Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-09-18

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Justice Brown, United States Supreme
Court.
Mr.. Justice Henry B. Brown of the Su-
preme Court of the United States spoke
eloquently this afternoon at the Capitol
centennial celebration for the judiciary.
He said:
This grand and beautiful building whose
centennial anniversary we are met to cele-
brate. was designed primarily as the off,
cial abode of the Congress Of the United
States. but from it's completion to the pres
ent day it has also been the seat of its
highest court. The judiciary act Of 1889 re-
quired the sessions Of the Supreme Court
to be held at the seat Of government which
was then the city Of New York. and at the
Exchange in that city in February, 1880,
the court was organized and the judges.
with Chief Justice John Jay at their head,
were sworn and qualified according to law.
Nothing appears to have been done. how
evr, beyond the appointment Of subordinate
officers and the entertainment Of the court
at an elaborate banquet IA feature relig-
iously commemorated at it's centennial In
1890. until the February term of 1871, when
the court met in the south chamber OF the
city hall, in the city of Philadelphia, to
which place the seat Of government had
been removed, and continued its sessions
there until 1901. when 1t was finally trans
ferred to Washington.
Its sessions in Philadelphia would not have
been memorable but for the great case OF
Chisholm against the state Of Georgia, in
which the majority Of the court held that
an action would lie by an individual against
marked the beginning of a conflict between
the federal government and the states
which agitated the court for the next sew
enty years. and still occasionally engages
tfDv To tAv,
| toned as it is to the prompt and cheerful
acquiescence Of the public In its decisions.
the excitement created by this case can
scarcely be realized. The state Of Georgia
not only denied its obligation to appear
protested against the Jurisdiction of the
court and declined even to submit an ar
gument In its own behalf. but refused to
obey the judgment, and denounced the PEN
atty Of death against any one who should
presume to execute final process within its
jurisdiction. The popular, prejudice against
the decision finally eliminated in a consti-
tutional amendment, which practically null
lifted the Judgment of the court and in
hibited private actions against state.
Plain as this provision seems to be. this
amendment. so far from putting at rest
the stability of a state has been pregnant
with litigation to the present day.
Chief Justice Marshall.
The vigorous life Of the Supreme Court
may be said to have begun with the ap-
pointhent Of John Marshall as chief justice
and the cotemporaneous transfer of its SEES
sions to room in the basement Of this
Capitol beneath the chamber Of the Senate
The court met here IN August. 1901. and for
the next sixty years. the most important in
the history Of the court. this vaulted and
gloomy crypt continued to be its home. In
this apartment were pronounced the great
opinions which established the fame Of
Marshal as the expounder Of the Constitu-
ton and the foremost jurist Of the country.
The constitution had been adopted by the
vote Of the thirteen states Of the Union,
but its construction was work scarcely
less important than its original creation.
With large liberty Of choice. guided by no
presidents and generally unhampered by
his colleagues upon the bench, the great
chief justice, determining what the law was
by what he thought 1t ought to be. evolved
from his own experience Of the defects of
the articles Of confederation and from an
innate consciousness Of what the country
required a theory Of construction which
time has INDICATED and the popular senti-
ment Of succeeding generations has ap
proved: In the case of Marbury VS.. Madi-
son. which arose at his very first term, he
declared the judicial power to extend to the
annulment Of an act of Congress in con-
fiict with the Constitution, a doctrine pecu-
liar to this country, but SO commencing It.
self to the common sense Of justice as to
have been Incorporated in the jurispru-
dence Of every state in the Union. The
lack Of this check upon the action Of the
legislature has wrecked the constitution of
many a foreign state. and 1t Is safe to say
that our own would not have long sur
vived a contrary decision. Had Marshall
rendered no other service to the country.
this Of itself would have been sufficient to
entitle him to its gratitude.
The fame Of Marshall rests upon less than
thirty of his opinions. He rarely cited an
authority, but the reasons he gave were SO
cogent that no amount Of authority would
have strengthened them. While his opin-
ions lack the exhaustive research Of JUS
tice Story's' they surpass them in vigorous
lorxfo tic H1S1
compendium of all prior adjudications upon
the subject. His associates upon the bench
were worthy compeers OF such a man. Be-
side him sat Bushrod Washington a favor
lite nephew OF the general; man Of small
and emaciated frame. but a laborious stu
dent sound in judgment, clear in state
ment and learned in discussion" federal
list of the Marshall type and a Judge fear
less, dignified and enlightened" whose opin-
ions have always commanded the respect
Of the profession. Here also sat William
Paterson, who had been a Senator from
New Jersey and one of the authors Of the
famous judiciary act Of 17S9. Here, too, was
Story. who has been called the Walter
Scott of the common law, the foremost
passion for research halted not at the con-
fines Of the law of England and America,
| but embraced all that was accessible in the
ancient and modern Jurisprudence Of con-
| tinental European author whose works
| were as well known and as much respect
ed In Westminster Hall as In the court
\ rooms OF his native country. While his
| fame as a writer has eclipsed to a certain
| extent his labors as judge, his opinion
! upon circuit in the case Of De Lovio v. Bolt
| is unsurpassed in learning and research,
and may be justly said to have laid the
| foundation of our admiralty jurispru-
| dence.
| The BAR.
| The bar was not less illustrious than the
| bench. At it's head was Edmund Randolph,
first Attorney General Of the United States,
| whose fearless conduct Of the Chisholm case
against the state Of Georgia, unpopular as
| 1t was, ELECTED even the admiration of his
| enemies; William Pinkney, the most emf
nent lawyer of his age. who united profun-
dity of thought and brilliancy OF expression
| to an extent never eQualed, except possibly
| by Rufus Choate; William Writ, the most
persuasive orator of the bar, who argued
against his native state the power of Con-
gress to incorporate bank; Daniel Web
ster, then in the fullness Of his intellectual
.vigor, pleading in voice choked with emo
i ton for the life of his alma mater, and,
| later, defending the Christian religion
against the stigma cast upon 1t in the will
of Stephen Girard; Dexter Of Massachusetts,
Hoffman, Ogden and Emmett of New York.
| 1ngersoll, Sargent and Binney of Pennsyl-
vania, Martin and Harper Of Maryland and
| a of others sea rcely less nOtab bile W no