The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-03-04

in the Legislature. That announcement was the only campaign he made. He let the rest take care >of itself. and went about his large law practice. But the result was foregone conclusion. There was no surprise when he received large and spontaneous vote for the place. for it was known the people of Montgomery County desired to get the benefit of his ability. his wide experi- ence and his zeal.
 A Lender in Ability.
 The services he Fendered were of more value to the State than to the county, for if the honor of the Speak ership had not been rendered Mir. Mar tin, he would, by the will of the Leg islature. have stood In the front of the leaders of the House. Hts ability and his experience would have won their own place without any effort from him. k,
 MT. Martin was an earnest suppor- ter of the policies of Governor Comer. He was the Governors choice for Speaker of the. House. The Governor needed his experience, his thorough knowledge of law making, his wide acquaintance, not only with the laws of Alabama, but with conditions that prevailed in the State,
 He was chosen in the House to lead in the legislative endeavors of the Conner administration. in legislation which was new of it's kind. and for which a way had to be blazed.
 The zeal and the ability with which he discharged the responsibilities placed upon him. is part of the history of this session of the Legislature. His courtesy to the members of the House. his unfaiIing fairness, his con- scientious regard for his resnonsibili- ry. were subjects of discussion by members of the House before he was stricken with his last illness.
 Ancestors Were Pioneers.
 The way in which he discharged his duties. evidences his belief that he was commissioned with a high responsible ity and that it called for nothing less than the best that he could. physically and mentally, give. No Speaker of the Alabama Legislature has worked hard CT.
 Mir. Martin was from one of the old est families of Alabama Ills great grandfather. Frank Martin. settled in Madison County in 1S0ss He had served as a soldier in the War for Independ- ence and was among the very first Of the Virginians to come to the Tennes- see Valley when that part of Alabama was then a nortion of the Mississippi Territory The Martins were Of Eng fish ancestry. which had settled in Vir- sfn,c in colonial times. The father or Sneaker Martin was Thomas Wesley Martin. a prominent planter and mer- chant of Madison County. He died In 1883 ,-,tov Chanel in Madison County Novemoer & 1850 His mother. before her mar oia,o was Miss Elizabeth Jane Horton, oP well known Madison county lam fly. ,.,,,,.oa
 wr AfartIn's early educational advan- tages were limited, compared win those of the present day. He was never at college The Foundation or tho trsined mind and the wide store of .l's ..,'a+ion was laid In the country i,nois of Madison county which were s necessity less efficient than those | of the present day .4. yaAoo,. 1Ta was graduated from the Leoanon rar,, school. in 1873, with the degree os Bachelor of Laws. In the same year he was admitted to the practice or law n Vaudeville. He later moved to se It yvhere he engaged in the oetjno of law. His first official posi- ... pn .S,os ina of register of chancery l of Jackson county
 ryo was alone in the practice or la, from, 1878 to 1882 when ne forned a nartnership with Hon. Nirg' Soul- | din, one of the most promineh' la"- l years of North Alaba"e-
 
 .rai of Alabama in 1SSa. A vacancy in that office had been created by the pro, motion of Hon. Thomas c. Mcclellan 1 tn pIace on the Supreme Court Bench. The Appointment to the vacancy was rendered Mfr Martin by Governor Seay' l He was elected to the place by the peo- nle of Alabama in 1890, and again elect ed in 1892.
 state Code His Monument.
 He was selected in 1895 to prepare ! tho new Code of Alabama. and he was l Code Commissioner of the State unul 1 1898 The work he accomplished in | those years will remain as the monu- 1 ment to his public service. Since 1902. 1 Mir. Martin has been associated in the l nractice of law with his son. Thomas w Martin. under the firm name of Martin and Martin
 Mir Martoin always manifested ! koer Interest in politics. and was ] roeardeA as a man who had more ro- l ltticaI strength than he cared to ex- | ercise He took prominent part tni | the inauguration of one of the earliest primary systems in Alabama. when N
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