The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1912-05-31
How the Bar Lost Its Light
[BY J. w. CONWAY1


Norton, Kas., Champion: In our
sad pilgrimage into Minnesota the
other week we were delayed over
Sunday in Mankato, about sixty miles
from Sleepy Eye, and therefore whiled
away our time looking after traces
lof ancient landmarks.
| This was hard to do, the city now
having accumulated population of
twelve thousand; but in the year that
we padded it's census, only two thou
sand claimed for it the future me-
tropolis of the state.
That was thirty-nine years ago.
1t was then. and is now. beautiful
city at a perfect right angle framed
by the Minnesota river in its tangent
course from Moose Lake to the
Mississippi at st. Paul
Our, sister Mary lived there then,
her husband foreman of the wood
train on the Winona & st. Peter
r. r. between Winona and Marshall.
Mimi, and we her "star" boarder
fresh from college, rich in learning,
especially in economic science, so
far as the theory went, as you may
know from the fact that our overcoat
had been pawned at Leroy, to get
that far where we knew food was
cheaper, meals regular and the high
cost of living of no consequence to
us who had millions in the Lon
don bank where they still remain
in perfect safety.
Our hopeful family experienced
three great disappointments in our
evolution to manhood: One devoted
faction designed us for the priest
hood-abandoned after our brief
course in the study of, not theology
but oxen and the vocabulary neces-
sary to drive the undamned (up to
reign over them inspiration for out
lawry and crime. Another artistic
branch of the family conspired to
make us sculptor ourself the NOV
i ing spirit; wherefore art, though a
mischance never revealed, suffers
for a modern Phidias to this day.
The third polemical party, in OPP
position to these, strove to dedicate
our talents to the law-Brother Ryder
council in chief.
We. read law. q.
The best law firm at the profession
in Mankato was composed OF Brown
& Wiswell, two competent tutors
with one legal god, Blackstone-al-
though Judge Brown was Presby-
terrain and delivered lectures to us
on "Greenleaf on Evidence. We at
tended his Sunday school class once,
because the, river was too wet for
fishing that Sabbath morn. Rains.
We wasted not quite year at
law as student, designing to fill the
vacancy occasioned by the appoint
ment of a recent over-ruler of the
Constitution. ~= - - '.
| Our collateral family hope was
frustrated in this wise: Brown q
Wiswell took a case in ejectment pro-
ceedings wherein one Shsubut, a
rich local banker, owner of many
farms, was plaintiff, and Richard Roe
was defendant. Lawyers nowadays
designate an unknown as John Doe,
whether plaintiff or defendant. This
| is error. The correct unidentified
plaintiff is John Doe; but if defendant
always Richard Roe.
Dick was renter of Shaubut's
farm near town, a tenant in posses
sion legally until the following
March; but the banker undertook
I to nullify the lease and cast him
/ out. .
We heard Dicks tale of woe often
repeated to his counsel, Brown &
Wiswell. The squeezing, grinding,
pulverizing monopolist of banker,
as painted by Dick and his fearful
wife, is one of the somber charcoal
sketches of a dehorned devil still
! hanging upon memory'!s wall
| The trial was set on day GER
tain for hearing by a justice of the
peace whose soft-voiced ruling, con-
trasted to j. Bowers vocal decision,
sounded like the explosion of a muf-
fed squirt gun to Bowers crash of
doomsday. s1.
Charity was born in that voice.