The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1916-01-28


be able to reach the Cape before Mon
day afternoon.
The funeral, consequently, will not
be held till Tuesday, members Of the
family said last night.
Robert Clifton Ranney, the Judges
son, who is living on the Judges farm
on the Bloomfield road west of town,
will come to the Cape today with his
wife and child. They had made an
to come to the Cape today
for a Sunday dinner when several
of the Judges family would
have been gathered together.
The Judges more serious illness be-
gan about two week sage when he had
a stroke of heart trouble. This at
tack, however, followed an occasion
when it is believed he was exposed
unduly to the weather.
The Judge for several days had been
planning on constructing new chick
en- coop in the rear of his home. He
obtained the materials and went into
the yard to build the coop himself.
1t was the day on which the Cape was
visited with raw wind from the west
and north and the wind was accompan-
led by a driving half sleet, half rain
The Judge went out in his yard in
the midst of the &leet to work at his
chicken coop. He was seen there by
Mr.. English, who was confined to his
home with an attack of the grip. Mr..
English called out to the Judge that he
would be seized with the grip.
He scoffed at the warning, but when
Mrs. English went into the yard, she
persuaded him to desist from the con-
struction of the new coop while the
weather was bad.
From that time on, his decline be-
came more rapid, although, he was not
considered to be gravely i'll.
He went to the courthouse virtually
every day and sat on the bench
through several trials after he had be-
come i'll.
Conversations that the Judge held
with some of his friends in recent
days, however, have revealed that he
vas preparing for his death with a
business-like foresight. He discussed
the division of his property among his
children, and told some of his closest
friends that he intended to sell the
home on North Main street, so that a
partition suit that possibly could re-
suit after his death, would be impos-
sible. He intended to have his estate
in such shape that it easily could be
divided among his heirs.
In addition to owning the large
residence and land on which it is sit
uated on North Main street, the Judge
owned a large farm on the Bloom
field road, which the son has been
working. 1t is said that he also has
other valuable holdings in securities.
The Judges home is a stone struc-
ture which was built in 1889. Since
it was vacated by its first owner, the
place has been transferred but twice
and each time within the Ranney FAM
lily.
Judge Ranney belonged to one of
the oldest and best known families in
Southeast Missouri. This county,
which was his home from the cradle
Until his death, was also the birthplace
of his mother, who was born on a farm
near Jackson, in 1918, or 90 years
ago.
His father, William C. Ranney,
though a New Yorker by nativity,
moved to Cape Girardeau County
shortly after he was admitted to the
bar, and became the first Judge of the
Common Pleas Court, the position his
SOIl HeiU W1en ne Uleu.
William c. Ranney served two terms
on the Common Pleas bench. He also
served as a member of the State
Legislature from Cape Girardeau
County, and represented this district
in the State Senate. He was cOnSid
cred one of the ablest lawyers in this
part of the state, and is favOrably re-
membered by the older residents of
this city, this county and the whole
southeastern part of the state.
William C. Ranney married Miss
Elizabeth Giboney, the mother of Rob-
ert G. Ranney, and a descendant of
one of the first families of Virginia.
Her father was born in Virginia and
came to this county from Harpet's
Ferry in 1876, or twenty years after
George Washington conquered the
British and won the independence for
the Thirteen Colonies.
Four sons were born to Mr.. and Mrs.
William C. Ranney. They were: Ste
phen, who died in 1875; William A.,
teacher in Arkansas, who is now i'll;
Robert G.. and Herbert H., who for the