In 1877, he was appointed principal of the Preparatory Department of his alma mater, which position he held for a number of years, and served during the vacation as chief clerk of the House of Representatives.

His second position was judge of the Court of Quarter Sessions and Common Pleas of Montserrado County to which he was appointed by President Alfred F. Russell in 1883.

In addition to continued internal unrest, the country faced a severe economic crisis and huge indebtedness to European creditors.

Conditions worsened, as the cost of imports was far greater than the income generated by exports of coffee, rice, palm oil, sugarcane, and timber.

In 1907, while president of the nation, he headed the mission to arrange boundary disputes with the British and French Governments, associating with F. E. R. Johnson, secretary of state, and T. McCants Stewart, Deputy Attorney-General of Liberia.