New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-07-23
THE SORT OF AN OLD ROMAN.

I cUAC SblAo ~ COOA - VsaASSy ~
. the Attorney General AS "a gentleman b.
birth. thoroughly learned in jurispru
dence and fearless in danger; he deserve
the thanks Of our community tor hi
manhood and his strict devotion to duty.
From this just eulogy to the phrase ''cle
Roman" the trapsition was natural. ant
the Attorney General has won that laure
by acclamation. The term ''old Roman
| was applied by the REpuBlIcAs to mari
the difference between the people OF tina
nation when they were the conquerors o
the world. and before they had descended
to become its bufoons.
Our classic friend of the "scnyune re-
| views in ridicule the numerous Caesars
and other :yralts who marked the first
stage in the decline Of a people from
whom all OF popular freedom which the
world now enjoys was derived. We pro-
! pose 20 pick our own ''old Roman" and
attribute to the Attorney General OF Louis
lana such resemblance in intent and Incl.
dent as we deem peculiarly appropriate.
We desire to make grave reference TO a
people who were our examples in the in
situations by which they rose 70 greatness.
les: departure from principle may make
them also an example IN corruption and
| decline. Our ''Old Roman. then. is NJ. I.
! Cicero. who differed so much in most Of
his acquired attributes from the Attorney
! General as TO absolve the latter from any
suspicion Of aping the great example
which he has unconsciously illustrated.
Cicero was deep student Of science and
bellies lettres. as they were taught in
Greece. His celebrated work De Cticiis,
was almost connecting link between the
doctrines Of Plato and Of our Saviour.
He was philosopher Of the closet.
rather than = man Of the people. Like
Bacon his ambition and regard for the
public welfare called him 70 station. and
even into wax, but still his tastes were Of
the abstract and the refined; his duties
impelled him 70 labor in the forum and
the senate. The Attorney General has
none Of this abstruse learning, and none
Of the vanity and ambition which his
great predecessor employed in giving ef-
feet 70 his splendid genius. Our Attorney
General is, then. no imitator. We even
doubt whether he knows q letter Of the
Greek. We will credit him with so much
common law Latin as to know the meaning
Of non est .jactum OF non assnnssit, OF
science he no donb: compfehends very
well everything known OF read at bar, in
medical jurisprudence. and al! Of moral
philosophy involved in defending plea Of
mental Authorization il case Of muir
der Or kleptomania. There is perhaps q
more national likeness between our Atttor-
ney General and the great Attorney Gen.
eyal and Chief Justice Coke.
Upright and independent, with high
notion of the dignity and Importance OF his !
office, he did not. in an age Of judica! sup
plisncy, hesitate to resie. Gny Illegal en- |
croaehment by royalty.
The resemblance between our Attor-
ney General and the great Roman orator
consists chi ely in this: Each found a
state Of great and growing corruption;
each dedicated the great power Of his
mind to the prosecution Of public
as the prope, means to redeem
and regenerase the republic. We concen-
lrate the resem blance between the two
men and the two periods upon single
prominent example. 1t is the prosecu-
ion Of Verres, the pro-consul Of Sicily,
'os acts Of corruption perpetrated under
color Of official authority. |
We anticipate for our Attorney General
he retort that he is prosecuting members
If his own political party. and that Re-
are the true plunderers Of Sicily.
We have denied and disproved this charge,
nd have traced the plumber Of Sicily into
be hands of some of the Oldest and best
+ the Sicilians themselves. We have
hafged that under the shadow Of a purely
ZONE administration the Sicilians are
till engaged in the same objectionable
raffic Of the meat. wharves and water Of
heir fellow-citizens. Yet it is far more
rise and courageous for the Attorney Gent
raj TO have been among the first to re.
eem the public virtue without regard to
be party associations of those who may be
IMPLICATED, than to have refrained from {
xposing public wrong because it may
nplicate officers or representatives nomi. a
ally affiliated with the same political i
ary with himself. 1t
The motives " hich induced these great e
rosecutors Of ancient and modern times a
} take q position SO responsible and so q
ange,ous were the same. Let us, with. il
ut imputation Of pedantry. employ the 4
'nguage Of Cicero himself. He ad- v
resses the co urt or commission Of extor. o
on, and explains the motive and neces- b
ty for the public prosecution which he
IS been called on to conduct: b
I,re,eraril enio' jan, opinio pe,'nic;osa rel a
tblic@ eotisque pericutosa. qua non modo
oud pOpulum ROmanuns. set eti0ns cpud
te'nds Hattones. omnium sermOne pcscre- Il
nit; tis JUDGES QuG nu.c su',t, iecuniosun, n
'minem, guam ris sit aOcens neniTeD, ZoSSc
InM0ri.
- For now an opinion says Cicero to the s,
dges. ''seems confirmed, injurious to the =,
public, and dangerous to yourselves, s
hich, not only with the Roman people, q
It also with foreign nations, runs through
70 speech of all. That in the judicial trials ..
} they now are, no rich man, though IL
lilty, can be condemned e,
There was disposition in the defense d
prevent q fair and speedy trial. and so | RI