Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-10-19
BY GEORGE JEAN NATHAN

a pin stuck in the end of the wood would
serve just as effectively. as the invented
piece of wire, the client threatened to bring
suit against him for violation of conf
dence."
A MOTHER patent lawyer said that the
oldest client who had ever come to
him was young woman who wanted his
help in getting a patent, literally, on an
idea
What is your idea?" asked the lawyer
curiously.
The young woman refused to tell him, say
ing that she hesitated to divulge the nature
of her idea until it had been secured by pat
ent. Il won't trust anybody with it, not
even you" she told the lawyer.
The young woman is probably still trying
to patent her idea. 1t is to be wondered
whether she hesitates to impart it to the
patent office.
A CUSTOMS lawyer said that of all pc
culiar clients with whom he had ever
come into contact the oldest was middle
aged woman who wanted to bring suit
against the customs house authorities for
having looked through her diary. 1t de-
veloped that the diary had been hidden in
a box at the bottom of her travelling bag,
the box to see what it contained. The wo-
man insisted, however, that their real purpose
had been to read her diary, and demanded
financial satisfaction for having suffered
Outraged feelings"
A SECOND customs lawyer cited as his
oldest client woman who sought to
enlist his legal services after she had been
held on charge of smuggling. 1t developed
that she had tried to smuggle in a dozen
Paris gowns, which she told the attorney she
did not care to deny.
But" argued the attorney, what can l
do in such case as this?
What can you do?" echoed the woman.
"Why, you can make the Judge let me try
them on in court, and they'll look so well
on me that he'll be sure to let me off,
A WELL known metropolitan divorce law
yer said that the strangest client within
his memory had been poor Italian laborer,
who asked him to get him divorce because
his wife had just had twins.
AS second illustration, he cited the case
of a man who had sought divorce from
his wife because the latter was losing her
looks.
Another divorce lawyer said that I'm
doubtedly the queerest client who had en-
who asked advice on the best way to secure
speedy separation from his wife. why do
you want to get a divorce?" the lawyer
asked. Because" answered the Teuton,
my frau can't cook good no more"
7 IKE the famous Anneke Jams heirs, there
! are numerous strange cases of so called
ancestor clients" to be had from the law
yers.
One of the oldest of these is cited by
New York lawyer of wide practice. mot
long age" he says, there came to my office
woman who insisted that she owned the
lower part of the Hudson River, having in
herited it from Henry Hudson, her ancestor,
by right of discovery.
IF this seems an exaggerated case, / shall
cite a second one that is stranger still. Last
winter a man, who said he had been recon-
mended to me by a spirit at a seance he
had attended several nights previous want
ed me to prove his title to the land upon
which the Subtreasury building stands. He
told me that it had been given to an ancestor
of his by George Washington, out of graft
tude for the formers loan of a coat during
one of the campaigns of the Revolutionary
War. Curious claimants to land through
ancestors are regular visitors to lawyers Of
fees. There are hundreds of stories about
them. And the two quoted are fair criteria.'