In Memoriam WILLIAM H. DE WOLF. Leaves have their time to fall, And flowers to wither at the north-wind's breath, Thou hast all seasons for thine own, O death! Sunday, the 23d day of February, 1902, was a damp, cold and disagreeable day well calculated to cast a gloom over the mind of any one. About two o'clock in the afternoon of that day the news spread rapidly through the city of Vincennes that Judge DeWolf was dead. This announcement, so unexpected and unwelcome, added to the general gloom occasioned by the weather. Judge DeWolf, in consequence of his long residence in the city, and the prominent position he occupied before the public in this community, was not only well known by the people, but was highly esteemed by them. He had been a resident of Vincennes for nearly forty years, and by his uniform, upright conduct and kind treatment of all with whom he came in contact, had gained the esteem and good-will of all the citizens of Vincennes. His death was not only unexpected, but was a great shock to every one. A few days before he had occupied his accustomed place in the Knox circuit court attending to his extensive business before the court, which was then in session. Very few among his associates and members of the bar knew of his illness, and those who did had no idea of its being of such a serious nature. William H. DeWolf was born in Fairhaven, Mass., September 30, 1832. He was the son of John B. and Mary (Andrews) DeWolf. His parents were of Scotch-Irish descent. His father and mother were both born in Nova Scotia in 1801. At the time of the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes his ancestors emigrated from France to America. His father's family subsequently left Nova Scotia and settled in Massachusetts and continued to reside there until death, the father dying in 1860, the mother in 1863. Mr. De Wolf received his education in his native state, and having determined to pursue the profession of the law for his life work, began his legal studies in Massachusetts, and was admitted to the bar and began the practice of his profession there in 1850. In 1852 he concluded to remove to the west, and accordingly came to Indiana and located at Petersburg, in Pike county. He was admitted to the bar of the Pike circuit court and soon, by close attention to business and his legal abilities, secured a large practice not only in Pike but in the surrounding counties. In 1864, when he was attending to some of his business in the Knox circuit court, he was induced by Judge William E. Niblack to come to Vincennes and locate, as it would afford him a wider field for his legal abilities. He accordingly came here and formed a partnership with Judge Niblack, which was very successful and continued until 1871. In 1873 he formed a partnership with Smiley N. Chambers, now of Indianapolis, Ind., which firm was also very successful, and secured a large share of the litigation in the courts of Knox and surrounding counties. This firm was engaged in the litigation growing out of the will of William J. Wise, involving property interests of over a million dollars, and also the case of Cunningham against the Evansville and Terre Haute Railroad for damages for the destruction by fire of a large starch works at Vincennes, also involving several hundred thousand dollars. These cases were successfully managed by the firm of DeWolf & Chambers, and mainly by the watchful care and attention to the evidence the interests of their clients were success fully maintained. This firm continued until 1889, when Mr. Chambers was appointed by President Harrison district attorney for Indiana, when he left Vincennes and located at Indianapolis. Mr. De Wolf then formed a partnership with his son, Edgar H. De Wolf, and this firm continued till his death. Judge DeWolf was a hard student and attended strictly to his professional business, and his uniform success at the bar was the result of his studying and thoroughly understanding the facts in the cases entrusted to his care. Judge DeWolf was for many years the attorney for the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad, and when that railroad was merged in the Baltimore and Ohio Southwestern Railroad he was retained as the attorney and skilfully managed the large and important litigation of these roads in Knox and surrounding counties. He was unusually successful in the management of the cases against these corporations both in the nisi prius court and also in the supreme court of the state. Mr. DeWolf was very kind and courteous to his fellow attorneys, and in the management of the extensive litigation in which he was concerned, involving large interests, he never gave any cause of offense to the counsel opposed to him. He was a great favorite with all the members of the bar and was very frequently by agreement chosen by them to preside over important cases on change of venue from the regular judge, and in all the cases so tried before him he presided with marked ability and fairness, and his rulings were always prompt and decisive and invariably so fair and impartial as to meet with no dissatisfaction with any of the parties to the suit, and no case among the many tried before him was ever appealed. Judge DeWolf was not an orator in the sense in which that term applies. He never attempted any flight of rhetoric, but strictly confined himself to the plain facts involved in the case. He was successful in the presentation of his cases either before the court or jury. When Mr. De Wolf located at Petersburg, in 1852, he became a member of the lodge of Odd Fellows at that place. When he removed to Vincennes, in 1864, he changed his membership to Wabash Lodge, No. 20, at Vincennes, and continued his connection with that lodge until his death. He was one of the most esteemed and popular members of that order, and was elected grand master of the Grand Lodge of Odd Fellows of Indiana. A lodge of Odd Fellows at Wheatland, Ind., is named in honor of Mr. De Wolf. In 1860 Mr. De Wolf became a member of the Masonic fraternity and advanced in the order until he became a Royal Arch Mason and continued his connection with the order until his death. In 1857 he was married to Carrie H. Drake, a native of New York state, who is a daughter of Henry Drake. To this union three children were born-Clara, Edgar and Anna, who, together with his widow, survive him. Upon the occasion of his death the members of the Vincennes bar held a meeting to take proper action on the occasion. This meeting was attended by nearly every member of the bar of Knox county and by many of the prominent attorneys of neighboring counties in Indiana and Illinois. Many eloquent and complimentary addresses were delivered by his fellow attorneys on that occasion. The members of the bar attended his funeral in a body and marched in a body to the cemetery. The bar passed the following resolutions,' which were afterwards, by order of the court, entered on the minutes of the court: Resolved, That in the sudden and unexpected death of Hon. William H. DeWolf the Vincennes bar has lost one of its most learned and distinguished members, whose vacant seat in our midst will be observed and remain unfilled for many years; Resolved, That in his death the city of Vincennes has lost one of its most distinguished and influential citizens, who was ever ready to assist in every way possible to advance the best interests of the city and its citizens; Resolved, That we do most earnestly hold up the life of our deceased brother as a worthy example to the young members of the bar, assuring them that an imitation of his many virtues will conduct them to honor and success in their profession; Resolved, That we tender to the surviving widow and children of the deceased our sincere sympathy on this melancholy occasion and assure them his memory will ever be held in grateful remembrance by his surviving brothers. BENJAMIN HARRISON. Nature achieves her best only rarely. She tries her hand on a thousand lawyers to produce one great one. It takes her best stuff, her happiest combination, her finest finish to do it. All wise men respect lawyers, but only lawyers know each other. We measure ourselves by ourselves. We stand up together and we know who is tallest. We wrestle with each other and learn who is strongest. We study each other as men of no other profession can. We are constantly in each other's sight. We take turns as players and critics. Our judgments of each other are just, but inexorable. No shams deceive us; no excellence fails of recognition. Hence it is that to be accounted a great lawyer by lawyers is one of the highest certificates of greatness that men can bestow. Millions of citizens turn their thoughts to-day to the memory of Benjamin Harrison. To most of them he was the great statesman; the strong, wise, patriotic, good president. To the diminishing band of veterans of the war for the Union he was, besides that, the gallant soldier, the comrade in arms. To us he was, besides |