Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 2.djvu/33

Rh measure to its success up to the day prior to his death, when realizing that his strength was failing he resigned the presidency.

Pleasantly situated in his home life, Mr. Corbett was married in Albany, New York, to Miss Caroline E. Jagger, who was born in that city and there passed away in 1865, leaving two sons, Henry J. and Hamilton F., both of whom died in Portland in early manhood. It was in Worcester, Massachusetts, that Mr. Corbett wedded Miss Emma L. Ruggles, a native of that state.

Few men have more fully realized the obligations of wealth or met their responsibilities in a more creditable manner. He was deeply interested in and a generous supporter of the Boys and Girls Aid Society, which endeavored to secure arrangements whereby children guilty of a first crime should not be thrown among hardened criminals. The home was built especially for such first offenders and its influence has been most beneficial. Mr. Corbett's private benevolences were many and, in fact, no good work done in the name of charity or religion sought his aid in vain. He never allowed the acquirement of wealth to warp his kindly nature, but remained throughout life a genial, courteous gentleman, appreciative of social amenities and generously bestowing warm regard in recognition of true personal worth. Many enterprises of Portland today stand as monuments to his life work, but a more fitting and even more lasting tribute to him is the cherished memory which his friends entertain for him.

Gustavus C. Moser, a practitioner at the Portland bar since the 1st of June, 1894, was born in Alma, Wisconsin, on the 15th of November, 1870, a son of Fred and Anna Moser, both of whom were natives of Switzerland. Following their marriage they took up their abode in the city of Berne but after a short period crossed the Atlantic to the new world, becoming residents of Wisconsin. The father is still living at Alma where for a long period he engaged in the dairy business, retiring, however, a few years ago. Plis wife died when their son Gustavus was but sixteen years of age.

In the pursuit of his education Gustavus C. Moser completed the work in successive grades and the high school of Mondovi, Wisconsin, and later continued his studies in the Northern Indiana Normal College at Valparaiso. In the interim between his high school course and his college course he engaged in teaching in the district school for three winters in Wisconsin, and during the summer time accepted an agency position. In this way he earned the money that enabled him to enter college. He did not graduate at Valparaiso, however, because illness depleted his funds. Attracted toward a professional career, he studied for and was admitted to the bar in Oregon on the 1st of June, 1894. He had become a resident of this state in 1891 and has since been closely identified with the interests and the upbuilding of the northwest. Following his admission to the bar, he at once opened a law office in Portland and in the intervening period of sixteen years has made substantial progress in his profession. With a nature that cannot be content with mediocrity, he has closely applied himself to the mastery of legal principles, often intricate and involved, and his clear and cogent reasoning and forceful presentation of his cases indicate his careful and thorough preparation. On the 1st of July, 1904, he became chief deputy district attorney for the fourth judicial district of Oregon and continued to fill the position until the 1st of January, 1908, when he resigned.

On the 20th of July. 1898, Mr. Moser was married to Miss Sara Meta Keats, a daughter of Thomas Keats. She was born in Toronto, Canada, and engaged in teaching there before coming to Portland. She also taught in the public schools