History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Part 91

Author: Johnson, Crisfield
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott & Co.
Number of Pages: 716

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DAVID LONG.

Dr. David Long, the first physician who located in Cleveland, was born in Washington county, New York, September 29, 1282. In 1810, at the age of twenty-three, he first set foot in Cleveland, whither he had removed to begin his career. There was no doc- tor in all Cuyahoga county at that carly day, and the arrival of Dr. Long was hailed with much joy by the inhabitants. The arduous task of "doctoring" in that sparsely settled country, found in Dr. Long a man well calculated to overcome its difficulties, and despite the hardships, the inconveniences and inces- sant labors attendant upon his duties, he pursued them with unflagging zeal, and became a very successful practitioner. Hle was a surgeon in the army during the war of 1812, and, as an example of what he had trained himself to do in an emergency, it is related that he rode from Black river to Cleveland-twenty-

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eight miles-in two hours and a quarter, to report the news of General Hull's surrender.

After a continuous medical practice of upwards of thirty years, Dr. Long rested upon the well earned fruits of his industry, and at the end of an active and honorable life he died on the first day of September, 1851, aged sixty-four years.

He was one of the foremost in the promotion of publie enterprises, and freely gave his influence and support to numerous religious and educational in- stitutions of his time. Although popular in a re- markable degree, he never craved political distinction, and perhaps the only public office he held was that of county commissioner. It was at the time when the villages of Newburg and Cleveland were hotly con- testing for the honor of being the county-seat, and an election as county commissioner then was no slight mark of popularity. As a physician, as a man, and as a citizen, Dr. Long achieved a high reputation, and left the heritage of an honored name not only to his descendants but to the medical profession in Cuya- hoga county, of which he was the foremost pioneer.

ROBERT F. PAINE.

The subject of this sketch was born in Madison county, New York, on the 10th day of May, 1810. HIe is the second son of Solomon J. Paine and Lucre- tia Bierce Paine, who were both natives of Cornwall, Litchfield county, Con ecticut. Ilis father was the son of Rufus Paine, and his mother was the daughter of William Bierce, both of whom served in the Amer- ican army during the entire war of the Revolution, and both of whom shared with that army the suffer- ings and privations of the winter of 1722-8 at Valley Forge. They both also lived to be over eighty years of age.

In March, 1815, Solomon Paine left his native town and removed with his family to Nelson, Portage county, Ohio. His entire property consisted of two horses and a wagon, and such goods as he was able to store in the latter after furnishing room for a wife and four children. After five weeks weary journey- ing they arrived at Nelson, where the family remained until after the death of Mr. Paine, which occurred in 1828.

Robert F. Paine's opportunities for obtaining an education were very few. Ile had to travel a mile and a half daily to the log school-house, and after he was nine years old was obliged to work on the farm during all but the winter months. At the death of his father, which occurred when he was eighteen years of age, he took charge of the family and continued to provide for them by his labor until the children were able to care for themselves.

In 1837 young Paine determined to become a law- yer, and, without an instructor and with but few books, he entered upon a course of hard study. Without a single previous recitation, he was exam- ined at the September term of the supreme court,

sitting at Ravenna, in 1839, and was admitted to practice. In the fall of the same year he was elected justice of the peace, and served a term of three years. Immediately after his admission to the bar he opened an office in Garrettsville for the practice of his pro- fession.

In 1844 Mr. Paine was elected to the Ohio legisla ture, and the following year was renominated but de- clined; his declination being followed by his election as prosecuting attorney of Portage county and his removal to Ravenna. At the expiration of his term of two years he removed to Cleveland, and on the 1st of May, 1848, opened a law office in that city. In 1849 he was appointed clerk of the court of common pleas, which position he held until the adoption of the new constitution in 1852, when he returned to his legal practice. In 1860 he was chosen a delegate to the Republican national convention at Chicago, which nominated Abraham Lincoln for president, and took an active part in its proceedings. He was appointed United States district attorney for the northern dis- triet of Ohio, in April, 1861, and held that position four years.

In 1869 Mr. Paine was elected judge of the court of common pleas of Cuyahoga county, which office he retained until May, 1874. During his term he disposed of an unusual number of civil and crim- inal cases. Some eight or ten cases of homicide (five of which resulted in conviction of murder in the first degree) were tried before him. Among them was the noted trial of Dr. J. Galentine, convicted of man- slaughter. The defense of emotional insanity had been ineffectually set up, and in his charge to the jury the judge dealt in an original and able manner with that class of defenses. The following letter was written to him on that occasion by General Garfield:

" WASHINGTON, D. C., February 6, 1871.

"Dear Judge :- Allow me to congratulate you on your splendid charge to the jury at the close of the Galentine ease. The whole country owes you a debt of gratitude for brushing away the wicked absurdity which has lately been palmed off on the country as law, on the subject of insanity. If the thing had gone much further all that a man would need to se- enre immunity from murder would be to tear his hair and rave a little, and then kill his man. I hope you will print your opinion in pamphlet form and send it broadcast to all the judges of the land.

" Very truly yours, "J. A. GARFIELD."

We also quote extracts from the New York Tribune, embodying the best opinions of the country. After giving a brief synopsis of the case it says:

" But it is to the extremely lucid and sensible charge of Judge Paine to the jury that we desire to call special attention. It is not always that a judicial summing up has so much common sense crowded into it. 'If you should find,'said Judge Paine, 'that the defendant was overwhelmed by any real or supposed provocation, which for the moment deprived him of all power to control his action, and incapable of reasoning or de- liberation, then inquire, did the defendant, by indulg- ing passion, by meditating revenge and cultivating

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malice toward the deceased, for real or fancied provo- cation, voluntarily produce the inability to reason, re- flect, deliberate and control his will; or was he rendered powerless in these respects by the circumstances which surrounded him, and for which he was not responsi- ble?' We do not remember in any of the now un- fortunately numerous trials for homicide in which that most intangible thing, 'temporary insanity' has been the defense, to have seen the true law of the case stated more lueidly. The number of murders com- mitted in cold blood, and with striet malice prepense, is comparatively small: and these are mostly perpe- trated with the ulterior purpose of robbery. A mur- der done for the sake of private vengeance is quite another matter. The eniprit broods over what he considers to be his injuries, 'cultivating,' to use the language of Judge Paine, 'a disposition to execute vengeance until his passions have become too powerful to be controlled by his will and judgment." Can he therefore take the life of the subject of his hatred with impunity? 'To my mind,' said the Judge, to hold thus would be to offer a premium on depravity and to encourage the cultivation of the worst elements of our nature." We do not think that we have ever seen the truth of a vexed and much discussed question more clearly stated. Laws are made and penalties more or less severe are provided for their violation, simply that members of society may have a motive. even if it be not the best one, for keeping the mastery over illicit passions. Thus it has been held for cen- turies, and it is good law to-day, that the inebriety of a murderer is no excuse, and to only a limited extent an extenuation; and hundreds of men have been hanged who were intoxicated when they did the fatal deed. The case is much stronger when a man suppos- ing himself to have been wronged, instead of seeking at the hands of the law that satisfaction which is free to all, constitutes himself judge, jury and executioner, making havoc of every principle of order upon which social institutions are founded."

In politics Judge Paine was an ardent Whig nntil 1848, after which he acted with the Free Soil party until the formation of the Republican party. Ile then united with the latter, of which he was an earnest supporter until 1822. He then advocated the election of Horace Greeley to the presidency, since which time he has voted the Democratic ticket. During the whole of his public life, in the many responsible positions to which he has been appointed, he has maintained a high character for honor and straightforwardness, and has discharged his duties with unvarying fidelity and ability.

Tle is a self-made man of no ordinary kind, having under the most disadvantageous circumstances, and without help of any kind, worked himself up from poverty and obsenrity to distinction on the bench and at the bar.

Judge Paine has been married three times-first in August, 1846, to Miss Miranda lazen, of Garretts- ville, who died at Cleveland in August, 1848, leaving an infant daughter; second, in 1853, to Mrs. II. Cor- nelia Harris, who died in 1820, leaving three sons; third, in May, 1822, to Miss Delia Humphrey, of Summit county, Ohio.

RICHARD C. PARSONS.

Richard C. Parsons, one of the proprietors of the Cleveland Herald, was born in New London, Con- nectient, October 10, 1826. Ilis father was a mer- chant of New York city, a gentleman of large busi- ness capacity, and remarkable for his benevolence and sterling character. He died in 1832, at the age of thirty-nine years. His grandfather was Rev, David Parsons, D. D., of Amherst, Massachusetts, an emi- nent clergyman, whose ministry, with that of his father over the Presbyterian church of Amherst, continued uninterruptedly through a period of eighty years. The wife of Rev. David Parsons was a sister of Chief Justice Williams, of Connecticut, and a nicee of Wil- liam Williams, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.

The subject of this sketch received a liberal educa- tion in New England. He came to Cleveland in 1849, studied law with Charles Stetson, and was admitted to the bar in October, 1851. Ile took at once a prom- inent position, and gave promise of a brilliant future in his chosen profession. But political life had strong attractions for him, and he immediately entered upon that series of official services which occupied his time until quite recently.

In 1852 Mr. Parsons was elected a member of the city council of Cleveland, and the following year was chosen president of that body. In 1857 he was elected to the Ohio legislature. He was re-elected in 1859, and on the meeting of the legislature the fol- lowing winter he was chosen speaker of the house of representatives. Ile was the youngest person who had ever filled that position, yet his thorough knowl- edge of parliamentary rules, his prompt and decisive address, and his great personal popularity secured his re-election witlr little opposition. In 1861 Presi- dent Lincoln tendered him the mission to Chili, which he declined. He was subsequently appointed consul at Rio Janeiro , where he served one year with great advantage to our commercial and maritime interests at that port.

Returning to Cleveland Mr. Parsons was appointed, in 1862, collector of internal revenue for the Twen- tieth district, which position he tilled for four years, when he was removed by President JJohnson, because he refused to give in his adherence to the "Johnson party." In 1866 he was appointed marshal of the Supreme Court of the United States, and after serving for six years, resigned.

In 1843 Mr. Parsons was elected to the forty-third Congress as a Republican, from the Twentieth Con- gressional district of Ohio, receiving thirteen thons- and one hundred and one votes, against ten thousand three hundred and seventy-seven for the candidate of the Democrats and Liberals. In Congress he was at once placed on important committees, on which he served with industry and marked ability. By his

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intelligent and well directed efforts he secured the first appropriation for the breakwater at the port of Cleveland, a work of inestimable value to the eom- mercial interests of the city. In 1877 he joined Wil- liam Perry Fogg in the purchase of the Cleveland Herald, and became editor-in-chief of that journal, in which position he still remains. He is a foreible and able writer, and has made the Herald one of the conspicuous features of Western journalism.

HENRY B. PAYNE.

Henry B. Payne, a prominent lawyer and statesman, was born in Hamilton, Madison county, New York, on the 30th of November, 1810.

His father. Elisha Payne, was an early settler of that county, having removed thither from Lebanon, Connecticut, in 1795. He was a man of great per- sonal integrity, purity of character and publie spirit, and was instrumental in an eminent degree in found- ing Hamilton Theological Seminary.

Henry B. Payne was educated at Hamilton College, Clinton, New York, and was graduated in the class of 1832, ranking high in mathematics and belles-lettres. Ile commenced the study of law in the office of John C. Spencer the same year. In 1833 he removed to Cleveland, then a village of some three thousand inhabitants, and was admitted to the bar the follow- ing year. Ile at onee commeneed the practice of law in company with HI. V. Willson, his partner and for- mer classmate. This partnership continued twelve years, until, in consequence of hemorrhage of the Inngs, Mr. Payne was compelled to relinquish the profession.

He subsequently served two years in the city coun- cil, chiefly engaged in reforming the finances, restor- ing the municipal credit, and reconstructing the fire department. In 1849, conjointly with John W. Allen, Richard Hilliard, John M. Wolsey and others, he en- tered earnestly into measures for constructing the Cleveland and Columbus railroad. It is no dispar- agement to the labors of others to say that to him, Rich- ard Hilliard, Esq., and Hon. Alfred Kelley, that great enterprise was mainly indebted for its success-a suc- cess which, being achieved at a most critical period in the fortunes of Cleveland, contributed in a very great degree to its prosperity. Upon its completion in 1851 Mr. Payne was elected president, and retained that office till 1854, when he resigned. In 1855 he first became a director of the Cleveland, Painesville and Ashtabula railroad (afterwards the Lake Shore). In 1854 he was elected a member of the first board of water-works commissioners, which so successfully planned, located and completed the Cleveland water works.

In 1862 the legislature created a board of sinking- fund commissioners for the city of Cleveland. Mr. Payne has been the president of the board since its organization. Hlow wisely the commissioners have performed their duties was shown by the fact that the .

fund, originally about two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, increased in the course of twelve years, under the management of the board, to nearly two millions of dollars, an instance of prudent and sagacious man- agement of a trust fund which was perhaps without a parallel in the United States.

At an early day Mr. Payne became interested in and identified with the manufacturing enterprises of Cleveland. He was at one time a stockholder and di- rector in some eighteen corporations, devoted to coal and iron mining, manufacturing in various branches, banking, ete., all of which were in a sound and flour- ishing condition.

In polities Mr. Payne has ever been a conservative Demoerat-not always active, and sometimes indepen- dent. In 1849 he was elected to the State senate, and served two years in that body. In 1851 he was the nominee of the Democrats in the legislature for United States senator, but after a prolonged balloting the contest finally resulted in the election of Benjamin F. Wade by a majority of one. In 1857 he was the Demoeratie candidate for governor, and made a can- vass remarkable for its spirit and brilliancy, at the end of which he eame within a few hundred votes of de- feating Salmon P. Chase. Mr. Payne was chosen a pres- idential elector on the Cass ticket in 1848, and was a member of the Cincinnati convention which nomi- nated Buehanan in 1856. He was also a delegate at large to the Democratic National convention at Charleston in 1860, and reported from the committee the minority resolutions which were adopted by that convention. He advocated the report in a speech re- markable for its perspicnity, brillianey and power, condemning incipient secession, and uttering kindly but earnest warnings to the men of the South. The speech won for him the gratitude and applause of the Northern delegates, and the personal admiration of the Southern members, and gave him a national rep- utation as a sagacious and able statesman.

In 1852 Mr. Payne joined heartily with Senator Douglas in his opposition to the Lecompton constitu- tion: made speeches against it at Columbus, Cincin- nati, Indianapolis and other cities, and was active in proenring the passage by the Ohio legislature of resolutions denouncing that measure. He assisted Douglas in his celebrated campaign in 1858 against Lincoln and the Buchanan office-holders in Illinois, and when the war broke out he took his stand with that patriotic statesman, and persevered in public and earnest efforts for the suppression of the rebel- lion. In 1862 he united with prominent men of both the Democratic and Republican parties in addressing the people to encourage enlistments, and joined with a large number of the wealthiest citizens in a guar- anty to the county treasurer against loss by advane- ing money to equip regiments; trusting to future legislation to sanction such advances.

Mr. Payne was chairman of the Ohio delegation at the Democratic national convention at Baltimore in 1872, which nominated Horace Greeley for President,

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and warmly advocated that movement. In 1844, at the joint and urgent solicitation of the Democrats and Liberal Republicans, he accepted the nomination for the forty-fourth Congress, and was elected by a majority of two thousand five hundred and thirty- two in a district which prevously had given a Repub- lican majority of about five thousand.

On accepting the nomination he said: " If elected, and life is spared to serve out the term, I promise to come back with band and heart as undefiled and elean as when I left you."

In Congress Mr. Payne was appointed a member of the committee on banking and currency, and also of that on eivil service reform. During the exciting contest over the election of president, in the winter of 1826 and ** t, he was made chairman of the committee chosen by the House to unite with one from the Senate in devising a method of settling the impending ditti- culties. As such chairman he reported the bill, pro- viding for the celebrated electoral commission, to the Hlouse, and had charge of it during its passage. 1Ic was also elected and served as one of that commission. lle reported to the joint Democratie Congressional canens a bill for the gradual resumption of specie payments, which was approved by the caneus but failed to pass. The principal feature of this bill was the permanent retention of the greenback as a con- stituent element of the eurreney.

As a lawyer Mr. Payne was distinguished for tidel. ity, thoroughness and forensic ability. The remark- able powers of his mind were especially manifested in his influence over others in adjusting legal rights and moral equities in cases where great and antagonistic interests were involved. Coolness of temper, suavity of manner and genial humor, combined with firmness and strength of will, were his chief instrumentalities. As a political leader he always had the confidence of his party and the respect of-all. In April, 1825, he was prominently mentioned as the coming Democratic and Liberal nominee for the Presidency of the United States. Mr. Payne was married in 1836 to the only daughter of Nathan Perry, Esq., a retired merchant of Cleveland.

FREDERICK WILLIAM PELTON.

This gentleman, one of the ex-mayors of Cleveland, is of English descent, and was born in Chester, Con- necticut, on the 24th day of March, 1822.

Ilis father, Russell Pelton, was born in Portland, in the same State, on the 20th of July, 1803, and mar- ried Pamelia Abby, daughter of Asaph Abby. on the 20th of August, 1821. In 1835 he removed with his family to Cuyahoga county, and settled in Brooklyn (now a part of Cleveland), where he still resides. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, an active and enterprising eitizen, and a man of sterling integrity and honor.

Frederick W. Pelton, the fourth of a family of six children, was but eight years of age when his father

removed to Ohio. He was educated at Brooklyn academy, finishing the course at the age of sixteen. when he immediately entered upon the duties of bookkeeper for Messrs. Wheeler, Chamberlain & Co., of Akron, Summit county, with whom he remained until he attained his majority. He then returned to (Jeveland with Mr. Chamberlain, the second member of the firm, by whom he was employed in the same capacity until, on account of failing health, he was obliged to resign his position.

Returning to Brooklyn, young Pelton engaged in farming and soon recovered his health and strength. He did not, however, re-enter the counting room, but for ten years, which he regards as among the most pleasant of his life, he remained employed in agricul- tural pursuits. Desiring a change at the expiration of that period, he engaged in the ship chandlery business in Cleveland, which he carried on snecessfully until 1861, when he responded to the call made for troops to suppress the rebellion. Ile had served as a captain of an independent battery for twelve years, and entered the First Ohio artillery as captain of Company E. The regiment to which he belonged-commaned by Geu. James Barnett-served three months in Western Vir- ginia and then returned to Columbus and was mus- tered out.

Mr. Pelton did not re-enter the service, and, in the autumn of 1863 he went into the insurance business, as treasurer, and afterwards as secretary, of the Buck- eye Insurance company. In 1865 he was elected to the city council from the ninth ward, and the follow- ing year was made president of that body. In 1867 he was re-elected from the same ward, and in 1870 was chief deputy treasurer under Colonel Lynch. He was elected mayor of the city of Cleveland in August, 18:1, and served two years, winning universal ap- proval by the ability with which he managed the mu- nicipal affairs. During his term he was noted for his advocacy of every measure tending to the improve- ment of the city and the development of its resources. Ilis valedietory address was highly commended as giv- ing a particularly clear and tangible exhibit of the local finances, and of important improvements and enterprises. In 1823 he was elected county treas- urer, and in 1815 was re-elected, serving in this office two terms of two years each. He is a director of the Citizens' Loan Association and has been a member of the finance committee since its organization.

In politics he is a Republican, and is actively inter- ested in the men and measures of that party. Mr. Pelton is an active member of the Masonic order, be- longing to West Side Lodge No. 498, F. and 1. M., Thateher Chapter No. 101, Cleveland Council No. 36, and Oriental Commandery, having held the office of Master and High Priest. He is also a mem- ber of the order of Odd Fellows, in which he takes a high rank, being a member of Phoenix Lodge, I.O. O. F., and North Wing Encampment.

In all publie affairs Mr. Pelton has ever manifested a liberal spirit, and in many ways has been instru-

THE CITY OF CLEVELAND.

mental in forwarding the best interests of the people of Cleveland. In the relations of social and busi- ness life he has uniformly borne himself in such a manner as to win the respect and confidence of those with whom he has been associated.

He was married on the 26th of Angust, 1848, to Miss Susan A. Dennison, of Brooklyn, Ohio, by whom he has had seven children, only three of whom are living.

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History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Part 91

Author: Johnson, Crisfield Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott & Co. Number of Pages: 716

Author: Johnson, Crisfield
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott & Co.
Number of Pages: 716