In person Mr. Whitney was tall and dignified. He had a cultivated mind and a manner at once refined, frank and agreeable. He was familiar with the best society of his day and was a friend of every president of the United States from George Washington to John Quincy Adams. He had a commanding influence among all who knew him. Seldom has a great inventor been more sane, for his powers of invention were under perfect control and never ran wild. Unlike those who devise many things but complete few, he left nothing half executed. Robert Fulton said that Arkwright, Watt and Whitney were the three of his contemporaries who had done the most for mankind.[180] Lord Macaulay is quoted as saying, “What Peter the Great did to make Russia dominant, Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin has more than equaled in its relation to the progress and power of the United States.”[181] He contributed immeasureably to the agriculture and the manufacturing methods of the whole world and few mechanics have had a greater influence. [180] Blake: “History of Hamden, Conn.,” p. 303. [181] Devans: “Our First Century,” p. 153. Simeon North was born at Berlin, Conn., the same year as Whitney, and like him, started life as a farmer. In 1795 he began making scythes in an old mill adjoining his farm. Just when he began making pistols is not clear. It is said that he made some for private sale as early as the time of the Revolution, and it is probable that he had begun their manufacture in a small way prior to receiving his first government contract. He may have learned the rudiments of the trade from Elias Beckley, who had a gun shop about a mile from North’s birthplace.[182] [182] The fullest account of Simeon North is given in the “Memoir of Simeon North,” by S. N. D. North and R. H. North. Concord, N. H., 1913.