History of Oakland County Michigan a narrative account of its historic progress, its people, its principal interests / compiled from the official records of the county, the newspapers and data of personal interviews, under the editorial supervision of Thaddeus D. Seeley.

HISTORY OF OAKLAND COUNTY

171

Excitable and intense as he was in his convictions, there was nothing
revengeful in his disposition, and if any person had any ill feelings on
account of a remark that Mr. Draper made he was always ready to make
the fullest acknowledgements. In the prime of his life Mr. Draper was
a most excellent lawyer, and had an extensive practice. In I884 he was
stricken with apoplexy, and was compelled to retire from business. He
partially recovered, but on April 23, 900o, he died at Midland, being at
the time one of the oldest lawyers in the state. Through all his eccentricities and the intensity of his political feelings, I do not believe that he
had a personal enemy.
"George W. Wisner was born near Auburn, New York, in I812.
Prior to I835 he had been prominently connected with, and owned a
half interest in the New York Sun. He disposed of his interest, and in
September of that year removed to Pontiac. Shortly after his arrival
he commenced the study of law with William Draper. While in Pontiac
he took an active interest in politics, and in 1837 he was elected to the
legislature. After this he was admitted to the practice of law in I839,
and soon after formed a partnership with Alfred Treadway. Succeeding
the partnership with Mr. Treadway a new one was formed with Moses
Wisner and Rufus Hosmer, which continued until he removed to Detroit.
In the fall of 1847, Mr. Wisner, in connection with others, purchased the
Detroit Daily Advertiser, which he creditably managed until his death.
He was an intense Whig, and never let an opportunity pass without giving
his opponents a castigation. He was a fluent speaker, and indulged freely
in sarcasm. In 1842 he was a candidate for congress in the Oakland
county district extending to Mackinac, thence through the upper peninsula; after a severe and bitter contest Mr. Wisner was defeated. In the
practice of his profession Mr. Wisner was very happy and pertinent in
his remarks. On account of his tact he would carry the jury with him.
On one occasion he was trying a man for setting fire to his own barn.
Hon. Jacob M. Howard, then considered one of the ablest attorneys in
Michigan, was the defendant's attorney. Mr. Howard attempted to show
that the fire was the result of spontaneous combustion, and made an eloquent appeal to the jury to sustain his theory. The case was one that
caused much excitement. Mr. Wisner, in prosecuting the case, entered
into it with all his professional zeal and in replying to Mr. Howard's
theory of spontaneous combustion (the evidence showed that there were
tracks around the stack where the fire originated, which was situated
close to the barn) Mr. Wisner said: "Gentlemen of the jury, did you ever
hear of a case where Providence came down to earth on a dark stormy
night, put on a pair of old boots, sneaked around a straw stack and applied
a match to the stack for the purpose of getting the insurance on the
barn and its contents?" Suffice to say the j.ury had not heard of such an
occurrence, and when they retired to the jury room they promptly found
the defendant guilty.
"Mr. Wisner died in Detroit, in September, 1849, and was buried in
Pontiac. He was the father of Oscar F. Wisner and Henry C. Wisner,
two prominent lawyers, the first in Saginaw, the latter in Detroit, and
both now deceased.
"Alfred H. Hanscom was born in Rochester, New York, and at an