Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1897-12-09

Capt. Mckee.
He was a mem Der of the Wisconsin
legislature four times-in 1856, 1857.
1868 and 1879 His most important
and lasting work was that Of securing
the adoption Of legal code for the
state Mills with the assistance Of
Nelson Dewey and others had pre-
pared code which he wished to have
adopted but after getting to the legis-
lature found less opposition to the
code recently adopted by the, state of
New York. Through his efforts it
became the law here after some ex-
purgations and changes. Although
not just like the code he had originally
prepared it was often referred to in
the state as Joe Mills CODE This
code is now the basis of practice, not
only in Wisconsin but in thirty or
more states of the Union.
Mills was district attorney for Grant
county from 1865 to 1868 and Judge
of the fifth judicial circuit for two
terms from 1865 to 1876.
Judge Mills was married four times.
His first wife was Miss Evelina Warner
who was one of his .pupils when he
taught school near Pririe du Chen.
She died before they had lived togeth-
er very long; he afterward married
her Younger sister, Rebecca by whom
he had six children. Two died in in
fancy and one j. Milton Mills died in
Gunnison county. Colo. in 1885. The
other three children are living, Mrs.
Eva. NJ. Anderson, wife of the county
judge of Manitowoc county, Wisconsin
Geo. Mills, U. S. deputy mineral sur
veyor of Mancos county, Colo. and j.
Warner Mills, an attorney in Denver,
Colorado.
His second wife died in 1857. A
year or so later he married a third
time. From this wife he was very
soon divorced. In 1860 he married
Mary A. Coumbe, who died without
issue in 1898.
Judge Mills had for several years
made his home with his daughter,
Mrs. Anderson of Manitowoc, but at
the time of his death was visiting his
son, j. Warner in Denver.
OF Judge Mills character, attain
ments and labors much might be said
The following estimate is based upon
notes taken from the eloquent funeral
Grafton of Rev. S. w. Eaton supple
mented by contributions from person
al acquaintance.
He was d man of extraordinary
keenness and originality of intellect.
Intercourse with him was refreshing
and stimulating. He was continually
starting new lines of thought that
charmed or electrified the listener bv
their originality and vigor. His was
not the mind to follow beaten paths,
but rather to blaze new routes of in
vestigation.
He was highly educated. Though
only in the first year class in college
he had more profound knowledge of
languages and mathematics than nine
tenths of the graduates. He read and
wrote Greek, Latin, French and Span
ish as readily as he did English and
after coming to Lancaster learned
German. Mrs. Cox, mother-in-law of
DR.. .Hassell, was his teacher in Ger
man. He was great mathematician,
always buying the new works, reading
and figuring their elements through
on the subjects of calculus and ana
Lyrical geometry. Whenever he
went off to court his books were al
ways put into his travelling bag. His
testament was printed in Greek and
Latin in parallel columns. Besides
his testament he always carried some
work he was reading in one of the
many languages he spoke, and some
mathematical books. including his
law books. These he always carried
with him as he travelled around the
circuit. One of his latest labors was
to commit the whole Bible in German.
He was deeply religious man. He
may be said to be the founder of the
Congregational church in this city,
for through his devotion and perse-
verience the church was largely sus-
tanned in its earlier years. His con-
troversies with Jared Warner Of Patch
Grove. locally noted as a powerful
opponent OF the Christian church, are
famous in the county's traditions for