Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1867-12-04
RUFUE guOATE.

| RUFUS CHOATE-
Mr.. Choate once had & poet for client,
and he glowered upon him. Mr..
Choate," Chief Justice Shaw broke out,
"this is q dry question of law, and you
mistake if you suppose the Supreme
Court is to be infisenced by any such
considerations as you appear to be sug-
! gesUing" ChOate paused a little, fused
/ with his papers, then murmured out
audibly enough for the titterinE bar to
/ hear him, "The Chief Justice isn't much
of lawyer, but what polite and amia-
/ bic man he is :"
| On another occasion, when the Chief
! growled at him rather savagely, he
turned his head back to the bar, gathered
| behind him-fOr he would not say a sharp
thing directly to Judge-and muttered
slowly and sOlilOquizingly, I'VE vene-
rate the Chief Justice, not for any beauty
OF form OF feature, but for the supposed
hidden intelligence within" To appre.
ciate this, one should have known ChOate,
and imagine him uttering this audibly TO
himself, as if he was trying to account
to himself for the respect he felt for the
grim Chief, Notwithstanding his savage
ness. For we know he did truly honor,
appreciate and admire Chief Justice
Shaw.
For long time the story ran current
that at law club ChOate gave as q sen
timent, "The Chief Justice! We con-
template him as the East Indian does his
wooden headed idol-he knows that he
is ugly, but he feels that he is great"
In the famous Methodist Church case
argued at New York within few years,
he made a memorable and dazzling ar,
gument. On leaving town next day, his
clients agent gave him a2UOO, and told
him never to abandon the case while
a court remained to which it could be
carried. 4" Well" said he to q friend
VINO stood by, " l declare these religious
people fight harder and pay better than
any clients I ever knew"
In a trial for divorce in Dedhsm,
leading character in the case, one OF the
parties to it, was q queer sort Of half.
cracked, halr-brained individual; and
during the trial Choate stopped, in his
musing walk up and down the court
room more than once to observe him,
saying to his associate, " don't quite
make out whether this man is fool or
knave-he seems a sort Of miscellaneous
person." When he came to comment
on him in the argument, he said, This
man seems to me, your honor, to have a
sort Of-iRcipieRt t-iBteTHljtteHt-tty mad F..
nesS.n The way he brought out these
successive qualifying adjectives produced /.
great hilarity in all who had watched |
the progress of the case.
Every one at the Suffolk bar knows his I
famous description OF the second hand I
" which was the subject of suit. I
Holding up in his hand a part of the har- /
ness, Mr.. Choate said, "1'O be sure, gen .
tlemen, this harness hasn't upon it all .
that gloss and glitter which takes the /
eye of the vulgar crowd; but l put it to .
you, as intelligent jurUTs, acquainted .
with the ordinary affairs OF life, whether
it isn't safe, sound, substantial, suita-
bic, second rate, second hand harness."
A friend speaking to him of Macresdy's
art ia acting, said that a person ouce
heard man crying murder for two
hours in succession, in the room under
his own at a hotel. On isquiry ne found
it was Mr.. Macresdy pracLIeing on the
word, to get the right agOuized tone.
50 If man." said ChOate, should cry
murder for two hours under my window,
| would commit itn
An aueGdOte of cOnstable's return,
and his comment upon il, has
been told before. 1t was an ac-
ton of replevin, ana the constable
was ordered to attach certain goods ac-
cOrding to the schedule furnished him.
he returned the writ into court, with the
schedule attached and the goods. The
return was after this fashion: "On this
lay, having attached this, having taken
that, having done the other thing,u etc.
yhoate objected to this return of service,
ln the ground, first, generally, that il
vas bad. The Judge remarked that,
though inelegant and ungrammatical in
ts structure, the paper still seemed
10 be good in a legal sense, at may
1e so, your honOr,n replied Mr.. Choate,
q but it must be confessed that he has
greatly OUer7C0Tked the psrticiple."
When the laugh which greeted this
ally had subsided little, he took the
iecOnd objection, which was, that the
lfiicer had not returned the same goods
IS those in his schedule. His schedule,
or example, said ginghams; hereturneG
etc. The old Chief took up
lis copy and read along, comparing in
lis copy the schedule and the return. At
ast he came to one item which was
light in his copy, and the copy before
aim was the original. ChOate had in
lis hands a transcript of the original
. Very well, Mr.. Choate," " said ne, "if
le has taken one article according to the
yOur honor, but he mas not one" Ger
8inly he has here is one. He is or
Tered to attacn shirtings, and he returns
hat he has attached shirtings." mo"
eplied Choste, respectfully but firmly,
: he is ordered to attach shirtings, and
le returns sbeetiRgs- a very, Ueyy differ
mt thing" mo, Mr.. Choate; look at
lour paper and will look at mine" So
be old Chief buried his great head in
be papers a moment, and Choate spelled
ut his again. A pause ensued. Well,
Gr. Choate, you see you are wreng,"
vas the next remark of the bench, e.
omewhat testify. Ne, sir" persisted 7
,hOate, "I see 1 am right" The Chief,
" this time quite indignant, took the
aper in his hand, and looking on it, and
landing up, rOared out each letter in
ortentous tones, IS -h-i-r-t spells shirt,
oes it not, Mr.. ChOate ?" Choate saw
t once that the mistake must have
risen from an error in copying his tran.
eript from the judges original. Well, (
our honor,n said he, with 3 look OF I
reat gravity, | should have supposed
did spell shirt, without an express de-
isi0n OF the Supreme Court of Massa- 7
huaefts uDOD il n