The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1885-02-26
Lawyers Morals.

latc Dy tue press on tue suOleCb OF
needed reform in our jury system
and the bareiaced ignorance and
corruption of Jurors, 1t may also
well DC csked ir there is not some
thing radically wrong in the ethics
If the legal profession which per
mits its members with impunity TO
pick in desperate cases just such
material for jurors, to the certain
rejection of all other. AS far as our
somewhat limited observation goes,
there is no more absolute bar to a
mans being an acceptable juror
for the trial of some black hearted
criminal, than that he know some.
thing about current events of the
day and be capable Of exercising an
Intelligent opinion of his own re-
garding any given state Of facts.
Lawyers for the defense, when they
HAYES guilty client, won't;allow any
such material on the jury, il they
can help it, and generalIy.the State
can't get it, whilst society gener-
allv is the sufferer.
These reflections have been sug
gested partly by the subjoined arti
Gle from the Century Magazine
enumerating the elements to be
found in the truly professional law
yer. Real, and honor and trust
only the lawyers of your acquint-
ancc who come up to the Century's
standard /:
Il. A lawyer oughtto be gentle
man. His function as an attorney
gives him no dispensation to diore-
gard the ordinary principles of de-
cency and honor. He has no right
to SANDER his neighbor even if his
neighhor be defendant in o case
which he appeals for the plaintiff.
He has no right to bully or browbeat
q witness in a cross examination, or
artfully TO entrap that Witness into
giving false testimony. Whatever
the privilege Of the court may be,
the lawyer who is guilty of such
practice in court is no gentleman
ont Of court.
2. A lawyer ought not to lie.
He may defend criminal when he
knows he is guilty, but he may not
say to the jury that he believes that
criminal TO be innocent. He may
not in any way Intentionally convey
to the jury the impression that he
believes the man to be innocent.
He may not, in his plea, pervert or
| distorL the evidence so as to weaken
the force or conceal the meaning Of
it. He is sworn officer of the
court, and his oath should bind him
TO the sirictest veracity. 1t would
he quiXotic to expect him to assist
his adversary, but his obligation to
speak the truth outranks every obi
CATION that he owes TO his client J.
Is notorious that some lawyers who
would think it scandalous 10 tell a
falsehood out of court, in any bust
ness transaction. lie shamefnlly in
court in behalf of their clients, and
seem to think it part of their profcs-
sional duty. That bar Of justice,
before which, by their obligation
they are bound to the most stringent
truthfulness, is the very place where
they seem to consider themselves alb
solved from the common law of YER
racity. So long as the legal mind is
infected with this deadly heresy, We
need not wonder that our courts of
justice often become the instruments
of unrightcousness.
g. A lawyer ought not to sell
his services for the promotion Of in
justice and knavery. Swindlers of
all types are aided by lawyers i'll
their dcpredations upon society.
The mock broker who operates in
Wall street, and strips green country
SPECTATORS Of their hard earned
gains by the most nefarious roguery,
always has an able lawyer as his &C
complete. A gentleman by whose
agency a nest Of these rascals was
lately broken up says 'The great
difficulty in stopping s~indIers OF
this class is that the rascals make
enough money to employ the best le
gal advice, and are, moreover, care
tul to do nothing which will render
them liable to arrest This is the
testimony Of lawyer, Mr.. Ralph
Oakly, OF New York. The best OF
legal advice can be had, then, in
New York city for such purposes
1t would be more difficult to believe
this If its truth were not 80 often
illustrated in the stupcndous frauds
and piracies Of great corporations, all
of which are carefully engineered by
eminent lawyers. Our modern 'buc-
caneers'-our brave railroad wreck
ers--are in constant consultation
with distinguished lawyers. They
undeniably have the best of legal
advice in planning aad executing
their bold iniquities.