ELIAS FINLEY JOHNSON
C. Knowlton, '75

The department at Washington has again honored the University of 
Michigan by drafting from its faculty a member for important and responsible 
service in our new possessions. Professor Johnson of the Law Department 
has been appointed one of the Supreme Judges of the Philippine Islands, at a salary of $5,500. The expenses of himself and family to Manila are to be 
paid by the Government, and he will certainly be provided with such clerical 
assistance as the duties of the office call for. 


The Supreme Court, which is to be formed for the Islands, is to consist 
of five supreme judges, three of whom are to be sent from this country and 
two selected from prominent jurists in the Islands. It will be the duty of 
this court, when organized, to administer justice throughout the islands under such regulations as may be provided and to develop a system of jurisprudence 
suited to the existing conditions of the far east. To a young man, well qualified, this is an enviable task, a great opportunity. Professor Johnson is to
 be congratulated and the Administration at Washington may rest assured
 that he will render a good account of himself. 


Mr. Johnson was born at Van Wert, Ohio, on June 24, 1861. At the
 age of 19 he received the degree of Bachelor of Science from the National
 Normal University of Ohio. His environments directed his further study 
toward the science of jurisprudence. His childhood was spent in a family 
of lawyers of high degree. His father was a judge of the Court of Common 
Pleas of Ohio. His uncle on his father's side was for many years the chief 
justice of the Supreme Court of the same state, and his uncle on his mother's 
side, Judge West, was a member of the same court. We can, now, easily 
understand Mr. Johnson's devotion to the law as a science. 
 But the young man was a politician as well as a lawyer. At the age of 
twenty-two he was a member of the legislature of the State of Ohio, and
 there formed associations that have been invaluable to him during the past 
twenty years. Mr. Johnson has been a very active man in public affairs. 
 This has made him some enemies, but a man without enemies is not worthy 
of friends. 
 In 1884 Mr. Johnson married Miss Clara A. Smith of Van Wert, Ohio, 
 and in a few years afterwards the young couple left their native state and 
came to the University of Michigan. They came to finish his legal education. 
He had already practiced law for several years, but was not satisfied with his 
knowledge of the subject. In the fall of 1888 he entered the Law Depart
ment of the University of Michigan, took the full course, then required, and 
was graduated in June 1890. This was the beginning of his work at the 
University and from then until today his work among us as a student or 
teacher has continued, without interruption. During his senior year he was
 asked to assist Professor Rogers in classroom work, and in the fall of 1890 
he was made quizmaster. In 1891 he became a regular instructor in the
 department. In 1892 he was chosen secretary of the law faculty and in 1896
he was elected Professor of Law by the Board of Regents of the University
 and given the title of "Professor of Law and Secretary of the Faculty of the
 Department of Law." These positions he now fills. This record alone shows 
a continuous healthful growth for a period of over ten years, and suggests that the man's life has not been uneventful or unprofitable to himself or those
 with whom he came in contact. 


As a teacher, Professor Johnson possesses some rare qualifications. He 
is faithful to his work and never shirks responsibility. With students he is
 always considerate and very tactful. His personal interest in the individual 
student accounts very largely for his popularity among them. During the 
past few days he has received over three hundred congratulatory letters from 
alumni of the Law Department. 


As Secretary of the Law Faculty his labors have been quite heavy, during the past two years, but the promptitude and patience with which he has 
performed them have won the admiration and respect of his associates. He 
has a place for everything and everything in its place. 


Professor Johnson has given considerable of his time to literary work. 
He has written many articles for legal periodicals and edited several books. 
In 1895 he edited Norton's Bills and Notes. In 1896 he edited Bliss on 
Code Pleading and in 1897 he wrote "Johnson's Cases on Bills and Notes," 
which is now used as a textbook in many law schools.

The alumni of the University will not forget Professor Johnson's serv
ices as a member of the Board of Directors of the Alumni Association of the
 University of Michigan. He is now vice-president of that board, and has 
been for several years. Some of its most important interests have been placed 
in his hands and have been faithfully cared for. He has been a member of 
the board since its organization. 


While Professor Johnson has performed most satisfactorily all his Uni
versity work, he has not over looked his obligations to others. He is now
 President of the Board of Education of the State of Michigan. During the 
past four years, he has been a member of this board and for a part of the time 
has been treasurer of the board. He has devoted much thought to the Nor
mal School at Ypsilanti, this being under the immediate control of the State 
Board of Education. We are informed that under his management and super-
vision, as President and Treasurer of the board, the finances of the Normal 
College and its business methods are in better condition than they have been 
before in the history of the institution. The other members of the board will
 miss him and feel the loss of his wise counsel.


Professor Johnson is a Christian gentleman. He is a member of the 
board of trustees of the Methodist Church of the city of Ann Arbor. At all 
times he has been willing and ready to help those who were interested in social 
and religious advancement. His intense interest in his educational work and 
in public affairs has not made him unmindful of his religious and social obligations. If Professor Johnson accepts the position tendered him, he will 
create a large vacuum in the community in which he has lived during the
 past ten years. Who will try to fill it?