The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1902-11-08
he KILLED THE CASE.

HE KILLED THE CASE.
A we'll known lawyer of Lancaster
Mo-, related the following legal Incl
dent: One of the most original law
yeTs ever met in my life was San
Dysart, who many years ago was ;
resident of our county. Sam was
born humorist and could have mad
his fortune in the lecture field. Whel
he lived up our way he was engaged
on one occasion to defend a lot o
boys and girls charged with disturb
ing a religious assembly out in th,
country. Laughing and giggling'
is the way the information read. TIL,
case was tried before Squire A. c
Bailey, good old man who has Ions
since gone to his final reward. Lik'
all cases of the sort, it attracted al
immense crowd from the vicinity o
the alleged outrage.
T. c. Tadlock prosecuted, and h,
was instructed by the church people
to spare no pains to convict the dis
turbers, who were very much fright
ened by being dragged into court
All the defendants were children O
| good families, and it was their frs
offense. They candidly admitted
they laughed out in church, and the
state insisted that by their own
mouths they were condemned.
Brother Tice Spears, a righteous
man of Puritanic type, was the main
prosecuting witness. He had con.
Quoted the service, and he testified
that the peace was sadly disturbed by
the unseemly behavior of the "riot-
ers." After he told his story in
chief he sat down with clasped hands,
waiting for the defendants attorney
to begin on him. He didn't have
long to wait. The examination be-
gan like this:
Brother Spears, you led the meet
in that night?"
81 did, sir"
"You prayed?"
81 did, sir"
"And preached ?"
II tried to-"
"And sang?"
II sang"
"What did you sing?"
"'There Is Fountain Filled With
Blood, sir.'
Here Mr.. Dysart pulled a hymn
book from his pocket and handed it
to the witness with the remark:
"Please turn to that song, Brother
Spears.
The witness did so.
"That's what you sang that
night?"
''It is, sir"
"Well, stand up and sing it now,
if you please"
"What T.
"You heard what I said, Brother
Spears"
"But 1 can't sing before this sort
of crowd"
Brother Spears" with much ap-
parent indignation, "do 1 understand
that you refuse to furnish legitimate
evidence 10 this jury"
No, no-but, you see"
"Your honor" said Mr.. Dysart,
''I insist that the witness shall sing
the song referred to just as he did on
the night of the alleged disturbance.
1t is a part of Our evidence and very
important. The reason for it will be
disclosed later on"
There was long jangle between
the lawyers, and the court finally or
dered the witness to get up and sing.
"And mind you, Brother Spears"
said Dysart seriously, "you must sing
it just as you did that night. If you
change a note, you will have to go
back and do it all over again"
The witness got up and opened the
book. There is vast difference be-
tween singing to a congregation in
sympathy with you and a crowd of
courtroom habitues. Brother Spears
was painfully conscious of the fact.
You know how these old time hymns
are sung in the backwoods settle
ments? You begin in the basement
and work up to the roof and then
leap off from the dizzy height and
finally finish the line in the basement.
That's the way the witness did.
He had a good voice-that is, it was
strong. If GabriePs trumpet ever
gets out of whack he could utilize
that voice and wake the dead just as
readily. 1t seemed to threaten the
window lights. The crowd didn't
smile, it just yelled with laughter.
The jurymen bent double and almost
rolled from their seats. The court
bit his corncob pipe harder and look
ed solemn. 1t wasn't any use. There
were only two straight faces in the
house. One belonged to deaf mute
and the other to Sam Dysart. The
singer finished and sat down. He
looked tired. Sam Immediately ex-
cused him.
When the time for speechmaking
came Sam remarked to the jury: "If
you gentlemen think you could go to
one of Brother Spears meetings and
behave better than you have here,
why you may be justified in convict
ing these boys and girls
That was all he said, but it gave
the jury lots to think about. They
brought in verdict of not guilty,
with the request that Brother Spears
sing another song. But that gentle
man had gone home and court ad-
journed.-MacOn Republican.