The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1881-08-25
THE LATE JAMES L. a1L11s.

| A MUST REMARKABLE CAREER-SOL'
DER, STATESMAN, JUDGE AND
LEADING CITIZEN - HIS ARREST
AND TRIAL FOR THE MURDER OF
MoRGAN-HIS STATEMENT ABOUT
| MORGAN-HIS BLAMELESS LIFE.
From the Philadelphia Tlmes.l
The death of Judge Gillis, at Mount
Pleasant, Iowa, few weeks ago, calls
to mind the man, who he was, and
the part he filled in his eventful life,
most of which was spent in Pennsyl-
vania. He was born in Washington,
New York, October z, 1892, and was
one of large number of sons, all
sturdy and hardy men. His father
lived to ripe old age and visited his
sons, James and Enos. late in life,
when they resided at Ridgway, Penn
sylvania. A few years prior to the war
of 1912 the family moved to Ontario
county, in the State of New York.
7, There, In 1912, James enlisted in a
company of New York volunteers, and
was Immediately commissioned lieu
tenant of cavalry and assigned to reg
iinent commanded by one Colonel Har-
ris, regular dragons. He was in the
battle of Fort George, Chippewa and
Lundy's Lane. Shortly after the lat
ter battle he was taken prisoner by the
British and confined at various places
in Canada. and in 1914, while under
parole. he was arrested and put on
board a transport about to sail for Eng
land. Gillis and several others were
successful in making their escape by
capturing boat belonging to the
transport and gaining the bank of the
st. Lawrence river opposite Quebec,
at which place the vessel was lying.
All were finally retaken. They wan
dered about for several days, wishing
to- reach the United States frontier,
aud made but little headway in that
direction. Finally they made terms
with n Canadian Frenchnan, who
promised to guide them towards the
boundary, but betrayed them; the red
coats got them, returned them to CON
| tinement, and Lieutenant Gillis was
not again permitted to escape. He re-
mained in confinement until the close
of the war, when he was exchanged at
Salem, Massachusetts. When Con
| gress, about 1853, passed law giving
a bounty of l60 acres of land to the
! soldiers of the war of 1879, Judge Gill
: lis had no trouble in proving his title
to one He considered it too sacred to
| part with. and for years he kept il
hanging in his house in u gilt frame,
which was luxury in the way of fine
art that his neighbors generally could
not indulge in.
IN THE wILDs OF PENNSYLVANIA.
| In 1922 he moved to PENNSYLVANIA
and located in what was then Indiana
| county, afterwards part of Jefferson
county, now Elk county. His near-
| est neighbOr was sixteen miles distant
and his nearest posto.fice about seventy
miles. The approach to his location
was from Clean Point, on the Ale
gheny river, and supplies We're
| brought from that place over Il rough
wagon road, about thirty miles of
which he got over as best he could.
He came there as the agent of Jacob
Rldgway, of Philadelphia, who owned
a large tract of land in Indiana county,
expecting that the country would soon
settle up. He built a grist mill, upon
II small scale, to supply his wants in
that direction and those of the fu
ture settlers, but it was some years be-
fore ii was used by anyone except
| himself. In 1916 he married a Miss
Mary Rdgway, of Philadelphia,
niece of his future employer. BY that
marriage he had three children-Ridg
way b., Charles Il. and Caroline, now
the widow of Judge Heuk, late of
| Ridyway. In that wild country he
reared these three children. lis wife
| died i'm 1926, and in 1923 he married
Miss Celia a. Berry, who died in 1855,
leaving seven children. In 1880 he
moved from his farm, which he cleared
six miles from the town of Ridgway.
to that place, naming the place Rids,
way, where he and his family resided
for long time. In that country,
where the benefits of education were
lipnitnl hn hrp,,ol,r IA 10 f,,,,
children, giving them such education
as the country afforded, and all of
them have acquitted themselves very
creditably in life. One of his sons,
Capt. James H. Gillis, United States
Navy, did gallant service in the late
rebellion. He was in command of
war vessel throughout the war, and al
| the bonn mhardWent of Mobile his vessel
came in contact with a torpedo, was
sunk to her gundeck, but he fought
her as long as there was enough of her
above water to stand upon. While he
was midshipnan and the vessel to
which he was attacked was in South
American port, he called for volunteers
| from his crew, took one of the ships
| boats aud saved the crew of IL Chilian
vessel which was going to pieces in a
| fierce storm two miles from the shore
| liz to'h bile cIc" lIOiit llle TlSSlliR ana
brought them safely to land. The act
was recognized 10y the Chilian Gov
crnment in a fitting manner Another
son, B. w. Gillis, has made considera-
bic reputation as IL journalist in Vir-
ginia. Another, G. Y. Giilis, lives in
this State.
JUDGE AND CONGREsSMAN.
Judge Gillis was first appointed AS
| sociate Judge Of Jefferson county by
Governor Porter. When Elk county
was organized he was appointed one
of the Associate Judges of that county
and served one term. In 1910 he was
elected to the Legislature of Penusyl-
vania. He served in all three years in
| the House and one term in the Senate.
| He was elected to Congress in 1856.
| but he wrecked his future political ad-
vancement by voting for the Kansas
| Nebraska bill. A fter his Congress
sional term closed he was appointed
agent for the Pawnee tribe OF Indians,
and he located them upon their reser-
vation, built buildings for them among
the Others grist mill, and was their
faithful friend and protector while he
remained with them. No act of spec
uIation or crookedness was ever laid to
| his charge, either there or in any
other pubic office which he held. AS
an evidence of his kindness and good
ness Of heart, he adopted from the
tribe little Pawnee girl, aged or
years, under the following circum-