In his own constituency a member of the national House of Representatives may be a marked man; but his office confers no particular distinction at the national capital.  He must achieve distinction either by native talent or through fortuitous circumstance; rarely is greatness thrust upon him.  A newly elected member labors under a peculiar and immediate necessity to acquire importance, since the time of his probation is very brief.  The representative who takes his seat in December of the odd year, must stand for re-election in the following year.  Between these termini, lies only a single session.  During his absence eager rivals may be undermining his influence at home, and the very possession of office may weaken his chances among those disposed to consider rotation in office a cardinal principle of democracy.  If a newly elected congressman wishes to continue in office, he is condemned to do something great.

What qualities had Douglas which would single him out from the crowd and impress his constituents with a sense of his capacity for public service?  What had he to offset his youth, his rawness, and his legislative inexperience?  None of his colleagues cared a fig about his record in the Illinois Legislature and on the Bench.  In Congress, as then constituted, every man had to stand on his own feet, unsupported by the dubious props of a local reputation.

There was certainly nothing commanding in the figure of the gentleman from Illinois.  “He had a herculean frame,” writes a contemporary, “with the exception of his lower limbs, which were short and small, dwarfing what otherwise would have been a conspicuous figure....  His large round head surmounted a massive neck, and his features were symmetrical, although his small nose deprived them of dignity."[163] It was his massive forehead, indeed, that redeemed his appearance from the commonplace.  Beneath his brow were deep-set, dark eyes that also challenged attention.[164] It was not a graceful nor an attractive exterior surely, but it was the very embodiment of force.  Moreover, the Little Giant had qualities of mind and heart that made men forget his physical shortcomings.  His ready wit, his suavity, and his heartiness made him a general favorite almost at once.[165] He was soon able to demonstrate his intellectual power.

The House was considering a bill to remit the fine imposed upon General Andrew Jackson at New Orleans for contempt of court.  It was a hackneyed theme.  No new, extenuating circumstances could be adduced to clear the old warrior of high-handed conduct; but a presidential election was approaching and there was political capital to be made by defending “Old Hickory.”  From boyhood Douglas had idolized Andrew Jackson.  With much the same boyish indignation which led him to tear down the coffin handbills in old Brandon, he now sprang to the defense of his hero.  The case had been well threshed already.  Jackson had been defended eloquently, and sometimes truthfully.