Plymouth banner. (Plymouth, Marshall County, Ind.) 1852-1855, 1854-01-05

The thirty lawyers were as silent a:
death.
Judge Mills repea ted the question.
IL will. your honor" said a voice from
the thickest part OF the crowd situated
behind the bar.
At the tones Of that voice many start.
ed half from their seats; and perhaps there
was not heart in that immense ,hrong
which did not beat something quicker
I il vas so unearthly, sweet. clear. ringing
and mournful.
The first sensation. however. was
changed into general laughter. when a
tall. eaunt, spectral figure. that nobody
present remem bered TO have seen before
elbowed bis way through the crowd. and
, ,laced himself within the bar. His ap-
pearancs was problem 20 the sphinx
herself. His high. pale Dr0w. and smcc.!'
nervously twitching face. seemed alive
with the concentrated essence and crea m
Of fgenius: but then his infantile blue eyes,
hardly visible beneath their massive arch
es. looked dim. dresry, almost uncon-
scious; and his clothes were so sha bby
proceed under his management.
HAS your name been entered OIL the
rolls of the Slater" demanded the Judge.
suspiciously.
Il; is immaterial about my name be-
ing on your rolls" ans swered the stranger.
his thin. 5loodIess lips curling into a
fiendish sneer. II may be allowed to
appear once By the courtesy of the court
and bar. Here is my license from the
highest tribunal in Amerca!" and he
handed judge Mills a broad parchment.
The trial went Immediately or.
In the examination of witnesses, the
stranger evinced but little ingenuity. as
was commonly thought. He suffered
each one 10 tell his own story without
interruption, though he contrived to
make each one tell il over two or three
times. He pu. few cross questions.
which with keen witnesses only served
TO correct mistakes-and he lnade no
notes. which, in mighty memories. only
tend 10 embarrass. The examination
being ended. as counsel for the plaintiff
he had right TO the opening speech. as
we'll as rhe close: but to the sstonishment
of every one, he declined the former. and
allowed the defence to lead off. Then a
shadow might have been observed to fit
across the fine features of Pike. and to
darken even the bright eye of Prentiss.
They saw that they had caught q Tartar;
but who il was. or how it happened. was
impossible 10 guess.
Col. Ashley spoke first. He dealt the
jury dish of close dry logic, which years
afterwards rendered him famous in the
Senate of the Union.
The poet. Albert Pike. followed with
a rich vein of wit. and hail torrent OF
ridicule. in which you may be sure uei,h-
er the plaintiff nor the plaintiffs ragged
attorney wers either forgotten or spared.
/ The great Prrntiss CO lcluded for the
defendant with z low OF gorgeous words.
brilliant as a shower Of falling stars. and
with fiual burst of tory. that brought
the house down in cheers, In which the
sworn jury themselves Joined. notwith-
standing the stern "order" of the bench.
Thus wonderfully susceptible are all the
South western people to the charms Of
impassioned eloquence.
| 1t was then the strangers turn. He
had remained apparently abstracted du-
ring all the previous speeches. Still. and
straight and motionless in his seat his
pale. smooth forehead shooting up like a
mountain cone OF snow. but for that eter-
nal twi:ch that came and went perpetu-
ally on his sallow cheeks you would have
taken him for mere man Of marble. ar
humaa form carved in ice. Even his
dim dreamy eyes were invisible beneath
those gray shaggy eyebrows.
| But now. he risss--be fore the bar-rail
ing. not behind it--and so near the won
derng jury that he might touch the fore
man with his long bony finger. With
his eyes still half shut. and standing rig
id as a pillar OF iron. his thin LIPS curled
as If in measureless scorn. slightly aport.
and the voice comes forth. At first it is
slow and sweet, ins.nuating itself through
the brain as an srtless tune, winding its
way through the deepest heart, like the
melody OF magic ncantation-while
the speaker proceeded. without a gesture
or the least sign Of excitement. TO tear in
pieces the argument of Ashley. which
mrlts away at his touch like frost before
the sunbeam. Every one looked surpri-
sed. His logic was at once so brief. and
SO luminously clear. that the rudest peas
ant could comprehend il without effort.
Anon, he came to the dazzling wit OF
the poet lawyer. Pike. Then the curl of
his lip grew sharper; his saliow face kim
died up. and his eyes began to open. dim
and dreamy no longer. but vivid as light
ming. red as fire globes. snd glaring like
twin meteors. The whole soul was in
the eye--the full heart streamed out on
the face. In five minutes Pixies wit
seemed the foam of folly. and his finest
satire horrible profanity. when contrasted