USA > Wisconsin > History of the bench and bar of Wisconsin, Vol. I > Part 25
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"During the period of his general practice of the law, from 1858 to 1876, it did not fall to the lot of Judge Newman to take part in litiga- tion so important by reason of the amounts involved or the standing of the parties as to attract general attention to his abilities; but he be- came well known in the region to which his practice was confined as a well equipped and successful practitioner, and a thorough, sound and
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reliable professionaladviser, that he was a close student of the philosophy of the law and well grounded in the fundamentals of legal science. His studious habits and eagerness for the acquisition of knowledge were not confined to the law. His general reading was extensive but dis- criminating in every department of literature.
"In professional as well as private life his conduct and conversation were irreproachable. On the circuit bench he was kindly and patient in his treatment of the bar, and at the same time firm and tenacious in upholding the rights and discharging the full duty of the court. He was prompt and clear in passing upon questions arising in the course of a trial, and freely exercised his powers as a judge to keep the issue necessary to be decided by the court or jury unobscured by ir- relevant or immaterial matters.
"Only those who were with him in the consultation room can speak of what he contributed to the solution of the numerous and important questions presented during the four years of his service on the su- preme bench; but it is not to be doubted that he displayed in this office the same industry, patience, conscientious research and en- lightened judgment which mark his entire career. The opinions of the court which fell to his lot to write are generally brief, but always set out with force and clearness the very points effectually decided and the grounds of the decision.
"The simple statement we have given above of the official positions held by Judge Newman during the forty years of his life in Wisconsin shows the character and influence of the man. In the church, in so- ciety, in politics, at the bar and on the bench he gained the confidence of all who approached him, and in every position and relation he fully justified the confidence reposed in him.
"Such confidence came to him because he was pure in his private life; faithful to every trust; a lover of truth and justice; a learned, wise and conscientious judge. At every point of his life career in the state of his adoption his example tended to the maintenance of peace and order, religion, morality and justice.
"The state bar association recognizes that in the death of Justice
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Newman the bench has lost an enlightened and upright judge and the state a most useful and exemplary citizen."
In presenting the foregoing memorial J. W. Losey said he was im- pelled to say a few words for himself concerning the life of Judge New- man, whom he had known well for a period of almost two score years: "For thirty-five years, before moving to Madison, Judge New- man lived in the village of Trempealeau, a place of about five hundred people. He never dealt with great events upon which the eyes of the civilized world were turned. He lived a quiet life, in a quiet village. His nature was loyal and capable, as I know, of the strongest, disinter- ested and faithful friendships. He was a gentleman in the true sense of the word-I do not mean in outward polish of manner alone, but in the ever-conscious, instinctive sense of propriety. He always seemed to know the right thing. His integrity was of the finest character. He was the friend of all movements in behalf of humanity and education, and his humanity was as broad as the sky. On the bench he struck at once for the heart and justice of the case before him. He was fearless and never swerved from what he believed to be the right, and never thought of consequences to himself. In commenting on a case he once said he 'believed a lawyer must have an educated conscience to suc- ceed permanently.' In a trial his thought steered him through cob- webs and shams and enabled him to go right to the point. I do not believe he was ever conscious of prejudice or resentment toward any one. I practiced before him throughout his judicial career and I never heard an angry word from his lips; but he ruled his court with mailed hand and with dignity. In the performance of duty public clamor never moved him, and 'he would not follow the multitude to do evil.' As a man he was entirely frank and truthful. He had nothing to con- ceal, either in his private or public life. He had an amiable disposition, founded on gentleness and goodness of heart. He was modest and shrank from all notoriety. He was a person of even and unruffled temper. In all social relations his influence was deeply felt. His man- ners were simple and pleasing. He was gentle but firm; but gentle- ness is the surest evidence of firmness. His religious life was ex-
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emplary, and yet he never obtruded his beliefs. For thirty years he was at the head of a Sunday school in the village where he lived. Old and young dwelt on his words, and no one can estimate the effect of the lessons in morality inculcated by him in his teachings in this school, nor could those who heard him help being impressed by his - earnestness, candid and plain manner of talk, and the principles and lessons inculcated. It is a saying older than the Christian era 'that the life of a nation is in the breath of its children,' and the man who has the patience to voluntarily and persistently teach children is doing work for which but few are fitted and in which but few succeed. Judge Newman endeavored to obey the injunction: 'Fear God and keep his com- mandments, for this is the whole duty of man.'
"I thus sum up in a few words my estimate of his character. He was not great in the sense that by any great deed he added luster to the his- toric pages of the state of his adoption, but he had great character in the estimation of all who know him well and in the performance of every duty which pertained to any trust ever cast upon him by his fellow-men. Less ought not to be said; more than the simple truth, could he know, he would thank no man for saying."
J. M. Morrow and Burr W. Jones also made appropriate remarks concerning the life and character of the deceased. The response for the court was made by Chief Justice Cassoday, who said:
"After having served faithfully as a member of this court for four years and while on his way to the capitol to commence the labors of another year, our late Brother Newman became the victim of a cruel accident which might have happened to the young and strong as well as the aged and infirm, and twenty-six hours after he breathed his last. The shock came to his beloved family, the members of this court and the people of the state at large as an appalling tragedy. Two years ago he had the misfortune of having a partial stroke of paralysis which disabled him for some months and left him with his speech somewhat impaired, but otherwise in his normal condition. His efforts by exercise and treatment to regain what he had thus lost were heroic and constant. The night before the fatal accident he
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took his long and favorite walk of nearly four miles and while doing so congratulated himself upon the improvement in his speech and movements and upon the fact that from the opening of the court, the Ist of September, he had, on each assignment, been able to complete his opinions on time-an achievement which most of us had failed to accomplish. But his cherished hope of recovery was suddenly blasted by one misstep while in the exercise of special care. During his forty years' residence in this state his life has been an open book, nearly thirty-two years of that time were spent in public office- county judge, district attorney, member of assembly, state senator, be- sides more than seventeen years as circuit judge. His great popu- larity may readily be accounted for by those who knew him best. He was always modest, faithful, diligent and efficient in the per- formance of duty to the very best of his ability. Possessed of cour- age-moral and physical-equal to any undertaking, he, nevertheless, was naturally very diffident, shrinking from all controversy; rarely ag- gressive, never offensive. It may be safely assumed that he never actively sought office and seldom, if ever, refused office. He had a kind heart, a generous spirit and a broad Christian charity. In his Trempealeau home he was for many years the center of a large circle of friends who were enriched by his counsel and guided by his judgment. He had a remarkable memory, and on his long walks about the city, as conversation turned from one topic to another, he would illustrate the subject by apt quotations from Homer, Horace and Virgil, as well as English and American poets. It was certainly fitting that Hamilton college-his beloved alma mater-should, in the last year of his life, crown him with the high honor of LL. D.
"A good man with a life full of good works and an abiding Chris- tian faith has passed away. He was the sixth member of this court who has died in the harness-three of them in succession, suddenly and without warning. But the ranks are again closed and the court moves on in duty. Thus, it happens, that in the midst of life we find death; and yet, through the tender mercies of our Heavenly Father, death may be the door which enables the righteous to pass into a more
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active and nobler existence. The expressions of esteem which come from the bar are fully indorsed by the court."
In view of the fact that statements have been made in the press to the effect that Judge Newman's election as a member of the su- preme court was wholly owing to adventitious circumstances, the editor thinks it proper to add a brief statement of facts within his own knowledge and which are equally well known to others. In the first place, Judge Newman's election was contested by the friends of an able and experienced judge-Charles M. Webb, who was placed in nomination by a convention of lawyers, many of whom were among the leaders of the bar of this state. The result of that contest was that 123,476 votes were cast for Judge Newman and 73,803 for Judge Webb. The facts constituting the adventitious circumstances referred to were that some time before the spring election of 1893 Judge Newman was called to the ninth circuit to try what were known as the "state treasury cases." In those cases the state sought to recover from some of its former treasurers the moneys received by them as interest on state funds deposited by the treasurers in banks. The right of the treasurers to such interest had not previously been questioned, though the public, the state officers and the legislature had full knowledge of the fact that they had regarded such interest as a perquisite of office. Besides seeking to recover the moneys re- ceived by the treasurers the state sought also to recover interest thereon, so that the aggregate amount due was large, and inasmuch as the money recovered would reduce taxation for state purposes public interest in the litigation was keen. Judge Newman gave the state judgment and his judgment was affirmed by the supreme court, though not on precisely the grounds on which he proceeded. What influence these facts had in promoting the election of Judge Newman to the highest court in the state need not be considered. But that they were solely responsible therefor is not according to fact. Long be- fore they occurred the bar of his circuit was practically, if not wholly, united in desiring to see him a member of that court. That bar, then as now, comprised men of the highest character and of large profes-
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sional attainments, men who had practiced before him for years and who esteemed him highly for his personal qualities and regarded him as the ideal circuit judge. Neither as man nor judge does the memory of Judge Newman require vindication in the judgment of the people of this state, but so much has been written in order that, possibly, the future may not do injustice to his memory.
In politics Judge Newman was a republican, his first vote being cast for John C. Fremont for President. From that time on he never found cause for changing his party allegiance.
Harlow S. Orton became chief justice on the retirement of Judge Lyon and was such at the time of his death. Thereupon Judge Casso- day became the presiding officer of the court. Roujet D. Marshall qualified as justice on the 5th of August, 1895.
ROUJET DE LISLE MARSHALL.
R. D. Marshall, justice of the supreme court of the state of Wis- consin, is one of the strongest characters which figure in the history of its bench and bar. Whether considered as a practitioner or a judge his career throughout has evinced not only remarkable energy and un- tiring industry, but that particular poise of professional character and great reserved force which have marked him as a man of continual advancement.
Judge Marshall was born in Nashua, N. H., on December 26, 1847, his father, Thomas Marshall, who was also a native of the Granite state, being in early life a manufacturer of cotton goods at the above named place.
The American founder of the family was Thomas Marshall, who came from England in 1633, settled in Boston and, as stated in the early records, "kept a ferry from the mill point unto Charlestown and Win- nissimmet." One of his sons led a force of militiamen under the doughty old fighter Colonel Josiah Winslow, in his campaign against the Narragansetts, and was killed by the Indians in 1675. The great- grandfather of the judge, Joseph Marshall, was born at Chelmsford, Mass., in 1734, participating in the battle of Lexington, the siege of
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Boston, and the battles of Bunker Hill and Bennington. Before the engagement last named he had removed to Ware, N. H., his son, Thomas, and the grandfather of our subject, becoming a resident of Bradford, which was the birthplace of Judge Marshall's father.
His mother, Emeline (Pitkin) Marshall, was of that noted family which numbers among its members William Pitkin, who emigrated from England in 1659 and became the first attorney general of Con- necticut; Colonel George Pitkin, who was a leader at the siege of Bos- ton, and William Pitkin, who was one of the drafters of the plan for colonial union adopted at Albany in 1754 and which was the fore- runner of the articles of confederation and the national constitution. Emeline Pitkin was born on a Vermont farm in 1820 and was married to Thomas Marshall in 1842.
On account of ill health the latter was obliged to retire from the business of cotton manufacturing, and in 1854 removed with his family from Nashua, N. H., to Delton, Sauk county, Wisconsin. The son, Roujet, was then seven years of age, and in the common schools and an academy of that place he received most of his early education. The Baraboo academy and Lawrence university, at Appleton, also ad- vanced him in the higher branches. He had already commenced the study of law, however, and in March, 1873, was admitted to practice at Baraboo, Wisconsin, previous to his admission to the bar having filled the positions of justice of the peace and member of the school board.
Mr. Marshall's legal career was begun at Chippewa Falls as a part- ner with N. W. Wheeler, the style of the firm being Wheeler & Mar- shall. His remarkable strength of body and of mind, his breadth of intellect and his familiarity with the details of the great lumber in- terests of the Chippewa Valley enabled him to successfully develop a legal business which was as large in volume as it was important in its nature. While carrying on these heavy interests he also served for six years as judge of Chippewa county-from 1876 to 1881-when he severed his connection with Mr. Wheeler.
Judge Marshall next formed a partnership with John J. Jenkins,
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which continued until 1889, when he was elected judge of the eleventh judicial circuit, having for the preceding five years (1884-89) served on the board of regents of the state university. As stated by General Ed- win E. Bryant in his "History of the Supreme Bench of Wisconsin:" "The business of this circuit was large, involving important litigation. It was greatly increased by the sudden growth of the city of Superior and the extension of numerous railroads into the northern portion of the state, resulting in increase of population and manufacturing inter- ests. Judge Marshall performed this laborious duty with such ability and such energy withal as to indicate to the profession, and the public as well, that the state needed his services in the larger judicial field. He was reëlected to the circuit without opposition in 1894. Upon the death of Chief Justice Orton, in 1895, Judge Marshall was ap- pointed by Governor Upham to the resulting vacancy as associate justice, after nearly seven years' service on the circuit. He entered upon the duties of this place at the September term, 1895. He was elected by the people without opposition in April, 1896, to fill the unexpired term. In the recent April election he was reelected for the full ten- year term by a unanimous vote, a testimonial of confidence which he has fairly earned (term expires the first Monday in January, 1908). Young, strong, with a capacity for work such as few men possess, a long career of usefulness may well be predicted of this jurist."
Although Judge Marshall's elevation to the bench was an honor which he deeply appreciated, still it involved a financial sacrifice which few of the profession would have so promptly accepted. His practice had largely pertained to corporation law and to real estate and busi- ness transactions of great magnitude, the result naturally being that it was most gratifying both as to remuneration and the importance of the legal questions involved. But the unanimity with which he was repeatedly called to the bench placed the honor before him in the light of a duty which should be performed even at the sacrifice of private interests.
In politics Judge Marshall is a republican. He is an adherent to the Methodist faith, although not a member of the church. His wife
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was Miss Mary E. Jenkins, of Baraboo, to whom he was married in 1869.
At the request of the editor a member of the bar of Judge Mar- shall's circuit has written of the latter's career at the bar and on the circuit bench. Of his work on the supreme bench it is not necessary to say anything; his opinions speak for him. The same wonderful in- dustry which characterized him as lawyer and circuit judge has fol- lowed him to the supreme court, and there attracts attention even among the very industrious men with whom he is associated.
"During the years that Mr. Marshall was at the bar the immense lumber interests of northern Wisconsin were being developed and or- ganized. As the attorney and confidential adviser of most of the large corporations created to conduct this business Judge Marshall's abilities found a wide field. Combining legal attainments of a high order with the judgment and foresight of the successful man of business, his great energies, for many years prior to his election to the bench, were largely employed in shaping the policies and protecting the legal rights of the numerous lumber companies doing business on the Chippewa and Eau Claire rivers and their tributaries.
"Outside of strictly corporation work the general practice of his firm was likewise large, and for some years prior to 1888 Marshall & Jenkins had the most important and lucrative law practice in the northern portion of the state, if not in the entire state.
"As a practitioner Judge Marshall was noted for his careful prepara- tion of cases, remarkable grasp of details, familiarity with legal prin- ciples, stubborn tenacity of purpose and unyielding loyalty to the in- terest of his clients. As a trial lawyer he was solid rather than showy. Although more than ordinarily successful as a jury lawyer, he was not a forensic orator within the usual meaning of that term. He secured verdicts by force of clear and logical presentation of evidence rather than by any trick of eloquence in reviewing it before the jury. His career on the circuit bench was an enviable one. He was elected judge of the eleventh judicial circuit in the spring of 1887, after a contest somewhat unique in the history of the state. At that time the
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anti-corporation fever was raging with much vehemence in northern Wisconsin and a vigorous campaign was made against Mr. Marshall on the ground that he was a corporation lawyer. He and his supporters accepted the issue tendered by the opposition and, Mr. Marshall's abil- ity being conceded by all, the question whether a corporation lawyer was disqualified on that account for holding judicial office was fought out with great vigor by the voters of the circuit. Mr. Marshall's elec- tion by an overwhelming majority showed that it is not always easy to stampede the people by a senseless cry, and his subsequent conduct on the bench proved how senseless indeed the cry of his opponents had been. If any just criticism could be made of his impartiality as a judge it was not that he favored corporations. The bent of his mind seemed rather to be towards holding them to the strictest account- ability, and he had not long presided as judge before those who had been most bitter in opposition were loudest in praise of his inde- pendence and impartiality. The eleventh judicial circuit is the largest in area in the state and has always been a field of much and important litigation. At the time of Mr. Marshall's election to the judgeship the amount of legal business, which had for some years been accumulating in it, was very large, while the remarkable development of Douglas and other of the northern counties, then just setting in, added greatly to the natural volume of court business. Judge Marshall's well known capacity for work was for several years put to the severest test. It is a matter of record that during his first term of office more jury cases were disposed of in his court than in any two circuits in the state com- bined. Nor did the character of his work suffer by comparison with that of the learned judge whom he succeeded or of the very able judges then presiding over the other judicial circuits of the state.
"He possesses the judicial temperament. As a judge he was clear and cool headed, free from marked prejudices, unmoved by popular clamor or opinion, quick in decision, accurate and logical in expression, and, withal, possessing that impressive dignity of conduct and carriage so essential to round out the popular conception of the model judge."
The untimely death of Judge Newman caused the next change in
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the personnel of the court and Charles V. Bardeen was appointed his successor.
CHARLES VALDO BARDEEN.
Charles V. Bardeen, a justice of the supreme court, is a native of the state of New York, being born in Brookfield, Madison county, on September 23, 1850. His parents were Rasselas and Maria (Palmer) Bardeen, his father being a farmer and migrating to the town of Albion, Dane county, Wisconsin, when the boy was but five years of age. Here his younger days were passed, and, after he had graduated from the district school and the Albion academy, he naturally gravitated to the University of Wisconsin. Although he entered as a junior student, on account of failing eyesight he was unable to complete his course. For a time after leaving college, until December, 1872, he taught school at different localities in Dane county, but at that time sought a change of climate and new scenes in Colorado. For two years he en- gaged in various occupations at Colorado Springs, Pueblo and Del Norte, when he returned to his adopted state.
Upon locating anew in Wisconsin, Mr. Bardeen commenced the realization of a long deferred ambition to enter the domain of the law. Entering the office of J. P. Towne, of Edgerton, as a student, he indus- triously pursued his studies, but completed his course in the law de- partment of the state university, graduating therefrom in June, 1875. His first practice was at Wausau, Marathon county, as a partner of Roger C. Spooner, and under the firm name of Spooner & Bardeen this partnership continued for about one and a half years, when C. H. Mueller became an associate. After a short time the new firm was dissolved, and Judge Bardeen practiced alone until he formed a legal connection with General John A. Kellogg, which continued until the latter's death in 1882. Soon thereafter he formed a partnership with W. H. Mylrea, and after about one year Louis Marchetti was received into the firm, which was dissolved on January 1, 1892, when Judge Bardeen qualified as judge of the newly formed sixteenth circuit. He was reëlected judge in April, 1897, and served until his appointment to
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