Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 25.pdf/106

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The Editor's Bag to complete so noble a monument to her husband's memory." Surely no homage to the author of "Lectures on Juris prudence" can be adequate which does not pay tribute to the devotion of his accomplished wife. MR. JUSTICE LAWRANCE IN CONNECTION with the death of Sir John Compton Lawrance, for twenty-two years a Judge of the King's Bench Division of the English High Court, the Law Journal recalls that he was described by Lord Brampton as a pleasant colleague, and it may have been partly because, as the Law Journal says, he was possessed of "a dry humor which "Your wasable inspired and learned by common counsel," sense." he once told a prisoner, "has described you as an upright man. He may be right. I see that in 1890 you were convicted of coining; that of itself may be an attri bute of rectitude — I express no opinion. In 1893 you were sent to prison for three months for keeping a gambling-house — that again may be an attribute of recti tude. Since then you have been con victed of forgery, which also, perhaps, is consistent with rectitude — and again I express no opinion. But on the whole I think you had better go to prison for six months with hard labor." THE WORM TURNED DR. L. M. THOMPSON, formerly superintendent of the Home for the Feeble-Minded at Marshall, Mis souri, was on the stand the other night as an expert witness in a case where one side claimed the testator was of unsound mind. In answer to the long hypothetical question of the attorney who called him, Dr. Thompson gave it as his opinion that the testator was afflicted with "senile dementia."

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Across the room sat a young attor ney with a formidable battery of medi cal books close to hand. It was his duty to cross-examine the expert and to show his opinion was at variance with the books. The stenographer sweat blood while the young lawyer fired inter rogatories with ten-jointed italic words at the witness's head. In varying forms the same questions were asked and reasked at wearisome length. Dr. Thomp son was good-natured and stood the ordeal without complaint until nearly midnight. Then retribution came as simply and as naturally as an infant's smile. * "Doctor," said the young cross-ex aminer, pointing a severe finger at the witness, "you have given it as your judgment that the testator was suffering from what you are pleased to term 'senile dementia.' Now, I wish you would re peat to this jury some of the evidences of 'senile dementia' in a patient." There was just the ghost of a gleam in the doctor's eyes as he replied. "Well, the books say when a man has 'senile dementia' one of the symptoms is to ask the same question over and over again after it has been clearly answered." THE RECALL DEMANDED A judge in a New York night court declares that "No man has a right to make an ass of himself." — News Item. 'TP HEWhen courtsjudges have reached talk thata way. pretty pass The And ancient balk and rightkick to be andanbray ass Is older than the Constitution, — Inherent in humanity, Christian, And there'll Hindu be and someConfucian, profanity — If this decision stands. Teddy Let's I'll form tella you coalition. what! Republican Progressive, andProhibition, Democrat, And Socialist will all