Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1903-09-01
"BARDEEN, THE CITIZEN, !
BY A. H. REID, MERRILL.
Ma4 Il please The Court

Nay II please the Court
In seconding the motion to enter OF
record the Memorial and Resolution
presented by the Marathon County Ba
on this occasion | have been asked t,
say, and take great pleasure in saying
on behalf of the Lincoln County Ba
some things respecting Chas. v. Bar
deem as citizen
When this phase of Judge Bardeen'
life was suggested to me as the senti
ment of response, felt some diffidenc,
and hesitation in undertaking it, be
cause | realize how incapable | am o
doing justice to the sentiment
There come times when we feel Will
depth and clearness that which we can,
not with equal clearness and effect, ex
press, and this is one of such occasion!
for me. In a sense, this response ough
to have been made by resident of the
city of Wausau; by a nieghbor of the
departed friend, who observed him ir
his daily conduct, and enjoyed, will
others of his immediate neighbors, the
fruits of Judge Bardeen's good citizen
ship. But in larger sense, Judge Bar
deen-was not only neighborto the res
idents of Wausau, and to the residents
of Marathon county, but was neighbol
and friend to the people of the whole
state. He was so sterling in his quail
tiles, so catholic in his citizenship, sc
forceful in his character and so wide in
his influence, that neither city noI
county lines bounded his friendships
his acquaintances, or his great infu
ence for public good; and when he de-
parted TO that unknown beyond, he
h IA f,s.n do Il. 4
the length and breadth of the state who
felt, and still feel his loss as keenly as
did his friends in the city of Wausau
1t may no doubt be true that to you,
residents of this city, belong some OF
the tenderest memories of the departed
and to you he rendered his greatest SER
vice, but in the larger sense, the influ-
ence of Chas. V. Bardeen, as citizen
and as public servant, belong to the
treasures of the state.
He Was so full of good traits of char
acter, so endowed with great abilities,
so energetic and useful that / find it
difficult to select from among those
qualities, the things that should be
mentioned on this occasion.
Among most men of eminence, some
particular strong trait of the individual
has stood out so as to MARI It for no.
tlce on such an occasion as this; but
the character of Chas V. Bardeen was
so well rounded that to praise all his
good qualities might SAVIOR monoton-
Gus repetition. There was so little we
could wish added; so little that we
might now wish to forget. He stood as
a sterling example of the best American
If given time to say fare
70, al l,n
ing nobler than his daily speech, nor
could he have done anything kinder
than the deeds in everyday life.
He was in every sense true altruist;
public spirited at all times; unselfish in
the last degree. [ think many of his
will find no difficulty in re-
calling instances in number when Chas,
V. Bardeen placed the interest of this
or the interests Of the peo-
pie at large, before his own private in
terests. Here among you residents of
WauSau, where the most of the busy
part of his life was spent, you will re-
member that every project for the ad-
of the interests of your city,
which commended itself to the Judge
ment of Judge Bardeen, received his
hearty and unselfish support. You will
recall that that support was given not
only by his kindly word and by his
loyalty, but by his energetic and active
LABOR, and by his money and prop
erty, wherever and whenever it became
within his power to render such assist
ance. In the development of your city
and the preservation of its standing
none were more energetic than the
busy lawyer and Judge who has gone
from u.s.
If | were to single out one trait of his
character as being the strongest and
most deserving of mention, would
choose his.integrity and moral courage.
True, he was great in many things
great He was a great law
yer and great judge, and in these
great attainments, he will live in the
history of the state. And yet we may
not be able TO say that he was the great
est of our jndges; but | challenge com
parison of any man with Judge Bar
deem. in the purity of his honor and the
of his moral courage. In
this trait he was excelled by no man of
our state, be he Judge or layman, states
man or private citizen.
1t was said of someone, whose name
| cannot now recall, that he had that
of honor that felt stain as
the body feels wound. Be he who he
ma (, no one was ever entitled TO be
thus spoken of more than Judge Bar
deem AS one circle cannot be more
round than another circle, because to
be a circle is to be perfect in form, so
the honor of Judge Bardeen could not
be excelled by the honor OF any other
man. because il was perfect.
/ we'll remember when he was pre-
siding Judge of this circuit, an occasion
when it was complained to him that
an attorney of the circuit had been un-
in his conduct. Ii was af-
forwards ascertained that the complaint
was unfOunded, but when it was com
municated to the judge, was supposed
to be well founded, and was cOmmuni-
Gated as such. The complaint did not
arouse in him feeling of anger and re-
sentiment, but a feeling of intense re-
gret, and be said with the earneStness
that characterized him when he felt
most deeply. that he would rather have
had his right arm severed. than that
the attorney complained Of should be
untrue To the honor OF his profession.
His great chastity of honor was &C.
compauied with an equally great moral
courage For him To see or know the
right wss to do the right. No wrong
could be so entrenched behind wealth
or influence as TO be shielded from hi:
attack if it became his duty TO attack
il. Ii mattefed not what might be the
consequences 10 his private, profession
alsor financial interests. he condemned
wrong wherever be SAW il. and nevel
pansed 10 consider whether by over
looking il his personal interests nigh
be advanced There was to him bu
one road to follow, and that was th'
right road.
No doubt many of you have know
instances of his refusing professions
employment, because the interests ans
position of his would-be client did no
seem to him to be morally right, and
mattered not what wealth or lnf1uenc'
his would be client might have no per