The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1892-04-11
OBITUARY.
Judge McCully Passes Away After
a Lingering Illness.
Full Account of His Life and
Work.

died at his residence at Pawaa
Honolulu, at 7 o'clock A. NJ, Oh
Sunday, the 10th of April. H,
was First Associate Justice of tn,
Supreme Court and a member O
the Privy Council of State. HI
was born in New York City on the
18th of May, 1881, and was, there
fore, in his 61st year at the time O
his decease. When but two years
old his father removed with hi:
family to Oswego, New York, ano
this was his home until he became
a man. He was fitted for college
at the Courtlandt academy, in
Homer, New York, and then ent-
cred Yale, graduating therefrom in
1852, when q years of age. After
this he was a tutor in a Southern
family in New Orleans and later
taught school in Kentucky. With
out any family friends or connect
ions in these Islands to call him
here, he, as the result of his read
ing, formed the plan of settling in
the Sandwich Islands, and came
hither via Panama and California,
arriving in December, 1854, just
after the death of Kamehameha
III. He brought letters to Chief
Justice Lee and Hon. G. R. Bishop,
and was soon sent to Hilo as Police
Justice. He served in this capac-
ity from 1st September, 1856, to
April 1st, 1857, when he resigned
and went to Kona, Hawaii, bought
land and began an orange orchard.
Some two hundred orange trees
planted by him are now bear
ing, and one of the last
acts of his life was to eat some of
their fruit. While at Hilo and in
Kona he was necessarily brought
in close contact with Hawaiians
and readily learned the vernacular
which proved of great advantage
to him. Removing to Honolulu in
1858, he studied law in the Office
Of the late Chief Justice Harris and
was admitted to the bar on the 18th
of March, 1859, during the incum-
bency of the late Chief Justice
Allen. OF the attorneys, both ma
tive and foreign, admitted previous
to Judge McCully, there survive
only Messrs. J. w. Austin and E.
P. Bond, of Boston, and Messrs. S.
l.. Austin, d. HI. and E. G. Hitch
cock, of Hilo.
At the general election of 1860,
Judge McCully was solicited to
stand as a candidate for Represen-
tative of Kohala, Hawaii, and
without going personally to the
district or expanding one cent on
the campaign, he was elected. On
the converting of the Legislature in
May of that year, he was elected
Speaker Of the House. 1t will be
remembered that under the Con-
stitution of 1852, the Legislature
consisted of House of Mobiles and
a House of Representatives, sitting
separately. Among his fellow
Representatives were J. l. Dowsett,
II. A. Widemann, V. Knudsen and
d. D. Baldwin.
The practice of law was not very
remunerative in those early days,
and Judge McCully took the office
of Interpreter to the Supreme
Court and Police Court of Homo
lulu on the 1st of April, 1862,
which position he held until the
I'd January, 1865, when he resigned
to take the Office of Clerk of the
Supreme Court, having acted as
Deputy Clerk from April Goth, 1864.
to November Both of the same year.
His incumbency of the Chief
Clerkship continued until the Both
January, 1871, when he resigned
to go into the Attorney-GeneraPs
office as the Deputy of Mr.. S. H
Phillips. His five and half years
service as Clerk of the Supreme
Court left abundant evidence o.
his accuracy and fidelity, as the
records of the Court will testify.
AS Deputy Acknowledgement, I'm
der four successive Attorney-Gen
erals, Mr.. McCully, on the meagr'
pay of 800 per month, conducted
the public prosecutions at the vari
Gus circuits, which added great,
to his experience and learning as
lawyer. In the year 1876, he re
visited the United States, went t
the Centennial Exhibition of tina
year and attended course of lay
lectures at Harvard University
Returning to his home, he wa
elevated to the Bench on the Is
February, 1877, receiving His Ma
jesty Kalakaua's commission a
Second Associate Justice of tn
Supreme Court on the promotion G
Mr.. Harris to the Chief Justiceshi
and Mr.. Judd to the position c
First Associate. Or the st
of November, 1881, he wa
again promoted, and wa
commissioned First Associat
on the accession of Mr.. Jud
to the Chief Justiceship. Thi
office which included the Vice