The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-08-28
GOSSIP OF NEW YORK.
Promoting Enterprises the Most
Profitable WORK for Lawyers.
A GLANCE At PITTssURG PHIL.

y
A GLANCE At PITTsBuRG PHIL.
What They DO At CkmpaiEn He.dquar-
ters-Both Parties Well Fixed
for Money.
=
NEW York, Aug. 32-[special Core
spondence. lon no ssbject is the habit of
exaggeration more cor9 mon than in regard
to lawyers fees. The Income of the lead
ing advocates of New s ork city from their
law business, referred 20, is nearly always
overestimated IN newspaper articles. As
a matter Of fact, it is :mpracticable to dis
sociate the income WHICH firm of we'll
established lawyers in New York makes
by its investments aisl business connec-
tons from the aggregase of its yearly fees,
because the investments and outside in-
come are directly the result Of the firms
professional labors. 4 very considerable
degree of professional etiquette figures to
a great extent in the Leading minds of the
lawyers of the East. ,sheir hahitual reti-
cence about the affairs Of their clients,
which is not only proper and honorable,
but is directly part q the contract they
make with their clients, operates in regard
to their own affairs as well. The fact that
they consider advertising unprofessional
increases their unwilsingness to give out
to the public the details of their pro-
fessional income. Indsed, it is doubtful If
the aggregate of the fees received by any
great lawyer is anything like the same in
any two consecutive years, and / know as
a matter of fact that firm of my ac-
quaintance which mads ninety odd thous-
and dollars in fees LIST year has so far
in 1892 not received more than $40, 900, and
two-thirds of the year save elapsed.
Thoroughly weil-informed men of this
bar say, after due consideration of the SUBJ
ject, that Evarts. Southmayd & Choate,
Butler, Stillman & Hubbard, and the Cou-
dert Bros. make the largest incomes in
New York in fees. Firms which make q
speciality of promoting great enterprises re-
ceive much greater surss in the course OF a
year than the aggregate of the fees Of the
three firms l have naIsed, but this aggre-
gate is very largely inade up of income
from Investment, casu5l interests taken in
speculative enterprises of their clients
and bonuses from greet corporations for
the successful negotiation Of loans, or the
closing of great CONTRACTS. l understand
that the firm of Hoadls, Johnson & Lau-
terbach make profit IN the course of
year sometimes of 500, 900 in this way.
Judge George Hoadlys the head of the
firm, for some years onss of the leaders of
the bar of Cincinnati has long been known
as a constitutional lawyer, man of deep
legal learning, untirins energy and wide
reading. Edgar NJ. Josinson is familiar
figure at Long Bransh and Saratoga,
where he has often JUDGED horses during
the races.
ed" Lauterbach, as 5,e is known about
town, the junior Of the8iirm, is the most
interchangeable promoter and investor, and
is up to the ears in more different enter.
prises than any lawyer hear of at the
New York bar. Indeed, there seems to be
no earthly reason why = lawyer who con.
summaries successful commercial opera
tons for his clients soould not be per-
mitted to benefit dsrectly-always, of
course. with the cliens's knowledge and
consent-by the information thus &C.
quired.
l saw two well-known lawyers, who have
within recent years refsoved their offices
to New York. at lunch the other day at
the Broad street Delmosiico's.
One of them was CGsonel James, who
got very large Indignant against Ferdi-
nand Wards firm sevesal weeks ago for
moneys he had inyesS.d there when he
first came to the city. sIis companion at
table was Benjamin Paterson, formerly of
Syracuse, now one Of Che most successful
interesting example of t:,e different special
ties in which New York lawyers engage,
the conversation between these two is
worth reproduction in some of its features.
Colonel James specially is the trial of
cases in court; in ailuson to this and in
answer to a question ftom his friend he
said that there were orsy four days last
year during the entre term of the
New York courts OF which he had
not tried cases. ar. Patterson's
specially Is. perhaps, the trial
OF damage suits, and tSle ingenuity with
which he presents the GAINS of his clients
against the common caeriers of this vicin-
ity, who are becoming yearly more arbi-
trary in their conduct coward citizens, is
the subject of a number of very entertain
ing anecdotes.
Another lawyer of ms acquaintance re-
ceives S25 an hour FROM the elevated cor
porations for every hour devoted by him
to the consideration q cases involving
their interests. Whether his time be
occupied by him in this.way at his house,
while he Is lying awake=at night, or at his
meals, it figures in his Is lis for services. at
these rates, and Is uniftzmly paid without
a murmur.
doubt if my legal friand, Colonel Inger-
soil, will make any spec hes on the stump
this year. He made onEy one. believe. in
the last presidential campaign. and the
uncertainty as to what position his friend,
Judge Gresham, will take in the canvass
makes Colonel Ingersoil's appearance
even more problematicas. 1t is genuine
pleasure to meet Ingers9ll, whether on the
street, in his law office, IN court, or at his
home. He is never In a1urry. apparently,
and has warm, magnetic smile for all his
friends everywhere. He does not make
many arguments in cou9t nowadays, ap.
pearing only i'll some specially interesting
case, which appeals to las heart as well as
TO his intellect. He receives very large
fees, both as counsel ana advocate. The
last time heard him irc court he said TO
the jury, pausing int the midst of deep
argument: by the WY, that reminds
me of story; but, perhaps, had better
postpone the telling of. that until after
court" Now he laughed heartily at his
story, even though he he'd to laugh alone,
calmly then continuing4he thread of his
argument. One of the j.sry met him on
the street some days aSerwardS and in
sisted on sharing in the saugh, When the
Juryman told me | shared IN it too.