The free lance. (Fredericksburg, Va.) 1885-1926, 1899-08-03
rg and the Tidewater and Piedmont Country

Of injured innocence or denOunces the
heartless oppres-or, the crafty trlckster,
the wantOn calumuiat0r, or exposes
fraud, falseho0d and wrong with biting
saTcasm and whitening inyectlye. As
you listen To his luminous argument
aud stand spellbJund under the magical
influence Of his burning elCquence, you
feel that every god dOth seem D SIT
his seal upon him TO give the world as
81 ance Of a man May | perish.
says Qnintilian, If the all powerful
Creator If uature aud architect Of THIS
world has impressed man with any
fac culty whi n so eminenty distin-
guishes him from other animals as the
faculty OF speech. When highly cul-
tivated and improved. what tremen.
IOus p lwer n eXerts o er the destlules
4 men The fame Of the elcqueLt ad-
vOcatr pervades the entire community
His power l. almost omnipOtcnt
His eluqIence at times Is more
terrible than an army with ban
ners. Again, lis musical as
bright Ap 10 lute strung with his
nalr. repeat there Is no reputation
more desirable Or more enduring than
that Of the abe. learned and accom-
plished lawyer. Tho names Ct the
great lawyers who have illustrated and
adorned the annals Of Virginia WILL
live and shine as bright as the eternal
stars long after the evanescent fame
Of the mere political orator has passed
away aud been forgotten forever. There
can be no better preparation for use
ful and distinguished career in life than
the study and practice Of the law. More
than one half Of our Presidents and a
large majority Of Our Legislators have
been lawyers, while the members OF
the judiciary are selected exclusively
from that class. No one Of the three
seprateaand independent departments
0t the government has more delicate
ana difficult functions 20 perform than
the judiciary. No Office under our sys.
ten Is more honorable and responsible
than that OF Judge, and none is held
! IN greater esteem and reverence by the
! p, pie As We walk through the
grounds Of OF Capital City Of Wash
| ingt0n, we fad here and there in every
| direction statues and monuments erect
ed by a eratefr pe PIE 20 perpetuate
| the memory Of distinguished soldiers
/ anu tlNllAf IL nnO III AiASAA NNJ '''N
generation have added lustre 60 the
! American name. But when we turn
our faces toward the capitol and begin
| tO ascend the steps which lead 10 ITS
| halls, we behold the majestic figure OF
John Marshall. the illustrious Chief
Justice Of the United States. There
he sits, clothed in the judicial
Ell nine. calm. serene, self possessed.
That figure has been placed there by
the bar and the Congress Of the United
states TO commemorate the virtues u d
great and good man, the highest aud
best model the world hes ever known Of
the able, learned upright. incorruptible
Judge His name will be held IN
grateful aud affectiOnate remembrance
by the American people as long as
their constitution Of which he was the
great expOunder sha' endure.
In this connection, l beg leave to
recommend to your favorable consid-
Grafton the proposition unanimously
adopted by the Illinois State Bar As.
sociation that the legal profession Of
the United States shall lebrate Mon
day. February 4th, 1901. as "John
| Marshall Day. That will be the CEN
tennial anniversary Of the commence
ment Of his great career as Chief JUS
tice. AS Virginia lawyers, we cannot
| afford to be Indifferent TO a movement
inaugurated by others for the purpose
Of honoring the memory of the illus
| trious Virginian who presided over the
Supreme Court from 1901 to 1885, blaz
ing the way for his successors in the
| Interpretation of the constitution, and
adorning the exalted station by his
splendid geuius, his profound learning
and his many virtues.
Under our system, it is the patri-
otto duty of every citizen to take an
interest in the affairs Of the govern
ment because it is his government.
1t is no disparsgement Of others to
say that the lawyers as class have
ever been found ready TO respond with
| alacrity TO the call of their country,
| and have been in the forefront of the
| champions of civil and constitutional
| liberty. IL would be impossible
to call the roll of all the great LAWYERS
who have thus linked their names with
immortality forever, but with your
permission / will mention the names
! of two. one of them the greatest
forensic orator in England, the other
the greatest forensic orator in America
i refer to Thomas Erskine and Pat
rick Henry. Perhaps no greater service
has ever been rendered to mankind
than that performed by Erskine in his
vindic alton Of the right TO print the
truth with good motives aud for justifi-
able ends With the introduction Of the
art Of printing, the press in England
was sujected to the most rigorous CEN
sorship. No writings were permitted
to be published without the imprimatur
of the licensor and the printing of un-
| licensed works was visited with the
seyerest punishment. This censorship
was exercised by the church until the
time of the reformation, when 1t passed
TO the crown as part Of the royal
prerogative During the reign OF Eliza
| beth, the general regulation OF the right
of printing was actively assumed by
the Star Chamber. Upon the fall of
the Star Chamber in l64l, the censor
ship Of the press passed from the crown
TO ;he Parliament. 1t was an order of
the Long Parliament in 1913 that call
ed forth Millions great plea for the
| liberty Of unlicensed printing, tnat
| noble performance III WhlOh hO OA"ANAAA
ed "eive me to know, to utter ana 10
argue freely according to conscience
above all liberties. " After the restora.
tion. the entire control of printing and
publishing was resumed by the crown
and placed in the hands OF its agents
under the licensing act Of 1862. This
act limited to two years was renewed
until 1879 Upon the accession
of James II in 1855, it was revived for
seven years, and was again renewed for
one year in 1892 In 1895 the House Of
Commons res lutely refused to renew
the licensing act, th1s emanoipating
English literature from the control of
the government After the refusal of
the English Parliament in 1895 to re-
new the licensing act. the only restraint
which remained upon the right Of free
discussion was the judicial restraint
imp sed by the law Of libel and enforced
by the judgments Of the courts. Dur.
ing the reign Of William Iii and Queen
Anne, the law of libel was so vigorous
ly enforced by the courts that the press,
/ A. Proo Waa rrQcfl-