The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1911-01-12

of the house of representatives as q
member next March he may be sue
ceeded at the speakers elbow by
er and is expected to be able TO tell
the next Democratic speaker what s
what" in dealing with the house rules.
Charles Crisp, son of former speak.
er. Crisp held that job under his faith
The justices robes were formerly
made by a certain Washington seam
stress. She used 90 yards OF the An
est black corded silk. and charged
500 per robe. She died. Now an
Albany firm tailors the robes at $40
each.
Fifty years or so ago there was a
great discussion whether the robes
worn were proper ones, l. e., was
there precedent for them. Some dol
yer discovered that John Jays black
gown was faced with crimson silk.
! There was a great toto, for II was
feared maybe that this branch OF GUS
| tom might invalidate the courts pas.
! decisions. Attire much discussio the
court decided it was satisfied with
: the legal standing OF plain black
! lobes, and that the decisions were
not shaken.
The court once claimed the right to
! dictate the dress of the attorneys OF
| the supreme bar. There was a fierce
contention about this, for the court
was insisting that the lawyers wear
wigs and gowns. The lawyers of the
Andy Jackson school didn't like 1t.
! The argument ended in a Compro-
mise The court did not insist on
! wigs and gowns, but did forbid the
| L., 81, x,,As til. -
| This was a cruel blow, for the spot,
reserved the whisker privilege to it
SELF and in those days the time
! faces of the justices appeared as
though speefing over the top of An,
! ambuscade OF hedgery. The justices
! held the custom of shaving only their
upper lips.
Must Dress in Black.
! Nowadays lawyers and justices let
: their whiskers ruin where sweet fancy
wills, but the lawyers. and anyone
who has admission with the bar. must
dress in black Only twice in 30 years
| has the black dress rule been violat
ed. One occasion was so years ago,
when frontier Kansas lawyer ap-
peared in homespun, wearing a red
flannel shirt and no collar. A certain
Justice stood 1t as long as he could,
then sent a note to the pleader by
page, requesting that he suspend long
enough 10 go out and buy a collar.
Never interrupting the flow OF his re-
marks. the plainsman wrote on the
note that he was afflicted with throat
trouble and could not wear a collar.
/ But the man never appeared before
the court again.
! And only last spring Atty. Gen.
WiCkersham one hot day appeared in
light crash suit and low shoes The
court was too weak with the heat to
protest, and Wickersham got away
with 1t.
! Each justice has a BODY servant as
! signed to him, and this servitor Is a
sore trial to many. The body servants,
now called messengers" descend
from justice to justice. Several are
old men. Their usual attitude toward
! their particular justices is that OF
/ tutor toward pupil. They dictate in
all matters of etiquet, and are gener-
! ally bothersome. But there's no get
! ting rid Of them. They're an institu-
tion having precedent.
! Each court day. at five minutes be-
| fore y. the nine justices are assem-
bled in their Cloakroom across the
main corridor of the capitol building
from the supreme courtroom, which
was formerly the nations senate
chamber. The body servants see that
the robes hang gracefully, and then
| deputies stretch across the corridor
from door TO door two crimson silk
ropes, thick as ships cables.
! These form a lane through which
| the justices pass. But before the pro-
cession starts the deputies stretch
across the floor of the corridor
crimson silk robe for the justices to
walk upon. Their sacred feet must
not tread on the pavement used by
common men.
In the courtroom We were made
aware that this formality had been
completed by two flashes OF a small
red electric lamp on the bailiffs desk.
AS soon as the light flashed the bailiff
rose, seized an ivory gavel head and
| brought it down. Crack! upon his
desk At this signal lawyers and
! spectators rose and stood waiting for
the court TO enter.
There they come, A slow-stepping
procession led by the gray.haired
Maj. J. Montgomery Wright. marshal
of the supreme court. Behind him in
the order named came Chief Justice
! White. and Messrs. Justices Harlan,
McKenna, Holmes. Day, Lurton
Hughes, Van Devanter and Lamar
This order represents also their order
OF seniority in the court.
The momC:t the cTier glimpsed the
| chief Justice outside the courtroom
door he announced slowly, In a GENE
terry voice:
The honorable, the chief justice,
and the associate justices OF the su
preme court OF the United States"
"oyez, Oyer, oyezI"
The people in the room stood while
the justices disappeared in the cur
tanned OF corridor behind the bench.