The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1889-06-28

Contest Between These Two Legal Gil
ants in New York City.
Especial Cor to STATE CHRoNICLE.1
New YORK, N. Y, June 81, 1899 See
ing by the morning papers that Col In
gersoll and Daniel Dougherty would be
pitted against each other to day in case
before the jury, hastened down town to
witness the contest between these two legal
giants Their reputation is national and
even International most emphati
cally are on top in the profession, and it
would be interesting to me to watch them
manage case, thought. And so thought
a good many others, found when reach
ed the court room, for it was so crowded,
the stern guardian at the door refused to
admit another man. SO thought | would
take counsel and circumvent him, and did.
fastening down to number 10 Wall street,
l implore the firm of Shepherd & Osborne
to help me make an entrance, and like a
loyal tar heel Mr.. James Osborne kindly
| went with me, interviewed the door keeper
and told him | was a lawyer from North
Carolina now in New York, and in mo-
ment or two l was seated in nice armed
chair within the rail- By the way it would
do you good to 60 up in that big AstOr
building on Wall street and peep into the
handsome law offices of Messrs Shepherd
4 Osborne with their three or four clerks
at work, and see how a North Carolina
boy can climb in five years time by pluck
and brains, such as our friend James Os-
borne has put into his work.
In few minutes after | got a seat, the
case in testimony was closed and the giants
went to the jury, the judge allowing each
one an hour. The suit was Fitch VS.. Fitch.
Mr.. Charles s. Fitch, superintendent of
DR.. Heber Newton's Sunday School, was
sueing his beautiful young wife, Mrs
Maude, for an absolute divorce, charging
| adultery and naming Mr. Walter B. Peet,
as respondent Oh, this Internal divorce
business. The pathos, the tragedy of 1t,
And it grows worse from year TO year. .
Col. Ingersoll represented the defendant,
Mrs. Fitch, who was arrayed in deep
mourning for the youngest of the three
children of the unhappy marriage. sym
pathy and sentiment were on his side and
he made the most of it. He made a fine
speech. He showed that he was a master
of the secrets of human nature, and there
fore prince of jury lawyers. He went
for verdict for all he was worth, and
wasn't very scrupulous about the means
he used to get it, for he lugged in the fact
| that this suit was started because another
suit was pending of Mrs. Fitch against her
husband for divorce on the ground of
gross immortality. The Judge stopped him
and ruled that remark out, but it had al
ready accomplished his purpose the jury
had heard 1t and that was all be wanted.
He apologized and proceeded. His man
ner was graceful and natural He took
the jury under his wing and talked to them
in confidential, companionabie way. He
made them laugh. He made them cry
And then he INDUCED in what seemed to
me dangerous piece of audacity. He
told them that the only reason he spoke
at all was, not that he thought a sensible
jury would hesitate minute in retaining
verdict in favor of his client, but he was
eSerting himself to meet the mind of that
imaginary TWELFTH man, who for some
utterly unaccountable ard outlandish
crotchet would hang the rest. 1t seemed
to me that was a dangerous piece Of wit,
for if there was a man on that jury who
should IN the first discussion fail to aglee
with his colleagues-the memory of that
remark would certainly stimulate rather
than soften his stubbornness. He handled
the witnesses on the opposite side with
uugloved hands and boldly charged per
jury in the highest degree. He pounced
on Mr. Fitcn and made the fur fly. He
held him up to the scorn and contempt of
all who heard. He wound up his TRADE
by saying, Yes, gentlemen, when nature
built that man it was dead waste of raw
malerial-it was dirt thrown away he
could have used it to better advantage
by covering the grave of some other vii
lain with IL. He used all the arts Of the
demagogue, revelled in the realms OF bun
combe, used with cOnsummate art all the
tricks of his trade He is a hard man to
handle before a jury He was bold, and
aggressive, and succeeded in throwing the
plaintiff on the defensive. In his sarcasm,
wit and pathoS he reminded me much of
Frank Osborne, of North Carolina, though
| think he failed to show the good judg
ment Osborne always displays in his
management of the jury and concessions
to the other side. And that reminds me
to say what plenty of lawyers in North
Carolina already know, and that is that
Frank Osborne is one Of the finest if not
the finest jury lawyer in North Carolina
and you might add several other States
besides.
Ingersol is bolder and more brilliant
than Osborne but he lacks one essential
thing-the confidence of the people in his
fairness. 1t struck me the jury would be
inclined to knock off a little from every
thing he said because he rode too high a
horse sometimes and gave the impression
of exaggeration. And still it was the ex
aggeration Of an impulsive nature, open
| handed, frank and insintating and the
only way juror would escape would be
| to say to himself, "Well now, Bob, Old
boy, that's all right, but arn't you just a
little too rash?' Take it all in all | was
| not disappointed in what l had heard of
| Ingersoll as lawyer-he is a good one l
| think he knows how to make the most of
! a weak cause-and if | had kill, d man
| and was in court, I'd want him on my
| side sure.
At the close of Ingersolrs speech-the
crowd wiped their eyes and went TO lunch
| At two O'Clock we reassembled to hear
Daniel Dougherty, the silver tongued, the
| great Philadelphia star, that twinkles now
IN the Metropolis.
| am sorry to say Daniel flickered He
did not rise to the occasion. He showed
he was hacked from the beginning He
started out on the defensive and kept it.
He had had an hour in which to master
the whole case and jostle his thoughts into
a compact argument. But his argument
was loose and disjointed He struggled
and perspired and glanced at the clock
every few minutes to see how much of
! his Time had gone. 1t struck me that
Daniel is a much ovcrrated man. He was
stilted and oratorcal in his manner, and
showed all the time that he was conscious
| he was on dress parade and making a
| speech. His voice is fine, his manner beau
| tiful-but he did not GET THERE-he some
how failed to get next to you. He ignored