241. (CHIEF JUSTICE) ORIGEN STORRS⁷ SEYMOUR (Ozias⁶, Moses⁵, Moses⁴, John³, John², Richard¹), born at Litchfield, Conn., 9 Feb. 1804, died there 12 Aug. 1881; married at Litchfield, Conn., 5 Oct. 1830, Lucy MORRIS⁷ WOODRUFF, born at Litchfield 1 July 1807, died there 20 Oct. 1894, daughter of Morris⁶ (James⁵, Jacob⁴, Nathaniel³, Matthew², Matthew¹) and Candace (Catlin).

He graduated from Yale College in 1824 and was admitted to the bar in 1826. He began immediately to practice in Litchfield and continued for more than half a century. He was a Democrat in politics and active in public affairs. He was elected to various town offices and often represented the town in the general assembly, of which he was speaker in 1850. He was elected to Congress in 1851 and re-elected in 1853. In 1855 he was elected one of the judges of the superior court and was on the bench for eight years. In 1864-65 he was the Democratic nominee for governor of the state. In 1870 he was elected judge of the supreme court of errors of the state of Connecticut, and in 1873 became chief justice, an office he filled until he retired in 1874, upon reaching the constitutional age limit. Much of the time after his retirement he was employed as referee in important cases. In 1876 he was chairman of the committee that settled the long-standing boundary dispute between Connecticut and New York. The new code practice, adopted by the legislature in 1879, was prepared by a commission over which he presided. In the last year of his life he was elected unanimously to the legislature from his native town, a significant tribute of the respect and honor in which he was held in his town by citizens of different political belief. He received the honorary degree of LL.D. from Trinity College in 1866 and from Yale College in 1873. The series of brilliant lectures delivered by him before the Yale Law School and members of the New Haven bar in advocacy of the adoption of the revised civil practice had much to do with its final adoption.

“Born of a family distinguished both in law and politics, Judge Seymour was one of its most brilliant scions. In religion he was an Episcopalian, being a devout and devoted churchman, While Judge Seymour was prominent in all the walks of life, whether in church affairs, politically or socially, he will be chiefly remembered as a great lawyer and a good man, By his qualities of mind and training he was specially fitted to ornament the bar. His intellect was clear and cloudless; he grasped the salient points of a controversy with remarkable ease and quickness; in statement he was luminous, perspicacious and strong. His style of oratory was simple, unornamental, but pellucid and most convincing. Those who heard him argue a case were convinced, in spite of themselves, that Judge Seymour reasoned from internal conviction of the truth of his cause and they felt that the argument flowed from his intellect as a logical sequence of established facts. Hence he was, while unrhetorical, a most persuasive speaker. By his death the Bar of the State loses its brightest luminary, his party an able and effective advocate, the church a pious and noble member, and society one who was amiable, gentle and affectionate, and who loved mankind because he recognized in them something akin to divinity. Viewed in every aspect his death must be regarded as a public calamity. That he will rest in peace needs no assurance. With such a noble life, such lofty aspirations, such a pure purpose and with such noble fulfillments of the promises of his early manhood, he leaves behind him a record which, while it is to the honor and glory of his family, is also a delight and blessing to the public. Judge Seymour was a good and great man. He needs no further eulogy.”

GOLDEN WEDDING

By Mrs. M. S. Hollister

A copy of the Litchfield Enquirer of 1830, edited by Mr. Henry Adams, has the following marriage notice:

In this town (South Farms Society), on Tuesday morning, Oct. 5th, by the Rev. L. P. Hickok, Origen S. Seymour, Esq., to Lucy M. Woodruff, daughter of Gen. Morris Woodruff.

The fiftieth anniversary of this wedded pair brought them to another Tuesday morning, October 5th, 1880. In honor of the occasion the flag was hoisted from the village staff in the park by Dr. Sheldon, of New York; and fifty banners were hung out by Mr. Starr, of Echo Farm, from his house and other buildings. At 9 o'clock A. M. a service was held at St. Michael's church, by Rev. Storrs O. Seymour, rector. This service began with the 426th hymn–

“When all thy mercies, 0 my God,
My rising soul surveys.”

The hymn was led vocally by the rector's wife, supported by himself, Mr. Edward W. Seymour and wife, and Mr. Morris W. Seymour. We recalled another voice so wonted to us it seemed as if Maria Seymour must be singing with her brothers, till we looked at the memorial window lit by autumn sunshine and flowers. The ante and full communion service followed. The celebrants were the rector and Rev. Gouveneur M. Wilkins. All present partook of the sacrament, Judge Seymour, his family and relatives going first to the altar, followed by some village friends and guests from abroad. Among the latter were Mr. J01m Hooker, and his wife, Mrs. Isabella Beecher Hooker, and Captain and Mrs. Roath, from Norwich. Mr. and Mrs. George C. Woodruff, brother and sister of our bridegroom and bride, who celebrated their golden wedding last autumn, were the only persons in the church who witnessed the original ceremony. This number was increased at the reception by the presence of Miss Delia Seymour and Mr. Samuel M. Ensign. Dr. Hickok, still vigorous at 82, could not come, neither could Mr. William Mason, Mrs. Alva Clark and Dr. Miner, who were present in 1830.

Many aged people came to offer congratulations. One of these was Mr. Charles Seymour, a son of Captain Samuel Seymour, 87 years old, now a resident of Michigan, who was born in our rectory, and who yesterday morning went into the garret of the old house to look for a fishing-rod that he had hid away there forty-five years ago, and felt disappointed because he could not find it. Mr. Charles Seymour is ten days older than our hale fellow townsman, Mr. Tomlinson Wells. Mrs. John Phelps, aged ninety-two, sat up as straight and talked as cheerily as if she were in her teens. Mr. Myron Osborn was as brisk as ever. Gen. Hemingway, with his snow-white hair, and Mr. Stephen Trowbridge, a reproduction of Dr. Lyman Beecher's deacon, were looking down upon such young persons as Frederick Gibbs, Thomas Saltonstall, Lemuel O. Meafoy, Charles Adams, William Seymour, and John Bissell, who were only about seventy-five years old.

Among the letters advertised at the Litchfield post-office, October 5, 1830, was one addressed to Mr. Sylvester Spencer, former proprietor of the Mansion House. We wonder if he ever got it. If Mr. Charles Seymour, who was then postmaster, has retained this letter, we think it high time he delivered it. We were sorry not to see Mr. Spencer's white head and venerable figure in the group of octogenarians. Of the distinguished guests were Governor Horatio Seymour, of Utica, a first cousin of Judge Seymour, with his wife, and Mrs. Brandegee, widow of Rev. Dr. Brandegee, our former rector, whose memory is still tenderly associated with many of our loved ones who so loved him; Governors English, Ingersoll, Andrews, and Averill; the Honorables Colin M. Ingersoll, Henry C. Robinson, William Hamersley, G. F. Davis, William K. Seeley, Zalmon A. Storrs, Moses Me. Seymour, Abiiah Catlin; Judge Loomis, of the Supreme Court of Errors, and Judges Beardsley and Sanford, of the Superior Court; Senator Lyman W. Coe and wife, Dr. and Mrs. Sheldon, of New York, and Mrs. Sanford, widow of late Judge David C. Sanford, of our Supreme Court, were also present. Many clergymen called:

Rev. Dr. Maxcy, of St. John's, Bridgeport; Revs. Willis Colton, Harrison, Eastman, Peck, Stone, and McLean. Many regrets were expressed that Bishop Williams was necessarily absent. The morning was threatening, but before three o'clock, the reception hour, the clouds lifted and the afternoon and evening were truly golden. Four rooms were thrown open and decorated with exquisite flowers. The Franklin stove, a hundred years old, in the south parlor, with its glowing hickory coals, received much notice. The mantels and arches were aglow with crimson and gold. Choicest roses and rare orchids stood in beautiful vases on the piano and tables, lighting up the old family portraits. The staircases were lined with tube-roses. These floral decorations recall to mind that marvellous flower picture in “In Memoriam”:

“Bring orchids, bring the foxglove spire,
The little speedwell's darling blue,
Deep tulips dash'd with fiery dew,
Laburnums dropping-wells of fire.”

In the rear of the house the trees were having a golden wedding. On the terrace an evergreen was draped with woodbine, festooning and swaying itself far above the piazza, so intensely scarlet in the yellow sunshine under the blue sky that no artist but nature would have attempted it. The refreshment table under the care of Redcliff of New Haven was elegant and bountiful enough to supply the wants of the guests, more than five hundred in number. Fruits, flowers, and china helped to make it attractive. The bride's loaf on a side table was surrounded with orchids and rare vines. From three o'clock until nine, there was a succession of guests in handsome carriages and on foot. After lamplight, the silks, velvets, and flashing diamonds gave additional lustre to the flower- coloring of the rooms. The bridegroom and bride received their company with their usual kindly simplicity; everybody was made welcome and well served. It must have been gratifying to our distinguished chief judge and his wife to see how their neighbors flocked to them, and how heartily they shook hands with them. The absence of stereotyped phrases and commonplace congratulations must have been grateful to them, many a full heart there expressed through the eye the unspoken tribute of esteem and affection; and many a prayer was breathed that we may long continue to look upon the dear old faces before they shall be taken from us.–[From Litchfield Enquirer, Oct. 12th, 1880.]

LITCHFIELD

Litchfield never has witnessed a grander social event than that which took place Tuesday evening, the reception given by ex-Chief Justice Origen S. Seymour and wife, in celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of their wedding. The hours of reception were from 3 to 9 P. M., and a general invitation was extended to all their friends in Litchfield, while cards of invitation were sent to many friends and relatives in different parts of the state and country. The floral decorations were magnificent; deft and tasty fingers had festooned the walls and paintings with autumn leaves of brightest hue, together with vines and flowers. The friends were requested not to bring presents, but many of them expressed their kindest wishes in floral offerings which were beautiful beyond description. Every available nook and corner was filled with the choicest flowers. It were well-nigh impossible to describe the different bouquets, wreaths, etc., but mention should be made of one large vase of orchids, presented by a lady from New York. It seemed as if nearly every “genus” and species of the orchid family were represented, and that one had been suddenly carried away and placed in some tropical conservatory. A bountiful collation was spread, of which all were cordially invited to partake. Many notable persons were present. Among them were ex-Governor Horatio Seymour of New York, a cousin of the Judge; ex-Governor English, the present Democratic candidate for Governor; Governor Charles B. Andrews, ex-Governor Ingersoll, and Hon. Colin M. Ingersoll of New Haven, ex-Lieutenant Governor Averill, of Danbury, Judges Loomis, Sanford, and Beardsley, of the Supreme Court, the Hon. Henry C. Robinson, of Hartford, the Hon. Simeon E. Baldwin, of New Haven, and many others who are well known, not only in Connecticut, but throughout the country. Two cousins of the Judge were present, one from Michigan, who is eighty-eight years old, and the other from Western New York about eighty years of age. Both had come from the west to unite with their friends in the east in paying their respects and homage to their distinguished cousin. The same old house which welcomed the Judge and his bride fifty years ago again opened wide its portals to the vast throngs who came to congratulate him and his wife on their golden anniversary. It was golden in more senses than one. Judge Seymour's life, whether in public or in private, has been pure, without stain, and above reproach. The breath of calumny and suspicion has never touched him. The name of Origen S. Seymour has become a synonym for all that is pure and honest in a public and professional life. None know him but to honor him, and it was the farewell prayer of everyone of that brilliant assemblage that many years of happy wedded life may yet be spared to the Judge and his estimable wife.[From Hartford Courant of Oct. 7th, 1880.]

HON. EDWARD WOODRUFF⁸ SEYMOUR (1832-1892) was prepared for college in the Classical School of Simeon and Edward L. Hart, Farmington, Connecticut, and entered Yale College from which he was graduated with the degree of A.B. in the class of 1853. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in Litchfield county in 1856 and practiced in his native town until 1875 when he removed to Bridgeport, Connecticut, and associated himself in partnership with his younger brother, Morris W. Seymour, continuing thus until he was appointed a judge of the supreme court of errors of the state. He was for several years judge of probate in the Litchfield district. He represented Litchfield in the general assembly of Connecticut in 1859-60-70-71, was a state senator in 1876, and Congressman, two terms, 4 Mar. 1883 to 3 Mar. 1887. He was a lay delegate from the diocese of Connecticut in the general convention of the Protestant Episcopal church.

“As a lawyer he was thorough, quick in perception, sound in reflection, pleasing and effective in speech. He prepared his cases conscientiously. His knowledge of men, his quick wit, his rare apprehension of humor and humorous things, his abounding good judgment, his intellectual alacrity in emergencies, and his courage in a crisis gave him a fine outfit for practice. He crossexamined a witness always with skill, and sometimes with genius. But no temptation to score a point ever led him into the petty tyranny of abusing a witness. He wore the golden rule on his heart and remembered that the man in the witness box was a brother. As a Judge, without being hortatory, he warmed his opinions with wholesome morals. Such ethics, for instance, as we find in the opinion of Coupland vs, Housatonic Railroad Company, in the Sixty-first Connecticut, make good reading. His career as a lawyer and judge strengthens our attachment to our profession which he adorned. Judge Seymour is mourned by the Bar and by the bench of the state with a common and tender grief. Years of closest intimacy bound many manly hearts to him with a love which may not be told, but which must be undying. His grave is the tomb of hope and promise and of a life broken when it was strongest. He was buried in the afternoon of a gentle October day, when the sun shone through the clouds and brightened the gold and scarlet and crimson of fading nature, and he was buried in love.”

The foregoing extract is from the pen of Henry C. Robinson. Judge Augustus H. Fenn said of Judge Seymour at the time of his death:

“Yesterday morning, at Litchfield, there passed from week-day toil into Sunday rest, from work so consecrated that it was worship, into eternal peace –as pure a soul, and as gentle, as ever parted from earth to enter heaven. One who speaks from a torn heart because he loved him living and loves him dead; one who met him in delightful social intercourse four days last week (the last time on Friday) in seeming health, full of life and its interests, and to whom the telegram announcing his sudden death came with shocking agony, can neither be silent nor speak with a calm, dispassionate utterance in such an hour. Edward W. Seymour lies dead at the age of sixty, in the town in which he was born and on the street where he has always lived. The oldest son of the late Chief Justice, Origen S. Seymour, he inherited the rare judicial temperament, the calm, candid, impartial judgment, the love of mercy-tempered justice, so essentially characteristic of his father. Educated at Yale College, graduate of the famous class of 1853, studying law in his father's office, entering into partnership with him, early and frequently called to represent his town, and later his senatorial district in the general assembly, a useful member of congress for four years, having in the meantime, by devotion to his profession, as well as by natural ability, become the acknowledged leader of the bar in the two counties of Litchfield and Fairfield; certainly it was the principle of natural selection which three years ago led to his choice as a member of our highest judicial tribunal-the Supreme Court of Errors of this state. While of his services upon that court, this is neither the time nor place to speak with fulness, it has been the privilege of the writer to know them somewhat thoroughly, and because of such knowledge he can the more truly bear witness to the rare spirit of fidelity to duty, to justice, to law, as a living, pervading and beneficent rule of action, with which, whether upon the bench listening to and weighing the arguments and contentions of counsel, in private study, in the consultation room, or in the written opinions of the court, which bear his name, the high duties of that great office have been sacredly discharged.”

When Judge Seymour died, Governor Richard D. Hubbard, In a public address, declared:

“I think we can all say in very truth, and soberness and with nothing of extravagance in eulogy, that we have just lost the foremost, undeniably the foremost lawyer, and take him for all in all, the noblest citizen of our state. If it be too much to say of a son, whose years were almost a score less than those of the father, surely it is not too much to affirm that never did son tread more worthily in the footsteps of an honored parent, and never did untimely death break truer promise than this which has deprived our state of those years of ripened usefulness, which would have made the career of the son as fruitful in honor, and all good, and good to all, as that of the sire. But God knows best, and doubtless what is, is for the best. Certainly to him who lies crowned with the beatitude of Christ, upon the pure in heart, it is well.”

Mrs. Seymour was daughter of Recorder Frederick A. Tallmadge, and granddaughter of Col. Benjamin Tallmadge of Revolutionary War fame. She was Regent of the Mary Floyd Tallmadge Chapter, D. A. R., named like herself after her grandmother.

When a guest in the lost years of Mr. and Mrs. Morris W. Seymour in the stately old homestead of Chief-Justice Seymour in Litchfield with its treasures of portraits and heirlooms, I called upon Mrs. Edward Seymour, living near by. To my mind this Litchfield lady of the haute noblesse was almost an historic character because she was a granddaughter of Colonel Benjamin Tallmadge, a Yale classmate, correspondent, and friend of Nathan Hale, and one of the principle figures in the drama of the capture and execution of Major John Andre. Mrs. Seymour received me in a spacious parlor fairly dominated with huge portraits by Ralph Earl of Colonel Tallmadge and his wife. (I had already become much interested in Earl, the painter, but had little idea at that time that I should ever erect a monument^{(see below)} to his memory.) Mrs. Seymour knew that I had once lived in Washington and was a frequent visitor there, and she entertained me with delightful reminiscences of Washington which she had seen when taken there as a young girl by her father, who was a Member of Congress. She told me of attending a reception given by Dolly Madison who after her retirement from the White House lived in a mansion which is now occupied by the Cosmos Club of which I was a member and where I always put up when I went to Washington. She remembered Mrs. Madison in a black velvet gown and a turban and carrying, in place of flowers, a spray of evergreen. Mrs. Seymour asked me if I knew why Mrs. Madison carried a spray of evergreen instead of flowers. I told her that I supposed that it was a part of the classic revival.

“The inscription on this monument, which stands in the Old Cemetery at Bolton, Conn., reads as follows:

IN MEMORY OF RALPH EARL

One of the foremost portrait painters in
America of his time born at Shrewsbnry
Massachusetts May 11th 1751 he studied in
London under his countryman Benjamin West
was an exhibitor in the Royal Academy
and upon returning to his native country
in 1786 painted chiefly in Connecticut
his portraits of American patriots include
three Signers of the Declaration of Independence
Roger Sherman – Governor Oliver
Wolcott Sr. and William Floyd and those
of Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth – General
Baron von Steuben – Colonel Samuel Talcott –
Colonel Benjamin Tallmadge – Major Moses
Seymour and honorable George Wyllys
his death here in Bolton August 16th 1801
was recorded by the Rev. George Colton
1736-1812 and he was presumably
buried here in an unmarked grave

---

Erected by a Connecticut Antiquary
in the Tercentenary year 1935

At the dedication of the monument. the author's friend Professor Theodore Sizer of the Yale School of Fine Arts presented a scholarly paper on the life story of Ralph Earl. Afterwards the author was host at a dinner in the “Samovar” in Coventry.

Mrs. Seymour went to Washington with her father when he was elected to Congress, and had very entertaining accounts of her journey there and the people she met, for her father wished to widen her interests in society and public affairs. She bore her grandmother's name, Mary Floyd, whose father was none other than Col. William Floyd the Signer. With such an ancestry, Mrs. Seymour could hold her head up even on “Litchfield Hill.”–G.D.S.

REV. STORRS OZIAS⁸ SEYMOUR, D.D. (1836-1918) prepared for college at Phillips Academy, Andover, and was graduated with high honors from Yale College, 1857. He then studied for fourteen months in Germany, a part of the time being with Dr. Timothy Dwight, afterwards president of Yale University. He studied theology at the Berkeley Divinity School, Middletown, and was ordained a deacon at Middletown, 22 May 1861. He took charge of St. Peter's Church, Milford, that same month. He was ordained a priest in St. Paul's Church, New Haven, 15 Apr. 1862. His second parish was in Bethel, where he was rector of St. Thomas' Church from July 1864 to Nov. 1867. “For over six years, from Jan. 1868 to Nov. 1874, Dr. Seymour was rector of Trinity Church, Pawtucket, R.I. There, he was a member of the standing committee of that diocese, and deputy to the general conventions of 1872 and 1874.

In Nov. 1874, he accepted a call to the famous old Trinity Church in Norwich, where he remained until Apr. 1879, when he was called to his native town to become rector of St. Michael's. He remained in Litchfield until Oct. 1883, when he accepted a call to Trinity Church, Hartford. During the ten years of his incumbency there, he was an active force for good in the affairs of the capital city, and was prominent in its social life. He gave up the big Hartford parish in 1893 to accept again the rectorship of St. Michael's, Litchfield, motivated largely by his wish to be with his mother in her latter years. He remained rector here until he resigned in 1916, after reaching his eightieth year, and was made Rector Emeritus.

He received the degree of Doctor of Divinity from Trinity College in 1897. He was appointed a member of the State Board of Education in 1879, and served for three years. He served on the Public Library Committee for ten years. He was deputy from Connecticut to the general conventions of 1901, 1904, and 1907. He was a trustee of Berkeley Divinity School; recording secretary of the Society for the Increase of the Ministry of the Protestant Church; a member of the standing committee of the Diocese since 1876, and chairman much of the time; president of the Litchfield Historical Society and of the local library.

Dr. Seymour was greatly beloved as a man–for his human qualities–as well as for his ministrations as a clergyman. He combined intellectual ability and interests with a beautiful, simple faith, and unselfish devotion to duty.

His wife, Mary Harrison Seymour, was an author who made many contributions to periodicals, chiefly for children, and published “Mollie's Christmas Stocking” (New York, 1865); “Sunshine and Starlight” (Boston, 1868; London, 1879); “Posy Vinton's Picnic” (Boston, 1869); “Ned, Nellie, and Amy” (1870); “Recompense” (New York, 1877); “Every Day” (1877; republished as “A Year of Promise, Praise, and Prayer,” London, 1879); and “Through the Darkness” New York, 1884).

Dr. Seymour and his wife celebrated their Golden Wedding anniversary at the Episcopal Rectory in 1911.

MORRIS WOODRUFF⁸ SEYMOUR (1842-1920) was graduated from Yale College (A.B., 1866); Columbia Law School (LL.B., 1867). He practised in Bridgeport, Conn., from 1867, specializing in corporation and patent law. He was a lecturer in the Law Department at Yale. He was Judge of the City Court, Bridgeport, 1879-80; Corporation Counsel, 1881-82; member of the Conn. State Senate, 1881, 1882; Colonel on the staff of Governor English, 1867-69, 1870-71. He was chairman of the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Reformatory at Cheshire; member of the Board of Pardons; trustee of the Conn. Industrial School, Cheshire; president of Hotchkiss School, Lakeville, Conn.; chancellor of the Diocese of Connecticut; president of the Conn. Society of the Military Order of Foreign Wars, and of the Conn. Society of Colonial Wars; secretary (1895- 1909) and vice-president (1909-1920), Conn. Society of the Cincinnati, and of the Conn. Historical Society. He was a member of the Yale Club (New York); Graduates' Club (New Haven); The Sanctum (Litchfield). He was a Democrat in politics, and an Episcopalian in religious affiliation. He and his wife celebrated their Golden Wedding, 15 Sept. 1919.

His kindness speaks in the following letter, addressed to the author of the present volume:

George Dudley Seymour, Esq.,
New Haven, Connecticut.

My dear Kinsman:–

The other day when I was in New Haven, I got up early and walked around the campus, as I frequently do, and came upon your statue of Nathan Hale. I say yours advisedly, because if it were not for your wise and persistent agitation on this subject, I am certain it would never have been there, and I was immensely pleased with it. It is even better than I thought from our discussions of it. I think you are to be congratulated, the College is to be congratulated and Pratt also; and I cannot help sending you this letter of my own appreciation.

Sincerely,
(Signed) Morris W. Seymour

Mr. Seymour was pardonably proud of his Litchfield forebears; well versed in the history of the American Revolution, an active member in the Connecticut Society of the Cincinnati, a great churchman and a great Democrat. More than all that, he was a generoushearted man-a man of integrity and high character. Plato would certainly have chosen him for a citizen of his republic, and what more can be said of a man than that.

As I worked on this history among my papers the other day, word came to me of the death of Mrs. Seymour at the age of ninety-four. She was counted a beauty as a young woman; as I knew her, she was an elegant and gracious hostess–a very portrait of a lady in the old house, in black lace and pearls, surrounded by flowers.–G.D.S.

ORIGEN STORRS⁹ SEYMOUR (1872- ), B.A. (Yale College, 1894), became a lawyer, and is now (1936) senior member of the legal firm of Sprague, Seymour and Sprague, New York City. In 1933 he succeeded Hon. Burton Mansfield as Chancellor of the Diocese of Connecticut (Protestant Episcopal Church), a position once held by his father. He was appointed by Governor Cross in 1936, Judge of the Court of Common Pleas.

In 1926 he was elected secretary of the Society of the Cincinnati in the State of Connecticut, an office formerly held by his father.

(<-- 240. Charles Nathaniel(7) Seymour) (Back to Start) (242. Ozias(7) Seymour -->)