The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1872-06-04
active spirit but excelled. Here he gave
evidence OF that talent for which he has
oinca haan m diattn1niahRd.

In April, 1884, he removed 70 Belleton-
tame, and commenced the practice Of law
Casad and Nc CARNEY were already here,
Bellefontaine then had o population OIL
, probably 800 people. Ohio then had no
completed line OF railroad. Logan county
though longer settled and improved
than the counties adjoining on the east,
north and west, was comparatively new.
The farms were generally only partially
, cleared of. But with q bar few In mum.
bers there was law business, and some Of
II Of much importance. The east halt Of
Logan county was In the Virginia Mill.
tary District, and until titles became set
tied by long occupation, this was q. fruit.
full field for land litigation. Mr.. Stanton
very soon acquired good practice. For
a time the old lawyer, Mccartney, had
the better practice and was more success.
full than Mr.. Stanton. But In less than
half a dozen years Mr.. Stanton was the
leading lawyer OF the county. Mozart.
ney's health failed him, and he died a few
years after. During the period com.
mencing short time after MIR. Stanton
entered upon the practice here, or Ger.
tainly from the death Of Mr.. Mccartney,
and until Mr.. Stanton left the county
about 1866, he was engaged In most Of the
important litigations Of the county, sub.
tteCt, of course, 10 the exception that this
was more or less interrupted by q service
Of eight years In Congress. During most
Of his residence here, he had a good prac.
tce In the neighboring counties. The
Ohio Reports bear ample testimony that
he had more than full share Of the bust.
ness in the Supreme Court from this part
Of the State. Ria ,
The business in the Courts Of the United
States from these counties was limited,
but there, too, Mr.. Stanton was con.
spicuous.
An interesting little volume might DO
written to preserve incidents Of the pro.
fession and practice In this region during
the forty years past, but the materials
for 1t are fast being lost, as one by one
the older members Of the bar depart.
Ohio has had many able lawyers. But
this part Of the State has also had an able
bar-not inferior to that of any other por.
ton Of the State. l will not speak OF
those who still reside here, for the time for
that has not yet come.
a, But Sampson Mason, Charles Anthony,
VIM. A Rogers, Of Sprinfeld; Israel Ham.
ilton, Moses B. Corwin, Of Urbans; Pat
rick G. Goode, Of Sidney; VIM. Q. Law.
renee, Of Maysville, and others oil prac-
ticed law here. They are all dead except
Moses B. Corwin, who still lives at very
advanced age They were all respecta-
bic lawyers-several Of them men Of great
intellect, and really profound lawyers.
They were contemporaries OF Stanton for
many years.
In this country many OF the leading
members Of the bar become leaders also
in the political arena. Stanton was no
exception, for he, too, took prominent
and active part in politics. He was first
elected prosecuting attorney for Logan
county not long after he came here to re-
side In October, 1s41, he was elected to
the Senate oil the State. Aspecial session
was held in the summer Of 1912, to dis.
trict the State for Representatives in Con-
gress The Democratic party had q
majority in the General Assembly Of the
Estate. They were about to pass through
Q bill SO districting the State as to gerry
mander" it in the interest Of the Demo.
cratic party, when, to prevent that con-
summation, most Of the Wing members
of the Senate, including Mr.. Stanton, re.
signed, and thus the Senate was lett with
out quorum. The passage Of the bill
was thereby defeated. Mr.. Stanton was
again nominated for the Senate, and again
elected in October, 1912. The political
contest OF that year was one Of the most
severely contested ever witnessed in the
State. But the Democratic party main.
tanned their political ascendancy. AS we
look back from this day, it may well be
doubted whether the resignation was tho
proper means Of defeating even SO unjust
bill as was pending when that event oc.
CURED; but one thing Is certain, in the
excited political discussions Of 1S42, no
one Of the resigning members made an
ADLER defense Of this course than did Mr..
Stanton.
On this subject Israel Hamilton, OF
Ur6ana, for time United States District
Attorney for Ohio, met Mr.. Stanton in
debate in Bellefontaine, during the can
vass. The contest was one Of the ablest
ever listened to by Logan county
audience. MIR. Hamilton was an able
lawyer, and man Of great power. The
discussion, as often happened in such
cases, made no converts for either side,
but itseemed rather to confirm the friends
Of each political party in the positions they
had taken. And If on that one question,
as on some Others, the old Wing party
was wrong, Mr.. Stanton, in the debate
ffalluded to, did almost il not quite make
4 the worse appear the better cause"
/ In April, 1850, Mr.. Stanton was elected
la delegate to the Ohio Constitutional
Constitution, which framed the constitu.
E-tion Of 1851. In October, 1850, he was
elected Representative in Congress. He
was reelected in 1854, and again IN 1856,
and again in 1865, after which he declined
to be a'candldate, having served eight
i, years. He was, during the Thirty.fith
Congress, appointed one Of the regents Of
the Smithsonian Institution, and during
the Thirty.eighth Congress he was Chair
man Of the Committee on Military Affairs.
| In 1869 he received the unsought nomi-
nation Of Republican candidate for Lieu
tenant Governor of Ohio, was selected on
the same ticket with David Tod for Gov.
ernor, and served two years. In 1860 he
was prominently spoken Of as a candidate
for the United States Senate, and for that
position had the support Of influential
men, but the choice fell 10 Hon. John
Sherman, who has since so long served in
that capacity as to be known wherever
the Senate Is known.
About 1866 Mr.. Stanton determined to
locate IN West Virginia. The rebellion
had closed, leaving the State with but q
limited supply Of "IoyaI lawyers" the only
class then permitted to practice, and there
he resolved TO enter on q field where
professional ability was in demand, and
where there was wide field for legal
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