The bench and bar of New-York. Containing biographical sketches of eminent judges, and lawyers of the New-York bar, incidents of the important trials in which they were engaged, and anecdotes connected with their professional, political and judicial career, Part 54

Author: Proctor, L. B. (Lucien Brock), 1830-1900. cn
Publication date: 1870
Publisher: New York, Diossy & company
Number of Pages: 812


USA > New York > The bench and bar of New-York. Containing biographical sketches of eminent judges, and lawyers of the New-York bar, incidents of the important trials in which they were engaged, and anecdotes connected with their professional, political and judicial career > Part 54


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Following the advice of Mr. Granger, Mr. Haven decided to make Buffalo his place of residence and the theater of his professional exertions. Accordingly, in July, 1836, he visited that city, carrying with him favorable letters of introduction from Mr. Granger and Mr. Sibley to George G. Babcock, an eminent lawyer of Buffalo. On his arrival, he called on Mr. Babcock, entered into conversation with him upon pro- fessional topics, and just before leaving the office he presented his letters of introduction; this was early in the day. He immediately found an office, rented and arranged it, and tried a lawsuit of considerable


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importance before a magistrate, and all this before he had been in Buffalo one day.


With such abilities-such indomitable energy, he could not long occupy a subordinate place at the Buffalo bar, although at this time it was distinguished for its brilliant legal talent. As a distinguished mem- ber of the bar remarked after the death of Haven :


"He was of all the lawyers at the Erie county bar the hardest to beat. In everything he went by the most direct route to the point at which he was aiming. In one of my first causes he was my opponent. I was then city attorney, having but recently been elected, and the action was one in which the city was con- cerned. He compelled me to prove on the trial the act incorporating the city, and he even raised a knotty question as to the necessity of my authenticat- ing the provisions of the Revised Statutes which were applicable to the case. There was always some- thing about him to cause his opponent to dread a surprise, and yet no one could ever surprise him ; finally, few men can accomplish as much as Haven did in so short a life."


Soon after becoming a resident of Buffalo, he was united in marriage to Miss Cole, a young lady of many excellent endowments, and a daughter of Doc- tor Cole, one of the earliest physicians of Buffalo, an esteemed and highly reputable citizen. Mrs. Haven and her father are still living.


In March, 1842, Mr. Haven was elected mayor of Buffalo. He brought to this office those singular ex- ecutive abilities which distinguished him as a lawyer ; while his urbanity, native sense of right, and just appreciation of his duties, rendered his administra- tion successful and popular.


After he had been at Buffalo some years and had gained a high reputation as a lawyer, he entered into partnership with Hon. Millard Fillmore and Judge N. K. Hall, forming the celebrated firm of Fillmore, Hall & Haven.


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As has been said of Mr. Fillmore in another part of this work, he possessed in a high degree, weight and strength of intellect, power of discov- ering what is prominent and commanding in a sub- ject, and of throwing lesser matters into the back ground ; thus securing unity and distinctness of im- pressions, and as a consequence, a powerful influ- ence over his hearers. His arguments were always remarkable for the soundness of the principles on which they were based. He was the untiring, ever watchful sentinel who guarded his subject, and pro- tected every avenue through which an opponent could approach it. These characteristics distin- guished his legislative speeches, and tended to strengthen those able, learned and dignified State papers which emanated from his pen in those days, when, as an American statesman, he stood conspic- uously before his country and the world.


As a lawyer, Judge Hall was sagacious, learned and profound, making no pretension to showy and brilliant attributes, always relying more upon the soundness and strength of his positions and argu- ments than upon quick and rapid originality and sparkling reason. If these qualities are useful in the lawyer, they are inestimable in the judge, and, united with his natural patience and diligence and the clearness of his perceptions, render him an eminent and sagacious judicial officer.


Such were the men with whom Solomon K. Haven became associated in the legal profession. The firm continued to exist for several years, with the most brilliant success. Each of its members attained to high honors-one of them to the highest in the gift of the Republic; one to a distinguished judicial position ; the third to a seat in the councils of the nation, which he occupied with honor to himself and to the people whom he represented.


As has already been remarked, Mr. Haven culti- vated to a considerable extent his oratorical powers,


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and yet he did not attempt to exercise many of its graces. The character of his legal arguments and speeches was strength, power and activity of thought. He always seized upon the strongest point, and left it for no other.


He often encountered the brilliant and impressive oratory of H. K. Smith, George P. Barker, James Mullett, and others of equal power, whom he met at the circuits in the surrounding counties. There was a class of cases in which either of those eminent lawyers possessed a decided advantage over him, by the powerful appeals to the jury which they were en- abled to make; but such was his force of argument, such was the perfect preparation of his cases, such his keen and well-planned tactics, the facility and rapidity with which his mental powers were exerted, that he usually proved their equal even in these contests. No circumstance which tended to his advantage was ever overlooked. He had a happy faculty of seizing upon remote circumstances, and rendering them sub- servient to his purpose ; and he perfectly understood when and how to seize "the vantage ground of the contest." His want of burning eloquence was fur- ther compensated by a sharp and pungent satire, which no man could wield with more effect than he.


During the trial of an important cause at Ellicott- ville, a circumstance occurred, which exhibited the superior qualities of Mr. Haven as a tactician at the bar, the gravity with which he used his satirical pow- ers, and the facility with which he seized "momentary advantages."


The action was brought by a Miss Riall against one Pulsifer, a wealthy farmer, for carelessly and neg- ligently driving a lumber wagon, drawn by a span of horses, against her carriage, in which she was travel- ing on the highway. The carriage was overturned, badly damaged, and the lady considerably injured. The defendant insisted that the accident was the result


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of the plaintiff's carelessness, and therefore he re- fused to make any amends for the damages which she had sustained.


The late Judge Mullett appeared for the lady, and Mr. Haven for the defendant.


The plaintiff was a maiden lady, thirty-six years of age, or thereabouts, who, prompted by a desire to retain her youthful beauty, was in the habit of tinting her cheeks with rouge. She usually did this, however, in such an artistic manner that nature was faithfully imitated, and in some instances quite out- done. At the trial she appeared by the side of her counsel, with cheeks that vied with the richest carna- tion. So decidedly youthful was their color, that an imaginative mind might easily have taken her for Hebe invoking the protection of the laws. It is true, that a connoisseur might have detected a surplus of the rare and delicate coloring on her cheeks, because she did not on this occasion spread it with her usual artistic skill. But she was surrounded by those who, even if they possessed the power of criticism in such matters, were decidedly too gallant to exercise it; and to those at a little distance, the lady passed for a very beautiful and youthful girl; and Mr. Haven saw the unpleasant and difficult duty of trying a cause against a pretty woman. Like all lawyers who have been similarly situated, he was well aware that this circum- stance alone would operate against his client, and he feared the result of the trial; but believing that he had a strong defense-that the law was with him-he hoped to triumph over sympathy.


The trial proceeded. Judge Mullett presented his case with that masterly ability for which he was so justly celebrated. But he found in Haven a cool, collected, and wary opponent, one who, without any glow of imagination, was powerful in his knowledge of the law and the rules of evidence, and one who made up in skill what he lacked in experience.


At length the counsel for the plaintiff rested his


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case, and Haven promptly moved for a nonsuit, on the ground that it appeared from the evidence of the plaintiff that the injuries which she received resulted from her own carelessness in not continuing in that part of the highway which the law assigned to her. This motion brought on a closely contested legal argu- ment, for in those days, lengthy discussions were per- mitted at the circuit.


In resisting the motion for a nonsuit, Judge Mul- lett, after discussing the legal questions which it in- volved, in order to bring the facts within the law as he construed it, alluded in eloquent and pathetic lan- guage to the circumstances of the case-to the injuries and sufferings of his client, and to all those incidents which in cases of this nature arouse sympathy, and which, though addressed to the judge, always have their effect upon the jury. His address visibly affected his client; who, to hide her emotions and her tears, was compelled to bury her face in her handkerchief.


Haven felt that his client's case was suffering under the burning language of his opponent, which he saw was affecting the jury and even the judge, while it created strong sympathy for the plaintiff among the spectators and the bar, and he began to feel that not- withstanding all his efforts, his case was to be lost in the feeling for the plaintiff which her counsel was creating. For him to attempt any answer to such a storm of eloquence was quite out of the question, and he began to prepare for the worst. But it happened that just before Mullett closed his argument, Haven made a discovery which he turned to his advantage, and which neutralized all of his opponent's eloquence.


After Mr. Mullett concluded, Haven, in closing the argument of the motion, said :


" If I am not mistaken in the authorities which I have cited, and in the facts which the evidence has adduced, this motion should prevail; for, although the law is provident of remedies for injuries to person, property, and character, yet it requires, as has been


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shown by numerous authorities, that he who seeks indemnity against the careless or negligent acts of another, must himself be free from carelessness and negligence. But my learned friend on the other side, has made, in opposition to this motion, one of the ablest and most eloquent arguments to which I have ever listened-an argument of surpassing wisdom and power. Though I believe there is very little upon which to found his thrilling appeal to your honor's sympa- thy, yet I must admit that your honor, the bar, the jury, as well as myself, have been deeply affected by it ; but more than this, his appeal has had a power- ful-a strange effect upon his client; it has even changed her so that she will not know her face when she beholds it in her mirror."


At these words, the lady suddenly removed her handkerchief from her face, which had remained there since the pathetic appeal of her counsel; and, sure enough, there was a change, and such a change ! The flush of youth, the glow of Hebe, the bewitching tints had all fled. The tears which she had copiously shed, in coursing down her cheeks, removed the paint in places, leaving long and ghastly streaks of red and white, mingled with spots of such variegated hues, that one might have supposed that an amateur painter had tried his brushes on her face, not forgetting her nose in the operation. "In a moment, in the twink- ling of an eye," the effect of Mr. Mullett's eloquence was dispelled, and amid the half-suppressed laughter of the bar, jurors, and spectators, Haven, with the most imperturbable gravity, took his seat. One of the jurors, however, in attempting to suppress his laughter, had seized his nose between his thumb and finger, and while thus holding that organ, acci- dently relaxed his grasp upon it, and a noise some- thing like the toot of an old-fashioned dinner horn ensued. The effect of this can easily be conceived ; it operated so powerfully upon the risibles of all in the court room, including Mr. Mullett himself, that a


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burst of laughter followed, which, for a short time, baffled the attempts of the officers to suppress.


The motion for a nonsuit was denied, and Haven wisely decided to introduce no evidence himself, but to submit the case to the jury upon the testimony of the plaintiff, thus giving his opponent no time to re- cover from the effects of the circumstances which had so emphatically destroyed his hold upon the sympa- thy of the jury, under the conviction that this was all he had to fear in the case, and believing that Mullett could not again gain the advantage which he had lost ; and in this he was correct. Both counsel addressed the jurors. Haven, with his close, terse and pointed logic, was now enabled to gain and hold the attention of the jury. Mullett contended with force and power, but it was evident that his strength was not now in the case. The jury retired under the charge of the judge, and, after long absence, returned with a ver- dict for the defendant.


"Haven," said Mullett, when the trial was over, "you managed that paint on my client's face ad- mirably."


In the autumn of 1849, Mr. Haven was elected a representative from his Congressional district, to the thirty-second Congress, where he soon distin- guished himself as an active, industrious and influ- ential member, commanding the respect and esteem of his fellow representatives and the entire confidence of his constituency. He continued to represent his district in this body until the close of the extra ses- sion of the thirty-fourth Congress, August 21st, 1856.


It was his fortune to enter Congress at that period in our history when the question of slavery was all-absorbing throughout the nation, when it entered into all party organizations, and exhibited itself even in religious denominations ; engendering those fierce discussions which were the prelude to the " clash of arms." Though the results of those dis-


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cussions are too fresh in the minds of the people to warrant any recurrence to them here, yet by the stu- dent of history, the shifting scenes which led to our civil war will ever be regarded with peculiar interest. They followed each other like those events in Eng- land which commenced in 1629 with the struggle of the popular party against the encroachments of high prerogative upon the rights of the people, leading to their appeal to a higher law than any human enact- ment-the unwritten law of justice and reciprocal equity, teaching that "all men are endowed with cer- tain inalienable rights," and which culminated in the civil war of 1642. Thus "history repeats itself."


The records of Congress during the years in which Mr. Haven had a seat in that body, are sufficient evi- dence of his zeal in behalf of the rights of his con- stituents, and of the large amount of work which engaged his attention.


In politics, Mr. Haven was a Whig ; moderate though firm in the expression of his opinions. He sustained the compromise measures of 1850, with many other eminent patriots of that period, under the firm conviction that they would end the agitation of a question fraught with so much danger and excite- ment. One of his first speeches in Congress exhibits the strong confidence which he felt in the ultimate harmonious settlement of the question of slavery. That speech abounds in strong and eloquently ex- pressed though mistaken views of the turn which the Southern leaders would give to the slave question under the compromise act. When the Whig party in the State was divided into the factions of Woolly Heads and Silver Grays, or Conservative and Rad- ical divisions, Mr. Haven united his fortunes with the latter. Before the expiration of his first term in Congress, he was re-elected, and he commenced his second Congressional term with the opening of Mr. Pierce's administration. The House was organized by the choice of Linn Boyd for speaker. Soon after


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the commencement of this session, Mr. A. C. Dodge, of Iowa, submitted to the Senate a bill to organize the Territory of Nebraska, which was to contain all the re- gion lying westward of Missouri and Iowa. The great discussion which took place in the Senate upon the in- troduction of this bill, and its various amendments, between Messrs. Sumner, Douglass, Cass, Dixon, and other prominent Senators, was reiterated in the House, where Mr. Haven participated in the contest, ably sustaining the position which the Whig party had taken in the question, in several speeches which he delivered, and by his incessant labors where ever he could exert his influence.


At the close of the thirty-third Congress, Mr. Haven desired to return to the practice of his profes- sion and abandon his Congressional labors, but so ac- ceptably had he discharged his duties as a represent- ative, that his party insisted upon his renomination, and he reluctantly became a candidate for a third term. He was elected, and once more returned to his labors as one of the National Legislature. The open- ing of the thirty-fourth Congress was rendered memorable by a contest for the election of a speaker, so obstinately contested that it may well be regarded as the precursor of that bloody struggle which a few years later distracted the nation.


The Whig party had for some time been dissolved, or rather merged in a new and powerful organiza- tion-the Republican party-which, from its origin, had many elements of strength. It continued to rap- idly increase until it could confidently demand the control of the House of Representatives, and the con- test for speaker resulted in the choice of Mr. Banks, an eminent Republican.


In this struggle, Mr. Haven united with the friends of Mr. Banks. His labors during this sca- son were very much confined to the committee room, though he participated in many of the debates which occurred on the floor of the House.


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The political career of Mr. Haven is so intimately connected with those party differences not yet entirely forgotten, that to enter into a consideration of it would be but a recurrence to a controversy still fresh in the minds of the people. It is sufficient to say, that he was popular with his party in and out of Congress, that in his Congressional duties he increased his pop- ularity and developed many abilities as a legislator. That he had his faults and frailties-his errors of omission and commission-is not to be denied.


During the life of a prominent politician, his name is usually a watchword of faction, and the constant theme for both eulogy and invective. As has been justly re- marked, the characters of such men are seldom proper- ly estimated, even by posterity, and they often continue to be seen through the mists which faction has raised around them ; sometimes magnified into heroes and sages, sometimes quite as unjustly diminished into provincial demagogues and petty intriguers. So great a portion of their reputation arises from adventitious circumstances, from situation, titles, public honors, political zeal, or party management, that it is at least difficult to separate the substance from the trappings which invest it.


Mr. Haven was not a profligate politician-not a demagogue in any sense of the word, and when placed in comparison "with those simulars of patriotism, the politicians of expediency and intrigue," his abil- ities, his skill, his direct and positive nature, his sin- cerity, his honesty, and his consistency of character, more than compensate for the errors with which he was charged.


Mr. Haven was one of those lawyers who insensibly gain the confidence of their brethren of the bar.' "The position which he won by his well-directed efforts was never lost by inattention or neglect. In his contests at the bar, he was often defeated, but never unpre- pared. Promptitude was the great trait in his per- sonal dealings with his clients, and with his causes-


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finally with every one. He possessed wonderful power in economizing time, a ready control of all his busi- ness. His advocacy of whatever cause he espoused,


is always able and effective. As his examinations were very thorough, and his opinions consequently well considered, he never willingly relinquished their vindication, until the final and authoritative judgment was pronounced upon them."


In all the relations of life, he was plain and unpre- tending. Nothing annoyed him so much as undue display and pomp. It is related of him, that after having decided to erect a residence, he said to his father-in-law, Dr. Cole, who had then retired from the duties of his profession : "I am too much engaged to give the building of my house any attention whatever. I wish you to look to it and give the necessary direc- tions. I have none to give, excepting this : see that no reasonable expense is spared in rendering the building substantial, convenient, and comfortable. Avoid all display. Let it be constructed with good taste; but plain and simple in its architecture."


Few men ever possessed the unwearied industry of Mr. Haven. He never suspended his labors, never sought rest, and never allowed himself any relaxation from his professional toil. He loved labor for its own sake, and, like Nicholas Hill, he immolated himself on the altar of his professional ambition. He died on the 24th day of December, 1861, in the fifty-third year of his age.


His career is a rare example to young men who propose to enter the legal profession ; teaching them that great difficulties can be easily overcome, that they will yield to enterprise, sagacity, and perseverance, and that the road to professional distinction is open to all.


MARCUS T. REYNOLDS.


A Native of Montgomery County .- A Student at Canajoharie Academy .- Singular Manner in which he Prosecuted the Study of Latin .- His Progress in this Study. -The Surprise of the Principal .- Reynolds Enters Union College .- His Career in College .- Graduated .- Commences the Study of Law with M. B. Hildreth .- The Cotemporaries of Mr. Hildreth .- The Advantage s of Reynolds as a Law Student .- He is Admitted to the Bar .- Names of the eminent Lawyers who were admitted with him .- Commences Practice at Johnstown. - His Character as a Lawyer .- As a Speaker at the Bar .- His Versatile Powers illustrated by two Important Causes .- Manner in which he Carried his Causes .- Meets with an Accident which causes the Loss of his Leg .- His Courageous Reply to the Sur- geon .- His Manner of Conducting Causes after the Loss of his Leg .- His Powers of Sarcasm, and his Love of Pleasantry .- The latter quality illustrated by an Amusing Anecdote .- Personal Appearance of Mr. Reynolds .- Professional Char- acter in his more Advanced Years .- His Dislike of Politics .- His Reply to the Committee who tendered him the Office of Member of. Congress. - Rey- nolds, STEVENS and Hill, as Lawyers from 1837 down to the Adoption of the Code .- Character of Samuel Stevens .- His Personal Appearance .- As a Poli- tician. - Often Engaged with Mr. Reynolds. - The Position of the Two, in their earlier Practice at the Albany Bar, and the Bar of other Counties .- The Appearance of either of them at the Schenectady Bar an Intellectual Treat to the Students of Union College .- Mr. Reynolds Retires from the Bar and from Society .- Loss of his Mental Powers .- His Death.


MARCUS T. REYNOLDS was a native of Florida, in Montgomery county, New York, where he was born on the 22nd day of December, 1788. When he was ten years of age, he was placed in a very respectable high school at Canajoharie, where he remained three years. His father, desiring that he should first be thoroughly instructed in the English branches, di- rected the principal not to permit him to commence the study of Latin until after the expiration of one year at least.


It was, however, the ambition of young Reynolds to commence the study of that language at once ; but as the teacher adhered inflexibly to the instructions of the father, he would not listen to the son. Determined, .


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however, to prosecute his favorite study, he procured the necessary books, and while the other boys were engaged in play, he devoted himself to them with unwearied diligence. One of the more advanced stu- dents in the institution consented to hear his recita- tions and give him the necessary instruction. In this way he soon mastered the Latin Grammar, and ad- vanced as far as the three first books of Virgil. One day, as the principal was passing by the room of young Reynolds, he caught the sound of a voice ap- parently engaged in reading Latin. He listened ; the voice resembled that of young Reynolds, and yet he thought it could not be possible, for the young student did not read Latin, as he believed. At last, prompted by his curiosity, he entered the room, and sure enough, there was the boy, with Virgil opened before him, so intent upon his reading that he did not notice the entrance of his teacher.




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