History of the Indiana democracy, 1816-1916, Part 16

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1104

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Joseph Ewing McDonald became dis- tinguished in his adopted State as one of its ablest lawyers, most sagacious and courageous politicians, and a statesman of the highest type. Born in Butler county, Ohio, August 29, 1819; moved with his mother to Indiana in 1826; apprenticed to the saddler's trade in Lafayette, Ind .; at-

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HISTORY INDIANA DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

tended Wabash College, Crawfordsville, Ind., but did not graduate; studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1843, and com- menced practice in Crawfordsville; Prose- cuting Attorney 1843-1847; elected to the Thirty-first Congress (March 4, 1849- March 3, 1851) ; elected Attorney-General of Indiana in 1856 and re-elected in 1858; moved to Indianapolis in 1859; unsuccess- ful candidate for Governor of Indiana in 1864; elected to the United States Senate, and served from March 4, 1875, to March 3, 1881. Died in Indianapolis, June 21, 1891.

A most remarkable career had Andrew Jackson Harlan, who was born near Wil- mington, Clinton county, Ohio, March 29, 1815; attended the public schools; studied law, and was admitted to the bar; moved to Marion, Ind .; Clerk of the Indiana House of Representatives in 1842 and a member 1846-1848; elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-first Congress (March 4, 1849-March 3, 1851) ; re-elected to the Thirty-third Congress (March 4, 1853- March 3, 1855) ; moved to Dakota Terri- tory in 1861; Member of the Territorial Legislature in 1861, and served as Speak- er; driven from the Territory by the In- dians and settled in Savannah, Mo., and resumed the practice of law; member of the Missouri Legislature and served three years as Speaker; moved to Wakeeney, Kan., in 1883; postmaster of Wakeeney four years; removed to Savannah, Mo., in 1892. Died in Savannah, Mo., May 19, 1907.

The last delegation to be sent to Wash- ington under the census of 1840 and the apportionment made thereunder was a distinguished and influential one in the Thirty-second Congress (1851 to 1853). It was composed of-

1. James Lockhart.

2. Cyrus L. Dunham.

3. John L. Robinson.

4. Samuel W. Parker.

5. Thomas A. Hendricks.

6. Willis A. Gorman.

7 . John G. Davis.

8. Daniel Mace.

9. Graham N. Fitch.

10. Samuel Brenton.

James Lockhart was born in Auburn, N. Y., February 13, 1806; moved to In- diana in 1832; studied law, was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Evansville in 1834; Prosecuting Attorney of Vanderburg county 1841-1842; Judge of the Fourth Judicial District 1845-1851; Delegate to the State Constitutional Con- vention of 1850; elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-second Congress (March 4, 1851-March 3, 1853) ; re-elected to the Thirty-fifth Congress, but died before the assembling of the Congress in Evansville, September 7, 1857.

Samuel W. Parker was born in Jeffer- son county, New York, September 9, 1805; was graduated from Miami University, Ohio, in 1828; studied law, was admitted to the bar, and began practice in Conners- ville, Ind .; held several local offices ; mem- ber of the State House of Representatives 1836-1841; State's Attorney for two years; elected as a Whig to the Thirty-sec- ond and Thirty-third Congresses (March 4, 1851-March 3, 1855) ; Presidential Elector 1844-1856.

Thomas A. Hendricks was born near Zanesville, Ohio, September 7, 1819; moved with his parents to Madison, Ind., then to Shelby county in 1832; pursued classical studies and was graduated from South Hanover College in 1841; studied law in Chambersburg, Pa .; was admitted to the bar in 1843, and began practice in Shelbyville, Ind .; State Representative in 1848 and a State Senator in 1849; member of the State Constitutional Convention of 1851; elected as a Democrat to the Thirty- second and Thirty-third Congresses (March 4, 1851-March 3, 1855) ; Commis- sioner of General Land Office 1855-1859; unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Governor in 1860; moved to Indianapolis in 1860; elected United States Senator, and served from March 4, 1863, to March

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HISTORY INDIANA DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

3, 1869; elected Governor in 1872; elected Vice-President on the Tilden ticket in 1876, but counted out by the Electoral Commission of 1877; elected Vice-Presi- dent on the Democratic ticket in 1884. Died in Indianapolis, November 25, 1885.

Daniel Mace was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, September 5, 1811; attended the public schools; studied law, was ad- mitted to the bar, and commenced prac- tice in Lafayette, Ind .; member of the State House of Representatives in 1836; Clerk of the State House of Representa- tives in 1837; United States Attorney for Indiana 1849-1853; elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-second and Thirty-third Congresses (March 4, 1851-March 3, 1855) ; re-elected as a Republican to the Thirty-fourth Congress (March 4, 1855- March 3, 1857) ; appointed postmaster of Lafayette by President Lincoln. Died in Lafayette, July 26, 1867.

Samuel Brenton was born in Gallatin county, Kentucky, November 22, 1810; minister of the gospel 1830-1848; suffered a paralytic stroke in 1848 and compelled to abandon the ministry ; appointed Regis- trar of the Land Office in Fort Wayne, Ind., 1848; elected as a Whig to the Thir- ty-second Congress (March 4, 1851-March 3, 1853) ; elected as a Republican to the Thirty-fourth and Thirty-fifth Congresses and served from March 4, 1855, until his death in Fort Wayne, March 29, 1857. His second Congressional race was made against Congressman Ebenezer M. Cham- berlain, of Goshen, who was strongly opposed to the repeal of the Missouri com- promise, but nevertheless defeated as a candidate for re-election. A fusion of the Know-Nothings and anti-slavery men proved too strong to be overcome by Judge Chamberlain. *

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[CHAPTER XV.]

STATE OFFICERS CHOSEN BY THE LEGISLATURE

U NDER the Constitution of 1816 Governor and Lieutenant-Gov- ernor only were elected by the people. Other State officers were chosen by the Legislature. Up to 1853 these several offi- ces were filled by the gentle- men named under their respective official titles :

SECRETARIES OF STATE.

Robert A. New .. .from 1816 to 1825 William W. Wick ... from 1825 to 1829

James Morrison ... from 1829 to 1833 William Sheets ... from 1833 to 1837 William J. Brown. . from 1837 to 1841

William Sheets ... . from 1841 to 1845 John H. Thompson. from 1845 to 1849 Charles H. Test .... from 1849 to 1853

AUDITORS OF STATE.

William H. Lilley. . from 1816 to 1828 Benjamin I. Blythe. from 1828 to 1829

Morris Morris .... from 1829 to 1844

Horatio J. Harris. . from 1844 to 1847 Douglas Maguire .. from 1847 to 1850 Erastus W. H. Ellis. from 1850 to 1853

TREASURERS OF STATE.

Daniel C. Lane ... from 1816 to 1823 Samuel Merrill .... from 1823 to 1835

Nathan B. Palmer. from 1835 to 1841 George H. Dunn .. from 1841 to 1844

Royal Mayhew .... from 1844 to 1847 Samuel Hannah ... from 1847 to 1850 James P. Drake ... from 1850 to 1853 REPORTERS OF SUPREME COURT.

Isaac Blackford ... from 1817 to 1850 (One of the judges.)

Horace E. Carter. . from 1852 to 1853 (Died.)

JUDGES OF SUPREME COURT.

James Scott .from 1816 to 1831 John Johnson . from 1816 to 1817 Jesse L. Holman ... from 1816 to 1831 Isaac Blackford ... from 1817 to 1853 Stephen C. Stephens. .

from 1831 to 1836 John T. Mckinney. from 1831 to 1837 Charles Dewey .... from 1836 to 1847 Jeremiah Sullivan. . from 1837 to 1846 Samuel E. Perkins. from 1846 to 1865 Thomas L. Smith. . from 1847 to 1853

DOCTOR, EDITOR, COUNTY AND STATE AUDITOR.

The last State Auditor chosen by the Legislature, under the 1816 constitution, was Dr. Erastus W. H. Ellis, for many years editor and publisher of the Goshen Democrat. He was one of the truly able men of the State who deserved all he ever got from the party which he served so ably for a quarter of a century. He first located with his father at Mishawaka, then moved to South Bend, and from there to Elkhart. This was in 1837. In Janu- ary, 1839, he was induced by the owners of the Democrat to become its editor at a salary of $200 a year and board, which amounted to two dollars a week. The cir- culation of the Democrat then was about 400. During the Van Buren campaign in 1840 Dr. Ellis conducted a campaign pa- per called the Kinderhook Dutchman. It had a circulation of 1,200. He also issued the St. Joseph County Democrat during the Van Buren campaign. In August, 1841, he was elected Auditor of Elkhart county and re-elected in 1846. This proved quite helpful to him in his news- paper career. He continued to audit and edit until January, 1850, when the Legis- lature elected him to the more lucrative position of State Auditor. During his term of office he, in connection with John S. Spann, established a weekly paper called The Indiana Statesman. It attained a circulation of 2,000 and lived two years. By reason of his pronounced anti-slavery extension views the Bright forces defeated him in convention when he sought a re- nomination for the office of State Auditor. In 1855 Dr. Ellis severed his connection with the Democratic party. He joined the newly organized anti-slavery party, was

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HISTORY INDIANA DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

nominated for State Auditor in 1856, and defeated with the rest of the ticket. For a while he edited a campaign paper called We, the People. It had a circulation of 7,000. He filled several minor positions under State authority, became very poor and returned, penniless, to Goshen, where he was installed as editor of the Goshen Times. In 1858 he was again elected Au- ditor of Elkhart county and re-elected in 1862. By Governor Morton he was ap- pointed a member of the Peace Commis- sion that was to avert war between the North and South. He served as Draft Commissioner and assisted in organizing troops for the Union army. Dr. Ellis was married three times and had an interest- ing family of children. He died at his home in Goshen October 10, 1876; was at the time serving as postmaster of that in- viting little city.

JUDGES OF THE SUPREME COURT.

Under the Constitution of 1816 the Judges of the Supreme Court were ap- pointed by the Governor, such appoint- ment being subject to the approval of the Senate. The appointments for the first bench were made by Governor Jennings, whose choice fell upon James Scott, John Johnson and Jesse L. Holman. The fol- lowing year he named as Johnson's suc- cessor Isaac Blackford, who served con- tinuously from 1817 to 1853-thirty-six years in all. This is without a parallel in the history of the State. His record dur- ing all these eventful years entitled him fully to every word said in commendation of his great work by a writer who knew him well, William Wesley Woollen :

ISAAC BLACKFORD.

Thirty-Six Years On the Supreme Bench.

"Isaac Blackford, for thirty-five years a judge of the Supreme Court of Indiana, was born at Bound Brook, Somerset county, N. J., November 6, 1786. When sixteen years old he entered Princeton College, from which, four years after-

ward, he graduated with honor. He then commenced the study of the law in the office of Colonel George McDonald, where he remained a year, and then entered the office of Gabriel Ford, where he continued his legal studies. In 1810 he received his license, and two years afterward left New Jersey and came to Dayton, Ohio. He re- mained there but a short time, and then came to Indiana. He stopped at Brook- ville a while, and then went to Salem and located. On the organization of Washing- ton county, in 1813, he was chosen its first Clerk and Recorder. The next year Mr. Blackford was elected Clerk of the Territorial Legislature, which office he re- signed on being appointed Judge of the First Judicial Circuit. He then removed to Vincennes, and in the fall of 1815 re- signed the judgeship and opened a law office. The next year, 1816, he was elected a representative from the county of Knox to the first Legislature under the State government. There were many men in that body who afterward became distin- guished in the history of Indiana, among them James Noble, Amos Lane, John Dumont, Williamson Dunn, Davis Floyd, Samuel Milroy and Ratliff Boon; but even at that early day Judge Blackford's repu- tation for judicial fairness was so well es- tablished that he was chosen Speaker without a contest. The next year Gov- ernor Jennings appointed him a judge of the Supreme Court, a position he graced and honored for the next thirty-five years.

"In 1853, his term as Supreme Judge having expired, he opened an office at In- dianapolis for the practice of law. He had been so long on the bench that he was ill at ease when he went into court with a case. His effort to get into prac- tice was not successful, and in a short time he measurably abandoned it.

"Judge Blackford was not at home at the bar, and he longed to be again upon the bench. The opportunity soon came. In 1855, on the organization of the Court of Claims at Washington, President Pierce appointed him one of its judges. He held this office until his death, December 31, 1859. He discharged its duties in a way that added luster to a name already illus- trious, and died the best known and most eminent jurist Indiana has ever produced. "When Judge Blackford's death became known at Washington a meeting of the

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HISTORY INDIANA DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

Indiana Congressional delegation was held to take action upon it. Albert G. Porter, then the representative from the Indian- apolis district, in a speech delivered on that occasion, said :

It is hardly possible, sir, for persons who reside in an old community to appreciate the extent to which, in a new country, the character of a public man may be impressed upon the public mind. There is not a community in Indiana, not a single one, in which the name of Judge Blackford is not a household word. He has been identified with our State from the beginning. He may almost be said to be a part of our institutions. Judicial ability, judicial purity, approaching nearly to the idea of the divine, private worth, singularly blend- ing the simplicity of childhood with the sober gravity of age these were represented, not simply in the mind of the profession, but in the universal popular mind of Indiana, in the person of Isaac Blackford.

"At the same meeting General William McKee Dunn, then the representative from the Madison district, said:

For more than a quarter of a century Judge Blackford occupied a seat on the Supreme Bench of our State. He has done more than any other man to build up our jurisprudence on the broad foundation of the common law. His reports are not only an honor to him, but to the State of Indiana also. It has been well said here that he was an "upright judge," and not only was he so in fact, but so careful was he of his judicial char- acter, and so regardful of all the proprieties of his position that he was universally recognized and esteemed as "an upright judge."

Indiana is proud of her great jurist, but to- day she mourns the loss of one of her most eminent citizens, and now by her united delega- tion in Congress claims that all that is mortal of Isaac Blackford may be entrusted to her care and have sepulture in her bosom. Let his body be borne back to the State with whose judicial history his name is inseparably connected, and there at its capital let him be buried, where those from all parts of the State who have so long known, revered and loved him may visit his tomb and pay affectionate tribute to his memory.

"On Thursday, January 13, 1860, while the Democratic State convention was in session, Governor Willard announced to the convention that the remains of Judge Blackford had reached Indianapolis and were then lying in the Senate Chamber. He also said that the Judge's funeral would take place that afternoon, and in- vited the delegates to view the remains and attend the funeral.

"In 1825 Judge Blackford was a candi- date for Governor of Indiana, but was de- feated by James Brown Ray by a majority of 2,622 votes. Subsequently he was a

candidate for United States Senator, and was beaten by William Hendricks by a single vote.

"Judge Blackford was very careful in his expenditure of money. He seldom parted with it without an equivalent.

"Judge Blackford had an only son, George, whose mother died in giving him birth. The father was wrapped up in his boy. He was not only an only child, but he was the only hope of perpetuating the Blackford name. This boy, this child and companion of the cloisteral jurist, sickened and died while at Lexington, Ky., under medical treatment of Dr. Dudley. His father went to Lexington, and after see- ing his boy laid away in his tomb, returned to his home. It was in the summertime, and he reached Indianapolis in the middle of the night. Instead of going to his room in the Circle, he went to the residence of Henry P. Coburn, and, without knocking, opened the door and entered the house, a house in which he was ever welcome. Soon afterward one of Mr. Coburn's sons was awakened by the stifled sobs of the mourner. He arose from his bed and, lighting a candle, beheld Judge Blackford, walking the floor and sobbing as though his heart would break. Not a word was said. The young man knew the cause of the great grief of his father's friend, and having no wish to intrude upon its sanc- tity, left the room. Judge Blackford re- mained at Mr. Coburn's for several days, and during the time held no conversation with anyone. He took his meals in silence, and when they were over returned to his room. When narrating this incident, Gen- eral John Coburn said to the author: ‘I have seen grief in all its forms; have seen the mother mourning for her son; have seen the wife at the grave of her husband, and heard her sobs, but I never saw such appalling agony as Judge Blackford ex- hibited that night at my father's house.'

"Judge Blackford had a room in the old building which used to stand in the Gov- ernor's Circle, in which he lived for many years. It was plainly furnished, but it contained everything necessary for his comfort.

"One who knew him well says he paid as much attention to a comma as to a thought. He has been known to stop the press to correct the most trivial error, one that few would notice. The late Samuel

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HISTORY INDIANA DEMOCRACY-1816-1916

Judah, desiring to have a decision delayed, once asked him the correct spelling of a word he knew would be in the opinion. The Judge answered, giving the usual orthography. Mr. Judah took issue with him and argued that the spelling was not correct. The Judge at once commenced an examination of the word, dug out its roots and carefully weighed all the au- thorities he could find. He spent two days at this work, and before he got through the court had adjourned and the case went over to the next term.

"In politics Judge Blackford was orig- inally a Whig, but in 1836 he supported Van Buren for the Presidency, and after- ward acted with the Democracy. He hated slavery, and during his whole life his in- fluence was against it. Although the ordinance ceding the Northwestern Ter- ritory to the United States provided that slavery should never exist in the Territory or the States formed from it, it was covertly introduced into the Territory. Laws were passed authorizing the bring- ing of negroes into the Territory and pro- viding for apprenticing males until they were thirty-five years old and females until they were thirty-two. Children of colored persons born in the Territory might be apprenticed until the males were thirty and the females twenty-eight years old. It was also provided that slaves found ten miles from home without per- mission of their masters might be taken up and whipped with twenty-five lashes. Congress was petitioned to suspend the sixth article of the ordinance of 1787, pro- hibiting slavery in the Territory, but hap- pily without effect. General Harrison was Governor of the Territory, and approved of all these measures. He had about him, and enjoying his confidence, Waller Tay- lor, Thomas Randolph, and other immi- grants from Virginia, who were pro- slavery men of the most decided cast. Judge Blackford hated slavery in all its forms and early allied himself with the free State party led by Jonathan Jennings. He held General Harrison responsible for the effort to make Indiana a slave Terri- tory, and when the General became a can- didate for President, in 1836, Judge Black- ford refused to support him. His action in this matter put him outside the Whig party and into the Democratic-a position he maintained while he lived.

"His legal opinions were prepared with the greatest care and precision. They were written and rewritten until they were brought to his critical standard. So, too, with his reports of the decisions of the Supreme Court, eight volumes of which he published. Each syllabus was wrought out as a sculptor chisels his marble. He did not report all the decisions of the court; many were omitted. Those only were published which he regarded as sound and just on the general principles of the law. The result of this was his reports are authority wherever the courts recog- nize the common law as their rule of action. Since they were published a law has been passed compelling a report of all the opin- ions of the court. There have been so many contradictory opinions given since then that the authority of our highest court is not, relatively, as high as it was when its decisions were only known through Blackford's Reports. Judge Black- ford's reports were short and sententious, his style being clear and faultless. He did not write essays or treatises in his opin- ions, but treated of the essence of the case, and of nothing more.

"Without favor, fear or affection he held up the scales of justice before the world. His spotless rectitude and unswerving jus- tice made his name a household word in Indiana, a State whose judicature he found in swaddling clothes and left clad in beau- tiful raiment."

THE OTHER JUDGES.

Judges Scott and Holman were by Gov- ernor Ray denied reappointment in 1830 on account of their refusal to aid that am- bitious public functionary in his effort to secure a seat in the United States Senate. Stephen C. Stephens, a pronounced Aboli- tionist, and John T. Mckinney; a Whig, were named as successors. Both encoun- tered considerable opposition to their con- firmation, but the Governor finally won out. Dewey and Sullivan were generally considered strong jurists. Governor Whitcomb named Judges Perkins and Smith, both of whom adorned the bench.

So far as Judge Holman was concerned his retirement from the Supreme Bench of the State did not prove a detriment. Three

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or four years afterward (in 1835) Presi- dent Jackson appointed him as Judge of the United States Circuit Court for In- diana. He was the second judge of the court and served until his death, on March 28, 1842. Judge Holman was a native of Danville, Ky., being born in that city Oc- tober 24, 1784. He received a common school education in Kentucky and then studied law under Henry Clay at Lexing- ton. At the age of twenty-six he moved to Indiana and settled for life on a farm near Aurora. He was one of the very first men in the State to bring his slaves (inherited by his wife) across the Ohio river and emancipate them. In 1811 he was Prose-

cuting Attorney, and in 1814 became a member of the Territorial Legislature. In 1831 he was an unsuccessful candidate for United States Senator, being defeated by John Tipton by one vote. He is described as a particularly careful, laborious, exact judge. It is said that a more conscientious man never lived. He had no enemies and he yet never shirked a duty. Judge Hol- man loved nature and books and was a preacher of the gospel. In denominational affiliation he was a Baptist. He was the father of William S. Holman, for many years the ever-faithful and vigilant watch- dog of the nation's treasury.

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[CHAPTER XVI.]

EXPANSION OF UNCLE SAM'S DOMAIN

FRUIT OF DEMOCRATIC FORTITUDE, FORESIGHT AND WISDOM

T AKING a retrospective view, importance-commercially, economically measuring discerningly and or geographically-as the causes of most any war in that same time. dispassionately the achieve- ments of American statesman- ship during the first half cen- tury of the Republic's exist- ence, there is presented to the appreciative eye this inspiring picture of the

GROWTH OF THE UNITED STATES.

Territory

Year

Sq. Miles

Price

Louisiana

1803

875,025

$15,000,000

Florida

1819

70,107

5,499,768

Texas

1845

389,795

Oregon

1846

288,689

Mexican cession

1848

523,802

18,250,000

Gadsden purchase

1854

36,211

10,000,000

*Annexed by treaty.

In striking contrast to Europe's history of territorial aggrandizement is the record of the growth of the United States. Not a piece of land has been added to our do- main unless compensation in some kind was made.

But not only in its acquisition of terri- tory has the United States proved its high national morality to the congress of na- tions. In every international affair in which we have participated we have shown a regard for weaker nations, and a disregard for the opinions of strong ones.

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History of the Indiana democracy, 1816-1916, Part 16

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926 Publication date: 1917 Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1104

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1104