New-York tribune., 1903-04-19
SUCCESSFUL LAWYER.
ID. T. Watson, Counsel for Has
kan Commission.

Pittsburg, April IS (SpeciaD.-No honor that
has come to member OF the Allegheny County
Bar, and they have Deen many in the last five
or six years. is more appreciated by the other
members than the recent selection of David T.
Watson as one of the three counsel for the
United States before the Alaskan Boundary
Commission. The general verdict is that il is
recognition OF true worth and a fitting post for
a man who has reached the top Of the legal lad
der with no other backing than brains and hard
work.
Stories about Dave Watsonr' exclaimed
prominent attorney to whom Tribune eorre-
spondent applied. There are none He never
made joke in his life, if he did he kept it to
himself. But when it comes to work, he'd rather
lay out an argument IN a tangled, difficult case
than do anything else. He lives in his work
and in his books. and that is all there is to it"
This is not the first boundary case Mr.. Wat
has handled" said a friend and fellow
lawyer, although 1 imagine he has forgotten all
about the other one. 1t was when he was
struggling young lawyer, years and years ago.
An old farmer left will dividing rectangular
tract Of land into equal parts. and giving them
to his two sons. By some mistake in writing
down the points of the compass the tract was
divided by a line running the long way. This
made each part too small for practical purposes,
and the sons wanted the dividing line changed
from north and south to east and west Mr..
Watson argued for the literal version OF the
WILL despite the fact that the other was the
common sense division. He lost the case, and
the tract divided that both sons could
make use of their portion.
Since then he has become a great lawyer.
with a wonderful power of looking into cases.
He will not take a hopeless case and seldom
loses one. He has had dozen more difficult
cases than this Alaskan boundary proposition
. h7rcI
ness which has come to him. He seldom argues
a case in court III recent years. He does the
hard work. prepares the winning arguments and
let's other execute them. His ability in this
gard was never illustrated in a more pro-
nounced fashion than in the recent Northern
Pacific merger cases"
The life story of David Watson can be read
with interest and profit by every young lawyer
who is struggling for a foOthold. He had a long,
hard fight at the first; then opportunity came to
him and he grasped it. He held until there
still another opening, and that, too, was
recognized and seized.
He born in the neighboring county Of
Washington on January ., 1874. His father was
a country lawyer of the old fashioned type. His
ability not striking, but he enjoyed steady
practice, which furnished a good living and
enough over for the education Of his sons. Mr..
WatsOn's mother was Morgan. of family Of
intellect and some wealth At early age he
entered Washington and Jefferson College. which
is situated in his home town, Washington He
was graduated with the class of "a. and spent
two years studying law at Harvard. being ad-
rnitted to the bar in Boston before he received
his second degree.
He came to Pittsburg in January, 1877, and
at the end of year of hard work he found he
had made just SJT. At this time he had desk
in the office of Hopkins & Lozer, both mem
bers of the firm being friends Of his father and
from towns near Washington. He expected
them to turn considerable business his way, and
for a time complained bitterly that they did not
take enough interest in him. Then he realized
that he would have TO fight the whole thing out
for himself and opened an independent office.
After a year or two he attracted the atten-
ton of James Beach, known Judge" Beach,
though he never sat on the bench The Judge
was very much wrapped up in his son Dave,
who had been admitted to the bar, out VINO VINO
knew very little law, and decided to form legal
| firm in order TO give the boy something 10 do-
He sent for Mr. Watson
You know that I have good a coTnmerclal
practice as any one in the county, he said
In fact it has grown too large for me 10
handle, and must take in a partner. " ~ nat
would YOU say to Beach, Beach & Watson!
Mr. Watson was glad OF the chance to as
sociate with the elder Beach, but he INSISTED
that he knew more law than the son, and was
entitled to the second place in the nrn TUE.
Accordingly, the firm became Beach, watson &
Beach.
It was not long until the died suddenly,
almost breaking Judge Beach's heart He
b11fTt a country home down the river ana soon
retired there This left Watson in charge OF the
entire business Though Judge Beach visited
| +he office two or three times week, he TOOK
little interest in the firms cases, and Would not
work upon them. .. :. -
Watson thus received his Introduction 70 d
most valuable cIientage- He mastered business
and corporation law after hard study IN the
death of Judge Beach he lost practlcally NONE
of the firms business. and has had the cream
OF Pittsburg practice ever since .,-
IT have seen in the newspapers, sald anoIner
T1i++sfr1rg attorney, that Mr. Watson owes MS
aUpofntment TO the personal friendship OF MI M
KNOX the Attorney General. This IS a HliSIdns'
fo. personal friendship had nothing 70 90 Win Win
II NTr Knox has worked on cases Win VI
W-,+son and against him He knows his worth
and so will the whole country before ne seCs
| +b~ouoh with the public cases which ne now mas
| in hand .,z - -;ot, r,or oven for
1,;.4.t,,ror and the bulk Of his wealth has come
5frsctIV from the large fees paid for his IesaI
!a~I- His business for the last ten years mas
haar for the big corporations largely ana ne
~ No small idea OF the worth of his services
Go If tbe first big fees he received was al -. .tle
80, II tho sensational oil panic in 1881 Ane
b. Pank of Pittsburg, was cleaned out "
~ wonderful drop in the price OF oil anu an
t-o,.i1T- There were millions involved ne 50
- - che cases for the directors clearing lnonI
t,, iebiIitv both civil and criminal IL u S0'0
-. t.t- fae IN this case was S2J,cc
-.1v cCDrU MANAGED