200 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. Tyler had an opportunity to study the sciences, particularly astronomy, and delve in skeptical literature, but oddly enough he believed in the teachings of Jesus and claimed to be a Christian to his dying day ; but never united with a church or subscribed to the creed of any denomination. After closing his school he went to Hudson, Ohio, and entered a preparatory school for Western Reserve College. Here his eyes became affected from study, and he was obliged to give up the full course. He attended the lectures on science delivered to the senior class by those eminent scholars Loomis and St. John, and for six months he hired a person to read to him in mathematics and a Latin grammar while obliged to remain in a darkened room. He began the study of law when about eighteen under Esquire Wheaden at Hudson, with whom he remained over two years, a portion of the time studying at night and teaching during the day. On the advice of Mr. Wheaden he entered the office of Tilden & Ranney, at Ravenna, with whom he remained for a year and a half, when he was admitted to practice. After trayelling through Illinois, Wisconsin and Ohio Mr. Tyler finally settled at Garrettsville, Ohio, and entered upon the practice, obtaining in a short time a clientage in Trumbull and Summit counties, as well as Portage. In 1851 he remoyed to Kent, then known as Franklin Mills, where he declined a nomination for State Senator. He gave particular attention to the laws governing banking, manufacture and railroads. The mortgage drawn by him in 1851, to secure the payment of $4,000,000 in bonds issued by the Franklin & Warren Railroad Company was regarded as a model, and the form has generally been adopted for such instruments. From 1853, until work was suspended in 1858, he was general solicitor of the Atlantic & Great Western Railway, and in the meantime removed to Mansfield, whence in 1858 he went to Warren and formed a partnership with Judge Matthew Birchard. Mr. Tyler was an ardent Republican and participated actively in campaigns. In 1860 he was elected judge of the Probate Court. He did not enter the army on account of his official duties, but used his influence on the stump and elsewhere to secure enlistments, promising to turn over his office to any worthy lawyer who might be wounded in the seryice. He was re-elected and soon afterwards resigned in favor of Mr. Youmans, a wounded soldier, whose appointment he secured from Governor Brough. In 1865 Mr. Tyler removed to Cleveland to accept the solicitorship of the Atlantic & Great Western Railway. Soon afterwards he formed a partnership with Judge Rufus P. Ranney, who resigned from the Supreme Bench, and the two were associated together as solicitors of the railway company until 1869, when the financial. embarrassment of the road culminated in foreclosure and a subsequent receiyership. Mr. Tyler was attorney for the receivers. About the same time he became solicitor of the Cleyeland, Lorain & Wheeling Railroad, and retained the position until his death. Mr. Tyler's active Republicanism brought him into contact with the leaders of the party in Ohio, and among his personal friends were Sherman and Garfield. Mr. Tyler was a man of refined taste and literary culture. Being on intimate terms with Horace Greeley he received a   BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 201 letter of introduction from the latter to Washington Irving. and the presentation of this letter to the popular American author was an incident cherished in his memory. Notes of the interview are published in " Irving's Life and Letters." Mr. Tyler was married three times ; first to Nancy V. Horr, who lived but a few years after marriage and left one son who has since died; second, to Sarah A. McKinney, by whom he had two sons, Charles W., a journalist, residing in New York, and William B , a lawyer; who practiced law with his father in Cleveland until the latter's death and then removed to New York ; third, the widow of James B. Parish, and whose maiden name was Emer I. Waite and who in girlhood had been a pupil of Mr. Tyler. HENRY C. WHITE, Cleveland. Honorable Henry Clay White is a native of Cuyahoga county, born just outside the limits of the city of Cleveland, February 23, 1839. He is of English-Welsh extraction. His parents were natiyes of Massachusetts and of Berkshire county in that State, where they were reared, educated and married. The ancestors of both were among the early settlers of the Connecticut colony. His mother, Sabina Williams, was of Welsh descent. In her childhood days she was a schoolmate of the Fields, who have since achieved such remarkable distinction at the Bar, on the Bench and in commercial affairs. His father, Wileman W. White, emigrated from his native town of Lenox in 1815 to seep a home in the new commonwealth of Ohio. leaving his young wife in her girlhood home at Stockbridge until he should find the conditions desired for a location in the West. The vicinity of Cleveland offered many natural advantages and inducements to industry and enterprise, and here the family tree was planted—possibly it is more accurate to say the forest tree was removed to make room for the family cabin of the settler. The next year he returned to Massachusetts for his wife and the household gods, and brought them all the way to Cleveland in a wagon.. He was an architect, a builder and a millwright, whose skill and public spirit contributed much to the improvement to the frontier and the development of its resources. He built many of the mills in the neighborhood.of Cleveland and acquired a large landed estate before his death. Judge White was little more than three years of age when his.father died, but he was fortunately possessed by heredity of those moral and intellectual traits and tendencies which need little repression and only gentle guidance to make the strong, capable, successful man. His education received careful supervision. Arrived at the age of eleven his guardian placed him in the school at Hiram, out of which was subsequently evolved Hiram College. He remained in the school only a term and a half on his first entrance, but returned to it in 1856 and remained four years. James A. Garfield, a graduate fresh from Williams College, was then principal of the school at Hiram and stood in the relation of teacher to young White for a period of four years. It is the deliberate opinion of Judge White, founded upon personal observation and study of the man in all of 202 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. his relations, that Garfield achieved his greatest success in life as a teacher of young men and boys. The high positions afterwards won and held with popular approval never obscured that success, in the judgment and the memory of such as received his instruction at Hiram.' Possibly the halo that encircled the brow of the general, the congressman and the President, lends a peculiar charm to the memory that " he was once my teacher." After completing his course at college Mr. White entered the Law Department of the University of Michigan, where he enjoyed the benefit of instruction and lectures by Judge Thomas NI. Cooley, James V. Campbell and Charles I. Walker, who composed the first faculty of that school, and were among the greatest lawyers of the West, even then. He was graduated as an LL. B. in 1862 and was admitted to the Bar at Cleveland. The War of the Rebellion had so depleted the population by calling men to the front, and the interests dependant upon the issue were so completely absorbing the attention of the remnant that a young lawyer found it difficult to secure business enough for a livelihood. There was, indeed, comparatively little practice for the old lawyers. So young White ,took employment in the office of the county clerk, where he was enabled to earn a salary and at the same time keep in touch with the courts and lawyers. He held the position for ten years and then resumed the general practice of the law, which was continued without interruption until 1887. During all this time he formed but one business and professidnal partnership and that was with William Robison, now deceased. He won and maintained a high standing at the Bar, by his acquirements and accomplishments in the law, and his regard for the character and dignity of the profession. One writer says two things are essential to the highest success of a lawyer : " To possess himself entirely of the facts in his case, and believe in its justice." This is rather a narrow view of the qualifications of a lawyer, and certainly Judge White in active practice surpassed the requirements of the two essentials. He was much more than a " case lawyer." He did not cram and prepare in a limited sense to gain a single case, but pondered deeply the principles and informed himself in the philosophy of the law. He studied his, cases and believed in them, but in a much higher and broader sense he sought to understand the cold law and believed in abstract justice. In 1887 he was elected as candidate of the Republican party to the office of Probate Judge of Cuyahoga county. He succeeded Daniel R. Tilden, a relative of the great Samuel J. Tilden, of New York, who had held the office thirty-three years. Judge White has already been re-elected four times and his administration of the trust is so clean and able that the tenure for him as long .as that of his predecessor would be extremely desirable. Fortunate indeed are the widows and orphans and devisees whose rights are determined and whose estates are adminstered by such a judge—pure-minded, righteous and upright. His guide is the law ; his rule of action, duty. The work of the office frequently involves prodigious industry and unwearied diligence to ascertain under the law the exact rights of claimants whose interests are conflicting. It sometimes requires patient investigation and honesty of judgment to determine the distribution BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 203 of an estate in a reasonable, benignant spirit, according to equity, when the letter of the law is not adapted to all the complications. Judge White is endowed with the capacity for work, the intellecual integrity which impels an observance of the demands of justice and a conscientious sympathy which insists upon a consideration of pending rights, in all their breadth and depth, before a final decision. The measure of popular esteem entertained for him is indicated by his election five successive terms to the office of Probate Judge. He has never been a candidate for any other office. His professional standing is excellent. He is professor of Testamentary Law in the F. T. Backus Law School of the Western Reserye Uniyersity, and occupies the chair of Medical Jurisprudence in the Cleyeland Medical College, whose graduating class last year numbered fifty-five. Judge White is a gentleman of cordial manners and pleasing address; in social intercourse the incarnation of urbanity. He is a popular orator, whose addresses are not only -entertaining but effective in the advocacy of any matter of public concern. He is a member of the Masonic Order, in which he has adyanced to the thirty-second degree. He has membership in the Union, Colonial and Masonic. Clubs, but his social qualities find their best expression in his family and home. He was married in 1866 to Sabina M. Capron and has four children, two sons and two daughters. HORACE FOOTE, Cleveland. Judge Horace Foote, deceased, was born March 21, 1799, in the southern part of Hartford county, Connecticut. His father, Roger Foote, was a farmer, who was also born in Connecticut. The family was of English extraction. He was the fourth son in a family of ten children. His early life was spent upon his father's farm, and during the winters he was sent to the country district schools. His brilliancy and acute- ness of mind were manifested at an early age, and at fifteen he had gone beyond his classmates and was sent to an academy at Cheshire, Connecticut. Here he began the study of the classics, and in the course of a year or so he had made such progress that he felt he could stand an examination for admission to the freshman class in Yale College. One of his classmates, Seth Paddock, afterwards a Bishop of the Episcopal Church, was also anxious to obtain a college education ; so the two quietly left the academy without the knowledge of any one and walked all the way to New Hayen. Haying no acquaintance with any person connected with the college, and seeking no outside influence, they asked for an examination. The request was granted ; both were admitted upon disclosing their identity, and upon the merit of their scholarship alone they were entered, not in the freshman, but in the third term of the sophomore year. This was in 1818. Young Foote remained at Yale two years, when he was graduated with high standing. Among his classmates and intimate friends were President Woolsey, of Yale ; Solomon Stoddard, of Vermont, and Leonard Bacon and Alexander T wining, of New Haven, who became celebrated in the professional and literary world, and were at one 204 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. time professors in Yale. President Woolsey was the honor man and the valedictorian of the class; Horace Foote and Solomon Stoddard haying orations. There was a standing premium (The Bishop Berkley premium of $50) every year offered for the student who passed the best examination in three Greek and three Latin books. Alexander Twining, Mr. Williston and Horace Foote competed for this prize. Mr. Foote made no especial preparation for this examination, but as he was exceedingly fond of language studies it was his custom to read further in the classics than the course required. The lessons assigned did not occupy all of his time or giye him sufficient work. He was therefore able to win the prize, although he had never looked into certain of the books used. During his term in college he also studied French. After graduating he immediately began the study of law in the office of Seth P. Staples, a distinguished lawyer in New Haven. and two yea's later was admitted to practice. He then went to Geneseo, New York, to open an office, but his father dying about this time he went back home to look after the farm and family, which needed his care, and he remained two or three years, raising, as he once said, "potatoes, beans and a little of everything and not much of anything." During this time he carted his produce to market more than ten miles over very bad roads. After leaving the farm he went to Chatham, where one of his brothers was engaged in merchandising, thence he went to Cincinnati to look after some business for the merchant brother. Soon afterwards his health failed, and for several years he was an invalid. Whilst sick he visited Cleveland, where a brother-in-law resided, then went back to Connecticut to consult a physician. He really thought he was going to die, but with skillful treatment and rest he completely recovered. Before leaving Connecticut for Cincinnati, in the year 1834, he was married to Mary Elenor Hurd, of Middle Haddam, that State. He was regarded by the professors of Yale as a brilliant and thorough scholar, and after graduating was invited by them to deliver an oration the following year. In 1836 he removed to Cleveland, residing in what was then called the City of Ohio, now the West Side, where he opened an office and began the practice of law. He soon came to be regarded as a strong lawyer, although not a great jury advocate. He knew and remembered about all there was in the text-books and was an excellent pleader. The law business of this Bar then- was not large, but he had to contend with Sherlock J. Andrews, who was the greatest jury advocate in this section of the State ; Henry B. Payne, Bolton, Kelly, Bishop, Backus and others. He was judicial in his methods, and strong and clear in his ideas and enunciation. He of all of them was regarded as the best lawyer, although perhaps not the most brilliant. In 1854 he was elected judge of the Common Pleas Court, which position he held for twenty years consecutively. During this period he was looked upon by the people as an oracle of the law and when he had carefully considered a case and giyen his opinion it was regarded as settled as the Supreme Court would decide. His decisions were rarely if ever reversed by that tribunal. When too old to longer endure the fatigue and labors of the Bench, he retired from actiye life, leaving a judicial record of which any man BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 205 might be justly proud. "Judge Foote was a man who never adopted any of the arts of the demagogue to win public applause. When he was elevated to the BenOh it was because of his especial fitness for the position. If he was more distinguished than his brethren at the Bar or on the Bench, it was because of his superior learning, legal acumen and ability. He was a peculiarly modest man and so despised ostentation and brag in others that he seemed to make an effort to hide his own light "under a bushel" lest some one might think he was arrogant and assuming. 'It was said of him that he was cold and wanting in the pleasant courtesies of life ; yet it may be truly said of him as it was of. another, " Lofty and sour. to those who loved him not, yet to those friends who sought him, sweet as summer." Judge Foote was a man who was terribly in earnest. He acted as though he thought time was given' him only to use, and eyery minute of it. When he made up his mind, he was sure he was right, and he expressed his opinion with so much' clearness, precision and force that even those who differed with him on the trial felt that perhaps he was right and he generally was. He was a most uncompromising enemy of fraud, and sometimes he thought he discovered it when it did not exist. His manner was dignified even to austerity.. He had so high an opinion of the dignity of the judicial position .that to the younger members of the Bar he seemed sometimes severe and unapproachable, but he had no pride of opinion. His mind was so acute that he could catch the force of an argument as soon as the point was stated, and whatever may have been his expressed convictions, if the argument showed him wrong, he would change instantly and acknowledge his' error. It was not necessary for the' piling practitioner to come before him with his arms full of authorities. He knew the law withoutthe aid of books, and he always gave the younger or weak the benefit of his knowledge when he decided the case or charged the jury, which, often amounted to the about the same thing. Judge Foote died November 16, 1884, in his 86th year. He had married Mary E. Hurd in early manhood, and to them were born six children, three sons and three daughters. One of the latter died in 1881. His widow survived him about six years. All of the sons and two of the daughters are still living. NOTE. -- Upon the death of Judge Foote a memorial meeting of the Bench and Bar of Cleveland was held. It was attended by all the representative men in the profession. Judge Rufus. P. Ranney presided and delivered a very able address. He was followed. by addresses from a number of the leading men of the Bar. We are indebted W. C. McFarland, a member of the Cleveland Bar, for much valuable information as to the early life. of Judge Foote. He was a. close and intimate friend of the judge in his declining years. 206 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. JAMES M. HOYT, Cleveland. The late James M. Hoyt, LL. D., was born at Utica, New York, on the 16th of January, 1815. Both his father and mother were of Puritah descent. Great care was exercised in the preliminary education and training of their son. At an early age he entered Hamilton College, New York, and was graduated in 1834. Upon leaving college he commenced the study of law in his nativeremoved to in a short time removed to Cleveland, and in 1836 read law in the office of Andrews & Foot. On his admission to practice in the following year, the law firm of Andrews, Foot & Hoyt was formed, and continued for twelve years thereafter, when Judge Sherlock J. Andrews withdrew from the firm, upon being appointed Judge of the Superior Court of Cuyahoga county. The firm of Foot & Hoyt continued until 1853, when Mr. Hoyt withdrew from the practice of law and turned his whole attention to the purchase of real estate in Cleveland and vicinity. Shortly after arriving in Cleveland he became connected with the First Baptist Church Sunday School, and was for twenty years its superintendent. He then resigned and became teacher of a Congregational Bible class. Although never ordained a minister, for twenty years he preached at intervals, having been licensed for that purpose by the church with which he was connected. In 1854 he was chosen president of the Ohio Baptist State Convention and was annually for twenty years thereafter elected to that position. He presided over anniversary meetings of the church in nearly every city of the State. He was chosen president of the American Baptist Home Mission Society, the National organization of missions in North America, and was elected at each subsequent annual meeting until 1870, when he retired. For eight years he was president of the Cleveland Bible Society, an auxilliary to the American Bible Society. In 1877 he was elected a member of the State board of equalization, a body charged with important duties, having the same constituency as the State Senate, and which for high character, talent and practical business sense was probably never surpassed in the history of the State. In 1873 he was appointed to represent the interests of the people on the Cleveland board of public improvements. In 1870, Dennison University at Granville, Ohio, conferred upon Mr. Hoyt the degree of Learned Doctor of Laws, and the distinction was well merited. In 1836 he married Mary Ella Beebe in the city of New York. and six children were born of this union. Of these, the eldest son, Wayland Hoyt, is an eminent Baptist divine; Colegate Hoyt is a leading business man residing in the city of New York, and James H. Hoyt is one of the representative lawyers at the Cleveland Bar. Mr. Hoyt died at his home in Cleveland on Sunday, April 21, 1895, having by his upright life, abounding in good works, builded for himself a monument more enduring than brass or marble. Among those not engaged in scientific pursuits very few had kept more steadily abreast of the progress of modern science. He had an affluence of language and a rich imagination, with the poetic sense, but his imagination was always kept in subordination to the reason and the judgment. The career of Mr. Hoyt will fill a wide space in the history of Cleveland. He came when our city had not given its fullest BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 207 earnest of the bright future which has been realized in its present population and wealth, its culture and its institutions, public and private, which meet the eye on every side and are a source of so much pleasure to us all. He has furnished an example for the imitation of the young men in our midst who would do something for common welfare in their day of generation. His influence, we are sure, will long be felt, and will be an inspiration to those who would strive to accomplish the greatest good in the place where their lot has been cast. " Peace to the just man's memory, let it grow greener with the years and blosom through the flight of ages. Let the light Stream on his deeds of love that shunned the sight Of all but heaven ; and in the book of fame The glorious record of his virtues write, And hold it up to men, and bid them claim A palm like his, and catch from him the hallowed flame." He was well acquainted with the doctrines of the different schools of theology, but while cherishing his own religious creed without the shadow of a turning, he was ever prompt to raise the healing voice of charity for the opinions of others. His mind was most acute and discriminating, and by a natural selection he seemed to take special pleasure in the investigation of metaphysical truth. But in analyzing and tracing the operations of the intellectual faculties he never fell into mysticism, but always moved in the cloudless region of large, sound, common sense. He was a fond lover of nature ; he constantly interrogated her and acquired a rare knowledge of her trees and flowers. At a meeting of the Bar of Cuyahoga county, on the occasion of the death of the Honorable James M. Hoyt, by unanimous election Judge Franklin J. Dickman was chosen chairman, and by his permission we quote the following from his address : “One of the most striking proofs of the respect and consideration in which the legal profession is held in this country may be found in the fact that When distinguished citizens have reached the highest political honors they deem it no disparagement to return again to the ranks and become instruments for advancing the cause of justice, for vindicating the rights and redressing the wrongs of their fellow men. And not only is the profession itself, from its aims and objects, ennobling in its nature, but it derives lustre in turn from those who follow it. If we seek exhibitions of the rarest intellectual powers, we find them at the Bar and on the Bench. The history of jurisprudence is illumined by the intellectual triumphs of Erskine and Pinkney and Choate at the Bar, and of Hardwicke and Mansfield and Marshall and 'Kent and Story on the Bench. But after all, in estimating the world's best men and greatest, it is moral power, moral attributes that weigh most in the scale It has been well said by Charles Sumner that the true grandeur of humanity is in moral elevation, sustained, enlightened and decorated by the intellect of man. It was the combination of moral with intellectual traits that gave Mr. Hoyt his prominence and influence among those who knew him. It was in the sunshine of the heart that the fruits of his intellect were ripened. Few men were moved by a stronger benevolence and soul ; few men more thoroughly permeated by a love of his fellow men. He lived as ever in his great Taskmaster's 208 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. eye, and in obedience to the divine command to love your neighbor as yourself. His affections expanded to embrace the near and the remote, and he was always ready to deal out with a generous hand that he might ameliorate the condition of sufferers around him, and even of the distant. heathen who sat in the region of darkness. The sentiment of the Roman dramatist, 'Humani nihil alienum,' would have. been a fitting motto for his shield. It was from this broad humanity, this disposition to promote human happiness, that in his purchase of large tracts of real estate in. and around Cleveland—and its division into lots and sale for homesteads, he rarely foreclosed a contract or mortgage. Hence it was that the poor and honest laboring man who was struggling to secure a homestead was quick to purchase of him, for he knew. that if misfortune overtook him he, would be treated with forbearance and. indulgence. Thus it was, too, that while his philanthropic kindness dispelled anxiety and distress from many a household, he had the satisfaction of wit- nessing his own contribution to our city's rapid growth, for it has been estimated that nor far from a thousand. acres of city suburban property were owned by 'him., wholly or jointly with others, and subdivided into lots and sold for settlement, and that more than a hundred streets were opened and named by him. But I would not on this occasion omit to notice some of the mental characteristics of Mr. Hoyt. As a lawyer he was well versed in the doctrines of equity. He was' thoroughly grounded in real estate law, and unrayelled with more than ordinary ease the complicated', difficulties in which titles to real property. are often involved. He read history extensively, and studied its lessons in the spirit of philosophy. He was fond of belles-lettres, and had a delicate appreciation of the best productions in English poetry and prose. He was a constant and habitual reader, not only of speculative and philosophical but of practical works." HENRY McKINNEY, Cleveland. Henry McKinney, ex-judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Cuyahoga county, was born at Canfield, Ohio, October 9, 1828; was educated at the Western R' serve Seminary at Farmington, Trumbull county, andat Twinsburg Institute, of Twinsburg, Ohio. He read law two years with Judge J. W. Tyler and one year with. Judge S.'W. McClure; was admitted to the Bar in 1850 and immediately formed a partnership with his former preceptor, 'Judge McClure, under the firm name of McClure & McKinney. This lasted 'fifteen. years. He then formed a partnership with N. D. Tibbals, of Akron, which continued eight, years. In the spring of 1873 Mr. McKinney came to Cleveland and practiced law in connection with Judge Tyler and A. C. Casky. While residing at Akron he was prosecuting attorney from 1856 to 1858, and was State Senator for Summit and Portage counties. In 1880 he was elected Judge of the Court of Common Pleas; served one term of -five years, and three years on his second term, when he resigned and became a member of the law firm of Ranney & McKinney. This partnership was continued several years. Judge McKinney retired from active practice when in the full vigor Of his manhood. He had no superiors and few equals in' Ohio, possessing a thorough knowledge of legal principles, a clear, logical mind and a wonderful power of discrimination. He was one of the most powerful trial lawyers at the Cleveland Bar, presenting his points BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 209 with a force and clearness both effective and remarkable. In jury trials he was peculiarly strong and forcible. His oratorical powers were of the highest order. Judge McKinney is to-day considered by the Cleveland Bar to have been one of the ablest jurists ever upon the Bench in Cuyahoga county. His rulings and decisions were clear, logical and remarkably sound. CARLOS M. STONE, Cleveland. C. M. Stone, judge of the Court of Common Pleas, was born in Strongville, Cuyahoga county, March 27, 1846. His father, Montraville Stone, who came to Ohio from Vermont in 1830, was a farmer, and for Eniir, twenty years of his life was a banker. His mother, Mary A. Smith Stone, was born in Ohio. Both father and mother were of English ancestry, His father's family coming from Somersetshire and settling in New England in the early part of the seventeenth century. Judge Stone's early education was received in the district and select schools of the county. Ile entered Oberlin College in 1861, but left in his junior year, in 1867, and entered the office of the district attorney, A. T. Brinsmade, at the same time becoming a student of the Ohio State Union Law College (now out of existence) taking his degree in 1869. Young Stone, when quite a boy, determined upon law for his profession, and entered college with that object in view. The influence which probably had more to do with his decision than any one thing was his early association with his cousin, Judge Walter F. Stone, of Sandusky, late judge of the Supreme Court of Ohio. The latter was a frequent visitor at his father's home, and as a child he formed a great admiration for him and determined to follow in his footsteps. After taking his degree of LL. B. he immediately entered into practice and shortly afterwards became a. partner of his preceptor, under the firm name of Brinsmade & Stone. This partnership continued until 1875. He then formed the partnership of Stone & Hessenmuler, from which lie retired upon assuming the duties of prosecuting attorney. He was elected prosecuting attorney at the October election in 1879, taking the office on January 1, 1880. While serving his first term the law was changed, making the term of office three years instead of two. He was re-elected in 1882, retiring from office in 1885. He then resumed the practice of law under the firm name of Stone, Hessenmuller & Gallup, but in the fall of the same year he was elected Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, taking his seat on the Bench in November, 1885. He has twice been re-elected and is now serving his third term since coming to the Bench. Many important cases have come before him. A brief mention of two of these cases is not out of place here. Stevenson Burke vs. The Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati & Indianapolis Railway Company. In March, 1889, The Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati & Indianapolis Railway Company, The Indianapolis & St. Louis Railway Company, and the Cincinnati, Indianapolis, St. Louis & Chicago Railway Company agreed upon a contract of consolidation, by the terms of which the 210 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. companies named were to become one company, under the name of the Cleve- land, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway Company, with a capital stock of $30,500,000 (These roads are now popularly known as the " Big Four.") The action was brought to enjoin the carrying out of the agreement of consolidation. The judge held that these roads were not in their general features " parallel and competing," but formed a continuous line, and that under the laws of Ohio the proposed consolidation was fully authorized, and thereupon refused the injunction. The case attracted general attention both East and West because of the magnitude of the interests involved. The decision stood as the law of the case and was not questioned in the higher courts. One of the pioneer cases in Ohio involving the use of electricity in open ating street cars came before Judge Stone in 1889, the title of the case being F. W. Pelton and others vs. The East Cleveland Street Railway Company. This company owned and operated a street. railway along Euclid Avenue and other streets in the city of Cleveland, its cars being drawn by horses. In July, 1888, the city council authorized the company to use electricity as its motive power, by means of the overhead wire system. The plaintiff's, who were abutting property owners upon the streets through which the company operated its lines, sought by their action to prevent the proposed change, claiming it could not lawfully be ddne under the original grant made to the company. The court decided that " In the operating of a street railroad the change in the motive power from horses to that of electricity applied by means of the overhead wire system, does not constitute a new and additional burden upon the street, entitling abutting lot-owners to compensation before such change is made ; or to an injunction to prevent such .change." This view of the law in the case was sustained by the Supreme Court of the State. More than usual local interest was felt in the case, not only because of the novel questions involved, but because the eminent jurist, Honorable Rufus P. Ranney, appeared in person to argue the case and had for his opponent Judge Stevenson Burke, the distinguished railroad attorney and operator. Judge Stone was too young a man when elected to the Bench to have developed into a great lawyer ; he, however, was a most successful practitioner. He had the reputation of preparing his cases with great care, and conducted the trial of them with marked ability. As a man he possesses a high sense of honor, an unexceptional character, always faithful in the discharge of a trust. As a jurist he can better be judged, for the best years of his life thus far have been spent upon the Bench. Always courteous, careful and conservative, he exercises the greatest patience in the trial of cases brought before him. Industrious and painstaking in his investigations, and conscientious in his conclusions, as in all his work, his decisions usually bear the test of criticism and review. One of the strongest testimonials of his character as a man and his standing as a judge is the fact that he is now serving his third term. Different from the average lawyer and judge he is a man of wide reading in general literature and is well posted on both historical and sociological questions. He has always been a Republican, taking as active an interest in political matters as he could, consistent with his position as judge. In 1884, he was chairman of the county central committee that conducted the Blaine campaign in the county. He is a member of the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce. He was a member of the Peace Congress which met in Washington in 1895, and on the 17th of March, 1896, delivered a very able address before the BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 211 Cleveland Chamber of Commerce, upon "A Permanent International Court of Arbitration." This address has been most highly spoken of. In 1872 Judge Stone married Jeanette Follett, and by this union has two children, both girls. JAMES H. HOYT, Cleveland. Mr. Hoyt was born in the city of Cleveland on the 10th day of November, 1852. His father, James M. Hoyt, was a native of the State of New York, but resided in Cleveland from 1836 until his death rn 1895. He was a lawyer in the front rank of his profession, of liberal culture, prominent in business affairs, public-spirited, and most active and influential in promoting the cause of religion and benevolent enterprise. The mother of James H. Hoyt was Mary Ella Beebe, a native of New York City. She was a woman richly endowed with graces and accomplishments—with traits or mind and character that rendered her singularly attractive to all who knew her. James H. Hoyt received his early education in the public schools. of Cleveland and the preparatory department of the Western Reserve University, at that time located at Hudson, .Ohio, but now at Cleveland. He afterward entered Brown University, and graduated in 1874 with the honor of class orator. His career at the University was one of marked suCcess, and gave an earnest of his future distinction. Among the professors and resident graduates in Providence, Rhode Island, he is still remembered, after a lapse of over twenty years, for the native vigor of intellect and scholastic attainments that distinguished him during his undergraduate course at that institution. Returning to Cleveland he commenced the study of law in the office of Spalding & Dickman, where he remained one year, when he entered the Harvard Law School, taking the degree of LL. B. in 1877. In the study of his profession he was indefatigable, and laid up a store of elementary principles by which he has been enabled to solve with great readiness difficult and complicated questions as they have arisen in an extensive practice, and in solving which he could get but feeble light from adjudicated cases. The writer of this once heard Judge Spalding remark, that while in his office he on one occasion heard Mr. Hoyt analyze a legal proposition in a way that reminded him of the old-school lawyers in Connecticut, who had been trained in the Litchfield Law School under Chief Justice Swift, to seek for the philosophy of the law, and to go up to the fountains rather than follow the rivulets. Upon being admitted to the Bar he at once commenced the practice of his profession with Henry S. Sherman, under the name of Sherman & Hoyt. Afterward the partnership of Willey, Sherman & Hoyt was formed, which continued in successful practice for several years. Later Mr. Willey retired, and the firm of Sherman & Hoyt continued until 1884, when it was succeeded by that of Sherman, Hoyt & Dustin. In 1893, upon the death of Mr. Sherman, the firm became Hoyt & Dustin for one year, when Mr. Kelley became a member of the present partnership of Hoyt, Dustin & Kelley. This firm is one of the best known in Ohio, and its practice is largely in the line of corporation, commercial, admi- 212 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. ralty and patent causes. Mr. Hoyt is well known as a lawyer of eminent ability. He is a cautious, safe and wise counsellor, and is vigilant and sagacious in watching the important interests intrusted to his charge. He is frequently engaged in cases before the Supreme Court of Ohio, and always commands the respect and close attention of that tribunal. As an orator he has few if any superiors in his State. While he never fails to address himself to the reason and judgment, he has the faculty of imparting interest to the dryest details, With ample stores of knowledge, derived from reading and obseryation, with an affluence of speech, written and spoken, with a fund of ready wit and humor, with an imagination and fancy curbed with a skillful hand, with a clearness and precision of statement, he could not fail to be in general .requisition when popular assemblies are to be addressed. In politics Mr. Hoyt is a Republican. always taking an active interest in political affairs, and known throughout the State as having rendered yeoman service for his party. While he has neyer held office, he has been a candidate for the nomination of governor of his State. The city of Cleveland and the county of Cuyahoga, in which he resides, were enthusiastic for his nomination as governor ; and there was a general feeling throughout northern Ohio that if nominated and elected he would be the right man in the right place. He is an especial favorite of his party, and as long as merit and superior fitness and qualifications are appreciated by a discriminating public, he will continue to grow in popular favor. Mr. Hoyt is now the general counsel for the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce, and as a member and director of that body, has always taken a most active and prominent part in its work of advancing the interests of the city of Cleveland. In 1885 he married Miss Jessie T. Taintor, and has two children, a daughter and a son. ROBERT F. PAINE, Cleveland. The parents of Robert Findley Paine were from Connecticut, whence they removed Madison county, New York, where Robert was born the 10th day of May, 1810. He was the second son of Solomon J. and Lucretia Bierce Paine, who were both natives of Cornwall, Connecticut. Hrs father was the son of Rufus Paine, and his mother the daughter of William Bierce, both of whom served in the American army during the entire War of the Revolution, and both lived to be over eighty years of age. On his father's side his ancestors could be traced to Robert Treat Paine, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. This would indicate that on his paternal side he is of English descent and that the Paine family came to Connecticut from Massachusetts. In March, 1850, Solomon Paine came West with his family and settled at Nelson, Portage county, Ohio, where they continued to live until his death in 1828. Young Robert had but little opportunity to obtain an education. He daily walked a mile and a half to the log school house, and after he was nine years of age was obliged to work on the farm during all but the winter months. At the time of his father's BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 213 death young Paine was eighteen, but even then manifested the pluck and steadfastness which were the prominent features of his character and the great sources of his success in after years. He took entire charge of his father's family, and continued to provide for them until the children were able to take care of themselves. He was obliged to educate himself. This hard fact he appreciated, made the best of circumstances and did get a good education. Judge Paine began the study of law in 1837, while a clerk in a crossroads store. With but few books and without an instructor he devoted his leisure hours to hard study. Not having had a single previous recitation, he was examined at the September term of the Supreme Court, then sitting at Ravenna, in 1839, and was admitted to practice. He got his legal education as he got everything else in early life, by unremitting toil ; by his own exertion alone. The following quotation from J. H. Kennedy's History of Cleyeland gives an idea of his condition: "Judge Robert F. Paine, of Cleveland, once used these words in describing the home accommodations of his boyhood in Portage county : We possessed few dishes of any kind. There was a man in Trumbull county who made them of wood, and his advent into a neighborhood would cause more excitement than the establishment of another national bank in Cleveland to-day. We ate at what we called trenchers, a modern affair in shape something like a plate. Our neighbors were in the same condition as we, using modern plates, modern bowls, modern everything, and it was years before we could secure dishes harder than wood, and when we did they were made of yellow clay." As soon as Judge Paine was admitted to the Bar he opened an office at Garrettsville and entered upon what for those days was a good practice. In 1844 he was elected to the State legislature, being obliged to go to Columbus, a distance of one hundred and forty miles, on horseback. Judge Paine took an important position among his colleagues and succeeded through much opposition in securing the passage of the first law in Ohio granting to women the rights of property. So satisfactorily did he represent his constituents that he was offered a renomination, but declined the honor. He was, however, elected prosecuting attorney for Portage county. which led to his removing to Ravenna. While practicing law at Garrettsville Judge Paine became the intimate friend of the Honorable Daniel R. Tilden, who, like himself, was deeply interested in the slavery question. These two young men enthusiastically working among their neighbors created a strong and aggressive feeling in favor of the freedom of the negro in the United States, and together they organized the first anti-slavery organization in Portage county, at Garrettsville. On the expiration of his term as prosecuting attorney Judge Paine removed to Cleveland and opened an office in May, 1848. After a short time he became the clerk of the Court of Common Pleas, a position he retained until 1852, when he returned to the practice of the law. About this time Honorable Daniel R Tilden removed from Portage county to Cleveland, and formed a partnership with his friend, under the firm name of Tilden & Paine. The partnership was dissolved when Mr. Tilden was elected probate judge of Cuyahoga county, in 1854. In 1855 Judge Paine entered into partnership with James Wade, which 214 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. continued until the former's election to the Common Pleas Bench of Cuyahoga county. In 1861 Judge Paine was appointed United States district attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, assuming the duties of the office in May of that year, with Mr. Wade as his assistant. When his term expired he resumed his law practice with Mr. Wade. He was elected to the Common Pleas Bench in 1866, where he remained as his own successor until 1874, when he again entered upon the practice. While on the Bench Judge Paine was called upon to try one of the most noted cases eyer tried in the State, made celebrated through his remarkable instructions to the jury. The case was the State vs. Dr. Jay T. Galentine. The defendant was indicted for murder in the first degree, with counts for murder in the second degree and manslaughter. The defense was emotional or temporary insanity, which was ineffectually set up, the yerdict being guilty of manslaughter. In his charge to the jury the judge dealt in a remarkably original as well as remarkably clear and able manner with this class of defenses. The press throughout the country commented editorially upon the charge, strongly endorsing its good sense, its sound reasoning and its unmistakable clearness. Not the least interesting incident in connection with the case was a letter written by James A. Garfield, then in Congress, to Judge Paine congratulating him, little dreaming that ten years later he as President would fall by the hand of an assassin presenting the same plea for his act. Following is the letter : " WASHINGTON, D. C., February 6, 1871. "Dear Judge :—Allow me to congratulate you on your splendid charge to the jury at the close of the Galentine case. The whole country owes you a debt of gratitude for brushing away the wicked absurdity which has lately been palmed off on the country as law, on the subject of insanity. If the thing had gone much farther all .that a man would need to secure immunity from murder would be to tear his hair and rave a little and then kill his man. I hope you will print your opinion in pamphlet form and send it broadcast to all the judges in the land. Very truly yours, J; A. GARFIELD." The portions of the charge which created the most comment are as follows : "If you should find that the defendant was overwhelmed by any real or supposed provocation which for the moment deprived him of all power to control his action and incapable of reasoning or deliberation, then inquire, did the defendant by indulging passion, by meditating revenge and cultivating malice toward the deceased for real or fancied provocation, voluntarily produce the inability to reason, reflect, deliberate and control his will, or was he rendered powerless in these respects by the circumstances surrounding him, and for which he was not responsible ?" The judge continuing says he does suppose one with malice in his heart to commit crime can voluntarily become intoxicated to a point beyond self-control and then commit crime with impunity. "Nor do I suppose one * * * can make fancied or real provocation, howeyer great the occasion, for voluntarily entertaining malice and revenge, and thus cultivating a disposition to execute vengeance, until his passions have become too forceful to be controlled by his will and judgment and BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 215 in this condition take the life of the subject of his hatred with impunity. To my mind to hold thus would be to offer a premium on depravity and encourage the cultivation of the worst elements of our nature." The broadest form of the proposition laid down by Judge Paine is this, that a person cannot for any cause voluntarily through mental or other process permit himself to lose his self-control and commit acts for which at the moment he is irresponsible and not be held responsible in law. In politics—a subject which always demanded of Judge Paine the greatest interest—he was originally a Whig, becoming an ardent supporter of the Free-soil party in 1848. He was a Republican almost from the inception of the party, and was one of the delegates to the National convention which nominated Abraham Lincoln for President in 1860. In the Grant-Greeley Campaign of 1872 he supported the latter for the Presidency and afterwards his affiliations were with the Democratic party. Judge Paine was a man of forceful character, incapable of half-way measures. He was strong, energetic, full of resources and never awed into hesitancy by any obstacle. Nothing was too much for him to undertake, and nothing he undertook was a failure. With a .very intense nature he was at times severe, but never unjust. As a judge he was fearless and impartial, with a mind masterful in seizing upon the point presented and quick in decision. As a lawyer in court he was aggressive and strong and lost his cases, when he did lose, as a good soldier may lose a battle.. As a counsellor he was wise and cautious. He was a ready speaker, a good debater, logical in argument and blessed with a keen sense of humor with which he could easily "point a moral or adorn a tale." He was first married to Miranda Hazen, of Garrettsville, in August, 1846, by whom he had one child, a daughter, Miranda H., who is now Mrs. Oliver P. Demuth, of Cleveland. Mrs. Paine died in August, 1848, and in 1853 he married Mrs. Cornelia H. Harris (nee Gridley) of Cazenovia, New York, who bore him three sons : Robert F., Jr., now editor-in-chief of the Cleveland Press; James W., of Cleveland, and Findley W., of Syracuse, New York. Judge Paine's second wife died in 1870, and in May, 1872, he married Delia Humphrey, of Summit county, Ohio, who still surviyes. He died September 23, 1888, after a lingering and painful illness. SAMUEL WILLIAMSON; Cleveland. The late Samuel Williamson was born March 16, 1808, and died January 14, 1884. He was a native of Crawford county, Pennsylvania, and the eldest of the seven children born to Samuel Williamson and Isabella McQueen. The family settled in Cleveland in 1810. Samuel Williamson, Senior, possessed in marked degree the qualities essential to success in a new and progressiye settlement. He was well informed, honest, energetic, far-seeing and public-spirited. While prospering in his private business he contributed materially to the upbuilding of the city and conserva- tion of the community interests. V He served long and faithfully as a justice of the peace, and was also an associate judge of the Court of Common Pleas. 216 - BENCH AND BAR. OF OHIO. He lived until 1834, and was carrying on the business of tanner and currier in partnership with his brother during the Whole period of his residence in Cleveland. Samuel Williamson, the principal subject of this biography, coming to the city when a child of two years, attended the public schools from the time he was old enough to be enrolled until he was eighteen years of age and prepared for college. He then entered Jefferson College in Washington county, Pennsylvania, in which he pursued the regular course, and was graduated in 1829. He had already decided upon the profession of law, and immediately after graduating began a course of reading in the office of Judge Andrews, than whom no student of law ever had a more competent, sympathetic instructor. He remained with Judge Andrews two years and became deeply learned in the philosophy and principles of the law. He was admitted to the Bar in 1832, and formed a partnership for practice with Leonard Case, which was maintained for two years. In 1834 he was elected auditor of Cuyahoga county, and held the position eight years. The auditor's office is a fine school in which to acquire knowledge of land titles in the county, if the incumbent is inclined to improye his opportunity. Mr. Williamson devoted himself to the study, and thus laid the foundation for that thoroughness as a real estate and title lawyer which characterized all of his subsequent practice at the Bar. Upon the expiration of his service as auditor be resumed the practice in partnership with A. G. Riddle, and the association was practically unbroken for a period of nearly forty years. In 1872 Mr. Williamson gave up his court practice, and indeed all of the arduous labors of professional life, and devoted his personal attention to the executive management of the Society for Savings, whose president he had been for several years. In. this position of semiretirement the last twelve years of his life were passed pleasantly. During the period of his active connection with the Bar he gave much time to the duties of public office. He served at various times as member of the city council, of the board of education, of the State board of equalization, of which he was president. He also represented Cuyahoga county in the State legislature in 1850, and in 1862 was elected to the State senate. In every official station his clear and comprehensive understanding of the duties required, and his conscientious performance of eyery duty gave to his public seryice an inestimable value. His intellectual originality was such that he could not be content to leave things as he found them, if it were possible to make them better. As a member of the board of education, for example, his activity was conspicuous in securing improvement in methods, whose operation brought better results. His hearty sympathy with popular education by the State gave to his service in that behalf the character of a labor of love. His heart was in the work. He was so earnest and so sincere in any undertaking that he would decline employment in a case which did not permit the exercise of earnestness and sincerity. His conscience was so sensitive as to protest against success in a bad cause. From the memorial meetings of the Bar and other organizations the materials for this b,iography are procured. It is only necessary to summarize the statements and report the consensus of opinion BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 217 expressed by his brethren. Mr. Williamson was never accredited with the shrewdness which some lawyers cultivate—the disposition to take advantage of a lapse or an error in order to win a case. He sought rather to discover the merit in a controversy and press his contention upon, the ground of deserving success. He was regarded as reliable authority on mooted questions of law, because he never expressed his opinion without first acquiring a complete understanding of the subject and deliberately solving the question in his own mind ; and then his mental integrity compelled an honest answer. He was so reliable, and his reputation so well established; as frequently to save a court the trouble of investigation. His old preceptor, Judge Andrews. while on the Bench, was accustomed to say, "If Mr. Williamson has looked this matter up and arrived at a conclusion his simple word on the question is good enough for me ; he never makes a mistake." The preponderance of opinion among members of the Cleveland Bar assigned to Mr. Williamson first place as counsellor, or an authority, upon all questions involving title to real estate. He was so learned in these matters that his counsel or the expression of an opinion probably avoided much litigation. Judge Ranney said of him: " He came to the Bar with no extraordinary or adventitious circumstances to giye eclat or introduce him prominently before the public. He possessed none of those rare elements of genius and oratory which are sometimes used to obtain temporary reputations, at least„ and elevate men to high positions. His strength consisted in the fact that from the beginning to the end he brought to the discharge of duty labor, integrity, industry and fidelity to all the great trusts that had been imposed upon him through a long life. Whether as a practicing, lawyer, a county officer, -a legislator, or, finally, during the last years of his life, presiding over one of the largest institutions of our city, with immense responsibilities to the poor and those of small means, he has travelled through life without leaving a suspicion upon any man's mind that in the discharge of any of the dutres which these places imposed, he has not. been faithful and honest to the utmost. * * * No man's example can be more safely presented to the young to follow than that of. Mr. Williamson." He came to the Bar in the early history of Cleveland. and brought with him large and varied ability, habits of sobriety, of patient, continuous industry, and a character of sterling integrity' which were at once recognized, and which identified him with the promoters of the growth and welfare of the community. He was a good advocate, a cautious, wise and safe counsellor, and was especially learned in equity and in all law respecting real property. In the practice of the law he was laborious, painstaking, sympathetic and generous. In, his, long and useful career he merited and possessed the respect and confidence of the entire Bar. This represents the judgment of his professional associates. It may be added that the respect, esteem and reverence for the man increased as the relations with him became more intimate. The frequency with which other lawyers called upon him for an opinion attested his preeminence as a counsellor, and the acceptance of his opinion as conclusive attested their confidence in his wisdom and the soundness of his judgment. If he was not a brilliant advocate he was certainly a successful one. The candor and sincerity of his-statement, supported by a personality 218 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. that stood for all that is true, honorable, upright and of good report, carried more weight with a jury than mere rhetoric or impassioned oratory. For more than twenty years he was president of the society of the First Presbyterian Church and yet never made a public profession of Christianity. What is of greater consequence, he lived it. He was an examplar in his daily life, performing his duties as he came to them, whether they appertained to the large affairs and great trusts he assumed or the little things encountered every day. He was just as faithful and just as conscientious in the latter as in the former. Simple and unobtrusive, kindly and benevolent, just and upright, his life, covering three-quarters of the century, was irreproachable and the memory of it is sweet to his friends. The harmony between his inclinations and purposes was perfect and lasting. His moral and intellectual facultieswere attuned to the same pitch, so that for the accomplishment of an undertaking all of his powers could be united. Young lawyers loved him not more for his helpfulness than for the spirit with which he met their inquiries and rendered the assistance. His tact and patience, his evident interest in their advancement, gave him a hold upon their affections. Though naturally reserved in manner his intercourse with all was marked by a genuine urbanity. The record of his deeds and the analysis of his character may not decorate the pages of history with as much coloring as the achievements of a hero possessed of more showy genius, bat they strengthen the generations that come after, as they bettered the generaion in which he lived. Mr. Williamson was a man honored, trusted and beloved in all conditions and circumstances ; but in his home he was animated by the gentle, tender spirit that adorns and glorifies the holy relations of husband and father. He married Mary E. Tisdale of Utica New York, in 1843, and reared a family of three sons : Judge Samuel E. Williamson, of Cleveland ; George T. Williamson, of Chicago, and Rev. James D. Williamson, of Cleveland. SAMUEL E. WILLIAMSON, Cleveland. Samuel E. Williamson is a native of Cleveland, where he was born April 19, 1844. His parents were Samuel Williamson and Mary E. Tisdale. His father, a native of Pennsylvania, had settled in Cleveland in 1810 as —a boy, when the State was young and the beautiful city of the lake was no more than a yillage. He became a lawyer, a man of affairs and influence in the community. The early life of Samuel E. Williamson was therefore highly favored, and he made excellent use of his opportunrties. He attended the public schools until sixteen, when he was prepared to enter the Western Reserve College. Upon completion of the course in that institution he was graduated in 1864 at the age of twenty. In his father's office he took up the study of law, which was pursued diligently for the next two years, until he had obtained a good knowledge of the elemental principles and became familiar with the great commentaries and other standard text-books. In 1866 he went to Cambridge and spent a year in the Law School of Harvard BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 219 University. In the meantime, when at home in vacation, he passed the examination before the Supreme Court and was admitted to the Bar of Ohio. In February of the year 1867 he was admitted to partnership with his father, and at once began the practice of law. Some years later he became associated in partnership with T. K. Bolton and sometime later with J. E. Ingersoll. The last association was maintained until 1880, when Mr. Williamson was elected Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. He was inducted into the office and served on the Bench about two years, when he resigned in order to accept the more lucrative position of general solicitor of the New York, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad Company. He preferred the active practice of the law, especially that branch of it which relates to railroad corporations. His record as judge was clean and honorable ; his superior qualifications for the duties were acknowledged, and his opinions embodied his views of the law obtained by conscientious investigation. He might have remained on the Bench for a long period with satisfaction to the Bar and the public, but the salary of the judge was not equal to the salary of the counsellor, and the duties of the latter are compatible with a larger degree of personal freedom and independence of action. Judge Williamson has held the position of general counsel of the railroad mentioned (commonly called the Nickel Plate) for the last fifteen years. He is a lawyer of high standing and a man of most exemplary habits, holding the esteem of his brethren at the Bar and the unqualified respect of the community. He is a patron of education and at the same time is wedded to his profession. In 1897 Western Reserve University conferred upon him the honorary degree of LL.D. He is one of the trustees of that Uniyersity and of Adelbert College, and takes a deep interest in the management of both institutions. He is president of the University School and has membership in the American Bar Association as well as the Ohio State Bar Association. Judge Williamson has been married twice, the first time, in 1878, to Mary P. Marsh, who died in 1881, leaving two daughters; the second time, in 1884, to Harriet W. Brown, who is the mother of his son and is still living. G. E. HERRICK, Cleveland. Gamaliel E. Herrick was born January 17, 1828, at Wellington, Lorain county, Ohio. His father, Ephraim Herrick, who was a farmer, and his mother, Chloe Louise Willcox, were both from Berkshire county, Massachusetts, and their English ancestors were among the early settlers of Massachusetts. On the paternal side he is of Revolutionary stock. His grandfather, Francis Herrick was a colonel in the war of 1812. His early education was received in the district and select high schools, afterwards entering Oberlin College, but sickness prevented his completing his college course, When he was convalescent he received a very flattering offer to engage in mercantile business, devoting two years to it. Having a natural inclination to law, and a father who believed in allowing his children to choose for themselves their own occupation or profession, he entered the 220 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. office of Honorable Sherlock J. Andrews, who at that time was conceded to be the greatest advocate in northern Ohio, and occupied first rank in the State as a lawyer. He was admitted to the Bar at Mount Vernon in 1852, and at once entered into active practice. Opening an office by himself, he continued alone for three or four years. Business had accumulated so rapidly that he was forced to take a partner. He thereupon formed a partnership with General Merrill Barlow, which continued until politics took General Barlow out of practice. In 1873, Mr. Herrick formed a partnership with his brother, Colonel J. F. Herrick, which continued for fifteen years. He has since practiced alone. His practice has been varied, but always of a most absorbing nature. In the earlier years at the Bar he had a large amount of litigation, but in later years it has been largely corporation law, and the management of large estates. There are three estates that have been under his management for an average of more than twenty-five years, and they are still in his hands. He has much to do with litigation affecting property rights. Some years ago he was counsel in two cases of great importancg which established the principle that one owning real property in a city has a valid property interest in both light and air from the street. He was president of the Cleveland Linseed Oil Company for about fifteen years, and is now chairman of the board. For a number of years he was attorney for the East Cleveland Railroad Company. In politics, Mr. Herrick has always been a Republican, but never an office-seeker or office-holder. Re is a man of great executive ability, and his advice and aid are much sought where large interests are invoved. He has been an active and devout member of the Presbyterian Church, and is now president of the board of trustees of the First Presbyterian Church. He was one of the original members of the Union and Country Clubs. In 1860 Mr. Herrick married the daughter of his preceptor, Miss Ursula M. Andrews, and by the Union five children were born, three of who are living, one son and two daughters. His son, Frank R., is a rising young lawyer, devoted to his profession. He is a member of the firm of Herrick & Hopkins. Mrs. Herrick is dead. JAMES M. WILLIAMS, Cleveland. James M. Williams was born in Plainfield, Coshocton county, Ohio, July 22, 1850. His father, Heslip Williams, a leding physician of Coshocton county, was a native of Ohio, and a member of the House of Representatives of this State in 1845 and 1846, and of the Senate in 1854 and 1855. His grandfather, Levi Williams, was a native of Staunton Virginia. He came to this State with General Wayne's army at the time of the establishment of the Greenville treaty line. He was a captain in the service, and on their march West the army encamped where the public square of Cleveland is now located. His great-grandfather, David Williams, and his great-great-grandfather, Richard Williams, were both in the Colonial Army during the War of the Revolution, and were in General Washington's army at the surrender of Yorktown. His ancestors on the paternal side came originally BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 221 from England, settling. in Virginia: His mother, Charlotte Miskimen, was also a native of Ohio. Her father, James Miskimen, came to Ohio in 1803 from Washington county, Maryland. He was of Scotch-Irish ancestry. Mr. Williams's education was obtained in the common schools of his native county, at the Newcomerstown, Ohio, high school, and at Allegheny College, Meadville, Pennsylvania, where he graduated in the class of 1873. He studied law in the office of Judge J, C. Pomerene, of Coshocton, and was admitted to the Bar in September, 1875. He practiced law at Coshocton until 1888, when he removed to Cleyeland. He enlisted as a private soldier in company C, Third United States Cavalry during the late civil war, when he was only thirteen years .old, and served in campaigns in Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas. In 1883 Mr. Williams edited the Revised Statutes of Ohio, in three volumes, which was afterwards adopted by the general assembly and furnished to the judiciary and all the other State and county Officers. In .1885 he was elected a member of the House of Representatives of this State, as a Democrat,. serving for two years. While in the legislature he wa.s a member of the committees on judiciary, reyision of the laws, and public works, and was chairman of the special committee which prepared a code of, parliamentary law for the Ohio House of Representatives. He drafted the statute passed in 1885 providing for the organization and jurisdiction of the Circuit Courts of the State, and the constitutional amendment adopted in the same year changing the time of holding the State elections from October to November ; also the proposed constitutional amendments submitted in 1889, providing for biennial elections and for single legislative districts. He is the author of the laws, passed in 1887, defining the rights and liabilities of husband and wife ; how a married person may sue and be sued in courts of record and exempting every honorably discharged soldier from the two days' labor then required on the public highways. Mr. Williams is well known as a practitioner before the Supreme Court of Ohio. He has appeared frequently before that court in causes involving important constitutional questions. His arguments have always been characterized by clear and forcible statement, searching analysis, and great argumentative power: In the notable case of Cope vs. Foraker, governor, the issue was the adoption or rejection of the biennial elections' amendment to the Constitution ; and the plaintiff applied for a writ of Mandamus to compel the governor to declare by proclamation the amendment adopted, because it received a majority of the votes cast directly on the question, though not a majority of all' the votes cast at the election. The utmost interest was felt in the decision, and few abler and more ingenious arguments were ever made before the Supreme Court than that of Mr. Williams in behalf of the adoption of the amendment. Equal praise was elicited by his argument before that court in the application for a mandamus in State vs. Sawyer, sheriff of Cuyahoga county.. The points made by Mr. Williams, in a masterly argument, were sustained, and the unanimous decision of the court was, that proclamation must issue, and four Common Pleas judges be elected for Cuyahoga county, with the other county officials, in November, 1889, instead of 1890. Mr. Williams was married in 1879 to Miss Mary S. Brockway, of Chautauqua county, New York, and by this union they have one child, a daughter. 222 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO., EDWIN J. BLANDIN, Cleveland. Honorable E. J. Blandin, ex-judge of the Court of Common Pleas, was born in Hornby township, Steuben county, New York, on the 13th day of July, 1843. He is of English-German extraction. His father, John Blandin, a farmer, settled in New York State, coming from Vermont, where his 'family where among the early English settlers. His mother, Parthenia Fisher, was of German descent. Her family settled in the State of New York, where Edwin was born and, lived until the age of six years. The family then `came West and settled in Wisconsin, where he received his early education in the common schools. Afterwards he entered the preparatory department of Hillsdale College, Michigan; where he remained one term. In the fall of 1866 he came to Cleveland, Ohio, and took a course in book-keeping in the Commercial College. He kept books for an oil refinery and held the position until 1870, when he became a stockholder in the company. During this time he took up the study of law, devoting himself to reading nights and holidays. He remained in the concern five years, when he sold his stock, and in the fall of 1875 he was admitted to the Bar. He at once commenced the practice of law in partnership with George A. Groot, under the firm name of Groot & Blandin. This partnership continued three years, but for the last two years of the time he was assistant prosecuting attorney under Judge J. C. Hutchins, who was then prosecuting attorney for Cleveland. After, retiring from office he formed a partnership with E. K. Wilcox, which continued about one year. In 1883 he was elected judge of the Court of Common Pleas, serving for two years, the residue of an unexpired term. Retiring from the Bench he practiced alone until 1886, when he formed a partnership with Alfred E. Buell, which continued until 1890. Again he was alone until 103, when the present partnership. of Blandin & Rice was formed. To Judge Blandin more than any one man Cleveland is indebted for its present excellent municipal laws. In 1884 he delivered an address before the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce on the subject of reform of the municipal government, urging the adoption of the Federal plan, separating the legislative and the executive branches, applying the same system in use by the National government. The press of the city at once took up the subject, and it had the support of all good citizens. It was strongly opposed by the element that usually prospers and flourishes under a weak form of government. After four years of hard fighting the act finally passed in the Ohio legislature, and the present system of government was organized in the spring of 1891. Judge Blandin is a broad-chested, broad-minded man, a close student and an able lawyer, who ranks among the' first in his profession at the Cleveland Bar. There is nothing narrow in the man. He is determined, brave and outspoken in his views when he feels he is right, even if his cause is unpopular. Honorable and straightforward in all' his transactions he has the respect and confidence of the community. In politics Judge Blandin is a Democrat, a strong and able advocate of free trade and independent bimetalism as the only means by which the financial conditions of the country can be permanently benefitted. He has never been an office seeker. He was at one time a member of BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 223 the board of education and a trustee of the waterworks. In 1 868 he married Martha D. Van. Ness, of Illinois, and by the union has two children, a son and a daughter, both living. MANUEL MAY, Mansfield. Honorable Manuel May, who for ten years occupied the Bench of the Court of Common Pleas, is a native of Ohio, and has liyed in the same town all his life. He is of. English extraction on his father's side. John May, a ship captain, emigrated. from Mayfield, England, in 1640, and settled in Massachusetts, and became the founder of the family in America. His descendants were patriotic and imbued with the spirit of independence when the mother Country began to oppress the colonies. The grandfather of Judge May served in the Revolutionary War, participated, in the battle of Bennington and in that of Saratoga at the time of the surrender of Burgoine. His mother's name was Wolfe, whose parents were of distinguished families, prominent in the Revolutionary War and prior colonial wars, and long resident of the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania. Some of the members held military rank in the War for Independence, and some of their descendants were equally conspicuous in the war for the preservation of the Union in 1861. John M. May, the Judge's father, was a native of Conway; Massachusetts; came to Ohio in youth and studied law in Lancaster with Philemon Beecher, and was fellow-student with the elder Thomas Ewing and the late Judge Jacob Parker. After admission to the Bar he settled in 1815 at Mansfield, and was the first lawyer to reside in tilt town. Manuel attended the public schools and was prepared for college by Lorin Andrews and William Johnston in Ashland Academy. He then entered Kenyon College at Gambier, and was graduated upon completion of the course. Having adopted the profession of law he took the prescribed course in the Cincinnati Law School and continued the reading and study of law under the tutelage of his father. Upon his admission to the Bar he was received into partnership kith his father, continuing to practice with him until the latter's retiracy from the Bar. His subsequent law partners were Honorable John K. Cowen and the late Thomas McBride. The subject of this sketch has taken a prominent part in the educational affairs of his county and city and also has been active and influential in politics. He served as school examiner of Richland county several terms. In 1858 he was elected prosecuting attorney of the county and was re-elected in 1860, serving two terms. He was a member of the Mansfield city council four years, and during a part of the time served as president of the body. In 1866 he was elected to the State Senate and also served' two terms in that body. He is a Democrat and has always supported that party vigorously, and yet it is a tribute to his personal popularity that for the first term in every election to a political office he was chosen in a district or precinct having an adyerse majority. In other words, whenever he was inducted into office he displaced a Republican. The fact is complimentary also to, his fidelity and usefulness in positions of trust. He could not without violence to his consci- 224 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. ence and temperament be inactive or indifferent in the performance of a public duty. In the Senate he was known as a hard worker, especially in the important committees of which he was a member. He represented his constituents with ability and zeal ; was strong in debate and influential in the deliberations of the judiciary committee. The very satisfactory manner in which he discharged the duties of other positions to which he was chosen by his fellow citizens led to his election as judge of the Court of Common Pleas. He entered upon the duties of this office equipped with a good knowledge of the law, obtained from general practice in all the courts, and with a wide knowledge of business and public affairs. His purpose to be right in the decision of cases tried before him led to careful and conscientious investigation, through which he almost uniformly reached correct conclusions. He was re-elected and served a second term, occupying the Bench altogether for a period of ten years. No other commentary on his ability in this office could be stronger than the record of cases tried by him. During his service of two terms, out of all the cases appealed from his decisions, reversals were rare by the Supreme court, and in one of these that tribunal afterwards approved his decision by reversing itself and the Circuit Court: Judge May is a plain, careful, painstaking, honest man, who shirks no labor necessary to subserve the ends of justice. He is particularly careful to inform himself not only as to the facts but also as to the law, in every case. He is not influenced by .personal acquaintance or friendship, or any sort of favoritism, in a judicial decision. His natural equability of temper, his love of justice and his inflexible integrity are among his qualifications for a judicial office. His patience and industry, his earnestness and devotion to the duty in hand are conspicuous in his practice as well as his judicial investigations. As may be expected, he prepares his pleadings with a carefulness and cautiousness which combine to make them exceedingly strong. Judge May was known as a War Democrat and performed essential and conspicuous services for the Union during the late civil war. He is known to all as a man of noble mind, strong in his convictions and energetic for what he believes to be right. His convictions govern his action in politics and business affairs as well as in professional duties. He has earned and receives the unqualified respect of the community in which he has always lived. His religious faith is that of the Episcopal Church, but he is not an active church man. Judge May is a Mason of the thirty-second degree, Past Eminent Commander of Mansfield Commandery Knights Templar, and has been presiding officer in Mansfield Lodge and in the encampment of I. O. O. F. Upon retiring from the Bench he resumed the practice of law which he has continued without interruption. He has never married.