The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1874-02-21
MISCELLANY.
JIMMY SLOAN's COURT.

Mr.. Samuel Woo6fwarth CozZens, in
!" Echoes from the West, now being pub
lished in american Homes, gives the follow
ing Characteristic sketch of Western life
years ago, and which might even apply to
some justices whose $ 'c0orts1" are not in
the country:
g Riding the circuit $ in early times, in
the South and West, was fayorite method
of practicing law, with those whose sefyi-
ces were in demand as counsel. Generally
half a sdozcn sor more of the prominent
lawyers residing in a circuit would accom-
pany the Judge from county to county,
trying the cases that had been brought and
prepared by the local attorneys. These
trips were generally. made in company,
upon horseback, and frequently gave rise
to many pleasant and varied experiences.
The practice was often enlivened by Incl
dents that ibordered upon the ludierous,
although it not unfrequently happened
that they afforded neither amusement nor
profit for tile counsel or client. To relate
some of the personal experiences that oc
cured during the practice of the law upon
the Westerli frontier from 1850 to 1851 is
the object of the following sketches.
The incidents narrated in the following
pages occurred twenty years ago, more or
less, when The now wefl-klown city Of
Council Bluffs was g winter quarters y for
the little band of Mormon emigrants, who
had selected the g Great Gulch y for their
encampmeist because it afforded them a
partial protection from the rude blasts of
winter that had oyertaken them on their
journey to the City of Saints In the
spring some of the band concluded to re-
main there thus forming little settlement
that should serve as kind of $ halfway
house'' to their brethren and sisters in the
f1if ffavT ,itelAf
and tedious journeying across the plains.
First among the number who determined
to remain behind was one James Sloan, or,
as he was familiarity called, Jimmy Sloan"
Now Jimmy was not only an Irishman
and firm believer i'm the Book of Mormon,
but he possessed much of the native
shrewdness and cunning of his race, as
well as great deal of obstinacy, an unliin-
tied quantity of brass, and an inordinate
amount OF self-esteem. combined with
little learning. Jimmy's pecullarities soon
won for him considerable prominence in
the new settlement, and no one was much
surprised when upon the organization of
Pottawattaauie county he was found to
have BEEN duly elected to the Office of
County Judge. Being firmly impressed
with his own importance, he of course
greatly lnagnified the powers con-
ferred upon him by his office, nor
did he ever lose an oportunity to
impress upon others the fact that, in his
own opinion, at least, he was of vital inn
portance to the future welfare of the
9'great State oy Iowee,n and woe to the
man who should presume to dare to differ
with him ON the subject, for rJimmy would
then and there pronounce him guilty of
'seontimpt,'' and infiiet on him fine
which in no case was he ever known to
abate.
Myself aiyoung man, whom love of adj
venture. perhaps as much as anything
else, had induced to stsGo West, y the VIM
ter of lS5-- found me in company with a
few choice spirits, domiciled in log cabin
known as No. 6.'' upon the site of what
snow the beautiful city of Omaha, in Ne
brasks.
Itwas during this winter that one day
received most urgent request to go over
to Council Bluffs aud defend poor fellow
who had been arrested and was to be tried
for the crime of larceny before Jimmy
Sloan. Notwithstanding my experience
at the bar had been somewhat limited, and
the prospect for a $ heavy fee y was at the
best extremely doubtful, the morning of
the day of trial found me mounted on a
pair of snow-shoes and fioundering over
the deep drifts on my way to the little log
j
shrined in the person of Judge Sloan.
Upon entering the room in which the
court was held, found it to be quite inn
possible for me to distinguish one object
from another, so great was the contrast
between the lingy little inside and the
beautiful white of the snow-covered
ground upon the outside, which was rem
dered paihfully dazzling by the bright
light of December sun that was shining
in all its glory. Pausing by the side of
the huge Box-stove over which had al
most fallen headlong upon entering the
room, WIS yainly endeayoring to distin-
guish some of my surroundings, when /
was startled by hearing the deep, sepul-
chral tones. of mans voice, issuing from
the impenptrable haze which surrounded
me, saying
.'Pfis;nsr, are yez rislds for fllfial2"
Never pposing for q single instant that
the question concerned me IN the slightest
mahner, + continued warming myself by
the stove. vaguely speculating in the