Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-09-19

The poor mans lawyer Is an INST
tuition that has come to stay he'e
are some 90 centers in London alone
where legal advice is dispensed Win
out fee or reward. Eighteen of these
centers are affiliated with the fool
Mans LAWYERS Association. Some OF
tho large towns in the provinces,
such as Manchester. Sheffield, an&'
Bristol also possess their poor man
lawycrs. Scotland, too. has fe'l I'M,
its Wanted superiority In the realms Oh
law was incomplete without mem. W
I-as,h,rah. the Canongate Institution
has it's legal dispensary. Inc WI
nigh well be universally adopted ~
does not CRATE upon the suscept 'niS'
and 1t signifies the challenge OF w
lawyer TO rank beside the dpe'o''
There are mental troubles tha' yielo
more readily to the advice OF the law
yer than to the exhortations OF ,he
parson. and 1t Is to be such het'e'
of minds that the poor mans lawyer
aspires He sits in the evening OF
some particular day IN the week, anu
those who shun the publicity ana rap
idity that attend the advice given III
tho nolice courts, or have no time 70
% there. may come TO him and ten
him the whole of their story In quiet
ness.
The roor have their legal troubles no
,oss ,han the rich and the bitterness
of them Is manifested by sense OF
impotence and oppression. Iney ean-
not fight against the oppressor; they 40
not even know what their rights are
nor whether the law has any remedy
for them. The harasslng uncefVaii''s
can be dispeled in a few minutes COZ"
yersation with the poor man iaWye''
and he can show them the pest way
ont of theft difficulties. his iesa'
knowledge Is not his only asset "'s
knowledge of the world, his acqua'h'
ance with a high moral standard anu
his sympathy are equally ihVaiuapi7
The different cepters have their own
methods VARYING with the idiosyncra'
sies Of the Individual lawyer, ana 10
so,,a ,axtent their particular KIND OF
,,ie,t Sometimes chance notlce
&, re,vsnaper or friends sugges-
,,on will bring a client from miles
away. but each center is chleny useu
by those in the neighborhood. ne
experience of the Toynbee Hall center
is unusually peculiar, for Whllechapei
ia the chief home of the flaalsh
speaking part of the populations i'io'e
than three -fourths of the clients are
Jews of English. Russian ana Fohsn
nationality and the lawyer is at .ltnes
ouite unable to proceed without IN
tervention of an interpreter Inc Jews
seem to pick up the English language
very quickly but newly imported I'M
migrants and transmigrants are par
ticularly likely to need the services OF
a LAWYER. and these can generally
sneak hardly word of English so
the East London Tenants and General
Legal Protection Committee chiefly
assists the poorer aliens.
Its aim Is to right wrong, rather
than to put money into the pocket OF
a client. Its procedure is as follows:
The clients are first interviewed by
lay1nan we'll known in the nelghbor-
hood, and himself jew He is able
to dispose alone Of the majority of cas-
es. His legal knowledge is sufficient
for the more ordinary difficulties, ana
often a word of advice is all that is
wanted. More difficult cases he drafts
into a waiting room, giving out NUM-
bered tickets: and these come in turns
before the solicitor, who is in attend
amaze and he goes carefully into each
case.
Most of the cases referred to him
are OF the ordinary description - some
landlord has been levying an illegal
distress some husband ill-treating his
wife, some employer refusing wages
to his workman, some omnibus upset
a barrow and the wares are damaged,
a child has been run over. friendly
society or insurance company refuses
payment, petty leases and partnership
agre ements have been broken
The committee is only too glad to
be able to avoid litigation IL 1t can
effect some satisfactory compromise. 1t
can act independently, as its services
are given gratis. and occasionally,
when both parties set their views be-
fore. it can act more as arbitrator than
as attorney But the best guaran-
tee for a peaceful solution is the
knowledge of it's power and will to en-
force it's views, and the committee does
not take up a case, however deserv-
ing, that it is not prepared to fight in
court.
1t raises annually a small funG to
pay it's own litigious solicitor for his
professional services and his disburse-
merits in court fees, etc. He is quite
distinct from the consulting solicitor
who presides at the committees ses-
sions. The former is solicitor of the
neis,hborhood, who merely conducts
sucn cases as are referred to him on
the advice of the latter. The possess
sion of war chest is peculiar to the
Toynbee center. The leading case of
Davis and Harris which decides that