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V
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 02398 9475
GC 977.1 M53RA
OHIO STATE CAPITOL.
Representative Men of Ohio
1900-1903
By JAMES K. MERCER AND EDWARD K. RIFE.
COLUMBUS, OHIO : JAMES K. MERCER, PUBLISHER. FRED J. HEER, PRINTER, 1903.
2025175
DEDICATORY.
H ISTORY will record that Hon. George Kilbon Nash was one of the wisest and best executives that ever graced the gubernatorial chair in Ohio. In recognition of that fact and in remembrance of many kindnesses received at the hands of Governor Nash, this volume is most respectfully inscribed.
J. K. M.
INTRODUCTORY.
I have often thought that there has rarely passed a life of which a judicious and faithful narrative would not be useful. - SAMUEL JOHNSON.
T HE opinion of so famous an author as the above is ample justification, if any were needed, for the publication of this book.
No better service can be rendered in the production of books than to record for posterity the career and good deeds per- formed by representative citizens, and it has been the aim to include within these pages the lives of truly representative men. of the great State of Ohio.
The opening years of the twentieth century show the greatest advancement in all the material lines of progress in the history of the world, and this volume is intended to show to future generations in Ohio the character and achievements of some of the public servants and best citizens of this period.
The book will be permanently catalogued in the State Library and other public libraries of the state, and no doubt reference to its pages will be made with much interest in the succeeding years.
The excellent and faithful portraits contained herein were produced by the Terry Engraving Company of Columbus, mostly from photographs by the celebrated "Baker Art Gallery." The publisher acknowledges the able assistance rendered by the fertile pen of Edward K. Rife, Esq., and sincere thanks are due to all who contributed to the success of the publication.
JAMES K. MERCER.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
PAGE
Administration of Governor Nash.
1-6
Allread, J. I.
69-70
Ankeney, Horace
85-87
Archer, F. B.
128-129
Baird, Frank L.
202
Ball, D. E.
92
Bassett, H. S
91
Beatty, John
180-182
Beckett, John M
148
Beardsley, C. D. .
97
Binckley, Tom. D
155
Bishop, Joseph
104-105
Black, Samuel L.
211-212
Blankner, Frederick
173
Bohl, Henry
215
Bohl, Henry G ..
72
Bonebrake, Lewis D
83-85
Brasee, John T.
89
Brush, E. C.
57-59
Cain, L. F.
154
Cameron, I. B.
75-77
Chapman, H. L
191-192
Cole, Ralph D.
153
Comings, A. G.
150
Cook, Frank
123-124
Collier, Geo. M.
107
Clingerman, J. H
205
Critchfield, A. B.
103
Crafts, W. H.
151-152
Crooks, John W.
91
Curry, W. L.
108-109
Custer, B. W.
218
Darby, William N.
117
Davie, W. S.
98
Dick, Chas.
50-53
Donovan, S. K
219-221
Dun McEldin
119
Echert, Peter
130
Emerson, L. E.
87
Evans, Marcus G.
213-214
VI
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
PAGE
Fleischmann, Julius
202
Fleischmann, Max C.
61
Foraker, J. B.
41-49
Galbreath, Chas. B
113
Garner, Miletus
93
Gillett, M. M.
59
Gillilan, Coleman
121-122
Goddard, Charles A
80
Gordon, H. L.
126-127
Green, Chas. C.
77
Griffith, Harry S.
123
Griffiths, Arthur H
78
Guerin, W. E. Jr
156-157
Guilbert, Walter D
73-75
Hagenbuch, Edwin
159
Hanna, M. A
31-41
Harding, W. G.
131
Harrison, O. E.
132
Hays, George W
160
Hollenbeck, S. D.
95-96
Hollenbeck, H. H.
97
Hosea, L. M.
133-135 .
Huffman, F. A
79
Huggins, E. N.
174
Hurst, J. Edward
136-137
Hypes, O. F.
158
Jackson, Andrew
172
Johnston, W. G
81
Johnston, Fred P.
92
Kilbourne, James
195-196
King, William
47
Kimball, Homer N
161
Kinney, Chas
207
Laylin, Lewis C.
67-69
Longworth, Nicholas
138
Malloy, John R.
110
Marshall, George S.
94
McCafferty, John W
210
McElroy, Burgess L
171
McGrew, John F.
111
McKinley, William
13-30
Mckinnon, W. S.
149
McLean, John R
193-194
McMaken, Wm. V.
64-65
McSweeney, John
112
Monnett, Geo. E.
95
VII
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
PAGE
Morgan, John H.
102
Morgan, W. H.
60
Morris, James C.
100
Moulton, B. M.
63
Nash, George K.
7-11
Neal, Lawrence T
187-190
Newkirk, James A.
70
Nippert, Carl L.
125
Orr, Charles
112
Outhwaite, Joseph H
183-184
Painter, Clyde R
164
Payne, Walter
98
Pearce, Charles A
210
Perkins, Charles E
82
Powell, Thomas E
185-186
Randall, E. O.
175-176
Ratchford, M. D.
101
Riggin, Nelson A.
139
Roudebush, W. F.
140-141
Royer, John C
142
Rudd, R. G.
93
Ryan, D. J.
199
Schneider, Louis J.
99
Scobey, Frank E.
146
Sharp, Robert H.
170
Sieber, George W
203-204
Sinks, Frederick N
11
Seese, Charles F
163
Sheppard, A. J.
120
Slater, Mark
106
Smith, Leslie C.
71
Speaks, John C.
66
Spitzer, C. M.
53-55
Starek, Herbert
92
Stilwell, S. E.
90
Stockton, George
114
Taylor, Henry C.
55-57
Tenney, W. I.
167
Thomas, George T
165-166
Thompson, W. O.
177-179
Tolford, Wilson O
208-209
Wagoner, Aaron
119
Waldorf, George P.
200-201
Wallace, W. C.
206
Walton, Randolph W.
12
Watson, D. K.
197-198
VIII
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
PAGE
Wheatley, John B.
72
Williams, Charles F.
169
Willis, Frank B.
168
Willis, Pearl
99
Wilhelm, George W.
143
Wirt, B. F.
144-145
Vorys, Arthur I
88
GOVERNOR GEO. K. NASH.
Administration of Governor Nash.
As this volume is devoted to the story of the two adminis- trations of Governor George K. Nash, and is dedicated to the Chief Executive of Ohio, under whose intelligent and patriotic care such advancement has been possible along the lines that make a State great and glorious, the publisher believes that it is meet and proper to speak of what has been accomplished for the benefit of the people, since Hon. George K. Nash became Gov- ernor, in January, 1900.
Under the constitution of Ohio the duties of the Governor are manifold and exacting. He must examine, pass upon and issue requisition papers, investigate applications for pardons, commutations and reprieves, certify under the Great Seal of the State as to the official character of numerous State and county officials ; upon application commission notaries public and com- missioners of deeds, and, with few exceptions, commission all elective officers, both civil and military. He must attend board meetings, counsel heads of departments, maintain a general su- pervision of all the great State institutions, examine, approve and sign numerous State papers, preside at public meetings, answer requests for all and any information, hear and dispose of complaints against individuals and institutions, and keep a constant watch over the affairs of State. All of this entails the keeping of numerous records, the assorting and filing of many papers and constant attention to a large correspondence.
When Governor Nash came into office the Seventy-fourth General Assembly was already in session, and he at once applied himself to the administration of the State's affairs. One of the features of that Legislature was the attempt to secure the passage of an act appropriating one million dollars for the proposed Toledo Centennial, that failed when the Lucas County delegation refused to accept the compromise sum offered. Governor Nash did not favor the appropriation of one million dollars for such a purpose and his influence killed the original bill. There was some ill feeling on the part of persons interested on account of his position, but he was vindicated by the lapse of time, and the
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REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF OHIO.
tax-payers of the State who would have been burdened in the other eighty-seven counties of the State, for the benefit of a single one (Lucas) showed their appreciation of the correct- ness of his position by endorsing his course at the polls at a subsequent election.
In the early part of 1891 Governor Nash again demonstrated his backbone and devotion to public duty. The authorities of the Cincinnati Saengerfest, who had lost considerable money in the enterprise, projected a prize-fight between Jim Jeffries and Gus Ruhlin, to be held on February 15, 1901, for the purpose of re- couping their fortunes. A license for the proposed fight had been granted by Mayor Fleischmann, but an appeal was made to Governor Nash to stop it. An effort was put forth by interested attorneys and others to make it appear that the contest was merely one for "points," and within the pale of the law, but Governor Nash, after considering the statutes in Ohio prohibiting such affairs, was clearly of the opinion that it was a prize fight and an illegal proceeding. He at once notified the Cincinnati authorities that it must not be permitted, but there seemed to be a lax idea of the law there, and it was evident to the Governor that unless he acted immediately the fight would take place, the laws be violated and the citizenship of the State outraged. He did so. The emergency board was convened and a resolu- tion adopted authorizing the Governor to expend $50,000, if necessary, for the purpose of mobilizing the Ohio National Guard in Cincinnati to stop the exhibition. What is known as the "liberal" element all over the State denounced the Governor for his interference, but he was not to be shaken in his devotion to law and order - and the fight did not take place. That act was most popular with the people, for it demonstrated that George K. Nash was not afraid to act for the best interests of the people when the occasion demanded, and that he was not to be scared off by threats of the loss of votes and prestige. At the succeeding election the returns proved the shallowness of the threats that had been made against him, for he carried Hamilton County, the hot-bed of the opposition, by a majority of 5,686 votes, whereas, two years before he failed to carry it against John R. McLean by 1,065 votes. The law had been vindicated. The servant of the people who dared to do right had been justified.
3
REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF OHIO.
During his second administration a departure was taken in the matter of taxation that is certain to mark it as one of the most distinguished in all the glorious history of the State; for laws have been passed, having for their purpose the lifting of the burden of taxation from the shoulders of the people and placing it on corporations of various forms doing business in this State, as a return for the great privileges and benefits enjoyed under our laws. It had long been the opinion of Governor Nash that the general levy of the State, amounting to $2.89 on the thousand dollars valuation, could be almost wiped out by the enactment of laws along the line indicated, and in order to begin the reform the Republican State Convention that met in the city of Columbus on the 25th day of June, 1901, adopted a platform setting forth the desirability of reform in taxation. One plank declared : "We favor legislation to the end that the burden of taxation upon property may be lessened."
With the election of a Republican Legislature in both branches, Governor Nash began the work of carrying out the pledge of the platform upon which he had been elected. The result is the passage of laws that will reduce the general levy from $2.89 to $1.35, and lighten the burden on general property to the extent of $3,000,000 for each of the two next ensuing years.
It has required domestic corporations, organized for profit, to file annual reports, not inquisitorial in their character, and pay a fee of one-tenth of one per cent. upon the capital actually invested in such corporations. It has required corporations or- ganized in other states and doing business in Ohio, to file like annual reports and to pay a fee of one-tenth of one per cent. upon the capital employed by such corporations in Ohio. A change has been made in the excise law which affects what are known as "public utility" corporations doing business in Ohio. Certain corporations have been brought within its provisions heretofore exempt therefrom. Prior to this enactment these cor- porations were required to pay for the benefit of the State Treas- ury one half of one per cent. upon their gross receipts. Now they must pay one per cent. upon their gross receipts in Ohio, and thereby increase the revenues of the State.
4
REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF OHIO.
Foreign insurance companies, life and fire, for the privilege granted to them by the State of doing business in Ohio are re- quired to pay into the State Treasury the sum of two and one- half per cent. upon the gross receipts upon the business thus transacted. This will produce the sum of about $650,000.
A law was enacted which will result in a more efficient collection of what are known as the Dow liquor taxes, and a consequent increase in the revenue.
These acts are expected to produce a sum of money large enough to take the place of the $3,000,000 deficiency caused by the reduction of the levy upon real and personal property. A part of the reduction was made from the fact that the old levy would produce more money than the State needed. The amount on the grand duplicate has been largely increased by the decennial appraisement of personal property in the year 1900. As a con- sequence, if the levy remained unchanged, the receipts from taxes of the State would have been increased more than $500,000. The Republican members of the General Assembly believed that the people should have the benefit of this increase in the valuation of their property, rather than that it should be an additional burden upon them. Therefore, in fixing the levy for State pur- poses at $1.35 upon the one thousand dollars, this matter was taken into consideration. This is the record made by the Re- publican Legislature under the eye and guidance of Governor George K. Nash. It tells its own story.
One of the noted cases up for consideration by Governor Nash during his second term was the Taylor kidnapping case. Frances Langworthy Taylor, Sr., and Frances Langworthy Tay- lor, Jr., of Cincinnati, had been convicted of kidnapping Margaret Taylor, daughter of Vinton A. Taylor, son of the elder Mrs. Taylor, and sentenced to one year in the Ohio penitentiary. Clara Taylor, a daughter of Mrs. Taylor, had taken the child away from its parents in Cincinnati, and gone to England with it, afterward to Italy. The accused people were charged with conspiracy with Clara Taylor for the commission of the crime. Governor Nash, believing that the women were not guilty, and that Clara Taylor was alone responsible, gave them a respite from April 10, 1902, to June 10 of that year. When the latter date had expired he extended it until October. In the mean-
5
REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF OHIO.
time Clara Taylor had been apprehended, and the child returned to its parents. Latterly Clara Taylor herself was released by the Italian authorities, it being shown that she had not taken the child for "unlawful gain," and therefore, not extraditable under the law. On the 10th of October, 1902, the Taylor women were pardoned by the Governor.
In the latter part of June, 1902, the Ohio Supreme Court handed down two decisions that caused Governor Nash to convene an extra session of the General Assembly on the 25th of August of that year. One decision was relating to the filing of cases in the Supreme Court under what was known as the Royer act; the second declared unconstitutional the federal form of govern- ment under which the City of Cleveland was organized. As this last decision affected the government of a large number of cities, and as previous decisions of the court had declared illegal all sorts of special legislation, as regards bond issues, appoint- ment of police commissioners, etc., the Governor deemed it wise to call the General Assembly together for the purpose of enacting a general municipal code that should have uniform effect all over the State, and this was done. The code finally enacted at the extraordinary session was substantially along the lines laid down by Governor Nash in his special message to the 75th Gen- eral Assembly, providing a uniform system of municipal govern- ment for the cities and villages of the State. The code goes into effect in May, 1903, and it is believed will solve the vexed question of Municipal Government that has been the source of so much trouble in Ohio for years. Several bills were offered to the General Assembly, but after a session continuing from the 25th of August, 1902, to the 22d of October, that body finally adopted and passed the bill presented by Senator Longworth and Hon. A. S. Comings, known as the "Nash Code."
Under the Constitution the Governor of Ohio is made re- sponsible for the conduct of the public institutions of the State, and these Governor Nash has jealously guarded. During his two terms there have been investigations at the State Hospital at Dayton, the Institution for the Education of the Blind in Columbus, and the Girls' Industrial School at Delaware, in- volving the conduct of officials, students and trustees. In the Dayton case Governor Nash acted promptly and asked for the
6
REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF OHIO.
resignations of the entire board, which were forthcoming; in Columbus reprimands were administered to the students offend- ing, and in Delaware the resignation of the Superintendent followed. In all these instances Governor Nash acted as soon as he was in receipt of information justifying action; in no case did he allow his personal feelings to warp his judgment or shield those whose conduct demanded radical action.
The Governor is also an ardent advocate of economy, but not parsimony, in the management of these institutions, and the record shows that there has been a gradual reduction in the per capita cost of maintaining them, and an increase in their effi- ciency and usefulness.
Other measures fostered by Governor Nash were the con- stitutional amendments to be submitted to the people for their approval in the fall of 1903. One amendment is intended to do away with the double liability clause of the present Constitution. Another arises from the limitations thrown around the taxing power now possessed by the General Assembly, enlarging this power to some extent and in such a manner that it is believed that if the amendment is adopted, taxation in Ohio will be more equitable in the future than it has been in the past. A third proposed amendment confers the veto power upon the Governor of Ohio in a limited sense.
Governor George K. Nash is now in the full swing of his second term. During his incumbency he has demonstrated his fitness for the place he now fills. With a record that covers a saving of $1,000,000 to the people of Ohio, the enforcement of the law and the lifting of the burden of taxation to the extent of $3,000,000 a year from the shoulders of the common people, his administration will shine in the bright galaxy of those that have preceded it, and the chief executive go down into history as a wise, prudent and sagacious Governor, who never hesitated to do right, and whose rule was of real benefit to the people.
7
REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF OHIO.
Hon. George K. Nash, Governor of Ohio.
In the career of the present Governor of Ohio is typefied what can be accomplished in this country under the most adverse circumstances by the youth who is spurred on to high endeavor by a laudable ambition to hold an important place in the world, and has only his clear brain, his honest heart and his capacity for work to plead trumpet-tongued in his behalf. George Kilbon Nash only achieved his present pre-eminence by the practice of self-denial, and hard, earnest labor, for he was not born to the purple, but sprang from the loins of what is popularly termed the common people. He came to the city that witnessed his inauguration as Governor, a poor, and almost friendless boy, full of energy and honorable ambition, but with an empty purse. That he to-day holds this proud position at the head of the State of his nativity is largely due to the fact that he has always stood for what is best in private and civic virtue, and been true to him- self and his convictions. No man will challenge the statement that he has been faithful in every position in which he has been placed by the people, and this being true, it follows as night fol- lows the day that he will remain constant and loyal to the end.
George Kilbon Nash is a product of the Western Reserve and in that historic ground he imbibed his love for Republican principles. He was born in Medina County, August 14, 1842, and spent his early life on the farm engaged in the work that usually engages farmer boys. His parents were Asa Nash and Electa Nash, nee Branch, both of whom came from Massachusetts of old New England stock. The family consisted of three sons and two daughters, all of whom are deceased with the exception of the Governor. Both his parents attained to more than three score and ten, his father's death occurring at the age of 71, his mother's at the age of 73. His educational advantages were meagre and consisted of attending the township schools, where he prepared for college, entering Oberlin at the age of twenty years. It was during his sophomore year in this institution of learning that the cry to arms rang out and young Nash, heeding the call, sprang to the defense of his country. He enlisted as a private in the One Hundred and Fiftieth Regiment, O. V. I., and served with honor until the close of the war.
8
REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF OHIO.
Soon after his discharge from the service he came to Colum- bus, and engaged in school teaching as a means of livelihood. There are men and women now down in Pickaway County who recall George K. Nash as their schoolmaster, who even at that time cherished an honorable ambition to be Governor of Ohio. But the prospect for such an honor was not an alluring one, although the phantom Hope beckoned him on. Through the kindness of a friend (Judge Warden) he was given the privilege of using the latter's law books, as his exchequer would not permit him to purchase his own, and in 1867 he was admitted to practice law in this State. Then came the struggle to get on until he could establish himself in business, and it was a long, weary one, beset with many difficulties but he triumphed at last.
In 1870 young Nash was selected by the Republicans of Franklin County to make the race for Prosecuting Attorney. The county was opposed to him politically, but he was elected, and victorious for a second term, giving the people the best of satisfaction. That was his debut in politics and he has been in the game ever since. In 1876 he was a candidate for Congress from the Columbus District, but defeated by Hon. Thomas Ewing. The Republican State Convention that assembled in Cleveland August 1, 1877, and nominated Hon. W. H. West, of Logan County, for Governor, placed the name of George K. Nash, of Franklin, on the State ticket for Attorney General. In the Republican slump that year the whole ticket went down to defeat, Hon. Isaiah Pillars, of Allen, being elected Attorney General. Two years later, or May 28, 1879, the Republicans held their State convention in Cincinnati, and George K. Nash was again nominated for Attorney General. This time he was suc- cessful, being elected by 19,000 majority in round numbers, over Isaiah Pillars, who had defeated him in 1877. In 1881, Attorney General Nash was renominated for a second term by the Repub- lican State Convention that met on the 8th of June, in Cleveland, and he was elected over Frank C. Dougherty, of Hardin, by 28,000 majority.
In 1883, Governor Foster, who while Chief Executive during Attorney General Nash's two terms, had been his warm friend and supporter, appointed him a member of the Supreme Court Commission, which body was created to aid the Supreme Court
9
REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF OHIO.
in clearing up their congested docket. His colleagues were Moses M. Granger, Muskingum; Franklin J. Dickman, Cuyahoga; Charles D. Martin, Fairfield, and John McCauley, Seneca. Judge Dickman afterward became a member of the Supreme Court. The commission continued for two years and afterward George K. Nash was known as Judge Nash.
In 1880, when Hon. Charles Townsend was elected Secretary of State, Judge Nash was chairman of the Republican State Committee; in 1881, when Governor Foster was a candidate for re-election and Nash himself was up for a second term as Attorney General, he occupied a similar position; in 1897, having been defeated for nomination for Governor by Hon. Asa S. Bushnell, two years before at the Zanesville convention, he took charge of his contest and pushed it to a glorious victory. As a campaign manager Judge Nash was among the best the party ever had in Ohio. He was always safe, and devoid of bluster; work, intel- ligent and far-seeing was his forte, with a capacity for sizing up a result not excelled by many.
It is said by the political oracles that Judge Nash had long cherished an ambition to be Governor. It is known that when serving as Attorney-General some of his friends insisted upon him becoming a candidate to succeed Foster, but he declined to consider the matter then. In 1895 he was a candidate for Gov- ernor at the Zanesville convention, when Hon. Asa Bushnell was nominated, with John W. Barger, Pike; J. Warren Keifer, Clark ; James H. Hoyt, Cuyahoga; R. M. Nevin, Montgomery ; Andrew L. Harris, Preble; E. W. Poe, Wood, as fellow aspirants. Bush- nell was successful on the sixth ballot, although his name had never been formally presented, the last ballot being: Bushnell 509, Nash 201, Hoyt III, Keifer 5, Nevin I.
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