The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-03-12

and Told Stories and Had a Good
Time Until Well Along In the
Wee Small Hours-Wit Rather
Than Wisdom characterized the
Speeches.
The spirit OF good fellowship per-
vaded the annual banquet Of the Ram
sey County Bar association at the Alb
erdeen last evening, and the bar and
the bench united in laying aside the
sterner realities Of the law for Its
brighter side The great dining room
of the Aberdeen was deliberately deco
rated for the occasion, and there was
profusion OF palms and potted plants
The tables were arranged in the form
of a square, and seated at the head
were. besides the POSTMASTER, John D.
O'Brien: Judge Lewis, Judge Bum
Judge Thomas Wilson, Judge Brill
Chief Justice Start, Ambrose Tighe
president of the association Judge
Sanborn, Judge Flandrau. Judge Kelly
Judge Jaggard Judge Bazille' and c.
D. O'Brien. The others present were
H. M Albin, William Carson, Francis
H. Clark, G.. j. Lomen, w. T. McMur-
ran, w. E. Kelly Jr., Oscar Hallam
David F. PEBBLES O. E. Denegre, J. E
Markham, Newell Pratt, "A. r. Moore,
o. H. ONeill. S. C. Olmstead, E. C.
Stringer, H. B. Wenzell, F. B. Tiffany
w. H. Yardley, A. NJ. Wickwire, Carl
Taylor, James Armstrong, Stiles Burr,
Gerhard Willrich, F. H. Griggs, How
ard Wheeler NJ. R. Taylor. F., Barta
Herchmer Johnston, Thomas j. McDer-
mott w. L. Chaplin, ]. E. eStryker
Frank Arnold. j. NJ Hawthorne, G. M
Nelson, H. Phillips, A. E. Boyesen, B.
H. Schneider. J. r. Foulke, G. E. JOS
lin. F. o. Osborne, F. w. Zollman, H
B. Farwell, G. B. Spencer, Ross Clark
G. P. O'Neill, Charles Barnum. 7. D.
O'Brien and James Armstrong.
When President Tighe arose to in
troduce the POSTMASTER, John D.
O'Brien, he was greeted with a realis-
tic Leech lake war whoop. After COM
menting on the present prosperity of
the association, which he attributed
to the efficiency of the officers, Mr.
Tighe said:
1.-The first secretary of this associa-
ton was in the habit Of keeping the
record on his cuffs as being the most
economical and convenient. COnSe-
quently, for obvious reasons, we are
compelled to rely largely on our i'm
aginatiOn now for the minutes. Our
present secretary, however, has beaten
the cuff scheme. He has made coll
lection of the court calendars, little
publication that appears regularly and
but few Of us are interested in, and he
keeps the records on the blank pages.
There are but few cases nowadays,
and the new ones on the present cal
endar we owe largely to breaches Of
etiquette on the part of the street rail-
way employees" Then, after comment
ing on Judge Bum and Judge Jaggard,
both Of whom were suffused with
bushes, Mr. T1ghe introduced the
POSTMASTER Of the occasion. John D.
O'Brien.
1.-The American lawyer is the only
idealist of the present day." said Mr..
O'Brien. "He hates shams and false
pretenseS of ever nature. He is the
highest and most beneficial product Of
American civilization" Then Mr..
O'Brien closed his tribute to the bar by
introducing Chief Justice Start, who
was received with applause.
1T is just eighteen years ago today
that / left the attorney generals office
for the district BENCH" declared JUS
tice Start. Il find that great changes
have taken place in the personnel of
the Ramsey county bar during the in
terven1ng period. Many have joined
the silent majority and others have
removed elsewhere. The great major
ity are not in active practice. Conse-
quently 1 must ask the privilege Of
listening rather than the active work
of talking"
81 never feel quite at home in this
line of eminent men," said Judge San
born, Of the circuit court Of appeals.
81 always feel as though I want to get
down on the floor and have a rough
and tumble with Chris O'Brien. After
seven years on the bench and twenty
years in the practice Of law feel when
l sit down beside Judge Flandrau with
whom 1 used to argue cases SO many
years ago, as If were in his class
rather than with the younger genera
ton. 1 have been assigned the subject
of the circuit court of appeals, but I
shall say nothing about it. You prob
ably know as we'll as I. I can observe,
however. that it would take a Phila-
delphia lawyer to define the federal
courts and their jurisdiction.
Then the POSTMASTER introduced
Charles Barnum. shakespeare is said
to have been as much of a lawyer as
an actor" he said. ''Mr. Barnum is as
much of an actor as a lawyer
Mr.. Barnum arose to the occasion
and, after observing that he had ex-
pected to be called upon, read Dooley' s
account of Dewey in politics.
Time cannot wither nor custom
stale" served as the introduction of
Judge Flandrau. He said: There is
one rather singular thing that has not
been mentioned tonight That is that
the bar has grown enormously since
/ tegan to practice law. There is not
a man in the room tina. belonged 70 it
when I was GGmit.ei. Today 7 am
the oldest active practitioner in Min
nesOta. I Joined the Ramsey county
bar forty-six years ago, when William
Pitt Murray and Gen. Becker were the
leaders, but neither of them are in ac-
tive practice. I could, if I wanted, give
you learned and a brilliant speech,
but l shall not do So
Instead the speaker submitted a
number of "reminiscences of early prac-
tice in the territorial days Of Mime
sofa and told Of his first experience in
attending court at Sank Rapids in Ben
ton county. AT that time the principal
offense was Illicit trading in liquor,
and 1t was the playful custom of the
grand jury, in which Judge Flandrau
Joined, of watching beside the roads for
wagons to come along and then raid
ing the vehicles and confiscating what
ever liquor was found.
we carried it into the jury room
and destroyed it, concluded the speak
er suggestively.
Carl Taylor told Glow it seems to
have the city for client" and then
the POSTMASTER very much against
his better Judgment" called on c. D.
O'Brien, who was uproariously ap.
plauded.
He explained that he had loaned the
POSTMASTER his dress suit on the prom
1se that he would not be called upon
to speak. He had been billed to speak
on the "Anglo-Saxon" alliance, "but as
he thought the subject both an impos-
sibility and a miscegenation he con-
fined himself to telling number of
good stories.