The twentieth century bench and bar of Pennsylvania, volume I, Part 46

Author:
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Chicago, H. C. Cooper, jr., bro. & co.
Number of Pages: 1102

USA > Pennsylvania > The twentieth century bench and bar of Pennsylvania, volume I > Part 46

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of the public schools in Clarion in 1862. In June, 1863, he began the study of the law in the office of B. J. Reid. In July of the same year he joined the army as a volunteer. December, 1865, he entered'the bar and im- mediately became Major Reid's partner. In 1880 he formed a partnership with his broth- er, J. B. Patrick. He was a painstaking, energetic lawyer, and was during his time the only attorney engaged in the bounty and pension practice. J. H. Patrick died on the 9th day of April, 1900.

John T. Hindman was born in Clarion county in 1842. After attending Clarion academy, he read law with Corbett & Boggs, and was admitted to the bar in 1865, and entered into partnership with Mr. Corbett. His untimely death in 1876 cut short a prom- ising career.

James T. Maffett, son of John Maffett, was born on his father's farm in Clarion township, Clarion county, Pa., February 2, 1837. After receiving a preliminary educa- tion in the public schools and the Clarion academy, he attended Jefferson college at Canonsburg, Pa. In 1859 he went across the plains to California. While there he began the study of law, and returned to Pennsyl- vania in 1870. He completed his legal studies in Brookville, Pa., with Jenks, Jenks & Clark. In October, 1872, he came to Clarion and formed a partnership with the late Judge Knox, which partnership lasted until Mr. Knox was elected judge. Upon the election of Mr. Knox as judge, Mr. Maffett formed a partnership with Mr. Wm. H. Ross, which 'continued until 1886, when Mr. Maffett was elected to the Fiftieth Congress. Mr. Maffett was a presidential elector in 1880. He re- ceived the nomination for president judge on the Republican ticket in 1901, but de- clined on account of sickness, and Harry R. Wilson was substituted in his place.

M. A. K. Weidner was born in Lancaster county in 1839, and received his education in the common schools and the Millersville

Keang@Wilson

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normal school. In 1862 he entered the army, and was a member of the One Hundred and Twenty-second Regiment Pennsylvania Vol- unteers. He came to Clarion in 1865, and for a time was engaged in business, and after- wards read law with the late Theophilus S. Wilson, and was admitted to the bar in 1874. For a time he was associated with his pre- ceptor, Mr. Boggs, and after Mr. Boggs' re- tirement from the practice he continued the practice alone, and for a short time was as- sociated with A. A. Geary in the practice of law. (Mr. Weidner died November 18, 1902.)

W. D. Burns is a native of Clarion county. He received his education in the public schools of his district, and at the Corsica seminary. After having taught school for a time he began the study of law with Knox & Maffett, Clarion, Pa., and since his admis- sion to the bar he has practiced alone at Clarion, now having his office with David Lawson.

Samuel K. Clarke was born in Brookville, Pa., February 11, 1852. He attended the public schools there, and afterwards the family moved to Iowa, and he attended the Iowa Wesleyan university at Mount Pleas- ant, in that state. Returning to Brookville he read with Jenks, Jenks & Clark, and be- fore he was admitted to the bar he came to Clarion, and finished his course in the office of the late Judge Theophilus S. Wilson. He afterwards formed a partnership with the late Judge W. L. Corbett, which continued for about three years, since which time he has practiced alone.

George F. Kribbs is a native of Clarion county. After taking the regulation public school course he attended Muhlenburg col- lege, Pennsylvania, where he graduated. He afterwards read law with Wilson & Jenks in Clarion, and after his admission to the bar formed a partnership with W. A. Hind- man which lasted for a time, when Mr. Kribbs took charge of the Clarion Democrat.

After disposing of that, he resumed the prac- tice of the law. Ile was elected to Congress from this district, and held the office two terms. Hle is now engaged in business in Pittsburgh, Pa.

W. A. Hindman, son of the late Alexander Hindman of Monroe township, Clarion coun- ty, Pa., was born on his father's farm in that township, February 15, 1853. After attend- ing the public schools of his district, hc at- tended the Reidsburg academy, and after- wards a college at Lewisburg, Pa., now Bucknell university. He read law with his brother, John T. Hindman, deceased. Mr. Hindman has a taste for business as well as the law, in both of which he has been very successful. He has extensive lumber inter- ests in various parts of the country. He filled the office of district attorney three years.

Major J. J. Frazier was born in Redbank township, Clarion county, Pa., May 22, 1843. After attending the public schools he at- tended Glade Run academy at Dayton, Armstrong county, Pa. He afterwards read law with the late J. H. Patrick. After ad- mission to the bar, he opened an office in Clarion, and has practiced alone continu- ously since.

Jasper E. Wood was born in Cattaraugus county, N. Y., and came to Clarion county in 1846. He received his education in the public schools of his district and in the Ship- penville academy, and afterwards at the Northwestern normal school at Edinboro, Pa. At seventeen years of age he became a school teacher, and from 1869 to 1875 he was county superintendent of the public schools for two terms. IIe afterwards studied law with the late Judge William L. Corbett, and was admitted to the bar in 1877. Mr. Wood died February 21, 1903.

R. D. Campbell, son of the late Judge Campbell, was born in Clarion, Pa. He at- tended the public schools and Carrier semi- nary, and finally graduated at Allegheny col-

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lege, Mcadville, Pa. He read law with his father, and after his admission he and his father formed a partnership under the firm name of J. & R. D. Campbell. Since his father's death he has practiced alone. Mr. Campbell is a practical surveyor, to which he devotes considerable of his time. He occupies the office that his father occupied at the time of his death.

G. G. Sloan was born in Perry township, Clarion county, Pa. He attended the public schools and the Academic institute at West Freedom, Pa., and afterwards attended the University of Michigan. Mr. Sloan was twice elected district attorney for Clarion county. He has practiced law continuously in Clarion since his admission to the bar.

F. J. Maffett, son of the late James G. Maffett, was born on his father's farm in Clarion township, Clarion county, Pa. After attending the public schools of his district he attended Corsica academy, Corsica, Pa., and afterwards graduated at Carrier semi- nary, Clarion, Pa., now the Clarion State normal school. He read law with Knox & Maffett, and after his admission to the bar, for a time he was a partner of R. D. Camp- bell's, under the name of Campbell & Maf- fett. He later formed a partnership with Major B. J. Reid, which still continues.

Don C. Corbett was born at Clarion, De- cember 5, 1861. He attended the public schools of the borough, and Carrier semi- nary, now the Clarion State normal school, and afterwards spent two years at the Hill school, Pottstown, Pa. He afterwards grad- uated at the high school, Ann Arbor, Mich., and afterwards spent four years in the Uni- versity of Michigan, where he graduated in 1885, taking the degree of Ph. B. He read law with his father, the late Judge Corbett. He was district attorney of Clarion county for three years, from 1894 to 1897.

John T. Reinsel was born in Redbank town- ship, Clarion county, Pennsylvania, in 1865.

He attended the Northwestern State normal school at Edinboro, Pa. Hle read law with the late F. R. Hindman, and with Reed & Wilson. Since his admission to the bar he has practiced law at Clarion, and is at the present writing district attorney.

George F. Whitmer was born in Farmington township, Clarion county, Pennsylvania, and was educated at the Carrier seminary, now the Clarion State normal school of Clarion, Pa., and also at the Northwestern State normal school at Edinboro, Pa. He read law with W. A. Hindman, and after his admission to the bar opened an office in Clarion, and has practiced alone since his admission. He is now county solicitor for the county of Clarion.

J. A. F. Hoy was born in New Bethlehem, Pa., and was educated in the public schools. He read law with the late Frank R. Hind- man, and on April 8, 1892, he was admitted to the bar of Clarion county, and in 1895 to the Supreme Court of the state. Immediately after his admission to the bar, he formed a partnership with his preceptor, under the firm name of Hindman & Hoy. This part- nership was dissolved by the death of Mr. Hindman, March 9, 1901, since which time he has conducted the business of the firm alone. He has been counsel in the settlement of a large number of estates in Clarion county, and was one of the counsel in the famous Lot-Gardner will case, as well as for several corporations.

Mr. Hoy is a Democrat, and by election and re-election has served four terms in the state legislature, and is the author of the "Hoy Jury Act," the Act regulating fees of constables in Pennsylvania, the Act regu- lating appeals in contests over labor claims, and several Acts of minor importance. In 1901 he was Democratic chairman of the county.

Samuel F. Brush was born in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, in 1859. After the usual

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primary education in his district, he received his final edueation at the Ohio Wesleyan uni- versity, Delaware, Ohio. He read law with Reed & Wilson, Clarion, Pa., and after his admission to the bar he remained with that firın, and afterwards beeame a partner with Harry R. Wilson under the firm name of Wilson & Brush. He still occupies the same offiee.

John S. Shirley was born in Armstrong eounty, Pennsylvania, in 1858. After taking a course in the public sehools of his distriet, he attended Elders Ridge academy, Indiana eounty, Pennsylvania. After graduating there he studied medicine and praeticed that profession at Strattan- ville, Pa., for five years, eoming to Clarion eounty in March, 1883. At a later period in his life he took up the study of the law with William A. Hindman, and after his ad- mission to the bar, has practiced sinee in Clarion, Pa. He was distriet attorney from 1897 to 1900.

A. A. Geary was born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania. After the usual at- tendanee in the publie sehools, Mr. Geary attended the State Normal sehool at Clarion, Pa., where he graduated. He read law with M. A. K. Weidner, and after his admission to the bar was for a time a partner with Mr. Weidner, subsequently taking an offiee for himself, which he still oeeupies with his brother, W. J. Geary.

William H. Hockman was born in Clarion county. He received the usual sehooling afforded by the schools of his district, and was afterwards elected to the office of regis- ter and reeorder of Clarion county, which position he held for two terms. He after- wards read law with W. A. Hindman, and after his admission he formed a partnership with W. A. Hindman; this continued for a number of years, and after dissolution Mr.

Hoekman devoted most of his time to the insurance business. He now resides at Pitts- burgh.

Harry M. Rimer was born in Toby township, Clarion eounty, Pennsylvania. After exhaust- ing the local school facilities, he attended Washington and Jefferson eollege, Washing- ton, Pa. After finishing his eourse there, he read law with W. A. Hindman, and sinee his admission has continued to praetiee in Mr. Hindman's offiee.

A. C. Brown is a Clarion eounty man, and was educated in the public sehools and the Clarion State normal sehool. He read law with the late F. R. Hindman, and after his admission to the bar has practieed alone in Clarion. He is now praetieing in Tionesta, Pa.

Daniel M. Geist hails from Jefferson eoun- ty, Pennsylvania, and has his offiee in New Bethlehem, Clarion county, Pa.

John W. Maffett was born in the state of California. He eame to Pennsylvania when he was quite young. After going through the public sehools at Clarion, Pa., he attend- ed Carrier seminary, now the Clarion State normal sehool, and Washington and Jeffer- son eollege, Washington, Pa. He was for sometime a elerk in the Interior Department, Washington, D. C., and afterwards was en- gaged in office work in Pittsburgh, Pa., for several years. He read law with his father, J. T. Maffett, and after his admission to the bar began the praetiee of the law in his father's office.

Theo. L. Wilson, son of the late Theophilus S. Wilson, was born at Clarion, Pa., and after the usual home schooling, he attended the Clarion State normal school, and finally finished his cdueation at the Indiana State university, Bloomington, Ind. He read law with Wilson & Brush, and since his adniis- sion to the bar has praeticed in Clarion. He is now located in the office of Reid & Maffett.

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W. J. Geary is a native of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania. What has been said as to the education of A. A. Geary applies to W. J. Geary, who, after graduating at the Clarion State normal school, read law with his broth- er, A. A. Geary, and since his admission to the bar has been practicing with him.

Harry E. Rugh was born in Salem township, Clarion county, Pennsylvania. He received his preparatory education at the Clarion State normal school, and afterwards attended the Indiana university at Bloomington, Ind. He read law with Don C. Corbett, and has his office in the same building with Mr. Corbett.

Lewis Collner is a son of ex-Sheriff W. F. Collner, and was born and raised in Clarion county. After attending the public schools he attended Cheltenham academy and Media college, and afterwards the Law Department of the University of Pennsylvania at Phila- delphia, Pa.

Frank L. Harvey combines business with the law. He resides at Foxburg, Pa., and has charge of the Fox estate, and is largely interested in the Foxburg bank. He read law at Clarion, Pa., with J. T. Maffett, and after his admission opened an office at Fox- burg, Pa.

Suzanne S. Beatty .- The only lady ever admitted to the Clarion bar is Miss Suzanne S. Beatty, admitted in 1895. Miss Beatty was born and raised in Clarion, Pa., and for many years before her admission had been stenographer of the Clarion county courts. Her office is now in the Frick Building, Pittsburgh, Pa. She was recently admitted to the Allegheny county bar.

Important Cases .- In addition to the cases herein incidentally referred to in connection with certain counsel concerned therein, two or three more may be noted. It is a singular coincidence that two cases which went to the Supreme Court from the Common Pleas of Clarion county had more to do with set- tling the question of usury as to national banks than all other cases heretofore re-

ported from all the other states of the union.

Although the Supreme Court had previ- ously decided, substantially, that the taking, receiving or charging more than the legal rate of interest in the discount of a note by a national bank, destroyed the interest-bear- ing power of the instrument, it was not until the case of Guthrie for the use of the First National Bank of Clarion, Pa., v. Reid, 107 Pa. 251, that the doctrine was flatly an- nounced. The point decided in that case was stated by the court as follows: "Where a national bank takes, receives, or charges more than the legal rate of interest in the discount of a note, the interest-bearing pow- er of the note is destroyed, and remains destroyed until it is paid." This case was followed in other states and even in the United States Circuit Courts of Appeals.

Following the above case of Bank v. Reid, the United States Circuit Court of Appeals, for the District of New Jersey, December, 1891, held that a national bank which had purchased a note at 15 per cent discount was entitled to recover from the maker, although the maker had no knowledge of the discount, only what had been paid for the notes without interest. The court said in that case: "The usury destroyed the in- terest-bearing power of the note, and the bank cannot recover interest thereon from any one." This decision was based on the above cited case of Guthrie for the use of the Bank v. Reid. After this decision by the United States Circuit Court, the banking law journals took up the question, and, while criticising the decision, admitted it to be the law established by the courts. Thus this question rested until it again came before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in the case of the Second National Bank of Clarion, Pa., v. Lawson Morgan et al., 165 Pa. 199. In this latter case the Supreme Court re- versed the doctrine of Guthrie for use of Bank v. Reid. When the case of Lawson Morgan was reported in January, 1895, the

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banking law journals took up the question again, and the latter decision was conceded to be correct.

The case of Cook v. Forker, 193 Pa. 461, settled a debatable question as to the law of

Sunday. It is there decided that a note en- dorsed on Sunday, for which the endorsce receives a check, and gets that check cashed on a weck day, thereby becomes a binding contract on the endorser.

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WARREN COUNTY

BY JAMES O. PARMLEE

Warren county was ereated by Act of As- sembly of March 12, 1800, and its boundaries were surveyed and marked the same year. It was, however, attached to Crawford eounty for judicial purposes until April 6, 1805, when it was attached to Venango county, where it remained until March 16, 1819, the date of the approval of the act or- ganizing it for judicial and municipal pur- poses. It beeame, in 1805, part of the Sixth Judicial Distriet of the state, in which it remained, with the exception of five years, until 1874, when a new district was ereated, composed of Warren, Forest and Elk eoun- ties, and called the Thirty-seventh.

The first court was held at the town of Warren, then a small village in a eounty of about nineteen hundred inhabitants, eom- posed of two townships-Brokenstraw and Conewango. It was held in November, 1819, and was presided over by Hon. Jesse Moore, president, and Isaae Connely and Joseph Haekney, associate judges. Mainly through the efforts of the latter, then in the Legis- lature, the Aet of 1819 was passed. It is worthy of remark that one of the present associates, A. Tanner Hackney, is his grand- son.

Hon. Henry Shippen was appointed presi- dent judge of the district in 1825. Warren eounty was taken out of the distriet and made part of the Eighteenth distriet, and Hon. Nathaniel B. Eldred appointed presi- dent judge in 1835. He was sueeeeded by Hon. Alexander McCalmont in 1839. The eounty was restored to the Sixth distriet in 1840, of which Hon. N. B. Eldred was presi- dent judge. A "District Court" was cre-

ated in the Sixth judicial district in 1840, for five years, and Hon. James Thompson, afterwards of the supreme bench, was ap- pointed and served as its judge.

Judge Eldred was sueeeeded by Hon. Gay- lord Church, of Meadville, in 1843. Hon. John Galbraith, of Erie, was elected presi- dent judge in 1851. Dying in 1860, the va- eaney thus caused was filled by the appoint- ment of Hon. Rasselas Brown, of Warren. In the election of that year Hon. Samuel P. Johnson, of Warren, succeeded him. The latter served his full term of ten years and was suceeeded by HIon. L. D. Wetmore, of Warren, in 1870. The Sixth district, eom- posed of Erie, Crawford and Warren eoun- ties sinee 1849, was narrowed to Erie and Warren counties in 1870.

An additional law judgeship was created for the Sixth district in 1856. The post was filled by Hon. David Derriekson, of Mead- ville, for the first ten years, and by Hon. John P. Vineent, of Erie, until 1873.

In the new district formed by the Aet of 1874 and ealled the Thirty-seventh. then composed of the counties of Elk, Warren and Forest, now of the two latter, Hon. Wil- liam D. Brown, of Warren, was elected presi- dent judge in 1880 and was succeeded in 1890 by Hon. Charles H. Noyes, of Warren, who died in 1898. Hon. Wilton M. Lindsey, of Warren, was appointed to succeed him, and in the fall of the same year was elected to a full term of ten years, and is the pres- ent ineumbent of the office.

Thus it will be seen that from 1860 to the present time, no matter of what judicial distriet she was a part, to Warren county

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has eome the honor and prestige of furnish- 'ing the president judge of the distriet, which faet speaks louder than volumes of eulogy for the character and attainments of the Warren bar at which these gentlemen prae- ticed and where the praetieal part of their legal edueation was obtained.

From the list of judges which Warren has furnished should not be omitted the name of Hon. Glenni W. Scofield, who served for a short time as the president judge of a neighboring distriet. But that his country greatly needed hin in the halls of Congress during the trying days of the Civil war and the period of reconstruction, his distriet would doubtless have availed itself of his eminent judicial ability, but his were higher stations. He served twelve years in Con- gress, several years as Register of the United States treasury and ended his days as a judge of the Court of Claims at Washing- ton.

Hon. Jesse Moore was a gentleman of the old school-dignified but courteous, learned but not brilliant, characterized by stern in- tegrity and freedom from prejudice. He was a short, thick-set man, with a benignant . countenance, partially bald head, with well- powdered hair and broad-brimmed, drab- colored hat. He died suddenly while still in the prime of life and maturity of intelleet, honored and lamented by all.

Henry Shippen .- As to his sueeessor, Judge Shippen, I cannot do better than to present an extract, somewhat condensed, from Judge Johnson's unpublished "Rem- iniseenees of the Beneh and Bar of Warren County":

"Judge Shippen was from Huntingdon county, a man of large physical dimensions, full six feet high, with broad shoulders and a well-rounded eorporosity, and would have brought down the seales at two hundred. His means of convevanee over his large dis- triet was a large bay horse, fat and power- ful, to which his heavy rider seemed no bur-

den. With an instinet bordering on reason and an affeetion almost human, he would crowd up to his master and invite him to mount. Intellectually Judge Shippen was not a brilliant man. His perceptive faculties were not very quiek or active, but his re- flective organs were well developed and al- ways at hand. IIe viewed everything thoughtfully and spoke with refleetion and deliberation. His genial nature removed all embarrassment in his presenee. Integrity and candor were so indelibly impressed on his eountenance that dishonesty dare not ap- proach him. His judgment was sound, al- ways verging to the right and equity of the case. But few of his cases went to the Su- preme Court. Another reason may be as- signed for the paucity of his cases that were appealed. It was not until after his term that the type and printing press were brought into serviee in the preparation of 'paper books.' Prior to 1836 they were re- quired to be written out in a good, legible handwriting, one for each of the justiees, one for the prothonotary and one for the de- fendant in error. While there were but three justices on the Supreme beneh up to 1825, the preparation of five written eopies was not so bad, though a good deal of a task. If written copies were now the rule, the number of writs of error would be much diminished or the Supreme Court fee bill would be enlarged. No judge of this dis- triet ever had the confidenee and respect of the people in a higher degree than Judge Shippen. IIe possessed in a large measure that quality which Judge Church pro- nounced the highest qualifieation of a good judge-patienee. He was a good listener, never speaking until his turn eame. No law- yer, young or old, wise or foolish, was ever snubbed by him. Yet on one oceasion his patience gave out. Developments of rank dishonesty always brought a frown to his countenance and created a propensity to scratch one arm with the other hand. The

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occasion was this: Nathaniel A. Lowry in those days was largely engaged in mercan- tile and lumbering business on the Cone- wango creek and Allegheny river. Among other schemes his covetous eye rested on the bounty land of old Cornplanter, of six hun- dred and forty aeres in Elk township, along the river, known as the Cornplanter reserva- tion. In 1835, to the surprise of all, he en- tered up a judgment and issued an exeeution against John O'Bail, alias The Cornplanter, for $3,000. It took the old Indian a good while to find out what it meant. By advice of his friend, Robert Falconer, he appealed to Struthers and Johnson, practieing attor- neys in Warren, for relief. They readily obtained a rule to show eause why the judg- ment should not be opened, and the execu- tion was stayed in the meantime. The judge was one of many in those days who enter- tained a high regard, bordering on venera- tion, for the old patriotie friend of General Washington. The hearing eame on the first thing at the next court. As was the prac- tice then in such cases, the witnesses were examined in open court. They were all na- tive Senecas who were duly sworn by the 'Great Spirit' to tell the truth and the whole truth. They all told the same simple story, that a number of the Indians were as- sembled at Bucktooth or Cold Spring or some point on the reservation, at the request of Lowry, to rent him a small piece of ground on the reservation. After that was agreed upon and paid for, Lowry said to Cornplanter that he wanted leave to cut a little timber on the rented land and he wished he would give a little writing to that effect to show, to which the chief assented. Lowry sat down and drew up the note for $3,000, on which this judgment was entered, took the interpreter one side, gave him five dollars and instrueted him how to interpret the paper (this last was hearsay), and it was interpreted as giving Lowry the right to a few timber trees and it was so signed. By

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The twentieth century bench and bar of Pennsylvania, volume I, Part 46

Author: Publication date: 1903 Publisher: Chicago, H. C. Cooper, jr., bro. & co. Number of Pages: 1102

Author:
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Chicago, H. C. Cooper, jr., bro. & co.
Number of Pages: 1102