He served in the United States House of Representatives until 1863, having been reelected once. As a congressman during the American Civil War, he supported much of the wartime legislation. His primary contribution was his own investigation of the railroads, which had accepted numerous land grants from the government during the war and the years leading up to it. He calculated the value of the transactions, and balanced it again the amount the railroads were demanding for payment for shipping men and munitions, saving the at time cash-strapped government several million dollars. He was nominated a third time to run for Congress in 1862, but declined primarily because of the position's poor salary and his need to replenish his savings.