 Lyman was such a popular mayor that when he ran for reelection he was nominated by the Whigs.He was a steadfast opponent of the radical abolitionists, and in August 1835 presided over a pro-slavery meeting in Boston; though few weeks later, during an anti-Abolitionist riot, he rescued William Lloyd Garrison from the mob and confined him to jail to save his life.He was a liberal benefactor of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and of the Farm School and was the founder of the State Reform School for Boys, a reform school in Westborough to which he gave $72,000.