Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1885-01-21
From our Regular Correspondent,
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Washington, ID. c., Jan. II, 81

Washington, d. c., Jan. II, 'S5.
Not the least of the beneficial results
to grow out of change in the admin
istration, is that Of partial return to
the Republican simplicity of a bygone
and better gre In other words, | be-
lieve that snobbery is to be snubbed by
Mr.. Cleveland, and the excessive pru-
dishness that Of late years has obtained
at the White House and Washington
society generally, is to be trowned upon
and discountenanced 1t may take a
good deal Of iirmness and no inconsid-
cradle amount of fortitude to with
stand the fulsome Establishments of this
Capitol life, but from what l know of
Mr.. Cleveland, and of those who are
10 compose This immediate household,
can assure the people Of the United
States that there will be a most Who'll
some change for the better. Society
here is unlike any other part of the
country or the world, from the fact
that official station is the open sesame
to the highest ranks, even though it be
accompanied by the coarscst manners
or absolute bufioonery. A bureau Off
Ger with n salary of $4,000 year,
with wife who has been habituated
to the wash. tub every Monday since
her wcdding-day, is Just as much
swollen up with aristocratic pride as
the premier of the Cabinet, and his de-
mands upon society ten times more ex-
acting. Even Hayes, who occupied
the White House during Mr.. Tilden's
term, caused something Of reform in
the social manners there, and cstab-
lished sort of plane Of decency that
might well be cited for example. 1t
was the one redeeming feature of the
Hayes dynasty.
The Chief Justice Of our Supreme
Court gets ten thousand five hundred
dollars per year, while the Associate
Justice receives ten thousand dollars.
The five hundred dollars addition is
not because of the additional dignity
that attaches to the position, but be-
cause the Chief Justice really does
more work than any of his brethren.
For instance, all the motions that are
made in court on motion day Mon
day. have to be considered and deter
mined upon by the Chief Justice alone,
besides which he is expected to bear
his full share of the other work Of the
court.
In the matter Of the writing and de.
livery Of the opinions of the court there
is as much variance in the manner of
these nine Judges as one could possibly
conceive. While Stanley Matthews
and Harlan are verbose, and exhaust
both the law and the patience of the
court in the reading their opinions,
Gray, Blatchford, Bradley and Miller,
arrive directly at the point and strike
the marrow of the issues involved
without circumlocution or other judicial
travail. Justice Gray particularly,
must be cited as an exception to the
rule of those Judges who read their
opinions from manuscript, because, al
though his opinions are written, they
are delivered of-kand, in an easy con-
versational style that gently lets down
the litigants on both sides. Justice
Field cannot be said to be much of d
jurlst, although he acquired something
of a reputation as railroad lawyer.
In fact frst-cass lawyer will not go
on the bench, when his own practice is
worth anywhere from two to five times
the salary paid to a Supreme Court
Judge. At the time that Mr.. Conk-
ling was offered the Chief Justiceship
by President Grant, he peremptorily
refused and told the President that he
had at that moment case in which
the retainer was larger than the salary
of the Judge for whole year. P.
The Chicago Herald seems to have
discovered the meanest man on earth |