Black Dan's Watch Goes Ticking On

THE watch that the dying Daniel Webster gave to his attending doctor has been added to Dartmouth's unrivaled Websterania collection.

The watch, an original oil painting, and a lithograph of the statesman were presented to Baker Library by John C. Fuess, deputy director of the U. S. State Department's Office of International Conferences. Mr. Fuess had received them as part of the estate of his father, Claude Moore Fuess, Litt.D. '31, former headmaster of Phillips Academy at Andover and author of the standard two-volume biography of Webster. In a memorandum referring to the articles Claude Fuess indicated his wish that they go to Dartmouth, a desire which his son promptly honored.

The timepiece is the familiar gold pocket watch of the early 18th century and was wound with a special key. It still keeps accurate time. On the back of the watch is inscribed: "Daniel Webster to John Jeffries. Oct. 21, 1852. Marshfield."

According to an 1882 newspaper reporting on the centennial celebrating Webster's birth, the watch was "the one Webster habitually carried and the first he bought with money earned by him in his profession." In this case, it is probably 150 or more years old and Webster owned it for about 40 years.

Webster evidently presented the watch to Dr. John Jeffries of Boston on his death bed. Mr. Fuess' biography of Webster described the dramatic scene this way: "With his family and servants around him, Webster then, in a voice which was strong and full, declared his religious faith, speaking very slowly as if he were addressing a multitude.

" 'My general wish on earth,' he said, 'has been to do my Maker's will. I thank Him now for all the mercies that surround me.. . . The great mystery is Jesus Christ - the Gospel. What would be the condition of any one of us if we had not the hope of immortality?' And so he went on, his mind entirely lucid. Almost on the verge of eternity, the orator still craved his audience, as if the habit of a lifetime could not be broken. He began to ramble a little, falling back and closing his eyes, evidently overcome by drowsiness. Then, with an effort, he revived, and, looking about him asked, 'Have I, wife, son, doctors, friends, are you all here? - Have I, on this occasion, said anything unworthy of Daniel Webster?' 'No, no, dear sir,' was the response from everybody.. .."

Later, just before midnight he recovered consciousness sufficiently to utter the well-known sentence, "I still live!" These were his last words. He died at 2:37 a.m., October 24, 1852.

Webster's watch still sounds good toBaker Library archivist Kenneth Cramer.