The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1880-09-02
A Lawyers Strange Dream.

A Lawyers Strange Dream.
On the night of the I'd of February,
1864, was in q state of nervous excite
rnent, called by physicians watching
and in half dream and half sensible
state, when I had kind of vision, in
which seemed to have an interview with
the blessed Saviour, though it was all evil
dently the work of my own imagination.
+ expressed the deep anxiety felt on ac-
count of the deficiency of may faith in
the Holy Scriptures in general, but es-
pecially in certain much contested points
on the subject of Miracles and of the
Trinity. As it seemed to be lamenting
my situation the blessed figure appeared
to be attentive, and when | said that
was disbeartencd and nearly in despair,
after so long and anxious consideration and
examination of these subjects, without
having arrived at any satisfactory con-
clusion. With smile of inexpressible
benignity and commiseration, He asked
me how old I was. l answered Ga
'That is" said He, "76S months, or g.
| O72 weeks, or is, ,432* days. To test how
deep your anxiety may have been, and
how intense your labors, / will ask how
many of those 768 months you have en-
ployed in carefully examining the evidence
Of the truth of Revelation 2" | could not
state positively that / had employed one
whole month in the examination. He
then asked how many of the 1902 weeks
had been so engaged? Again, could
not say that I had devoted one entire
week to this object exclusely. Again,
he asked how many of the Is, ,432 days OF
my life had been earnestly aud exclusive.
| ly dedicated to this all important subject?
Here I felt my cheeks burning with shame,
when 1 found myself compelled to answer
that had frequently read, examined and
thought upon this subject parts of many
days and nights, but dared not say 1
could remember any particular day when
I had set myself down to the labor of
scrutinizing the evidence as matter of
study and continue it without Interrupt
tion one whole day. His next question
was, "What is your occupation 2" an
swered that of Counsellor and Advocate
in the Courts of Law "There," said
He, "you must have been very much en-
gagged in examining critically the subject
of eyideuce?" 1 admitted that I had
been. "Were you required to undergo
labor and severe training in the prepara.
ton for practicing your profession ?" I
answered in the affirmative. "How
many years are you required to labor
thus? and are you examined from time to
time to test the progress nader" I an
swered, ''three or four years, at least, and
examinations are frequent and thorough
to test the progress made" GLOW is it
finally ascertained that one in your pro.
fession has made sufficient progress to
qualify him for practicing the law of our
country 2" 1 answered, "after years of
study, the applicant for license to practice
is required to undergo searching exam
ination by the Judge of the highest
Court, in solemn form, and if he exhibits
sufficient knowledge he is admitted to
practice in the Courts" "When cases
involving life or property to large
amounts are brought before your Courts,
do such cases require severe mental
labor7 and is there much time devoted
to preparation for trial ?" I answered,
"There is required much labor and time
in such preparation" He then asked,
"In cases involving life, what kind and
quantum of proof are deemed necessary to
establish the guilt or rinnocence of the par
ty charged 2" 1 replied, "That, by our.
law, the higher the crime charged, the
more clear and conclusive the proof
must be to convict the person charged"
He followed up the last question with
this: "Even where life itself is at stake,
is the proof required to be conclusive as
to exclude all hypothesis of possible in
nocence?" 1t was answered, "By no
means; legal certainty, though held nec-
essarily superior to moral certainty, is,
nevertheless, but the preponderancc of
probabilities" He then spoke as fol-
lows: "It seems, then, that, although
great care is taken in qualifying one of
your profession to judge correctly the
,ueight of cuidence;; and that in trial
where death is the penalty, very great labor
and deep interest are bestowed in the
examination of the evidence; and, indeed,
that men of character do not think they
have done their whole duty as counsel,
unless they have thus anxiously labored
to save life, yet you confess that you have
not, as you first stated, considered and
examined so anxiously and laboriously'
the proofs relating to that life which, un.
ike the transitory state called life in this
world, is eternal and Interchangeable.
So that, byyour own confession, itappears
You have spent years in preparing your.
self, by study the most laborious, and
anxiety the most intense, to defend from
death the lives of your fellowmen, but
have not spent one year out of Ga, one
month out Of 768, one week out 9072,
nay, not even one day out of 1892, to
save yourself, not from temporal death,
but from death enternal." Oyerwhelm-
ed with the shame of such an exposure
of n'"self, which was felt the more kcenly
from the fact there was not the least Sc.
verity in the look or language of the
speaker, my agitation was insupportable
and I awoke. The next morning | wrote
down this singular dream. H. w.