Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-06-08
MRS. GAINES.
An Exciting Scene Ina COurf-Infer-
estinG Remintscenee.

or title of Myra Clark Gaines /
certain real estate in this city.
was what the lawyers call q jactit:
ton suit that is, suit for
SANDER of title, in which damage
4 were claimed of Mrs. G.. for pre-
tending that she had any title t
the property of plaintiff. Whel
the case came up for trial, Mrs. G
| appeared in court with her counsel
and her gallant and veteran hus
band, the hero of Fort Erie, anC
one of the highest types we hav,
4 ever known of the gentleman ant
| ehiyalrie soldier-Gen. Edmund
| Pendleton Gaines. The Genera
was very strict observer of tht
| regulations and Of all the proper
| ties Of the service and of society
and on this occasion he appeared
in his uniform with his sword by
his side. Mrs. Gaines was defended
in the suit, by able and eminent
counsel, but in the progress Of
the trial these q falling into a
wrapgle with the Judge, declared
that they could not compromise
their professional dignity. by a
further continuance in the case, and
SO they withdrew from the court
room; whereupon the General
arose and announced to his Honor
that he was the husband of the
defendant in the suit, and in that
character, and as an admitted mem
Der of the bar of the United States
he might claim the right to repre-
sent his wife's interests. When he
married that lady he had, besides
his obligation as her husband and
gentleman, assumed the addition
al obligation to his old friend Dan
iel Clark to stand by his daughter
in all her trials. He was there to
fulfil that duty. Unfortunately,
when he studied law in Virginia, it
was under a very different system
of Jurisprudence, and he felt very
much out at sea in the courts of
civil law State. He would, there
fore, ask that the lady defendant,
who was better acquainted with the
remarkable facts of her history
than any. one else, should be allowed
to address the jury in her case.
The Judge stated that the lady had
the right to argue her own case.
Then the General, with that grand
old dignity for which he was so
distinguished led forward Mrs.
Gaines, who proceeded to address
the jury at great length, reading
numerous documents bearing upon
her case. Whilst reading these
documents, the Judge, who was a
high-spirited man, interfered, and
notified her that she could not be
allowed to read documents which
were not in evidence in the case.
The lady still persisting, the Judge
again interfered, and a disagreeable
wrangle arose, in the midst of
which Mrs. Gaines charged the
Judge with having an interest
against her.
Judge Buchanan retorted with
temper, and notified Gen. Gaines
that he was expected to control his
wife in court, where no persons
were privileged. Whereupon the
stately old General arose to his full
altitude of six feet three, and as
Stunning the position of a CONS
mander of grenadiers, and grace
fully touching the belt of his sword,
responded: ~ ---
MAY it please Sour honor, for
everything that lady shall say or
do, l hold myself personally re-
sponsible, in every manner and
form known to the laws of my
country or the laws of honor. !"
This reply and the accompanying
action and the appearance of the
Gen eralin his military garb aroused
to a still higher pitch the Irish fire
of the Judge, who quickly an
swered: .' '''i.' .l
n ''Gen. Gaines, this court will not
be oyerawed by the military au-
thorities.' .....
Crest assured, your honor, that
when an attempt of that sort is
made, the sword which l wear in
conformity to the regulations of the
service, and out of respect to this
honorable court, will be quickly
unsheathed to defend the rights and
dignity of your honor, and of all
the civil tribunals of my country"
After these explanations peace
and order were restored, but the
Judge considered it his duty to note
the charge of Mrs. Gaines, that he
was sitting in case in which>he
was interested. He should, there
fore, reduce it to an exception of
recusation, and require the evidence
to be produced to sustain it. f.a.f.
1t turned out that, some years
before, in some proceedings in
which Mrs. Gaines rights were in
volved, Judge Buchanan had
made a motion for a brother law
yer who was retained against Mrs.
Gaines. This, it was decided, did
not justify his reeusation, and the
case proceeded, and was, we be-
lieye, in the Supreme Court, at
least, determined in favor of Mrs.
Gaines. b ra gaovd 1i. a r. f-
This was the first appearance of
Mrs. Gaines as her own advocate
in court. Since then she has advo-
Gated her case in and out of court,
to the judges, in public and in pri-
vate, and to everybody else, and in
every place, and under all circum-
stances, and in every form, and
with every agency and appliance,
exhausting and surviving scores of
lawyers, and maintaining all the
while her confidence, her equa-
nimity, her earnest zeal and I'M
tagging energies, and exhibiting
to the world the most remarkable
example of courageous devotion
and resolute persistency which can
be found in the history of these
severest of all trials of human
patience and endurance, tedious,
complicated and exciting law suits.
Certainly nobody living had bet
ter right to claim the possession in
the fullest deYelOpmant of those