Page:Legal Bibliography, Numbers 1 to 12, 1881 to 1890.djvu/55

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page needs to be proofread.

SOULE'S LEGAL BIBLIOGRAPHY. PORTRAITS OF CHIEF JUSTICE MARSHALL. CHIEF JUSTICE MARSHALL. The recent dedication at Washington of Story's Statue of Marshall, and the publication of Magruder's Life of Marshall, in the Series of " American Statesmen," have revived in our generation a lively interest in the great Chief Justice. By the kindness of his descendants in Rich- mond, we are allowed to give here copies of two excellent portraits, taken at different ages, and presenting different traits of feature and expression. The first portrait is from an engraving in possession of the Marshall family, the date and origin of which are not known to the present owner. It represents him at about the age of forty-five or six, when he was ap- pointed Chief Justice of the United States. William Wirt thus describes his appearance at this time : — " He is tall, meagre, emaciated ; his muscles so relaxed as not only to dis- qualify him apparently for any vigorous exertion of body, but to destroy ever-- thing like harmony in his air and movements. Indeed, in his whole appearance and demeanor, dress, attitudes, gesture, — sitting, standing, or walking, — he is as far removed from the idolized graces of Lord Chesterfield as any other gentle- man on earth. His head and face are small in proportion to his height ; his complexion swarthy ; the muscles of his face being relaxed, make him appear to be fifty years of age. His countenance has a faithful expression of great good- humor and hilarity, while his black eyes — that unerring index — possess an irradiating spirit, which proclaims the imperial powers of the mind that sits enthroned within." Judge Story, about the same time, gives a somewhat different descrip- tion : — " Marshall is of a tall, slender figure, not graceful or imposing, but erect and steady. His hair is black, his eyes small and twinkling, his forehead rather low, but his features are in general harmonious. His manners are plain, yet dignified, and an unaffected modesty diffuses itself through all his actions. His dress is very simple, yet neat ; his language chaste, but hardly elegant. It does not flow rapidly, but it seldom wants precision. In conversation he is quite familiar, but is occasionally embarrassed by a hesitancy and drawling. I love his laugh ; it is too hearty for an intriguer ; and his good temper and unwearied patience are equally agreeable on the bench and in the study." The second portrait given here is copied from the painting in the gal- lery of the capital at Richmond, which is itself a copy of the original portrait, painted by Inman in 1831, and now owned by the Law Asso- ciation of Philadelphia. It represents the Chief Justice at the age of seventy-six, — four years before his death. Of his appearance at this period Miss Harriet Martineau writes : — " A tall, majestic, bright-eyed old man, — old by chronolog}-, by the lines on his composed face, and by his services to the republic ; but so dignified, so fresh, so present to the time, that no feeling of compassionate consideration for age dared to mix with the contemplation of him." The Hon. Charles Augustus Murray, an Englishman who met Mar- shall a year or two later in Richmond, thus describes him : — " The judge is a tall, venerable man, about eighty years of age, his hair tied in a queue, and with a countenance indicating that simplicity of mind and be- nignity which so eminently distinguish his character. ... In short, blending as he does the simplicity of a child and the plainness of a republican, with the learning and ability of a lawyer, the venerable dignity of his appearance would not suffer in comparison with that of the most distinguished-looking peer in the British House of Lords." The engravings here presented fairly reproduce the originals, except that the look of "benignity" alluded to by Murray, which is a striking characteristic of Inman's painting, has not been brought out by the engraver. A COLUMN OF GOOD BARGAINS. The following are given as specimens of the stock Mr. Soule has on hand. They are all in good, sound, second-hand condition, unless other- wise specified. The prices are all net cash. Massachusetts Reports. Secoitd-Jiand sets always on liand, at frkes varying accordhig to coftdttio}!. Maine Reports. 76 vols. S175.00. Vermont Reports. 58 vols. (Tyler, 2 vols. ; Vermont proper, 56 vols ). $350.00. New Jersey Reports. 85 vols. (Law, ^6 vols. ; Equity, 39 vols.). $215.00. Iowa Reports. 68 vols. (Morris, i vol. ; G. Greene, 4 vols. ; Iowa, 63 vols.) S250.00. iSee also next page.'