John A. Logan, a delegate from Jackson county, followed Judge Breese in seconding the motion of the adoption of the report. He was at that time about 26 or 27 years of age, but had already made some reputation in the lower house of the legislature. He He was an ardent supporter of Stephen A. Douglas. He was full of fire and action, spoke in a continuously loud voice and was profuse and vehement in gesticulation. He pleased his hearers, for he was loudly applauded I heard him on several occasions in after years, when in the zenith of a well merited national reputation, and I was forcibly impressed by his improvement as a public speaker. Study and practice made him a very attractive speaker-impassioned and, at times, eloquent. One trait of the orator, action, that was noticeable in the first speech I heard, was still with him in his maturity. Especially as a soldier, Illinois can well be proud of John A. Logan, for he was unquestionably the ablest civilian general who fought in the war for the Union.

William H. Snyder also addressed the convention. I had heard him previously in the old court house. He was a son of one of the best and ablest men connected with the earlier history of the Statea man whose pathetic and untimely death prevented him from taking his seat in the gubernatorial chair when it was virtually within his reach. I refer to A. W. Snyder.

Young Snyder, for some years, took an active part in politics. He was a member of the legislature, of the constitutional convention of 1870, and was elected to the circuit bench and remained there for a number of years. He was a man of very decided talents, of scholarly attainments; a great reader of the best literature and deeply. versed in history, both ancient and modern. He was possessed of a fine presence, was tall, strong and straight, and graceful in deportment. His face was full and expressive, his head large, and he wore his black hair long. He was an effective speaker, rather rapid in declamation and quick in gesticulation. Though genial and affable in disposition, he did not like the coarser associations of politics. He was a good lawyer, an able and conscientious judge.

The Salem convention proved to be of some importance to the State. The address and resolutions were formally presented to Governor Matteson by a large committee selected from the delegates, and eventuated in the calling of an extra session, which met at the capital on the 9th day of February, 1854. A large number of the suggestions for legislation, as urged by Judge Breese in his report, were considered and passed into laws. The declination of Judge Breese to become a candidate for the Supreme Court in 1853, and his subsequent speech in Chicago in answer to Senator Douglas' effort in defense of his course in urging the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska bill, convinces me that he still entertained hopes of returning to the senate of the United States. Though naturally gifted with mental powers that would enable him to become a distinguished jurist, his ambition was to take part in the more active fields of politics. Added to this, he evidently entertained some feeling of resentment as well

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as a sense of humiliation that he had been defeated in his aspirations at so important a period in the history of the country by one so far his inferior in all the qualities of learning and statesmanship. His ambition for official position and the opportunity presented finally directed his future along that course he was so well endowed to follow; and, in the year 1857, he was elected to the Supreme Bench. He was re-elected in 1861 and in 1870. He occupied the position nearly 20 years, sitting by rotation twice as a chief justice. From the time of his taking his seat in this exalted position to the time of his death, his public career is written and recorded in the volumes of the Illinois reports, and it is a career replete in the achievements of a great and illustrious jurist. Sixty-seven volumes contain the inscription of his judicial opinions, and their enumeration reaches 1900. Therein is contained the ablest disquisitions upon every department of the law. Therein is raised a monument of immortality as lasting as Time's records shall run. I said that I met him, not long before his death, at the Planters' House in St. Louis. Time had greatly changed him in appearance. He was still apparently healthy and vigorous. His hair was white and very long, as was also his beard. It gave him a reverend look. His mental powers were as strong as ever. He always was a rare conversationalist. He delighted to talk on congenial subjects. On this occasion he referred to his early experiences in Kaskaskia; to the newspapers published there and the stirring events of the Indian wars; his removal of the records of the office of Secretary of State to Vandalia in 1820 in a small wagon, at a cost of $25, and its taking a week to perform the feat; of the divers characteristics of the people and the development from primitive to modern ideas, customs, habits and conditions. Kaskaskia, when he settled there, was comparatively an alien settlement. The impression of the earliest settlers was still paramount; the antique and the modern commingled but were not united. Judge Breese died suddenly in 1878.

CAPT. JAMES SHIELDS.

When James Shields came to Kaskaskia he was quite a young man and was seeking a location to make his fortune. He was lucky in the selection of a place. His first occupation was teaching schoola labor that, according to my experience and observation, was what every aspiring young man of education, and some without, undertook to perform. It was either the forerunner or accompaniment to the study of law. In his case it was both, and in 1832 we find him entering upon the practice of law. He had left Ireland in 1826 when but 16 years old. He was every inch an Irishman then and he remained so all his life. He was a young man of fine appearance; a little above the medium height, strong and well-proportioned, with black hair and dark, piercing eyes. He wore a mustache; possessed a military bearing; was gracious and affable in his manner, and by no means timid, and, though somewhat rash and hot-headed, he was brave and courageous. These latter qualities in those days were passports to success. They neutralized in his case an overweening vanity and excessive egotism. His surroundings, experience and the associa

tion of great and ambition men, made him a good politician. As others of his profession, he soon sought public office. He ran for and was elected to the Legislature in 1836; became State Auditor in 1839, and Judge of the Supreme Court in 1843. He did not remain here long, and it is a reasonable presumption that the position was not altogether congenial to his tastes and inclinations. It was while Auditor of the State that he became angered at Mr. Lincoln, the prominent Whig leader, for writing and publishing, in a Springfield journal, articles of ridicule referring to certain of his vulnerable characteristics and for which he was forthwith challenged to mortal conflict. There is something amusing in Abraham Lincoln fighting a duel, but those were fighting days, and Mr. Lincoln had to recognize the right of challenge. His fine sense of humor, however, came to his rescue and gave to his friends an opportunity to extricate him from the impending danger. Mr. Lincoln being the challenged party had the right to name the weapon, and he drew up the preliminaries. The first clause read:

"Cavalry broadswords of the largest size, precisely equal in all respects, and as now used by the cavalry company at Jacksonville." Then as to the position he wrote:

"A plank 10 feet long and from 9 to 12 feet broad, to be firmly fixed on edge in the ground as a dividing line between us, which neither is to pass his foot over or forfeit his life. Next, a line drawn on the ground on either side of said plank, and parallel with it; each at the distance of the whole length of the sword, and three feet additional from the plank, and the passing over such line by either party during the fight shall be deemed a surrender of the contest."

Mr. Lincoln's experience as a rail splitter gave him a decided advantage in the proposed duel. To what extent the prescribed conditions worked in causing an adjustment will never be known. But, suffice to say, the friends of the parties brought about an amicable adjustment, and both of the interested ones lived to fight another day.

In 1845 Mr. Shields was appointed Commissioner General of the Land Office. It was while occupying this office that the Mexican war broke out. That memorable conflict was precipitated by the annexation of Texas in March, 1845. The Republic of Mexico had formerly owned that state and still claimed jurisdiction over it. The conduct of our government was looked upon as unfriendly, and a bitter feeling became manifest upon the part of the Mexican government. This was increased by President Polk's order for an army of 4,000 troops to take a station on the Rio Grande. This was in March, 1846, and the command was given to Gen. Zach. Taylor. On April 24, 1846, 60 dragoons from this force on an observation tour were attacked by a large force of Mexican soldiers and forced to surrender after a loss of 16 killed. This precipitated hostilities. Three days after, Congress declared war and authorized the President to accept the services of 50,000 volunteers. The sum of $10,000,000 was appropriated to support the declaration. The war spirit spread with

tune politically attended him here in one respect. The first legislature of the state elected him as one of the United States senators, but, in drawing lots with his colleague for the long or short term, he drew the short term, so his senatorial career was limited to two years. He was not re-elected and he then went to California. When the Civil war broke out, his old opponent, President Lincoln, appointed him brigadier general of volunteers. This was in August, 1861. He served with some distinction in the valley of the Shenandoah, and was severely wounded in the battle of Kernstown. He resigned his position in March, 1863, and then became a citizen of Carrollton, Mo. He opened an office for the practice of the law. His passion for politics, however, never forsook him. During the candidacy of R. Graham Frost for a seat in the 46th and 47th Congress he was brought to St. Louis to fire the Irish heart in favor of the Democratic cause. The district contained a large Irish vote, and it would seem that he succeeded, for Mr. Frost was elected both times in a closely divided district. In 1874 he was elected to the legislature of Missouri. By virtue of my office as lieutenant governor I was presiding officer of the joint session on the occasion of the inaugural ceremonies of the newly elected Governor Hardin. General Shields was a member of the house. I had not seen him since my meeting with him in Sparta in 1853. After the adjournment he approached and spoke to me Time had greatly changed him in every respect except in his military bearing and the brilliancy of his eyes. Strange to say, the first sentence he spoke was in reference to Kaskaskia: "And is this the son of Elvira (meaning my mother) whom I knew as a girl in Kaskaskia?" His conversation continued reminiscent and was highly interesting to me.

Lewis V. Bogy, United States senator from Missouri, died Sept 20, 1877. David R. Armstrong was appointed to fill the vacancy until the meeting of the legislature. When that body convened, an election for the short term was to occur. R. Graham Frost and his friends, anxious to repay General Shields for his assistance in the congressional campaigns in St. Louis, visited Jefferson City and urged the election of General Shields to fill the short term, and, surely, it was a short term. They were successful, and he was elected and bore the name of United States senator from Missouri just 34 days from Jan. 21, 1879, to March 4, 1879. He died at Ottumwa, Iowa, June 1, 1879. What a strange, romantic and eventful career had this wanderer from Ireland, for, surely, he was a wanderer! There was a vein of the nomadic in him-a senator from three states, governor from another, and dying in another. A few centuries earlier he would have been a voyager into new and unknown regions or a warrior fighting wherever his gallantry and adventurous spirit suggested. He was neither a great statesman, orator or jurist, but he possessed high military abilities, coupled with a knightly dash and bravery that specially endeared him to the hearts of the people of Illinois.

COL. A. P. FIELD.

Considering the number of eminent lawyers living in Belleville and the judicial circuit in which it was located, it is not surprising that it should occasionally have been the arena for notable trials and great forensic contests. I have very distinct recollections of several, but one in particular lodged in my memory and made a lasting impression. In fact, the incidents connected with it had a very material bearing upon my future life. It was a murder case brought by change of venue from Madison county. A man by name Duncan, of an unsavory reputation, had located on a farm in that county and his residence was supposed to be a rendezvous for gamblers, horse thieves, counterfeiters and desperadoes generally. The citizens of the county warned him to leave, but, standing upon the order of his going, he had delayed or refused to do so. Violent means to drive him from his stronghold were resorted to, and, in the riotous demonstration, Duncan was killed. Several citizens were indicted for his murder, and it was in this trial I heard, for the first and only time, Col. A. P. Field. He was assisting the circuit attorney, Philip B. Fouke, in the prosecution. The defendants were represented by Lyman and George Trumbull, Joseph Gillespie, William H. Snyder and some others. The array of lawyers on both sides was imposing. A wide spread interest was manifested in the trial, and a great concourse of people came in from the country and the adjoining towns, and there were a number of representatives from St. Louis. The excitement intensified as the trial proceeded, and a desire to hear the arguments was apparent on all sides. On the day set apart for the forensie display, the seats to the left of the judge's bench were assigned for occupancy to the ladies, and quite a number embellished the proceedings with their presence. Gustavus Koerner presided as judge at the trial. Lyman Trumbull made an able and exhaustive argument during the morning session, only a part of which I could hear. His style of oratory was such as not to be appreciated by one as young as I. The afternoon session was to be given to hearing the closing address for the prosecution by Col. A. P. Field. The court room was packed almost to suffocation. I had played truant that day, and during the noon recess, shortly before the meeting of court, I clambered onto the sill of the north window in the court house and the one looking down on the space between the judge's bench and the seats in which the jury sat. I thought that the place would be secure because I knew that the crowd surrounding the window would keep me from falling out, and I would have a fine position to hear every word that was spoken. The court commenced; the judge was on the bench; the jury in their seats. The struggle from the outside to get in grew tumultuous, and, in some respects, overpowering. One consequence therefrom was important to he who addresses you: The pressure from the rear of the window pushed me from the sill and landed me immediately in the space between the judge and the jury. I was startled and frightened beyond measure. It looked to me as if I was the centre of a million eyes, and I imagined that I