VIRGINIA BIOGRAPHY
Bachelor of Laws was conferred in 1883,
and that of Master of Laws in 1884. He en-
tered the Department of Justice, Washing-
ton, District of Columbia, in 1886, and ar-
gued many French spoliation cases. He
was the legal adviser of the Dockery Joint
Congressional Commission, 1893-95; in
general legal practice, including supreme
court work, 1895-1901 ; special assistant at-
torne3^-general, in charge of insular and ter-
ritorial affairs, 1902 to December 19, 1905 ;
assistant attorney-general of the United
States, 1905-10; appointed envoy extra-
ordinary and minister plenipotentiary to
Persia, December 21, 1909. He investigated
and reported on the reconcentrado starva-
tion and military situation in Cuba, Decem-
ber and January, 1897-98; was legal adviser
to the P. R. Evacuation Commission, Au-
gust-October, 1898 ; argued the Maine ex-
plosion cases, and the Spanish claims com-
mission, 1901 ; was sent by Attorney-Gen-
eral Knox to Paris in 1902, to investigate
the Panama Canal title ; sent to Paris,
March, 1904, to eft'ect the transfer of the
title and property of the Panama Canal to
the LTnited States and forty million dollars
in gold to France, arranged for with J. Pier-
pont Morgan in Paris ; in May, 1904, he was
sent to Panama as legal adviser of the
United States government, of the canal
zone ; he revisited Cuba to prepare the case
of the Countess O'Reilly versus General
John R. Brooke, concerning her Havana
slaughter house monopoly ; he was sent to
investigate peonage slavery in the southern
states in October, 1906. As an author Mr.
Russell won fame by his play "Cuba Libre,"
which made its appearance in 1897, and
"Days of the Seasons," which appeared in
1909. Mr. Russell married (first) Lucy
Floyd, daughter of Alfred D. and Virginia
(McLaurn) Mosby, and sister of Colonel
Mosby, who won fame during the Civil
war; he married (second) October i, 1885,
Lelia James, a sister of his first wife. Wil-
liam H. Mosby, another brother of Mrs.
Russell, was also prominent in the Confed-
erate army during the Civil war. Children :
John Mosby, of further mention, and Lucv
Virginia, born in Washington, District of
Columbia, June 30, 1889, is unmarried.
John Mosby Russell, son of Hon. Charles Wells and Lucy Floyd (Mosby) Russell, was born in Washington. District of Co- lumbia, November 25, 1884. The public
VlR-71
schools of his native city furnished his ele-
mentary education, and from them he went
to the Randolph-Macon Academy, the Rock-
hill College, where he spent four years, and
the Georgetown University, in Washing-
ton, District of Columbia. In 1902 he ma-
triculated at the University of Virginia,
where he took an elective course, and was
graduated from this institution in the class
of 1906. He studied law in the state of West
\'irginia, was engaged in practice there for
a short time, then in 1907, came to New
York City, with which place he has been
legally identified since that time, being ad-
mitted to the New York bar in 1908. He is
rapidly forging his way to the front ranks
of his profession, and appears to have in-
herited in large measure the legal ability
which has distinguished his father. In poli-
tical matters he gives his support to the
Democratic party, and he is a member of
a number of organizations of varied char-
acter and scope, among them being the fol-
lowing named : The New York County
Law Association, Southern Society of New
York, Sons of Confederate \'eterans, and
the Athletic Club of New York. The re-
ligious affiliations of Mr. Russell are with
the Roman Catholic church. Mr. Russell
has well equipped offices for the practice of
his profession at No. in Broadway, New
York City, and, while he has been estab-
lished here comparatively few years, he has
already gained a very satisfactory amount of
patronage.
Whitmell Pugh Tunstall. Whitmell Pugh Tunstall, of Pittsylvania county, Vir- ginia, lawyer, orator and distinguished gentleman, was a native of Belle Grove, that county, and died and was buried there. He came of a long line of distinguished an- cestors, was a son of Colonel William Tun- stall and his wife, Sarah Winifred Pugh, a grandson of Colonel William and Betsey ( Barker) Tunstall, descended from Sir Owen Glendowe (see Barker). He was also descended from Colonel William Scott Pugh, whose father was Colonel Thomas Pugh, Sr., and whose mother was Mary (Scott) Pugh. He was also descended from Colonel John and Martha (Whitmell) Hill, the last named a daughter of Colonel Thomas and Elizabeth (Bryan) Whitmell.
Whitmell P. Tunstall was for many years a member of the Virginia legislature, and
