Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-09-01

ter Of Roosevelt, and determined to seek
his advice. One day, meeting him, he
said:
II have chosen the law for my profess
sion, and I wish to begin practice in the
city in which was raised l have friends
there, but also many competitors, old and
established lawyers. and l am AFRAID that
l may not have the courage to wait Tor
business or even to develop It,. l shall
start my practice with very little money,
| but l need advice more than money. Can
you help me?'
Roosevelt caEefully questioned him as to
the characterized the city, the class his
friends belonged to and some other points,
and then said Ito him:
IF were you would on reaching home
and hanging out my shingle, get a case.
1 don't care how you get it. Your own
wits ought to find one case at least which
justice shop case either. I'd find case
that was right up in the regular courts,
and which possessed some merit l
wouldn't take it for nothing, either or on
attached to 1t. In other words, l would
have as many respectable features attach
ed to the case as possible under the cir
cumstances.
Having got that case" continued Roose-
welt, II would try it as If it were the last
case ever expected to have or which
would ever be in the courts. 1 would not
make a nuisance of myself You know
enough to avoid that, but you can be so
persistent that you will win the respect
Of every one who in any way comes into
connection with the trial. Put all OF your,
self in the case Get every side of it, and
above all things, hammer it into your client
by the force Of your actions that your in
tegrity is above reproach. When you get
done with that case you will have repu-
tation that many lawyers waste years in
other ways trying to obtain. You will
find that second case is certain to come
to you whether you lose or win the first
one.
II would treat the second case" he con-
tinued lust as I did the first one. Live
and act as If there was never such case
in existence before and master 1t, Just as
you are required to master your studies
here. If you find yourself weakening at
all use the spur and the whip until you
have created an enthusiasm in your work
that fmparts itself to client, court and
jury and results in your victory.
He paused after saying this, and the
young man ventured to ask:
How about the third case?
Go at it the same way" was the reply.
And, for that matter, as your patronage
increases, give the same treatment to all
your cases: You will create confidence in
yourself that will insure you constant
practice, and your clients, once secured,
will never leave you.
Enthusiasm in work Is the best antidote
for no patronage that 1 know of for any
professional man In fact, the rule applies
to every walk of life. If your heart is in
what you have to do, no matter how small
the undertaking, the greater things are
certain to come to you, and in rich re-
ward"
1t so happened that the first case which
this young man ever had to try involved
at the time a technical point, not first
ticed by him. which 1t would necessitate
the United States Supreme Court to pass
upon He put what he called "Roosevelt's
enthusiasm" into the case, found the tech
nicality carried it through all the courts
of the state, took it to the highest tri-
bunal and won. The case made his reputa-
ton and fortune 1t earned for him also
the title of being the most "disagreeably
persistent lawyer that the old bar had
yet encountered But after all, he was
only an exemplifcatfon of what Roosevelt
is himSelf-the strenuous man.