Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-12-20
the alleged deeds were executed was manufact-
ured to bear the marks of age in every psrticu-
I Lar


Hon. Henry May, previous to the trial Of DR..
Gardiner, in which he displayed the great abil-
ity which has left its trace in the history Of the
courts of Washington and which made an in
delible impress on the Congress in which he
served, had been disbarred by the court over
which Judges Dunlop and Morsen presided.
think Judge Cranch had retired from the bench
some time previous. but he was not present
when what relate occurred. Henry May had
been one of the most successful prac titioners at
the District bar and on more than one occasion
the verdicts he had secured had been set aside
by the judges of the District courts. A verdict
he had inst gained was set aside for some rea-
son. and he was chatting under what he regarded
the injustice done him. when a case in which he
was counsel was called on the docket and he
was summoned by the bailif from the corridor
or vestibule he was pacing up and down like q
Gagged lion. He entered the court, the case was
called and Judge Dunlap asked if he was ready
to proceed with the case, when Mr.. May re-
piled: 1T would be a mockery Of justice for
me to proceed with any case before such q
court" and took his seat
The judges were shocked at this reply, and
Mr.. May remained holding his hat in his hand
as il expecting some reproof. Judge Dunlap,
recovering from his surprise. said:s viii Mr.
May repeat what he has just said, that the clerk
may make it a matter Of record for the con-
sideration Of the court"
THE WORDS TAKEN DOWN.
MI. hay Ioce anu Tepc1teo cNcu mOrc pit-
terly and, if possible, more emphaticaily what
he had said, and Mr.. Smith wrote it down and
handed it to the judges.
They consulted together for some time, Mr.
May remaining seated, when Judge Morsell
rose and said: 1.-THE court has considered the
language used by Mr.. May, and it is my painful
duty TO announce that your name is ordered to
be stricken from the roll of lawyers entitled to
plead before this court, and you will not be
allowed to appear before it again."
A silence of a few minutes ensued, when
Henry May rose and in his most eloquent man.
ner said, as he waved his hand in q seemingly
cOntemptuous manner using the words of Cat
aline: 'Banishment, Punishment, what is ban
isbment save that 1 am spared daily contact
with the things 1 loathe." He removed soon
after to Baltimore and at the next election was
sent to Congress and there he began a crusade
against the court of that period. which resulted
In Its being abolished or recognized.
THE REMARKABLE MAY FAMILY.
What a remarkable family the May family
was. 1 remember DR.. Frederick May, the
father of Henry MAY, Charley May. Dr. JOHN
May. They were the handsomest family ever
saw. and all of them attained distinctio in the
careers they entered. Henry May. as u great
lawyer, whose power before a jury was almost
unequaled. Charley May, the hero of the
Mexican war, is enrolled among the immortals.
DIR. John F. May, who is. think, the sole sur
vivor of the boys, is one Of the most eminent
surgeons. William May of the navy died young,
but not until he had done service for his coun-
try. George May was a merchant at New Or
leans and Julian died in the army. These are
Washingtonians of which we may well be proud
The fight made against the aged judges was
in no way an attack on their honor or ability.
but they were deemed too DID, and the mode Of
procedure was thought to be too slow. Judge
fhruston was one of the early Judges who &C.
iaH he hane vrith IuI0 EJo
very irritable as he grew older and had, it was
said. n grudge against Judge Morsell. and one
day when some case was submitted Judge MOrsell
asked that the decision be postponed, as he de-
sired to be enlightened on it. Judge Thruston
rose, and grabbing big hickory cane he always
carried, said, You enlightened why, that will
take till dooIasday. I'm goingr'
HENDERSON, THE FoRGER.
Another cause celebre which find is entirely
forgotten, but which at the time created SEN
sation throughout the whole country, was that
of Henderson for forgery of the early issue Of
treasury notes. 1t was the first ISSUE think
and the discovery of the forgery of them shook
the financial world. for they were supposed to
be invuinerabie. Henderson came here some
where about 81 or '3S. / was a youth, but q
precOcious one, and HendersOn's notice of me
was fiatteling He was reared here as coming
from Boston. if l remember. and gave every
indication OF being a man of wealth. The race
and there Henderson created sensation by his
liberal betting. He fourished here for some
months, but there we're some Of our elder citi-
zens who shook their heads and said they didn't
understand where all the money came from
Henderson distributed SO literally. Something
was wrong. they said, and one day their sur
misses were confirmed by the arrest of Hender-
son. who was an accomplished engraver and the
head Of the gang who had circulated
large amount of these forged notes. He
term of imprisonment-so long he was there
when, in 1S4l. Col Jack Dade assumed the con-
troll of the gentlemen" as he addressed them.
Ny dear old friend. Maj. Donoho, was one of
the inspectors. and used to visit the institu-
ton occasionally to partake of the hospitalities
of Col. Dade. who soon discovered there were
good cooks to he found among these gentle
men, and on one occasion saw Henderson,
old ard decrepid, and suppose dead long ago.
This forgery became factor in the political
opposition TO the financial policy of the day,
and the name of Henderson, the daring forger,
rung through the country.
CAPT. Z. b. CALDWELL.
received letter from San francisco a few
days ago calling my attention to one Of WASH
ington's old citizens whose name will be re-
membered by some of the few who remain
and find pleasure in the columns of The STAR.
This lady was the granddaughter Of Capt. Elias
r. Caldwell, who commanded a troop in the war
Of 1ol2-'l4. and was ordered by the Secretary
of War (Monroe) to a certain point in lower
Maryland to prevent the British troops from
crossing the Potomac. The granddaughter Of
Capt. Caldwell, Miss Wright of Indiana avenue
preserves this order and also the desk Of Capt
Caldwell. which bears the marks of the British
bayonets. Capt. Caldwell lived at that time in
the house SO long occupied by Robert Beale,
esq, sergeant-at-arms of the Senate. The law
library OF Capt. Caldwell was destroyed in the
Supreme Court. which was burned by the
British. The circulation of The STAR seems to
be universal. get letters from one extreme Of
the country to the other. Today from Florida
tomorrow from an interior town in Pennsylva-
nia. the next day from the Pacific coast and
now comes one from and old friend, resident in
London, all acknowledging the pleasure they
find In The EVENING STAR.
SIR JOHN PULEsroN.
Sir John Puleston. from whom my letter
comes, is remembered here most agreeably by
those who met him while acting as state agent
of Pennsylvania through the four years Of the
war. At It's close he became q member of the
banking firm of Jay Cooke, Mccullough Il Co.
in London, and was returned to the house Of
parliament from district in Wales. He is a
banker in London and has been knighted by
the queen for some services rendered the Brit
ish governments. Sir John Puleston was one of
a very brilliant set of men who at that period
rendered thfs city so much more attractive
than the adjacent encampments which sur
rounded il, and for the time the ARMY of the