The Supreme Court of Missouri.
perous city. Judge Henry accepted one of these seats, and in 1890 was elected for a full term by an overwhelming majority. He is universally respected at the bar as an ideal judge, because of his uniform courtesy, great ability, and tireless devotion to duty.
Robert D. Ray.
By nature Judge Ray is one of the most amiable and courteous of men. Endowed with a high sense of honor, and an unbending desire to administer exact justice, he has been carefully conscientious in the discharge of his judicial duties. He was born in Lexington County, Kentucky, Feb. 16, 1817, graduated from Cumberland College in 1838, and came to Carrollton, Missouri, in 1839. He attained high rank at the bar, and was especially well known for his ability in the many difficult cases arising out of the imperfect and uncertain land titles in that section of the State. He was a member of the Legislature in 1846, and of the Gamble Convention in 1861. He remained continuously in the practice of his profession until 1881, when he assumed his seat as a member of the Supreme Court. Judge Ray's opinions display a laborious consideration of the case before him, and are in most instances exhaustive discussions of the questions involved. Some of them will always be worthy of attentive perusal. Many of them discuss interesting questions; and among those that show his abilities to good advantage are: Matheny v. Mason, 73 Mo. 677; St. Louis v. Richeson, 76 Mo. 470; State ex rel. v. Lewis, 76 Mo. 370; Abbott v. R. R. Co., 83 Mo. 271; Widdecombe v. Childers, 84 Mo. 382; Crow v. Meyersieck, 88 Mo. 411; Dyer v. Wittier, 89 Mo. 81; Davis v. Wabash, etc., Ry. Co., 89 Mo. 340; Peck v. Lockridge, 97 Mo. 549; Rychlicki v. St. Louis, 98 Mo. 497 (dissenting).
Francis M. Black.
Nature has gifted Judge Black bounteously with those qualities which go to make up a useful judge. He is of strong physical and mental development; is laboriously industrious; has a discriminating mind; is patient and entirely free from any element which can alloy the purity of his judicial temperament. He was born in Champaign County, Ohio, July 24, 1836, and became a member of the Kansas City Bar in 1864. A large practice fell to his lot, and he figured prominently and creditably in a number of instances of exceedingly important litigation. His first public office was that of member of the Constitutional Convention of 1875. In 1881, he was elected circuit judge. His services on that bench were conspicuously able and satisfactory. They have been no less so in his more elevated position. His opinions are concise, expressed in terse and vigorous phrases, and manifest a decided inclination to follow adjudged cases. A striking illustration of his readiness to yield his own previously entertained opinion is found in Webb v. Webb, 87 Mo. 540. This case was tried before him as circuit judge. When it came before the Supreme Court, all the judges voted for affirmance, except Judge Black himself. He filed a brief opinion dissenting from the one which affirmed his own judgment. He has been the organ of the court in quite a number of important cases. His abilities can fairly be adjudged by his opinions in Missouri, etc., R. R. Co. v. Tygard, 84 Mo. 263; Vawter v. Mo. Pac. Ry. Co., 84 Mo. 679; Givens v. Van Studdiford, 86 Mo. 149; Ferrenbach v. Turner, 86 Mo. 445; Bent v. Priest, 86 Mo. 475; Kiley v. Kansas City, 87 Mo. 103; Martin v. Colburn, 88 Mo. 229 (dissenting); Howe v. Wilson, 91 Mo. 45; Slattery v. St. Louis, etc., Transportation Co., 91 Mo. 217; Attaway v. Third National Bank, 93 Mo. 485; Robinson v. Ware, 94 Mo. 678; Young v. Boardman, 97 Mo. 181; Rychlicki v. St. Louis, 98 Mo. 497; Dowell v. Guthrie, 99 Mo. 653; Chew v. Keller, 100 Mo. 362.
Judge Black possesses, in a wonderful degree, the power of grouping and condensing the facts of complicated cases. A striking instance of this faculty is found
