The Evansville daily journal., 1861-04-08
Death of Judge Mclean.

Death of Judge Mclean.
The Cincinnati papers of Friday contain
long obituary notices of this distinguished
iurist, who 6ied at his residence in Clinton
near that city or Thursday morning at 8
o'clock. Judge Mclean was seventy-seven
years Of age at the time of his death.
Few people in the Northwest need to be
informed as to the character and legal abili-
ty of John Mclean. He has occupied the
position which he held at the time of his
death for thirty years. His tall and COM
mending figure, was well-known to
all who have ever frequented our
State capital during the sessions of
the United States Court His digniied and
obliging department, the attention he al
ways paid to the case under consideration,
and the respect always manifested by him
to the attorneys and parties to suits,
endoared him to all with whom he ever
came in contact. AS our readers may de-
sire to refresh their minds with the moro
prominent features of the Judges long and
eventful history, we copy the following
sketch from the New American Encyclopc-
dia
Mclean, John, IL D., an American
judge and statesman, born in Morris county,
N j., March Il, 1855. Four years after
ward his father a poor man with a large
family, removed to the West, settling first
st Morgantown, Va, afterward near Mich
olasviilo, Ky, and finally in 1899 in what
is now Warren county, Ohio. Here he
cleared a farm, upon which he resided till
his death, 10 years later. His son, at the
age of IS, desiring to study law, went to
Cincinnati, where he maintained himself
by writing in the office of the Clerk of the
county, while he pursued his studies under
the direction of Arthur st. Clair, an emf
nent counselor, the son of the revolutionary
general OF that name. In the spring of
1907 he was married to Miss Rebecca Ed
wards and in the autumn of the same year
was admitted to the bar and commenced
practice at Lebanon, Warren county, O.
In October 1872, he was elected to repre-
sent in Congress his district, which then
included Cincinnati, receiving a large ma
jority a Democrat in favor Of the war
with England, and a supporter of President
Madlsons Administration. In 1914 he
was reelected, receiving the vote of
every voter that went to the polls. In 1915
u.
Senate, though his election was certain and
in 1916 the Legislature of Ohio, having
unanimously elected him a Judge of the Su-
preme Court of the State, he resigned his
seat in Congress at the close of the session.
He remained upon the Supreme bench of
Ohio till 1922, when he was appointed by
President Monroe, Commissioner of the Cen
eral Land Office. In July 1923, he was ap-
pointed Postmaster General, the POsto1ce
Department being then in a very disordcred
and inefficient condition. Under his a6-
ministratiOn this branch OF the public SER
vice was restored to order, and managed
with vigor, method, and economy, that
soon secured an almost uneXampled degree
of applause and public confidence. By a
nearly unanimous vote of the Senate and
House the Postmaster Generals salary was
raised from 81, 600 to Sc, 900 a year. John
Randolph, who voted against the increase,
said he would vote for it if the salary could
be reduced to its original amount whenever
Judge Mclean went out of office. In 1929,
having declined the war and navy depart
ment which was offered to him by Presi-
dent Jackson, Judge Mclean resigned the
Office of Postmaster General and ac-
cepted seat upon the bench of the Su-
preme Court of the United States entering
upon his duties as Associate Justice at the
January term OF 1910. In this capacity his
charges to Grand Jurjes while on circuit
are distinguished for ability and eloquence.
One of the most noted of these was deliver
ed in December, 1888, in regard to aiding
or favoring unlawful military combinations
by our citizens against any Foreign Govern
ment or people with whom we are at peace,
with special reference to the Canadian iu-
surrecton and its American abettors In
the Dred Scott case he dissented from the
decision of the Court as given by Chief
Justice Taney, and expressed the opinion
that slavery has its origin merely in power,
and is against right, and in this country is
sustained only by local law. Judge Mclean
has long been identified with the party op-
posed to the extension of slavery, and his
name was before the Free Soil Convention
ut Buffalo in l848 as q candidate for nomi-
nation as President. At the Republican
National Convention at Philadelphia, in
1856, he received 196 votes for the same Of
flee TO 359 for Col. Fremont. At the Re-
publican Convention at Chicago, in 1860 he
"a Iep rpcpiupd a prtp,ber Of xvoto,