The Durham daily globe. (Durham, N.C.) 1889-1894, 1894-03-15
HIS MAIDEN CASE,

The first year after my admission"
saId the judge, 81 was elected states at
torney. My maiden ease was one of petit
larceny. Bill DaWkes, one of those trifing.
good sort of fellows-so called because
good for nothing-had been found in re
cent possession of a carcass of mutton.
which the owner had left hanging out
over night, and which was non est-that
Is to say, turned up missing'-in the NOM
ing.
81 drafted the Indictment with great
care, charging, with painful particulari-
ty, that one William Dawkes, N
not having the fear, etc, but moved and
seduced by a certain parsonage whom it
was common to include in every indict-
ment as an accessory before the fact OF
etc, at etc, one carcass of mutton of the
value, etc, Of the goods, chattels and
personal property of one PeIatiah Potts,
out of the possession and against the will
Of the said Pelatiah, feloniOusly and with
force OF arms, did steal, take and carry
away.
"'What's the matter?' I asked sharply,
when my friend Bob {. burst out laugh
ing on hearing me read over this, my first
professional production.
"'It's the best joke of the season. said
Bob.
"'What is?"
"'Why, that pun-caIling a sheep thief
a yeOman.'
My office was q scene of confusion at
the end Of five minutes. Bob's head had
gone through the glass door Of my book
case, two of my three chairs lay with bro
ken legs, and Bob and / had a pair of
black eyes between us. 1t was more than
a month before either spoke to the other.
"But I'm wandering from the point. In
due time the prisoner was brought up for
trial. Old POLLOK appeared for the de-
Tense.
cold p. was a character. The only law
bOOk he had ever read was Swans Urea
tise For Justices of the Peace but in
that and the Scriptures he was powerful.
He had a way of quoting and applying the
latter, which, in a religious community,
made it difficult to oppose him without in
curing q suspicion Of orthodoxy. His
forte lay in carrying the jury, whom he
generally succeeded in convincing that he
and they were on one side, and his adver-
sary on the other. His style of grammar
was original
81 had carefully written out my open
ing, and when | read it over to Nelly
Wynue, to whom was paying attention
at that time, she said it was real nice,
which | knew was feminine for bully, an
eucomiun | felt not q little proud Of.
'N hen the case came on, | spoke my
piece without a blunder. | cited my au-
thority to prove that he in whose posses
sion stolen property is found soon after
the theft is in law presumed to be the
thief. | was prepared to prove, I said, that
the property in question had disappeared
at the dead hour OF night, when all hon
est people were in their beds, and had been
found at early dawn in the smOkehouse Of
DaWkes, the defendant.
Il put my witness on the stand, aEu
proved the ownership, value and identity
of the property, it's mysterious disappear
ance and subsequent temperance in the
constructive possession of the prisoner
and rested.
"OId Pollok sat in solemn silence, his
eyes closed and his red bandanna over
his head. He asked no questions and call
ed no witnesses. | was disappointed at the
old fellows giving in so easily. 1t would
take away half the glory of the triumph.
But was reckoning without my host.
"Old POLLOK slowly got up on his legs
and removed his handanna, and taking up
the Bible on which the clerk had sworn the
witnesses began:
81 am griev2d, my brethering'-he a,
ways called the jury his bretheriHg-l
al'l TiIe!T "ilu n"re 4II''NC' ~ near SuCh
Iie"'nenI7n "oc'!I'TS Il a CpI!7'l"'' QIi
Ho"Se as we W jest oe7' l'9'S"'i
ST1 '"o S"''et N'1"iiie l "o'" II III n""u'
why 9o"' a. Ht II'I"'" y y W"
ne79'S Ie' every '""',St po V9I""l'S'IG''
NV NY "I0IlSi ny Ie| i1e > N""1' "
"i,HeN0tNI n4' one TIll'27 seet 10Y i
ehI hovN Lhi9 SneGPf EcHo "H9"1I7' Nary
one. My deloOded young brother has read
PFoiailo auIhofS |" Sho" ch8V IH"lh u
g"ooS or 'he wrong mans premises ~
PROOF o. MS ste8IIN EN- HS7 pteS"HnP
ZION u l""' ne says " q Sio"U plSCoo
presumption IL IS NY pre'HeilHS' No"'
III 'n'N S"ihe s7Cteu N"ITIIe We Law nol
'",eo d case III LH,-'H"' o. Il DenJ"
MN "nlch 20" al heaEn ABOUT Sii'er
cup ""'" " HUIlN'e" 'iIlI9 ~ Hl"In DIS
yvov nT in Ron iaD,in,s sn,okahOusa whar
BENJAMIN m~oughtn't "a been for a week.
but chucked into the mouth Of the very
sack he was ridin onto. BENJAMIN was