The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1905-06-08

Judge Alton B. Parker delivered address
before the Illinois State Bar association in which he
discussed the large part which the lawyer plays In public
affairs TWAS impossible escape from acknowledge of the
close relations which lawyers bear said almost direct
result their professional life to politics. is all
along the line of public effort whether in village town. city,
0uRty nation Its existence therefore, cannot be
Overlooked Importance feature in the history
al development of the law of politics. be exaggerated
tendency, having manifested itself even in our
eare lays when owing to the simplicity of conditions the
need the lawyer and the recognition of his place in
social fabric became only slowly APPARENT
the revoutionist up it only natural that
the lawyer should everywhere be in demand and when
sittion making began the lawyer at dominated the
and too in the period OF constitution making He
examined the relations which courts borne to part
politics and said that the lawyer chosen judge pa1t
and from the very necessity of the situation
merged in the patriot and jurst I'm my somewhat
extended judicial experience have naturally into close
relations with large number Of judges OF COURTS OF both
original and appellate usdcton and into personal contact
with many after all these say that In no
case have ever known single Judge who, writing
curing majority opinion either by himself orn con
necton with his associates dissenting in majority opinion
has been moved by personal reasons or by attachment TO
political party.
These considerations ought give pause before
think that life, society and system of
growing before permit any revolutions
airy theories drive the conclusion that old customs
methods should be abandoned simply because they
old because other governments orforms systems have
not adopted simple and effective OF dealing with
great and difficult human problems.
'Ihe application of this partisan Interpretation to
judicial questions has exercised profound influence upon
foreign service This illustrated by the of the
ambassadors and consuls many of them without legal
training who before their departure from Shores had
been appointed and had gone forth and unbendng
parsans in which they have become at representative
of their country.
Of twentyfour presidents the United States who
have followed George Washington in that exalted office
whether by election succession without trade or
profession ourhave been chosen for military service
less distinguished eighteen had devoted themselves
cse to the study and the practice the law and another
had divided his activities between the bar and the bench with
incidental rather accidental diversion into the
of the soldier If the process applied to
preferred by their party temporarily
the minority succeeding presidential elections the
general tendency draw upon the legal profession for the
higher places of politics would be the less apparent
Nor this prepondeating position OF the lawyer In the
executive affairs of national life singular to ITSELF
Analysis of the history of the various States whether of the
original thirteen of the hirtwo since admitted would
in general reveal the general tendency to draw lawyers
away from their practice posts requiring administrative
qualities Without pressing this division of my question
upon my fellow lawyers than fair to that all
executive Offices both state and national continually
making drafts upon the bar not always to the individual ad
vantage of it's MEMBERS order to man the commissions and
the many administrative posts either existent created
from time to time
While the lawyer is almost dominant force upon the
higher table lands of politics and in congressional and
state legislative bodies, while he has fairly adapted himself
the change of methods may with truth be claimed OF
that has become what is known the great
boss that peculiar character incident to the later develop
nent of practical politics. In many instances he has
been able to command leadership, but it has single