The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-02-27

far before some one in the audience
called out:
'Mr. Sorin, do you mean me, sir ?"
Quick as a fash came the answer:
mo, sir,,I do not mean you. am
on a descending scale. Your case
will be the last one reached"
There were no more Interruptions.
OF the democratic stump speakers,
Jim Cavanaugh was no doubt the best
and the wittiest. He lived at Chat
field, where he was a member of, the
law firm Of Ripley, Cavanaughi &
Wells. He was the first member of
congress- from this state, serving
from May -, 1858, until March 4,
1859. Cavanaugh was q delegate from
Minnesota to the democratic national
convention at Charleston, in 1860. He
was an ardent supporter of the Little
Giant" Stephen A. Douglas. ee7
Ben Butler Meets His Match.
After the convention split and ad-
journed to meet in Baltimore, but
prior to the last named meeting, Cav
Ben Butler resided , and called a
meeting at which he said he would
pay his respects to Butler, who had
voted for Jeff Davis on every one OF
the thirty-seven ballots taken at
Charleston. There was an immense
audience and it included Butler. I'm
fortunately, no report was made OF
the speech, but parties who heard il
| said that Cavanaugh gave Butler such
a tongue-lashing no mortal man
had ever received. Butler undertook
to reply, but the audience would MOI
let him, even at Cavanaugh's request
Cavanaugh took great pleasure il
describing the scene as long as he
lived, and evidently considered it the
browning glory of his life. He usei
to say that he had Ben more securely
bottled up" than he was afterward:
! by the rebels at Bermuda Hundred
| Cavanaugh died, I believe, in Mon
tana.
A word will not be amiss here re
garding Christopher G. Ripley, tn,
head Of the law firm Of which Cav
| anaugh was member. Mr.. RIPPLE.
belonged to very distinguished fam
lily, at Concord, Mass, noted for 1T
great men, like Emerson, Thoreau
Lowell, Hoar and others. He was al
excellent example of the old-style law
| yer, courteous, patnstaking and tn
soul Of integrity and honor. He wa
a very able lawyer, and had the con
fidence Of the community where b
lived to such degree that when h
stated a fact to jury or a principl
of law to the court it was concede'
that it must be So or Mr.. Ripley woul
not have said So. But he was not al
ways cocEsure. In those cases he al
ways said. IT think this is the case.
There were no typeWrlters IN thos
/ days, and Mr.. Ripley's pleadings Wer
always in his own handwriting. AS
remember them, and I often looked a
them, it seemed to me they wer
/ models of their kind. No erasures
no changes, but carefully drawn u
in penmanship feminine in Its fine
ness and general appearance. MI
Ripley was elected chief justice Q
the supreme court in 1869. Never
robust man physically, the work wa
too hard for him. He resigned 1
4 1874 and returned to Massachusett;
where he soon afterwards died.
The Wells of the firm was tina
genial gentleman, Henry r. Wells Q
J Preston, Fillmore county, where h
has very successfully managed q ban
for nearly forty years. Mr.. Well
} went to California after retiring fror
3 the law firm and remained there fo
, I think. would be glad if he could ru
: his bank for forty years more.
A Discovery.
At the close Of the legislature G
1869, and while waiting for the gov
ernor to sign bills, the house though
; it would have a little fun with itsel
and organize new house with Eliza
Easton of Owatonna as speaker. TIL
main idea was to have some fun wit
Easton, who was very modest, retir
, ing old gentleman who had not opene
J his mouth during the session, not eve
5. to move an adjournment. Easto
/ promptly accepted the honor In a nes
5 little speech and the fun began. ReI
; resentative Hicks of Alexandria, tn