The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1891-06-24

he retained and quoted readily and accu-
rately. During his apprenticeship he had
access to the extensive and well-selected
library of DIR. Israel T. Candy, who was
then receiver of the public moneys of the
land Office at Charlottesville. This oppor-
tunity was well improved and he was
prepared when leaving there in 1888 to
enter upon advanced fields of knowledge.
At the age of eighteen he entered
Wabash college and began the study of
the higher branches of learning with
great success, supporting himself mainly
| by plying his trade whenever it was pos
sible. He continued his studies at COL
| lege until the spring of 1910, except for
short period in the spring of 1889, when
he acted with the state engineer corps of
Indiana, which was then surveying the
| bed Tor the Wabash and Erie canal. In
| 1910 he entered Asbury university,
now DePauw university, At Greencastle,
and remained there six months, return
ing to Crawfordsville, where he stayed out
the year and taught school one term. In
the spring OF lS4l be went to Williamsport,
Ind, and took position in the store of
James Mcdonald, his brother, where he
resided for one year.
In the spring of 1912 he began the
study of the law at Lafayette with
Zebulon Beard, one of the first lawyers in
Indiana, as his preceptor. He arose with
rapid strides in his profession, his quick
and firm grasp of its principles being re-
markable. He was admitted to practice
upon examination before the supreme
| court of the state, consisting of Judges
Blackford, Demay and Sullivan. in the
| spring of 1S43. He was nominated for
the office of prosecuting attorney before
he received his license to practice and was
elected to that position at the August
| election following, over Robert Jones, a
| Whlg, and a prominent member of the In
| diana bar. This was the first election Of
that class of officers by the people, it hav-
ing been formally selected by the state
legislature.
Christmas day, 1914, was Mr.. Melon
AIDS wedding day. He was married to
Miss Nancy Ruth Buell. at Wiliamsport
She was the daughter of DIR. Buell., prac-
| ticing physician and surgeon. She was a
lady of lovely character, devoted to her
family and conspicuous for her quiet and
| thorough benevOleuce. The issue of this
union was Ezekiel NJ, Malcolm A., Frank
b. and Annie NJ. Mcdonald. The daugh-
ter afterward became Mrs. Caldwell and
died June 2, 1877. Ezekiel died Jan. l.,
1873, after having been his fathers law
| partner for five years. Frank Mcdonald
died in Washington City Friday, Jan. Z,
| 1887. His remains were brought to this
city and buried at Crown Hill cemetery
on the following Sunday. The gentlemen
who served as pall-bearers were Messrs.
Pierce Norton, James M. Cropsey, Smith
H. Myers, A. l.. Mason, Henry Boyd,
| Benjamin Jones and Addison Roach, jr.
At the time of his death he was special
examiner in the pepslon office. He was
thirty-six years Old, and both in Washing
ton and in this city he had a large circle
OF friends. He was a pleasant and COM
panionabe gentleman. although his life
has given a certain sad tlnge, owing to a
slight deformity caused by a fall received
during his infancy. He was exceedingly
witty and widely informed on topics of
the time, and was genetal fsyorite.
| In Congress.
Mr. Mcdonald was reelected prosecut-
| ing attorney over Robert Evans, a promi-
nent lawyer and politician, in August,
| lS45. serving in all period OF four years.
In the fall of 1S47 he moved to Crawfords-
vile and entered upon the practice of the
law. Here he lived until 1859. While q
citizen of Charlottesville he was elected to
the Thirty-tirst congress. This district
was then known as the Eighth congress
| siOnal district. He was elected In August,
lS49, and served one term. In 1856 he
was elected encouragement OF Indiana,
being the first man chosen TO this office
| by the people. He was reelected two
years later, serving in all four years. He
was not a candidate for third term.
In the spring of 1859 he removed to In
dianapolis and entered upon the practice
of the law, forming a partnership with
Judge Addison l.. Roach, who had served
upon the supreme bench of the state.
| This made a strong combination and a
| large law business was transacted by the
firm. In 1864 Mr.. Mcdonald was nomi-
mated for governor by the democratic state
convention against Oliver P. Morton, the
candidate of the republican party. They
made joint canvass the state. 1t was
during war times, however, and the cam
| paign was comparatively quiet one. Mr..
Mcdonald was defeated but he received
| 5000 more votes for governor than the
democratic state ticket polled at the cleo
ton two years previous when the entire
ticket was elected with a majority in both
| branches of the legislature.
| In the Senate.
| Mr. Mcdonald was elected to the q. S.
1 bcudbc lOr olA years W cuCCcOu DdHici ~.
Pratt and took his seat in that body March
| 5, 1875. He was chairman of the commit
tee on public lands and the second mem
Der of the judiciary committee. He
ranked among the best lawyers of that
body. He was a member of the senate
committee which visited New Orleans to
| investigate the count of the vote of Lou
isiana in the contest of 1876. He was also
on the Teller Wallace committee to inves-
| tigate frauds in the elections in Massachu-
setts and Rhode Island. He was chair
man of the democratic state convention OF
| of 1868 and of the state central committee
during the campaigns of 1868 and 1874.
After his retirement from the senate he
opened law Office in Washington City,
and divided his time for the remainder OF
mis- life between that city and Indianapo-
lis. He was engaged in Washington with
important cases before the supreme court
and the various courts of the District OF
Columbia, among the largest of which
were those that grew out of the telephone
patents and those connected with the set