John Brayshaw Kaye
Encyclopedia
John Brayshaw Kaye was an English-born American poet, lawyer and politician.
, England, June 10, 1841, the fifth child and the fourth son of Abram and Mary (Brayshaw) Kaye, in a family of fourteen children. In the following year the parents emigrated to the United States and after three years' residence in Baltimore, Maryland, moved to Pennsylvania. The family afterwards went west in 1848, moving to a farm in Wisconsin, near Lake Geneva
, which continued to be the family residence until the death of the parents. There he passed the years of his youth. There his mind appeared to receive remarkable impressions from the witchery and beauty of the lake, and the splendid scenery which formed part of its associations. To him it was a rich source of physical and mental recreation. He received his education in the common and high schools here.
, where he remained for three years, doing varying sorts of labor such as burning charcoal, carpentering, etc. and for a time was employed in the famous Ophir mine on the Comstock Lode
.
After four years of varied experiences, when, as it might be said, every man carried his bed on his back, he returned to his home. In 1869 he again went to Nevada, the attraction being the White Pine silver mining excitement of that period, also visiting California. In 1871 he came back to Wisconsin.
, and was admitted to the bar and continued a course of reading law in the office of Baker Brothers — F. E. Baker being a brother-in-law. In 1872 he became a member of the bar of Winneshiek County and at once located in Calmar, Iowa
, which remained his home until his death. In 1886 he was elected county attorney, and was re-elected in 1888. He was mayor of Calmar one or two years, and recorder many years.
Kaye was elected county attorney just as statutory prohibition was going into effect, and it fell to his lot to engage in a protracted series of suits against dealers in intoxicants in which he met and vanquished the ablest lawyers of the Winneshiek county bar. Single handed he prosecuted all cases until the attorneys of the liquor dealers were so wearied that they were glad to cry quits. The result was that these suits caused an addition of more than $12,000 to the revenue of the county. He was also engaged in a number of the most noted legal cases tried in that county.
The following appeared in Past and Present of Winneshiek County (1913),
Songs of Lake Geneva appeared in 1882. Both of these works won him praise from critics, as well as negative criticism. The following review appeared in The Churchman, Vol. 46 (1882),
, Dedication:
. It far exceeded all prior efforts, and established a name for its author.
A fourth volume was published posthumously. Kaye was anxious to have it a home production, and to that end had submitted the copy to the copyright office and negotiations were entered into that would have ended in a publication the same year. This last poem was a rehearsal in metrical form of the story of Judas Iscariot
's betrayal of Christ. Contrary to conventional opinion, Kaye did not accept the idea that Judas intended to betray Christ, and the poem is a defence of Judas, in which the entire story of the trial before the Sanhedrim and Caiaphas
is rehearsed with a clearness that adds his own vision to the biblical account. The critic might not accept Kaye's version of the translation, but might see in it a volume of more than usual poetical power.
Life and works
John Brayshaw Kaye was born in YorkshireYorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, England, June 10, 1841, the fifth child and the fourth son of Abram and Mary (Brayshaw) Kaye, in a family of fourteen children. In the following year the parents emigrated to the United States and after three years' residence in Baltimore, Maryland, moved to Pennsylvania. The family afterwards went west in 1848, moving to a farm in Wisconsin, near Lake Geneva
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Lake Geneva is a city in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 7,148 at the 2000 census. A resort city located on Geneva Lake, it is southwest of Milwaukee and popular with tourists from metropolitan Chicago and Milwaukee.-History:...
, which continued to be the family residence until the death of the parents. There he passed the years of his youth. There his mind appeared to receive remarkable impressions from the witchery and beauty of the lake, and the splendid scenery which formed part of its associations. To him it was a rich source of physical and mental recreation. He received his education in the common and high schools here.
Move to Nevada
Soon after attaining his majority, ill health caused him to make a trip to the far west. In April, 1863, he joined a wagon train and, on the 27th of the following July, he arrived at Virginia City, NevadaVirginia City, Nevada
Virginia City is a census-designated place that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada. It is part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 855 at the 2010 Census.- History :...
, where he remained for three years, doing varying sorts of labor such as burning charcoal, carpentering, etc. and for a time was employed in the famous Ophir mine on the Comstock Lode
Comstock Lode
The Comstock Lode was the first major U.S. discovery of silver ore, located under what is now Virginia City, Nevada, on the eastern slope of Mount Davidson, a peak in the Virginia Range. After the discovery was made public in 1859, prospectors rushed to the area and scrambled to stake their claims...
.
After four years of varied experiences, when, as it might be said, every man carried his bed on his back, he returned to his home. In 1869 he again went to Nevada, the attraction being the White Pine silver mining excitement of that period, also visiting California. In 1871 he came back to Wisconsin.
Legal and political career
After two years, satisfied with six years of roughing it, he returned to Wisconsin and commenced reading law with the Honorable. John A. Smith, of Lake Geneva. Prior to this he had studied law in his hours of leisure. In 1872 he married and removed to Decorah, IowaDecorah, Iowa
Decorah is a city in and the county seat of Winneshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 8,172 at the 2000 census. Decorah is located at the intersection of State Highway 9 and U.S...
, and was admitted to the bar and continued a course of reading law in the office of Baker Brothers — F. E. Baker being a brother-in-law. In 1872 he became a member of the bar of Winneshiek County and at once located in Calmar, Iowa
Calmar, Iowa
Calmar is a city in Winneshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,058 at the 2000 census. It is located at the junction of U.S. Highway 52 and State highways 150 and 24...
, which remained his home until his death. In 1886 he was elected county attorney, and was re-elected in 1888. He was mayor of Calmar one or two years, and recorder many years.
Kaye was elected county attorney just as statutory prohibition was going into effect, and it fell to his lot to engage in a protracted series of suits against dealers in intoxicants in which he met and vanquished the ablest lawyers of the Winneshiek county bar. Single handed he prosecuted all cases until the attorneys of the liquor dealers were so wearied that they were glad to cry quits. The result was that these suits caused an addition of more than $12,000 to the revenue of the county. He was also engaged in a number of the most noted legal cases tried in that county.
The following appeared in Past and Present of Winneshiek County (1913),
"Others who joined the ranks of the attorneys about that time were John B. Kaye, who located at Calmar in 1872. Mr. Kaye was an Englishman by birth, coming to America with his parents in 1842. The family settled near Geneva, Wisconsin, in 1848, and in 1863, Mr. Kaye went to Nevada where he spent four years in gold camps. The next four years were a time of roving with him, but after a year at his old home he came to Iowa. He was a student, not only of law, but of the Bible and all other good literature, and possessed a poetic nature that first found expression in numerous bits of miscellaneous verse. In his later years he produced three books of his writings, the most worthy of these bearing the title of "Vashti." In his legal practice his literary tendency was apt to be shown in his ready application of quotations from various writers. He won distinction in his defence of John Cater of Burr Oak, charged with the killing of his wife, and in his assistance on the side of the state in the Gifford-Bigelow murder trial. Although in each instance he was on the losing side, his handling of the cases clearly demonstrated an unusual ability."Past and Present of Winneshiek County Published 1913. Volume 1 This volume is the history of the founding and settling of Winnesheik County, the last 53 pages are a Chronology of events from 1840 up to 1913. There are two "all name" indexes, (not in book). One for the main part of the book, and one for the Chronology.
Poetry
Early in life Mr. Kaye began writing fugitive verses, and in time these became so numerous that in 1874, they were brought together and published in a volume entitled, Facts and Fancies.Songs of Lake Geneva appeared in 1882. Both of these works won him praise from critics, as well as negative criticism. The following review appeared in The Churchman, Vol. 46 (1882),
"The Lake Geneva which the author here celebrates, and which he might have made immortal, if his songs had been good enough, is in the State of Wisconsin. We have no doubt that it is, as he says, 'pure, lovely, and fair'. There was reason, moreover, for accepting what he says in his personal address:But Mr. Kaye's best work was done on Vashti
- 'When valleys and rivers awaken the muse
- She may not neglect to accord thee thy dues.'
But, for some cause or other, probably through the incompetency of the bard, these poems possess only the slightest amount of poetry. The volume contains, however, other pieces classified as poems of Meditation, of Nature, of Love and Sentiment, of Sorrow, and of Patriotism, some of which are of a much higher order."
Vashti
Queen Vashti is the first wife of King Ahasuerus in the Book of Esther, a book included in the Hebrew Bible and read on the Jewish holiday of Purim. She is banished for her refusal to appear at the king's banquet, and Esther is chosen to succeed her as queen. In the Midrash, Vashti is described...
, Dedication:
"To my little daughter, named after its heroine and title, this volume is affectionately dedicated"a story based on the biblical story of Esther
Esther
Esther , born Hadassah, is the eponymous heroine of the Biblical Book of Esther.According to the Bible, she was a Jewish queen of the Persian king Ahasuerus...
. It far exceeded all prior efforts, and established a name for its author.
A fourth volume was published posthumously. Kaye was anxious to have it a home production, and to that end had submitted the copy to the copyright office and negotiations were entered into that would have ended in a publication the same year. This last poem was a rehearsal in metrical form of the story of Judas Iscariot
Judas Iscariot
Judas Iscariot was, according to the New Testament, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. He is best known for his betrayal of Jesus to the hands of the chief priests for 30 pieces of silver.-Etymology:...
's betrayal of Christ. Contrary to conventional opinion, Kaye did not accept the idea that Judas intended to betray Christ, and the poem is a defence of Judas, in which the entire story of the trial before the Sanhedrim and Caiaphas
Caiaphas
Joseph, son of Caiaphas, Hebrew יוסף בַּר קַיָּפָא or Yosef Bar Kayafa, commonly known simply as Caiaphas in the New Testament, was the Roman-appointed Jewish high priest who is said to have organized the plot to kill Jesus...
is rehearsed with a clearness that adds his own vision to the biblical account. The critic might not accept Kaye's version of the translation, but might see in it a volume of more than usual poetical power.
Further reading
- Nevada Historical Society, Copy of diary of John Brayshaw Kaye's wagon train trip from Lake Geneva, Wisconsin to Virginia City, Nevada, 1863
External links
- Strangers to Us All, Lawyers and Poetry http://myweb.wvnet.edu/~jelkins/lp-2001/intro/index_alpha.html
- The Trial of Christ http://www.cimmay.us/pdf/kaye.pdf