Evening star., 1902-01-25

THE first time 1 presided over a trial in
the Criminal Court related one of the
justices of the Supreme Court of the Dis
trict recently, II could hardly get it out of
my head that 1 was in a dream. Fully
fifty years before 1 happened to be present
in the Criminal Court. where 1 was taken
by a relative, who was a lawyer, and
listened with a boys interest to trial.
Judge Cranch presided, and the court was
held in. the same room where the Criminal
Court is held now, though the court then
faced the north, and the jury sat in a box
Immediately under him. also facing north.
All the judge could see of the jurors was
the backs of their heads, and the jurors
could not see the judge unless they stood
up and turned around. Phil. Barton Key
the son of Francis Scott Key, the author
of The Star Spangled Banner who was
years afterward shot and killed by Gen.
Dan. Sickes, then a New York congress-
man, was the district attorney, and a forci-
bic prosecutor he was. The case on trial
was an assault of a rather aggravated
character. The assaulting party was a
man with one arm. and the aSSailed was
a deaf and dumb man, who gave his tes-
timony by signs, which were translated to
the jury. The combination of deficiencies
was of such a character that it would not
have been forgotten by man, and 1t is
needless to say 1t made a great impression
first time had ever been in a court room.
i heard most of the case, and particularly
that Of the side of the prosecution. l had
to go away before the case was finished
and was very much surprised to learn the
next day that the One-armed man was ac-
quilted Little did l dream that day that
a half century afterward 1 would be the
presiding judge and hold my first trial in
the same room. and that even more re-
markable than the rest, the man 1 was to
Try hrst was one-armed man, and for
similar assault AS the case was being
opened up there is no doubt that / got into
dream. and it was hard for me to realize
that what was before me was true and
that 1t was not a recollection of my boy
mood days and my first court house expe-
rience. l had to kick myself to get out of
the dream so as to try the case. Strangely
enough, though the evidence opened up
rather strong against the defendant the
jury, as similar jury had more than fifty
years before, acquitted him"
= x X x
Il have no desire to say a word against
The sacred soil of Virginia, for I was born
and raised in Virginia, and my home and
all the property l have Is there" remarked
popular shoe store clerk to a Star re-
porter, but just the same the sacred soil
Is very hard on shoe leather. have been
shoe clerk in this city for twenty years,
and many of my best customers come over
from Virginia to buy their shoes Likewise
AAoiS VI tolHc III IlOln the adjoining
sections of Maryland, and it is as true as
gospel that pair Of the same shoes will
wear nearly twice as long in the mud of
Maryland they will where they come In
contact with the soil of Virginia. There
seems to be alkali. or something. in the
soil OF Virginia that actually eats I'D
shoes This is not Imagination on my part
or prejudice, l assure you. for I have
noticed it hundreds and hundreds of times
L have four pretty good-sized children nv
self, and the way they wear out shoes-I
live In Eirginiafs caution and an ex-
Pense Now, my brother. who lives out in
Maryland, has five children even larger
than mine He buys all their shoes from
me. and the shoe bill for his five is much
less than for my four. 1 notice the same
OF my wife wear out But L need not take
my own case as an illustration. Our trade
furnishes plenty of others. and 1T is no
brand-new discovery on my part. Shoe
dealers in this city have known of il in
their trade for years. 1 was told of it when
L first went to work shoe clerk but 1
pooh-poohed it as simply reflection on the
state of Virginia. Years of experience
i am free to say that the man who first
told me of it did not put it on a bit too
strong
y y 4
THE clerks in the uptown departments
and especially in the State, War and NAVY
building. have gone into a co-operative
lunch house enterprise said one of them
to Star reporter, "and though 1t Is but
week old it promises to work out salts
factory. There are in the neighborhood of
the State, War and Navy Departments any
number of lunch places, big and little. pub
lie and private. They are practically the
same in every respect, the same grade of
pies and coffees being used in them all.
Some of the young fellows In the War De-
partment, amateur Napoleons of finance.
conceived the idea that there was big
money In the lunch business and that they
were entitled to their share Of it, provided
they would make an effort to get it. This
effort resulted in the formation of a stock
company in which about 5000 shares have
been sold at 81 per share. The capital
was used In remodeling house on Penn