440
COLUMBIA AND MONTOUR COUNTIES
assisted it most elTectualty. for he U Sunday school sujK'rintcndcnt, trustee and member of the official board. A nxan of strong convic tions, he is n e w r backward in living up to or expressing his scntinicnts, and his inrtucnce for good cannot be easily overestimated. J A M E S S C A R L E T, a prominent attorney o f Montour county, w as burn in Elizabeth, N. Dec. 3 1 . and is a son o f George and Mar)' Scarlet, the mother o f Scotch-Irish ancestry. H is father w as a sea captain and of l^ g lis h birth. Jam es was the eldest o f three sons, and w as taken under the care o f V. W. Pineo at the age o f twelve. M r. Pineo hrought him to Danville, where the boy worked on the Pineo farm for three years, f i e then was apprenticed to the blacksmith's trade, at which he b^'am e expert and earned a comfortable living in the town. It was while he w as thus engaged, working at the trade, tiuit Miss M ary G ricr, daughter o f M. C . iiric r, who was alw ays interested in ca]Kible and ambitious young men, took a deep interest in young Scarlet and drew out many of the latent talents tliat he dcvcIo(>ed in later life. T he results o f his b b o r with his hands were insufficient to g ra tify the ambition of the young man, whose active brain sought a more extensive field fo r (he ability o f which even at tltat early day he had given evidence. Together with Ju d ge II. M. Hinckley, o f Dan v ille; Ju d gc C . R. .Savidge, o f Su n b u ry; and Rev. John D. Cook, o f Keiiovo, then youths in the town o f IXinvillc, M r. Scarlet took up an exteUsSive course o f study, with a view to entering college. With steadfast attention and perseverance they studied by night, a fte r the toil of the day had ended, reciting their les sons licforc J . M. Kelso, then professor of the Danville Institute. Together they passed the necessary examinations atnl entered Princeton U niversity in the fall o f 1S70. ernduating from that institution in the class o f 1874. Jan ies Scarlet at once hcgan to read law in the office o f Thom as J . (iaibraith. Esc|., ,aitd in 1877 w as admitted to practice l>cforc the bar o f Montour cotmtv. H e w as admitted to the Supreme court o f Peuiisytvaiiiu in 1885, and lo the Su|)reme court of the United States at a Liter date. l i e pnicticetl in Danville for the most ])cirt. taking his chances with the companions o f his class in the legal p ro fes sion. often pitted against them, and linally his evident m erits forccil him to the front in the profession. His rcnurkahlc g ift o f orator)’ caused him to lie often called u]>on for a<f-
drcsscs on important occasions, and his grasp o f difficult questions o f law put into his lian<J> much of the legtil business of the county. In 1882 M r. Scarlet w as elected district at torney lo r Montour county, serving until the end of the tenn. In 1H85 he w as nominated on the Republican ticket ^or the State Legis lature, but defeated, the county being strongl) ]>cnKK:ratic. H e was also a candidate on the ^ame ticket for judge of the T w enty-sixth dis trict, against Hubert R . Little, but w as de feated by a small n u jo rity. H e w as selected a s attorney for the committee which investi gated the Capitol g ra ft case in i g i o - i i, and later w as ai){x>inted attorney for the prosecu tion of the grafters. H e was also given charge, at different periods, o f cases in which the dif ferent trusts were prosecuted by the United States government. In all of these cases he gained honor and renown. M r. Scarlet w as elected a s delegate from this district to the Republican National con vention o f lijoS, W'hich nominated WiUiam 11. T a ft to the presidency, and there he sec onded tltc nomination o f I’hilandcr C. Knox for that high position, though without avail. In 1883 Jam es Scarlet w as united in mar riage to Lizzie (i. I.yon, the daughter of Moyer Lyon, o f Danville, and they have one son. Jam ex, J r ., residing at home. Not only is M r. Scarlet a keen law yer, an able politician and a successful business man. b u t’ he is a fine conversationalist, well read, and keeping up a keen interest in all ques tions o f local and national character. He has a fine library in his home, which is one of the oldest houses in Danville, being the first <hvc11ing huilt o f brick there, and he has fitted ii]» the interior with furnishings entirely in harmony wilh the character and tastes of the cH'cupants. H is collection o f cngraving% and picture^ is one of the l>cst in Danville, and the genial glow of the lights from this home are bright spots in the eyes o f passers along the main fnisiness street of the town. M r. Scarlet takes delight in outdoor life ami is a keen fisherman and hunter. He sel dom goes u|K)n an ext>cdition without return ing laden with trophies, and to l>c his pirtner in a hunting trip is a favo r much sought by his many friends. Jam es Scarlet is a man o f brilliant intellect, with a warm. syiii|Kithctic heart, ready to di vide Ilis List dollar with suffering humanity; an opixmcnt who .always commands respect at the Kar, but one a h ja y s ready, when the w'ontcst is over, lo forget the blows given and
