THE SUPREME COURT OF WISCONSIN.
BY EDWIN E. BRYANT. III. THE SEPARATE SUPREME COURT. THE people of the State soon found that a Separate Supreme Court was desira ble; and the legislature in 1852, as soon as possible under the Constitution, provided by
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law for a special elec tion to be held in Sep tember of that year to elect a chief justice and two associate jus tices. The terms of office were to begin the first day of June, 1853, to constitute a supreme court. The judges first elected were to hold, the chief justice till May 31, 1857, the two asso ciates were to draw lots for a long term ending May 31, 1859, and a short term ex piring May 31, 1855. Under this act, Ed ward V. Whiton — whose biography has already been given — ABKAM was elected chief jus tice, and Abram D. Smith and Samuel Crawford, associate jus tices. A sketch of each of these gentlemen — except Whiton — will here follow: — ABRAM DANIEL SMITH was born in Lowville, Lewis County, New York. But little is known of his early youth. The follow ing anecdote, told of him as a tradition in the region whence he came, found its way into the " New York Sun " of July 9, 1873, and is here repeated for what it is
worth. While a law student at Sackett'sHarbor, he was indignant, so the story goes, because no provision was made to observe the national holiday; and he resolved to celebrate on his own hook. Supplying himself with proper outfit — literary, pat riotic, and substantial — he took a rowboat, on the evening before the Fourth, and paddled alone out to an uninhabited island in the bay, and camped for the night. At sunrise next day he fired the national salute. At ten o'clock he formed himself into a procession and moved to a grove, where he read the Declaration of Inde pendence, and then delivered a carefully prepared oration all D. SMITH. by himself. Then he marched back to his boat and dined, reading and drinking the conventional toasts, responding to one, sing ing a song to another, cheering a third, and drinking that to Washington standing and in silence. He came to Wisconsin in 1842 and began to practice. He was able, earnest, eloquent, and successful. In 1848 he was candidate for circuit judge in the second judicial cir cuit, and came near election. The follow ing incident explains his defeat. Before
