The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1891-03-05
TIE OLD LAWYERS.
They Were Advocates, not Attorneys--They
Put Their Rearts into Their Clients
Causes, Making Them
Their Own.

his seniors, especially II lney oe SleaI
men and good men. 1t is the most
efectual and delightful education that
he can get. Books are a good thing,
but it is better to be in daily commun-
ion with men who have read and
studied the books, and sifted from them
all the good that is in them. was
Illuminating about the notable men OF
the olden time-the men to whom l.
looked up to with love and admiration.
They are all gone, but they left their
impress upon the age in which they
lived and upon me. The bad is mingled
with the good in everything, and it was
sad to me to see these great men pass
away. One by one they fell before the
scythe ofthsreaper, and am left alone.
Some Of my youthful companions are
left me, but the men I reverenced are
gone. How swiftly and surely they
go. I was thinking about the great
lawyers Of the Western circuit. About
Howell Cobb and his brother Tom, and
the two Doughertys, and Hope Hull,
and Junius Hilyer, and Basil II. Over
by, ard Judge Jackson, and Joseph
Henry Lumpkin, and Judge Hrtchins,
and Cincinnatus Peoples. What a
glorious galaxy Of learned and brilliant
men-honorable men-men who fought
fair fight, and scorned the tricks Of
the lawyers trade. I have often Won
dered at the measure Of contempt they
would have felt for lawyer who would
have stolen q paper, or hid set Of
interrogatories, or bribed witness or
juror. or perured himself to gain his
case. The influence of a good man
does not die with him-whether he be
a lawyer or doctor, or a preacher, or
a merchant, or farmer or mechanic,
it reaches and affects the rising genera
tion, and permeates through society,
and leaves its impress upon the COM
muuity in which be lives. Long time
ago I heard q Rome merchant say
Communities have character just like
individuals. Ny most reliable trade is
from the Alpine region in Chattanooga
County. It is honorable with that peo-
pie to pay theirdebts-to perform their
promises. If their crop fails and they
can't do it, they will settle fairly and
pay the next year, and don't need
any mortgage. Their word is their
bond. But here is another county not
far away where it is considered smart
TO trick merchant out of his money.
They hide behind trusts and home
steads and force you to sue and their
lawyers are as mean and tricky as they
are, and it has got to be so that even
good, honest man from that county can
hardly get credit in Rome"
Now all this comes from contamina-
ton. 1t isjust like any other immoral
influence. I know men who moved
away from a town because the leading
citizens were immoral. They were not
true to their marriage VOWS, and the
men were afraid to raise their children
there. If citizens immoral influence
was confined to his immediate family
it would not matter so much, but it
does not stop there. Bad conduct, bad
habits, bad principles are catching, just
like contagious diseases. The tricks of
one tradesman will be made an excuse
for his nabor to use the same methods.
The villainy Of one artful lawyer will
provoke another to meet trick with
trick to gain his case. The responsibility
Of the lawyers to the community is
very great-greater even than that Of
the preachers, for there are more of
them. have not been in the Western
circuit since the wal, but the presiding
judge told me not long ago that,
although the bar Was not as gifted and
brainy as that OF half century ago
yet it had we'll maintained its high
professional honor and integrity. 1t
does not take the brain work now to
practice law that it did half a century
ago, when the supreme court was in its
infancy and there were no seventy
volumes of precedents established. 1t
took more brain work to establish them
than it does now to keep up with them.
recall with rever-failing pleasure the
great arguments of those great men.
How were we charmed with their
learning, their pathos, their humor,
and could hardly blame jury for
giving their verdict in favor of the
last great speech that vas made. Hope
Hull was the greatest lawyer. The
Doughertys were great every way, but
as an advocate in q case where there
was wife or widow or some orphan
children, don't think that Basil H.
OVERLY had an equal. 1recall the sweet
melody OF his voice as he drew nearer
and nearer to the jury and with teary
eyes and quivering lips he almost
whispered his tender pleadings in their
ears.
There is one great advocate still left
US in this Cherokee egion-Augustus
R. Wright is very much like OVERLY in
his peculiar gifts Too emotional to
ever be great lawyer, he wa. thereby
the greater advocate. Not long ago I
looked at him and pordered. There be
sat in the courtroom, bis battle ground
for forty years-the fed of his many
Observation-Disclosures OF mind over human
passions-his eyes still pleasing and
penetrating in their glance, his clear
cut features, his abundant hair falling
gracefully and half concealing an III