Massac County, Illinois - Chapter 9: Massac County Bar, 1900

Chapter 9: Massac County Bar

Willis Allen lived at Benton and Marion. He was the iirst district attorney. Member of the lower house in the eleventh and of the senate in the fourteenth and fifteenth General Assemblies, and was in the thirty-second and thirty-third Congresses. During Buchanan's administration he was United States district attorney and was also circuit judge. He was the father of the Hon. W. J. Allen.

W. J. Allen, son of Willis Allen, enrolling and engrossing clerk seventeenth General Assembly, and a member of the house in the nineteenth. He served in the thirty-seventh and thirty eighth Congresses, was circuit judge, was John A. Logan's law partner, and became noted as a strong attorney in defense. He is a Federal Judge, located at Springfield, Illinois.

Sketch Of Thomas G. C. Davis

The most distinguished looking man who has ever resided in Metropolis was Thomas G. C. Davis. He was about 5 feet 10 inches in height, with a long body and finely developed neck and chest. He had a head and face like some of the handsomest of the Roman coins representing a Roman senator. He carried with him a dignity well adapted to his personal appearance.

His name was Thomas Gustavus Caesar, but he had none of the vanity that sometimes attaches to the name, and never wrote his name in full. He emigrated in the year 1844, when he was about 30 years of age, from Mississippi to Illinois. He came into the state with his wife and a small amount of baggage in a buggy without a top. He crossed the river and settled in Golconda. He was a man of remarkable powers of oratory. Only a few men in Illinois have been as highly endowed in that respect as he was. He was a lawyer of ability and also a man of large literary attainments. His talents were soon appreciated. In 1846 he was elected to the state senate, defeating Andrew J. Kuykendall of Vienna. In March, 1847, he was elected a member of the constitutional convention, which met in Springfleld on the first Monday in June, 1847, and framed the constitution which was long known as the constitution of 1848, and which remained the constitution of Illinois for twenty-three years. In the meantime he had moved from Golconda to Metropolis and came to be known as the most distinguished advocate in Southern Illinois. In 1850 he became a candidate for Congress. He was a Democrat and claimed that the political management of the district had drifted into the influence of a clique and he refused to submit his claims to a convention. The Congressional district then extended from the mouth of Cache river on the Ohio to and including Marion county on the north. He made a complete canvas of all the district. Great crowds went to hear him and followed him around. The writer heard one man say in speaking of Davis: ''No man can speak like lie does without being endowed from on high." But he found the party machinery too strong for him and the regular nominee of the party was elected. Being a bolter from the regularly organized Democratic party he expected to receive the votes of all disaffected Democrats, and of all persons who could be lured or enticed by his oratory and by the entire vote of the Whig party, which was only a small party in Southern Illinois. But some of the Whigs refused to vote for liim because he was an expansionist. The question of the propriety of our acquisition of territory from Mexico was discussed in all political meetings in those days. The Democrats were then all for expansion - both the members of the regularly organized Democratic party and also the bolters from that party. Davis was defeated for Congress

It is related of him (Davis) that he was never at a loss to supply a missing link in the chain of testimony wherein his client had a personal interest. There resided in the place (Metropolis) a gentleman whose name was S. H. Pfrimmer, well known in that section as a good citizen, but a man who managed to know a great deal about other people's business, and by the way, a personal friend of Mr. Davis. On occasions when the missing link was needed, Mr. Davis would rise to his feet and cast a searching glance around the court room for his witness, and not seeing him, would vociferate, "Will the sheriff call Mr. Pfrimmer?" The habit was so frequent that "^Vill the Sheriff call Mr. Pfrimmer," became a by-word about the court room and Mr. Pfrimmer was made the subject of many a pleasant jest. - Lusk's Politics and Politicians of Illinois.

S. S. Marshall was district attorney, lived at McLeansboro and served in the thirty-fourth, thirty-fifth, thirty ninth, fortieth, forty-first, forty-second and forty-third Congresses. He is by many considered the greatest lawj'er of his day in Southern Illinois.

John A. Logan, who lived at Murphysboro, Benton, Marion and Carbondale, was an early district attorney, practicing at the Massac county bar. His life's record is known to all.

K. S. Nelson was one of the first resident attorneys, coming from Mount "^'ernon, who later moved to Centralia, and died of apoplexy while attending the Mount Vernon court.

W. H. Green was a teacher, read law, was admitted to the bar, and practiced for a number of years as a resident attorney of Massac county. Later he removed to Cairo, 111., where he yet resides, an active practitioner. Mr. Green was elected to the thirty-first and thirty-second General Assemblies as a member of the lower house, and to the senate in the thirtythird and thirty-fourth. He was also circuit judge, and has been district attorney for the Illinois Central railroad for years. Today he has no peer at the bar of Southern Illinois.

John C. Mulkey, born April 24, 1824, and yet living at Metropolis, taught school at Benton, 111., studied law and was admitted to practice in Williamson county. He was a sergeant, and then lieutenant in the Mexican war. Later he was twice elected judge of the "Court of Common Pleas," of Cairo, then circuit judge, and resigned because it interfered with an extensive practice. His crowning honor was an election to the Supreme Court of Illinois, where his learned and wise decisions prove his exceptional legal talent and attainments.

Isaac Armstrong came to Metropolis from Ohio as a "circuit rider," and later practiced law. He was in many respects a brilliant fellow. Before his death he re-entered the ministry and died at Newton, Illinois. Hal. Armstrong, his son, who died here was also considered a brilliant young man.

Jedediah Jack, who came from Vienna, was an able lawyer. He defended Decatur Campbell. He was killed where the power house now stands, and lies in the Kidd graveyard.

Eichard Brown came from the South and in the civil war attempted to recruit for the Confederacy, but failed. He crossed the river and is said to have entered, the rebel army.

Thomas H. Smith came from Golconda and was a partner of W. H. Green. He was lieutenant colonel of the Forty-eighth Illinois Eegiment. At the capture of Fort Donaldson he was

G. W. Neeley also practiced here. In the civil war he became Colonel Neeley of the 131st Regiment Illinois Volunteers. After the war he became district attorney and shortly died.

E. W. McCartney studied law in Metropolis, was admitted to the bar, became county judge, state's attorney, member of the legislature, and circuit julge. His sketch is given elsewhere.

Capt. John E. Thomas began the practice of law here, was state's attorney, Congressman for ten years, and is now a United States Federal Judge in the Indian Territory.

Capt. J. F. McCartney came to Metropolis as principal teacher, when the city schools had three teachers. He was admitted to the bar here, founded the first Republican newspaper, the "Promulgator," was district attorney, president of the Fir«t National Bank, and founder of the National State bank, of which he is president and which receives most of his attention. He has been a very active practitioner.

Robert A. Davisson graduated from the Colombian Law school in Washington City, and practiced law in Metropolis from 1894 to 1897, when he died. He was also master-inchancery.

"Brim." Pillow, as he was called, was an early practitioner, captain of the "Regulators," a soldier in the Mexican war, and captain in the 120th Illinois. He later moved to Shawneelown, becoming a useful and leading citizen.

Messrs. J. C. Courtney and D. W. Helm; Sawyer & Evans, consisting of George Sawyer, county judge, and H. A. Evans; those not in any flrms are Messrs. B. O. Jones, C. L. V. Mulkey, L. P. Oakes, P. R. Young, S. Bartlett Kerr and C. M. Fonts. Robert L. Nuckolls was until lately a member, but joined the Methodist conference and entered McKendree college with the ministry in view. This bar ranks with the best in Southern Illinois and comprises a genteel, dignified group of men.

Decatur Campbell Case

Strange as it may seem, the ordinance of 1787 and subsequent efforts did not prevent slavery in Illinois. In 1840, the census showed 331 slaves. In 1850 slavery had become extinct except by indenture.

Living in Massac county during the '50's was a negro named Decatur Campbell. One night several white men, among them Goodwin Parker, called at Campbell's cabin door, as they claimed, to inflict a good sound beating. Their reason for this was a difficulty between Campbell and Parker at a house raising a few days before in which Campbell struck Parker with a spike. When addressed from without Campbell rushed out of the door and passed Parker, who later caught the negro. Others came up and it seems that in an eilort to kill the negro some member of the party fatally stabbed Parker.

Campbell was tried at the April term of the Massac county circuit court before Judge Pari'ish. John A. Logan was state's attorney. Jedediah Jack defended Campbell by appointment. The jury rendered a verdict of "guilty of manslaughter," and the judge fixed the sentence at eight years in the penitentiary.

On a writ of error, the case was taken to the Supreme court and Judge Caton delivered the decision found in the sixteenth volume of Illinois Eeports, page 16. The importance of the case lies in the following principles of law being determined thereby:

In each of these cases the court had erred and also in the exclusion of positive evidence that Parker had made positive threats of violence upon the body of Campbell, because they had not been delivered. The case was reversed.

Campbell was released from the penitentiary and a change of venue taken on the rehearing to Pulaski county. The defendant afterwards had the case returned to the Massac county circuit court. His counsel, Jack, died, the case never agaic came to trial and later Campbell became a preacher.