Newspapers / Gastonia Daily Gazette (Gastonia, … / Feb. 9, 1904, edition 1 / Page 1
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W. r. MAKSKALL, Editor ood Proprietor. VQL» XXV._ QA9TQNIA, N. C.. TUESDAY. FEBRUARY Q. 1004. A COURT THAT WAS BUSY. Reminiscences of • Gaston County Court Fifteen or Twenty Years Ago. J. T. BIOUAM, IK CHESTER LANTERN, FEB. 2. ****'■ " L T_-_-_-LV;1w IJI^,-1 —, ^1 — — ^ ui—i-u-u—u ~| 1~|-' LI 1-1J-L-T_nj A few days ago we mtdwsome remarks in this column descrip tive of the dilatory practices of our conrts, explaining the canse of the crowded dockets and the apparent need of more circuits, ana contending that the remedy {(.in the hands of onr judges, without increase of number. We did not say that even a majority of our present judges, however excellent men they may be, can apply the remedy. We donbt that we could onrself. if we had the necessary legal qualifica tions; we hardly think we could, fiat men should be elected judges who can answer tbe require ments. If they could cot be found in the state, then it might be necessary to supplement qual ity with number. In the article referred to we expressed a purpose to refer in a subsequent issue to examples we had seen of the dispatch of bnsineaa which were complete proof of onr contention. Here is one: Court was coming on, and John Doc was defendant in a case which had been continued a time or two, and Major Jones was his attorney. The latter wrote Doe an urgent letter and sent him messages by neighbors to come to town at once, as he mast see him on important busi ness. The client promptly ol»ey ed the summons and hurried Co his lawyer’s office. Mai. Jones laid down bis pen, turned on his chair scarcely wailing for an ex change of greetings, said, John old fellow, you’ll have to get up vonr witnesses in that case and have them all here promptly at the opening of court. Doc: What do you mean ? Jones: I mean that we've got to go to trial with that case at this term of conrt and if we don't take every advantage possible yon’ll be breaking rock down yonder at Raleigh before a month. Doe: Why, yon told me J needn’t bother about it: that you’d have it put off again and let it rock along till all the wit nesses on the other side were dead or in Texas. Jones: Yes, 1 know, but when 1 told you that I thought Judge Blank waa to preside, but old Clark is to be the judge, and that case is going to be tried as sure as the sun rises on the first Monday in October. I know it will pat you to some trouble to get. ready but better that than the penitentiary. Clark U im partial and all right but he’s not the sort of a judge we ueed in onr business just now. doc naa seen ail nia witnesses before he got home and they all answered when called in court. At tbe opening of court the jnrors were called, and one hav ing failed to answer, tbe crier was directed to call him. He started for the door, but was promptly stopped by the jndge, who said firmly, "Stand within the bar sod call in a tone dis tinct enough to be heard over tbe room. There will be no call ing from the door or windows. These seats are for tbe accom modation of person* who have buaiueaa with the court, and muat be reserved for them as far as necessary. They must be here when called. They are here to attend to public buaiueaa and not to trade or lounge around town. Every moment of oar time is paid for and it is an in justice to the county that one man be allowed to detain tbe whole court while waiting for him to be called in from tbe streets. Ur. Sheriff, you will tee that there is no noise or confus ion to interfere with tbe dispatch of business. ‘ ft* juror *u culled mrain as hud been directed, and having failed to anawer, the dark was ordered to eater "judgment nlai" with a Sue of $10. Several spectators tip-toed out of the room, evidently for the purpose, as appeared later, of waroiog friends who were wit nesses or otherwise connected with the court, and soon a dosen or mote men entered, with the tread of a cat, and took aeats. The electrical effect of the judge's little speech was aeen in the calling of wiloesses It pro ceeded that: "John Johns—” "here!" And Johasoa was oat (a the aisle and rushing toward the bar by the time the last syllable of bis name was prowoaneed. Before be got there, however, another witness • bad answered and was chasing him down the aisle, and a third was on the move. Witnesses, jnrors, lawyers and all who had duties to perform seemed to vie with one another in expediting the business in band. Bven the defendants appeared as if they bad caught the spirit and were content to compromise on get ting even justice, some of them " submitting” and throwing them selves upon the mercy of thfc court. It was cheering to see how business went through, and all parties seemed unusually well satisfied with resblts. We add an incident or two. Jonas Hoffman, the wealthiest man in the town and father ot one of the leading lawyers, was a juror or a witness, we have forgotten which. He kept a ho tel, and having many guests at that time, he turned a little too long after the recess for dinner one day. When he failed to answer to bis name, a fine of (10 was promptly imposed, sod the judge refused to modify the sen tence. at least np to the time of our latest information. Col. Sandifer had the largest practice in the county, and was attorney for one of the parties to a snit which was on trial at the time for the noon recess on an other day. It should be said that Judge Clark always required a clock to be placed in the court room, and when the time for the order of the day arrived that meant the prompt snspension of everything else, and when the time foT the regular bnsiness ar rived, it was resumed on the minute. On the day mentioned. Col. Saudifer was not in hia place at the minute court was called to order. The judge di rected that the trial proceed. Hia attention was called to the abs» nee of the attorney who alone represented one of the parties. The judge said that the busideas of conrt could not be delayed by the tardiness of per sons whose bnsioess it was to be there. That if those who occu pied prominent positions were not required to be prompt it would not be reasonable to re quire the less favored to be in their placet, therefore they should go on with the trial. The opposing counsel then plead with the judge, saying that this would place him in a very embarrassing position, that Col. S^ndifer was in very delicate health indeed, and he was snre he wonld be there iuat as soon as be could. Just then the missing attorney was seen coming and the judge, somewhat reluctantly, consented to wait nntil be got to bis place. It was credibly reported of Judge Clark that on one occa sion when be went to Ruther fordton, perhaps it it was to hold court, be reached the court a lew minutes late, on account of a train’s delay. His first act on taking bis seat was to direct the clerk to enter a fine of $50 against the presiding judge. The unanimous voice of the bar was raised in his behalf, bnt be promptly refused to hear any appeals in his own behalf. He said a time was set for court to open and it was the detv of every one who had bust ness there to be on time, and above all, the presiding lodge. He had taken the risk of depending on a train's schedule. That was hit concern, not the county's, sad he must pay the penalty as he wonld require others to do. Some nnfortnnate persons felt that Judge Clark imposed hard ships, but perhaps no judge ever rave more general satisfaction. He pot through the work of two or three average judges, and it was done incomparably better. Witnesses And jurors felt that they were in sa atmosphere where law was supreme, where prevarication was transparent and perjury dangerous. It ia wormy 01 remark that though apparently not concerned about "making a fine imprea aion" while on the superior court bench, Jndge Walter Clark ia to-day chief justice of North Carolina. The caae of John Doe firat kbove related ia an imaginary caae baaed on aubatantial facta. The incidents related are actual facta with real aatnea and can be substantiated by nnmeroui living witoeaaea. , The Bank of Chadbomn war chartered Seturday with capital stock $25,000. BOUGHT ELEPHANT CHEAP. Partner Poaoi Beast Undesirable tar Plowing. ChiUfU New*. "There was nothing to it,” said the senior clown. "I guess any gent that has been in the profession long enough to give anv sort of standing knows what it is to gaxe into the cold, un feeling face of a Deputy Sheriff and scan the hard lines of a writ of attachment. That’s what Darker did, and its what I’ve had to do before now. 1 was with him at the time. " He had no luck to boast of st the beginning of the tour—just euough to carry us along nearer to our doom. When we’d got beyond the reach of human aid as you might say, it came ou us thick and fast. We struck the warm ashes of two county fairs and a revival meeting, which seemed to go beyond the needs oT the natives in point of excite ment. At another town they wanted $100 for license and $50 for the grounds. Barker com* compromised at and free tickets for the members of the village board aud their families aud $5 and tickets to the owner of the grounds, but that was bad enough right then. After that Barker quit paying salaries end the next thing the advance agent telegraphed back for funds two towns ahead, and because he didn’t get ’em be went off with a Hungarian hand concert com pany, and by the time we worked up to the little blot on creation where he had been stranded we found nothing there bnt bis ho tel bill, with bar attachments, •nd a lack of enthusiasm on the part of the people that was marked. Barker made the best of it. as he. did of everything. He put on his plaid vest and an air of prosperity and hustled around among the inflnentia! business men. and it being pub lication day he got in reading notices aud cuts and editorial indorsements in the two news papers. Bnt it wasn't no use. We hadn’t finished the first per formance when they came in *nd attached the whole show, receipts first. There wasn’t a chance to hold ont. " Barker explained right there that it was a foolish proceeding and that if they allowed the per formances to go on that he could satisfy all claims, bnt they were not open to conviction. Then Barker had a talk with a bright young lawyer there and he got the monkeys out as the individ ual property of Joe Simmons, and it seemed that the horses and the costumes were all owned by the performers. I found I owned two of the best in the outfit that I’d forgotten all about pnrehas ing from Barker, besides my trick mule. But where Barker fell down was on the elephant, which, aa he said, was almost as bad as If the elephant'had fallen on him. t I hat there auimile, he says, belongs to that gent there, as is a Prince in bis own country and owns herds of ’em”. He points to AH Baba, the saddle-colored Hindoo that took care of the ele phant. " I guess you don’t own none of this show,’ says the sheriff kind o' sarcastic. "Yea,* says Barker, ‘I own the tent and that there staffed Hon. That ought to be enough to sat isfy your bill. "If be can show the papers for it it’s all right," says the sheriff. Here, yon dago, does that elephant belong to you?" "All Baba shook hit head sort of monrnfntly. " ‘That fettles it’ says the sheriff. ‘I guess we’ll take the elephant.’” " .'It seems to tne as if dey’d have held the horses too if dey’d had any sense. Dry oogbt to hfve made Barker show the papers for dem,” observed Frencby.’ "So they ought,” agreed the senior clown. "Maybe they would have, oAly the bright young lawyer got ’em rcnleviocd Without a bond and the boys hustled them 40 miles over the state line over night. They bad to leave the elephant ont on ac count of him not being able to travel fast enough. Anyway they sold Mr. Blepbaut at pub lic auction, and he was bid in by a farmer for $40. The fariher was under tl)e influence, I guess, when he made the bid, but aa soon as be sobered up be said he calculated he'd get that tnnch work out of him. "Barker and me and Ali Baba went over the day after to see how he waa getting along with the fall plowing. I was uiad when Darker proposed going. I told him I should think he'd be atudyln’ some way of gettio' out of the country alive. He’d told nse be hadn’t got $10 left to bis name. ‘Unless I should happen to meet with aoine of the boya with the horses at Topeka.’ he says with a wink, 'and they should be kind enough to set up in busineis again with a loan of their stock.’ " ‘As for that little trip out to the farmer,' he aays, ‘I’m going to get pointers on the circus business I’ve been talking with Ali Baba and I gather tfaere.s going to be a circus there.’ "When we left town Barker was carrying his valise and Ali Baba and me both bad our bundles. We looked aa if we were on the tramp, sure enough. " ‘We won’t walk far," saya Barker as wc got near the farm. 'Listen to that!’ ’It sounded tike a steam calliope gone craxy. Ali Baba's facecurlcd up’into a grin. " ‘It’s begun already.’ says Barker. 'It’s tbe elephant trumpeting. Walk up. ladies and gents. Admission free for this occasion. Walk up! Walk up!’ 'We broke ioto a r»n and when we got into the farmer's barnyard there was a circus. Hire enough. The farmer was up in a butternut tree and his hired tuan was climbing another aod they were both yelling at the tops of their voices. There was a wagon box on the ground or some splinters that had been a wagon box and the elephant was standing in the middle of them singing his song of triumph. * ‘Stop him before he does any worse, AH’, says Baker, and the Hindoo steps np and jnst addresses a remark tu the elephant in bis native tongue ana he stops trumpeting and lets his trank hang limp and stands there flapping his ears and looking as meek as skim milk. " ‘You can come down out of that tree now,' Barker sings out to the farmer. ” ‘Not while he’s anywhere within a mile o' me.' saya the farmer. 'Can't you take him away? You can have him cheap. v‘ ‘I ain't buyin’ elephants,' says Barker, 'but I’ll take him away and off your hands for a dollar to you in hand paid, re ceipt of which you will hereby acknowledge.’ “ ‘It's a go,’ says the farmer, ‘but take him away first.’ "So Barker told Ali to move liim off a piece and old mahog any loaded on' Barker’s valise and the bundles and I got on be hind and we proceeded down to the road and waited. In about 10 rainntes Barker cornea up waving a bill of sale to that $2, 000 elephant which he'd got for a dollar. Yes, we rode 80 miles through the country to Topeka on that elephant, the three of ns. When the elephant got hungry we'd turn him into a cornfield and let him browse off an acre or so and we bought grub at the farms we passed for ourselves. It took us four days, but we got in all right and we were the sensation of the hour— several of ’em. "Barker met a man be knew1 and gave him a choice line of talk and the next thiug they went down to the bank and two days after we gave our first per formance in a bran-new tent that wai bigger than the other and didn't hold half the people that wanted to come in. We stayed a week and in that week we made good and squared up everything. I tell you Barker was a genius. But he would lie. Of the 43 applicants for law licenm before the Supreme court at Raleigh a few days ago. 36 sdccesafnlly stood the examina tion. JU'-1—awe—■■! MB. WILLIAMS OR SILVEB. Minority Udw’i Views As* eeptsd m a Osad Bodes el lbs Party SssHsmsI. N.w Yock Ttmt*. It is quite idle, thourh entire ly proper, for Mr. John Sharp Williams, of Mississippi, to de clare that he spealu only for himself and not as the leader of the Democratic party in the House in his statements as to the silver coinage issue. A man who leads, and whose avowedly personal declarations arc receiv ed with applause by tbe Repre sentatives see ns toned to follow him, is in fact a leader. He may avoid formal responsibility for his party by disclaiming author ity to speak for it in tkia matter. He did not and cannot escape acceptance by bis party, and no one can rob him or rob his party of credit for sagacity and patri otism in the position he has de fined. That position ia that the sil ver issue is dead. He does not confine himself to saying that it is a hopeless Issne for his party. On the contrary, we may infer that if be thought that the iutercsta of the country and the rights of the people would best he served by the double stan dard he would still press for it. But he avers bis belief that "God in His Wisdom has fixed for silver and gold the same law that ruled with respect to the price of cotton, or corn, or a ballet dancer or a singer, and that is the law of supply and de mand." Under the operation of that law the issue of the unlimi ted coinage of silver has been "relegated to the past” as com pletely aa the issue of secession. That is equivalent to aaying that the policy of free silver is no longer ooe that the country will have anything to do with, and is mo longer one that could possibly benefit the whole country or say considerable section of it. Thu is oot conversion in the ordinary sense of the term, or anything like it, bat It is a process that leaves Mr. Williams as good a sound-money uian as be ia a loyal citisen of the United coun try. This manly and wholesome talk front the leading Democrat of the South is particularly grati fying because it. indicates that one more element of sectional ism in our politics is disappear ing by the operation of benefi cent forces. During the trying period from about 1877 to 1898 the silver issue was practically a Sonthern issue. That section alone was to all intents united with regard to it, and this unity was largely due to the relatively unprosperous condition of the South. The so-called "debtor clast" was dominant in the poli tics of the section and hungered for "cheap” money in which to pay their debts. To-day the South is as prosperous as any part of the country, and insists that the debts due to it be paid in money of the best. The ques tion of money and the question of the standard of valne and the maintenance of national and commercial credit are no longer sectional. They have been set tled. and the South is as glad of it ns its best men are glad that the question of secession has been settled. Mr. Williams speaks the convictions of hia people in his manly and sensible utterances. S. Hil) Terry, charged with the murder of bis son-in-law, George Tate Bland nt Wilming ton last September, committed suicide in his cell in the county jail at Wilmington Wednesday afternoon using a caae knife to cut his throat. Hia trial was to take place at an early date. Royal Baking Powder Save* Health Savetwoney mvm. >«aiwo MMrooa Mu uw ram. [February Fancies In Ladles* Furnishings. ’ «”*• “* Gl~w~•lfc - “c Wb*t* Good*, plain and mercerized, 10c to SOc. Bro wtt U&caa, 15c to hr. Wakt Length*. 3 yard*, per pattern. 50c to $2. Ribbons. Here:we have .choice and beautiful selection. Plain and fan cy. all width* and shades, 2He to 50e. Laces and Embroideries. Real Lines Torchon Lace* par yard, 5c, to 15c. ImhMionlWhon per ran! le tel&. . B ns broideries, Swiss, Nainsook asd Cambric, Scto JOe. Corsets. to the faMM w!/b! ttSS&SSSBOsr JAS. F. YEAGER. ____.. I We bay* in atock a nice aaaoctneat of loUowiar. ADnra» teed to be fini-daaa: SALAD OIL. CLOVES. CINNAMON. SPICE. CAYENNE AND BLACK PEPPER. COLEMAN'S MUSTARD ENGLISH MUSTARD. TURKEY DRESSING. LEMONS. S83 LEMON, VANILLA. PINEAPPLE. ORANGE, ALMOND. EXTRACTS. SILVER POLISH. SOAP. I Pbomc ns yonr order* *»d wt will do tW to*. ADAMS DRUG COMPANY :: Vm TUt Minor. Who Snro Do Arm to Sort Hto Friend. NwVort TrilMM William S. Crouch, who regia tow from Tacoma. Wash., to staying st the Grand Hotel. The subject of heroic action in the presence of disaster being under discussion in the hotel lobby a few days ego, Mr. Crouch contributed the delude of an in* cident that came tinder kia ob servation. "It was about three years ago,” said be. "that three men were enraged m tin king a ■baft on n mining claim Hi a dis trict north of Spokane. Two men were at the bottom of the abaft, while the third was eta windlass used to hoist the ore. The windlass man hod toned the crank until the backet, weighing, with content*. 250 panada, bad conae above Ac opening. and while he seas about to swing it out to the surface the windlass creak handle broke and in an instant tne Docket waa ■tatted downward with seeming promise of certain death to hu two trustful ’pardoera' at the bottom of the abaft, lot the man at tba windlass threw the brake, a erode device h«»pdsd &ssr&sreZg rope. It snapped and broke— jt bad failed, and at the crucial instant when tba men at the bottom of the abaft mnat have felt the apecter of approaching death near enoogfa to wMtptr their mortal sentence, tbs nan at the wiodlaaa throat hia fiat in to the whirring cog*, that minc ed it into pulp aod coetiaaed their revolatfcma. He waa will ing to give bit arm if tbesaeri i3E«i teeth inch bv Inch, until he had thrust hu shoulder against the bitiog iron end stopped the windlass. The mining boss MW the closing scene of the heroic drama, and in tones of earnest sympathy he said, as he poiated to the bleeding wreckage of tn arm end a shortened sboeldsr '£St^'3i£& the lelf-focgetfulnea. of faU he roitinin action, the adaniT "***£ Oh,thrt[*all light if ■*»o; inl'ttea SaEknbh al^^s^-pSsSs: been waded long and loud.”
Gastonia Daily Gazette (Gastonia, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 9, 1904, edition 1
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