The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1914-01-10

WITH HUMOROUS TOUCHES.
Within a month, says Law Notes"
"a legal periodically for January, 1914,
the great offices of Lord Chief Justice
of England and Lord Chief Justice of
Ireland have become vacant by the
resignation of their respective hold
ers. Lord O'Brien, of Kilfenora, the
Lord Chief Justice of Ireland, whose
resignation has been received, has
held the chief justiceship for more
than four-and-twenty years, is the
tenth Irish Chief Justice since the
Union, and has been for a longer peri
cd than any of his predecessors in
tenure of Office. Of the nine Chief
Justices Lord O'Brien's predecessors
since the Union, three only-Arthur
Wolfe, Lord Kilwarden, Lord Downes
and Lord Morris-were raised to the
peerage. Two received higher pro-
motion. Chief Blackburne was made
Lord Chancellor of Ireland, and Lord
Morris Lord of Appeal in Ordinary.
Only two Irish Lord Chief Justices
have died in office-Lord Kilwarden
in 1903 (who was assassinated), and
Mr.. Whiteside in 1876. In 1889,
when Lord O'Brien was appointed,
the Government wished to make him
Lord Chancellor of Ireland. Lord
Ashbourne, who was then Lord Chan
cellor, was offered a Lordship of APP
peal in Ordinary vacant by the death
of Lord FITZGERALD. That position,
which was declined by Lord Ash
bourne, was subsequently filled by the
promotion of Lord Morris, the. Lord
Chief Justice of Ireland, who was sue
ceeded by Lord O'Brien.
Lord O'Brien occasionally enlivened
his judgments with delightfully."- humor
Gus touches, says the Law Times. One
judgment in especial we recall in which
he gave full play to his unconventional
style This was in Fitzgerald v. Ryan
(1899, Ir. Rep. 637, a case concerned
with the construction of will. In the
course of his judgment the Chief JUS
tice thus expressed himself: Il now
turn to the will of the late Peter
Ryan, who was a farmer resident in
the county of Limerick, possessed of
some twenty acres of land, with some
stock thereon-viz., seven cows, a
heifer, and horse. Before I advert
to the language of the will, shall
endeavor to find an armchair in his
house that I may sit upon it, and look
round upon the conditions of his fam
lily, and the habits of the social life
of his class. I find that this small
farmer had no armchair; but the rude
1t will enable me to take the neces-
sary survey. He was a plain man; |
dare say educated at national
school, blunt and brusque, but by no
means ingenious. He knew nothing
about Roman law and it's cases. He
had a wife; two sons, Michael, who
was the youngest and, as 1 under
stand, of a manageable time of life,
and Patrick; he had three daughters"
Then turning to the will, the Chief
Justice finds that the farm is to go to
Michael, provided he marries and gets
a substantial fortune with his wife,
not less than $3.50, which sum was to
go to the testator's three daughters.
The Chief Justice then proceeds:
1.-THE intention and object of the tes-
tator was to make the son lose no
time about marrying Senti-
ment, good looks, attractiveness, are
put aside; this causes no delay; pre-
vious acquaintance is not even re-
quired. Old bachelorhood
was never contemplated. 1 have
known old bachelors with whom 4
would like to spend many an hour