100
The Green Bag
him. "My legs are pretty tired — I would like to rest, yes, sir; but I don't see any place to sit down."
HAPPENINGS IN COURT RECENTLY one of the AdjutantGenerals of the Army, whether through oversight or because of a humor ous mood, appointed a Colonel, a Major, THE WISDOM OF LAWYERS a Captain and a Lieutenant, all of whom IT APPEARS that judges and law stuttered, to act as a General Court, yers have contributed a liberal share Martial. In a trial before them when a to the stock of popular sayings. witness was asked his name, he also be It is Francis Bacon who speaks of gan stuttering: "Hen-he-he-hen-he —" matters that "come home to men's busi To relieve the witness of embarrass ness and bosom," who lays down the ment, the young Lieutenant stuttered: axiom that "Knowledge is power," and "If you can't sa-sa-sa-say it, wri-ri-riwho utters that solemn warning to ri-iteit." enamored Benedicts, "He that hath a The face of the witness reddened with wife and children hath given hostages to anger. The Captain preceiving this fortune." quickly reproved the Lieutenant with We have the high authority of Sir "If you can't ta-ta-ta-talk plainly, keEdward Coke for declaring that "Cor ke-ke-keep quiet. Don't insu-su-su-sult porations have no souls," and that "A him by stut-tut-tut-tuttering." Then the Major to break their parley man's house is his castle." The expression "An accident of an cried, "Gentlemen." Then turning to accident" is borrowed from Lord Thur- the witness, he calmly said, adding in low. "The greatest happiness of the jury to insult: "If you can't sa-sa-sa-sa greatest number" occurs in Bentham, say the first name, sa-sa-sa-say the last but as an acknowledged translation one." The crowded room exploded with a from the jurist Beccaria. To Leviathan Hobbes we owe this roar. The old Colonel jumped to his maxim, "Words are wise men's counters, feet, and like a savage, above the shout but the money of fools." It is John Sel- ing tand laughter, yelled, "Orde-de-deden who suggests that by throwing a der : Orde-de-de-de-de-der! ' ' straw into the air one may see the way of the wind; and to his contemporary, ELLENBOROUGH'S SARCASMS Oxenstiern, is due the discovery "With how little wisdom is the world governed." FT IS said that Lord Ellenborough, as Mackintosh first used the phrase "A -I- Chief Justice of England, was piti wise and masterly inactivity." "The less in his severity to lawyers who scholmaster is abroad" is from a speech attempted to display eloquence while they lacked wit or brains. His sarcasms by Lord Brougham. In the familiar phrase "A delusion, were as frequent as they were terrible. a mockery, and a snare," there is a cer He interrupted one barrister, who, tain Biblical ring, which has sometimes soaring to a poetical flight, exclaimed, led to its being quoted as from one or "This may be found in the large volume other of the Hebrew prophets; the of nature," by saying, "Pray, at what words are, in fact, an extract from the page, sir?" An Irish barrister, beginning a fine judgment of Lord Denman at the trial figure about an eagle, was confused by of O'Connell.
