Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1871-09-29
MIR. Benjamin's brilliant Success
I'm England.

or State Ills career as an exile ia one Of
the most remarkable instances on record of
the triumph of genius and application over
obstacles of the greatest difficulty lie is
no" Just sixty years of age and was consc.
qucntly about ffty,fo when he landed in
Europe, otter making his romantic ESCAPE
from Florida in the spring Of 1866, upon
the downfall of the Confederacy. He resolv.
Cd to resort to the English bar for mainte.
nance, apparently nothing dounted by the
loss OF all his prospects and hopes in Ameri-
ca though he had stood in the first rank
OF the Louisiana bar and was confessed the
most brilliant advocate before the United
States Supreme Court, and was verscd as yery
few, if any, English lawyers are in both the
common and civil law, he had to 90 through
the same formal probation before being allow
cd to plead, that is cxaoted Of a fcdgling from
one OF the English universities.
Absurdly enough the candidate for admit.
tancc to the gown has to eat certain nun.
Der OF dinners at tho Temple, at stated times.
we believe, takes thrce.years to accomplish.
mr.. Benjamin went through part of this
lrksome routine, enlivening his hours and
ekelng out support by preparing articles for
the British lpress and magazines. After a
year or so the balance Of this absurd REQUIRE.
ment was waived, and the exile camc to tho
bar. But here were found new difficulties
All the CAGES given to advocates, their only
chances for brief or retainer, came through
the attorneys. A plcader may have ever 20
much reputation with the general public. and
yet tic cannot get case or earn a guinea un
less he is in with some one of the great law
firms. OF course, under such svstem. i
is very difficult for a new man or a stranger 70
get his chance. Business is given out nnon
considerations of family connections. inan-
ence, etc, and Of this the new>comea had lit
te' But at last he secured. his opportunity
on ore OF tho caces growing out of the late
c'Vli war, In which he was retained, probably
on the idea of his possessing a special knowl.
eage In SUCH cases. The result was o forer.
SIC triumph, which elected from the bench n
very warm encom'um on his argument. This
Is 1 a rare distinction in England, and it told.
Other cases came, and then other brevets
from the bench but still his progress, owing
70 Z, thc causes mentioned, was, slow. While
mus Struggling for his footing, Mr. benjamin.
ties on Sales. When the book was nmh,iohad
it was greatly admired, not obly for it's ciear.
ness of style and method, in wbich NJ
Benjamin so much cxeels, but also for its fuli
and exhaustive treatment on suh;eot IN
which no adequate treaties then existed =
The bar of both coutries united in praise of
the book. This publication secureJ Mr
benlam'n's standing in his profession.
There was still lanother difiultv. Te
could only be "junior'' counsel, and ;unior
counsel in England hardly ever got chance
TO speak. The eloquent plcader had 60 ait
s,eht, while many ssammerng senior stated
the case to the court. This trouble wasaat
last surmounted, when Mr. BENJAMIN WAS
made Queens Counsel distinction whinh
gave him ut last an equal chance to show
what was in him. These two events--h;ss
publication and the honorary appointment as
o. g., put Mr. Benjamin fairly on the road
to distinction and a fair professional reward.
lis income, previously small, has risen to
140O,0OO per annum, md in another wear
will doubtless be double what it now Ia NJ
benjrmln has been offcrcdsthc opportunity of
going into Parliament, and it would be On.
rlous thing indeed to hear in the Honse of
Commons the same voice which once ranD
out so clearly in the United States SenatS
Chamber; but Mr.. B. has declined to tnrn
aside from the brilliant professional oarecr
which awaits him. He now stands second At
the bar only to Sir Roundell Palmer, and on
any special occasion offering scope for his
great powers Of e1Ganenee dsal would undoubted.
true that there is the impress Of genius II 5S
this success, but it is the genius which goes
with industry, patience, and brave, unfaiter-
ing purpose.-LouisudVe (Ky) Ledger.
STRANGE FREAK OF NATunE--A cor.
respondent of the Baltimore Sun, writing
from Rockingham county, Va, says:
A strange freak of nature hassstaken' place
in the track of tho severe hailstome that oo-