Page:Story of a Great Court.djvu/49

Rh some allowance for these he was surely a great man intellectually. The writer doubts if he ever knew an abler. His views were always vigorous, often profound and generally discriminating and just. He was indeed a man of strong prejudices, but these rarely if ever influenced him on the bench, never consciously. He loved truth for truth's sake with intense love. He loved justice for itself with natural and professional devotion. Many disliked the man but none ever doubted the judge. He reverenced the judicial office and while he held it he made all men respect it. He had a high sense of judicial dignity and authority; and there was no trifling with the Court in which he presided. On the bench he looked what he was, a great judge."

After his retirement from the bench in January, 1851, he lived not quite four years and while he retained his residence on his farm at Fond du Lac his time was principally spent at Milwaukee. General Bryant says that he resumed the practice, but Judge Ryan says he lived in private, "never again resuming the profession."

This apparent contradiction recalls to my mind a story frequently related by the late Charles W. Felker of Oshkosh which may be of interest; the story was to the effect that after Judge Stow left the bench a partnership was arranged between Stow and Ryan, and that in the course of time Stow came to Milwaukee to commence business, bringing with him a cooking kit in a bag, and a coffee pot, as he was in the habit of cooking his own meals; he arrived at the office in Ryan's absence and laid down the bag and coffee pot on the floor and waited for Ryan's appearance; when Ryan came in his attention was at once attracted by the tramplike appearance of the cooking kit, and, with eyes blazing, he said, "What's that?" Stow said somewhat apologetically, "That's my cooking kit." Ryan turned and said, "Judge Stow! this partnership is dissolved."