The Portland daily press., 1870-11-05
PRESS.
ND
SATURDAY. Morning, November 8, 1870.

Keaniies of the Law,
gentleman in this city lately sued cred
ltor for sum amounting to about $500. and
won his case. There was no protracted iii.
CATION, for the matter was decided within n
month; but in settling up with his lawyers.
the suing party found that he was indebted
10 the firm of Coke, Littleton & Co., only $75
more than the amount recovered. He says he
will not try to recover debt in the same way
again. rn r
, Many years ago, when change was very
scarce, reporter in this city went into to-
bacco shop to get cigar, rendering silver
dollar in payment The cigar man declined
to trade, as he had no change. A friend of
both the intending purchaser and dealer hap
pened to be present at the time, and volun-
teered to pay ten cents Tor two cigars aud take
the receivers note tor the amount. The doc
ument was given, and on Monday following
this was in 1S4S) the holder of the note sail
ed for California. Some years afterwards,
while rummaging among some old papers, he
turned up the note, and forwarded it to
friend in Boston for collection. As the mat
ter was joke, the slip Of paper was kept
carefully until the very day on the expiration
OF which the party granting it could claim
the privilege of the statute of exemption,
and then presented. The question OF ex-
emption came up and it was pleaded on the
ground that the note had been given at four
O'Clock on the day of its date, whereas it had
not been presented Tor payment until seven
O'Clock in the evening-three hours beyond
the period specified by the statute of exemp-
tiOns
The case went to law; that is, the case was
submitted to some OF the most eminent of
our Boston lawyers. 1t was all. Of course,
fun; and whom any recess of court came
along, for years, "the note case" was taken up.
Daniel Webster and Rufus Choate had their
shares in it-Mr. Webster being at the time
engaged in railroad car-wheel case, which
Msted for some weeks. The note went to ref
erees, and was banded about and discussed
with all the legal proixity that was possible.
Hours and hours were spent upon the ques-
ton as to whether its presentation three
hours after the law could, by construction be
declared to outlaw it, and at last the litigation
was dropped.
A year or two before his death Mr.. Choate
met the giantor of the note and asked, with
mock solicitude, whether that important
affair had ever been settled? He was answer
ed that it had rot.
"Now, Mr.. Choate," asked the reporter,
suppose the legality of my doctrine of repu-
diatlon had been before you and your breth-
ren, Seridtin, and your opinions and services
been paid according to the standard rules reg
u'ating your fees, what might have. do you
think, been the expense Of the suit?"
"Why," returned Mr.. Choate, "it might
have been ten, fifteen, aye, twenty thousand
dollars; and the fact ought to teach you
hereafter the great propriety of nerer-neu-
er-neUer going to laU."
A correspondent of the Norwich Bulletin,
who writes from North Kington, Rhode Is
land, says that about four years since Mr.
Sylvester Franklin OF that place brought an
action against John Brown OF the same town,
for damages to his wife in collision of We
hices in the public highway. Mr.. Brown is a
very old man and drives very slow horse,
and Franklin's wife is much younger and
drives fast horse. At the time of the col
lision she was racing with another party,
and they were driving very fast down hill and
around corner, when they suddenly came
upon old Mr.. Brown, who was coming from
mill, who didnot succeed in giving quite half
the road, as the notice was rather short for
age and slow team; consequently they
collided, Mrs. Franklin going unceremonionsy
over the dasher and fracturing an arm.
For this Mr. Brown was sued, and after a
severe contest, in which the lawyers have not
failed take all the advantages OF motions for
uew trials and writs of error, and whatever
other devices known to the law and requisite
in ruinous lawsuit, it has at last come to
close in favor of the defendant.
The suit has been most severe in its conse-
quences upon the parties. The plaintiff has
spent nearly all of the little property saved
by years of industry, which short time pre-
viousy he had invested in a snug little home
and when the final judgment was given, he
lifted up his voice and wept. Mr.. Brown is
nearly eighty years of age, and though pos
sessing comfortable share of this worlds
goods, has been even more of a sufferer from
this ill-chosen suit, having been barassed for
nah, t.x,1rw %,s~... Al.
proved too much for his enfeebled constitu
ton, and while upon the witness stand, being
browbeaten by the shrewdest of counsel on
the cross examir alton, he had a paralytic
shock, which deprives him of the use of one
side from head to foot.-Boston Times