Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1914-08-19
State Bar Association May Name
Permanent Meeting Place Today

invitation to contribute to this gath
ering takes the form Of referenc,
TO this great judge. instead of a dis
sertation upon some legal question ol
more or less current interest, let m,
apology be found In the fact that In
the study Of men. no less than OF
cases, may be found TO young and old
alike in the profession an aid toward
personal and professional efficiency
Judges Ovcrworkcd.
Georgia has contributed much e
the legal literature of the country.
mistaken legislative judgment, only
of recently years retrieved. imposing
upon three men the work of twice as
many, prevented II is true. the full
fruition Of powers of many of Its
Judges by sheer weight of overworlS
but the names of Lumpkin. Nisbet,
Warner, Bleckley and others of its
bench are familiar TO the bar even
beyond the limits of America. OF
these none has made deeper inn
preston upon those with whom he
came in contact than Judge Bleckley.
"He was the physical type of man
whom to see once was not only TO re-
member but always to carry as dis
tinct mental picture. | saw him on
" q few times and then some twen-
" years ago but the mention of the
name brings before me, as If present,
the tail. gaunt figure with patriarch
ial beard reaching TO the breast, with
hair resting upon his shoulders His
attire was plain. inexpensive and
lacking In Difference to style TO an
extent that suggested John of the
Physically and judi
cially, Judge Bleekley was more than
a man, more than the judge-he was
the priest.
Judge BlecIsley Pontifex.
zone of his most quoted express
Lyons vs.. Planters bank,
SO Ga. 4s5--is that Justice is the
pontiflcal virtue. If so, then was he
the pontifex. Indeed. as he lowered
among men and among judges, there
was much to justify the title OF pom
tifex maximus. His memorialists
speak of him as oracle Of the law,
and truly To him the bench was an
altar: from him the law was not only
the expression of the law, but sub
iect of course, to a degree Of human
fanibility, the expression of eternal
truth.
1T is not the purpose of this dis
course to deal with Judge Bleckley
Those who are in
clined TO pursue that will find much
of interest in the record of his me-
mortal exercises as reported In l2SI
Ga. $40. Suffice It to say upon this
point that his judicial career was
brief lie served as
associate justice from 1875 to 1879,
when he retired because the amount
of work did not in his opinion admit
of its being properly done by MN.
He became, chief justice in 1885, and
served as such until 1894, when SIM
liar reasons led to his final retire.
10 private life He passed away
in 1907 al the age of so. HIS rum
eral with great appropriateness, was
held in the supreme court room, the
temple in which he had administered
The law. had declared, as he saw 1t.
the truth
"The report of the memorial COM
n,ittee was penned by Judge John L,
Hopkins of Atlanta, himseit great
a great jurist--a man
incapable Of flattery, even TO thei
dead. In this it was said: The first
place at the bar was accorded 70 MN
as matter of right by the profes-
sion There is no judicial work SUI
perior to him.
Sought Favorable Opinion.
ut was the expression Of Judge
Bleckley himself that the highest OF
iudicial honors is the favorable opin-
lon If the bar. that grand tribunal TO
which every Judge is accountants.
This prize was his. and by common
in the highest degree.
AT this time when judicial quan-
lies and judicial accoanta n''''v- are !
90 much matters of discussion. may I
we NOT with profit consider what eIe-
ooante went to make Judge Bleckiey
! great Judge. These discovered we
have the example for emulation, 'he
IDEAL TO which reference is made az
he outset Of this discourse In ue-
Welcoming these as disclosed by his life
Il shall he my purpose 70 iet 'uuse
Bleckley's writings speak rather 'hah
10 attempt BY congratulations to
his work or 70 describe
his greatness as a writer and as
Judge" ..,., fxo,,,
Judge Pope quoted extensively from
Judge Rleckley's opinions.
Tax Problem.
one of the most important anes-
tions considered by the bar associa-
ton Yesterday was the taxation pro-
blem. involving the proposed amend
,nent IA article of the constitution
NJ the state of New Mexico. 4 very
ablv written paper was read before
The association by President FrancisI