BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 225 JAMES L. BATES, Columbus. The Honorable James Lawrence Bates died at Columbus on the 2d day of May, 1890, highly respected as a judge, a lawyer and a citizen. Judge Bates was born in Canandaigua, New York, on the 4th day of January, 1815. He was descended from sturdy, honorable and patriotic ancestry. His father, the Honorable Stephen Bates, removing from the vicinity of Durham, Connecticut, in the year 1790, was one of the first settlers of western New York. The father was prominently identified with the early history of the State. He filled several offices of trust, among them those of sheriff, associate judge and a member of the general assembly. Judge Bates was next to the youngest of twelve children. He graduated from Hobart College, Geneva, in the year 1833, and at once began the study of law in his native town. His first' preceptor was the Honorable John C. Spencer, a brilliant and distinguished son of the illustrious Ambrose Spencer, and a professional as well as political leader in the State, the friend and ally of DeWitt Clinton, one of the three great lawyers who were engaged. from 1824 to 1830 in revising the statutes of New York (John Duet and Benjamin F. Butler being his colleagues), and secretary of war and secretary of the treasury of the United States, nominated to the Bench of the Federal Court, but rejected by the Senate on exclusively partisan grounds. At the close of this course of study Judge Bates had not attained his majority, and he determined to move to Columbus for the purpose of completing his law studies and begin the practice of law. He came in October,1835, and completed his studies with Colonel Noah H. Swayne, who was afterwards an. associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Upon his .admission to the Bar he entered into partnership with Colonel Swayne in the practice of law, which he pursued with diligence and success until he was elected, in 1851, the first judge of the Columbus judicial subdivision under the present constitution: Prior to his promotion to the Bench he was city solicitor of Columbus when Lorenzo English was mayor, and was also a member of the board of education. He was on the Bench fifteen years, having been elected three successive terms. During his whole judicial life he maintained the upright character, the judicial integrity and the efficiency which had characterized the administration of his eminent predecessor, Judge Joseph R. Swan. He left behind him as a judge the highest reputation for singleness of purpose and honest and efficient labor in the most important and useful judicial tribunal of the State. His' retirement from the Bench was a serious public loss. Judge Bates served the State as director of the Ohio penitentiary for eight years, from April 5, 1866, to April 5, 1874, during which time he secured a thorough codification and improvement of the law governing that institution, under which the prison became not only remunerative, but most thoroughly disciplined and successful in all its departments. Upon the close of his judicial services Judge Bates seldom appeared in court. He enjoyed the performance of judicial duties, but the warfare of the. Bar was not so congenial, and he avoided it. His time and attention were to a large extent occupied in the administration of many important private trusts which were placed in his hands by associates of his 226 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. active life, owing to their unbounded confidence in his integrity and his practical sagacity in the management of whateyer might be given him in charge. It would, however, be a mistake to infer that Judge Bates, after he retired from the Bench and the Bar, lost his interest in either. On the contrary, he took a lively interest in whatever concerned the honor or usefulness or efficiency of the judiciary, and down to the death of his wife and the failure of his own health he manifested his regard and esteem for the personnel of the Bench and the Bar. Judge Bates was a strong man ; strong in mind, strong in body, strong in will, and a tower of strength in character. The last real labor of Judge Bates was a labor of love, affection and gratitude. This was the preparation of a memoir of his father-in-law, Alfred Kelley. Mr. Kelley was one of the most intellectual public men who has appeared in the annals of Ohio. No one who knew Mr. Kelley and Judge Bates could hardly have failed to perceive that the former had exerted a strong influence in the formation of the character of the latter as to his mental traits and marked indiyiduality. On the occasion of the meeting of the Franklin county Bar, held after the death of Judge Bates, the Honorable Richard A. Harrison said : " I was admitted to the Bar in the spring of 1846. The term of the Court of Common Pleas of Madison county, where I began the practice, opened a few days afterwards. I first met Judge Bates at that term of the court. He appeared in a cause as the counsel for one of the banks of this city. I saw him occasionally from the spring of 1846 until the spring of 1852, when he assumed the responsible position of judge of the Court of Common Pleas, and undertook at the age of thirty to discharge the duties and exercise the powers which Judge Joseph R. Swan had discharged and exercised, a fearful undertaking for a young man, however equipped, to assume. From that time until his death I met him very often. He not only held court in his own judicial subdivision, which was composed of Madison, Franklin and Pickaway counties, but he frequently presided in other counties of the district. He never failed in his attendance as a member of the District Court. During the fifteen years I practiced before him I never saw him unjust toward a member of the Bar. He administered justice with a firm, impartial and just hand. Counsel, parties, litigant and the public at large felt that with Judge Bates on the Bench their dearest rights and interests were safe. There was no suggestion of suspicion during his long judicial service that he ever rendered an unjust judgment. He was a power upon the Bench. Every member of the Bar felt and recognized the fact, but he administered his official authority under a full sense of judicial responsibility. He knew counsel at the Bar had their rights as well as duties, and did not intrude upon these rights. The authority he exercised was simply such power in propelling the wheels of justice as was necessary to attain the ends for which judicial courts are established. Any court oyer which he presided commanded the respect and confidence of all." In October, 1837, he married the eldest daughter of Alfred Kelley. Mrs. Bates died suddenly in March, 1887, when they had nearly completed half a century of unalloyed devotion to each other, and were looking forward to the " Golden Wedding" that should come with the next autumn. The living children of this union are Mrs. Holmes, wife of J. T. Holmes ; Mrs. Little, wife of W. P. Little ; Miss Mary S. Bates, all of Columbus, and the Rev. Alfred BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 227 Kelley Bates, now of Cadiz, Ohio. Judge Bates was a man of strong and decided religious convictions, and he died a member and in communion of. the Reformed Episcopal Church of Philadelphia,. Pennsylvania, there being no church organization of that denomination in Columbus. ORRAMEL H. FITCH, Ashtabula. Honorable Orramel Hinckley Fitch was born in Connecticut, January 12, 1803, at Lebanon, a town founded by his ancestorsin 1660. His father, Azel Fitch, was a woolen manufacturer, whose business was destroyed by the free trade policy of the United States after the war of 1812. He was of English ancestry and a direct descendant of Baron-Fitch of the English Bench. The first of the Pitches who emigrated to America was the Rev. James Fitch, one of the settlers of Norwich, Connecticut. The township was granted to him and his father-in-law, Major John Mason, with thirty-three others, in 1659, by Uncas, the noted Mohegan Indian chief, in consideration of the assistance these settlers could render the Mohegans against their enemies, the Pequods. At a, subsequent period Owaneco, the son and successor of Uncas, in consideration of favors received from Mr. Fitch, granted to him a tract of land five miles square within the present limits of Lebanon, a portion of which comprises the homestead which was occupied by the family for several generations. Collaterally the Pitches are descended from who was Lord Chief Justice of England in the reign of Edward I. The mother of O. H. Fitch was Fannie Hinckley, of Plymouth, Massachusetts, a granddaughter of Governor Hinckley of Plymouth Colony be ore an at the time of its consolidation with Massachusetts. Mr. Fitch's grandfather, Abraham Fitch, was a captain in the Second Regiment Connecticut Light Horse Cavalry, which played a conspicuous part in the American Revolution and the French and Indian wars. At an early age Mr. Fitch entered Westfield Academy where he was prepared for Yale College, but owing to the loss of his father's fortune he was prevented from entering college. With the assistance of his cousin, who entered Yale about this time, he pursued the college course and was prepared to graduate from the institution, but not having been regularly entered. as a student the diploma could not be granted him. He afterwards became the principal of the Westfield Academy, and later of an academy in Richmond, Virginia. He read law with Honorable Calvin Goddard, of Norwich, Connecticut, who was at one time a member of Congress and on the Supreme Bench of Connecticut. He was admitted to the Bar of that State in 1827, and the following year came to Ohio and was admitted to practice in this State, at Cincinnati. After visiting several points in the State he finally located in Ashtabula, where he practiced law continuously until 1863. He then retired from the practice to look after his large and varied interests. He was one of the organizers and president of the Farmers' State Bank of Ashtabula, and when it became a national bank he was elected president, which position he held at the time of his death in 1882. 228 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. In 1835 Mr. Fitch was married to Catherine Hubbard, of Holland Patent, New York, and by this union two children were born : Edward Hubbard Fitch, one of the leading lawyers in Ohio, recently deceased ; and Fannie, who married Marshall II. Haskell, of Ashtabula. Few men have ever resided in this part of the State who more thoroughly had the respect and confidence of the people. Mr. Fitch was greatly beloved by those who knew him intimately. Always honorable and just in his dealings, heyendvice was much sought, even after he had given up the practice of his profession. As a lawyer he was very clear and forcible, and while in practice enjoyed a large and profitable clientage. In 1861 Salmon P. Chase, Secretary of the United States treasury, appointed him one of the agents to negotiate the seven-thirty bonds issued by the United States government to defray the expenses of the war. From 1835 to 1839 he was a member of the State legislature. In 1841 and '42 he was prosecuting attorney for Ashtabula county. He was the first mayor of Ashtabula, and was most active in securing railroad and harbor improvements. Always prominent and active in church work, he was for forty years an elder in the-Presbyterian Church. In 1854 he became a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, always attended the annual meetings of the association, and was a Fellow of the Society when he died. He devoted much time to scientific pursuits. He was also prominent in securing the establishment of Lake Erie Seminary at Painesville, to which he left a valuable geological collection.. He was originally an old-line Whig, afterwards a Republican, but for many years prior to his death had not taken an active interest in political affairs. WILLIAM B. HUBBARD, 1795-1866. William Blackstone Hubbard, lawyer, statement and financier, was born in Utica, New York, August 26, 1795. He was the son of Bela and Naomi Hubbard. His ancestors sprang from the best Anglo-Saxon stock. Mr. Hubbard was a descendant of the Stow family of which the first American progenitor came to this country as early as 1640, only twenty years later than the landing familye Pilgrims. The Stow family settled in Connecticut, where it has been distinguished for many generations. After receiving a thorough classical collegiate education, Mr. Hubbard read law with his maternal uncle, Silas Stow, who was an accomplished lawyer and the father of the late Chief Justice Stow, of Wisconsin. With this excellent equipment for his profession, Mr. Hubbard, after being admitted to the New -York Bar, removed to St. ClaOhioville, Belmont county, Ohko, where he began the practice of law in 1816. He rose rapidly to eminence in his profession and for years stood at the head of the Bar, being contemporaneous with such renowned jurists as John C. Wright, Charles HammondGoodenown Tappan, John M. G-oodenow, Phillip Doddridge and Judges Hallock and Leavitt. Mr. Hubbard served for several years as State's attorney for Belmont county. His great ability and enviable success were acknowledged by his election from BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 229 Belmont county to the Ohio State Senate of the Twenty-sixth and Twenty-seventh General Assemblies from 18211 to 1829. During his term as Senator, Mr. Hubbard entertained the idea of a railway, and on the 23rd of February a bill was passed by the Legislature which had been drafted by him, entitled, "An Act to incorporate the Ohio Canal and Stubenville Railroad Company." This was the first legislation by the State relating to railroads, and is among the first legislation passed by any State on this important subject. Mr. Hub bard was elected to the House of Representatives of the Thirteenth Ohio General Assembly in 1831, and his fellow members in that body chose him for their speaker. He presided over the deliberations of that body with distinguished dignity and capability. In the fields of law and politics Mr. Hubbard thus early won distinction and honor, and had his ambition so aimed he might easily have attained to the highest political preferment, but from choice he gradually identified himself with financial and business affairs, and there also he exhibited the same unusual talent and achieved eminent success. From 1834 to 1865 he was trustee of the Ohio University, at Athens, which institution recognized his rare scholarship by bestowing upon him the degree of LL. D. In politics Mr. Hubbard was first a Whig, and afterwards a Repub lican. During the civil war he was a staunch and uncompromising Union man, and used all the influence at his command in behalf of the Union cause. He was instrumental in the legislation resulting in the establishment of the State banking system. The Honorable Salmon P. Chase frequently consulted him upon financial questions, and held his opinion in high regard. Few men were so well yersed in science, literature, philosophy and the arts. In the midst of a most busy life, crowded with cares and financial trusts, Mr. Hubbard still found time to indulge his taste and talent for learning and-culture. His mind retained a perennial vigor and brightness. He never lost his love for the classics, and in his last years he could converse readily with professional scholars in Latin. Endowed with rare conversational powers his speech sparkled with gems of wit and humor. In his intercourse with his fellow men he was sociable and affable, a most entertaining companion and wise counsellor, a firm and fearless advocate of justice and truth.; and a stranger would at any time have marked him for what he really was, an intelectual, dignified, cultured gentleman, with a sincerity of purpose and an unswerving integrity in all his motives. Mr. Hubbard died in Columbus, January 5, 1866, having lived the allotted Scriptural span of three score years and ten. He was married January 2, 1817, to Margaret Johnson, of St. Clairesville, who survived him many years and was noted for her loveliness of character and the important part she took in promoting and assisting the many charities in th,e city of their adoption. 230 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. RUTHERFORD H. PLATT, Columbus. Rutherford Hayes Platt was born September 6, 1853, at Columbus, Ohio. The Platt family from Which he is descended came to America with the earliest colonists about 1620. Benjamin Platt, his great-grandfather, was a native of Connecticut, and removed from Milford in that State to Columbus, Ohio, shortly after the foundation of the latter city. His father, William A. Platt, was born in Lanesborough, Massachusetts, and came to Columbus to join his grandfather while still a boy. Rutherford's mother was Fanny A. Hayes, sister of President Rutherford B. Hayes. William A. Platt was prominently identified with the growth of the city of Columbus, was a successful merchant, and a man of great business ability. Rutherford was the only son, and was educated at Harcourt Place school, Gambier, Ohio, and at the famous Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts. He graduated from the latter school June, 1870, and in the fall of the same year entered Yale College, graduating in the classical department in 1874. He then spent two years in Europe in travel and the study of the modern languages. In 1877 he entered Columbian Law School, from which he graduated in 1879, being one of the five honor men in a class numbering 250. He was admitted in June, 1879, to the Bar at Columbus, Ohio, by the Supreme Court. For some years he was the law partner of General John G. Mitchell. When the College of Law of the Ohio State University was established in 1891, Mr. Platt was chosen. professor of the subject of pleading, and filled that position for four years with great satisfaction to the students and trustees of the university, until the removal of the law school from the center of the city to the university grounds, when Mr. Platt resigned in order to give his entire attention to his private practice. Mr. Platt is one of the best educated members of the Columbus Bar, and as a lawyer is held in the highest esteem by the fellow members of his profession. He is especially versed not only in court procedure but in the laws governing estates and their administration, in which practice he has had large experience. He was appointed member of first board of directors of Columbus Work House, and has given much time and attention to the organization and operation of that institution; has served as director and counsel for many of the largest corporations, including the Door, Sash and Lumber Company, Columbus Gas Light and Coke Company, Franklin Insurance Company, The National Exchange Bank, Columbus Sayings Bank, the Columbus and Xenia Railroad Company. He has been a member for many years and since 1894 president of board of trustees of Greenlawn Cemetery Association. :Mr. Platt married in January, 1887, Miss Maryette Smith, of Columbus, Ohio, the daughter of Captain Robert S. Smith, counsel for the Columbus and Xenia Railroad. Mrs. Maryette Smith Platt is the granddaughter, on her mother's side, of Joseph R. Swan, one of the most eminent jurists of the Ohio Supreme Court. Mr. Platt has two sons, Robert S. and Rutherford, Jr., and two sisters living, Mrs. General John G. Mitchell and Mrs. General Russell Hastings, and one sister deceased, Mrs. Dr. Erskine B. Fullerton. BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 231 EDWARD H. FITCH, Jefferson. Honorable Edward Hubbard Fitch, who has for years been conspicuous in law, science and politics, was born May 27, 1837, at Ashtabula, Ohio. His father, Honorable Orramel Hinckley Fitch, a lawyer and man of affairs, was born in Connecticut, and his ancestors were English. His mother, Catherine M. Hubbard, was a natiye of Trenton, New York State, whose parents formerly resided in Middletown, Connecticut, and were likewise of English descent. At an early age Edward was sent to the grammar school at St. Catherine's, Canada, where he was prepared for college. In 1854 he entered Williams College and was graduated with honors in 1858, being one of the class orators. While at college he was the president of the Natural History Society. After receiving his degree of Bachelor of Arts he returned to Ashtabula and at once entered his father's office where he began the study of law. He was admitted to the Bar by the District Court of Cuyahoga county in September, 1860. The following year Williams College conferred upon him the degree of A. M. He commenced practice at once alone, but in a short time formed a copartnership with his father, which continued until January 1, 1863, when his father retired from practice. He then formed a partnership with Judge Horace Wilder, afterwards a judge of the Supreme Court of Ohio, under the name of Wilder & Fitch. This continued until the December following, when Mr. Wilder was appointed to the Supreme Court Bench. He then practiced alone until July, 1864, when he became a partner of Judge L. S. Sherman, who at this time is the oldest practitioner in this county. In 1868 this firm was dissolved and he was again alone until .1878, when he formed a partnership with Honorable S. A. Northway, now Congressman from this district. In the fall of 1878 he removed to Jefferson, Ashtabula county, where he has continued to reside. Ten years later this partnership was dissolved and he remained alone until September 1, 1896, when he formed a copartnership with his son, Winchester Fitch, with offices at Jefferson and Ashtabula, the son being in charge of the Ashtabula office. In 1870 Mr. Fitch was, by Governor R. B. Hayes, appointed delegate from the Nineteenth District to the National Capital Convention, at Cincinnati, and in the same year he was admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of the United States upon the motion of James A. Garfield, who had been his friend stnce college days. Mr. Fitch has for years enjoyed one of the largest law practices of the lawyers of northeastern Ohio. He is a lawyer of great ability and has the reputation of conducting a case with great skill. His arguments to the court are always clear, strong and to the point, omitting nothing essential to a complete statement and containing no surplusage. Before the jury he is both forcible and persuasive, evincing the art and power of the advocate. He has been most successful with his cases on. error, and has won a large majority of the numerous cases he has argued in the Supreme Court. His practice, while it has been of necessity of a general character, has had much to do with insurance and real estate law. Mr. Fitch is politically a Republican. His first vote was cast for Lincoln and he has always taken an active interest in State and National politics. An orator of force and influence 232 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO he is much sought for public speaking. For twenty years he was recorder and a member of the Ashtabula council. In 1867 and 1868 he was prosecuting attorney for Ashtabula county. He was for fifteen years a justice of the peace and forty years a notary public. He was seyeral years a member of the Republican State central committee. Mr. Fitch was appointed by Governor McKinley in 1894 chairman of the Torrence Commission. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a member of the American Bar Association, the Ohio Bar Association and of the Sons of the American Revolution. He was for a number of years chairman of the committee of judicial administration and legal reform of the Ohio State Bar Association. In 1863 Mr. Fitch was married to Alta D. Winchester, a daughter of Philander Winchester, at one time editor of the Painesville Telegraph, a noted Abolitionist and one of the founders of the Republican party. Of this union there have been eight children, five of whom are living : Winchester, born November 21, 1867, now a member of the Bar and partner of his father ; Annette, born January 31, 1870, and married January 31, 1892, to Curtis Brewer, who is at present city engineer of Sandusky and connected with the Jarecki Chemical Company ; Edward H., born March 31, 1873, educated in the Western Reserve Academy at Hudson, Oberlin College and Cornell University ; at the latter place, being a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity, to which his father, brother and brother-in-law also belong, and of the University foot-ball team, receiving his degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1897 ; Alta, born July 24, 1875, and Flora, born August 5, 1878. [Mr. Fitch died at Conneaut, his summer residence on Lake avenue, Thursday, September 9, 1897, and was buried in Chestnut Grove Cemetery, Ashtabula.] GEORGE L. CONVERSE, Columbus. The late George Leroy Converse was born in Georgeville, Franklin county, Ohio, on the 4th day of June, 1827. He was a son of Dr. George W. and Casandra (Cook) Converse. His father was a physician, the son of Sanford Converse, a soldier in the war of 1812, and Sanford was a son of Jeremiah, a soldier in the Revolutionary War. The family descent is from the French Hugenots, and the first of the American line came to the western continent with Governor Winthrop. After the death of Dr. Converse his widow, being a woman of more than ordinary attainments, supported herself and child by teaching. George, guided and assisted by his mother, attained the elements of his education in the district schools, afterwards attending the Central College for seven years, then entered Dennison University at Granville, and was graduated in 1849. He studied law in the office of General J. W. Wilson at Tiffin, but removed to Columbus in January, 1852. In 1854 he was elected prosecuting attorney, serving one term and declining re-election. Mr. Converse was accorded a leading position in the Franklin county Bar. He was devoted to his profession and did not court political preferment. In 1859 he was elected a member of the legislature and BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 233 was reelected in 1861, serving two terms. In 1863 he was elected to the State Senate and became the recognized Democratic leader. In 1863 he was elected to the lower House and was made Speaker, where his efficiency and resources as a parliamentarian attracted the attention of the entire country. He was re-elected in 1875 and was the Democratic leader on the floor of the House. In 1887 he was a prominent convention candidate for governor, with Durbin Ward and R. M. Bishop as competitors, Bishop being successful. In 1878 he was elected to Congress. Mr. Randall, the speaker, appointed him chairman of the committe on public lands. He was re-elected in 1880 with but little opposition. The position taken by Mr. Converse on the tariff and his eminent abilities made him a conspicuous figure. He was fully in accord with Mr. Randall, believing and advocating that a tariff should be so levied as to protect the industries of the country against foreign competition, especially agricultural interests, including wool. It was Mr. Converse who moved to strike out the enacting clause of the Morrison horizontal tariff bill when in committee of the whole it was under discussion. After the defeat of the bill its friends and opponents agreed that the question should be authoritatively settled by the Democratic National Convention of Chicago. Mr. Randall was to champion those who opposed and Mr. Morrison those who supported the bill. Mr. Randall was unavoidably detained from the first day of the convention and Mr. Converse, though not a delegate, sought a place in the OhiO delegation and membership on the committee on resolutions, when the control was to be reached by an attempt to make Mr. Morrison chairman. The opponents of the bill were successful, but Mr. Converse, although entitled to the honor himself, requested that Mr. Morrison be made chairman. In return for this courtesy he was invited by Mr. Morrison to make a speech in reply to Benjamin F. Butler, who spoke against the report of the committee. Mr. Converse contributed largely to the presidential success in 1884. With Mr. Randall he was called to New York and made a canvass of that State. In his practice, as well as in his life and citizenship, Mr. Converse sustained a character for integrity and honesty of purpose beyond reproach. He was fairly entitled to the distinction he won. He was clean-cut and sagacious. As a lawyer he attained high rank at the Bar; as a citizen be gained the respect and confidence of all who knew him. He was a typical American, loyal to the best interests of his country; was kind and obliging to those who were struggling to obtain recognition at the hands of his countrymen. In 1892 Governor McKinley appointed him a delegate to the Nicaraguan Canal convention held at St. Louis. He was made chairman of the convention, and of a subsequent convention held at New .Orleans, called by him under authority of the St. Louis convention. In this he advanced the view that this government should construct the Nicaragua Canal as a national safeguard and in the interest of commerce, supporting his position by a strong argument and later by public addresses in the larger cities. George L. Converse practiced at the Franklin county Bar nearly fifty years and undoubtedly had more cases than any other lawyer at the Bar. The space allotted to this sketch prevents the 234 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. mention of important cases in which he was engaged. He was known as a hard, earnest and almost desperate fighter and would never surrender a point. On the 16th day of September he married Sarah E., daughter' of Nathaniel Patterson. Mrs. Converse died on the 19th of November, 1883, highly respected for her many good qualities. He again married in 1889, his second wife being Eloise, daughter of Dr. C. P. Landon, an eminent physician of Columbus. Mr.. Converse died at his home at Columbus on the 30th of March, 1897. WINCHESTER FITCH, Ashtabula. Winchester Fitch is descended from a family of lawyers. His earlier English ancestors were connected with the profession, and he is the third generation of the family engaged in the practice of law in Ashtabula. With his inherited tendencies, studious habits and determination to master the principles of the law, it is fair to assume he will maintain the reputation of the family. The son of Honorable Edward H. Fitch and Alta D. Winchester, he was born at Ashtabula, November 21, 1867, and received his primary education in the public schools of that city. After he bad passed through the grammar school his parents removed to Jefferson, where he was graduated from the high school. At the age of fifteen he entered the Cascadilla School at Ithaca, New York, where he was prepared for college. In 1884 he entered Cornell University, and was graduated in 1888 from the literary department of that institution. His favorite studies were history and the languages. After graduation he went to Chicago, and was for a time in the general offices of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. He then became a reporter upon the Inter Ocean, and later was appointed the marine editor, and afterwards literary editor of the Chicago Evening. Journal. For a short time prior to the Columbian Exposition he was a member of the real estate firm of Edwin Reed & Co. While in Chicago he read law and was a student of the Chicago. College of Law, taking the night course. In 1893 he returned to Jefferson to Complete his law studies in his father's office. In 1894 he was admitted-to practice at Columbus by the Supreme. Court. At this time he owned an interest in: the Geneva Times, and edited the paper until 1895, when he came to Ashtabula. Since that time he has been associated with his father in the practice of law, under the firm name of Fitch & Fitch, with offices in Jefferson and Ashtabula. Mr. Fitch is a Republican, and has been a' member of the county central committee, of the senatorial committee, and of the board of county school examiners. During, the campaign of 1896 he was an assistant to Colonel :Haskell and- Major Dick at the Republican National headquarters in Chicago.. In that position he discharged the duties devolying upon him with much skill, and in a manner entirely satisfactory to them and the National committee. On June 30, 1897, Mr. Fitch was married to Miss Florence Hopper, daughter of George H. Hopper, Esquire, of New York, a member of the Standard Oil Company, at "Elmwood" his country seat at Unionville, Lake county, Ohio. Mr. Fitch is a member of the Ohio State Bar BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 235 Association, the Western Reserve Society. of the Sons of the American Revolution, the Cincinnati Society of Colonial Wars, the Rowfant Club of Cleveland and the Twentieth Century Club of Chicago. THEODORE HALL, Ashtabula. Theodore Hall was born August 29, 1838, at Ashtabula, Ohio, his father, Stephen Hall, was a native of New York, and removed as a young man to Ohio and settled in Ashtabula, wee he engaged in the mercantile business. The family are of English descent. Thy first member of the family in America was John Hall, who was born in Kent, England, in 1584, and came to this .country in 1633, settling in New England. Be died at Middletown, Connecticut, May 26, 1673. Stephen Hall, the great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch, served through the Revolutionary War and was .a member of the Society of Cincinnati, a society of American Revolutionary officers, founded by George Washington. He was captain of a company in Colonel Herman Swift's regiment. Friend Hall, his grandfather, was born in Connecticut, September 10, 1773, and was a private in the war of 1812. His great-uncle, Amos Hall, was general in command at Buffalo, New York, in the same war. His mother was Ruth Booth, daughter of George Booth, who resided in Ashtabula county. She died when Theodore was a child. Ms early education was in the district and high school at Ashtabula, and in 1858 to 1860 he attended the Alleghany College at Meadville, Pennsylvania. He then entered the office of the Honorable Laban S. Sherman, where he read law, and was admitted to practice September 10, 1861. In November, 1861, he located in Geneva, Ashtabula county, and practiced law there one year. From November, 1862, to the fall of 1863 he was deputy internal revenue collector at Ashtabula. Returning to Geneva he practiced his profession until March, 1866. He then returned to Ashtabula, where he has since practiced. In 1867 he formed a partnership with Honorable L. S. Sherman under the firm name of Sherman & Hall. This lasted until 1875. He has since almost continuously practiced alone. His business has been of a general character. For a number of years he has had a large amount of corporation business, and has probably tried more personal damage cases than any other lawyer in Ashtabula county. He is now the local counsel for the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad, and also for the Nickel Plate. Mr. Hall's ability as a critical, technical lawyer is recognized by the Bar, and he has been most successful upon error, winning a large proportion of his cases taken to the higher courts. Politically a Republican, he has never sought or held office of any importance. In the campaign of 1896 he made a number of speeches for McKinley. In 1862 he married Lucy Pierce, of Saybrook, and by this union there are two children, a son and a daughter. Mrs. Hall died in 1889 and in 1892 he married Nellie Ketcham, of Ashtabula, by whom he has one son. 236 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. GILFORD L. MARBLE. Van Wert. Gilford Lionel Marble was born in Delphos, Allen county, Ohio, September 22, 1862. He is the son of Colonel John M. C. and Mary L. Marble, and is recognized both in the profession and in the community as one of the representative members of the Bar of his county. He was educated in the public schools and afterwards received the best scholastic advantages as a student of the college of New Jersey at Princeton, the Ohio Wesleyan University, at Delaware, and the University of Wooster. Having decided at an early age to enter the legal profession, he began his special preparation in 1880 in the office of J. K. O'Neal, at Lebanon. Soon afterwards he entered the office of Iryine, Brice & Hackedorn, at Lima, where he remained until he was admitted to the Bar. The firm was then reorganized and he was admitted to membership under the firm name and style of Hackedorn, Wheeler & Marble. While a member of this firm Mr. Marble gained for himself a high reputation. His first important work was the settlement of the complicated affairs of the Lima Car Works, the adjustment of which was placed in his hands when the works failed in 1884. In 1885 he returned to Van Wert and became identified with the Cincinnati, Jackson and Mackinaw Railroad as general counsel, a position which he retained until 1888. Among the note worthy cases with which he has been connected as counsel a few may be mentioned : He was attorney for the contractors of the C. J. and M. Railway in their suit against that company, which he finally won, after three years of litigation, securing to his clients the full payment of their claim. He was attorney for the employes of Luman A. Andrews et al, trustees, vs. Pittsburg, Akron and Western Railway. The road had been placed in the hands of a receiver in 1895 owing its employes back pay for services extending over a period of from six months to three years. He was successful in this suit also, collecting his clients' claims in full. He was attorney for the defendant in the contest brought by Warren F. Penn vs. Roenna Penn et al, to set aside the will of John W. Penn, deceased. It was the most noted will case in the county, involving some thirty thousand dollars, and was very stubbornly contested. Marble and Blockly won the case for their clients when it seemed hopeless in the opinion of other attorneys of the county. Mr. Marble is a progressive, enterprising and public-spirited citizen. He is at the same time conservative in the best sense of that word, opposing reckless extravagance and unnecessary loss or waste ; he would foster and build up, promoting eyery practical undertaking whose object is the betterment of conditions in the municipality, physical, educational and moral. Mr. Marble is a man of excellent intellectual attainments and professional ability. His personal traits are such as gained for him popularity and esteem. He has an indiyiduality that is marked and positive, while his cordiality of manner in intercourse and his equability of temper attract others. He has been married twice, first in December, 1887, to Miss Leonora Sherwood by whom he had one daughter, Katherine, born April 8, 1891. In September, 1894, he was married to Cora M. DePuy, an accomplished lady of Van Wert.. By this marriage he has one so amed John McKinley, born December 13, 1895. BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 237 THOMAS H. LOLLER, Dennison. Mr. Loller is a native of Ohio, born at Nashville. Holmes county, September 14, 1861. His parents were W. B. and Lucinda M. Duncan Loller, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Ohio. lie obtained his early education in the public schools of his native town, graduating from the high school with the class of 1880. He then entered the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, remaining there for one year, when he took up the study of law under the instruction of T. D. Healey, of Urichsville, Ohio, taking a preparatory course, after which he entered the Law Department of the Uniyersity of Michigan and was graduated from that institution in 1884, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. He was admitted the same year by the Supreme Court at Columbus to practice in all the courts of Ohio, and began the practice of law at Dennison in the spring of 1885, where he has continued without interruption to the present time. He has held the office of city solicitor for a period of ten years. He has been the attorney for the Dennison Building and Loan Association for about the same period. He has devoted himself entirely to his profession and has built up a clientage that is eminently respectable both in proportions and character. He attends closely to his business and is faithful in the interests of his clients. In politics he is Republican, but not an active partisan, though at present a member of the county central committee. Referring to his standing at the Bar, one of the ablest practitioners of Tuscarawas county remarked : " T. H. Loller is a very good all around lawyer: During the ten or twelye years he has been at this Bar he has maintained himself very well. He appears frequently in court trials, though I think most of his practice is in the nature of chancery cases and office business. He is well read, a pleasant speaker and makes a strong argument before a jury. He has in him the elements of a successful attorney. He is upright, of strict integrity and deserves the liberal support he is receiving." Mr. Loller affiliates fraternally with the Masonic Order. He is a Knight Templar and a member of the Mystic Shrine, Aladdin Temple, of Columbus. He was married in 1886 to Miss Lucy Laylander, daughter of James and Mary Crouch Laylander, an old and prominent family of Millersburg, Ohio. They have one son, Charles Ansell. WILLIAM A. LYNCH, Canton. W. A. Lynch was born at Canton, Ohio, August 4, 1844. His father and mother were both natives of Ireland, who met in Stark county, Ohio, and were married. His father was county surveyor and county recorder, a man of great energy and of unusual business ability. He was one of the pioneers in developing the coal mining interests of this county, and also in opening up the coal fields of western Pennsylyania. Besides these, he became deeply interested in railroad construction and promotion. He was one of the projectors of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railroad, and was active in the building of other railroads. These large enterprises necessarily carried with them a. corresponding responsibility, 238 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. and upon his death, which occurred just prior to the financial panic of 1857, it was found that the great depreciation in the values of all property, caused by the stagnation of business and the general financial depression had seriously involved his estate. Indeed, so great had been the shrinkage in values and the loss entailed by the want of his personal supervision that a large indebtedness was shown. At this time William A. Lynch, the son, was a boy of twelve years—old enough to realize the great loss, and yet quite young to assume the burden placed upon his shoulders. That these early trials had much to do with. developing the breadth and keenness of his business capacity, and the firmness, decision and earnestness of his character cannot be doubted. One of the earliest acts of his business career was to pay off all the outstanding obligations of his father's estate. He faced the situation more like a man than a boy twelve years old. He appreciated the value of education, and set himself to work most assiduously to acquire knowledge. With the assistance of the education received in the public schools he became a great reader and a deep student, and when he had attained his sixteenth year he entered the law office of Honorable Lewis Schaefer, of Canton. He was admitted to practice immediately upon reaching the legal age, September, 1, 1865, and was taken into partnership by his preceptor. While studying law, and afterwards in the early days of practice, he made the acquaintance of many men of great prominence and of distinguished ability. Among others, Honorable John McSweeney was attracted to the young man by the promise shown in him of future strength, and took delight in seeking his company and aiding him by adyice and council from his own wide experience. This was always gratefully received and wisely utilized, so that in a few years the young and ardent student was by far the strongest adyocate that his friend McSweeney had to contend with in the courts of northern Ohio. His partnership with Honorable Lewis Schaefer was dissolved at the end of four years, and Mr. Lynch remained alone until 1872, when he was joined in practice by the Honorable W. A. Day, now assistant secretary of State, appointed by President McKinley, and the style of the firm was Lynch & Day. April 17, 1878, an addition was made to the firm by the admission of Austin Lynch, a brother of the senior partner, under the style of Lynch, Day & Lynch. In 1893 Mr. William A. Lynch retired from the firm. A notable and historical case in northern Ohio in which he was prominent was that of the State vs. Richardson. The defendant was a woman charged with killing her husband, and the legal talent engaged upon both sides was of the strongest character. The State's attorney was assisted by William A. Lynch and Judge Day, whilst the defendant had employed John McSweeney, Judge Ricks, Judge Mayer, Judge Pease—an array of talent that is rare in one case. Medical expert testimony lent its aid rn exciting the public interest, and the tragic affair concluded with a verdict of manslaughter. Mr. Lynch was twice elected by the people to the office of prosecuting attorney. The first time his opponent was Charles M. Manderson, recently Senator from Nebraska. The second term he had Major McKinley for a competitor and failed of election. But upon the succeeding term he BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 239 again contested with Major McKinley for the position, and was returned to the office to which they had aspired. During this perio,d the county of Stark was strongly Republican. The office of prosecuting attorney and solicitor of the city of Canton are the only offices to which Mr. Lynch has been elected and the only offices for which he permitted himself to be placed in nomination. He has always been a staunch, consistent, old-line Democrat, and has repeatedly been tendered the nomination for Congress from his district, but always declined to enter political life. So firm was this resolve that he declined even an appoint, ment to the Common Pleas judgeship; tendered him by Governor Hoadly. He was a delegate to the Indianapolis " National Democratic Convention " in 1896, and was one of the electors at large upon that ticket for the State of Ohio. In 1883, upon retiring from the firm of Lynch, Day & Lynch, he devoted himself to the work of counsel of corporations, and this soon led him into an active participation in the management of several enterprises of great magnitude. He was one of the projector of the Pittsburg, Akron & Western Railroad in northern Ohio, besides being exceedingly active in promoting the construction of new railroads in the West ; reorganizing railroad, coal and iron properties and manufacturing companies. He bas frequently been appointed receiyer for large interests, whilst in matters of litigation and .reorganization of big properties his counsel and active co-operation and assistance are invariably sought. He is president of the local street railway of Canton, and is always deeply interested in every enterprise tending to benefit the town. He was married with Eliza Rush Underhill October 14, 1874, daughter of Judge Underhill, of Canton. They have a family of three daughters, all of whom are now attending schooltwo at Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, and the youngest is now preparing for the collegiate course. In speaking of Mr. William A. Lynch, a prominent member of the Oho Bar said : " I have known him from his student days. He is a man of keen, logical, analytical mind. No fallacy escapes his attention. He was always most studi- ous and industrious. He has the principles. of the law thoroughly mastered, and knows more of the philosophy Of the law than of mere case law. He is well versed in law literature and the best English literature. He is a wide reader, and of good general intelligence, reading and experience. When he was in the general practice of the law, he was easily leader of the Bar in Starke county, and while his reputation was somewhat local, I know of no better trial lawyer in this State. He possesses exactly the temperament for a trial lawyer, sufficiently combative, but not unreasonably so. He always retains complete control of his temper, of his feelings, and of himself, and never permits any of these to get the better of him, or to betray him into amistake. He is full of wit, pathos and logic, and possesses command of a wonderful vocabulary. He is a most forcible and convincing speaker. If elegance of diction, pathos, humor, fine analysis, logical argument and forcible manner, combined with. a warm enthusiasm for any cause he espouses, make an orator, then William A. Lynch is one. He has a cool head, rare tact and ripe judgment. His perceptions are quick. He is a broad-minded, capable man, who in a law suit or other matter quickly grasps the strong points and relies upon them for success, rather than by magnifying unimportant details, the common fault with loose thinkers. Mr. Lynch's position at the Bar was entirely the result of his high 240 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. character, his great ability, and his sterling integrity. A man of solid parts, he relied upon the public judgment of his character and qualifications for his business, and never resorted to the arts of the small lawyer to bring it to him. He has a warm, generous, sympathetic nature free from all demagogy ; a man of convictions, and a man of courage. The measure of the man, his strong sense of duty, courage and fearlessness, where duty prompted any line of conduct, was shown in the late campaign. He has always been a strong Democrat, an ardent partisan, but his conscience impelled him to oppose the action of his party in 1896, and he did so with all the force and ability of his character. On this occasion he- made a truly magnificent speech in Canton. In my opinion, there was no speech made during the campaign on the sound money question, excepting, perhaps, that of Carl Shurz, at Chicago, which will in any way compare with it. Mr. Lynch is a strong Catholic, but free from all bigotry. On the contrary, he is always tolerant of the religious views of others. He has never sought office, and yet there is no public office, even to the highest, that he would not be well qualified to fill. Had his mind and inclination run in that direction, he would certainly have achieved a great national reputation." WILLIAM E. SHERWOOD, Cleveland. William Edgar Sherwood was born at North Royalton, Cuyahoga county, October 2, 1850. His father was Orasmus Sherwood, a native of Genesee county, New York, and of English descent. The family for generations lived in New England; first in Connecticut and later at Bennington, Vermont, where his ancestors, notably Ethan Allen, of whom he was a direct descendant, took part in the contest concerning the boundary line between the colonies of New York and New Hampshire, just before the Revolutionary War. The mother of William E. Sherwood was Anne M. Cane, who was born at the Isle of Man, November 18, 1822. His early education ,was obtained at the public schools of Cleveland, later entering Western Reserve College at Hudson in the class of 1872. His legal studies were pursued at Columbia College Law School, in New York City, where he remained for two years. He was admitted to the Bar in 1874 and immediately located himself in the practice at Cleveland. He was from boyhood a devoted reader and student, his favorite subjects being history, political economy and political science. He possessed an unusually logical mind even for a lawyer, which, combined with some combativeness of disposition, made him an agressive and forceful debater, at times almost overwhelming his antagonist by his intellectual power. His active interest in politics began almost with his entering upon the practice of the law and he soon became prominent in public affairs. In 1876 and 1877 he was a member of the city council. About this time he formed a partnership with the Honorable H. J. Caldwell, now one of the judges of the Circuit Court; but the association was dissolved by Judge Sherwood's becoming clerk to the mayor. He was appointed clerk of the board of improvements July 1, 1878, and held the office until July 15, 1881. He then became assistant city solicitor and continued as such until January, 1886. He then formed a partnership with Amos Dennison, which continued until 1889, when Judge Sherwood was elected to the Common Pleas Bench. Before his BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 241 nomination to the Republican County Conyention he was declared the unanimous choice of a non-partisan meeting of the lawyers of Cuyahoga county for the judicial office. No higher compliment could be given to a lawyer ; it came to him from those who were the best judges of his ability, his integrity and his impartiality. He was elected a year in advance of the opening of his term ; but was appointed January, 1890, for the residue of the term of Judge William B. Sanders, resigned. Judge Sherwood was a recognized authority upon municipal law. He had made it a special study, besides having become practically familiar with the subject while assistant city solicitor, where he took the lead in trying city cases. He showed marked ability in drawing bills for legislative enactment. Such was his standing in this regard that he was chosen with Judge Blandin to draw the original bill for providing an improved form of city government, known as the "Federal Plan," which passed the State legislature March 16, 1891. Judge Sherwood worked long and laboriously on the bill, which will remain a lasting monument to his legislative capacity as well as to his thorough knowledge of municipal laws. He was married October 8, 1874, to Mary Hall, of North Royalton, and three children born of the union survive: William Edgar, Anna and Mary, the eldest of whom is about nineteen years of age. They all reside in Cleveland. Judge Sherwood was stricken with appendicitis in the very vigor of his intellectual and physical manhood, and, after an illness of hardly more than ten days, died on the 22nd of September, 1892. By what he had proved himself to be he gave promise of what he could become, and those who knew him never doubted the utmost fulfillment of the promise, had his life been spared. Mrs. Sherwood died December 16, 1896.    WILLIAM S. KERRUISH, Cleveland. William S. Kerruish, although born in Ohio, is a real Manxman. Probably no man living speaks, writes and understands more perfectly than he the Gaelic language. He was born at Warrenyille, Cuyahoga county, on the 13th day of October, 1831. His father, William Kerruish, and his mother, Jane Kelley, were natives of the Isle of Man, and came to the United States in 1827, settling in Cuyahoga county, Ohio. The father was a farmer and a most estimable, highly respected citizen. Young Kerruish's early education was obtained in the district schools of the county. At sixteen years of age he entered Twinsburg Institute, where he spent four years preparing for college. He then entered Western Reserve College, remaining there through his junior year. In 1854 he entered the senior class at Yale, graduating with honors in the class of 1855. At college he especially excelled in languages. Upon leaving Yale he taught the languages for a year at the Twinsburg Institute. During this time his name was entered as a law student in the office of Ranney, Backus & Noble. Upon retiring from teaching he at once entered this office and was admitted to practice in 1858. After admission to the Bar he remained with his preceptors a 242 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. short time,,then opened an office and practiced alone until his first partnership was formed under the style of Hays & Kerruish. This firm lasted only about a year, when he formed a partnership with William Heisley, under the firm name of Kerruish & Heisley. This partnership continued until 1865. From that time until 1880 Mr. Kerruish practiced alone. In the latter year he formed a partnership with George T. Chapman, under the firm name of Kerruish & Chapman. His son, S. Q. Kerruish, also a graduate of Yale, is now the junior member of the firm, the style being Kerruish, Chapman & Kerruish. The practice of the firm has been general in scope and character. NOW, however, Mr. Kerruish, the senior member, if engaged almost entirely with important litigated cases. He has always been a great student of the law and has acquired a thorough knowledge of its principles. His natural abilities are large and he is very successful in the conduct of litigation. Quick in his apprehension of the points of law and the relevancy of testimony, terse and clear in argument, he is a formidable adversary at the trial table. With a persuasiveness of manner that is almost irresistible and a forcefulness of style that is convincing, he usually brings the jury to his own view of a case. There are few lawyers at the Cleveland Bar to-day who enjoy as large and lucrative a practice as Mr. Kerruish. Outside of his profession he has always devoted much time to the study of languages. In addition to the Gaelic language he speaks German, has considerable knowledge of French and Italian, and has been a life-long student of Greek and Latin. Some years ago, while he was in Italy, he visited near Rome a church where it is claimed they have a stone bearing the footprint of Christ. Wishing to see it he addressed a priest first in English, then in German, only to be met with a shrug of the shoulders. Ile then spoke to him in Latin, and at once received prompt attention and was shown the stone. After this conversation was carried on between them, he speaking in Latin and the priest replying in Italian. He reads Greek and Latin—especially Latin—as others read novels, and no doubt finds as much pleasure and recreation in his reading as the maiden does from the poems of Tom Moore, Burns and Byron. Mr. Kerruish is a member of the Philological Association of the United States, and in 1880, when the association met in Cleveland, he read a paper on the Gaelic languages, which was afterwards published in the proceedings of the association and received much favorable comment both in this country and in Europe. This paper was prepared at the request of Professor Lanman, of Harvard University. He has written various articles for magazines at home and abroad, and his correspondence has been extensive on the subject of Gaelic and Celtic languages. Mr. Kerruish has a host of friends and admirers in the community. He is a man of the highest moral character, possessing a true sense of justice. Straightforward and square in his dealings he has the respect and confidence of all who know him. In politics he is a Republican, but liberal in his views. He has never sought or held political office. In 1859 he married Margaret Quayle, also a native of the Isle of Man, and by this union seven children have been born—two sons and five daughters, all living. BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 243 HARVEY RICE, Cleyeland. For nearly seventy years the life of the subject of this memoir was intimately related to the civic and social life of Cleveland, and to the progress and well-being of the State. He was born on his father's farm at Conway, Massachusetts, June 11, 1800, the son of Stephen Rice and Lucy Baker, his wife. He was a lineal descendent from Edmund Rice, who emigrated from Barkhamsted, England, with his family and settled at Sudbury, Massachusetts, in 1638. His mother died when he was four years old and he remained with his father at work on the farm until he reached the age of seventeen, when he began in earnest to acquire a thorough education. His studies were pursued with diligence, and in 1824 he was graduated from Williams College. In the same year he made the trip westward by the stage coach, Erie Canal and Lake Erie, arriving in Cleveland with three dollars in his pocket. His capital consisted of a robust, healthy constitution, a vigorous mind, whose faculties were admirably assembled and adjusted for the most effective use; a moral character strong in its integrity, and aspiration to the best and noblest things in life. Many years afterwards he spoke of his landing at midnight on the wharf at Cleveland and carrying his trunk in the dark to a lodging place. He was armed with no other weapon than a letter-of introduction to a leading citizen, a college diploma printed in Latin affixing to his name the title of A. B. He says further : " With these instrumentalities I succeeded the second day after my arrival in securing the position of classical teacher and principal of the Cleveland Academy." At the same time he became a student of law during leisure hours under the instruction of Judge Reuben Wood. In the spring of 1-826 he resigned from the school and continued his legal studies at Cincinnati under Bellamy Storer, Upon his admission to the Bar he returned to Cleveland and practiced with Judge Wood until the latter was elected to the Supreme Bench in 1830. In 1829 Mr. Rice was elected justice of the peace. The next year he was elected to the legislature and served on the joint committee to revise the statutes. It was the first revision. Some of the most important provisions were drawn by Mr. Rice and incorporated in the statutes. While in the legislature he was appointed agent to sell the Western Reserve school lands, consisting of 56,000 acres, located in the counties of Tuscarawas and Holmes. For convenience he opened an office at Millersburg and disposed of the land in three years, turning in nearly $150,000, which became a fund, the interest of which is deyoted to the schools of the Western Reserve. In 1833 he returned to Cleveland and was appointed clerk of the Common Pleas and Superior courts of Cuyahoga county, which he held for seven years. In 1834, and again in 1836, he was the Democratic candidate for Congress, but as his party was hopelessly in the minority he was both times defeated. Mr. Rice was elected to the State Senate in 1851 as the first Democratic Senator chosen in the county (and only two have been elected since). He was a prominent and useful member of the joint committee to revise the statutes in conformity with the new Constitution, his former experience at revision making his service in this position invaluable. He was also influential in the legislation providing 244 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. for two asylums for the insane, and took a leading part in the discussion of the reform of juvenile offenders, which led to the provision of a subsequent session for the State Reform School at Lancaster, in accordance with his views. As chairman of the committee on schools he achieved his greatest distinction and most permanent fame. His work was such that history attributes to him the honor of being the founder of the common school system of the State. The Senate journals furnish the record of his advocacy of the cause--his authorship of the bill, his report in its favor and his effective support of it on the floor and its final passage by the vote of twenty-two in favor to only two against. His vigilance did not sleep until the house also passed the bill pledging the State to a wise and generous provision for the liberal education of her children. In closing his argument and appeal he said : " By the provisions of this bill it is intended to make our common schools what they ought to be, the colleges of the people—cheap enough for the poorest and good enough for the richest. With but slight increase of taxation, schools of different grades can be established and maintained in any township in the State and the sons and daughters of our farmers and mechanics have an opportunity of acquiring a finished education, equal with the more favored of the land. * * * Philosophers and sages will abound everywhere, on the farm and in the workshops, and many a man of genius will stand among the masses and exhibit a brilliancy of intellect which will be recognized in the circling years of the future as a light, a landmark on the cliffs of time. * * * Though I would not break down the aristocracy of knowledge of the present age, yet I would level up and equalize and thus create, if I may be allowed the expression, a democracy of knowledge. In this way, and in this way only, can men be made equal in fact, equal in their social and political relations, equal in mental refinement, and in a just appreciation of what constitutes man the brother of his fellow man." Mr. Rice was elected in 1857 to the city council of Cleveland. There he took the lead in establishing a home of refuge, which was discontinued but a few years ago. He was author of the resolution in the council which resulted in the erection of the monument to Commodore Perry, and was made chairman of the committee appointed to carry it into effect. In 1861 he was president of the board of education and in 1871 was a member of the first board of directors of the Cleyeland Workhouse and House of Correction. Mr. Rice was appointed in 1862 a commissioner of the War Department to conduct the first draft of soldiers. While in discharge of his duty his office was besieged one morning by a mob of some five hundred angry and excited men, who brandished weapons and were intent upon the destruction of the record of the draft, having gained the idea that it was unfair. Mr. Rice did not flinch, but faced the mob until the military could be called out, when a “demonstration in force" quieted the turbulent crowd. He demanded that a committee of the dissatisfied be appointed to investigate, which being done, he soon convinced them that the draft had been properly and fairly conducted. Mr. Rice was of a deeply religious nature, and on the grounds of Williams College he erected, in 1867, at his own expense, a monument as an expression of regard to the cause of foreign missions. The monument stands on the BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 245 spot where, in the midst of a storm, Samuel J. Mill's suggested to four of his companions in 1806 the thought which led to the organization of the American Board of Foreign Missions. He Was one of the organizers of the Early Settlers' Association of Cuyahoga county, Ohio, and was its first president, an office he held until his death. Although Mr. Rice did not begin his literary labors until 1869 he gained an enviable reputation in that field of work. He was a voluminous, versatile writer, in poetry and prose, on subjects scientific, historical, descriptive, sentimental. In 1871 Williams College .conferred upon him the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws. He died November 7, 1891, a painless, peaceful death. In 1840 Mr. Rice married Emma Maria Wood, who died in 1889. Two sons survive, Harvey and Percy W., both residents of Cleveland. ANDREW SQUIRE, Cleveland. Andrew Squire was born at Mantua, Portage county, Ohio, on the 21st day of October, 1850. He is the son of Andrew Jackson Squire and Martha Wilmot, both of whom are natives of the State. His paternal ancestors were among the early English settlers of New England, and the family seat was for many generations in, Berkshire county, Massachusetts. His father, born two years after the settlement of the family in Ohio, now retired at the ripe age of eighty-two, was a very successful physician with a large practice for many years. His mother belonged to an old New England family, whose home was long in Connecticut. Andrew commenced his education in the district schools in his native town, but in 1861, at the age of eleven, he entered the Western Reserve Eclectic Institution at Hiram (afterwards Hiram College). In 1863 his family removed to. Hiram, and he remained at the school, with occasional breaks, until 1872, when he graduated. Coming to Cleyeland at once, he entered the office of Cadwell & Marvin and commenced the study of law, and on December 3, 1873, was admitted to the Bar. In January, 1874, he formed a partnership with A. J. Marvin—Judge Cadwell haying been elected to the Bench—the firm being Marvin & Squire. In 1876 Alphonso Hart, who was lieutenant-governor of the State, became a member of the firm, under the name of Marvin, Hart & Squire. In 1878 Mr. Squire -retired from this firm and formed a partnership with E. J. Estep, under the firm name of Estep & Squire. In 1882 Judge M. R. Dickey joined them, and the firm became Estep, Dickey & Squire, and so continued until 1890, when Mr. Squire withdrew. Judge William B. Sanders retired from the Bench, and with James H. Dempsey (who had been a partner in the firm of Estep, Dickey & Squire) established the present firm of Squire, Sanders & Dempsey. This is acknowledged by the Bar to be a most excellent combination, all being men of exceptional ability. Mr. Squire's standing as a man and lawyer is unexcelled in this section of the State. "Gentle by nature, kind and considerate in his family," is the verdict of those who are in a position to judge the man in his domestic life. Possessed of unusual common sense, superior judgment, and a thorough training in the law, and being-a good judge of men, he is admirably 246 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. qualified to be at the head of one of the ablest law firms of the city, and one that enjoys a large practice. He cannot by any means be classed as a case lawyer. While he conducts a trial with skill, it is in presenting the principles of the law involved in the cause that his clearness, force and ability are most observed. He is a safe counsellor, and his advice is much sought. In the formulatin of methods and plans in business he has been most successful, and by his advice and counsel in this direction he probably has contributed as much as any other lawyer at the Bar to the advancement of the great commercial interests of the city of Cleveland. The business of the firm can be classed as a general civil practice, but they have a very large and lucrative corporation practice. Mr. Squire is a Republican, always taking an active interest in political affairs, but his professional work has been so continuous and exacting he has not had time to be much of a worker. However, he was a delegate to the Republican National Convention which met in St. Louis and nominated Mr. McKinley. Mr. Squire has been twice married, In 1873 he married Miss Ella Mott, of Hiram, Ohio, and by this union there were two children, a daughter, who died, and a son, Carl A., still living. After the death of his first wife he was married again, in 1896, to Mrs. Eleanor Seymour Sea, whose father, Mr. Belden Seymour, for many years prior to his death had been his friend. FRANK E. DELLENBAUGH, Cleveland. Honorable Frank E. Dellenbaugh is judge of the third subdivision of the Fourth Judicial District of the Court of Common Pleas, Cuyahoga county. He was born at North Georgetown, Columbiana county, Ohio, on the 2d day of October, 1855. His father, C. W. Dellenbaugh, a native of Ohio and a physician, was prominent in his profession and highly respected at his home. His grandfather, also a physician very eminent in his day, was a native of Switzerland and came to America in the early part of the present century, settling in Ohio. His mother, Sarah A. Everett, was also a native of Ohio, of English ancestry. When Frank was less than a year old the family moved to Cleveland, and his early education was received in the district schools and the Cleveland Academy. Afterwards he entered the Western Reserve College, but owing to ill health he was compelled to leave before completing his collegiate course, and for two years he had a private tutor. In 1875 he entered the law department of the University of Pennsylvania, where he remained one year and until he was appointed by President Hayes inspector in the department of finance of the Centennial Exposition, which position he filled from May 1, 1876, to November 29 of the same year. Returning to Cleveland in December, 1876, he entered the law office of his uncle, Charles D. Everett, Esquire, and continued the study of law. In 1877 the Ohio State Union Law College conferred upon him the honorary degree of Bachelor of Laws, and on the 21st of March, 1877, he was admitted to practice in the State courts, and on the same day one year later he was admitted to the Federal Courts. Commencing the practice of his pro- BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 247 fession he remained alone for about one year, when he formed a partnership with Albert H. Weed, under the firm name of Weed & Dellenbaugh. This partnership continued about two years when he withdrew to form a partnership with his uncle, Charles D. Everett, under the firm name of Eyerett & Dellenbaugh. In about two years the firm was enlarged by taking in his first partner, Mr. Weed, and so continued until 1895, when President McKinley, then Governor of Ohio, appointed., Mr. Dellenbaugh judge of the Court of Common Pleas to fill the unexpired term of Judge John C. Hutchins, who resigned to accept the postmastership of the city of Cleveland, to which position he had been appointed by President Cleveland. Mr. Dellenbaugh gaye up a large practice to accept the judgeship. He had been a most successful practitioner. Coming upon the Bench he brought with him and applied business methods, and very soon demonstrated the wisdom of Governor McKinley in making the appointment of so young a man. So efficiently had he discharged his duties that six months after his appointment he was the unanimous choice of the Republican party for the nomination for a full judicial term of five years, and without any effort on his part defeated Judge Noble, the Democratic candidate, by nearly six thousand majority, and in the spring of 1897 entered upon his judicial service for the full term. Judge Dellenbaugh is a close student, possessed of strong will-power, high moral character and great industry. He is evenly balanced and well grounded in the principles of the law. His judicial career is very bright and promising. Judge Dellenbaugh has always been in politics a Republican, taking a most active part in political matters, but never held elective office until he accepted his present position, and even this came unsought, for he was not a candidate. He is a speaker of more than average ability. When the St. Louis convention nominated Governor McKinley for the Presidency he immediately offered his seryices as a speaker to the Republican National Committee. His offer was gladly accepted and he was sent first into the Northwest, where he made many speeches, closing the campaign in his natiye State. Judge Dellenbaugh is a Mason and a member of all the leading social clubs of Cleveland. Haying a most genial and affable manner he has as large a circle of friends and admirers as any lawyer in Cleveland. JAMES LAWRENCE, Cleveland. James Lawrence was born in Guernsey county, Ohio, on the 15th of January, 1851. His father in his younger days was a merchant, but always took a great interest in affairs relating to the public good. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1851, once a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, three times a member of the Ohio Senate, and a member of Congress from 1857 to 1859, during Buchanan's administration. He was of Scotch-Irish descent. The great-grandfather of James came to this country toward the close of our Revolutionary War, where about 1783, and settled in Maryland, his grandfather being born at Havre de Grace, Maryland. The family removed to Washington county, 248 - BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO. Pennsylvania, coming to Ohio about 1810, where his father was born. His mother, Margaret E. Ramsey, was of Scotch descent, her ancestors coming to this country at an earlier date than those on the paternal side, and settling in Pennsylvania. The larger part of his mother's early life was spent in Virginia with relatives. The early education of James was in the public schools and afterwards at the academy. He entered Kenyon College in 1868, in the sophomore class, taking his degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1871. Having when quite a boy determined upon the law as his profession he immediately took up the study of law with the Honorable J. W. White, at Cambridge, Ohio, remaining with him for three years, and in 1874 was admitted to the Bar. He immediately removed to Cleveland and entered the office of G. H. Foster. After a time he became a partner of Mr. Foster, remaining with him until 1893, when the partnership was dissolved. The firm at the present time is Lawrence & Estep. During the administration of Honorable George Hoadly as governor of Ohio, for the years 1884 and 1885, Mr. Lawrence was the attorney-general of the State. He was corporation counsel for the city of Cleveland from 1893 to 1895. Mr. Lawrence is considered by the Bar to be a good all around lawyer, a close student devoting great care to the preparation of his cases. He possesses a keen sense of justice and honor and has the confidence and respect of both the profession and the public. In politics he has always been a Democrat, taking an active interest in all matters affecting his party. In 1888 he married Jennie Gardner Porter, and by this union has three children, one boy and two girls, all living. JAMES M. JONES, Cleveland. James Milton Jones first saw light in England, having been born in Herefordshire, near the ancient Roman walled city of Hay, in the beautiful valley of the river Wye, and in the shadow of the battlements of Clifford Castle, famed for its romantic legends of Henry II and Fair Rosamond. He was the third son of Thomas and Mary Jones, and was brought by his parents to Cleveland in his infancy, in 1831, when the city was but a village. The family consisted of thirteen children, six sons and seven daughters. It was a family noted for its eminently social characteristics, for the public talent of its sons and the bright and cheerful personality of its daughters. The status of the sons among men is manifest. The eldest, Thomas Jones, Jr., was United States collector of internal revenue and postmaster at Cleveland ; James M. was twelve years on the Superior Court and Common Pleas Bench ; John P. is United States Senator for Nevada, now serving his third term ; Samuel L. is superintendent of Crown Point Mine, Nevada, and Frederick was at one time head of the coining department of the United States mint, New Orleans, Louisiana. The father, for more than forty years a prominent and enterprising citizen of Cleveland, is now dead. The venerable and beloved mother died at the age of ninety, in the home of her son, Senator Jones, at Gold Hill, Nevada, in 1893. It is mainly in the legal and judicial character of Judge Jones that this sketch is written--phenomenal suc- BENCH AND BAR OF OHIO - 249 cess coupled with judicial eminence. With the requisite professional preparation he came to the Bar in 1855, and probably but few lawyers immediately acquired so profitable a clientage. Shortly after his admission to the Bar he was retained as leading counsel for the defense of the. famous " Townsend—McHenry " extradition case, a proceeding pending before the United States commissioner, on the charge that the prisoner who claimed to be Robert McHenry was no other than the notorious William Townsend, a well known desperate Canadian highway robber and murderer. It was a long hearing and several successive lots of witnesses had to be brought from Canada before they could make a case. The prisoner was, however, extradited and ultimately put, upon his trial for murder, as William Townsend, the sole question on trial being one of identity. About one hundred witnesses testified to his being Townsend, but he was nevertheless able to produce a large number of witnesses to testify that they knew Townsend and this was not the man. He was acquitted. For public notoriety and identity of issue it has hardly been surpassed by the Tichborn case. It was in this case that Mr. Jones first attracted public attention for his skill in the cross-examination of witnesses and the forcible style of his advocacy, which at once brought him to the front. This early manifestation of legal accomplishments led very directly to his appoint, ment as attorney for the Western Union Telegraph Company, a relationship which he for many years sustained. Having supervision of a large and peculiar legal business for this company, extending over various States and Territories covered by its lines, he. made telegraph law a specialty for some years, and his experience in that new branch of the law is probably unsurpassed by any other lawyer. In 1867 he was elected ,prosecuting attorney for Cuyahoga county. In 1873 he was elected one of the three judges of the Superior Court, having the rare compliment of a nomination by two political conventions. He served until July, 1875, when the judicial system was changed and he was transferred by election to the Court of Common Pleas for the full term of five years. At the end of his term in 1880 he resumed the practice of law, with a largely increased clientage. One year thereafter, he was elected, by the largest majorities ever given a judge in the county, to succeed the Honorable Samuel B. Prentiss, who voluntarily retired, having served fifteen years. Judge Jones resumed the Bench in February, 1882. His last judicial term was a season of unprecedented litigation, often involving Millions in a single case, and requiring not infrequently the elucidation and administration of municipal, commercial and railroad corporation law, and it is sufficiently specific and expressive to remark that in his entire judicial service Judge Jones proved equal to every occasion. Finally, in 1887, Judge Jones stepped from the Common Pleas Bench into a large and paying Practice, and has since been identified with many of the most important cases brought before the courts in the northeast section of Ohio. In the investigation and preparation of his cases and in the trial thereof the peculiar genius, skill and vigor, and the convincing presentation of the facts and law applicable thereto, have won for him pre-eminent professional distinction. Not only for his legal and judicial eminence is he