Bi-centennial history of Albany. History of the county of Albany, N. Y., from 1609 to 1886. With portraits, biographies and illustrations, Part 43

Author: Howell, George Rogers, 1833-1899; Tenney, Jonathan, 1817-1888
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: New York, W. W. Munsell & Co.
Number of Pages: 1452

USA > New York > Albany County > Albany > Bi-centennial history of Albany. History of the county of Albany, N. Y., from 1609 to 1886. With portraits, biographies and illustrations > Part 43

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Among his Senatorial addresses which have passed into history are those touching the New Capitol ; on the question of Convict Labor ; on the Grand Army bill ; on the question of historical societies holding real estate for preservation and monumental purposes ; on Higher Education ; on Sectarian Appropriations, and on Taxation. He closed his Senatorial career under the following high tribute from the Morning Express . "Mr. Harris is a natural leader ; he unites discretion with bold- ness. His zeal is regulated by mature reflection. His knowledge of men is intuitive, and his intui- tions have been sharpened by wide intercourse. He is a close thinker, a cultured scholar, a thor- ongh lawyer, a skillful organizer and ready debater, and he has a wide knowledge of, and devotion to, the interests of the State."

We shall close our sketch with some remarks touching his literary acquirements and labors, and as we conceive him to be in private life.

Mr. Harris is one of those who believe that to complete a lawyer's education, to enable him to take an elevated position in it, much more is needed than mere knowledge of law ; but that he should

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honor and cultivate, as unspeakably useful, that lit- erature which corresponds to and calls forth the highest faculties, which expresses and communi- cates energy of thought, fruitfulness of invention, force of moral purpose, a thirst for the true and a delight in the beautiful.

Mr. Harris has exhibited his literary taste and culture, and abilities as a writer, on the lecture platform, and as a speaker in the popular assem- bly. He possesses the rare faculty of putting his readers or his audience in full possession of his thoughts, and in keeping the communication be- tween himself and them always open ; always avoiding those affected grasps after originality on the the one hand, and that sickly prettiness of style on the other, so much sought after by common- place lecturers and writers.

Several of his addresses have been published. We cannot avoid, in this connection, some refer- ence to an admirable lecture delivered by him on the subject, "Politics and Literature," before the Young Men's Association of Albany. To use his own language : "Politics and Literature was the theme of the speaker long years ago, when he bade 'good-by' to college halls and boyish fancies, and stepped upon the stage of active duties to play his humble part in the great drama of life."

Mr. Harris took up his subject from the stand- point of long experience, as he says, in the strug- gles of the world ; and thus it was full of most val- uable thoughts and suggestions. The Albany Ar- gus, in speaking of it, says : "Mr. Harris was able to give to the literary discussion of politics in the abstract the fruits of an experience in the concrete which few men can claim-an experience which has covered a long period of time, notable associations, occasional vicissitudes and refreshing successes. '

He denied that public men and politicians are absolved, in any degree, from the obligations of strict honor and morality. He insisted that politi- cal power is not a prize which justifies mean acts and compliance with usages that would be scorned in private life ; that platitudes, intrigues, hollow pretensions and appeals to base passions deserve signal rebuke when employed to compass political ends.

"The man," said the lecturer, " who devotes himself to politics as a business, for the purpose of securing position for support, is worthy of little consideration, and gathers the least satisfaction that can be derived from any of the em- ployments ot men. His existence is a miserable one of ser- vility and solicitation, delays and disappointments, to end generally in poverty and obscurity. He who would best serve the state and win a name and secure public confidence should possess lofty principles, a keen faculty of vision to discover the wants and interests of society, an accurate ac- quaintance with current events, opinions and social tenden- cies, a deep penetration into the motives of human action, and a clear determination of the results of measures and movements."

The manner in which Mr. Harris illustrated the advantage of combining literary attainments with political acumen was very forcible and happy. He gave many instances from history, where the treas- ures of literature increased the usefulness and strength of political labor.

" The low ambitions of life," he said, "and the grosser pleasures of sense, are characteristic of the illiterate. Liter- ature is the source of refinement and enlightenment ; it im- parts wisdom, elevates thought and adorns character."

The numerous favorable comments of the press upon this address evince at once its ability and its effect upon the public mind.

An address delivered by Mr. Harris before the Young Men's Association of Albany, on "The Tower of London," was a production that created great interest on its delivery, and was eagerly read after its appearance in the public journals. It is remarkable for its historic research, and for the pleasing diction with which he so vividly described that grand old fortress of the past, around which so many historical incidents cluster, and where so many precious relics' of the grandeur, power, and, we may say, weakness of England are gathered. This structure has often been described by tourists, but few, if any, have described it in the manner and in the light of history, which Mr. Harris did in his address.

"Its story " he said, "is interwoven with the annals of Great Britain. The historic memories of eight centuries cluster around it. The history ot many of the bravest as well as the darkest deeds of the Empire is written in its walls. With it is associated the glory of proud triumphs and gorgeous ceremonials, together with the pathetic and tragic vicissitudes and mutations of human fortune."

These deeds and the worthiest actors in them attracted the pen of the lecturer. His portraiture showed a wide range of reading and the appre- ciative and discriminating hand of a close student.

Another of his productions which was listened to and read with interest was his lecture before the Young Men's Working Society. The subject was " No Royal Road to Knowledge."

A Fourth of July oration, delivered by him in early life before the Young Men's Association of Albany, was quite out of the order of such pro- ductions in thought and originality.

We might take many interesting extracts from many other addresses and give extracts from many of Mr. Harris' literary productions, but space will not permit. It is proper to say, however, that some of his most pleasing productions are his memorial tributes to departed distinguished jurists and legis- lators. Perhaps nowhere in the language of eu- logy can there be found a more well-deserved and more touching and well-expressed tribute than that paid by Mr. Harris to the memory of John Morrissey in the Senate of this State.

The "Memorial Wreath," as he appropriately called his beautiful eulogy upon that great lawyer and beloved citizen, Lyman Tremain, commanded general admiration, in that, as in all other like pro- ductions, Mr. Harris did not become the extreme panegyrist. He drew his mental portrait with truth to the original, avoiding on the one hand inordi- nate praise, and on the other a stinted denial of true merit.

His tribute to James A. Garfield was a most adequate eulogy upon the Glorious Martyr. It was a touching and attractive portraiture of the martyred President drawn with a master hand, guided by an oppulent mind.

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The literary taste of Mr. Harris is exhibited in his elegant home, which abounds in books. The recondite productions of great and gifted writers of all ages are found in his large, valuable and carefully selected library. To use the language of another, "Mr. Harris has made the selection of books a specialty; he has brought together on his shelves all the principal works of eminent English and American statesmen, orators, poets, jurists and scholars from Lord Bacon to Edward Everett." He spends much of his time in his library; to him it is peopled with living minds, speaking to him of history, of philosophy, eloquence and all the riches of ancient and modern literature. Here voices come to him from the Athenian Arena; from the Roman Forum; from the English Parlia- ment; from the American Senate; from our own great scholars, writers and scientists; from the Bench and Bar of the world.

It is natural that a mind thus devoted to books and research should be a friend to the cause of education and the diffusion of knowledge by the establishment of schools and colleges. And we find that not only in private life, but in his legis- lative career, he has been the warm advocate of the cause of popular and higher education.

One of his ablest speeches in the Senate was in support of higher popular education. This speech, which was widely circulated through the State by the friends of popular education, was delivered January 29, 1879, in committee of the whole, hav- ing under consideration the Governor's Message.

That document recommended the abandonment of the system of aiding the public high schools, which had prevailed so many years in the State. The Governor in his Message took strong grounds against the State's aiding in giving higher educa- tion to the children of the poor, terming it legal- ized robbery to do so. Hon. Thomas C. E. Ec- clesine, Senator from the City of New York, strong- ly sustained the Governor in a speech delivered in the Senate. He insisted that higher education disqualified the poor for the duties and labors to which alone they are by nature adapted, and that injustice is done by trying to educate the children of the poor for callings which they can never fill.

This attack upon the education of the poor brought Senator Harris to his feet, and he repelled it in the admirable speech to which we have al- luded. The debate was long and ardent, continu- ing at intervals until the 5th of February, 1879, when Mr. Harris closed it. He reviewed the va- rious laws which had passed favoring popular edu- cation and the great advantages flowing to the people from these laws.

"The true theory," he said, "upon which the State educates its children is not simply for the benefit or advance- ment of the individual, but it is to enlarge his mind and elevate his character, so as to increase his efficiency and value as a citizen, and thus add power and influence to the community in which he lives, contributing thereby to the prosperity and elevation of the State. The time has ar- rived in the history of the world when a nation takes rank according to the intelligence and elevation of the people. The hope for the prosperity of free institutions especially rests upon popular education." Again Senator Harris said that "the doctrine that higher education disqualifies the

poor for their duties and labors is the old doctrine of caste and aristocracy, which debars the people of despotic coun- tries from rising above the condition in life in which they were born. It is the expression of the belief that all men are not equal. It is the utterance of a disbelief in the first principles upon which our government was founded. It is not the doctrine of America, which throws wide open the door of every school-house, that all children may receive the benefit of the best education, so that they may better their own condition in life, and thus better the condition of the State itself. If the views of the Governor should be adopted, the State would step back a half century instead of advancing, and the children of poor men would have to dismiss all desire and ambition to improve their condition, and be kept in the position in which they found themselves by the accident of birth. Many of our greatest men, men of eminence in public life and in the professions, have been taught in our free schools, and sprung from the lower con- ditions of life. Had the views of the Governor prevailed, many of the men who have molded the opinions of the country, framed its laws and upheld its institutions, would have been forced to pass their lives in following the same narrow path that their fathers trod and remain in the condi- tion in which they were born. I say, then, that the proposi- tion that a higher education than the rudimentary one of the common schools is not a benefit lo the poor man, that the children of the poor should only learn to labor and not to think, is monstrous, even though it comes from the Execu- tive Chamber."

Such was the champion which the cause of popular education found on the floor of the Senate in Hamilton Harris. We could cite many other instances where he strongly advocated our system of popular education, did space permit.

Thus he naturally became popular with the friends of education throughout the State. Early in the year 1885 two vacancies occurred in the Board of Regents of the University. When the Legislature convened that year his name was very soon brought forward as a candidate to fill one of the vacancies. The members of the Senate and Assembly, fully appreciating his accomplishments for this honorable position, and his services in the educational interests of the State, favored his ap- pointment. On the 10th of March, 1885, the Re- publican members of the Senate and Assembly convened to nominate Regents, and Mr. Harris, with Mr. Beach, of Schuyler County, was unani- mously elected.

This action, being ratified by the Legislature of our State in joint convention, was greeted with general approbation by the press and the voice of the public. Speaking of it, the Evening Journal said :

"The position of Regent of the University is the single honor within the power of the State to bestow upon its scholars, and the unanimous accord of the nomination for that position to the Hon. Hamilton Harris, of this city, and to Mr. Daniel Beach, of Schuyler County, was a fitting and especially appropriate tribute to the learning and ability of the two gentlemen chosen. To be chosen out of the many public-spirited scholars of the State would be a great com- pliment to confer upon any citizen. To be chosen unan- imously and without the consideration of any other name is a recognition that has seldom been awarded by the State to learning. The designation of Senator Harris, of Albany, for the position is one the propriety of which our citizens will gratefully recognize. Although Mr. Harris' reputation through the State rests chiefly on his political and profes- sional achievements, Albanians know him also as a man of research and attainments in the field of literature, and in those general studies which bring grace and symmetry to the mind. His interest in the educational affairs of the State and of the city has been often demonstrated,

AL. Learned

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and he will bring to the Board of Regents a practical knowledge of the requirements of our school system that cannot but be of advantage to the State."

Thus we have rapidly traced the early life of Mr. Harris, his entrance into his chosen profession, his successful career as a lawyer, writer and speaker, his career as a Legislator, and in other public places. His private life needs no mention here. He has been singularly fortunate in his domestic relations. In 1850 he married, in Buffalo, Lucy Moody Rogers, the eldest daughter of the late Na- thaniel Rogers, of that city, and has two children- Frederick Harris, who is now associated with him in the practice of law, and Lucy Hamilton Harris. He, with his refined and highly cultured family, occupies and adorns a distinguished position in the brilliant social circles of the Capital City.

He may be called a positive man. It has been said of him truthfully that "he throws himself heart and soul into whatever business he does and whatever cause he espouses." His opinions both of persons and things are decided and confident. In forming them he is entirely free from the errors which spring from undue examination or want of just appreciation. In other words, he weighs men very much as they are, regardless of adventitious circumstances. Long a prominent resident of Albany, he has exhibited, as we have seen, the character of a liberal and public-spirited citizen ; has identified himself with all prominent measures, tending not only to the advancement of the city, but of the State and country, and has fairly won for himself an honorable place in history.

WILLIAM L. LEARNED.

The judiciary is a department in our govern- ment of higher importance than all others. It was this department which gave force and vitality to the Constitution, which, till its formation, was almost inert in the exercise of its power. It is about the only department untainted from the cor- ruptions of politics. While politicians expend their zeal on transient interests which derive their chief importance from their brief connection with a party, it is the province of the Judge to apply those solemn and universal laws of rectitude on which the security, industry and prosperity of the individual and the State essentially depend.

That we should naturally reverence and honor our judicial officers ; that we should select them with care and sedulously weigh their qualifications for the office, their merits and demerits, in the balance, is natural, and when not found wanting, vouchsafe them the large honors which are their due.

In view of these reflections we enter upon the task of briefly tracing the life and career of the distinguished jurist and long-experienced Judge whose name stands at the head of our sketch-the Hon. William Law Learned. For many years he has been a delegated minister of justice and has received an uncommon evidence of the esteem in which he is held by the Bar and the public by his recent election for the second time to the office of

Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York.

The career of such a man is eminently worthy a place in history ; it is pleasant and profitable to give that history to the public, and we perform our grateful task as follows :

Judge William L. Learned is a native of New London, Conn., born there July 24, 1821. His father was Ebenezer Learned, who was twice mar- ried, his second wife being Lydia Coit, the mother of Judge Learned, he being the only child of the second marriage.

Both his parents descended from early New England settlers. His paternal ancestor, William Learned, was a native of England, who came to this country and became a resident of Charlestown, Mass. John Coit, his maternal ancestor, was a native of Wales, who left that country about 1638, and became a resident of Salem, Mass., for we find his name in the records of that town in that year.

His grandfathers, Amasa Learned and Joshua Coit, were representatives in Congress ; the first from 1801 to 1805, the latter from 1793 to 1798. They were both men of distinction and took con- spicuous parts in the public affairs of the State.

Judge Learned seems to have inherited his love of the legal profession, for his father was a dis- tinguished lawyer who for many years occupied a respectable position at the Bar, but who later in life became the cashier of one of the banks of the State of Connecticut.

Young Learned began his education at the Union School in New London, an institution of high repute, in which he prepared for college. Yale became his Alma Mater. He entered that time-honored institution in 1837, from whence he was graduated in 1841. His college course was characterized by diligence and conscientious de- votion to his studies. As a result, he stood high with the students and was a favorite with the faculty. His rank as a student is indicated by the fact that he was salutatorian of his class, and his popularity by his membership of the society known as the Skull and Bones.

Among his classmates were several who have since become distinguished. Among them is Donald G. Mitchell, favorably known as "Ik Marvel," author of "Reveries of a Bachelor " and other pleasing productions.

Three Justices of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Joseph F. Barnard, Lucien G. Birdseye and Gilbert Dean, were classmates of Judge Learned.

William E. Robinson, a prominent politician; B. G. Northrup, a well-known educator; Stephen D. Law, a very acceptable writer on the laws of patents, and Rev. Thomas F. Peters, eminent for his works of benevolence in the City of New York, were also members of this class.

Immediately after leaving college Mr. Learned entered the law office of Wm. F. Brainard, of New London, with whom he pursued his studies one year. Having formed a pleasant acquaintance with those highly respected lawyers, Messrs. Gould & Olin, of Troy, N. Y., he accepted an invitation

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from them to continue his studies in their office. This was about the year 1842.

In recognition of his learning, ability and great purity of character, Mr. Gould, the senior partner, was elected Mayor of Troy in 1852, and in Novem- ber, 1855, he was elected a Justice of the Supreme Court of the State for the Third Judicial District. Mr. Learned's associate in the office of Gould & Olin was George C. Waite, a brother of Chief- Justice Waite, of the United States Supreme Court.

Young Learned was called to the Bar at the fall term of the Supreme Court of the State in 1844, which held its sittings at Rochester. This was the old "Supreme Court of Judicature of the People of the State of New York," Chief-Justice Samuel Nelson presiding, Esek Cowan, Greene C. Bronson-names illustrious in legal history- associates.

Mr. Learned decided to make Albany the place of his future residence, fully aware that, in his pro- fessional career in that city, he would be compelled to contend with what may be well termed giants of the Bar. With a well-balanced confidence in his own abilities, with a consciousness that his intel- lectual weapons would be stronger, brighter and more effective by wielding them in the conflict against great and accomplished minds, he entered, . confidently and determinedly, into the honorable rivalry he had sought.

This selection of a field of labor was judicious and fortunate. If he met the usual embarrassments and discouragements of young lawyers, he over- came them by severe application, steady persever- ance, and the happy adaptation of his vigorous mind to his pursuit. Prosperity attended him, and he gradually but surely moved on to the front rank of his profession, and from thence to the distin- guished judicial position he now occupies.

In 1850 he formed a copartnership with the late Gilbert L. Wilson, who afterward became secretary of the New York Central Railroad Company.

After this partnership had existed some time, James C. Cook became a member of the firm, which now took the name of Learned, Wilson & Cook. After the withdrawal of Wilson the firm was known as Learned & Cook. It took a very high and influential position, controlling an ex- tended and important clientage ; it continued until 1867, when Mr. Cook decided to retire from prac- tice; this dissolved the firm, and its business de- volved upon Mr. Learned.

The large responsibility which now rested upon him was met with talents, ability and learning, which added largely to his reputation as a lawyer. Perhaps no practicing lawyer at that time stood higher in public estimation than did Mr. Learned. He continued his practice until the summer of 1870, when that distinguished jurist, Rufus W. Peckham, who had been one of the Justices of the Supreme Court since 1861, was appointed a Justice of the Court of Appeals. This left a vacancy on the Bench of the Supreme Court, and Mr. Learned was immediately appointed by Gov. Hoffman in place of Judge Peckham.

In the autumn of 1870 Judge Learned was nominated by the Democratic party of the Third Judicial District as a Justice of the Supreme Court ; his Republican opponent was the late Henry Smith, an acknowledged leader of the Bar and a man of commanding eloquence. Judge Learned was, however, elected for the full term of fourteen years.

He entered upon his judicial duties with that ability and success which his high reputation as a counselor at law fully indicated he would. As a trial judge he possessed that urbanity and patience in the conduct of those difficult cases so wearying and patience-trying to the judge in a manner that rendered him popular with the Bar, jurors and the general public.

In January, 1875, he was appointed Presiding Judge of the Third Department by Gov. Til- den. This appointment was made to continue during the remainder of his term. His associates were those eminent jurists, Hon. Douglass Board- man, of Ithaca, and Hon. Augustus Bockes, of Saratoga Spa. The ability and celerity with which the Supreme Court for the Third Department con- ducted its work elicited general commendation from the Bar. Though its calendars were very large, embracing many important cases, the business of the court was not permitted to accumulate, and its calendars were cleared to such an extent that cases were disposed of with great rapidity and sat- isfaction. It is said that the New York judges are overworked, from the Court of Appeals to the County Court. This, to a large extent, is true. Perhaps no men in the State are subjected to such constant and exhaustive labors as the judges of our courts. Certainly the justices of the Third Depart- ment may be said to be overworked in their en- deavors to prevent that accumulation of business so disastrous to litigants.

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Bi-centennial history of Albany. History of the county of Albany, N. Y., from 1609 to 1886. With portraits, biographies and illustrations, Part 43

Author: Howell, George Rogers, 1833-1899; Tenney, Jonathan, 1817-1888 Publication date: 1886 Publisher: New York, W. W. Munsell & Co. Number of Pages: 1452

Author: Howell, George Rogers, 1833-1899; Tenney, Jonathan, 1817-1888
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: New York, W. W. Munsell & Co.
Number of Pages: 1452