USA > Missouri > Greene County > Past and present of Greene County Missouri, early and recent history and genealogical records of many of the representative citizens, Volume I > Part 48
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and was commissioned its colonel. Six months later he was in command of the Second Brigade of the Army of the Frontier and at the close of the war was in command of the Second Brigade of the Seventh Army Corps. He fought at the battles of Prairie Grove, Clarendon, Brownsville, Little Rock, Bayou Metre and Prairie Long. His record as a soldier is one of honor, patriotism and bravery. He was truly one of nature's noblemen.
On the demise of Judge Geiger, James R. Vaughan was appointed by the governor to fill out his unexpired term. Judge Vaughan was born at Murfreesboro, Tennessee, January 6, 1845, and came in early life to Mis- souri. He enlisted as a private in Company C, Sixth Missouri Cavalry and was mustered out as sergeant-major. He graduated from the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, in 1868, and practiced his profession at Ozark until 1877, when he came to Springfield and associated himself with S. H. Boyd. As a lawyer he was studious and painstaking. He never took a step in a case without knowing where he was going. His legal ability was recognized by his professional brothers, and at the time of his death he was enjoying a lucrative practice. What little time he served on the bench was sufficient for the conviction that he possessed the qualities necessary to a prudent and upright judge.
Judge W. D. Hubbard was elected to succeed him. Judge Hubbard was born in Madison county, Kentucky, October 3, 1840 and came with his parents to Missouri in 1845. His education was acquired in the common schools of Clinton and Clay counties and at that time the common school system of Missouri was at a low ebb of efficiency. He was in the true sense of the word a self-made man and he produced a work of which the maker had no cause to be ashamed. He was little short of being a genius in mathe- matics. A problem which would require an hour or more in its solution by an ordinary person he would solve in his mind on the instant. He delighted in a game of checkers and every one who deemed himself an expert at the game sought a play with him, but each one retired a victim to his prowess. He was a penman of no small pretentions and was never happier than when manipulating a goose-quill pen, especially were it one he had made himself. He wrote all his record as justice of the peace with this sort of a pen and many papers among the court files will be at sight identified as his by the writing of the goose-quill pen. He was a brave soldier in the Union army. He enlisted as a private and was given his discharge as brevet lieutenant- colonel. He located in Springfield in 1866. and was admitted to the bar in 1870. He was a member of the city council in 1869 and 1870, afterwards justice of the peace, then prosecuting attorney, and later circuit judge. If Judge Hubbard ever on the bench made a wrongful ruling, it came from mis- conception of the mind, for his heart was always in the right place. He
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was a man of the very highest ideals, and if every one would walk as he desired how many so more would be traveling the straight and narrow path that leadeth to eternal life. He was sometimes irritable on the bench, but those who know the heavy domestic burden that verily crushed his spirit to the earth can forgive him for this. He fined more lawyers for contempt of court than all the other judges of our circuit court put together. He re- mitted nearly all the fines he imposed on attorneys practicing before him, for it was foreign to his nature that they should suffer hardships grievous to be borne by them.
JUDGE HUBBARD'S SUCCESSOR.
J. T. Neville was elected to succeed Judge Hubbard in 1892, and served for eighteen years, the longest time any judge ever held this bench, and he might still be circuit judge but for adventitious circumstances. Misplaced confidences often divert the stream of fortune that is running in one's favor. As judge he knew neither friend nor foe, either in the parties to the suit or the attorneys representing them. It was never said of him that he was in- fluenced by any lawyer. He looked at the case and the case alone before him, and was as blind as a bat to the litigants and to their attorneys. His only object was to find the justice of the case and in doing this he hewed to the line regardless of where the chips fell. Metaphorical justice, blind- folded, never had in any tribunal a truer exemplar than J. T. Neville. He was born in Miller county, Missouri, October 30, 1860, and educated in the common schools and Marionville College. He graduated from the law de- partment of the University of St. Louis, March 30, 1885, and from Wash- ington University, April 10, 1902. He commenced the practice of his pro- fession at Bolivar, April 5, 1885 and was prosecuting attorney of Polk county in 1887 and 1888. He came to Springfield in 1889, where he has since lived. After his retirement from the bench he formed a partnership with O. E. Gorman.
Guy D. Kirby followed Judge Neville to the bench as the result of the election in 1910 and is the present judge. He was born in Springfield, March 3, 1873, was educated in the public schools and Drury College, studied law in the office of O'Day and Travers, was admitted to practice in 1896 and followed his profession till his election to the judgeship. In all his pro- fessional dealings and intercourse with his fellowmen he is the very soul of honor. As a judge he stands above suspicion or reproach, and guides his every act by the dictates of an uncorrupted conscience. He is untiring in his efforts to discern the true merits of every case before him and when he determines a question after research and consideration his conclusion is almost invariably correct, how difficult soever the question may have been of solution.
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CRIMINAL COURT ESTABLISHED.
In 1889, the Legislature established the Criminal Court of Greene county. Mordecai Oliver was instrumental in getting the bill establishing the court passed. In fact he was the author of the bill and was appointed by Governor Francis, the first judge of the court, and he performed its func- tions with marked ability and unquestioned knowledge of the criminal law. At the bar few were his peers as an advocate and none his superior. Before his appointment to the judgeship he had represented Missouri in the national Congress where he was conspicuous for his ability and acquired a reputation nation wide. He was always more than liberal to the defendant in his in- structions to the jury, and the felon who was convicted and appealed had nothing he could rightfully complain of as error committed against him by Judge Oliver. After he retired from the bench he enjoyed until his death that ease and quiet which belong to all who are nearing the end of a well spent life.
In 1892, James J. Gideon was elected to take the place of Judge Oliver. He was essentially to the manor born, and grew to manhood a rugged, un- tamed scion of the "wild and woolly West." He is over six feet tall, rather slender and as wiry as a cat. They call him "Sleepy Jim." This nick- name is said to have been attached to him because on the Shelby and Coffee raids he went to sleep on his horse, fell off and so soundly did he sleep that the Confederate forces passed him by, supposing him to be dead, lying on the ground. He usually looks sleepy but any one who ever opposed him in the trial of a law suit or on the hustings found him very wide-awake. He is an exhaustive thinker and feels deeply. The whole force and intensity of his being is thrown into his argument before a court or jury. To the writer he is possessed of many of the characteristics which formed the foundation of Abraham Lincoln's greatness and resembles him more in mental build than any man who ever practiced at the Springfield bar. As judge he was cautious, ever desiring not to infringe upon the defendant's rights nor to impede a full presentation of the case by the prosecution. He was born in Christian county, Missouri, December 1I, 1846, and educated in the com- mon schools. Before he located in Springfield, he had been public ad- ministrator of Christian county, had been prosecuting attorney four terms, representative in the Legislature one term, and one term member of the state Senate. He was elected prosecuting attorney of Greene county in 1888 and served one term. During the war he wore the blue with credit to himself and honor to his country. He fought in many important engagements, a brave and faithful soldier. Since he retired from the bench he has pursued his calling in Springfield where his legal ability is recognized by all who meet him at the forum.
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He was succeeded by C. B. Me. Afee who was elected in 1896 and held the position for four years when Gideon again held the office one term more. Judge Me. Afee brought a whirlwind to the fee buyers in Greene county. Ile carefully scrutinized every fee bill made by the clerk of the court, struck out item after item, which by the statutes should not have been there and brought consternation to those attempting to graft the state and county in charging for services for the payment of which the law made no provision. In this way he saved thousands upon thousands of dollars to the public funds. In the trial of every case before him he looked neither to the right nor to the left but traveled in the middle of the road. His knowledge of the law, which is extensive, he dug out by his own untiring and unaided efforts. He began the study of it at the age of sixteen and at spare moments when he was work- ing at his trade, that of a carpenter, he would store away in his retentive memory the expositions of Blackstone, Kent and Greenleaf, and was ad- mitted to the bar before he was twenty-one years of age. He instructed his grand juries in writing, an ancient way of doing, which has not been im- proved by the modern way of giving oral instructions.
Judge Mc. Afee was born in Fayette county, Kentucky, March 28, 1829, and was brought to Missouri when three months old. In 1865 he came to Springfield and associated himself with John S. Phelps in the practice of the law. In 1868 he was an unwilling candidate for Congress as a Democrat, and was defeated by S. H. Boyd. He was again, against his protestations, nominated for the same office in 1872, and was defeated by H. E. Havens. In each instance he was largely ahead of the local tickets of his party. In 1875. while he was in Jefferson City he was nominated as a delegate to the convention which framed our present constitution and was elected. At the bar he enjoyed a large and paying practice. In his speeches he was not ornate but powerful. His presentation of a point might be likened unto a strong man driving a spike with a sledge hammer. On the bench he was the admiration of the bar by his fairness, firmness and fearlessness. As a sol- dier he enlisted as a private and three days later was elected captain of Com- pany E, Third Missouri State Militia, and was afterwards assigned to Sixth Missouri Cavalry and acted as its major till the close of the war and on May 13, 1865, was commissioned lieutenant-colonel of the Thirteenth Veteran Cavalry. Judge McAfee thinks as every other sensible person should think, that the Bible is the greatest law book ever published. He has read it through repeatedly and knows the gospel as written by St. John by heart.
Judge McAfee was followed one term by Azariah W. Lincoln, who began the practice of law in Springfield in July, 1884. Before he was elected judge of the criminal court he had held the position of probate judge of Greene county for two terms. He was born in Iowa county, Illinois, Septem- ber 25, 1851, and was graduated from the Ohio Wesleyan University in
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1875 with the Bachelor of Arts degree and was admitted to the bar in 1881. He is rather polished in his writings and speeches and is an entertaining and instructive speaker. His personality was always in evidence on the bench, and whatever he did he always carried with him the conviction that his action was right. When he left the bench he resumed his practice which he has since continued and is now associated with his son, Harold, who is displaying much aptitude for the profession he has chosen. Should he rise to higher heights than those attained by his father, let the father not complain but console himself with the reflection that it is poor stock that does not improve by reproduction.
He was followed by Judge Alfred Page who held the position till the Legislature incorporated the criminal court of Greene county into the cir- cuit court and designated it as division number two, when he continued his judgeship over that division till he was succeeded by the present incumbent.
Judge Page was born in Tipton county, Tennessee, and came from there with his father's family to Missouri, in 1885. He graduated from Drury College with the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1887, was admitted to the bar at Springfield and was elected judge in 1908. His whole course on the bench indicated a man who fully felt the responsibilities of his position and one who was determined to discharge them as an honest conscience directed him in the way. He is peculiarly adapted in distinguishing the true and the false and while sitting as judge could unhesitatingly and almost unerringly determine whether a witness was telling the unvarnished truth or shading his statement in favor of the party who called him to the stand. No judicial act of his is open to adverse criticism. Before him Eugene Tucker was convicted of murder in the first degree and he imposed the death sentence upon him. His is the distinction of being the judge who held the first session of court in Greene county's new court house.
Arch A. Johnson is the second and the present judge of division num- ber two of the circuit court. He was born in Mclain county, Kentucky, June 9, 1869, educated mainly under private tutorage, studied law in the office of B. U. Massey and was admitted to practice by the Circuit Court at Springfield in 1891 and at once engaged in the practice. He was city attorney of Springfield from 1898 to 1902 and was elected to his present position in 1912. In his capacity of judge he has fully met the expectation of his friends. He has striven to overcome and to some extent has succeeded in overcoming the slip-shod way of transacting the business of the court, which of late years seems to have become a part of the regular procedure. He is strong and immovable in his convictions and is determined so far as he can to suppress in Springfield and drive out from it "the pestilence that walketh in darkness" and "the destruction that wasteth at noonday." In this strenu- ous effort he has the full hearted support of Springfield's best citizenship.
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If he shall succeed, we and all those coming after us will accord to him that chaplet of imperishable fame, the rightful possession of one who has ac- complished a great reformation. May he succeed. Judge Johnson is learned in the law ; he has a correct appreciation of the duties of a judge ; he is per- forming luis official functions in a way that meets the approbation of the bar ; and his highest aim is to see that in his court, justice is impartially admin- istered. He has been grand master of the grand lodge of Masons of Mis- souri and by the members of that fraternity as well as by his brother lawyers he is held in high estimation.
THREE SUPREME COURT JUDGES.
The bar of Springfield has had from its membership three judges of the supreme court. The first of these was James Baker, who was appointed to the position by Governor Fletcher in 1868. It cannot be said that he added any luster to the bench, for while he had a judicial mind yet it was adapted more to forensic practice than the calm determination of legal questions. He wrote but two decisions while he was judge. As a practitioner he was energetic, earnest and logical, though at times visionary in argument, and was fairly safe in counsel. For years he was in partnership here with John P. Ellis, one of the brightest intellects that ever shone at the Springfield bar. Judge Baker was born April 1, 1819, in Mason county, Kentucky. In 1843 he went to Ottumway, Iowa, where he practiced ten years and in 1853 he was appointed by President Pierce register of the land office at Chariton, Iowa, and held the position till 1861, when he recruited the Thirteenth Iowa Infantry and was commisisoned its lieutenant-colonel. He engaged in the battles of Shiloh, Iuka and Corinth, came to Springfield in 1864 and associ- ated with Capt. A. M. Julian, who was a unique character. He began his study of law in a carding machine which belonged to himself and there his study ended, but the captain received his license, practiced his profession for many years in Springfield, made money at it, was a whole-souled, genial gentleman and never wronged a fellow man out of so much as even a penny. The firm of Baker and Ellis was for a number of years one of the leading law firms of Springfield. It terminated by the removal of Mr. Ellis to St. Louis, where he was afterwards followed by Judge Baker. During his event- ful career Judge Baker was general attorney for the Atlantic and Pacific railroad and for the Missouri Pacific and was general attorney and vice- president of the Frisco system.
The next member of the Springfield bar to be honored with a judgeship on the supreme court bench is Thomas Adiel Sherwood, who was a native of Georgia, having been born there June 2, 1833. He graduated from the Cincinnati law school in 1857 and was admitted to practice the same year.
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In 1858 he practiced at Neosho and came to Springfield in December, 1863, where he associated himself with Henry C. Young, who was in truth and in fact the Chesterfield of the Springfield bar, and continued in this associa- tion till he was elected judge of the Supreme Court in 1872, which position he held for thirty years. At the bar Mr. Sherwood stood as a lawyer of the highest class. He was studious, energetic, painstaking and worked in- cessantly. He was by no means an orator like Brutus was but was clear in his statement of a legal proposition and logical in going with it to the end. On the supreme bench he acquired a reputation which will ever rank him with the greatest jurists of the state. His opinions are written in faultless English and no lawyer can read one of them without knowing just what he decides and why he decides it. And while perusing his opinions the con- viction steals over the reader that even though he may not have been a master of them yet he had delved in the fathoms of the classics. He is now living in California enjoying in the sunset of a useful life that ease and comfort which is the rightful heritage of one who has done all things well.
James Thomas Blair is the third member of the Springfield bar to be- come a judge of the supreme court. To this position he was elected in 1914. He practiced law in Springfield from 1903 to 1908, being a member of the firm of Wright Brothers and Blair. He is a native of Tennessee where he was born November 11, 1871. He received his schooling in the public schools of DeKalb county and Cumberland University and was admitted to the bar March 8, 1895. Prior to his election to the judgeship he served on the supreme court commission where his opinions display the fruit of well trained mind and give evidence that the faith his friends have in him that he will carve for himself an enduring name is not by any means misplaced.
A GREAT LAWYER AND JURIST.
The bar of Springfield has also given two of its members to the courts of appeals, the first one, Richard Livingston Goode, who was elected judge of the St. Louis court of appeals in 1900, which position he held for nearly ten years when he resigned and became counsel for the Mercantile Trust Company and the Mercantile National Bank in St. Louis, in whose service he remained until January 15, 1915, when he resigned, and he will enter upon the discharge of his duties as dean of the Law School of Washington Uni- versity, July 1, 1915, having already been selected for that position. Dur- ing a space of four years while he was judge of the court of appeals he delivered a series of lectures on Equity Jurisprudence in said law school and the wide scope of his lectures and his thorough knowledge of his subject were inducing factors in his promotion to the office of dean. He was born in Campbellsburg, Kentucky, February 4, 1855, where he lived until he came,
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1
at the age of thirteen years, with his parents to Missouri. His youth was spent at Verona, Missouri, where he went to the public schools and where, in the neighborhood, he taught school. In February, 1875, he entered Drury College from which he graduated as valedictorian in 1876 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts and later on received the degrees of Master of Arts and Doctor of Laws. Immediately after graduation he assumed the prin- cipalship of the Springfield high school which position he filled for two years and was then superintendent of the public schools of the city one year. While teaching he studied law with Bray and Cravens and was admitted to practice in June, 1879. He formed a partnership with J. C. Cravens soon after his admission to the bar, Mr. Bray having died and the firm of Goode and Cravens was soon recognized as one of the leading law firmns in south- west Missouri. Mr. Goode is the most thorough and accomplished lawyer the bar of Springfield has yet had. From the very hour of his admission he went rapidly forward step by step and but few years came and went until he stood the acknowledged head of his profession. Of him it will not be gainsaid that he moved among his brother lawyers without a peer. He is an attractive speaker, not because of great oratorical power, for he does not possess this, but because of the clearness of thought and intellectual ability he displays. His decisions are expositions of well digested law clothed in classic language. He is an omniverous reader and but few books of history, poetry, fiction and philosophy have escaped his insatiable appetite for general learning.
John S. Farrington is the second member of the Springfield bar to occupy a seat on the bench of the court of appeals. He was born in Howard county, Missouri, February 16, 1875, and graduated from Washington Uni- versity in 1897 in which year he came to Springfield and started the practice of law, solitary and alone. The succeeding year he formed a partnership with G. M. Sebree and continued with him for ten years, when he formed another partnership with S. M. Wear, with whom he remained till he was elected judge in 1912, and was fortunate enough in casting lots with the other two judges elected at the same time to draw the long term of service, which is twelve years. In his practice he was successful, displaying the qualities of thoroughfares, energy and researchfulness. He is possessed of a fine sense of humor. He is making on the bench a record that will not be disappointing to his host of friends who rejoice in his elevation. His penetrating thought and logical mind are bearing fruit in well considered opinions. He is thoroughly democratic in all his instincts and habits. He would be more highly pleased taking a meal with a dweller in a cabin among the hills, and spending a night on his pallet of straw than he would be feast- ing sumptuously on viands spread on the table of luxury and reposing on the downy couch of wealth; and he feels himself more at ease in the companion-
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ship of the common people than when moving among those who deem them- selves of a higher and better breed.
When the court of appeals was established at Springfield three judges. not resident members of the bar here were appointed to the bench. At the election in 1910, of the three elected two were not resident lawyers of Spring- field. One of them, Judge Sturgis, has taken his residence here since and of the first three appointed to the judgeships, Judges Cox and Nixon became residents. Judge Gray, one of the judges appointed, and Judge Robertson, one of the judges elected, were never members of the Springfield bar and so are not within the scope of this article. Since their retirement from the bench Judges Cox and Nixon have been practicing in Springfield. On the bench the opinions delivered by them hold their own in literary finish and sound exposition of the law with those delivered by any judges holding similar positions in the state. Judge Sturgis, the other resident member of the bench, was born in Smithville, Ohio, October 22, 1861 and was brought by his parents to Missouri in 1865. He graduated from Drury College in 1886 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts and afterwards his alma mater con- ferred on him the Master of Arts degree. He was admitted to the bar in 1887 and practiced law at Neosho till he was elected to his present position. He is a warm hearted man and ties his friends to him with hooks of steel. He is a companionable gentleman and Nature has so formed him that he will be taken as a distinguished personage in any crowd. He has been an in- cessant worker his whole life long and his success is attributable to his untiring energy. His opinions tell of work and they read as the produc- tions of a well trained mind.
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