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About Weekly Oregon statesman. (Salem, Or.) 1900-1924 | View Entire Issue (May 30, 1905)
O- ( j - -4 " MO 1 7 em rr rr rr r 'f i n trr li (Written by D. W. Craig for the Stm- " day Statesman.) - la 1652 the "Umted State aapreme court a composed of nine judges, as . at ' present, , namely, K. B. Taney, of !, Maryland, chief justice, with, associate jnstiees as follows: McLean of Ohio, Wayne of Georgia, Grier -of Pennsyl vania, MeKinley of Kentucky, -Catron : f Tennessee, Daniel of "Virginia, Nel : sSn of New Yorkr Curtis of Massaehu . setts the last named having been ap- pointed the year before by President rlllinorc. . It will . be seen that there were five judges from the slave-holding . states and four from the free states. ' 1 M !x !il .1 i; . . - 4o - cvbioxbuij.' wiu xne ' pouey ox n; south to : keep a majority from that . section of the Union on the bench, in order to proteet -the institution of slavery. Chief Justice Taney (pro nouneed Tawney) was about seventy six years of age, and "by lawyers gen erally was regarded as a. prof ound jur ist and a worthy, successor of the learned " Marshall. 114 was : tall in. stature, with a noble countenance, that must save been magnificent in his prime, but' now, through infirm health and the feebleness incident to old agfl ft2 was - pale - and waa,( and his-voice somewhat weak. But- his eye had lost none if :'its wonted brightness, nor his xnini any of its clearness. lie presid ed with dignity, aud Lis manner- as a judge was most kind ind deferential, especially-to young advocates who ap peared before the court for the first time. It was pleasing po note his aod of approval to the argument of a some what embarrassed young lawyer, who was no doubt-sot at eate by this at teat ion of the chief justice. Justice 2JeLean of Ohio was a large man, with a countenance that indicated the ma jesty: of bis intellect,! worthy to be classed with that of paniel Webster. Justice Curtis, of ' Massachusetts, al though, it was his first term upon the bench, looked like a fine jurist, which he afterward proved bjimself to be in many a learned opinion, lie. was the youngest member on te bench, being about forty years of -4g- TJe other justices were regarded as fair lawyers, and Wayne- was called by some the 'Georgia Lull,", from! the roughness with which he brought up counsel with a round turn, when be happened to be presiding,' regardless ' of" theirpromi nenee or standing. The justices ; all wore long -black' gownsi which reached f rem their shoulders tor the floor, when ' court was 4a' session, giving them a dig nified and impressive appearance, though a lawyer fronk the- west, on bsholdng-the court f on the first time, said they looked like, p row of mumr mies just imported from Egypt, on ex hibition, ' The - attorney ceneral was5 John J. CrUtenden-of Kentucky, whom to, see .once : was never to - forget; and the clerk Of. theeourjt, . Carroll of Maryland- a 'near relative of him of the Declaration. The venerable erier of the court jrrns,n.ot pss unmentionecl, who attracted, the attention oi strang ers by the solemn and-jfantastic manner in which with a ldpd lotto BO deliber ately uttered: ,' 0 yaya O yay! O yay! the honorable the supreme court of the United States is jnow in session. - ATI those "who have eaaifte in this eonrt will now attend, and hear them dis posed of 1" and then, in a lower tone lisfdded, "God save the Constitution of tho United States and this honor- Bii OYER We L . 1 1 ITCH ELL Far in the 219. 229, 237 .... Mi able court! V There, were other officers, but they were not in sight, unless oc casion called ?f or their presence. K The room ia whieo the eonrt met was in the basement, immediately under the senate chamber. This was in the old eapitol, before the enlargement of the building. .To j-each" the room from the rotunda, it -was necessary to go through a winding -dark hall, 'do.wa a flight of stairs, ' along ' massive archways, on which was - supported - Joe structure above. At last you came 'into the court room,'" which accorded weJl with-.-the body that held its sessions there sol emn, dignified, . sublime. ' It was not large, but ample-for the purpose. The floor where the eonrt sat was raised above that of the rest of the room about one foot and a half. Jn front of the court was something in the shape of a counter, nearly two feet wide, closed in front, oh top of which could be laid books or other- documents, and under and behind which re t fully reclined the judicial legs la f tonx of "this eonnteri which might be called the beneh . of justice, or possibly the bed of justice, was a hjeavy walnut railing about four feet in front of the, -dais,0uwLieh- the court sat. It was strongly fastened to the floor. What was the object of such a heavy railing, no ,one .could jteU- Cr tainlv not to prevent counsel front pitching . into - the court. ; Probably it was only ornamental, in keeping with the solid character of the. place. The adornments of' therooni were of the plainest character. On projeetions, in full view of the judges on the bench, were three bust in marble ; of Totmer chief justices,- in which were exj-ressed the serene coentenanee of Jay, the mas sive jaw of Ellsworth and the farmer like face of MarsbalL On the wall in front hung a large clock that ndtedj the passing hours, ana near rr, as a constant remembrance to the court, jus tice was personified in a beautiful mar ble figure of Themis. Such is a sufficient description of the highest court in the republic of the United 8tates of Amerca, as it -was lifty years ago and more in whieh jus tice was ; judicially administered, as saith my Lord Coke. As a necessary ad junet of the court, a prison was located in the bidden depths of the eapitol basement, not far Lf rom the Crypt, lese forbidding than the Mamertme, but equally aa secure, in this dnngeon were immured unfortun ate offenders against anv of the bodies holding sessions in the "building. In opening the court, as we have not ed, the. crier called oa those who had causes to be heard to attend. There was one notable instance in which an individual who had a V cause ' to be heard did not attain that privilege, but Was himself " summarily disposed of with out a hearing. As the writer of this was cognizant of the proceeding, he will describe it with some particularity of detail, as it relates to a spectacle which, like that of udi Seculares, the present age never saw before,' and .in an lkelihood it will never see again.- . It was" Wednesday, the 2d day of March, 1853, two days preceding tlje inauguration of President-elect Pierce, and just four years and four days prev ious to the rendering of the Dred Scott decision, by the name court, with one exception McKinley of Kentucky dead, and Campbell of Alabama in his stead. The approaehing . inauguration uality w Are Counts In the purchase of a Carriage price is not the only factor. You can buy "queer" dollars for 60c but you can't pass them vcrv long.- You can buy cheap bug gies but they won't last long. For genuine worth' and low prices, quality considered, you will find the ABCOCK OEE LINE" Lead of tclse State Streets was drawing intiny visitors to the city and the court mem had more xnan tne usual number bfi spectators. "Among the lawyers present within the . bar were John J. Crittenden, attorney genera x the United Statds; Beverdy Johnson ef Maryland, thea eminent, lawyer and statesman; Joseph Bradley of the Dis trict (net "Aliunde Joe"); Albert Pike, the poet, from Arkansas; Ovid f. Johnson, from , Texas, who bore the title of "General.! from having onee been attorney, general at Pennsylvania; and a number of others. Several ladies were to be seen, among them Mrs. Myra Clark Gaines, the polite and pertina cious suitor, against the. city of New Orleans. ; - . ; ; The usual time for adjournment was at hand, s Some confabulation there was between the chief justice and eouaseL as to the. cause, fox the next day, and then, the former announced that as there was so further- business -for the day the court would take an adjourn ment. He was on the point of giving his usual nod , to the crier, who stood waiting the signal, Vhen a tall gen tleman, dressed in black, arose from one of the seat Aside the bar, stepped put in front of the court, and, after addressing a' few words to the chief justice, began to read, in a loud voice, the following - document, holding the paper in his left hand his right hand resting upon the railing in front: - (Proclamation.) " S. a BoorS) Capitol, U. -1 - - "March 2, 1853. " "May it please the eourt, I have business of extra importance a mo- A w!11 mffA. - '. UICII V VV Ul huum. 1 am - the ' Lord 's elect servaat, . bringing? forth judgment to the Gen- tiles. I am the "Disciple of King Jesus; bringing 'forth judgment anto 'iYnth.-' t I aia the son -given to set judgment in the ejrth. Jesus i my God-father. 1 am to 'inherit all things' promised to the Messiah. "The Federal- government is - .dead constitutional, judged official, and damned' scriptural (2d Thess. 2:12), for murder and blasphemy in perjury. I- i Perjury official, ia. the establish ment of injustice and the extension and perpetuation of despotism nation alized. - "Murder official, in the illegal slaughter of the Mexican people. , "Blasphemy, in the setting an act of the damned above the statutes of Jehovah. . "Let the judges confess the sins of the Confederacy upon the head of that son of Komej'Koger B. Taney, Chief Injustice. ! Let i confession begin methodically with the senior di?nitarv of the earth, the Hon. John-McLean. " 'Be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear,' and rejoiee with trembling. Kiss the -Son, lest he ; be angry, and yo perish the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed all they who put their trust in him.' "The Prince of Peace, 'The Constitutional Citizen, - ' . "Bees E. Price." At first the chief justice looked sur prised, but, after listening a few sec onds to the reading, he ordered the 'intervenor" to ait down. The latter, ignoring the-interruption, kept on read ing. The chief justice then called on tne erier to "remove this man." In-! agons . mmy- - ' ""t ' ' ' ' "" Salenri fifty-lfiye Eighteen New Fifteen-Rlew SI abouts Tw Wit Eight The Acme HatTow, Glod Crusher and . Size Ko. twtdve enrve4 " IOI tWTJ Dorses. Das east stel ' coulters. ' simnlemtned . bv flat " east stsl Crush! each - coulter is curved to the left, while the rearward half is curved to the riirht. ifcn forming . dnnKlA rramr. By this arranjrertcnt of coulters the whole surface of the ground Is cat, lifted and turned. The gang bars may be made rigid, when desired, by means of braces provided for that purpose. The No. 23 is adapted to both heavy -anl -light soils. While very strong, it is extremely light, and is therefore susceptible of doing light surfaeo work, such as-" finishing off for seeding, forking onion beds, truck gardens, etc, which heavy harrows cannot do because of their ' great weight. When covering grain'or doing heavy work, the Jo. -23 may be weighed with 23 to 60 pounds, in the . shape of a bag of earth, log, or pieee of railroad iron, aad when so weighted it will do soils as the heaviest styles. No. 3 is provided with a scat and has a short draft pole feet Wide an3 weighs aboat 125 pounds. ,Wj) furnish spring teeth with this style when ewEs SALEM BRANCH stantly that officer started to obey the summons, lie took hold of the intrud er by the arm, who heeded him not, but still continued to read- Two other bailiffs followed, and anon a fourth of ficer rushed to their assistance. They ail began pulling and tugging at the man; who clutched a firm hold of the heavy railing, and successfully resisted the united efforts of four valiant and vigorous . officers to force him sway. The intruder, in the meantime, began reading with accelerated speech, in or der to finish before he' should.be'over powered. The determined officers, however, did not slacken'- in their ef forts to release the firm grasp of the stranger from the railing, which began to creak and show signs of giving way under the violent strain to which it, was now subjected. With remarkable pres ence of mind " one of ' the bailiffs snatched away the document that the Stranger was endeavoring to :read Bauer-such 1 discouraging circumstances. This act naturally disconcerted the man, and also . materially assisted the officers in their attempt toTemove him. At last their efforts proved successful, and, amid much din and uproar, they tore down the railing, and, with the noise of shuffling feet and the mutter ing of. threats and curses, they bore away the sacrilegious intruder in tri umph. x r .. Chief Justice Taney was,, to all ap pearances, badly "frightened, and his countenance during this' scene was a study. - His . usually placid features turned, pale and the pallor increased as- the read ins? progressed. He looked as if the dawning o the Dies. Irae had come upon a . sorrowing ana smiul world, and the specter before him the apocalyptic angel proclaiming the end of time. Ilia lace at first snowea won der, .then surprise, then indignation, then consternation, as tne looseneu ran in c came down on the floor with a Great and clattering crash. As the of ficers hurried, the now helpless and un resisting stranger out of the uar, ana through the vaulted archways, the- voice of the chief justice was heard amul the uproar, as he tremulously shouted to the bailiffs to "take him to jail! and keep him there!" x The officers needed no further injunction,, and they hustled the poor culprit along, with as little consideration as was ever accorded to one "of Fouquier-Tinville 's victims. As it happened, the crisis of the struggle took plaee right in the vicinity of the ladies ..seated within the sacred pre einets of the law. They arose simul taneously, with the usual feminine ejaculations, and, when the noise oi tne I falling timbers was heard, they looked iaround. trpnidation Mn their eounten- around, trepidation Mn their eounten anees, as if all nature was suffering shipwreek and the eapitol itself tumb ling m rums. Ana tnen, to cap tne climax', "as if in harmony with the solemnity of the scene, the faithful old clock upon the wall dolefully tolled the hour of three! During the vrholj thfsextr&ordin ary" proceeding 4lt Cfticf justice Was the only one of all the court that lost his dignttyy. in frig rell-meant effort to uphold that much. admired quality. The associate justices sat mute and unmoved, seemingly content to. let Taney, soli tary and alone,' contend with the un known man.' - The jlattr 'a manner, in addressing the 'court, ' was quiet and respectful. " There "nave been judges,, Styles to Styles end IT 1 Me aa tvles of Run- Styles of Surries two Wrought iron flpxil.lrt tnl.nlar' F. F. Staiv sueh as David Davis of Illinois an 1 - Baisa of Oreson who would . seen at a glance that the intruder fwas a harmless enthusiast and, as -ctsurt was about to adjourn, wouia nave re mirMl his messaee ouictly. with a promise to give it due. eonsbleratflon, etc ! Judicial dignity could not Wave suffered a violent - wrench ty sucra a When the crier reached the door of tne -court worn he left to the pther officers the care of the prisoner ani re turned - to his accustomed . place, m hen the day session was decorously J dis solved the justices going to theix re spective homes, the bailiffs to s ctcure the prisoner and repair damages, i Investigation brought out- the fact that the hapless individual who haid' in vaded the dignity of the court was j Gen. Bees E. Price of Cincinnati, whoJ .had come to Washington for the purpofce of dissolving the supreme court of the United States, in order to prevenjt the inauguration of Franklin Pieni as president. - iJver since the nnne:f -tion of Texas in 1845 he. had been at Irvari anee with the government. On theV 27th of May ( 1832, he went into the gsillcry of the house of representatives, aod in a loud voice read a proclamation dis solving that body. The doorkjeeper put htm out. He eould find no cppor tunity to. thus treat the senate J but some time afterward he sent a wiitten message to the presiding officer, od' the same purport as that to the Inouse. When the two houses met in joint! ses sion on the second Wednesday of Feb ruary, 1853, and, after counting the electoral votes, declared . Franklin Pierce elected president of the United btates for four years from the 4fb of March next ensuinc Gen. . Price saw that bis only course now was to 'dis solve the supreme court, ana tuns tne chief justice could not legally admin ister the oath of omee. rnen ionoweu the scene on-the 2d of March, in the eourt room, in which Price was over powered and sent to mil. Gen. 'Price was a wealthy citizen -of Cincinnati, and lived in a fine three- story mansion on Plum street, on the hither side of the Bhine, from which, across a vacant square, could be seen that beautiful specimen of ehurch ar chitecture, the Boman Catholic eathe draL lie was fifty-eight years of age, and had a family of grown-up children. He had held every office in the state militia of Ohio, from captain up to brigadier general. He was sane on every subject exclpt that of religion, but in this he was as much a zealot as Cromwell or Prynne. In temporal af fairs he styled himself the ' Const itu tional Citizen," in religious matters he was the " Theocrat-elect of God." lie was a kind and generous neighbor, and had peculiar notions of honesty, as will be seen on reading the next paragraph. While in Washington, Gen. Price stopped at a boarding house kept by a widow woman, on the north side of Pennsylvania avenue, within a stone's throw of . the eapitol gate. His .wife accompanied him. Gen. Ovid F. John son, ar noted lawyer from Texas, was boarding at the same house, and wit nessed the fracas in 'the court room. When Price was sent to jail by Taney's order, Johnson interested himself to obtain his release. Taney at first was inexorable and positively refused to set the culprit at liberty, in a few 3C era Select from Just In Bike Wagons Leveler J Kir arwl i s!f n tr Rnura. Th forward fiat as thorough or bale It desired. execution in hard works about 6 ' er kave ttira quart CAREY, MANAGER days, however, Johnson so worked on the. chief justice as to mollify him somewhat, particularly when he repre sented the distress-of Mrs. Price, and Tanev finally consented to the release of . Price, after a confinement of days in prison, "For this service John son eharged Price the moderate fee.of one ."hundred dollars. The 'latter ac knowledged 'the claim." but, instead of paying the lawyer, ' he , handed the amount over to the landLady, to whom Johnson was indebted that sum. and more for board and lodging. This act of "justice" ton the part of Price, was not to the liking of -tho lawyer,' and a icy coolness was tho result on the part of the lawyer toward his client and landlady.; -- Hon. George II." WllliamSi at that time a circuit judge of Iowa and af terward of Oregon, was 'in Washington and boarded- at the same house where Gen. Price did. Perhaps he was pres ent in tho court room, an - interested spectator of'the scene above descriled, so inharmonious probably with a Hawk eye's ideas of judicial decorum. Price's greatest subjects of com plaint against the government were the annexation of Texas, the war with Mexico and the fugitive slave act. These formed the tbree' counts ia the indictment which he presented to the supreme court, and in the documents which he sent to the house and the senate. But his most remarkable fc.it, and that which endangered -life, oc curred in the spring of 1S4S. The seri ate had under consideration a resold tion congratulatory of the establish ment of a republic in France, and. Sen ator Allen of Ohio ("Foghorn") was speaking in favor of the same. This was in the old senate chamler. lriee got into the reporters' gallery,'- just overhead and' back of the vice-protd-dcnt'n chair sad. not lilrfnor Alln j , .is political course, be clambered down I s for Infants and Children, The Kind Ton Have Always Bought lias borne the signa ture of Chas. II. Fletcher, and has been made under his personal supervision for over 30 years. Allow no one to deceive you In his. Counterfeits, Imitations and Just-asg:ood are but Experiments, ai.d endanger the health of Children Experience against Experiment. TheKind Tou Have" Always Bought V9 Bears the Irii Use For Ovil 30 Years, T ff crsrrsiUBt eowtwv, tt ssmwv rsrT, Rrw cT. I imp . f Badger Spring Tooth Harrow No holes in teeth. Ik'st strel framc absolutely rigid, iloing inore rf feetual work onco over than a cheap, poorly coDstruetol harrow will !' twice over. Only three runners, one ia center. No clogging or choking. If you get a Badger you get tho best. . -. 15 and 17-toothj 2 sections; wUIghl 260 pounds, 23-tootb, 3 sections; weight 390 pounds." ' We are proud to refer to. the following satis fied users of the "Acme:" Krebs Broa.... 7 L It. Roberts. 1 . . . - - - AI Jerman 2 Louis Lachmund Sc. Va. - l Jacob 8char............ ............. 1 II. C Richert. 1 Jeff Pooler 1 Tetcr Peterson 1 Al J. Patton M.M.M.....:.... l 1 , T. A. Llvesley t Co-................l Coioioa to the narrow platform which surpnrt. ed the canopy over the presiding f. ficer's chair, and, dinting to Allt-n loudly protested against a criminal speaking for the state of Ohio on that sixt question. He was rescued from hi is from which ho was released after a! confinement of seventeen days. From the foregoing facts 'it will U seen that Bees il Price of Ohio u for five years a persistent visitor st the eapitol, until he hail "dissolve.' all the departments of the government He even called oitPrci.lnt Fillmora' who politely received him, heard hi views, and promised to consider thnu. But, after his strenuous and unsurcfsj. ful encounter withhold Taney Le alaa done.1 Washington forever. . DEEDS RECORDED. The following real estate transfers ' aggregating the .consideration of j! have been filed for record in the office of the Marion county recorder: ltS H Sn.l II lll.M-k. .Ii.a.U Watt's addition I - 1 to ha km: ' w. d. L D.. Jfrmsu to I. Durbin, lot 5, and part of lot 6, bhx-k 61. . ctaiem; w. u 1,100 J. J. Taylor to A. Tanson, ll.MI acres in t 7 s, r 1 w; w. d.. . . . T, . t'rabtree et ux to J. and M. Mielke, land in St ay ton-; w. d.. 1,003 Jl. and M. K. Alasncv to F. W. Waters, lots 8 to 14, bl-k G'. K. K. Wild's addition to North Halcm; w. d W. II. and A. Brvsn to It. Curl, land in Jefferson; w. d... 75 J W." Waterman et al to CM. Hmith, land in Marion county; q. c d. j Total ....$3,120 nj InS I Signature of m. DC Them Salem, Oregon ey