The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1868-12-02
Anecdotes of Chief Justice fancy.

y Anecdotes OF Chief Justice fancy
A correspondent of the Cincinnati Com
merciM gives the substance of converse
ton with Mr.. Samuel Tyler. of Maryland
the literary executor of the late Chief Jus
tice fancy, in which some interesting an
ecdotes are related respecting that distin
|. guished jurist. We extract the followin,
passages
4 TANEYs ABHoRRANCE OF POLITICS.
Clancy had not literary abilities, lik
Marshall?"
ayes he had abilities, but he was .
thoroughly devoted lawyer, who refused t.
express opinions, literary or otherwise
which might seem to obtain the Sanction
1 OF the name OF the Chief Justice, and, al
though he read much, he seemed to make
ON effort to compress his mind and utter
ances into legal channels merely, and look
ed upon his court with an eye single. EFF
forts were made to drag him into polite:
at many periods of his life, notably during
the Douglas Breckenridge campaign" -
:" What case was that, Mr. TYLER ?"
Well, sir! One Mr.. Hughes, of Ha-
gerstown, an intimate friend of Judge Ia.
ney, wrote to the Judge, in the heat Of that
political campaign, saying that it was az
flrmed all through the country that Judge
fancy had declared himselfin favor of Mr.,
douglas for the Presidency. Consequent
~ the Irish Catholic voters were going
pell-mell for Mr.. Douglas. And Mr..
! Hughes, who believed the contrary to he
the predictions of the Chief Justice,
wrote to the latter for permission to deny
that he had expressed himself in support Of
the Little Giant, rs he was called"
What did the Chief Justice reply ?"
He wrote in letter, which nossess.
to this effect-very nearly in these terms !:
"sSir, / am Chief Justice of the United
states. AS such, since the year 1886
have never cast a vote! l never permit
any retainer or under-oficeholder of mine
70 converse with me upon candidates and
their prospects l never give advice to
render service, Voluntarily or involuntarily,
upon any side, And so particular am I,
sir, that my name shall never appear, with
my consent, appended to any politics, that
l refuse to permit you to deny that am
Tor or against any body at this juncture.
II any man has affirmed anything on the
credit of my name, hold to my neutrality
so tenaciously that refuse to let my name
DC used for any denial, even ofan uuauthor-
lied faiselloodr'
There were probably other instances of
his political neutrality p
81 Yes, rec0llect that ut one time the
marshall of his court, being stout parti-
san, wanted to go to the polls in his official
capacity, to keep order for tho Democrats
were hard pressed, and required both plIys.
icai and official aid. The Chief Justice
said to. him Mr.. Marshal - he al
ways gave every man his official term, and
insisted upon being entitled to his own
name officially, in like manner MIR. Mar
shall, you can 60 to the polls, sir, like every
citizen, but il you go as the marshal of NV
court, you 60 at your peril" 5G03G
CHIEF JUSTICE CHAsE---rHE DRIED SCOTT DE-
CIsIoN. * 81 !
"Wbat did Judge fancy think Of Chief !
Justice Chase, Mr.. Tyler!'' /
- Better of him, sir, than most of the |
Chief Justices friends. / have heard him |
express himself favorably Of Mr.. Chase's |
address, motives and legal abilities"
Jndge Taneys opinion of Andrew |
Jackson was high, of course 2" -
I The highest. He was the grandest |
Caesar that ever sat in the Executive chair. |
Few Of Judge Taney's friends have ever
been in the White House since Gen. jack
son lett it! never expected to enter there |
again: Judge fancy recognized in Gen. |
Jackson the supreme will, the strongest de. !
votion, the clearest intellect that ever
adorned the Chief Magistracy. So far
from the Chief Justice, in his capacity Of
remover OF the deposits, being the tool of
andrew y ackson, he, was the suggester OF /
Inc removal, and impressed the same upon I
Inc PRESIDENT. The latter was at that time
~ ~ the Kip Raps, and possess the letter
which Mr. fancy wrote, saying to Gen.
Jackson that to his knowledge the United
States Bank was sink of corruption, and
hat patriotism and expedisnGyi warranted
ne President in removing the deposits, 1
While Mr. fancy had no doubt, from I'm ex-
of the law, that it gave the
President the right ..liisTe4f I
The bred Scott decision, sir. Was the
aware that in this stood the
measure of his regard with posterity
yhch will exist when slavery and its in
luences shall be no more ?" w iss'lfua| I,
Tyler said that the Chief Justice
eemed, after rendering that decision, to be
indignant at. the political attacks
maze s upon his judicial integrity by Sew
~ and others. III t.;s,i.,.,'s..,i.i 49,
z lie was the purest character that ever
pore ermine," said Mr.. Tyler, enthusiast
ally. /" He never suffered his character
o be impugned; be was chaste as Lu-
rece ~ s6glS1 {.fa 81 3 - =.
But, sir, was it his saying-were they
rs terns---that a negro had no rights
slleh white ma: was bound to respect 3''
"Oh that was picked out Of the decis-
on-s decision agreed to by, Judge Grier,
t Pennsylvania, and Judge Nelson, Of
Sew YOrk-and quoted against Mr.. Ia
ey ); whereas he had only cited it from 4
tatute, or compiled it from q series oil s.
tatutes. The decision was model of iu-
icial learning, so accounted everywhere, !.
nd, like all Judge Taney's papers, per
sctiy classical in style" }AH afaI8
You do not know, then, whether Judge
,aney is entirely responsible for this de-
lslon. its phraseology, and the matter of :
as it stands?"
Entirely, sir. It is his composition,
nd he never expressed any fear as to the ,
erdict Of history upon it," 81 6llt i
Was Judge fancy man of courage ?''
es; he could have died in tho fire for =