The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1902-12-05
JOHN :. WISE HAPPY.

and the farcical. Only that and moth
ing more. The winds that kept the
steamer away from Cape Charlie:
wharf were favOring breezes to the sue
cess Of his sensational schemes. The
imprOvised sailing craft, the special
train, the hurried run 70 Richmond
the detention of the chief justice Of the
nation until the dress suit could be put
on, the breathess entrance into the
crowded courtroom, the unusual hber-
~ for pyratecnics speech making, the
BORDER OF BLACK to the prearranged
program continued to fiji to the full
the cup Of happiness Of this substan-
tial attorney, who with one hundred
thousand clients contributing to his
fee, has had the hardihood to arraign
In court the people Of a sovereign
Commonwealth.
The court room was crowded to its
every inch, the chubby figure Of the
speaker was clad in the latest and
best Of New York evening style, the
auditors were eager to hear, the judges
were lenient and disposed to laugh too,
and having heard the first effort Of
this modern Sancho Panza, candor
cOmpels us to say that as a spectacu-
lar, sensational, strenuous, gallery
gods-of-a-performance it was a success.
AS a mass-meeting-" rOusement" it
scared high, but as legal argument it
scarcely left the ground. Now and
then Chief Justice Fuller would pune
ture the inflated harrsngue with some
sharp point of law, and great would be
the collapse thereof. John felt it and
at times ioundered, but such is his
unbounded and unshakened conf
dence in himself, that he would soon
puff up and 60 to saving again.
He, or some one for him, had turned
the pages Of many law books, gotten
the names Of cases and the pages, but
evidently none Of them had been care
fully read and digested. The political
history Of Virginia was more familiar
to him. and yet as TO that he was mac
curate and wanting in charity. 1t
wasn't surprising to those Of us who
had seen and known much of this i'm
petuOus character that in this cOnnec-
ton he should have so magnified and
glorified the name Of Wise, only deign-
ing to associate with it that eff Lee.
o, thou immodesty, how much of nm
blushing impudence has been commit
ted under thy guise
When the curtain fell on the first act
of this modern-day-comedy, the afore-
said John was redder of face and short
er Of wind than when he began, while
his sabal suitors showed more plainly
the whites Of their eyes and the con-
tour Of their teeth.
Mr.. F. w. Christian, who assisted |
Attorney General Anderson, lawyer in |
the truest and best sense, followed with
an able, lucid, legal argument which
was listened to with rapt attention.
There is a wide difference between a
lawyer and a mere dramatic declaimer.
We do not know that the time will
ever come that John Wise will think
seriously upon the things he may have
said or done, but if so we trust he will
then repent of having even for large
pecuniary reward, ever denounced
leading and representative Virginians
as "conspirators" and "pirates" and
their work as "rOitenness." An attOr-
ney should be true to his client but
meyer untrue to the nobler, better and
truer instincts Of his own nature.
On the second day Of the hearing Of {
Ibis case, Attorney-General Anderson :
led OIL with a strong legal argument IN ,
behalf Of the people Of Virginia, and I
'ook occasion to rap John now aud :
hen with blows. He was followed by
he colored lawyer Hayes, who had
'een allowed 30 minutes in which to '
make plea for his race. His speech d
vas listened to attentively and re- 4
pectfully and was in far better taste /
nd temper than that of his anglo v
axon associate. Wise concluded in u
mother impetuous, incorporate and v
together unbecomIng harrangue, and
be judges retired to consider and pre- z,
are their decision. Promptly at 4 Ii
. m. they went on the bench again, e
'hen Justice Fuller read an opinion of =
OF more than ten lines, and yet COW n,
ring the entire case, dismissing it for II
ne want Of jurisdiction, but at the Il
'me time intimated that no question X, &c
ad been presented in the argument nj
pleading which the Supreme Court an
ad not already passed on. Judge &C
'addill concurred in the decision, but w
'pressed his disapprOval Of the laws i'm
his State. And now happy John is IT,
ad John, and radiant John is wrathy. vi
The Board Of State Canyassers pro
eded at once to deliver certificates to sci
e congressman recently elected from tn
lrginia and the curtain fell again on ac
scene of mighty import to the people
Virginia. John will attempt to lift
that is if collections continue active.
It as long as there are just judges in WI
ice, lawlessness will not be sane ms
med under the forms Of law. at
- ------ the
hon. +. Z. Folkes, who represents del
city OF Richmond in the legisla- ear
re, Is a legislator "worth having" son
S name is already associated with ity
2 Of he nooaf x.ofpat.lo f..... - W. -.