Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 14.pdf/396

 The

Vol. XIV.

No. 8.

Green

BOSTON.

Bag.

August, 1902.

DANIEL W. VOORHEES AS LAWYER AND ORATOR. Bv W. W. Thornton. DANIEL W. VOORHEES was born in It was within three miles of this decaying Butler County, Ohio, Sept. 26, 1827. town of Chambersburg that the father of Daniel settled, when his child was only two He was a grandson of a Revolutionary sol months old; and it was here that the child dier, who fought on Princeton and Mon mouth battlefields, and who was of Holland grew to youth, on his father's farm, and descent. Peter Voorhees' wife (Daniel's there resided until his college days began. From his early youth, he, much to his grandmother) was a daughter of Luke Van father's disgust, manifested a dislike for Arsdale; and was born at Bryant's Station, Kentucky, in the fort built as a defense in manual labor. Sent to the field to plow the Indian wars. Her people came from the corn, he would most likely be found stretched north of Ireland. In Senator Voorhees, under the shade of a tree reading a book. therefore, were blended both the Dutch and While his brothers spent their money for the purchase of knives and pocket-handker Irish bloods. On the western side of Indiana, within chiefs, he spent his for books, purchasing twenty miles of the Illinois boundary line, is such as the very limited book-counter in the the old town of Chambersburg, too insig general store afforded. His father recog nificant to have a legal existence, daily de nized the necessity of sending him to col creasing in population and importance by lege in order to make something of him. reason of its little but vigorous rival, the The meagre education of the country dis city of Veedersburg, situated, like the an trict school was sufficient to enable him to cient " Mistress of the World, on her seven enter Asbury University, located at Greenhills." When clothed in its primeval forest, castle, forty miles west of Indianapolis, and the country surrounding these two small 'now called " DePauw University." Asbury places was most beautiful; but the hand of (as one would naturally infer from the civilization has been laid very heavily upon name) was a Methodist institution, the col it, hill and dale stripped of their majestic lege of that denomination for Indiana. The robes, and clear streams of water laid bare fact that young Voorhees was able to pass to the scorching rays of the sun. At the directly from a backwoods country district present day it cannot be said that the coun school through its portals into full college try is noted for its beauty, nor for the rich life, and graduate at the end of four years, ness of its soil. It is less than thirty-five does not give one the impression that its years since the first locomotive whistle was educational standard had been set very high. heard in the fastnesses of this region, af In fact, the colleges of Indiana at that day fording an outlook to the world. — 1845 to 1849 — were little, if any, better