The morning call., 1893-08-13
THEIR FIRST FEE.
Early Professional Work
of Great Lawyers.
HOKE Sr1ITH'S MAIDEN CASE.
Daniel Webster and His Retainer.
Roscoe Conkling's Big
Fees.
Correspondence of THE MORNING CALL

WASHINGTON. Aug. 3.-The death of
Justice BlatchtoId will make anO her
change in the Supreme Court, and deaths
have been more rapid here during the past
few year than in any other branch OF our
Government Chief Justice Waite died
when he seemed to be in his prime. Justice
Miller, though he had served on the bench
twenty eight years, seemed hale and hearty
just before he passed away. and no one
here seemed to think but that Justice
Bradley would last forever. His wiry
frame seemed to be made Of steel and he
was regularly in his seat year in and year
out. He was one of the hardest workers
on the bench. and he put in about twelve
hours out of every twenty-rour. 1t was
the same with Judge Miller. l don't thin k
Justice Lamar overworked himself.
He got the grip. and this. added to
his careless habits of eating and exercise.
bel,e to carry him off. He had no rules
Of work, and he sometimes put in twenty
hours at q stretch. Justice BlatchfoId
was more regular in his habits. lie looked
more like an English statesman than an
American jurlst, and he was the rsonifi-
cation of the eminently respectable gentle
man. The other Justices are extremely
healthy, and tine court as 1t Is now cOnSil-
tuted would make good hotel advertise
ment. Justice Harlan must weigh over
200 pounds. His eyes are bright and his
cheeks are rosy. Justice Gray is fat ana
rotund and his skin is as clear and fair as
that If a baby. Both Brewer and Brown
are the personiIcatiOn Of physical Cor,
and the Chief Justice. though his hair is
white and his mustache Is silvery, has eyes
full of life. aud he trots about as though he
were walk ng on rubber. None OF them
look as though they had much to worry
them. and they have forgotten their first
struggles at the bar. when. as in the case
of Chief Justice Fuller, they were glad 10
get fees OF IS aud had not yet begun to
hope for positions worth $4,000 year.
During MY chat with the Hon. HOke
Smith the other day spoke 10 him OF his
law practice and asked him il he remem-
bered the first fee he received for legal
services. He is, you know. one Of the
most famous lawyers of the South. H.
made last year. am told. just $4,000 out
of his practice, and his earnings right
along range from $4,000 to $4,000 PR
year. He laughed as put the above Ques-
tiun and replied:
for the settling of an injunction. The
case was decided in Atlanta al II o'clock
Monday and the situation was such that
the Injunction would have to be served at
IL o'clock Tuesday. The party interested
lived away off III the interior and it was
a question whether we could reach him
in time. l took the train that afternoon
for Gainesville, and the next morning at 4
O'Clock l wa. in a buggy riding off into the
mountains with my injunction. l reached
tie place at 10 80. driving my horse as fast
as he could go all the way, and succeeded
in serving the injunction in time. The fee
l got for it was S25, and it seemed to me
very good pay.
How about your first law case, Mr..
Secretary? What was it?"
1T was the defending of a negro who
had been arrested for arsOn, was the re-
ply. THE penalty was hanging, and l
took up the mans case and cleared him.
This gave me such a reputation among The
negroes that they all came to me 10 de-
fend them when they got into trouble. |
took their cases for practice. sometimes
getting small tees and sometimes none al
all. l soon got better class of business,
however. Before long l had one of the
best practices IN the South. l don't think
there is any moro pleasant work than that
of the law l like it. and shall 60 back
to 1t as soon as leave Washington"
This S25 which HOke Smith received as
his first legal fee was big amount in COM
parisOn with those of our other great
lawyers. Henry Clay's first fee amounted
to just Is shillings. and the late Justice
Lamar got TWO jugs Of handmade whisky
for his first legal services. John Sherman
had to borrow $50 to 60 to Columbus to be
admitted for practice before the Supreme
Court of Ohio. And John Fl. Mitchell of
Oregon, who now makes $40. 600 and up-
ward a year at the law, was refused credit
by a carpenter whom he asked 10 make an
office-tab BILE for him at the time be began his
law practice in Portland. Senator ingalls,
first law fee was from carpenter and he
took his paw out in trade. The carpenter
made him table and desk for trying the
suit, and ingalls, son uses this desk as a
part of his Office furniture to-day. The
late Benjamin Butler made his first real
start at the law in attaching mill wheel
for one of his clisnts in Lowell, and Leland
Stanford once told me that he made just
$1,000 the first year that he practiced law
in Wisconsin. A fire burnt down his
law office and library, aud this 1t was
that sent him West to make his fortune.
l understand that the prospects are that
ex-President Harrlson's law practice will
be more than doubled by the reputation
he has made as President, and Grover
Cleveland is said to have made fortune
during the four years he was out of office.
Nearly all the Presidents have been law
yers, but none of those of the past
have made the vast sums that our law.
yers make to-day. Thomas jefferson early
Jumped to the front of the bar OF Virginia.
anu Uc was mdhiHk TOUUU year WDen he
was married. Madison and Monroe were
good lawyers before they meddled with
politics, and Hayes had fair practice.
Andrew johnson liked nothing better than
to make speech at the bar. He studied
law while he was at the tailor's bench, aud
graduated from it to the bar. Martin Van
Buren, is said 10 have been a good lawyer
James Buchanan was making $1,000
year whom he left the law for politics, and
HarrlsOn's practice was valuable one.
1t costs something to get one of these
great statesmen to try a suit for you.
William NJ. Evarls receives about $40
apiece for each and every word in the 4OU-
word sentences which he uses in his argu-
meDis before the Supreme Curt, and SEN
ator Edmunds was published not long ago
as having an Income Of 100000 from ms
law practice. One OF the most famous
lawyers OF this country was Jew who W as
connected with the Southern Confederacy,
l refer to the late Judah p Benjamin. who
served at different times in the Cabinet
OF Jefferson Davis as Attorney General.
Secretary of State and Secretary of
War. He left this country with only $40
In his pocket at the Close of the war and
fed to England. He opened a law Office
In London and during the eighteen years
which he praclced there his fees amounted
to 1896, 900. He began his work in Lou
don by writing editorials while be was