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About The Conservative (Nebraska City, Neb.) 1898-1902 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 31, 1901)
Conservative. Wheaton College , and also from the law department of Ann Arbor. Ho was elected judge of this judi cial district , and as such made for him self a most honorable record. He is now one of the supreme court com missioners. While Judge Sedgwick , in common with all of us , doubtless has some traits that might bo criticized , they are not such as impeach his honor , nor impair his extraordinary fitness for the bench. When he first appeared before me as an attorney I was impressed with his clear and logical mind , his ready com prehension of the most intricate ques tions involved , and his thorough mas tery of the underlying principles of the lawas well as the luminous , logic al and forceful presentation of his arguments. His superior ability at once gave him a leading position at the bar. Ho was zealous in the in terests of his clientsbut ; always court eous to other members of the bar , and fair and honorable with the court. His mind is analytical and judicial. Possessing as ho does an intimate knowledge of adjudicated cases , yet he is the very reverse of what is known in the profession as a "case lawyer. " He reasons not from the surface down , but from the funda mental and underlying principles of the law , he reasons upwards and out to conclusions. As a judge his mind is broad , sus ceptible to argument , and if it is shown to him that he is wrong , no man is more ready to acknowledge his error and correct it. Judge Sedgwick is a constant and profound student , and keenly enjoys the study of the most involved and ab struse questions. Ho is always candid with himself and goes into legal questions , not to fortify a precon ceived opinion , but to ascertain the law , and in the consideration and study of such questions he never thinks of the parties nor attorneys interested. In his court , friend and enemy , rich and poor , weak and powerful , fare alike. He possesses to a marked degree the. three elements out of which great jurists are made , a learned mind , a quick conscience , and a robust cour age. No one speaks of him as a ' ' smart lawyer , ' ' but all know him to be a profound lawyer , and an able , con scientious and fearless judge. He is so constituted by nature and education that his mind goes in search of the law and fact in a case , oblivious to every other consideration. If Judge Sedgwick is elevated to the supreme bench the people of the state will be most fortunate. Ho will bring to that great office a well trained in tellect , a mind by nature calm and judicial , a long and active experience at the bar .and on the bench , a pro fessional zeal that will not be satisfied short of absolute truth , and a courage that knows no compromise. The important points have been covered in what has already been written , and perhaps I have said as much as you expected or desired , yet it may be interesting to your readers to hear something of Mr. Sedgwick as a man and citizen. He has been quite active in busi ness and moderately successful. Per haps had he devoted more time to it and less to his profession he might have been more so. While he means to be absolutely just , he insists upon having all that belongs to him , not a penny too little nor too much. He wants his own and will have 110 more. Ho is enterprising and not too cau tions about investing in large enter prises. He has a large pecuniary in terest in almost every considerable public enterprise in the city and most of them are fairly profitable. Judge Sedgwick gives generously , according to the merits of the cause and the length of his purse. Mr. Sedgwick has a very comfort able , unostentatious home , provided with the comforts and conveniences offered in a city of this size. He is interested in science and literature and has a very complete library , and is an extensive reader of the best liter ature. His home life is peaceful and quiet and seems to be the happiest part of his existence. It is not necessary to speak of his habits and private character , as it is well known throughout the state that they are above criticism. No one who knows him would think of utter ing a word of scandal against him , nor would expect to find anyone to believe him if he should. My purpose in writing the above has not been to paint a picture of a hero or a saint , but to tell the plain truth about a neighbor whoso position now entitles the public to these facts. Even his political opponents will , I think , agree with all I have said , while some of his friends will think I have done him scant justice. GEO. W. POST. York , Neb. , Oct. 21 , 1901. POSTERITISM. [ From an address delivered at the dedication exercises of the Century Chest at Colorado Springs on August 4th ] The Century Chest was a consign ment to the inhabitants of Colorado Springs of the year 2001. It contains a great number of letters , addressed by the present people of that city to their descendants and successors. In former ages man sought to placate the ghosts of his ancestors and , in his religion , gave large prominence to the worship of the dead. This still per sists in the Orient. The change which the future has in store is a worship of the unborn , a consecration to Posterity. Posteritism a sacred regard for the highest welfare of posterity will yet be recognized and cultivated as one of the most fruitful , inspiring and elevat ing virtues. So-called practical souls will doubtless - . less scoff at and deride. Science is more and more clearly re vealing the interrelation of the human race ; the power of heredity ; and the fact that in a large degree we are a summing-up of all our ancestors of the lives they led , of the thoughts they held , and of the virtues or vices they practiced. This realization that we shall live again in our descendants , in corporating in them some tendency to the higher or the lower as reflected from our own lives and purposes , must develop a sense of deepest responsibility. How rapidly the race would advance if mankind should resolve : The next gen eration must be born with healthy bodies ; must be nurtured in healthy physical and moral environments ; and must be filled with the ambition to again give birth to a still healthier , still nobler generation. Is it not clear that Posteritism may yet be dignified into the highest human virtue ? The application of this virtue can easily be applied in the upbuilding of what someone has called ' 'local patriot ism ; " I mean in the growth of a passion in each community to make itself more desirable , more beautiful , and more up lifting as a home for the generations that are to follow. In the evolution of the national life which has been the task of the last fifteen centuries , there has disappeared somewhat of that intense love for the city which characterized the old Greek and Roman world. We must again in each community re kindle "The Sacred Fire , " carrying from the altar that glowing public spirit which shall lead to intense devo tion to the highest public good ; and the highest public good will always be in volved in those influences which shall tend to the more exalted civilization of those who come after us. When this Chest shall be opened , and the letters we have written be unsealed , a hundred years will have passed. All who are within the sound of my voice will be sleeping in "sinless , stirless rest ; " most of us , no doubt , on the ad jacent hill-side , facing , as I trust , our beloved Peak. The vast changes which these hundred years shall bring are beyond our wildest dreams. We can only measure their possibilities by the stupendous changes wrought in the last century. May this Chest carry to our descendants a message of love an as surance that we thought of them a pledge that we felt the claim and bond of their far-off kinship ! May the hands that unrivet this chest and break these seals belong to a better , nobler civiliza-
