St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-04-27
BY t. NJ. NEWsoN.
ArticLe XIX.
1rneE AARON GOODRICH.

markedly different from other men III thls
fact. that he expresses his own sentiments
in his own way, and is always ready, ana
willing and able to defend them. lie was
born in New York in 1907; practiced law in
Tennessee: was elected as wing TO the
House of Representatives from that State, for
two wears, and Presidential elector on the
whig ticket; appointed by President
Taylor, in March, 1S49, as Chief
Justice of Minnesota, and took up
his residence in st. Paul that year; held the
first term of the Supreme Court in the terri
tory, and the first court in Ramsey county,
was a corporate member of the Historical So
cety; charter member of the first Masonic
Lodge; corporate member of the Grand
Lodge of the State. His term as Judge ex-
pired in 1851; he drew up the first Republi-
can Platform; prepared code of Pleadings
and Practice; was a member of the Republi-
can National Convention at Chicago; labored
to secure the nomination Of Seward for Pres
ident; was appointed Secretary of Legation
to Brussels, which position he held eight
years; returned to St. Paul in 1869; wrote
book entitled-''A history of the character
and achievements Of the so-called Christopher
Columbus;'' married an elegant lady by the
name of Miss Alice Paris; in 1872 was
elected a member Of the Cincinnati Conyen-
ton which nominated Horace Greeley; was
one of the original and most prominent
movers in the organization Of the ''Old Set
tiers Association" in 1858; has been its sec
Rotary nearly ever since. Of late the judge
has devoted his leisure moments to revising
his book, reading, studying, digging into
the rubbish of the past, and spending his
time with his family.
THE MAN PERSONALLY.
Judge Goodrich is a tall, spare man, with
an exceedingly active brain; speaks quickly
and decidedly; talks right at you with an
earnestness born Of conviction that he is
right, while his eyes dilate, as they move
rapidly in their sockets, and his voice be-
comes louder as he proceeds with his rea-
Sons for his opinion, which he proposes you
shall not misunderstood. He is walking
encyclopedia of ancient and biblical history;
an arsenal of fun and fact; magazine full
ofargumentative missiles IA volcanic explosion
in the midst of the religious element, and
generally accepted electric battery, from
which a thousand positive forces penetrate
the citadels of bigotry and ignorance. There
is but one Judge Goodrich. John Randolph
is dead; Goodrich still lives. No man in
the state has such a striking individuality, as
Goodrich, and no man is more generally
correct in his conclusions, than Goodrich.
He is eminently independent; never trims
or uses policy, and though his utterances are
sometimes Unpallatable, yet they command
attention by their originality. He made
good sound Judge, though he would, occas-
ionally, interpret the law sandwiched with
funny story; is an effective political speaker
on the stump; an excellent writer, as his
book shows; a good lawyer; scholar
among the pyrimids; a hater OF
cant, hypocrisy and meanness;
a lover of honest thought and honest eX-
preston. With all his idiocyncracies, be
has kind heart, is esteemed by his former
associates and though not now in active
public life, yet lis very kindly remembered by
the sold guard who continue to hold the
fort" The Judge is close on to seventy
seven years of age, and yet he is still active
and as ready for an argument or story, as
he was twenty years ago.
HENRY F. AIAsTERsON-DEAD.
Mr.. Masterson was a peculiar citizen,
somwhat different from ordinary men in this
particular, that he spent a lifetime in help
ing others and getting little or nothing in
return. While he may have had an appre
citation of money, yet he had no capacity to
accumulate it. lie was born in New York in
1924; studied law; came to st, Paul in 1S49,
with now Judge Orlando Simons. Both these
men were carpenters by trade,
and before arriving in St Paul,
made a solemn vow to stand or fall together,
and though not related, were closely bound
to each other by the strongest ties of friend
ship. They came from New York to Chicago
by water, and hired a farmer to transport
their baggage to the Mississippi river, it be-
ing stipulated, THAT when the walking was
good they might ride; when it was bad they
must walk.n On arriving at St. Paul, Judge
SimOnS went to work as a carpenter, while
Masterson entered a saw mill at St. Anthony
Falls, but soon after Simons was rendered
situation by the government to aid in build
ing fort on the frontier, but he would not
accept the offer unless Masterson was also
employed. Masterson was soon engaged
and the two spent the summer
and the fall on the frontier, returning
on the edge of winter with plenty of money,
and then opening the law Office of Master
son u Simons, which continued in this city
for over twenty-five years.
1.-THE OLD FOLKS AT HOME"
Soon after the arrival of the writer in 1853,
he was importuned to speak at the dedication
of the Baldwin School, and he responded in
his first speech in the city, to the toast of the
cold Folks at HOme.' 1t was an extern
pore effort, and being just from under the
shadow of those he loved, no doubt he spoke
warmly on the subject under discussion. At
least when we had concluded our speech, we
found some of the audience in tears, and
among the rest small, pretty woman, with
curls, who seemed to be more particularly
affected than others, and on inquiry we
found her to be Mrs. Masterson, the wife of
A.. rey, a.,
and she was dead, and from that time for
ward Masterson wandered like a ship at sea-
tossed on the angry pillows of fate, pining
for something which never returned.
AS 4 MAN.
Masterson was a tall, robust looking man,
and was good for twenty years, had he not
been overtaken by the terrible accident which
ended his career. He was social in his ma
ture; full OF "reminiscences of the past, and
devoted friend. He was profound lawyer,
delying deeper into the law than others, and
in one instance forcing the supreme court to
reverse its own decision against him. Dur
ing all the time he lived in st. Paul, he never
held an office; always gave way to some one
else; so he spent his life giving to others;
seemed to live for others more than for him
self, and thus he continued until the day of
his death.
MUsING ON THE BRIDGE.
We often saw him wandering about the
city, and once found him musing upon the
bridge, and as in Imagination we now see
him standing upon that structure, the touch
ing lines of Longfellow come before us in all
tleir beauty and their vividness:-
- stood on the bridge at midnight
AS the clocks were striking the hour,
And the moon rose DER the city,
Behind the dark church tower.