Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1884-02-08
Stories Of the Bench and Bar.

ministers ENJOY telling anecdotes about
the cloth; doctors-Oliver Wendell
Holmes is a conspicuous example-over-
flow with stories at the expense of their
brethren; and lawyers and judges, when
they get together, make the rafters
ring with ineXtinguishable laughter. Mr..
Croake James, whose name is a singular
illustration Of the old proverb that names
go by contraries, when he retired from
the law after half a century's practice,
dedicated to his companions a repertory
OF stories which he had been long pre-
pairing, selections from which he had
often read to them in grand divan as
sembled.
Mr.. James first gives Lord Brougham's
definition Of a lawyer as "a learned gen.
tleman who rescues your estate from your
enemies and keeps it to himself, " and then
goes on to recall an old story of Lord
Avonnore, who had fallen into the bad
habit OF intewupting counsel. Thus Cur
ran was often stopped short in his argu-
ment by his lordship, who would say:
mir. Curran, / know your cleverness,
but it's quite in vain for you to 90 on; |
see the drift of it all, and you are
only giving yourself and me unneces-
sary trouble" One day, Curran, be-
ing too often stopped in this way,
thus addressed the judge: "Perhaps,
my lord, | am straying, but you must
1mpute it to the extreme agitation of
my mind. l have just witnessed so
dreadful circumstance that my imagi-
nation hos not yet recovered the shock"
The judge was all attention: "Go ON,
Mr., Curran." Con my way to court. nv
lord, as passed by one of the markets,
observed butcher proceeding to
slaughter u calf. Just as his hand was
raised, lovely little child approached
him unperceiyed, and, terrible to relate
i see The life blood gushing out still
the poor child's bosom was under the
butchers hand, when he plunged the
knife into-into-" 'Into the childm
cried out the judge, with great emotion.
your lordship sometimes anticipates
1T went right into the neck Of the calfr'
Judge Wiles once sentenced boy at
Lancaster to be hanged, with the hope of
reforming him by frightening him, and
he ordered him for execution next morn
ing The judge awokc in the middle of
the night, and was so affected by the no.
ton that he might himself die in the
course of the night, and the boy be
hanged, though he did mean he should
suffer, that he got out of bed and went
to the lodgings of the high sheriff and
left a reprieve for the boy, or what
was to be considered equivalent to it,
and then, returning to his bed, spent
the rest of the night very comfortably.
When Lord Mansfield once exclaimed
to Mr.. Dunning, as he was laying down
a legal point ooh, if that be law, Mr.
Dunning, | may burn my law books p
"Better read them, my lord" was the
ready retort
In u similar manner an Irish Judge
SHOOT, his head as Sir, Curran was elabor-
ating enc Of his points to a jury. 81
see" said. Mr.. CuTan, 81 see, gentlemen,
the motion of his lordship's head; com
mon observers might imagine that it i'm
piled a difference of opinion, but they
would be mistaken 1t is merely acct
dental. Believe me, gentlemen, if you
remain here many days, you will your
selves perceive that when his lordship
shakes his head there's nothing in it ="
The noble mind may be clouded with
adversely but cannot be wholly con-
cealed for true merit shines by light
of its own, and, glimmering through the
rents and crannies Of indulgence, is per-
ceived, respected and honored by the
generous and the great.