of a qualified reform which, while affording a greater enfranchisement
of the people, looked also to the interests of all. Having an opinion,
and not being afraid to express it, he was frequently called upon to
address public meetings. The matters discussed by him were, however,
rather national than municipal, rather humane than partisan. He was a