TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 625 bench; but, like a popular schoolmaster, would play with the boys out of school hours, and joined heartily in the laughs which his rare fund of 'humor always produced. The judge sometimes opened the entertainment by singing his favorite song of 'Lord Lovel,' which was always received with tremendous applause and the encore was frequently responded to by 'Rosin the Bow,' in which he was inimitable." About the time he was elected to Congress in 1843, Judge Potter married Miss Mary A. Card, of Willoughby, Ohio. She died in 1847, leaving one son, Emery D., Jr., and the judge afterward married Miss Anna B. Milliken, by whom he had one daughter, Anna Claire. Judge Potter died at Toledo on February 3, 1896. His son is still practicing law in Toledo. When Judge Potter was elected to Congress in 1843, he was succeeded by Myron H. Tilden. Until about 1842 the salary of the presiding judge was $1,200 per year, but in 1842 the Legislature reduced the. pay to two dollars a day (Sundays included). Judge Tilden was born in the State of New York, August 15, 1814, a posthumous son of Dr. Myron W. Holmes. In 1817 his mother came to Ohio and settled in Huron County, where Myron was adopted by Dr. Daniel Tilden, taking his name. After attending the Norwalk Seminary he entered the law office of T. B. Sturgis, one of the leading attorneys of Norwalk, and later completed his legal studies under Judge Ebenezer Lane, of the Ohio Supreme Court. In 1835 he was admitted to the bar and began practice at Norwalk. In 1838 he and John R. Osborn, also of Norwalk, came to Toledo and opened a law office under the firm name of Tilden & Osborn. Mr. Osborn returned to Norwalk the following year and Mr. Tilden became associated with Charles W. Hill and Henry Bennett. In 1840 Mr. Tilden was elected mayor of Toledo and served four years, or until he was elected to the office of presiding judge of the Common Pleas Court. He resigned as judge in 1847 and in 1850 removed to Cincinnati, where he was almost immediately elected professor of equity jurisprudence in the. Cincinnati Law School, which position he held for ten years. In 1873 he was appointed judge of the Superior Court of Cincinnati for: an unexpired term, at the close of which he was elected for a full term. He then practiced law in Cincinnati until a short time before his death in 1888. Upon the resignation of Judge Tilden, E. B. Sadler, of Sandusky, was appointed to the vacancy. He was succeeded under the new constitution in 1851 by L. B. Otis. In 1854 the Legislature provided for an additional judge for the circuit and in the fall of that year John Fitch, of Toledo, was elected. Judge Fitch was born in Rensselaer County, New York, February 16, 1806. He was a descendant of Thomas Fitch, chief justice of the Connecticut Colony under the British crown, and his grandfather, also named Thomas Fitch, was a colonel under Washington in the Revolutionary war. He was admitted to the bar at Albany and in the fall of 1836 came to Toledo. In November of that year he was appointed prosecuting attorney, which position he held for three years. While serving in that capacity he won a reputation as a skillful lawyer and laid the foundation of a lucrative practice. In 1847 he was chosen city attorney of Toledo and in 1854 was elected judge of the Common Pleas Court. He remained on the bench until February, 1870. Upon his retirement from the bench the bar adopted complimentary resolutions regarding his "conscientious integrity, clear judgment and rare legal ability." These resolutions were presented by Judge Potter to the court at the opening of 626 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY the next session, with the request that they be entered upon the records, which request was granted. Judge Fitch died at his home in Toledo on October 29, 1888. In 1869 an additional judgeship was created and the office was held by Charles E. Pennewell, of Norwalk, and T. P. Finefrock, of Fremont, until 1879, when John H. Doyle, of Toledo, was elected. Judge Doyle was born in Perry County, Ohio, April 23, 1844, of Irish parentage. After attending the elementary schools he entered Denison University, Granville, Ohio, but left that institution to enlist in Company A, Sixty-seventh Ohio Infantry, in 1862 and was commissioned second lieutenant on condition that he secure twenty recruits. While engaged in this task he was stricken with typhoid fever, which prevented him from attaining his desire to serve his country as a soldier. On recovering his health he began the study of law with Edward Bissell, of Toledo, and on his twenty-first birthday was admitted to the bar. He began practice as a member of the firm of Bissell, Gorrill & Doyle. In 1879 the members of the bar of Lucas County gave him their indorsement for judge of the Court of Common Pleas and he was elected. In 1882 he was nominated by the Republican state convention for judge of the Ohio Supreme Court, but was defeated with his ticket in the election of that year. A little later a vacancy occurred on the Supreme Bench and he was appointed by Governor Foster for the unexpired term, which ended on February 9, 1884. Some years later both Presidents McKinley and Taft offered him the position of judge of the United States District Court for the northern district of Ohio, but each time he declined the honor. In 1884 he became the senior member of the firm of Doyle & Scott, his partner being Alexander W. Scott. The following year Charles T. Lewis became a partner and the firm name was changed to Doyle, Scott & Lewis. Judge Doyle remained at the head of this firm, which underwent some changes, until his death on March 24, 1919. Judge Doyle served at various times as president of the Toledo and Ohio State Bar Associations, and of the National Bar Association before it was merged into the American Bar Association. He was a great student of history and was the author of some forty monographs on historical, legal and literary subjects. He was regarded as an authority upon the early history of the Maumee Valley. Again in 1870 the Legislature authorized an additional judge for the first subdivision of the Fourth Judicial District and at the spring election in 1871 Joshua R. Seney was chosen for the position. Judge Seney was a native of Ohio and was a member of a family noted for legal attainments. His grandfather, Joshua Seney, was a member of the First Congress and was at one time chief justice of the Maryland Supreme Court. After attending Heidelberg and Antioch Colleges in his native state, Judge Seney completed his education in Union College at Schenectady, New York, where he graduated as a Master of Arts. He then studied law with Judge Pillars, of Tiffin, and was admitted to the bar in 1864. The same year he located in Toledo and began the practice of his profession. Two incidents in the career of Judge Seney show that he was not wedded to precedent and mark him as an original, broad-minded and impartial man. He was the first judge to allow a colored man to sit on a jury in Lucas. County and he decided that a clerkship was not an office within the meaning of the constitution, consequently a woman was eligible to a county clerkship. Judge Seney resigned in TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 627 November, 1874, to resume the practice of law. He died at Toledo on March 22, 1901. When Judge Seney resigned James J. French was appointed by Gov. William Allen to serve until the next regular election, when B. W. Rouse was elected for the unexpired term. He was then elected for a full term. Charles P. Wickham, of Huron County, succeeded Judge Rouse in 1880 and was reelected in 1885. In 1886 he resigned to accept a nomination and election to Congress. Since 1886 the Common Pleas Court, of Lucas County has maintained the prestige given it by its early judges. In 1922 the judges of the court were Harry W. Lloyd, James S. Martin, Charles M. Milroy and Byron F. Ritchie. SUPREME COURT Under the Ordinance of 1787 a general court, consisting of a chief justice and two associates, was created for the entire Northwest Territory. When the constitution of 1802 was framed, the convention copied this system and provided for a Supreme Court of three members, any two of whom should constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. A session of this court was to be held in each county of the state once in each year. The first session was held in Lucas County in July, 1837, by Judges Ebenezer Lane and Reuben Wood, but only some formal matters came before the court. Old lawyers used to speak with enthusiasm of this Supreme Court, as it traveled over the state. The first judges of the court—elected by the first General Assembly—were Samuel Huntington, Return J. Meigs and William Spriggs. Their salary was $800 per year, which remained the compensation of the supreme judges for many years. By the act of February 17, 1808, a fourth judge was added and the state was divided into two districts, within which any two judges were authorized to hold court. The act also provided for an annual extraordinary session, at which at least three judges must be present. Thus the court was divided into two branches. One was known as the "Supreme Court on the circuit," and the other as the "Supreme Court in bank." With the exception of the years 1841 and 1842, a session of the Supreme Court was held in Lucas County every year after 1837 until the adoption of the constitution of 1851. The judges present at these sessions were as follows : Ebenezer Lane and Frederick Grimke, 1838 ; Ebenezer Lane and Reuben Wood, 1839; Peter Hitchcock and Reuben Wood, 1840 ; Reuben Wood and Matthew Burchard, 1843; Nathaniel C. Reed and Reuben C. Wood, 1844; Matthew Burchard and Reuben Wood, 1845 and 1846; Edwin Avery and Matthew Burchard, 1847 in 1848; Peter Hitchcock and William B. Caldwell, 1849; Peter Hitchcock and Rufus P.. Spalding, 1850; William B. Caldwell and Peter Hitchcock, 1851. The constitution of 1851 provided that the judiciary power of the state should be vested in 'a Supreme Court, District Courts, Courts of Common. Pleas, Courts of Probate, Justices of the Peace, and such inferior courts as the General Assembly may from time to time provide. The Supreme Court was to be composed of five justices, and the first five men to occupy the bench were: Thomas W. Bartley, of Mansfield ; William B. Caldwell, of Cincinnati ; John A. Corwin, of Urbana ; Rufus P. Ranney, of Cleveland, and Allen G. Thurman, of Chillicothe. 628 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY DISTRICT COURT Under the constitution of 1851 the state was divided into nine common pleas districts, each of which was subdivided into three parts and a judge of the Common Pleas Court was to be elected in each subdivision. The District Court was made up of one of the judges of the Supreme Court and the judges of the Common Pleas Court of the respective districts, any three of whom constituted a quorum. This District Court took the place of the old county Supreme Court. It had original jurisdiction in mandamus, habeas corpus, quo warranto, etc., and such appellate jurisdiction as might be provided by law. One term of the District Court was required to be held in each county of the district annually and the court was the successor of the "Supreme Court on the circuit." All suits pending in the Supreme Court in the several counties were transferred to the District Court, and cases pending in the Supreme Court in bank were transferred to the Supreme Court. This system continued for. thirty-two years and during that period a session of the District Court was held in. Toledo every year. Most of these courts were held by the judges of the Common Pleas Court, under the provision authorizing them to 'act as district judges. On only eight occasions was a justice of the Supreme Court present to act as the presiding judge, to wit : Thomas W. Bartley, 1852; Jacob Brinkerhoff, 1860; William Sutliff, 1862 ; Josiah Scott, 1863 ; William White, 1864; Jacob Brinkerhoff, 1866; Luther Day, 1867; John Welch 1869. By the act of March 29, 1865, the. Supreme Court justices were relieved from duty in the District Court for that year. During the next decade several laws relating to the state's judiciary system were enacted. By the act .of April 4, 1870, it was provided that, if the supreme judges deemed best for the court to emain in bank, they should • be exempt from the duty, as serving as judges of the District Court. This act practically ended the service of the supreme justices as district judges. The absence of a Supreme Court justice had a tendency to lessen the regard of lawyers for the opinions of a District Court composed entirely of common pleas judges. Another source of dissatisfaction with the intermediate court grew out of the fact that the common pleas judges were required to hold District Court without any extra compensation. The growth of population and the consequent increase in litigation crowded the dockets of the Common Pleas Courts and the judges cut short the terms of the District Courts. As time passed conditions grew worse instead of better. On July 8, 1880, a large number of lawyers met in Cleveland and organized the Ohio State Bar Association, the main purpose of which was to bring about an improvement in the judiciary system. At that meeting Rufus P. Ranney, one of the oldest and ablest lawyers in the state, said : "The framers of our judicial system created an intermediate appellate court, called the district court, but they never contemplated that that court was going to be held exclusively by the .very men who had tried the case in the first instance; that they were going to turn reviewers of themselves. It was an essential feature of their system, without which it never could have passed that convention, that a judge of the supreme court, with his knowledge' and weight of character, should forever preside in the district court. What have we realized for years past in TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 629 actual practice ? That court is held by judges who decided in the first instance and common pleas judges, doing as well as they can, but in nowise meeting the expectation of the public of an appellate court ; the consequence is that all important litigation of the state finds its way right through this first Appellate Court into the Supreme Court." The, matter was referred to a "committee on judiciary and law reform." At the second meeting of the association, held in Toledo in 1881, the committee reported that nothing definite had been accomplished and it was continued for another year. At Cincinnati in 1882 the committee reported a bill, Section 1 of which was as follows : "The judicial power of the state is vested in a supreme court, circuit courts, courts of common pleas, courts of probate, justices of the peace, and such other courts inferior to the supreme court as the General Assembly may, from time to time, establish." Section 2 fixed the number of supreme justices at five, "until otherwise provided by law," and defined their jurisdiction. Another section provided that : "The circuit court shall have like original jurisdiction with the supreme court, and such appellate jurisdiction as may be provided by law. Such courts shall be composed of such number of judges as may be provided by law, and shall be held in each county, at least once in each year. The number of circuits and the boundaries thereof shall be prescribed by law." CIRCUIT COURT In the plan proposed by the State Bar Association is found the first mention of a Circuit Court. The plan, in the form of a constitutional amendment, was submitted to the General Assembly in 1883, and that body adopted a joint resolution providing for its submission to the voters of the state at the next general election. It was carried by a substantial majority and became sections 1, 2 and 6 of Article IV of the state constitution. To carry out the amendment, the General Assembly, on April 18, 1884, passed an act dividing the state into seven circuits and providing for the election of three judges in each district, or circuit. The Sixth Circuit was composed of the counties of Cuyahoga, Erie, Huron, Lorain, Lucas, Medina, Ottawa, Sandusky and Summit. The first judges elected in this circuit were Charles C. Baldwin, of Cleveland ; George R. Haynes, of Toledo ; and William H. Upson, of Akron. George R. Haynes was born in Monson, Massachusetts, January 24, 1828. When he was about eight years old his parents removed to Ohio and settled in Huron County. He lived on the farm, attending school during the winter months, until he was seventeen years of age. He then entered the Norwalk Academy, where he continued his studies until he reached his 'majority. At intervals, while attending the academy, he taught in the district schools. Deciding upon the law as his profession, he studied with John Whitleck, of .Norwalk, then with Judge Lucius. B. Otis, of Fremont, and in 1852 he was admitted to the bar. The first two years of his practice were spent in Fremont and one year of that time he was prosecuting attorney of Sandusky County. In 1854 he removed to Toledo. For brief "periods he was in partnership with John Ray, Daniel 0. Morton and Ira E. Lee. Later he was associated with 630 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY Josiah F. Price, Clayton W. Everett and Angus Mackintosh, and still later with George H. Beckwith and Emery D. Potter. In 1859 he was elected city solicitor and held that position for three years. From 1864 to 1868 he was prosecuting attorney of Lucas County, and in 1872 he was one of the Republican presidential electors for his Congregational district. In 1883 he was the Republican candidate for judge of the Court of Common Pleas. Although defeated he ran several hundred votes ahead of his ticket. In fact, he received the certificate of election and served on the bench for a few months, but his election was contested and the office was awarded to his opponent. When the Circuit Court was created in 1884 he was elected one of the judges, taking his seat on the bench on February 9, 1885. He was three times reelected and his fourth term, had he lived, would have expired on February 9, 1909. He died at Toledo on January 22, 1908, after a continuous service of twenty-three years on the Circuit Court bench. A memorial adopted by the Toledo Bar about ten days after his death, says : "As a judge, he was actuated by the purest sentiment and loftiest purpose, with a fixed desire to follow the law and do impartial justice. With a mind stored with legal knowledge, with a high order of reasoning faculties, with a calm and equable temperament, and with an intense longing to do what is right and just, he was an invaluable member of the court and contributed in no small degree to the high reputation which the Circuit Court of the Sixth Circuit has always borne throughout the state." Within a few months after the establishment of the Circuit Court, it was proved that the Sixth Circuit was too large and the litigation too extensive for three judges. An eighth circuit was established by the act of March 21, 1887, which took the counties of Cuyahoga, Lorain, Medina and Summit from the Sixth Circuit and added in their place the counties of Fulton, Williams and Wood. By this change Judges Baldwin and Upson were transferred to the Eighth Circuit. Their places were filled by Charles S. Bentley, of Bryan, and Charles H. Scribner, of Toledo, who entered upon their judicial duties on February 9, 1888. The Circuit Court continued in existence until the adoption of the constitution of 1912. Besides George R. Haynes, the only other judges of the old Circuit Court from Lucas County were Charles H. Scribner and Reynolds R. Kinkade. The latter was elected in 1908 and is now one of the judges of the State Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Scribner was born at Norwalk, Connecticut, October 20, 1826, and was of English descent. His maternal grandfather served with Washington in the Revolution, and his paternal grandfather was a minuteman in the War of 1812. When only about twelve years old, Charles H. Scribner came to Ohio in advance of his parents and lived with his grandfather, who had come to the state in 1835. In the fall of 1838 his parents followed him and settled in Licking County. When about eighteen years of age, he was apprenticed to a saddler and harness maker. Prior to that time he had acquired the rudiments of an education in the common schools. While working at his trade during the day, he spent his evenings in study, giving particular attention to law, and in 1848 he was admitted to the bar. In 1850 he formed a partnership with Henry B. Curtis, of Mount Vernon, which lasted for nineteen years. During the early years of his practice he was active in politics. In 1861 he was a candidate for judge of the Common Pleas Court, but was defeated. Six years later he was elected state senator' for the district composed of Holmes, Knox, Morrow and Wayne counties. While in the TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 631 senate he was chairman of the judiciary committee and was a member of the commission to revise and codify the laws relating to municipalities. He was also influential in securing the adoption of a new "Code of Criminal Procedure." His "Law of Dower," published in 1864, is recognized as a standard authority on this subject, both in the United States and England. In January, 1869, Judge Scribner removed to Toledo and formed a partnership with Frank H. Hurd, whom he had previously known in Knox County. Subsequently his son, Harvey Scribner, was admitted to a partnership and the firm Scribner, Hurd & Scribner. This partnership lasted until Judge Scribner's election to the bench in 1887. At the expiration of his first term as judge of the Circuit Court, he was reelected for the term expiring on March 3, 1897, but his death occurred on February 23, 1897, ten days before the expiration of the term. PROBATE COURT The constitution of 1851 provided for a Probate Court; with one judge, in each county of the state. This court is peculiarly local and is intimately connected with the affairs of the people. It has jurisdiction in all matters pertaining to the settlement of estates, the appointment of guardians for minor heirs, etc., and in counties where juvenile courts have been established, the probate judge is also judge of such court. A list of the probate judges in Lucas County is given in Chapter XXXVI. It may be said that the county has been singularly fortunate in the selection of probate judges, as all who have filled the position have been men of integrity, and a few have been lawyers of more than ordinary ability. Charles I. Scott, the first probate judge, was not a lawyer, but his general good judgment and character recommend him for the office. He was one of the pioneers of Toledo, was an active Democratic worker, frequently serving as delegate to conventions, and was the editor of the first Democratic paper published in Lucas County —the "Toledo Register," which was started in September, 1841. Thomas Dunlap, who was probate judge from 1858 to 1861, was one of the early Toledo lawyers. In 1843, when the city council levied a tax on lawyers and physicians, the records show that he paid his tax of one dollar. From 1845 to 1847 he was prosecuting attorney, after which he was engaged in the real estate business in connection with his law practice for several years. Fred A. Jones, who succeeded Judge Dunlap, was born at Graf ton, Lorain County, Ohio, October 10, 1823. He was educated at Norwalk, Oberlin and Granville, studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1849. For some time after that he taught school in Mississippi, but returned to Ohio and practiced law at Granville until 1853, when he came to Toledo. Here he was associated with M. 0. Higgins and later with J. M. Ritchie as partners in the practice of his profession. In 1860 he was elected probate judge and held the office from that time until his death on February 8, 1873. Irwin I. Millard was born in Richland County, Ohio, December 9, 1838. His grandfather, Rev. Thomas Millard, came from Pennsylvania in 1831, and was one of the pioneer Methodist preachers of Richland County. Joseph Millard, the father of the judge, built the first flour mill in that section of the state. Judge Millard was educated at the Fredericksburg Academy and afterward taught school. In August; 1861, he enlisted in Company I, Fifteenth Ohio Infantry, and served a few 632 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY months, when he was discharged for disability. Upon regaining his health he located in Toledo and for about a year was deputy recorder of Lucas County. He was then employed in the office of the Erie Railroad for a similar period of time. In the spring of 1865 he began the study of law with Bissell & Gorrill and in 1867 he was admitted to practice. He immediately became a member of the firm with which he had studied and the partnership lasted until 1890, when Mr. Millard was elected probate judge. This office he held until 1903. O'Brien O'Donnell, the present (1922) incumbent, was born in St. Clair County, Michigan; studied law in the Detroit Law School and the University of Michigan ; was admitted to the bar in 1896, when he located at Toledo ; was elected probate judge in 1908, and was reelected in 1912, 1916 and 1920. COURT OF APPEALS This tribunal was created by the constitution of 1912, to take the place of the Circuit Court. The state was divided into eight judicial districts (the same as the old Circuit Court) and the judges then in office were continued as judges of the Court of Appeals until the expiration of the term for which they were elected, after which judges were to be elected for a term of six years "until otherwise provided by law." The judges of this court are required to hold at least one term annually in each of the counties constituting their district. Toledo is in the Sixth Judicial District, which is composed of the counties of Erie, Fulton, Huron, Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky, Williams and Wood. The judges in this district, who have served since the new system went into effect in 1913, are Charles E. Chittenclen and Reynolds R. Kinkade, of Toledo, and Silas S. Richards, of Clyde. The inferior courts of the city and county—the Toledo Municipal Court and the justices of the peace—are too well known to need extended comment here. The Municipal Court has jurisdiction in all matters relating to the violation of the city ordinances and consists of four judges. These judges in 1922 were : James Austin, Jr. Aaron Cohn, Robert G. Gosline and Samuel N. Young. UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT When Ohio was admitted to statehood in 1802, it was with all "the rights, privileges and immunities" of the original thirteen states. This included the right to become a district for a Federal Court. President Jefferson appointed Charles Welling Byrd as the first district judge. He held the first term of court in June, 1803, at Chillicothe, which city was then the capital of the state. Judge Byrd continued on the bench until his death. on August 11, 1828. President John Quincy Adams appointed William Creighton as Byrd's successor. He held court in November and December, 1828, but when Congress met the Senate refused to confirm his appointment. President Jackson, only a few days after his inauguration, appointed John W. Campbell, who served until his death on September 24, 1833. Benjamin Tappan was then appointed and held court three days in December, 1833, before the Senate had refused to confirm his appointment. On July 24, 1834, Humphrey H. Leavitt entered upon the duties of the office and served with distinction for thirty-seven years, retiring under the age provisions of the law. TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 633 By the act of February 21, 1855, Ohio was divided into two districts. Judge Leavitt elected to remain in the southern district and Hiram V. Wilson, of Cleveland, was appointed judge of the northern district in March, 1855. He served until his death on November 11, 1866, and it has been said of him : "His judicial record is his best eulogy." On, March 18, 1867, Charles T. Sherman, of Cleveland, was appointed to succeed Judge Wilson. He was a son of the late Judge Sherman of the Ohio Supreme Court and a man well qualified for the position of Federal judge. He resigned on November 28, 1873. Prior to 1872 the sessions of the court in the northern district had all been held in Cleveland. In 1870 Congress passed an act authorizing, "at the discretion of the judge," the holding of two terms annually in Toledo. The first session at Toledo was commenced on December 10, 1872, with Judge Sherman on the bench. A grand jury was impaneled. and returned one indictment, whereupon it was discharged. 'I he party indicted was placed on trial the next day for passing counterfeit gold coin, convicted, and received a sentence of $1,000 fine and five years in the Ohio penitentiary. This was the only case and the court adjourned to meet again on June 10, 1873. Upon the resignation of Judge Sherman, Martin Welker, of Wooster, was appointed to the judgeship. He took his seat upon the bench on December 2, 1872, and served until May 29, 1889, when he resigned as provided by law. Augustus J. Ricks, of Massillon, was then appointed. His health failed and some confusion resulted. On January 30, 1901, Francis J. Wing, a common pleas judge of Cuyahoga County, was appointed an additional judge, by virtue of an act of Congress providing that no successor to Judge Ricks should be appointed. Judge Wing resigned on January 31, 1905, and Judge Ricks died on December 2, 1906, without having sufficiently recovered to attend to his duties. Robert W. Tayler, of New Lisbon, was then appointed judge and served with distinction until his sudden death on November 26, 1910. In addition to his court work, Judge Tayler took an active part in the settlement of the street railway difficulties in Cleveland, being largely responsible for the so-called "Tayler plan," which has proven s6 successful. About 1890 commenced a rapid and great increase in the commercial and industrial importance of the district. The two largest cities, Cleveland and Toledo, began to grow rapidly, and the smaller cities to increase notably in population. In the next decade Toledo, Akron, Youngstown, and Canton became very important manufacturing places, and it became apparent that the work of the district was too heavy for one judge. February 24, 1910, Congress placed in the hands of the President an Act treating an additional judgeship, to fill which Hon. John M. Killits, then Common-Pleas Judge for the northwestern judicial district of the State, and living in Bryan, was appointed qualifying June 30, 1910, and taking up his residence in Toledo. May 13, 1911, William L. Day of Cleveland, then United States District Attorney, was appointed to succeed Judge Tayler. April 30, 1914, Judge Day resigned, being succeeded by John H. Clarke on July 21, 1914. July 24, 1916, Judge Clarke was appointed to the Supreme Court, and on March 14, 1917, D. C. Westenhaver of Cleveland was appointed District Judge to fill the vacancy. From 1910 to 1920, Congress passed several acts very greatly enlarging the jurisdiction of the Federal courts, especially on the Criminal side, with the result that the judicial work of the District became very plainly too heavy for two judges. Therefore, September 22, 634 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY 1922, the President was empowered by Congress to appoint a third judge. To this position Hon. Paul J. Jones of Youngstown, then Common Pleas Judge of Mahoning County, succeeded March 10, 1923, and as this book is printed, the District j udges are, in order of seniority, Judges Killits, Westenhaver and Jones. In 1911, Congress passed an Act, taking effect January 1, 1912, abolishing the Circuit Court and transferring its jurisdiction to the District Court. For many years the Circuit Court in fact had been held by District judges, wherefore this Act imposed no additional burdens. THE WESTERN DIVISION On June 8, 1878, President Hayes approved an Act of Congress dividing the northern judicial district of Ohio into the eastern and western divisions, designating the counties in each, and providing that causes of action and crimes arising in the eastern division should be prosecuted at Cleveland and in the western division at Toledo. Under this Act the twenty-four counties comprising the western division were : Allen, Auglaize, Defiance, Delaware, Erie, Fulton, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Huron, Logan, Lucas, Marion, Mercer, Ottawa, Paulding, Putnam, Sandusky, Seneca, Union, VanWert, Williams, Wood and Wyandot. By subsequent acts of Congress, the counties of Delaware, Logan and Union .were transferred to the southern district of Ohio, leaving the western division of the northern district composed of the other twenty-one counties. Judges of the northern district held court in Toledo for twenty-two years after the district had been divided into the eastern and western divisions. In a sketch of the Toledo Bench and Bar by the late Judge John H. Doyle, published in Waggoner's "History of Toledo," the writer says : "At the time of the organization of the western division, Judge H. H. Emmons, of Detroit, was the judge of the circuit comprising the states of Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Tennessee, but Judge Emmons never presided at Toledo. He was succeeded by Judge John Baxter, of Knoxville, Tennessee, a man of immense energy, indomitable will and remarkable ability. He was somewhat a terror to the bar, until he became known and his methods understood. . . . He died at Hot Springs, Arkansas, in 1886, and was succeeded by Judge Howell E. Jackson, of Nashville, Tennessee." Judge Baxter's career on the Toledo bench is one of the traditions of the older bar. Judge Jackson, afterward on the Supreme Bench, held occasional Circuit Court at Toledo. At times the docket at Toledo has become so crowded with cases that it was necessary to send outside judges in to assist in clearing it. At one time, during the illness of Judge Ricks, already referred to, four courts were in session at once. They were held by Circuit Judge Lurton and District Judge Clark, from Tennessee, District Judge Severens, from Michigan, and Judge Ricks, and occupied the court room, the library, the clerk's office and the file room. Other judges who appeared for the relief of the Toledo situation were : Judge Eli S. Hammond, of Memphis, Tennessee ; ex-President Taft, as circuit judge ; Judge Wanty and his successor, Judge Knappen, now of the Circuit Court of Appeals, from the western district of Michigan ; and Judge Sater, from the southern district of Ohio. Since the establishment of two judgeships in the northern district of Ohio it has not been necessary to bring in judges from the outside to handle the business of the courts. TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 635 THE BAR Back in the days when the Supreme Court moved from county to county, a judge of that court is reported as having said : "It is a pleasure to preside over a District Court in Lucas County. The lawyers are better prepared, present their cases better, and are more courteous and polite to each other and to the bench than those of most of the counties to which I have been called." It is possible that, with the great increase in the number of attorneys, a few have failed to live up to that reputation ; but the characteristics mentioned by that early supreme judge are still applicable to a large majority of the Lucas County Bar. As already stated, the first lawyer to open an office in Toledo was Emery D. Potter, who for more than three score years was a prominent figure in the Toledo courts. Other lawyers who located in the city prior to 1840 were : Edson Allen, Benjamin S. Brown, Daniel F. Cooke, Richard Cooke, Charles M. Dorr, John Fitch, Levi W. Lownsbury, Daniel 0. Morton, Nathaniel Rathbun, George B. Way and Samuel M. Young. A little later came Caleb F. Abbott, Edward Bissell, Charles W. Hill, Charles Kent, Charles Pratt and Morrison R. Waite. Those were the days when both the bench and the bar "rode the circuit." Among the lawyers from other parts of the state, whose names appear in the early court records of Lucas County, were : Henry Bennett, Hezekiah L. Hosmer, Henry C. Stowell, John C. Spink and Willard V. Way, of Perrysburg ; C. L. Boalt, John R. Osborn and Myron H. Tilden, of Norwalk ; Ozias Bowen, of Marion ; Andrew Coffinbury (also spelled Coffinberry), and John M. May, of Mansfield ; Noah H. Swayne, of Columbus ; Joshua R. Giddings and Benjamin F. Wade,. of Ashtabula; Robert McClelland and Warner. Wing, of Monroe, Michigan, and a few others.. Noah H. Swayne and Benjamin S.. Brown formed a partnership in the fall of 1837, Swayne remaining in Columbus and Brown looking after the business in Toledo. Two sons of Mr. Swayne—Noah H., Jr., and Frank B.—afterward practiced law in Toledo, and Myron H. Tilden and John R. Osborn subsequently became resident attorneys. Mr. Osborn soon returned to Norwalk and practiced there until 1856, when he again took up his residence in Toledo. He was born at Circleville, Ohio, April 1, 1813 ; graduated at the Ohio University (at Athens) in 1831; studied law in the law department of the Transylvania University, Lexington, Kentucky, and the Cincinnati Law School ; was admitted to the bar in April, 1834, and began practice at Norwalk. In the Harrison campaign of 1840 he took an active part as a Whig; was elected to the state senate in 1844 for the district composed of Erie and Huron counties ; was prosecuting attorney of Huron County for seven years ; was a delegate to the Republican convention of 1856, and soon after that located in Toledo, where for some time he was in partnership with Gen. Wager Swayne. He died at Toledo on July 5, 1897. A memorial adopted by the Toledo Bar Association says of him : "As a lawyer he stood deservedly high. In the trial of cases he was cautious, prudent and sagacious, yet open, frank and fair with his opponent. He bore his success at the bar without pride and his defeats with composure. He was a wise counselor, a careful pleader, an able advocate, with a high conception of the ethics of the law and of the dignity and the nobility of the profession." It would be impossible, in the space allotted to this chapter, to give a sketch of every lawyer of prominence who has practiced in the Lucas County courts, but there 636 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY are a few who have left the impress of their character upon the legal and political history of the county and city, and are therefore entitled to notice. Foremost among these stands the name of Morrison Remick Waite, a man who attained the highest judicial position within the gift of the United States. Morrison R. Waite was born at Lyme, Connecticut, November 29, 1816. His father, Henry M. Waite, was a graduate of Yale College (now University), practiced law at .Lyme and was for many years a justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court. Morrison R. Waite graduated at Yale in 1837 in a. class that included William M. Evarts, Samuel J. Tilden, and others who afterward became prominent in legal and political affairs. He then began the study of law with his father, but in the fall of 1838 decided to seek his fortune in the Maumee Valley. Entering the office of Samuel M. Young, then practicing at Maumee City, he completed his legal preparation for the bar and in 1839 was admitted to practice. In 1850 he located in Toledo, where the firm of Young & Waite opened an office, and continued to practice there until the retirement of Mr. Young in 1856. The firm of M. R. & R. Waite was then formed, Richard Waite, a younger brother, becoming the junior member of the firm. Politically, Judge Waite was a Whig until the dissolution of that party, after which he affiliated with the Republican organization. In 1846 he was the Whig candidate for Congress, but was defeated by William Sawyer. Three years later he was elected to represent Lucas County in the lower house of the State Legislature. In 1850 he was a candidate for delegate to the constitutional convention, but was defeated. He was elected a member of the Toledo City Council in 1852, and in 1862 he was nominated by a faction of Republicans, who were somewhat conservative, acting with what were known as "War Democrats," for Congress. At that time James M. Ashley was the Congressman from the district. He, in common with a large portion of the Republican party in the district, held that the abolition of slavery should be made a condition in any terms of peace with the Southern States. Judge Waite, while less radical in his views on the slavery question, was an unswerving supporter of President Lincoln's administration. He held with the President that the paramount object should be to save the Union: The Democratic convention voted-101 to 82—not to nominate a candidate, but to support Judge Waite. The minority, however, held a convention and nominated Edward L. Phelps, of Defiance County. He was supported by the Democrats of Defiance, Henry, Putnam and "Williams counties, those of Fulton, Lucas and Wood voting for Waite. The result of the election was as follows : Ashley, 7,013 ; Waite, 5,850 ; Phelps, 5,234. Although defeated, Judge Waite received 1,806 votes in the City of Toledo, out of a total vote of 2,447. The following year, when H. H. Hunter declined to qualify for the place upon the State Supreme Bench to which he had been elected, Governor Brough tendered the appointment to Mr. Waite, but he declined to accept. In 1871 Morrison R. Waite became internationally known through his appointment by President Grant as one of the nation's representatives bef ore the Tribunal of Arbitration at Geneva, Switzerland, involving what were known as the,"Alabama Claims," growing out of the depredations committed upon American commerce by the Confederate privateer, "Alabama," during the Civil war. His colleagues were Caleb Cushing and William M. Evarts, men whose reputation as lawyers and diplomats were already well established. Nevertheless, Mr. Cushing afterward said: "Mr. Waite's argument in reply to Sir Roundell Palmer, demonstrated his familiar- TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 637 ity with all the features of the case and a thorough knowledge of international law. He established, beyond question, the liability of the English Government for permitting Confederate cruisers to receive coal and other supplies in British ports, for hostile attacks upon American shipping." Upon his return to Toledo he quietly resumed his practice until 1873, when he was elected without opposition as a delegate to the convention to revise the state constitution. When the convention assembled he was chosen president. Before the adjournment of the convention he was appointed by President Grant to be Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, to succeed Salmon P. Chase, deceased. This appointment was made without any solicitation on his part. When the announcement of the nomination was received by the constitutional convention, a resolution of approval was introduced, but he, as the presiding officer, ruled the resolution "out of order." His appointment was unanimously confirmed by the Senate and on March 4, 1874, he donned the ermine of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, a position he filled with signal honor and ability until his death in Washington, D. C., March 23, 1888. One of the peculiar things connected with the practice of law occurred in the legal career of Judge Waite. While a practicing attorney of Toledo, he prosecuted a case for a client who claimed damages on the ground that his water-power leases on the Miami & Erie Canal had been rendered valueless by the abandonment of that part of the canal between Swan Creek and the mouth of the Maumee River. The case was carried to the Ohio Supreme Court, where it was decided against Waite's client. Years afterward, while serving as Chief Justice, a similar case was carried up to the United States Supreme Court from Cincinnati. Judge Waite himself wrote the decision in this case against the claimant, citing as a precedent the Ohio case which he himself had lost. On March 24, 1888, the day after Justice Waite's death, a meeting of the Toledo Bar was held for the purpose of adopting suitable memorial resolutions, etc. It would be unnecessary to reproduce all the expressions of esteem and the eulogies of that occasion, but the remarks of Emery D. Potter, the oldest member of the Lucas County Bar, contained the following tribute to the character of the deceased : "His friendships were characterized by sincerity, his relations with his clients by the strictest fidelity, and in .the many public trusts committed to him he more than fulfilled the expectations of those who had confided in him. In his early career it was my fortune to have him as a companion in traveling the circuit; embracing a dozen counties, without roads, without bridges, and with log cabins at long intervals. These journeys lasted for weeks at a time and were all made on horseback. Old Tom and Tam O'Shanter became as intimate friends as their owners, and were quartered in their stalls, while we were sleeping under the same quilt on a hickory bedstead in the log cabin. He was always cheerful, and our rides in the midst of the forests, which were then nearly unbroken, were always enlivened by his ready anecdotes. He was remarkable for his adaptation to his surroundings. He was the genial gentleman in log cabin and the palace, and the old men and the children were always delighted to call Mott Waite a friend." Daniel O. Morton, one of the leading attorneys of early days, was born at Shoreham, Vermont, November 8, 1815 ; graduated with honors at Middlebury College, Vermont, as a member of the class of 1833 ; studied law with Payne & Wilson at 638 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY Cleveland, Ohio, and upon his admission to the bar located in Toledo, where he soon won the distinction of being one of the leading attorneys of Northwestern Ohio. He was one of the commission that codified the laws of Ohio under the constitution of 1851, and was United States attorney for Ohio during the administration of President Pierce. The late Judge John H. Doyle, who in his boyhood was well acquainted with Mr. Morton, used to tell of the bowling games between Mr. Morton and Daniel S. Price, another Toledo lawyer of that period. These two men were in the habit of closing their offices on Saturday afternoons and meeting at a bowling alley on the west side of Summit Street between Adams and Madison, kept by one Ozro Collins. Mr. Morton would employ young Doyle, whom he always called "Johnny," to set up the pins for him, saying : "Now, Johnny, I want you to set up the pins for me ; if I lose I will give you ten cents, but if I win I will give you a quarter." Johnny learned to set the pins so that he usually got his quarter. Mr. Morton was active in politics as a Democrat until the leaders of that party began to advocate doctrines leaning toward secession, when he gave his influence to the support of the opposition. He was city attorney in 1838-39, again in 1845 and a third time in 1848. In 1849 he was elected mayor and served one term. A younger brother, Levi P. Morton, was governor of New York, minister to France and Vice-President of the United States from 1889 to 1893. Daniel O. Morton was a man Of magnificent physique, taller than the average, had a thorough knowledge of the law, was quick at repartee, knew how to appeal to a jury and was considered by many as the most formidable of all the early Toledo lawyers. He died suddenly on December 5, 1859, and was widely. mourned. The bench, bar and press of that day gave abundant testimonials of his high reputation as a lawyer, a citizen and a man. Year after his death, when some one would pay a compliment to a lawyer's argument before a jury or his skill in handling a case, some old lawyer would say, with a wise look and a shake of the head : "You ought to have been here in Dan Morton's time ; he was a lawyer who was a lawyer." Charles M. Dorr was born at Hoosac, New York, in 1815 and was educated in his native state. In 1838 he came to Toledo and almost immediately after his arrival he began the study of law in the office of Judge John Fitch. He was admitted to the bar in the fall of 1839 and in 1842 was elected city attorney. While other lawyers may have excelled him in the preparation and trial of cases, few surpassed him as a "mixer." He was a man of genial disposition and marked personal popularity. In 1847 and again in 1850 he was elected to represent his ward in the city council, and he held the office of mayor longer than any other man. He was first elected to that office in 1851, when he served for one year. He was again mayor from 1853 to 1857, and from 1863 to 1867. He died suddenly of apoplexy on April 20, 1870. Dorr Street, in the City of Toledo, bears his name. George B. Way was a native of Baltimore, Maryland, where he was born on May 5, 1811. He Was educated at Yale College and the Miami University (in Ohio), and was admitted to the bar in 1832. For about three years he practiced at Urbana, but in 1835, at the solicitation of parties interested, he came to Toledo and the following year assumed the editorship of the "Toledo Blade," the second newspaper published in the city. While thus engaged he formed a partnership with Richard Cooke and the law firm of Way & Cooke soon took high. rank. Mr. Cooke TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 639 died in 1839 and Mr. Way then formed a partnership with Daniel McBain, which lasted until the senior member removed to Defiance in 1846. It has been said that when it was known George Way was to make an argument in a case, the people would flock to the court room to hear him. Then, having finished his case, "he would desert his office and his law books and give himself entirely up to a luxurious indolence, or the pleasure of purely literary or artistic study." He was a member of the first city council in Toledo ; was elected mayor in 1844, and soon after removing to Defiance was elected presiding judge of the Court of Common Pleas, which office he held until the court was abolished or reorganized, by the constitution of 1851. William Baker was born in Norwalk, Ohio, February 5, 1822 ; was educated at the Norwalk Academy and Granville College (now Denison University) ; studied law with Goddard & Converse, of Zanesville ; graduated at the Harvard Law School in 1844, and the same year located in Toledo. In 1847 he formed a partnership with Myron H. Tilden, which lasted until Judge Tilden removed to Cincinnati in 1850. In 1857 he entered into partnership with William A. Collins. Mr. Collins was elected common pleas judge in 1870 and a few years later Rufus H. Baker became a partner. Barton Smith entered the firm a little later and the name of Baker, Smith & Baker was adopted. For thirty-five years William Baker was one of the prominent trial lawyers of Toledo. Most of his practice was in real estate, equity and commercial litigation. He died at Toledo on November 17, 1894. There is a coincidence in the lives of William Baker and Edward Bissell. The latter was born at Geneseo, New York, September 24, 1824, and at an early age came with his parents to Toledo. He graduated at Yale in 1844 and two years later he graduated in law at Harvard. He then served in the Mexican war as a private soldier in the Texas Riflemen, coming to Toledo in July, 1847, just about the time the law firm of Tilden & Baker was organized. Mr. Bissell studied in that office for a few months and was then admitted to the bar. He then spent some time in the South, returning to Toledo in 1856 and beginning the practice of his profession. In March, 1863, he became the senior member of the firm of Bissell & Gorrill, his partner being William H. Gorrill. In connection with their law practice, the firm also conducted an abstract business and was also interested in real estate operations. One who knew Mr. Bissell well said a short time after his death : "Of the bar of Northwestern Ohio, as a lawyer, he ranked among the best. As an associate he was kind, patient, courteous, considerate and always helpful. As an antagonist he was always a gentleman, but his painstaking labor in preparation, and his persistence in the maintenance of his position made him a very formidable opponent." On December 24, 1863, Mr. Bissell was united in marriage with Miss Sarah A. Secor, of Toledo. Five children were born to this union, some of whom still live in the city. Mr. Bissell died on November 23, 1894, only six days after the death of William Baker, also an alumnus of the Harvard Law School, sometimes an opponent in the trial case, but always a close friend. Among the lawyers of a little later date, the name of Frank H. Hurd occupies a prominent position. He was born at Mount Vernon, Ohio, December 25, 1840, a son of Rollin C. Hurd, at one time judge of the Common Pleas Court of Knox County and author of "Hurd on Habeas Corpus." Frank H. Hurd graduated at Kenyon College as a member of the class of 1858 ; studied law with his father ; was 640 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY admitted to the bar in 1861, and in 1863 was elected prosecuting attorney of Knox County. In 1866 he was elected state senator and at this time prepared the "Code of Criminal Procedure," which was afterward enacted into law by the Ohio Legislature. In 1869 he removed to Toledo and formed a partnership with Charles H. Scribner, under the firm name of Scribner & Hurd. Mr. Hurd was elected city solicitor of Toledo in 1871 and was reelected in 1873. In 1874 he was the Democratic candidate for Congress. During the campaign he pledged himself, if elected, to use his influence to secure a new post office building for Toledo, to cost not less than $500,000. He was elected and succeeded in getting an appropriation for the building still standing in 1922 on the corner of Madison Avenue and St. Clair Street. He also secured an appropriation of $75,000 for improving the channel of the Maumee River—the largest appropriation that had been made for that purpose up to that time. He was elected a second time to Congress in 1878, and a third time in 1882. From the time he retired from Congress in 1885, down to his death on July 10, 1896, he gave all his time to the practice of his profession. At the time of his death he was the senior member of the firm of Hurd, Brumback & Thatcher, which had been organized on January 1, 1894. The other members of this firm were Orville S. Brumback and Charles A. Thatcher, both of whom were still practicing law in Toledo in 1922. One of the most versatile lawyers of Toledo, of forty years ago, was Joseph D. Ford, who studied law in the office of Baker & Collins and was admitted to the bar in 1867. He was tall, blue-eyed, light complexioned, and had an honest, homespun manner that was always engaging to the average juryman. As a cross-examiner he had few equals and probably no superiors. In 1871 he was elected prosecuting, attorney of Lucas County and held the office until 1878. His experience during that time developed him into one of the most successful trial lawyers at the Toledo Bar. It is said that during a trial his face was as impassive as that of a successful poker player. When evidence came out that was damaging to his cause, he would look so unconcerned that the jurors would conclude the testimony was not really important. The following' incident illustrates his ability in examining witnesses The barge "Turner" was going down the Maumee River one evening against a strong wind coming up from the bay. The captain signalled for the opening of the Pennsylvania Railroad bridge, but the wind was so strong the bridge tender could not open the draw. He succeeded in partially opening it, when the "Turner" ran into it and caused damage to the bridge, for which the railroad company brought suit, employing Scribner & Hurd to prosecute 'the case. The owners of the' boat employed "Joe" Ford, as he was commonly called, and J. Kent Hamilton for the defense. When the case came to trial, one of the bridge tenders testified that, as the "Turner" approached the captain called out : "Open your son-of-a-gun of a bridge or I'll open it for you." Scribner & Hurd thought this. testimony implied a threat on the part of the captain and that they had made a strong point. Ford cross-examined the witness. Leaning forward, in his most persuasive manner, he said : "The captain called the bridge a son-of-a-gun, did he ?" The witness replied in the affirmative and Ford then asked in the most child-like way : "Is the bridge really a son-of-a-gun ?" This brought a broad smile to the faces of several of the jurors and the effect of the evidence was lost. On one occasion he was trying a case before Judge Louis H. Pike, in which TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 641 the judge was against him all the way through. In his argument to the jury Ford said : "Now, gentlemen, it is evident that the court is against us on the law, but I want you to remember, and the judge will charge you that, while he decides the law, you are the final, the sole and the supreme judge of the facts. If you find the facts in our favor, you should give us a verdict, no matter what kind of law the judge gives you. It is the glory of our law that the jury are superiors, even to the Supreme Court of the United States, on a question of facts. This case does not depend on the law, but on the facts. It is not a case for a judge, but a case for a jury, and that is the reason, why we are trying it to a jury." By this line of argument he succeeded in instilling into the minds of the jurors that the judge did not cut much of a figure in the case. Although. Judge Pike gave the jury the most adverse charge possible, Ford's argument had done its work and the verdict was in favor of his client. Mr. Ford died in June, 1894, in a hotel in Cincinnati. Instances of this kind might be multiplied, as there have been many other attorneys in Toledo whose reputation extended throughout the state. Of these, Clarence Brown, J. Kent Hamilton, Charles T. Lewis and several others are mentioned at length in the second volume of this work. Isaac P. Pugsley was for many years one of the best known lawyers in the city. When Judge John H. Doyle was elevated to the Supreme Court bench in 1883, Mr. Pugsley was appointed Common Pleas judge for Doyle's unexpired. term. He brought to the position a judicial mind and profound knowledge of the law, and his career on the bench is still referred to as exemplary. He was succeeded as Common Pleas judge by David H. Commager, whose father, Henry H. Commager, was admitted to the bar in 1842 and practiced in Toledo until he enlisted as a private soldier in. 1861, rose to the rank of colonel, and after the war settled in Texas, where he died in 1867. James M. Ritchie was born in Scotland in July, 1829, came with his parents to the United States in 1832, and was admitted to the bar in Lorain County, Ohio, in 1857. He came to Toledo in 1878 and soon won distinction as an able and painstaking lawyer. In 1880 he was elected to Congress and served one term, after which he resumed practice in Toledo. His son, Byron F. Ritchie, also served in Congress and is now (1922) one of the judges of the Common Pleas Court. James H. Southard was another lawyer who is still remembered by the members of his profession as a successful attorney. He represented the district in Congress from 1895 to 1907. John F. Kumler was born near Hamilton, Ohio, in 1841; graduated in the law department of the University of Michigan in 1870 ; located soon afterward in Toledo ; was .appointed internal revenue collector by President Arthur in 1883, and in January, 1907, took his place upon the bench of the Common Pleas Court. He died on November 30, 1910. Elihu W. Tolerton came to Toledo in October, 1873, as a young man, having been admitted to the bar only two years before. He was one of the first board of directors of the Ketcham National Bank and was recognized as a lawyer of ability. He died on August 22, 1905. Charles Pratt, a native of New York State, came to Michigan with his parents in 1833, when he was but five years old. He was educated in that state, studied law in Toledo and was admitted in. 1853. He served as a member of the city council and was elected Common Pleas judge in 1894. He died in the spring of 1900. Other Toledo lawyers eminent in their profession were : David R. Austin, Rufus H. Baker, 642 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY James C. Chamberlin, Clayton W. Everett, Charles H. and William H. Gorrill, James M. Heuston, Harry E. King, late senior member of the firm of King & Tracy, Reuben C. Lemmon, Angus McIntosh, Alexander W. Scott, and many others, not mentioning those now in practice. TOLEDO BAR ASSOCIATION The Toledo Bar Association was organized in December, 1878, but the records of the organization prior to July 11, 1896, have been lost. On the latter date a meeting of the association was held and the minutes were signed by W. H. A. Read as president and Edward J. Durbin as secretary. Mr. Read was again elected president at the annual meeting in December, 1896, and Judge Louis H. Pike was president during the years 1898 and 1899. At the annual meeting on December 30, 1899, the association was reorganized by the adoption. of a new constitution. The presidents under this constitution during the next ten years were as follows : Isaac N. Huntsberger, 1900 ; E. H. Rhoades, 1901-02; Samuel Kohn, 1903-04; Rufus H. Baker, 1905-06; Charles H. Northrup, 1907-08 ; Elmer E. Davis, 1909-10. From 1910 to 1916 the minute books of the association are missing. George B. Orwig was elected president in 1916 ; Frank H. Geer was president during 1917-18 ; Stephen Brophy, 1919 ; George P. Hahn, 1920-21, and Albert H. Miller; 1921-22. Frank E. Calkins was elected at the annual meeting in December, 1922, for the ensuing year. All officers are elected at the annual meeting in December. Special meetings are held upon the call of the president to adopt memorial resolutions upon the death of a member, or to consider some extraordinary subject connected with the practice of law. Through the Committee on Law Reform, one of the standing committees, the association has been influential in shaping legislation to secure the better administration of justice. When the United States declared war against the German Government in April, 1917, the association indorsed the action of Congress and the members agreed to volunteer their services to aid in carrying out the provisions of the selective draft act. This they did, both by advising the local draft boards regarding the meaning of the provisions of the law, and assisting young men in preparing their answers to questionnaires, etc. In order that this work might be done in a systematic way, a committee of three was chosen to work with each of the draft boards. Each of these committees was afterward increased to seven members. Practically every member of the Toledo Bar Association was an active participant in the various Liberty Loan drives and other war work. INCIDENTS AND TRIALS The litigation in Lucas County has never differed materially from that in the other counties of the state. In the United States District Court, much of it has been connected with railroad matters, foreclosures, receiverships, etc. Such cases are usually void of any exciting or sensational features, and there have been but few cases in the local courts to cause widespread comment. Several trials for murder could be classed as the ordinary "nine days' wonder," but only a few have left lasting impressions. One of these was the trial of Philip Steinmetz for the murder of August Heck; at the. December term in 1869. TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 643 Heck and Steinmetz were neighbors, near the intersection of Cherry and Bancroft streets. The former owned a cow that got into Steinmetz's garden and did some damage. A quarrel resulted and Steinmetz assaulted Heck, who had him arrested and tried before the police court. After the trial Steinmetz threatened to "get even." A night or two later Heck was aroused from his sleep by a noise which he thought was unusual. Going to the window to investigate, he received a load of buckshot in the face, causing almost instant death. The police were notified and naturally Steinmetz was suspected. An old shotgun was found in Steinmetz's stable, hidden under some cornstalks. The gun showed evidence of having been recently discharged. The officers also learned that Steinmetz's bed had been unoccupied, although the covers were thrown back as if he had prepared to retire. A piece of the wadding used in the gun was found and proved to be a piece of a German newspaper, which fitted into a paper found in Steinmetz's house. The officers also found in a bureau drawer buckshot of the same character as those found in Heck's house. They traced Steinmetz, to the house of a friend on Ten-mile Creek and found him hiding in a cornfield. Upon this chain of circumstantial evidence he was arrested on the charge of murder in the first degree, indicted by the grand jury and placed on trial. J. Kent Hamilton was at that time prosecuting attorney of Lucas County and he retained Charles Kent to assist him. Steinmetz was defended by James M. Ritchie and Henry E. Howe. At that time the court room occupied nearly the entire third floor of the old courthouse at Adams and Erie streets, but it was crowded to its capacity by men and women, attracted by what was then unusual—the trial of a murder case. In the argument following the evidence, Mr. Hamilton opened for the state. After carefully reviewing all the testimony, and dwelling upon the strength of the circumstantial evidence, he made one of his dramatic pauses. Then walking up close to the jury he closed in solemn tones : "You are as certain, gentleman, that Steinmetz killed Heck as you would be if Heck came out of his grave before you, with all his bloody wounds, and told you that Steinmetz was his murderer." Henry E. Howe was then a young man, but an able lawyer. His argument was largely of an emotional nature and an attorney afterward said : "He certainly awakened all the milk of human kindness in the breasts of the jury and their profound commiseration for the fate of his client." Judge Ritchie followed Howe for the defense. With rare skill he took up the several points of the circumstantial evidence and endeavored to show that none of them was sufficient to prove his client's guilt. After reminding the jury that there was no positive evidence against Steinmetz, he called attention to a number of cases where such evidence was practically conclusive, in some instances so strong that men had been sentenced to death, and years after their execution facts were disclosed that established their innocence. He awakened the sympathy of every one present and at the close of his address there was a gleam of hope for the defendant. Charles Kent closed for the prosecution. He has been described as "short, heavy set, broad shouldered, with a strong, rugged face and an iron jaw ; the very personification of an irresistible force." From the beginning to the close of his argument he read the death warrant of Philip Steinmetz. The jury found Steinmetz guilty an,d he was sentenced to be hanged, but Rutherford B. Hayes, 644 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY then governor of Ohio, commuted the sentence to life imprisonment. He died in the penitentiary after serving nearly thirty years. An incident in the career of Morrison R. Waite shows the magnanimity of the man. Shortly after the Civil war a lawyer came to Tole& from one of the rural bars, where it was considered the proper thing to engage in what is known as "sharp practice." In one of his first cases in Lucas County he filed a petition in the Common Pleas Court. Morrison R. Waite was the attorney for the defendant and; being somewhat. busy, failed to file an answer- within the specified time. The rural attorney insisted that the petition was in default for answer and tried to win his case on a technicality. It was the custom then to give the attorney f or the defense, in cases that were to be tried, a reasonable time after default to answer. Judge John Fitch, before whom. the case was pending, pointed out that it could not be tried for some time and that no harm would result by following the time honored custom: But the lawyer was anxious to make a reputation. In a loud and vociferous argument he claimed judgment by default. Members of the bar who were present were taken aback by this novel proposition and the court explained that it was not customary to take advantage of an attorney who was in default on account of pressure of business, although such a custom. might have a tendency to make them more prompt in filing their pleadings. But the attorney remained obdurate. In the meantime Waite had been looking over the petition and discovered a fatal defect, to which he now called the court's attention. Under a strict construction of the law, he was entitled to have the case dismissed and throw the costs on the plaintiff, but he graciously permitted the attorney to amend his pleadings, saying: "If I give him time to amend his petition, he may be willing to grant me a few minutes to prepare my answer." Waite afterward won the case. A peculiar case involving the title to valuable real estate was tried in the Lucas County courts in 1871. A little matter occurred in connection with this case, which shows how it pays not to overlook the slightest detail in the preparation of a lawsuit or the defense of a case. A few years after Toledo was founded, Hugh Gribben became the owner of some land near the city. In 1842 Neil Gribben, a brother, came to Toledo and for a time lived at a tavern kept by his brother Peter. He had authority from his brother Hugh to dispose of the land and executed a deed conveying the 160 acres to his other brothers, Peter and John Gribben, for a consideration of $1,000. Soon .after making this deed he died and a few years later John Gribben sold his interest in the land to Peter for $25. No question of title was raised for nearly thirty years. Then. Hugh Gribben appeared and claimed that the deed executed by Neil Gribben was fraudulent, inasmuch as it was not drawn until after death, and that it was signed by some one putting a pen in the hand of the dead man and guiding it in affixing his signature.. By this time the land had increased in value until it was worth probably $20,000. The case was tried in the Common Pleas Court, where Hugh Gribben won a verdict on the grounds as above stated. His attorneys were Lee & French, Morrison R. Waite and William Baker, some of the best legal talent in Toledo at that time. Peter Gribben's widow and heirs were represented by Charles W. Hill and Charles Dodge. The case was appealed to the old District Court and when it came up for TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 645 hearing in April, 1871, Mr. Dodge was absent on account of sickness. Mr. Hill then employed Charles H. Scribner to assist him in conducting the case. Scribner spent all day Sunday examining the papers and appeared in court the following morning. John Gribben and H. A. Faxon, the only surviving witnesses to the deed, testified positively that Neil Gribben held a power of attorney from Hugh Gribben, that he was dead when the deed was made, and that the attorney who wrote the deed put a penholder in the dead man's hand and signed the deed. John Gribben further testified that he was a minor at the time and that he was under the influence of his brother Peter. All this had been brought out before in the Common Pleas Court and none present anticipated a reversal of the decision. The only evidence submitted by the defense was the deed itself. In calling the attention of the court to this deed, Mr. Scribner pointed out the startling fact that wherever the name of Neil Gribben occurred, written by the attorney who drew the deed, it was always written "Niel" (the "i" before the "e"), while in the signature it was correctly spelled "Neil" (the "e" before the "i"). From this fact he argued that the lawyer who drew the deed did not know how to spell the maker's name, but that Neil Gribben assuredly knew how to spell his own name, and that therefore the signature was Neil Gribben's, written by himself before his death. This argument won and the farm remained in the hands of Peter Gribben's heirs. Other lawsuits are mentioned in chapters relating to the business interests or municipal affairs. Still others might be recorded, but it is believed that this chapter, already long, will give the reader a clear idea of the Lucas County Bench and Bar, which have always ranked high in the legal annals of the Buckeye. State. CHAPTER XXXII THE MEDICAL PROFESSION MEDICINE AN OLD PROFESSION-THE PIONEER DOCTOR-HIS METHODS AND CHARACTER-HIS STANDING AS A CITIZEN-PERSONAL MENTION OF EARLY LUCAS COUNTY DOCTORS-MEDICAL SOCIETIES-MEDICAL SCHOOLS- HOMEOPATHY - EARLY HOMEOPATHIC PHYSICIANS IN TOLEDO- HOMEOPATHIC MEDICAL SOCIETIES-MISCELLANEOUS PRACTITIONERS. The practice of the healing art is as old as the human race. The first man who "felt out o' sorts" doubtless sought for some remedy to relieve his suffering, and having found one, communicated its virtues to his neighbor. Experiences were exchanged, new discoveries made, new remedies tested, and in this way began a materia medica that through the centuries physicians and chemists have built up to its present high standard. Every ancient nation, without consultation or collusion with others, developed a system of medicine, in which sense and superstition were combined. THE PIONEER DOCTOR One of the most welcome additions to the population of a new country is the physician, though some of the pioneer doctors would hardly be regarded as "eminent" members of the profession in this year 1922. In many instances the old-time doctor was not a graduate of a medical college. He obtained his professional education by "reading" with an older physician and assisting his preceptor in practice. When he felt that he knew enough to launch out for himself, he began to look about for a location and frequently discovered that some newly settled community, some frontier town, offered him the best prospect of "getting in on the ground floor" and establishing a practice before a competitor entered the field. It must not be inferred, however, that all the pioneer physicians were of this type. Not infrequently an old practitioner with an established reputation, perhaps a graduate of some well known medical college, believing that a new settlement offered a better field in which to expand, would "pull up stakes" and cast his lot with an infant commonwealth. But whether the early doctor was a graduate physician or one without a diploma, his labors were the same. His practice generally extended over a large territory, in a region where railroads were unknown, and he must be ready to answer calls day or night. He did not use an automobile in visiting his patients, as do most of the physicians of the present day. Even had the automobile then been invented it would have been practically useless in a country where there were no public highways worthy of the name, so the doctor found a trusty horse the safest and surest means of conveyance. There were no drug stores to fill prescriptions. To - 647 - 648 - TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY overcome this difficulty the doctor carried a stock of medicines with him in a pair of "pill-bags"--a contrivance consisting of two stout leather boxes, divided into compartments to accommodate vials of different sizes. These boxes were connected by a broad leather strap which could be thrown across the saddle, one of the boxes hanging on each side of the horse—saddle-bags. Dr. William Duncan, an early Indiana physician, says in his "Reminiscences," published in 1880: "Every doctor carried a goodly supply of English calomel, some aloes and Dover's powder, opium in some form or another, sweet spirits of nitre, a preparation of Spanish fly for 'drawing blisters,' and in districts where ague was prevalent some Peruvian bark (sulphate of quinine was as yet too rare and costly for general use) constituted an essential element of his materia medica. As blood-letting was considered of first importance in cases of malignant fever, he carried one or more lancets, in order to be ready for any emergency. Such was the equipment of the average physician forty or fifty years ago. Looking back to those days, the wonder is not that he saved the lives of so many of his patients, but that he saved any at all." Doctor Duncan's remarks are somewhat sarcastic and perhaps a little too severe, but being a member of the profession, he could say things that would hardly have been tolerated from an outsider. Besides the lancets he mentions, 'there was another instrument carried by almost every early physician., That was the "turnkey," used for extracting aching teeth, for to this extent he was dentist as well as doctor of medicine. While the turnkey may not have included "all the horrors of the Inquisition," it was certainly capable of inflicting torture on the patient during the process of extracting a tooth. There is a story of a negro barber whose razor was not very sharp and the customer complained that it pulled, to which the darkey replied : "Yassir, boss, I knows hit pulls some, but if de razor handle don't break dat beard, am bound to come off." So it was with the turnkey. Once clamped upon a tooth, if something didn't break that tooth was bound to come out. Yet, with all their limitations, many of the old-time doctors were men of ability, solicitous for the recovery of their patients and sincere in their desire to place their profession upon a higher plane. As a rule they were conservative without being non-progressive, unselfish enough, when a new method of treatment was discovered, to impart a knowledge of the discovery to their fellow practitioners, each in this way adding his mite to the general advancement. Very often, after practicing for years without a diploma, one of these doctors would attend a medical college in order to acquire the long coveted degree of "M. D." In this day of specialists, when it costs as much to equip a physician's office as it did to acquire a medical education in the middle of the Nineteenth Century, if one of these early physicians could come back and enter the office of one of these specialists, he would stand aghast at the array of scientific apparatus, though he might not realize that he was a humble factor in bringing about this great progress. In the new country the doctor was nearly always one of the leading citizens. While making his rounds he learned much of what was going on locally and, without degenerating into a gossip, he was a purveyor of news. He was always a welcome visitor in the homes, whether there was sickness in the family or not. On these occasions the choicest bit of fried chicken and the largest piece of pie found their way to the doctor's plate. Frequently he was the only man in the community TOLEDO AND LUCAS COUNTY - 649 who subscribed for and read a newspaper, which gave him a better knowledge of political affairs than that of his neighbors. Because of this fact, he was frequently called upon to fill some public office of trust and responsibility. The first clerk of the court in Lucas County was a physician and before the county was five years old another physician was elected to represent it in the state senate. EARLY LUCAS COUNTY DOCTORS As no early records on vital statistics were kept at the time the first settlements were made in what is now Lucas County, the history of the physicians during the first years of the county's career must necessarily be incomplete. The first physician who settled in the county, so far as can be learned, was a Doctor Barton. About the beginning of the Nineteenth Century he located in the little settlement at the Rapids, where he treated both white people and Indians for a number of years. He was still at Maumee when Dr. Horatio Conant came there in 1816. What became of him is not known. Dr. Horatio Conant, who was the second physician to locate in Lucas County, was born at Mansfield, Connecticut, November 25, 1785. After attending the local schools he entered Middlebury College, where he graduated, with the degree of A. M. in 1813. For more than two years he was a tutor. in the college and during that time studied medicine, especially anatomy, with a Doctor Waterhouse, of Malone, New York. In 1815 he went to Detroit, where he spent the winter with his brother, a merchant of that place, continuing his medical studies while there. The following year he and Almon Gibbs opened a store on the north side of the Maumee. River, opposite Fort Meigs. After about a year in this business he began the practice of medicine. Physicians were scarce in the Maumee Valley at that time. It was .not long until Doctor Conant's practice extended up the Maumee to Defiance ; south to the Portage River and Blanchard's Fork ; north to the River Raisin, and at least on one occasion he was called .to visit a patient at Fort Wayne. One experience of Doctor Conant illustrates the hardships and difficulties with which the early physician had to contend. He was called to Defiance and set out on horseback as usual. The spring rains had swollen all the creeks and he had to swim eight streams before reaching his destination. After treating his patient, he procured a canoe, leaving his horse in care of a friend, and floated down to his home at Maumee. Besides practicing his profession, Doctor Conant took an interest in all affairs of a public nature. He was appointed the first clerk of the court in Lucas County ; held the offices of judge of the Court of Common Pleas, justice of the peace, collector of customs and postmaster, yet he always found time to answer the demands of the sick. His death occurred on December 10, 1879, at the advanced age of ninety-four years. As stated in Chapter XVII, the first physician in Toledo was Dr. J. V. D. Sutphen. He was born in New Jersey on July 24, 1802, attended school and studied medicine in his native state, and in 1824 received the degree of M. D. from the medical college at Castleton, Vermont. The .next spring he came to Port Lawrence and began the practice of his profession. In 1827 he married Miss Mary Rose, a step-daughter of Noah A. Whitney, and began housekeeping "in the woods," near the present intersection of Fifteenth Street and Madison Avenue. When the boundary war. between Ohio and Michigan assumed serious proportions in 1835, Doctor