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IN MEMORIAM.

DEATH OF JOSEPH W. LOSEY.

On the 28th day of January, 1902, Mr. Benjamin F. Bryant of La Crosse addressed the court as follows:

May it please the Court:-At a meeting of the Bar Association of La Crosse County, held at the court house in the city of La Crosse on the 20th day of April, A. D. 1901, a committee was appointed to draft and present to the circuit court for La Crosse county, at the first term thereafter, a suitable memorial and resolution relative to the death of JOSEPH W. LOSEY. The committee on the 16th day of July, A. D. 1901, presented to said circuit court the following memorial and resolution:

Memorial of the La Crosse Bar Association.

JOSEPH W. LOSEY was born in Honesdale, Wayne county, Pennsylvania, on the 30th day of December, A. D. 1834. He had completed his sixty-sixth year at his death, which occurred on the 11th day of March, A. D. 1901. He was the son of a physician who desired that his favorite boy should follow in his footsteps and succeed to his practice. With this in view the young man was fitted for college in his native town, and was entered at Amherst College. When he reached his junior year he determined to be a lawyer, somewhat to his father's disappointment, and in his independence and selfreliance he threw down his books and came West. It was in the month of May, A. D. 1856, that he located in La Crosse. Here he read law in the office of Dennison & Lyndes, and was admitted to the bar at the October, A. D. 1857, term of the circuit court for the neighboring county of Monroe, at Sparta. He was the first young lawyer to be admitted to the bar in that county. His admission was hastened so that he might be a candidate for the office of district attorney of La Crosse county that fall.

It is related that when his friends in the democratic convention, which met at West Salem about the time he got his certificate at Sparta, indicated their wish to the delegates that he should be nominated as district attorney, some of them, not knowing him, inquired

Death of Joseph W. Losey.

if he was capable of filling the office, and Judge JAMES I. LYNDES vouched for him. No one ever had to vouch for his ability after that. He held the office of district attorney for the period of four years.

Mr. Losey rose rapidly in his profession. He had industry which never flagged, abounding common sense, strong self-reliance, a quick, accurate perception of the evidence required to maintain every point in the case, and the ability to procure the evidence, if it could be found, and to present it in proper shape; and to these qualities he brought a knowledge of all the law applicable to the case in hand. He did not permit himself to misunderstand his case, either as to the law or the facts; and he knew how to maintain his case and when he had succeeded in making it. It was this sureness of judgment and knowledge, with skill and resourcefulness in procuring and presenting the proofs in the trial of causes, which made him an eminent and successful trial lawyer.

Mr. Losey was, in the true sense of the word, an unassuming man. He was satisfied to be a man of strength, and to hold his position at the bar and in the community as a lawyer capable of being intrusted with any legal business, no matter how important; and he never flung out any banner nor put on any airs. He appeared to carry with ease, and as though it were not of so much consequence after all, the heavy burdens which many another lawyer would tug at and flounder under.

Mr. LOSEY had a big, kind heart and a sympathetic nature. He was a big man every way; and he had a fair share of the humane sympathies which make a man akin to his fellows. In his youth he was athletic and agile. He could jump farther and run faster than any other young man in the country all around. When he took a hand at wrestling, he never fell underneath. He showed no especial pride in these boyish triumphs or in the display of his youthful adeptness in such sports. He had great fondness for music, and could display on occasion some skill in touching the strings of the banjo and guitar. In his mature years he showed no special fondness for sports; and found his favorite pastime in the cultivation of flowers and in landscape adornment. The transformation of Oak Grove cemetery, under his eye and hand, from a neglected unsightly spot to a place of charm and beauty, shows his devotion to a beneficent object and his deep love of nature. Here he found solace and rest and here he bestowed his fondest care.

As a citizen Mr. LOSEY possessed public spirit which showed itself in doing things. It were a long story to tell what he has done for the city of La Crosse in promoting and carrying forward municipal improvements and adornments. Whenever he put his hand to these movements he was recognized as the leader; the strong,

Death of Joseph W. Losey.

substantial, managing leader. Without great wealth or the sort of power and consequence which comes from holding high offices, he was our first citizen. His charities were many but unostentatious. He gave to the poor whom others neglected; he did not concern himself so much with the charities which it is popular to assist.

Mr. LOSEY was deeply religious; not in the sense of being pious as the word goes, but in the better sense of always clinging to the simple faith in which he was reared, and of trying to conform his life to its cardinal precepts. To those who only met him in the rough and tumble of life, his nature did not seem to be always gentle. The wear and tear of long years of strenuous toil and hard struggle, in straightening out the tangled skein of other men's difficulties and quarrels, had imparted to his strong nature somewhat of brusqueness, perhaps of imperiousness at times. But to his close friends who met him in the quiet of confidence he often unbosomed himself and showed a heart as soft and gentle as a woman's, and a faith simple like that of a child. He was a most devoted husband, and a fond, indulgent father.

After forty-four years of hard work in his profession, while he yet seemed to retain his full vigor of body and mind, his eye not dim nor his natural force abated,-he lay down one night to sleep and rest, not sick, but worn out by a week of exacting employment, and in the morning, just as the sun was rising, he fell asleep, the stout heart stopped beating, the spirit had fled. He had passed unconsciously from the sleep of life to that of death. Perhaps it was such a death as he would have preferred,-to go without warning or pain, before anyone had discovered any waning of force or power.

To us who are gathered here, his brothers at the bar, the loss and sorrow are very deep; the shock at his sudden death, perhaps, adds keenness and poignancy to our sense of loss and sorrow. No other such man has been at this bar in forty years; strong in so many ways; with strength of character as well as of talents. He had no vices; he assumed no airs of goodness; and counted himself one of us. He kept his word with his brother lawyers; he never indulged in tricks nor sought advantage in technicalities. If he were ever strenuous, it was when the substantial rights of his clients were involved. In his manner he was affable and companionable, unselfish and generous to a fault. He was singularly kind and courteous in his personal relations with all. It seems very lonesome to many of us now that he is gone. That we shall never again receive his frank, cordial greeting; that we cannot lean on him for counsel and assistance; that we shall never again see his bright, strong, smiling face;-this brings sorrow and, some of us may confess, tears also.

RESOLVED, that this memorial and resolution be presented to the

Death of Joseph W. Losey.

circuit court for La Crosse county on the first day of the next term with the request that it be spread on the minutes of the court; that a certified copy of the same be transmitted by the clerk to the widow and family of the deceased; and that copies be furnished to the city press.

Dated La Crosse, Wisconsin, May 31, A. D. 1901.

BENJ. F. BRYANT,

CLARK L. HOOD,

RAY S. REID,

E. C. HIGBEE,

PAUL W. MAHONEY,

Committee.

After remarks by members of the bar, the Hon. JOHN J. FRUIT, circuit judge, presiding, in reply said:

The court and members of the bar have assembled to-day for the purpose of paying the last tribute of respect to the memory of the late JOSEPH W. LOSEY. The court heartily sanctions the fitting resolutions that have been presented and the appropriate remarks made by the several members of the bar. The familiar figure whom we all knew, both as a man and as a lawyer, will meet with us no more. Mr. Losey's death came as a surprise and shock to the whole community. His departure from this life was realized by all as a great loss to this city and state. He had figured conspicuously in the affairs of La Crosse for many years, and his unceasing efforts in many directions in behalf of his adopted city were not unappreciated by those competent to judge.

He was admitted to the bar of La Crosse county in October, 1857, and for upwards of forty years stood at the head of his profession. He was interested as counsel on one side or the other, during this period, in a very large number of the most important litigated cases in this part of the state, as well as in the southern part of Minnesota. Possessed of great intellect, as well as with a powerful physique and unsurpassed will power and energy, Mr. LOSEY was always regarded as a formidable adversary. Notwithstanding his great will power, he was a man who had most excellent judgment and always seemed to use it to the best advantage. As a practitioner before court and jury he was concise, clear, logical, and convincing. In marshaling facts and readily presenting them in the clearest light, he had few equals. When he arose to address the court he was listened to attentively, and the utmost respect which he showed to the court was as uniformly reciprocated by the court toward him. When the court ruled after a fair hearing, he bowed to its decision as being the guide for the parties in interest to follow, though his own judgment may have told him that such decision was erroneous. As an advocate before a jury he ranked very high. His speeches

Death of Joseph W. Losey.

were usually short, but to the point. In talking to a jury his style was conversational, devoid of any ostentation, and his ideas were put in such simple language that they were comprehended by all. As a lawyer in the trial of causes he sought the merits of his case and scarcely ever paid any attention to technicalities. He had the universal esteeem and respect of the bar throughout the state, and was especially beloved by the younger members, for whom he never seemed to lose an opportunity to do some special favor which he believed, many times, they were more in need of than some older lawyer.

Mr. LOSEY was an honor to his profession, viewed from every standpoint. Very few persons, prior to his death, knew of the malady which so suddenly took him away. His death seemed to all very untimely indeed. It does seem sad that one whose life was so useful and who appeared to enjoy life so much, was not permitted to live to a ripe old age; yet, "Life's but a span."

"We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths;

In feelings, not in figures on a dial.

We should count time by heart-throbs.

He most lives,

Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best."

A learned jurist, in summing up the ideal lawyer, has said: "There is no finer object of contemplation among men than an aged jurist, full of honors, who, having rounded up the measure of his active years, receives the tributes of his fellows for his earnest spirit of work, the breadth and solidity of his judgment, the worth of his transparent character."

Our kind and generous friend has gone to his final home; and while we mourn his loss as a brother, an honored citizen, a dutiful, loving husband and father,

"I am glad that he has lived thus long,

And glad that he has gone to his reward."

The resolutions presented will be spread at length upon the records of this court, and an engrossed and certified copy of the same delivered to the members of his family, and the court, out of respect to the memory of the deceased, now stands adjourned for the day.

Subsequently the Bar Association of La Crosse County instructed its president to present the foregoing memorial and resolution, and remarks of Judge FRUIT, to the supreme court of Wisconsin; and expressed the wish that Mr. Clark L. Hood would repeat in substance the address which he made at the La Crosse circuit court on the 16th day of July, A. D. 1901, on the occasion above mentioned.

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