Omaha daily bee., 1909-07-04
TALES TOLD OUT OF COURT
Bunch of Ancients and MOderns
Passed Around by the Pro-
fenafon.

fensiOn.
The Bar association Of the metropolis Of
the south tops off each Of its meetings
with a collation.. The collation. was hit
upon. after much and slow elaboration.
by the COMMITTEES on program, as a means
Of inducing the attendance OF members
The progress OF the meetings may not be
electrifying. but when the members sur
round the choice gastrOnomic delicaeies,
which are served in the large marble cor
rfdor by the court room where the meet
inss are held, and get their cigars going
they emerge from the oppressive drouth
Of the session and loosen up,
At a recent meeting some Of the
younger members got started on country
trials, lawyers, judges. juries, etc. A
young lawyer who is building UP an en-
viable criminal practice told thisi
"A lawyer from New Orleans told me
about a jury trial in a little obscure vii.
lage somewhere in Louisiana. OF course. ]
don't know just how true the story may
be, but he looked to me like a specimen
Of the eminently truthful sort. Strange as
1t may seem, the jury in this trial wa
made up entirely Of negroes. 1t seems that
all the available white men were either al
work or had gone hunting or fishing. And
anyway, It being a case of one Negro
charged with stealing from another, tn,
interest Of the white people of the place
Of whom there was a conspicuous minor.
ity, was not sufficiently involved for It t
make any difference.
when the evidence was all In and tn,
prosecuting attorney, a white man, o.
course, had submitted the case without ar
gument, the accused, fortunately, had NJ
counsel-the judge, also a white man, or
dered the jury, which could not agree II
the box, 70 retire to an adjoining room
n find a verdict.
The jury retired. An hour passed, and
still no verdict. At last the Judge coulC
stand 1t no longer, and went in person t.
the room to see what was delaying tn,
verdict. He found each of the jurymer
crawling around on the floor, peerinl
under chair and tables, and also into cor
ners. The court was amazed. He did no
know whether the whole jury had gon
crazy or what was the matter.
Here he thundered, what are yo,
niggers doing7'
THE foreman arose, and. making hum
bic o~beisance, answered.;
"'Yo' honah, tain no use; we les kahn
find no vuddict in dis here room- Fact IL
20 honah. I doan b'Iieb dere's q vuddict 1
here nohow.'
That" said an attache Of a firm of col
, p~oration lawyers, 'is as bad as the countr
Judge in the southern part of West VII
: ginia- 1t was his first case. and tn
prosecuting attorney had to coach him a
the way. When the case was finished tn
prosecuting attorney said;
Now, your honor, the next thing is fc
you to charge the jury
'"rhs judge hesitated for some minutes
and then aid
""weH. gentlemen of the Jury, beIn' O
this was a short trial and only a no
stealth case at that. I'll charge you onl
so cents Apiece"
The yarn reminded a divorce lawyer
another country judge, who was holdin
down q bench somewhere In the mounta
r of eastern Tennessee. 1t was a shootin
s case, and when the evidence was all
and the argument over he charged tn
jury like this;
3 well. gentlemen. II you believe wins
. the prosecuting lawyer has told you you
decide against the prisoner, n II, on ii
. other hand, you believe what the lawy'
for the defense has told you you'll decic
for the prisoner; but II you know bot
I lawyers as well az I do you won't kno
. which way to decide. YOu'n just have
do the best you can.'"
Still another country judge was RECALLS
this one a Kentuckian, who, when II
: counsel in a case that had been tried b.
fore him wanted to argue It, said:
'oh. all right. boys, so ahead and arg
But I've got 70 sit back to my corn pillow
In. and when you've finished argyin' you
r find my decision writ in the book here
The telling OF these obviously truthf
anecdotes was stopped by the young erin
inal lawyer responsible for the first stor
v you don't have to go to the country
he said, ito hear and see things Of Il
limit variety. How's this for right here
2 town. A young chaplin not going
mention his name-who was one OF the a
II sisting prosecuting attorneys, was conduc
irg a case where one woman had caus'
the arrest Of another for ~asssulting h
and calling her a lot of unmentionab
names. He put the woman on the star
and directed her to tell the Judge ju
n what the other woman had called her.
a But 1 can't do that she said. wi
surprise.
ION, yes, you can replied the your
L prosecutor. AS a matter Of fact, you
have to-
But / just can't insisted the woma
n why, it's not fit for any decent person
q hearP
We'll, them he said. cheerfully, Ju
step up and whisper 1t 10 his honor. -
washington Post
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