Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1863-04-16
THE BAR IN IT'S RELATIONS TO CIVIL LIBERTY

Every intelligent student of history is glad to
confess the obligations of society to the legal pro-
fesson, not only for the part it is called to play in
the dispensaton of private justice, but also for the
great agency it has immemorially exerted in de-
veloping and determining the institutes of civil
lized Governments. In all ages, after men have
given to society the definite confg urations which
necessarily spring up as soon as the race emerges
from the dead level of barbarism, the conditions
exist for the activity Of the jurisconsult and the ad
vocate If we investigate the history of British and
American civil liberty we shall find that we are
pre-eminently indebted to the Bar Of both coun-
tries for the formative elements which have given
shape and complexion to our political institutions
The spirit of justice, as administered by the
courts, permeated our whole civil polity as it
came from the hands of its illustrious framers
schools of legal science, and were deeply imbued
with the philosophy Of jurisprudence, even where
they were not eminent practitioners before the ju-
dicial tribunals Of the country
We have been freshly reminded of this impor-
taut truth by the perusal of interesting article
on the " Roman Bar" contained in the last num-
Der Of that sterling periodical the North American
Review, which, in giving sketch of the rise and
progress of forensic eloquence in Rome, refers in
cidentaly to the intimate connexion which existed
in the Latin Common wealth, as indeed in all free
Governments, between the legal profession and the
civil magistracy. Under this head the reviewer
says:
The Bar hid in Rome 10 such honor that it's
offices for long time considered kind of niti-
alton to civil dutiesa preliminary stage to the magis
tracy The nobemen Of those days had to pass through
that trial. noblemen of modern period through
the trial of Every thing adapted to excite the
ambition of young men, and the debates in the forum
aroused the most lively interest among all classes Of the
citizens People went there to theatre and
lawyer considered it the utmost glory to be APP
pauded by the people, to be recognised by them and
pointed out in the streets The house OF celebrated
lawyer constantly full of vsters Men Of all ranks
throngsd to solicit the assistance Of his powerful elo
quence for the Romans resored 10 the agency of lawyers
in of the smallest Importance. The fame Of The
Roman advocates such that their often
claimed by the provinces whittier they repairsd in
cases. accompanied by their professional brethren For
long time the rosrum had been the contemporary Of the
bar but the former fell when the Republic expired The
mighty Roman eloquence WAS longer heard except at
the BAR and the bar itself gradually stripped Of its i'm
portance and spendor As long the legal profession
practsed with honor held in high esteem and gory
but when luxury bad given birth to the excessive demand
for material enOyments, and information bad become
insble Of acquiring wealth, the lawyers and with
them the whole profession, fell into dscredit."