Luther Martin. as Patrick Henry was; he was not a great statesman, as Thomas Jefferson was; he was not a great philosopher, as Benjamin Frank lin was : but he was essentially a great law yer, and as such, he has never been surpassed, and seldom equalled. The triumphs at the bar are generally tran sient, and but two cases in which Luther Martin was engaged attained an historical interest and importance. The first of these was the impeachment trial of Judge Chase, one of the justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, accused of malfeasance in office. The trial began on the 4th of Feb ruary, 1804, and took place in the Senate Chamber, the senators being the judges; and Aaron Burr, Vice-President of the United States, presided over the august court with a grace, a dignity, and an impartiality which won praise even from his enemies. The Chamber was crowded every day of the trial by all the dignitaries of the nation, and all the foreign ambassadors, while one of the galleries was filled with beautiful women. It was a splendid field in which to display learning and eloquence, and Luther Martin established his fame as the greatest of liv ing lawyers, during this celebrated trial. It lasted from February 4 to March 1, when, after a powerful argument by Mr. Martin, Judge Chase was acquitted, being the first and last justice of the Supreme Court that ever was impeached. Still more celebrated was the trial of Aaron Burr, when Luther Martin appeared as the leading lawyer for the defence. Burr remembered Martin's splendid and success™l defence of Judge Chase, and when he got into trouble, secured his services. He displayed so much zeal, energy, and activity ii the cause of his celebrated client that Thomas Jefferson asked George Hay, the Prosecuting attorney, whether the Government should " move to commit Luther Martin as particeps criminis of Burr; " and the President of the United States goes on to denounce Martin as "an unprincipled and impudent Federal bull-dog." Having failed
to prove a single overt act' of treason on the part of Burr, the prosecution was about to introduce indirect and collateral evidence, when the counsel for the defence very promptly and properly objected; and a de bate on this question took place, which lasted nine days. It has been pronounced the finest display of legal knowledge and ability of which the history of the Amer ican Bar can boast. The question was whether, until the fact of a crime is proved, anything may be heard respecting the guilty intention of the person accused. The coun sel for the defence contended, first, that no overt act had been committed; and secondly, if any overt act had been committed, the evi dence pointed to Blennerhassett as the prin cipal, and to Burr as a possible accessory. It was during this debate that William Wirt made his famous defence of Blennerhassett, which became a favorite piece of declama tion with ambitious schoolboy orators, and did more to make and keep Aaron Burr odi ous than anything ever written or spoken of him. Luther Martin took a foremost part in this debate, and its result was the acquittal of Burr. During the whole course of the trial Martin had proved himself the true friend of his client. Not only did he defend him with learning and eloquence, but day after day he entered into a recognizance for his appearance; and when Burr was ac quitted, he invited him to his house in Bal timore, where he was entertained with princely hospitality. After this great legal victory Luther Mar tin was appointed a judge in Baltimore, and in 1.8 18 he again became Attorney-General of Maryland; but his declining health ren dered the duties too much for him, and an assistant was assigned, who did most of the work. Finally, he had to resign; and when Aaron Burr heard that his old friend and defender was poor and helpless, he invited him to his house in New York, where he kept him in comfort and dignity until his death on the 10th of July, 1826, aged eighty-two years.
