Watertown leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1909-1911, 1910-04-01
DAVID J. BREWER
DIES SUDDENLY
At WASHINGTON.
DEATH ENDS CAREER OF UNITED
STATES SUPREME COURT
JUSTICE.
HAD BEEN ILL BUT FEW DAYS.
Much Speculation Sc to Probable De-
clslon of Court in Pending Cases =.
Of National Importance.
REHEARING OF STANDARD cAsE7

WASHINGTON, d. c., March %
justice David Josiah Brewer of the SUI.
preme court OF the United States died
suddenly Monday night at his home in
this city.
Justice Brewer, dyir- of anon,exv
was found in the bathroom of his house
by Mrs Brewer. She at once toIanhoned
for Justice Gould of the supreme court
81 me district of Columbia who lives
near at hand. Hurrying to the Brewer
home, Justice Gould, with the assistance
Of two servants, carried the body to a
bedroom Justice Brewers pulse was
still family beating.
Women Alone in House.
Mrs. Brewer and niece. Miss Clara
Han, were the only members of the fam
lily IN the house at the time. An at
tempt was made to notify the other
justices OF the court but it was found
too late 10 reach any Of them except
Justice Harlan who sent his son to be
Of any assistance possible.
Marshall Wright and Deputy Clerk
Maher soon received word, Justice Gould
in the meantime summoning Dr. J. II.
Taylor, who lives a few doors from the
Brewer hGuse. The physician said that
when he arrived the patient was dead.
Justice Brewer had not been well for
several days. He had suffered several
attacks of headache and stomach trouble
President Taft, upon arrival here to-
day from New York, was much dis
tressed by the details Of the death of
his friend. The President had learned
only the bare fact last night before his
departure from Jersey City.
Hold Funeral Thursday.
The funeral of Justice Brewer prob
ably viii be held here Thursday and
the body taken Immediately to Leaven'
worth, Kan, for burial Should this
plan be adopted the court will probably
accompany the body to Kansas, leaving
one justice to adjourn court on next
Monday, when it must meet, according
to its own orders.
Effect on Oil Trust Case
The death of Justice Brewer removes
any possibility of n deadlock of the SUI
preme court in its decision Of the Stand
ard Oil and Tobacco trust cases. These
cases will be decided now by court of
seven justices, and the nearest to a dl-
vision that is possible will be vote of
to ).
On account of the continued illness of
Justice Moody, who has not sat with the
court for nearly year, tied vote of the
eight remaining members of the tribunal
was possible. There has been consider
able speculation upon this contingency
ever since it became apparent that eight
Justices would pass upon the big trust
cases.
Now a different phase is put upon the
affair so far as this possibility is con
Cerned. Justice Brewer sat throughout
the hearings of the arguments on these
cases and participated in the delibera
tons of the court which have been going
on for the last two weeks upon the de
csion that is to be rendered But now
the weight of his vote will go fol-
naught The decision will be the de
cison of the court as it is constituted
when the opinion is rendered.
Retrial Is Not Expected.
Nor will the appointment of Il success
sor, if one should be made Immediately
serve to affect the decision. The sue
cessor would not have heard the argu
ments, and therefore would not partici
nate in the decision. 1t is regarded as
unlikely that n successor VIII be appoint
ed before the decision of these cases
There is only one other chance to avoid
a deadlock retrial OF the TWO cases
but this is not expected.
This is the second death on the SUI
nreme court bench in the present term.
Justice Peckham died early III the term
and was succeeded by Justice Lurton.
Justice Moody has been i'll for several
months ana PROBABLY VIII not pe DUCK on
the bench this term.
Justice Brewers death will be a big
loss to the public in other ways than as
a member OF the bench. He was the
only member of the bench who freely
expressed his opinion on large public
questions. He was particularly outspoken
in his criticisms of the Roosevelt meth
DDS.
Sketch of His Career.
horn al
Smyrna, Asia Minor, June 20, 1887. He
was the son of Rev. Josiah Brewer and
of Amelia A. Field. who were, at the
time of his birth, missionaries to Turkey,
but returned to the United States while
he was an infant.
His mother was sister OF DAVID
Dudley. Cyrus w. and Justice Stephen
]. Field His early education was re-
ceived in the schools of Connecticut
and in 1851 he entered Wesleyan uni
versity at Middletown, where his father
then lived. but afterwards went to New
Haven and graduated at Yale III 1Sot
with high honors.
office of his uncle, David Dudley Field, in
New York city, in which he spent one
year as a student. and then completed
his legal studies in the Albany Law
school. from which he graduated in the
class OF 1858. In the fall of that year
he went west and. after residence OF
few months in Kansas City, started III
the Arkansas valley for Pixies peak and
Denver.
Begins Work Upon Bench.
Returning 10 Kansas in June, 1859
after a short visit home. he established
himself i'll Leavenworth and resided
there until removing to Washington il
January. 1890. In 1861 he was appoint
ed United States commissioner, and dur
ing 1868 and 1864 was elected judge Of