THE TOWN OF WEST FARMS. 485 



" The death of Hon. Robert H. Morris, one of the Justices of the Su- 

 preme Court of this district, took place suddenly on Wednesday last, at 

 the residence of his father-in-law, Marcena Munson, Esq., of Astoria. 

 There was no member of the bar more generally known or more uni- 

 versally admired, and the intelligence of his death was received yesterday 

 with feelings of intense grief. It was but a few days since, on Tuesday 

 last, that we saw Judge Morris sitting as a spectator in the Court of 

 Oyer and Terminer, apparently in the enjoyment of good health; and on 

 Wednesday he was seized with a sudden attack, and died from the burst- 

 ing of one of the blood vessels of the heart. Judge Morris was fifty-two 

 years of age. His public career is familiar to almost every New Yorker. 

 He was born in this city in 1803, and when he was a mere lad his father 

 moved to Hudson, where the subject of this notice received his educa- 

 tion. He studied law in the office of Mr. A Miller, of Hudson, and 

 commenced practice at Johnston, Columbia County, and was made a 

 Justice of the Peace about the same time. In 1827 Mr. Morris came 

 to New York to act as Assistant District Attorney to his brother-in-law, 

 James A. Hamilton. 



Mr. Morris became a member of the Legislature in 1834 or 1835, and 

 was re-elected twice — being three years in succession a member of that 

 body. He was elected Recorder in 1838, but it will be recollected that 

 in consequence of his seizing " the Glenworth papers," while holding that 

 office, he was removed by a vote of the Senate, brought about by the 

 influence of Governor W. H. Seward. A plan was set on foot by John 

 B. Glentworth, before the Presidential election in 1840, to send on a 

 number of voters from Pennsylvania — nominally to lay the croton water 

 pipes through the city, but virtually to vote for General Harrison in op- 

 position to Martin Van Buren. Mr. Morris ascertained that documen- 

 tary evidence of this was in the house of a Mr. Pierce, of this city; 

 and a few days before the election he proceeded to Mr. Pierce's, in 

 company with Jonathan D. Stevenson, and seized the " Glentworth 

 papers " and revealed their contents. For this, as we have said, he 

 was removed; and Mr. F. A. Tallmadge was appointed Recorder in his 

 place. But the people of New York viewed the act of the Recorder in 

 a different light; and in 1841 he was elected Mayor of the city by 

 a majority of 7,000, and was re-elected to the high position of Chief 

 Magistrate of New York in 1842 and 1843 — the only instance we 

 remember of a man being elected Mayor three times in succession At 

 that period of our city's history the Mayor was elected every year. In 

 1844 Mr. Morris was appointed Postmaster of New York by President 

 Polk, and he held that office for four years. While Postmaster, he was ap- 

 pointed, in 1846, a member of the Constitutional Convention of the 

 State, which formed the State Constitution under which we now act. 

 And last of all, he was elected, in 1853, a Justice of the Supreme Court 

 of the First Judicial District, for eight years, more than five years of 

 which are unexpired. Judge Morris's popularity is apparent from the 

 number of important offices he has held, both by the gift of a President 

 and by the choice of the people. As an advocate at the bar he was at 

 times forcible, eloquent, sarcastic and jocose ; he was a sound lawyer, 



