This is from our Fearless Leader, Ron Colby who is having some issues with some technical something.. William H. Colby. Almost from the organization of the state, the Illinois bar has taken rank among the most able of the land. Hardly a town of any importance does not boast of at least one lawyer capable of crossing swords in forensic combat with distinguished lawyers of other commonwealths, and the capital city has her share of these eminent followers of the legal profession. Among this number is William Henry Colby, who was born in Orange county, New York, September 14, 1849, but for many years has been a resident of Springfield. His parents, James S. and Anna (Abbott) Colby, were natives of the Empire state, and have long since passed away, the father's death having occurred in 1858, while the mother was called to the home beyond in 1863. Thus William H. Colby was early left an orphan, dependent upon his own resources. He came to Springfield in the year of his mother's death, and throughout his business career "onward and upward" seems to have been the motto of his life. Unflagging industry and resolute determination have ever been numbered among his salient characteristics and have led to his success. So desirous of obtaining an education was he that for nine years he worked upon a farm through the summer months in order to gain sufficient money to enable him to pursue his studies in school through the winter season. Within this period of his life he became imbued with a desire to enter the legal profession, and borrowing law books from his friends in the city he pored over them late into the night, and gained considerable knowledge of the fundamental principles of jurisprudence. In 1876 he entered upon a regular course of law study, and though he was not admitted to the bar until January 2, 1878, he practiced in the justice courts in Edinburg, Illinois, and in this unique way, to the surprise of his friends and the public in general, managed to acquire a fair livelihood. In 1879 Mr. Colby formed a partnership with William F. Herndon, which continued for a year. In 1882 he was elected city attorney, serving in that capacity for one term, and in 1884 he formed a partnership with Hon. Robert L. McGuire, a distinguished member of the Springfield bar, with whom he was associated in practice until 1889, when he was appointed master in chancery by the circuit court. In that capacity he served most acceptably and faithfully for three terms, when, in 1895, he retired and formed a partnership with J. C. Lanphier, which still continues. As city attorney he drew the ordinances and contracts for the first paving laid in Springfield. In the famous Mingle murder case he was assigned by the court as counsel for the defense, and his earnest work and ardent pleas in behalf of his client will ever form a part of the history of the bar at which he practices. His practice, however, is usually in the line of commercial law, and his ability to untangle the intricate problems of civil law gives him precedence of many members of the Springfield bar.. In politics Mr. Colby is a Democrat, fearlessly advocating his political views, and laboring for the interests of his party in every campaign. He began his campaign work during the candidacy of General W. S. Hancock, in 1880, and has ince been most active, conducting the canvass in all parts of Illinois and winning many adherents to the cause by his intelligent, logical, earnest and entertaining utterances. In 1874, two years before he began preparation for the bar, Mr. Colby married Miss Henrietta Cantrill, of Sangamon. Both are members of the Presbyterian church, and Mr. Colby is an exemplary representative of the Masonic fraternity. Such in brief is the history of William Henry Colby, whose career is alike creditable to himself and the bar of which he is a representative. By a continuous devotion to the highest demands of his profession, by an ability equal to the most severe requirements and by an integrity that has never been deflected from the true line of duty, he has won his way to the front rank of Springfield's bar. With some men the law is a trade, but with Mr. Colby it has been a science. Endowed by nature with a sound judgment and an accurate, discriminating mind, he has not feared the laborious attention necessary to equip himself for the various cases that have been entrusted to his care, and at the same time he has ever been guided by a sense of moral right that would never tolerate the employment of those means which would not bear the most rigid examination and the closest scrutiny. Popular passion has never swayed his judgment; neither personal ambition nor the applause of the hour have ever swerved him from the path of duty, and he has guarded his clients' interests as zealously as his own. "THE BENCH AND BAR OF ILLINOIS. HISTORICAL AND REMINISCENT." EDITED BY JOHN M. PALMER, -- Alice Colby Volkert www.volkertservices.com skype A.C.Volkert