Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 1.djvu/743



THE CITY OF PORTLAND 551

practice. Mr. Campbell was a lawyer of the old school, and had the reputation of knowing Chitty's Pleadings by heart.

But of all the lawyers of Oregon of that time, or since, no man was the equal of David Logan in trying a cause, in everyday work in the court room, in readiness for every emergency, and for matchless ability in an appeal to the jury of twelve men. Logan's temperament prohibited his success in the political field. He had led the forlorn hope of the republican party in its infancy in this state, in three efforts to be elected to congress, and was beaten each time, after which he retired to his farm in Yamhill county, where he quietly passed away in 1873, at the age of 49 years. Logan was the son of a great lawyer. Judge Logan of Springfield, Illinois, who was the intimate friend of Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln knew both father and son intimately, and many of Lincoln's friends in Oregon felt that the great president ought to have extended a friendly hand to his friend's son in distant Oregon. Logan was sincere and honest to the core. He could not tolerate deceit. He could not beg favors or solicit votes — and for that he did not succeed in Oregon politics.

William H. Farrar was a lawyer of note in the early days of the city ; but he was more of a politician than a lawyer; and although a popular man, and hail fellow well met with everybody, he never attained the success in politics that some men of less ability and less honesty secured not long after his day.

Amory Holbrook took a prominent part in everything going on in and about Portland in 185 1-9. Not the equal of Logan in ability and natural qualifications, and beset with inborn enemies, yet Holbrook was a man of great ability and in- fluence in the community, and was highly respected to the last day of his life. He was at one time editor of the Daily Oregonian ; he was state agent for the U. S. commission, which greatly supported the union armies in the war to sup- press the southern rebellion by furnishing hospital supplies to the armies, and aid to the families of private soldiers in the field ; and he was United States dis- trict attorney.

Col. W. W. Chapman was a lawyer of ability and large personal influence in Portland always. Becoming interested in the Portland townsite before there was much law practice for anybody, his time and services were largely devoted to the city rather than to the law. But there was no man at the bar in the early days who for so many years held the attention of the people, the judges, and his fellow lawyers with such undiminished respect and confidence as W. W. Chap- man. He was a native of West Virginia, and was for several terms a member of the Oregon legislature. Col. Chapman was also the first surveyor-general of the state of Iowa, and its first delegate to congress. His chief service to the state was with his partner. General Coffin, buying the steamship Gold Hunter, which decided the contest for Portland against all its rivals ; and also his labors in pro- moting the construction of the Portland. Dalles & Salt Lake Railroad, which, but for the opposition of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company and Ben Hol- laday he would have made a success. He lived to see his railroad scheme made successful by Henry Villard — dying in 1884.

Judge Wait was another man who for a long term of years enjoyed the con- fidence and respect of judges, juries and lawyers without exception. He was not a brilliant lawyer at the forum, but he always quoted an authority that suited his cause. He was known to all the profession throughout the state as the lawyer that made no mistakes. He was a little slow, but always sure. He was elected at the first state election as one of the justices of the supreme court, and was the first chief justice of the supreme court of Oregon.

Subsequently to these men above mentioned George H. Williams, L. F. Grover, Cyrus Olney, P. A. Marquam, and Gov. A. C. Gibbs, took leading parts in the legal profession. Both Williams and Olney came to Oregon with commis- sions from President Franklin Pierce, as associate justices of the territorial su- preme court, and but for these appointments might not have come at all. But justice requires the record to say, that they were intentionally both as true and