USA > Wisconsin > Monroe County > History of Monroe County, Wisconsin, past and present : including an account of the cities, towns and villages of the county [microform] > Part 45
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In the spring of 1866 Mr. Graham returned to Sparta and afterwards took up his residence in Tomah and the practice of his profession. He served one term as county judge of this county. He still resides at Tomah and has served as postmaster for several years last past. As a lawyer, Mr. Graham has always occupied a high place in the bar of western Wisconsin. In his earlier practice he was pitted against such men as L. W. Graves. J. M. Morrow and S. N. Dickinson. A deep student. he had a thorough knowledge of legal principles and practice, coupled with a keen perception of the salient points of the case on trial, gifted far beyond the ordinary with the command of language and the power to express his thoughts most eloquently. he became an ideal trial lawyer, one of the best. Intensely patriotic. a firm believer in the saying, "In times of peace prepare for war," he gave a practical demonstration of his convictions by organizing
IION. ROBERT B. M'COY
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an independent military company at Tomah in 1883, and suc- ceeded in having it mustered into the service of the state of Wisconsin on May 28, 1884, as Company K, Third Regiment, Wisconsin National Guard. He commanded the company for a number of years, bringing it to a high state of efficiency.
Mr. Graham saw the advantages of the present site of the Wisconsin military reservation, and called the attention of Gen. C. P. Chapman, then adjutant general, to it with the result that the fine camp and maneuver ground was acquired by the state. His efforts, however, were principally directed to rifle practice, which he earnestly promoted among the companies of the Third Regiment, and after his retirement as captain of Company K he was appointed inspector of small arms practice with the rank of colonel on the staff of the governor. Bringing to this work all the enthusiasm and earnestness of which he was capable and brought the attention of the entire national guard of the country to Wisconsin's "shooting regiments," and to his efforts is due the eredit of laying the groundwork in rifle practice in the state, and under his administration a high development was attained in this most important work.
Mr. Graham was appointed to the position of inspector of small arms practice January 7, 1895, and served until 1906, when he retired, carrying with him the respect and gratitude of every offieer and man in the Wisconsin guard, which has been exemplified in the naming of a trophy which is competed for annually at Camp Douglas. known as the "Graham Trophy." Colonel Graham, like some other people, has "hobbies," and one of them which the editor remembers to have heard him talk about a great many years ago, and that was the improvement of Superior avenue by boulevarding the lower end outside of the business section, in the center, and he has lived to see his early suggestions substantially carried out in the beautiful street as now completed.
CHAPTER L. THE MEDICAL FRATERNITY.
BY W. B. FORD, M. D.
As far back as history takes us we find that as soon as men began to dwell together in the primitive tribe, there was one of this number who was known as the "Medicine Man." In Biblical times people lived to be much older than now, and were evidently not as much subject to siekness and disease, so our medicine man could serve many, but sooner or later siekness has overtaken all and then they seek the aid of one who knows something of the healing art. In those primitive times the heal- ers sought to cure people by charms and by driving away the evil spirit through noises, and thus they beat on drums and sang songs. This primitive idea has not altogether disappeared to the present day, as witnessed by Dowieism and other cults, who maintain that disease is the work of the devil, who must first be driven out before the person can get well.
Following the idea of charming away disease came the dia- tetic idea, in which health was to be maintained only through the eating of certain foods and avoiding others. This was exemplified by the Jewish race.
Next we come to the physiologie period, when the functions of the various organs were paramount, and the symptoms they produced were the sole thing to be regarded in treating disease. To a certain extent this is used to the present day, but we have added to it the etiologie period of medicine, in which we endeavor to discover the cause of the disordered function of any organ. This has been made possible only through the vast labo- ratory researches that have been carried out during the past fifty years, by the discovery of bacteria and by animal experi- ments to determine the part the bacteria play in man's anatomy. Also in the discovery of the cell or nuit of which our body is composed and observing the changes that occur in these cells as the result of disease. Thus it is that medicine has changed from an act to a science. It has not reached the pinacle of an exact science, but it is approaching that goal. When we con-
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sider how we have conquered many of the dread diseases, as diphtheria, typhoid fever, malaria, ete., and robbed them of their terror through the knowledge of their cause and the appli- cation of the one and the only thing that will destroy that par- ticular cause, then we begin to realize what is being aceom- plished in modern medicine.
The Panama Canal stands not only as a monument to the skill and energy of American engineers, but even more to the glory of American physicians. DeLessep's failure was not due to a lack of skill or courage on his part, but to yellow fever and malaria. The medical profession has paved the way for this great undertaking by discovering and proving that certain mosquitos are responsible for the spread of both these dread diseases, but not until two loyal and unselfish physicians, Car- roll and Lazear, had given their lives to prove this. Today we know that if we destroy the mosquito we can stamp out yellow fever and malaria. As a result of the energies of the American physician the Canal Zone, with its heterogencous population, has been made more healthy than New York City.
When Monroe county was first organized and began to be settled the etiologie phase of medicine was unknown. All the diseases we now know were known then and were perfectly described except for their cause, and armed with this knowledge the pioneer doctors came into this wilderness and worked hard and faithfully in the endeavor to relieve the suffering of their fellow men. At first it was necessary to send to La Crosse as the nearest place to obtain a doctor. Consequently, the mother of the family applied "home remedies" as long as she could before sending for a doctor, who often came too late. There was, therefore, great rejoicing when the first doctor came into the county and cast his lot with those early pioneers. The people were scattered and drives were long and hard, especially in the winter. In those days there were not the fine roads we have now, but one had to pick his way around stumps, over logs and through creeks. Many times the doctor had to go a foot or on horseback because the roads would not permit the use of a buggy. Without the telephone a man had to drive for the doe- tor, and if he lived twenty or thirty miles away the doctor could not get there until the next day. Many trips were so long that it required two days to make the trip and return. The people were very poor and were unable to pay more than a very meager compensation or nothing at all for the services rendered. However, those early men cared not for that, they went and did
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all they could to relieve the suffering. They often had to act as nurse as well as physician. They sat by the sick bed for long weary hours to see whether the spark of life was going to be snuffed out or would take on added vigor and begin to burn anew. They were the recipients of family secrets and their advice was sought in times of trouble. They healed and soothed the troubled mind. soul, and body, with their cheerful words, kindly advice, or some simple decoction. Is it any wonder that they gained a place in the hearts of the people that could not be supplanted, and as long as they were able to drag one foot were songht, and no one else would do but the old family doctor ?
As preachers and lawyers were equally scarce, the doctor was called upon to perform the services of both, and was held to be thoroughly competent. In those days there were no specialists. so the family doctor administered to all ailments. Today cer- tain men specialize on different parts of the body. and become more expert in dealing with that part. They are thus enabled to give the people better service. but in order to do this they have sacrificed much in the love and esteem in which they were held in the hearts of the people. Who would think of going to an eye specialist or an abdominal surgeon with his family troubles and expect sympathy and advice? The days of the old-time family physician are past. To be sure. we still have the general practitioner who looks after the general sickness in the family. and is ready to call the aid of someone especially skilled when needed. Indeed, this must be so, when we consider what is being done all around us. Some wealthy men. as John D. Rockefeller and McCormick. have given large sums of money to establish research laboratories, to equip them, and to pay men to devote their whole lives to the study of one disease, as infantile paralysis. etc.
Some men are devoting their lives and energies to perform- ing and perfecting surgical operations, so that today there is not a single organ of the body that is not the subject of opera- tion. And then there is the pathologist and physiologist, who works in the laboratory experimenting with animals to ascertain the cause of disease and its treatment before applying the same to man (yet there are those who would say do not experiment with animals in order to learn how to save a human life. but rather let man die). When we consider these and the many more departments of medicine, with all the accumulating knowledge it is no wonder that one poor man cannot master them all.
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About the only thing that keeps alive the old spark of gratitude and love for the general practitioner is his obstetrics. He who stands beside a woman during her suffering and com- forts her and encourages her in her great and holy, yet trying mission, of bringing a new soul into the world endears himself to her in a way that it not easily forgotten or cast aside. What a pleasure it is and what gratitude one receives only he who has had the experience knows.
The doctor's life must be an unselfish one, for how often is he aroused from a sound sleep or disturbed while at a meeting, a social gathering, to go and relieve the suffering. If he is for- tunate enough to make a discovery or invent some new instru- ment he does not hurry to the patent office to protect himself and enrich his purse, but gladly gives his knowledge to his brothers for the good of mankind. This has been handed down to him from the days of Hippocrates that he is in honor bound to impart all good knowledge to his worthy brother practition- ers. Neither does he go to the newspaper office that his fame may be heralded abroad, but rather spreads the glad tidings only among those who will be able to use them. And many is the doctor, whose epitaph has overtaken him, long before his good works are known. Grant, Sherman and Napoleon are household names, because they have commanded armies and lead many men to death, while Pasteur, Koch, Virchon, Senn, Billings, and hosts of others, are hardly known, and yet for every life the generals have sacrificed these men have saved hundreds. Few people know what a debt they owe to Lord Lister, when he dis- covered that by the use of antiseptic, surgical operations could be performed without being followed by the dread hospital gan- grene or suppuration. This, together with the use af anaes- thesia, has enabled the surgeon to go fearlessly at his task, and thus Darwin's law of the "survival of the fittest" no longer applies.
As there are no large cities in this county, hospitals were slow to make their appearance, and the doctors were compelled to perform many operations in private houses, which they did with the skill and success of their more fortunate brethren at the hospital in the cities.
A doctor not only devotes his time and energies to the study of cause and treatment of disease, but places before himself the higher ideal of preventive medicine. Thus, he goes about telling people how to live to avoid sickness. However, they are
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very slow to change their habits that they may enjoy better health. If you tell them to eat plainer food and masticate it more thoroughly, so as to avoid dyspepsia, they think they are wasting too much time. If you tell him to live in the sunshine and exercise more they are afraid they will neglect their busi- ness. When you tell them to breathe plenty of fresh air and sleep with their windows open at night. they are greatly alarmed Jest some dread monster will come in with the "night air," lit- tle thinking that after sun down all air is "night air." People are no more ready to harken to our modern physicians than they were to the Great Physician when He said. "Oh. Jerusalem. Jerusalem, how oft would I have gathered you under my wings as a hen gathers her chickens, and ve would not."
(The above excellent article is here supplemented by the lives of physicians of the county, living and dead, as far as we have been able to obtain them .- Editor.)
Martin Rockwell Gage, M. D., deceased, who for many years was one of the most prominent and well known physicians of western Wisconsin, was born in Bellona, Yates county, N. Y., in 1825. His father. Martin . Gage, was also a native of the Empire state, and by occupation a merchant, which business he success- fully followed in the state of New York, where he died at the age of fifty years. Soon after the death of her husband. Mrs. Gage removed to East Saginaw, Mich .. and died there at the age of eighty. The Gage family were of English origin, and the ancestors of Dr. Gage were among the early pioneers of New England.
Dr. Gage was one of a family of six children. five brothers and one sister. all of whom lived to a mature age. Mary Ann, the sister, married S. M. Whittaker, and died many years ago. D. W. C. Gage, eldest brother of Dr. Gage, studied law in the office of Judge Folger, of Geneva. N. Y., and after being admitted to the bar. located at East Saginaw, Mich., in 1856, and engaged in the practice of his profession, and there died in 1889. Erasmus D. resided at Geneva, and for many years was in the employ of the New York Central Railway. He entered the army in 1861. as captain of a company in the One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Regiment. New York Volunteers. He was seriously wounded in the head which caused him to leave the army for a time, but recovering from his injury he re-entered the army and was placed in command of a regiment and was killed at the battle of Cold Harbor. Charles Carroll Gage was an attorney at law and for a time was engaged in the practice with M. P. Wing at
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La Crosse. After a brief illness he died at Sparta. Daniel Web- ster Gage, when eighteen years of age, went to California, and afterwards to Arizona, where he died in 1891.
Dr. Gage received his education in Geneva, N. Y. He began the study of medicine in the office of Dr. E. S. Smith, of Bellona, Yates county, and began his collegiate medical course at the Geneva college. IIe later attended the Buffalo Medical College, but returned to Geneva, and graduated from the medical depart- ment of that college with the class of June 26, 1852. He began practice with his preceptor at Bellona, N. Y., but later went to Coudersport. Pa., where he remained until 1854, when he came to Wisconsin and first located at Beloit, and there resided until he came to Sparta. In August, 1862. he entered the army as surgeon of the Twenty-fifth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers, remaining with this regiment until the Atlanta campaign, being then ordered on detail duty, and so continued to the close of the war. While in the army he was for a thne. in 1863. acting medical director of the military district of Columbus, Ky .; was brigade surgeon in Gen. Nathan Kimball's division on the forced march from Satartia to Snyder's Bluff, Miss., about June 1, 1863, and was present at the seige of Vicksburg, and acting division surgeon of General Vietch's division of Sherman's army during its march from Vicksburg to Meridian. Miss., in 1864. At the close of the war he returned to Sparta and resumed the practice of his profession, in which he engaged for fifty-one years. He was a close student and devoted himself assiduously to his pro- fession, attaining to a position of prominence as one of the most learned and skillful physicians in Wisconsin. He was possessed of a cheerful disposition, was broad minded and liberal in his views, and those traits endeared him to those with whom he came in contact. In 1877 he became associated with Dr. D. C. Beebe. another well known physician of Sparta. under the firm name of Gage and Beebe. Later Dr. W. T. Sarles became connected with the firm, which arrangement continued until 1888, when Dr. Gage withdrew, and was ever after in practice alone.
Before coming to Wisconsin he served as county superin- tendent of schools in Potter county, Pennsylvania, and was the first county superintendent of schools in Monroe county, under the act of the legislature creating that office, resigning the posi- tion when commissioned surgeon of the Twenty-fifth Wisconsin Regiment. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Medical Society, and of the American Medical Association, and was
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physician for the State Public School for Dependent Children, located at Sparta.
Politically a Democrat. he was candidate for the state legis- lature in 1865, and though he ran far ahead of his ticket. he was defeated. In 1876 he was chosen by his party as a candidate for congress for the Seventh Congressional district, but as his dis- triet was overwhelmingly Republican, he again suffered defeat with the others of his party. Socially, he was a member of the Knights of Pythias, and prominently identified with the Masonic Order, being a member of Valley Lodge, No. 60, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, Sparta Chapter. No. 19, Royal Arch Masons, and Sparta Commandery, No. 16, Knights Templar.
Dr. Gage was twice married. His first wife, whom he mar- ried at the "Ladies' Seminary," Elmira, N. Y .. where she was a teacher, died two years after their marriage. On May 27, 1858, the doctor was united in marriage with Miss Maria Louise Mar- tin, daughter of Nathaniel and Octaria W. Martin, of Beloit, Wis. After forty-five years of happy married life, Dr. Gage was called to his great reward ; his death occurred February 25, 1903, and was mourned by his many friends and the citizens generally as a great publie loss. His widow. who still survives. is a descend- ant of an old and prominent New England family. She was born at Westfield. N. Y .. and came with her parents to Wis- consin at the age of eight years, receiving her education at the academy at Southport. now Kenosha. She is a lady of rare mental attainments. kindhearted and generous, and con- tributes liberally of her means to the support of all worthy causes. never forgetting to bestow kindly tokens of respect upon her many and dear friends.
DeWitt C. Beebe, M. D., was born at Rupert, Vt., February 19. 1838. passing his early life in his native state. He received his medical education at Belleone Hospital Medical College, New York City, and at Albany (N. Y.) Medical College, from which institution he graduated. Early in the War of the Rebellion he entered the army as surgeon in the Fourth New York Cavalry, in which he served until the close of the war. Soon after the declaration of peace the doctor came west. locating in Sparta. and later became associated with Dr. M. R. Gage, under the firm name of Gage & Beebe, which continued for a great many years. later Dr. W. T. Sarles was taken into the firm, which was styled, Gage. Beebe & Sarles.
Dr. Beebe was a Mason and member of the Knights of Pythias, and served as state medical examiner of the Ancient
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Order of United Workmen during the prosperous days of the order. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Medical Society and the Central Wisconsin Medical Society, and served for many years as a member of the local board of United States Pension Examiners.
Dr. Beebe was a man of strong religions tendencies, and was connected with the Congregational Church for more than a quarter of a century ; was prominent in its affairs and devoted much time to the work, especially in connection with the Sunday school, of which he was superintendent for a long period. At this church, every year, for more than twenty years, he con- ducted the memorial service on the Sunday preceding Decoration Day. Strong in his patriotism, he was prominent in G. A. R. circles, and it was principally through his untiring efforts that the Soldiers' Monument, now standing in North Park, was finally completed and presented to the city of Sparta. His good citi- zenship was further exemplified by his long service as a member of the board of education, and accomplished much for the Sparta schools by his broad minded policies ; served the city as mayor, and at the time of his death had served two years as postmaster ; under his administration the free delivery system was inaugu- rated. Dr. Beebe was a strong man and noted for having the courage of his convictions, a man of ideals who held to them steadfastly, once he was convinced of their righteousness; one of those men who in a way dominate in a community, but always in the interest of progress and good government. Ile was a stanch Republican, and high in the councils of his party. At all times a deep student, his professional career was marked by great success and in the latter years of his life his advice and counsel was much sought by other physicians. He died at his home in Sparta, July 4, 1908, leaving surviving him his widow and four children.
He was married in the town of his birth to Mary C. Sheldon on the 31st day of May, 1863; five children came to them, Carl M. and Spencer D., both practicing physicians, now located in Sparta : July M., now deceased : Mamie, the wife of P. H. Ber- trand, now living at Jefferson City, Kan., and Alice M., who lives with her mother in the Sparta home.
George W. Milligan, M. D., is the oldest physician in Sparta. Wis., having located in that city in 1852, since which time he has been in continuous practice. He was born March 11, 1826, in Cairo, Green county, N. Y., a son of James A. and Eleanor Mille- gan, the former of whom was a native of Green county. James
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A. Millegan grew to manhood and married in the county of his birth, subsequently moving west and located at several points in the Middle West, finally going to Montana, where he died. He was a farmer by occupation.
Dr. Millegan attended a common school of his neighborhood and was quite young when he commenced the study of medicine. meanwhile engaged in various pursnits. In 1849 he graduated from the Pittsfield College and afterward continued his studies until 1852, when, after a short experience in the East, he came to Sparta, where he has made his home to the present day. When Dr. Millegan first came to Sparta it was a village of about two or three hundred inhabitants, and as he was the first physician to settle in the county, it is related that great enthusiasm was manifested when he arrived, and the people turned out and gave him a grand reception. He has from the very first been suc- cessful in his professional career, and in his long experience he has gained the confidence of the community in which he has so long lived. During the Civil War. Dr. Millegan was examin- ing surgeon for the district, and has served as county physician for Monroe county, but, owing to his advanced age, he has retired from the active practice of medicine, occasionally giving his valuable advice and consultations, however.
For a great many years he was associated with Dr. H. II. Williams under the firm name of Millegan & Williams; but for a number of years, owing to his advanced years, he has retired from active practice and is living a quiet life in his old home in Sparta. Genial, kindly, strong in his profession. Dr. Millegan is surely one of the history makers in this part of the state. a man who has placed the mark of his personality upon the com- mumity in which he has so long and honorabiy resided.
Fred P. Stiles, M. D., up until very recently, when he removed to Racine. Wis., was one of the most prominent residents of Sparta. Wis., both as a successful physician and a publie-spirted citizen : he is from sturdy New England stock, his first Ameri- ean ancestor. Robert Stiles, having landed on the Massachusetts roast in 1639. The doctor traces his decent through an unbroken line and in the records of the seventh generation he finds that a Stiles married a sister of the famous Rebecca Morac, who was hanged as a witch during the witcheraft excitement at Salem.
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