Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1897-07-02

DtlOre you start lndl Il lawsuit II equal
to a fire" " Under the tremendous temp
tations that come upon the legal pro-
fession there are scores Of men who
have gone down. and some Of them from
being the pride Of the highest tribunal
Of the state have become disgrace TO
the Tombs courtroom. Every attorney,
in addition to the innate sense of right,
wants the sustaining power Of the old
fashioned religion Of Jesus Christ.
Bring Zenas the lawyer.
Temptation.
There are two OF three forms Of temp
tation TO which the legal profession is
especially subject. The first Of all is
skepticism. Controversy is the lifetime
business of that occupation. COntrOyer-
sy may be incidental or accidental with
us, but with You it is perpetual. You
get SO used to pushing the sharp ques-
tion why" and making unaided rea-
son superior to the emotions that the
religion of Jesus Christ, which is a
simple matter Of faith, and above hu-
man reason, although not contrary 10
il, has but little chance with some Of
you. a brilliant orator wrote a book.
on the first page Of which be announced
this sentiment, IAN honest God is the
noblest work of man" Skepticism is
the mightiest temptation Of the legal
profession, and that man who can stand
in that profession, resisting all solicita-
tions to infdelity, and can be as brave
a. George Briggs Of Massachusetts,, who
stepped from the gubernatorial chair 10
the missionary convention, 10 plead the
cause Of dying race then Oh his way
home from the convention, on a cold
day, took off his warm cloak and threw
it over the shoulders Of a thinly clad
missionary, saying, Take that and
wear il; it will do you more good than
it will me, or, like Judge Mclean,
who can step from the supreme court
room Of the United States on to the
anniversary platform of the American
Sunday School union, its most powerful
orator, deserves congratulation and en-
comium.
o men Of the legal profession, let
me beg of you to quit asking questions
in regard to religion and begin beliey-
ing! The mighty men Of your profes-
sion, Story and Kent and Mansfield, be-
came Christians, not through their
heads, but through their hearts. "Ex-
cept ye become as little child ye shall
in no wise enter the kingdom Of God. "
II YOU do not become Christian, o
man Of the legal profession, until you
can reason this whole thing out in re-
gard to God and Christ and the immor-
tality Of the soul, you will never be-
come a Christian at all. Only believe.
Bring Zenas the lawyer.
Sunday Observance.
Another mighty temptation for the
legal profession is Sabbath breaking.
The trial has been going on for 10 or
10 days. The evidence is all in. 1t is
Saturday night The judges gayel falls
on the desk, and he says, "Crier, ad
journ the court until 10 O'Clock Mon.
day morning" On Monday morning
the counselor is to sum up the case.
Thousands of dollars, yea, the reputa-
tion and life Of his client, may depend
upon the success Of his plea. How will
he spend the intervening Sunday; There
is not one lawyer out Of hundred that
can withstand the temptation to break
the Lord : day under such circumstances.
And yet if be does he hurts his own
soul. What, my brother, you cannot do
before ~ O'Clock Saturday night or
after IL O'Clock Sunday night God does
not want you TO do at all. Besides that
YOU want the "a hours Of Sabbath rest
to give you that electrical and magnetic
force which will be worth more to you
before the jury than all the elaboration
of your case OH the sacred day. My in
innate and lamented friend the late
Judge Nelson, in his interesting remi-
niscences Of Rufus Choate, says that
during the last case that gentleman
tried in New York the court adjourned
from Friday until Monday on account
of the illness Of Mr.. Choate, but the
chronicler says that on the intervening
Sabbath he saw Mr.. Choate in the old
"Brick church." listening TO the Rev.
DR. Gardiner Spring.
do not know whether, on the fol-
lowing day, Rufus Choate won his
cause or lost it, but do know that his
Sabbatic rest did not do him any harm.
Every lawyer is entitled 10 one days
rest out Of seven. If he surrenders that
he robs three-God, his own soul and
his client. Lord Castlereagh and Sir
Thomas Romilly were the leaders Of the
bar in their day. They both died sui
cides. Wilberforce accounts for their
alteration Of intellect on the ground
that they were unintermitteDt in their
work, and they never rested on Sunday.
Poor fellow" said Wherefore in re-
gard to Castlereagh; "poor fellow, it
was nonobservance Of the Sabbath
Chief Justice Hale says, when | do
not properly keep the Lords day, all
the rest Of the week is unhappy aud un-
successful in my worldly employment" "
| quote today from the highest statute
book In the universe, Remember tho
Sabbath day to keep it holy" The legal
gentleman who breaks that statute may
seem for awhile to be adyantaged, but
in the long run the men who observe
this law Of God will have larger re-
tainers. vaster influence, greater profess
sional success than those men who
break the statute. Observance Of the
law of God pays not only spiritually
and eternalit, but it pays in hard dol
lars or bank bills.
Another powerful temptation OF the
legal profession is to artificial stimulus.
No one except those who have addressed
audiences knows about the nervous ex-
haustion that sometimes comes after
ward. The temptation to strong drink
approaches the legal profession at that
very point. Then a trial is coming on.
Through the i'll ventilated courtroom
the barrister's health has been depressed
for days and for weeks. He wants to
rally his energy. He is tempted to re-
sort to artificial stimulus. IL is either
to get himself up or let himself down