Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes, Part 14

Author: Dunn, Jacob Piatt, 1855-1924. cn
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 972

USA > Indiana > Marion County > Indianapolis > Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes > Part 14

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After leaving the university Mr. Beveridge passed one year in the west, where he followed the untrammeled life of a cowboy, and he then returned to Indiana and took up his residence in Indianapolis, in the winter of 1886. Here he began the study of law in the office of Sena- tor McDonald. But a young man fresh from the western prairies can not well devote him- self to such technical training without pro- viding for the assuagement of a vigorous and insistent physical appetite. Under these con- dition4 Senator Beveridge consulted ways and means for providing for his support. While in college he had given evidence of the fine ora- torical powers that have since gained to him wide repute and had given effective service as a campaign speaker for the Republican party. His efforts in this direction may have had in- fluence in gaining to him at this period of in- sisteney the position of reading clerk in the lower honse of the Indiana legislature. Through his services in this capacity he earned enough to tide him over one year of his law studies. During this period he continued his technical

reading in the law office of McDonald & Butler, and appreciation of his ability and earnestness was then given by the firm, for which he be- came managing clerk, at a fair salary. He remained thus. associated with this firm until 1889, when he was admitted to the bar, to which he came specially well fortified in exact and comprehensive knowledge of the science of jurisprudence.

Immediately after his admission to the In- diana bar Senator Beveridge established him- self in the independent practice of his profes- sion in the capital city of the state, where he has since maintained his home. From the initiation of his work in Indianapolis he gained strong supporters both in his. profession and in the ranks of the political party to which he gave his allegiance. Incidentally it should be noted that he early manifested a remarkable insight regarding constitutional questions. De- mands for his services as a campaign orator were insatiable. In the national campaign of 1896 he leaped into national fame by reason of his great speech, in Chicago, in answer to that of the late Governor Altgeld, of Illinois, who spoke in New York City. Senator Bever- idge's speech was one of the most powerful ever delivered by an American statesman as a masterly arraignment of the socialistic ten- dencies of the Democratic party and in the uttering of impressive warnings against the dangers of license and anarchy. There can be no measure of doubt that this address, born of conviction and earnestness and graced by the most superb diction and oratory, had potent influence in bringing its author forward as a candidate for the United States senate and insuring his election, in 1899. His opponents in the nominating convention were four in number and were conceded to be among the ablest men in the state, but Senator Beveridge. the youngest of the aspirants for the senatorial toga, gamed supporters who rallied valiantly to his standard, carrying the convention with a dash and spirit almost unprecedented in the history of Republican politics in Indiana. Of his services in the federal senate it is not neces- tary to speak in this article, for they are known to all students of national affairs and are a matter of record as well as of distinctive honor to the man. The senator was chosen as his own successor in the election of 1905, and his second term will expire in 1911. His course, marked by due independence and yet by the strongest loyalty, has begotten a popular con- fidence that implies an impregnable hold upon public esteem and party fealty, and further honors shall not be denied the gifted young statesman who has won much and won it worthily. Energetic, sincere, studious, diplo-

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matic, eloquent, strongly fortified in knowledge of constitutions questions and matters of national import, and thoroughly familiar with the demands, necessities and best interests of the people he represents-Albert J. Beveridge is to-day one of the progressive, loyal and able public officials of our nation and is at the very zenith of his strong and worthy manhood. The country expects much of him, and it is his to give much.

As a writer has Senator Beveridge also shown distinctive versatility and resourceful- ness, bringing to bear a fine literary apprecia- tion and great purity and amplitude of diction, and in addition to his many contributions to the newspaper press and to standard periodical literature he is the author also of the follow- ing named works: "The Russian Advance" (1903), "The Young Man and the World" (1905), "The Bible as Good Reading" (1908), "Meaning of the Times" (1908), "Work and Habits" (1908), "Americans of To-day and To-morrow" (1909). On the 24th of No- vember, 1887, Senator Beveridge was united in marriage to Miss Katherine Langsdale, of Greencastle, Indiana, and she was summoned to the life eternal on the 18th of June, 1900, leaving no children. In the City of Berlin, Germany, on the 7th of August, 1907, was solemnized the marriage of Senator Beveridge to Miss Catherine Spencer Eddy, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Augustus N. Eddy, of Chicago.

DR. CHARLES S. GOAR. There is no man in the City of Indianapolis more widely known than Dr. Charles S. Goar, a physician and political worker of distinction. He traces his ancestry back on his paternal side through many generations to St. Goar, who was born near the River Rhine, Germany, and on his mother's side he is of English descent. He was born on his father's farm in Cicero Township, Tipton County, Indiana, August 17, 1865, a son cf Henry and Martha E. (Smith) Goar, the former born in Monroe County, Virginia, No- vember 16, 1821, and died December 14, 1905, and the latter, born in Kentucky June 21, 1828, died March 12, 1906. They were mar- ried in Henry County, Indiana, May 27, 1844, and thirteen children blessed their marriage union, but only six are now living, Charles S. being the eleventh born. The parents spent their days on the old homestead in Cicero Township, Tipton County, Indiana, he having pre-empted that land from the government dur- ing the presidency of James K. Polk, who signed the papers. In politics he was an in- dependent voter, believing firmly in the saying of Washington-"Don't forget your country for your politics."

After a training in the district schools

Charles S. Goar pursued a special scientific and teacher's course in the Central Normal College at Danville, Indiana, and graduated with the class of 1884. He then began the study of medicine under the instructions of Drs. Newcomer and Dickey of Danville, In- diana, and in the fall of 1885 matriculated in the College of Physicians and Surgeons of In- dianapolis, where he graduated with the class of 1888. Locating then at Kennedy, Minne- sota, he was in practice there until November of 1890, when he returned to Tipton, Indiana, and settled at Goldsmith. He was successful in his practice there and established a splendid reputation for professional skill, but leaving that city he came to Indianapolis in 1899. His fine ability as a medical practitioner is recog- nized by the profession, and he is often called into consultation both near and far. He is a member of the County Medical Society, and of the State and American Medical Associations. Dr. Goar since his graduation from the Col- lege of Physicians and Surgeons has pursued post graduate courses in the clinics of New York City and in the Post Graduate School of Chicago. He is one of the lecturers in the In- diana School of Medicine, and during the past six years has been physician for the state school for the deaf. He is past noble grand of Goldsmith Lodge No. 324, I. O. O. F., and is a Thirty-second degree Mason.

Dr. Goar has long been very popular in the ranks of the Republican party in central In- diana. In 1896 he was nominated and elected to the senate of Indiana, representing Tipton and Hamilton Counties, and during the session of 1897 he performed effective work in behalf of the people of his district, serving on a num- ber of important committees and was chairman of the committee on public health and vital statistics. His term continued during the ses- sion of 1899. He is a man of marked ability and worth, and gives his hearty co-operation and influence to all public measures having for their object the welfare of the community in which he lives and of the country at large. He married on March 8, 1891, Miss Jennie Hinkle. a daughter of L. D. and Mary Hinkle. of Goldsmith, Indiana, and a son, Churchill Goar, has been born to them.

JOSEPH E. MCDONALD. A lawyer of exalted ability, a statesman of the highest type, and a man of sublimated integrity and honor, Hon. Joseph E. McDonald left a deep impress upon the history of Indiana and also upon that of the nation. Both were dignified by his noble life and splendid achievements, and he stood as an honored member of a striking group of men whose influence in the social and economic life of the nation was of most beneficent order.

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FEM Donald

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He served as a member of both branches of the United States Congress and was accorded other evidences of popular confidence and re- gard, the while he ever ordered his course according to the highest principles and ideals, so that he was found true to himself and to all men. Such was his prominence in public affairs and in professional life in Indiana and its capital city that it is but a matter of jus- tice to here enter a brief tribute to his memory and perpetuate at least a brief record concern- ing his career.

Joseph Ewing McDonald was born in Butler County, Ohio, on the 20th of August, 1819, and was a son of John and Eleanor (Piatt) McDonald. The father traced his lineage to stanch Scottish origin and the family was founded in America in the colonial days. John McDonald was a pioneer of the old Buckeye state and was known as a man of strong men- tality, impregnable integrity, and generous and kindly nature. He was industrious and dili- gent in connection with the practical affairs of life and manifested the business ability so characteristic of the sturdy race from which he was sprung. ' He died when the subject of this memoir was an infant, and his widow sub- sequently became the wife of John Kerr, of Fairfield Township, Butler County, Ohio. She was of French-Huguenot ancestry and was a member of a family that was first founded in New Jersey, from which state representatives later made permanent settlement in Pennsyl- vania. From the latter commonwealth came the founders of the family in Ohio. Mrs. Eleanor (Piatt) McDonald Kerr was a woman of much talent and gracious personality, and her distinguished son ever gave credit to her for the beneficent influence she exerted in the formative period of his character. In the autumn of 1826, John Kerr removed with his family to Montgomery County, Indiana, where he seeured a traet of government land and initiated the herculean task of reclaiming a farm from the forest wilds. He passed the closing vears of his life in the home of his step-son, the subject of this memoir, in Craw- fordsville, Indiana, where he died in 1856. He and his wife were both devout members of the Presbyterian Church, as was also John McDon- ald, father of him whose name introduces this review.

Joseph E. McDonald was significantly the artificer of his own fortunes, and he literally built the ladder upon which he rose to a place of distinction and great influence. He was seven years of age at the time of the family removal to Indiana, and he remained on the home farm until he had attained to the age of twelve years. He early began to contribute

to the work of the pioneer farm and availed himself of the meager advantages afforded in the primitive schools of the locality and period. For two years within this period he was cul- abled to attend school at Crawfordsville, which was then a mere village. He was naturally re- ceptive and studious, and when not employed at work on the farm he passed the greater por- tion of his time in reading and study, the while he began to formulate his boyish dreams into actuating motives. He often stated in later years that when but ten years of age he decided to prepare himself for the legal pro- fession, and this ambition must have been prompted more from his reading than from personal acquaintanceship with members of the profession.

When twelve years of age Mr. McDonald entered upon an apprenticeship to the saddler's trade, at Lafayette, Indiana, and he continued to be identified with this line of work for six consecutive years, save for a period of three months spent in attending school. He had already become proficient in the common Eng- lish branches, and his fund of knowledge had been appreciably expanded through special ad- vantages afforded him during his term of ap- prenticeship. He was afforded access to the extensive and well selected library of Dr. Israel T. Canby, of Crawfordsville, and he made the most of the opportunities thus pre- sented. In 1838 Mr. McDonald was matricu- lated in Wabash College, at Crawfordsville, where he continued his higher academic studies until 1840, except for a short interval, in 1839, when he was employed with the state engineer- ing corps that was surveying the bed for the Wabash & Erie canal. In the meanwhile he had maintained himself in college largely by working at his trade during vacations and at such other times as opportunity was offered. In 1840 he entered Asbury (now DePauw) University, at Greencastle, where he continued his studies for six months, at the expiration of which he returned to Crawfordsville, where he was engaged in teaching school for one term. In the spring of 1841 Mr. McDonald went to Williamsport, this state, where he passed one year as clerk in the store of his elder brother. He had not in the meanwhile aban- doned his determination to enter the legal pro- fession and had waited only until such time as circumstances would justify his beginning the work of preparation therefor. In the spring of 1842 he began the study of law under the preceptorship of Zebulon Beard, of Crawfords- ville, who was then one of the leading mem- bers of the bar of the state. Under such favor- able direction the young man made rapid prog- ress in his accumulation and' assimilation of

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the science of jurisprudence, and in the spring of 1843 he was admitted to practice, after ex- amination before the Superior Court, consist- ing of Judges Blackford, Dewey and Sullivan. Prior to receiving his license to practice he was nominated on the Democratic ticket for the office of prosecuting attorney of Montgomery County, of which Crawfordsville is the judicial center, and in the election in August, 1843, he was successful at the polls, where he received a gratifying majority over his Whig opponent, Robert Jones, a prominent member of the bar of that county. Prior to this time the prose- cuting attorneys for the various counties had been selected by the legislature, and thus Mr. McDonald had the distinction of being the first prosecutor chosen by popular vote in Montgom- ery County. He made an excellent record as a public prosecutor and in August, 1845, he was chosen as his own successor, defeating Robert Evans, the Whig candidate. He thus continued incumbent of the office for four consecutive years. In the autumn of 1847, Mr. McDonald established himself in the private practice of his profession in Crawfordsville, where he thus continued until 1859.

In the meantime Mr. McDonald had had shown his eligibility and power for leadership in political affairs and had become one of the vigorous and prominent exponents of the prin- cinles of the Democratic party in his section of the state. In 1849 he was elected to represent the Eighth district in Congress, and he served one term as a member of the lower house of the federal legislature. In 1856 there came further recognition of his professional talent and political popularity, in that he was elected attorney general of Indiana, an office in which he was the first to be chosen by popular vote. His record gained to him wider reputation and public endorsement, as was shown conclusively in his re-election two years later. In 1859 he established his home in Indianapolis, where he entered into partnership with Judge Addi- son L. Roache, who had served on the bench of the Supreme Court of the state, and the firm of Roache & MeDonald forthwith assumed a place of distinctive priority at the har of Indiana. It secured a large and representative clientage and appeared in connection with much important litigation in the state and federal courts in Indianapolis.

In 1864 Mr. MeDonald received the nom- ination of his party for governor of the state, and he made a vigorous and effective campaign against no less distinguished and popular an antagonist than Hon. Oliver P. Morton, the war governor. with whom he made a joint can- vass of the state. Though he met with defeat at the polls he received six thousand more

votes than were polled for the Democratic state ticket at the preceding election. On the 5th of March, 1875, he took his seat in the United States senate, in which he was elected to suc- ceed Hon. Daniel D. Pratt. He assumed a position of prominence in the senate, by rea- son of his recognized ability and his recognized loyalty to his important constituency. He was made chairman of the committee on public laws and the second member of the important judiciary committee. He was known as one of the best informed and most versatile lawyers in the senate and his influence permeated in many directions. He was a member of the senate committee that visited the city of New Orlean's to investigate the counting of the Lou- isiana vote in the election of 1876, and also of the Teller-Wallace committee that investi- gated election frauds in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Mr. McDonald was chairman of the Democratic state convention of In- diana in 1868 and was a member of the state central committee of his party from 1868 to 1874. He served one term in the United States senate and then opened a law office in the city of Washington, D. C. thereafter he divided his time between the national capital and Indianapolis, in which latter city he also continued to maintain an office until his death. In Washington he was engaged in connection with many important cases presented before the Supreme Court, and among the most notable of these were those in connection with the tele- phone patents and the Mormon affairs. During every state and national campaign for many years his services were in almost constant requi- sition in making speeches in support of the principles and policies of the party of which he was a recognized leader, and at the Demo- cratic national convention of 1880 he narrowly escaped being made the standard-bearer of the party on the presidential ticket. At one stage of the proceedings of the convention one of its sagacious delegates made the statement that the choice would either be the old ticket or Senator MeDonald would be made the candi- date for the presidency. For reasons not nec- essary to mention, political exigencies and ex- pedieney finally led to the nomination of Gen- eral Hancock.

MT. MeDonald's health was excellent throughout his life until December, 1890, when the disorder that finally brought about his death appeared in the form of a mild attack of indigestion. In April, 1891, he came from Washington to Indianapolis, where he was des- tined to pass the residue of his long and use- ful life among the friends who had proved their loyalty and of whom he was deeply an- preciative. For several weeks after his arrival

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he was able to ride to his office and there spend a few hours each day, but the visits gradually became irregular and finally ceased altogether. Thereafter he remained at his home, an uncom- plaining sufferer, until the final summons came, on the 21st of June, 1891.

'Throughout his long and earnest career Sen- ator McDonald was unswerving in his alle- giance to the exacting profession in which it was his to attain to so much of success and distinc- tion. His association with important cases in Indiana history was of the closest and his skill and learning in his profession made him one of the really great lawyers of the country. Various causes which he represented in Indiana attracted unusual attention, and prominent among these was that of the State of Indiana versus Sidney Owens, charged with murder by poison. The prosecution was conducted by Judge Gregory, of Lafayette, and General Lew Wallace, of Crawfordsville, and there was a strong public prejudice against the defendant, whose interests were most ably represented by Mr. McDonald, who secured a verdict of ac- quittal, to the surprise of the entire bar of the state. Mr. McDonald was also counsel for Bowles, Milligan and Harvey, who were tried for conspiracy and treason by a military com- mission and sentenced to be hanged. The case was taken to the Supreme Court of the United States and the defendants were released on constitutional grounds. Mr. McDonald also appeared as counsel for the defense in the noted Beebe case, in which the Federal Supreme Court decided that the Maine liquor law was unconstitutional. He was also one of the at- torneys for those who brought into the Su- preme Court the issue of the constitutionality of the Baxter liquor 'law. He presented the leading argument in many important railroad cases tried in the federal courts and made the principal argument for the objectors in the count of the electoral vote of Louisiana before the electoral commission appointed to deter- mine the result of the presidential election of 1876. He maintained that the creation of this commission was the exercise of a doubtful power, even in case of apparent necessity.

In politics Mr. McDonald ever held closely to the basic principles of the Democratic party as exemplified by Jefferson and Jackson, and few had more power and versatility as cam- paign orators. As a speaker he was cool, log- ical and resourceful. He believed in the in- trinsic virtue of the people and in their ability and purpose to maintain our national institu- tions inviolate against the assaults of design- ing politicians. Regarded by all parties as a statesman of great ability, broad and liberal views, well fortified convictions and absolute

personal integrity of purpose, long before the national convention of 1884 there was a gen- eral demand among the Democrats of Indiana for the nomination of Senator McDonald for the party candidate for the presidency. In presenting his name to the convention Hon. Thomas A. Hendricks referred to him as the peer of the best lawyers of the west, and con- tinued with the following words: "Faithfully, diligently and ably, for six years, he repre- sented Indiana in the senate, welcomed by the ablest of the senators as their peer. Mr.

MeDonald has been a student of the learning that has made the Democracy of the United States what it is today. He is familiar with the writings of his fathers and his opinions are based upon the sentiments that came to him through their pages. He is of clear perception, strong judgment, fair and just."

At the time of the death of Senator McDon- ald the Indianapolis Sentinel gave the follow- ing appreciative estimate in its editorial col- umns: "Kind of heart, colossal of mind, noble of purpose, strong of conviction and fearless of action, he put an indelible stamp upon the history of his time. In the laws of his state and of the nation he has left many enduring monuments to his worth. In the hearts of all who knew him he has left a lasting memory of his affection. In every sense he was one of nature's noblemen, and a nation will unite with that bereft family in mourning an end which, though coming when full of years and honors and ripe experience, our human under- standing can regard as but most untimely." Senator McDonald was devoted to his home and family and to those admitted to the more intimate circle of his acquaintanceship will reinain the deepest appreciation of the intrinsic nobility of the man. He was scholarly in his tastes and inclinations and read widely and with deep appreciation the best in literature.

On Christmas day of the year 1844 was sol- emnized the marriage of Senator McDonald to Miss Nancy Ruth Buell, a daughter of Dr. Buell, a leading physician of Williamsport, In- diana. The children of this union were: Ezekiel M., Malcolm A., Frank B. and Annie. The daughter became the wife of a Mr. Cald- well and her death occurred ou the 2d of June, 1877; Ezekiel M. died June 1, 1873, after hav- ing been associated with his father in the prac- tice of law for five years; Frank B. died in Washington, D. C., on the 7th of January, 1887. Mrs. McDonald was summoned to the life eternal, and on the 3d of September, 1872. Senator McDonald married Miss Araminta W. Vance. of Crawfordsville, this state, who died . ·February 2, 1875, leaving no children.

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Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes, Part 14

Author: Dunn, Jacob Piatt, 1855-1924. cn Publication date: 1910 Publisher: Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Company Number of Pages: 972

Author: Dunn, Jacob Piatt, 1855-1924. cn
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 972